Music Monday 42

This is a post that you can participate in on every Monday. Everyone likes music, and there are obviously many tastes in music. This is here to see what different types of music are filling everyone's lives. Chime in!

As a worship leader, I have the privilege and responsibility to create a setlist of songs for my church to sing every Sunday, so...

If you were in charge of the setlist for your church this week, what songs would they sing?

I answer this every week in my worship confessional, so this post is all about YOU.


your turn...

Worship Confessional 09.26.10

Setlist with itunes links:
I Am Free
Mighty to Save
Our God
You Never Let Go

Flow Sheet from Planning Center

Also part of Sunday Setlist.

"Restless"

Beautiful song...

Want or Need: CELL PHONE

In an ever-growing materialistic society, it's becoming more difficult to distinguish the difference between what we really want and what we really need. It's time for you to weigh in on this discussion. It's real simple...is it a want or a need?

CELL PHONE

WANT or NEED?

Word Wednesday.::113

Word Wednesday is posted every Wednesday. Each week I post a scripture that I've read that week that has spoken to me in a fresh way. I believe that if we read God's Word every day, He will give us at least one scripture every week that will impact us. Sharing Scripture with each other is like iron sharpening iron. Leave a comment and share a scripture that has impacted you this week.

Here's the scripture that stuck this week:

Jeremiah 17:9-10 The Message

9-10"The heart is hopelessly dark and deceitful,
a puzzle that no one can figure out.
But I, God, search the heart
and examine the mind.
I get to the heart of the human.
I get to the root of things.
I treat them as they really are,
not as they pretend to be."


I always tell people to be honest with God, because he already knows the truth.

What's your Word?

Acid Evangelism

So, evidently the tragic story of Bethany Storro getting attacked by acid was just a big lie. Not to make light of this, but I would threw it on my arm or something....definitely NOT MY FACE. Obviously, there are some deep psychological issues, and it actually scares me that people lie like this just as much as it scares me that there are perpetrators who do the actual attacking.
The icing on the cake is that she claims that she did it in the name of Jesus. She said on her facebook page that she did it to "inspire people and tell them about Jesus..." This is called using the Lord's name in vain, and that's kind of a big deal to God...i.e. the ten commandments. Don't get me wrong. My point is not to condemn this poor lady, but to challenge us to be careful of associating the name of Jesus with things. Even if we're wrong, people will here, associate, and believe, and just like that, they receive a false picture of our Savior. Hopefully, Bethany can recover from this and be restored to a more true disciple of Jesus, or maybe actually discover Jesus.

Click here to see the whole news story.

Music Monday 41

This is a post that you can participate in on every Monday. Everyone likes music, and there are obviously many tastes in music. This is here to see what different types of music are filling everyone's lives. Chime in!

It's always fun to find new artists or albums that no one has really heard yet, and watch them slowly become realized by the masses, so...

What album or artist are you loving that we all need to hear?

I saw new band called One Sonic Society at the NWLC this year. I picked up their EP, and am loving it. I can't wait to hear the full length when it comes out. Click here to check it out.




your turn...

Worship Confessional 09.19.10

Setlist with itunes links:
Happy Day
You are a Holy God
Revelation Song
In Christ Alone

Flow Sheet from Planning Center

Also part of Sunday Setlist.

"The Earth is Yours"

There's something pure and rare about talented people playing a song live, with no producer around to "polish" it up. This is just a real appropriate performance of this tune.

Psalms 89:11

The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours;
The world and all its fullness, You have founded them.

Found at RKWeblog.

Creative or Clever

Creative - resulting from originality of thought. expression, etc.

Clever - mentally bright; having sharp or quick intelligence; able.

Steve Jobs once said that, “Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.”
When we look at people or movements that have made an impact, they generally have been innovators. They've created a new way to think and broadened our minds beyond our own subjective mentality.
So, for me, when I think of innovators, I think of creativity more than I do cleverness. I saw a great tweet not too long ago by a Mac enthusiast that said, "Hi, I'm Steve Jobs, and Windows 7 was my idea." I'm sure that Microsoft has done it's share of innovation, but it's becoming clear that Apple is leading the way in changing the way we think and use computers.

This post isn't about PC vs. Macs, though. It's about creativity.

I'm very much a creative thinker. I love graphic design, video editing, and I generally love innovating. I thrive off of it. If I feel deprived or restricted creatively, it actually affects my mood and outlook on life in the present. I need to vent creatively, which is the main reason I started blogging. It's been a great outlet.

I know people who are very clever. They are usually really witty and quick to expound and bounce off existing ideas or scenerios.

I also know creative people. These are people who are looking beyond what currently exists and they bring something completely new and fresh to the table. These people can also irritate status-quo peeps to no end.

That being said, as a creative thinker, I'm prone to get frustrated with cleverness sometimes. It seems that some movements try to be clever instead of creative.

For instance...



...and I'm sure you've seen a million more like these, as have I.

Now, I am not attacking these t-shirts or the makers, because God can use anything. I am simply identifying these as clever, rather than creative. They're a spoof of something that someone very creative came up with, and it impacted culture.

Recently, it came out that the growing movement called International House of Prayer (IHOP) is being sued by, you guessed it, International House of Pancakes (the original IHOP) for trademark infringement. Click here to read the full story. The house of prayer is an amazing place, and God is doing great, creative things in their midst, but.............if they could've only stayed away from using that acronym, which I have to think they knew would bring attention to them....which is clever.

I'm not calling for a total expulsion of all "play-on words" ideas, because sometimes clever is effective. What I'm saying is that, creativity gives birth to innovation and progress towards becoming better. As Christian leaders of the church, we can choose creativity or cleverness when it comes to proclaiming the Gospel. All you have to do is drive and read most church marquee's to see the lack of creativity and over-abundance of cleverness that the Church is generally using.

Things like...

"It's hot outside, but our church is prayer-conditioned."

....or the very popular...

"CH CH is not the same if U R not in it."

These are clever, but I'm afraid cleverness is not going to attract our present society into the church, especially if the best we can do is 30-40 year old slogans.

Creativity brings fresh, new life into dead, boring environments. Creativity birthed by creative people can do a lot of great things. As church leaders, we have the ultimate creative juice of the Holy Spirit. The most creative ideas I've had were not my ideas, but God's. They are beyond clever. They are new and mind-blowing. Far greater than anything we could imagine. God's ideas are better and brighter, because they come from a place that we have only seen in-part, but one day we will see the full radiance of the ultimate Creator: GOD.

When we're innovating for the Kingdom, let's be more creative and less clever.

What's the most creative thing you've seen lately for the Kingdom?

Word Wednesday .::112

Word Wednesday is posted every Wednesday. Each week I post a scripture that I've read that week that has spoken to me in a fresh way. I believe that if we read God's Word every day, He will give us at least one scripture every week that will impact us. Sharing Scripture with each other is like iron sharpening iron. Leave a comment and share a scripture that has impacted you this week.

Here's the scripture that stuck this week:

Jeremiah 10:11-15 The Message

^11-15"Tell them this, 'The stick gods
who made nothing, neither sky nor earth,
Will come to nothing
on the earth and under the sky.'"
But it is God whose power made the earth,
whose wisdom gave shape to the world,
who crafted the cosmos.
He thunders, and rain pours down.
He sends the clouds soaring.
He embellishes the storm with lightnings,
launches wind from his warehouse.
Stick-god worshipers looking mighty foolish,
god-makers embarrassed by their handmade gods!
Their gods are frauds—dead sticks,
deadwood gods, tasteless jokes.
When the fires of judgment come, they'll be ashes.

This makes me ask myself, "What are my 'stick gods'?" They will be ashes.

What's your Word?

Music Monday 40

This is a post that you can participate in on every Monday. Everyone likes music, and there are obviously many tastes in music. This is here to see what different types of music are filling everyone's lives. Chime in!

Yesterday was my Mom's birthday. I've always wondered who wrote the Happy Birthday song. Is there royalties with that? Gotta be one of the biggest songs of all time, so...

What's your favorite version of Happy Birthday that you've heard?

It's hard to beat the Beatles Birthday Song:





your turn...

Worship Confessional 09.12.10

Setlist with itunes links:
Hosanna
Blessed Assurance
Glorious Day
Mystery

Flow Sheet from Planning Center

Also part of Sunday Setlist.

Word Wednesday .::111

Word Wednesday is posted every Wednesday. Each week I post a scripture that I've read that week that has spoken to me in a fresh way. I believe that if we read God's Word every day, He will give us at least one scripture every week that will impact us. Sharing Scripture with each other is like iron sharpening iron. Leave a comment and share a scripture that has impacted you this week.

Here's the scripture that stuck this week:

Isaiah 66:1-2 The Message

^1-2 God's Message: "Heaven's my throne,
earth is my footstool.
What sort of house could you build for me?
What holiday spot reserve for me?
I made all this! I own all this!"
God's Decree.
"But there is something I'm looking for:
a person simple and plain,
reverently responsive to what I say.

Worship is obedience. There's nothing wrong with God's plan...it's our implementation, or lack there of.

What's your Word?

DOH!!

Found on my brother's blog.

Music Monday 39

This is a post that you can participate in on every Monday. Everyone likes music, and there are obviously many tastes in music. This is here to see what different types of music are filling everyone's lives. Chime in!

I love and frequently change my playlist on my ipod. It's like the modern day mix tape, so...

What's on your playlist right now?

Here's mine...




your turn...

Worship Confessional 09.05.10

Setlist with itunes links:
Your Grace is Enough
How He Loves
Doxology - Eddy Mann
Shine

Flow Sheet from Planning Center

Also part of Sunday Setlist.

My Proudest Moment as a Father

Word Wednesday .::110

Word Wednesday is posted every Wednesday. Each week I post a scripture that I've read that week that has spoken to me in a fresh way. I believe that if we read God's Word every day, He will give us at least one scripture every week that will impact us. Sharing Scripture with each other is like iron sharpening iron. Leave a comment and share a scripture that has impacted you this week.

Here's the scripture that stuck this week:

Isaiah 50:1-3 The Message

^1-3 God says: "Can you produce your mother's divorce papers
proving I got rid of her?
Can you produce a receipt
proving I sold you?
Of course you can't.
It's your sins that put you here,
your wrongs that got you shipped out.
So why didn't anyone come when I knocked?
Why didn't anyone answer when I called?
Do you think I've forgotten how to help?
Am I so decrepit that I can't deliver?
I'm as powerful as ever,
and can reverse what I once did:
I can dry up the sea with a word,
turn river water into desert sand,
And leave the fish stinking in the sun,
stranded on dry land . . .
Turn all the lights out in the sky
and pull down the curtain."

We can definitely be God-blamers when the chips are down. Ironically, we blame God for the injustices of the world, when we really are to blame.

What's your Word?