My God is a Mighty Fortress and Victor indeed!

Oh yeah, did I mention that I hate the devil? I would like to post the words to this anthem for your meditation . I love verses 3. When I meditate on it, I have a mental image expressed by the late Rich Mullins of "Satan impaled on the sword of the Word."

A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing;
Our helper He, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing:
For still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe;
His craft and power are great, and, armed with cruel hate,
On earth is not his equal.

Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing;
Were not the right Man on our side, the Man of God’s own choosing:
Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabaoth, His Name, from age to age the same,
And He must win the battle.

And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us:
The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure,
One little word shall fell him.

That word above all earthly powers, no thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours through Him Who with us sideth:
Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also;
The body they may kill: God’s truth abideth still,
His kingdom is forever.

"In 1720 a re­mark­a­ble re­viv­al be­gan in a town in Mo­rav­ia. Jes­u­its op­posed it, and the meet­ings were pro­hib­it­ed. Those who still as­sem­bled were seized and im­pris­oned in sta­bles and cel­lars. At Da­vid Nitsch­mann’s house, where a hund­red and fif­ty per­sons ga­thered, the po­lice broke in and seized the books. Not dis­mayed, the con­gre­ga­tion struck up the stan­zas of Lu­ther’s hymn,

“And though this world, with devils filled,
Should threaten to undo us;
We will not fear, for God hath willed
His truth to triumph through us.”

Twenty heads of families were for this sent to jail, in­clud­ing Nitsch­mann, who was treat­ed with spe­cial se­ver­i­ty. He fin­al­ly es­caped, fled to the Mo­rav­i­ans at Herrnhut, be­came a bi­shop, and af­ter­wards joined the Wesleys in 1735 in their ex­pe­di­tion to Sa­van­nah, Georg­ia."
(Sankey, Ira Da­vid. My Life and the Sto­ry of the Gos­pel Hymns. Har­per & Bro­thers, 1906)

Gone

they came today

to carry away

not the sum of all reason

could issue the stay

how utterly futile it came to be

without the will to fight

without the will to flee

On the Edge

I'm standing on the water's edge. Not wanting to go forward. Not wanting to go back.

Why would I turn to climb up a bank, down which I so easily strode?

Yet, the impending dread of the water's chill keeps me frozen here.

Or is it the fear of a raging boil that has soldered my feet?

What if I step in and find the water no different than the air I leave? I will have journeyed this path for nothing.

I wish I could fly.
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Noise

There is so much noise in my life. So many things consistently and persistantly competing for my attention and for my soul. So many things relentless in their objective to draw me away from the only things that really matter. The noise in my life is deafening but so far from my heart's cry, it's thirst and it's hunger.

In the stillness, You are there Lord.

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Lifehouse's Everything Skit

I saw this on my friend Michael's facebook. Man, this blessed my heart!

Extending Grace

I was reminded tonight that we should be willing to extend grace to the level that we ourselves would like to receive it. Ministry is just tough sometimes! It's great to know that God is at work.

Keith Green - What's Wrong With The Gospel?

Thoughts from the late Keith Green

No Evangelism in Heaven

So we are on our way to the church this morning and Emily, my oldest, says, "Man, the year has flown by" which got us all talking about the fact that we are already in November and that Christmas is just around the corner. How did that happen? Christmas nearly here!!!

Well, I told Emily that it seems every year that you grow, the years just seem to clip off that much quicker. I added in my statement that because Christ is the Lord and center of our lives that we will live even after are days are spent here on earth. So that got me to thinking about God's purpose for our existence here and I realized something that I never really thought about before. I know it is silly but the thought really impacted me....In heaven there will be no evangelism!

When death comes or God rolls this world up like a scroll (whichever comes first), all opportunities are gone forever. So many times we focus on someone else slipping into eternity without hearing, but I realized this morning during that conversation, that I seldom consider the impact my own mortality has on the whole equation.

A clarification

As a disclaimer I must note that my previous post is not directed toward anyone within my new chuch body at Cornerstone. I love the freedom and acceptance of our church family there. It is a great place to worship and I would not anyone reading my prior post to get that incorrect impression. Rather, my comments are reserved in regard to observations made of several I have become acqainted with since leaving FBC. May the Lord bring us all into the unity of Christ!

Saved by Christ!!!

I seems I had forgotten how diverse people's belief systems are while ministering within the confines of my previous home church. Being from First Baptist really influenced my interaction, or better said, others interaction with me. Folks just put on a different face once they knew where I went and the "brand" of the church. I don't see that quite as much now. I thought maybe it was due to something that I had heard once, that is, that the "Baptist" were very judgmental of both the unchurched and those belonging to other denominations.

However, it has been my recent experience to find just the opposite to be true. In the course of the past months, I have seen and heard much aninmosity and unfair judgment on the part of ministers and parshioners from other brands regarding Baptist (of which I consider myself to be one doctrinally). For the record, those who subscribe to "no brand" are a "brand" by definition.

With that said, I just wanted to say that my heart breaks for the division that I see in the body of Christ. From my standpoint, at least its not as bad as Zwingli or Luther giving the nod to the persecution and death of thousands the Anabaptist, during the post reformation period, but I still can't imagine that it greives the heart of God any less. Every week it seems I grow a little more shocked at the criticisms drawn by those that would give the appearance that they have a handle on "true" spirituality" but are completely blind to their own judgmentalism. They are true isolationist working contrary to the purposes of Christ's grace and blinded by their own religiosity. I pray for their salvation which they endlessly work so hard to attain, but never come to terms with. Like blind guides they lead others to their same form of desperate uncertainty and isolationism.

Today I am worshipping God for my salvation. I am indescribably grateful and humbled that Christ paid the price for me once and for all. I am confident of the sufficiency of His work on my behalf, and I peacefully rest in the truth that I can add nothing to it by my works.
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Worship and Missions

I was doing some pilfering through the net today and came across this quote by John Piper that blew me away. I am looking foward to your comments on this one!

"Missions exists because worship doesn't."

Evangelism and Missions by Ron Blue

Bye Bye...lil' Buddy

I'm preaching a series on walking the Christian walk from Ephesians 4 throughout October. Tomorrow I'm talking about walking toward maturity. It kinda got me thinking about this guy....me about 37 years ago. I had no idea what life was...or what it would be like when I was this age. It's really kinda surreal to look at this picture of a virtually empty slate and realize that God had a plan. I am baffled when I think of where He has brought me in 37 yrs. Yet at the same time I know that from His word, it has not even entered my mind or imagination where He is taking me in the future. I am sure of one thing however...what His plan is leading to..."that we henceforth be no more children..." Ephesians 4:14. Goodbye lil' Buddy.

Mr. Bean - Church

Mr Bean reminds us why we need contemporary praise and worship. Enjoy!

Living Life on Purpose...

I am thinking this morning about a saying, "You can do nothing wrong and still do nothing right".

Our profession as Christians and as worshippers was not meant to be lived in a vacuum. For the worshipper of Christ, to live rightly means to live outwardly . This was one of my points in my sermon last night at Oak Street outreach while talking about what it means to believe.

When the woman with the issue of blood touched the hem of His garment and was healed, Jesus allowed neither the woman nor her faith to remain anonymous.

We will know we are in the awakening that He is sending to our generation, when multitudes of the true worshippers of God live their faith outwardly and on purpose.

God's watching out for us!

I got this video the other day and it made me think, "I wonder how many things happen everyday where I am never even conscious of God's protection?"

I hope this guy brought an extra pair of underwear to the race.

Unforced Grace

Here is the newest addition. I started writing this song on the way home from work while thinking about the people that we are ministering to. Josh and I finished it tonight. How dark things can seem. Then without warning His grace, light and love come shining through. How could we not praise Him?

(Click the player on the right to hear the recorded acoustic version)

Your grace is sufficient Lord
a light of hope
in my darkest need
Your love is abundant Lord
in a thirsty land
you're an endless spring

You're love is holding me together
drawing me to You
You're grace has freed me forever
And this is why I praise You

'Cause You love me,
You save me,
You make me brand new.
You lift me,
You raise me,
You give me song, I return it to You.

Your word is shining Lord,
Light my feet,
make clear my way.
When I'm being tempted Lord,
you show me the path
so I don't stray

I'm learning the unforced, rhythms of your grace

(copyright 2007 Josh Brock and Buddy Holt)

God's movement, our response...

Every movement that we make in response to God has a far reaching ripple effect on the lives of people that we may never know.

I love to write music as some of you may know, which generally originates from whatever sermon or Bible study I am preparing for. There are a few songs I have included in congregational worsip sets, but the majority I have typically shared with very few people.

Recently, Josh has been a great encouragement to me to continue writing and through visiting Mandy's blog I became acquainted a few weeks ago with SoundClick. This has provided an avenue to share songs which mean a great deal to me (because of their message) with others. The best part is that I can do this without the risk of seeing them grimmace, sneer, or give me the blank stare that says, "are you about through, because I think I'm now ready to schedule that root canal I've been putting off?"

So I have put a few songs out and have been shocked beyond words with the response. The first song I placed "Let's lift Him Up" ranked within the top 100. The newest song that I shared in my previous post has shot to 67 out of 8595 songs posted in its genre. I only share this because I am so encouraged, not by the rankings, but that God has used it to move so many people to hear the message of the songs. This after those who heard the sermons, testimonies or Bible studies, which inspired the songs, have probably long since forgotten them.

All of this has served to teach me that there is no telling who will be effected if we simply respond to God's movement in our lives in a way that others can share in it. What little known ability, resource, talent, or gift do you have that God could use if you would use it in response to His movement and simply include others?

A Mighty Fortress

In the ministry at Oakstreet, we have been introduced to many folks who have been homeless and destitute (materially and spiritually). I have seen God do some miraculous things in the past weeks in their lives. There are still others who are searching and have not entered into a relationship with Christ. These were the ones that I had in mind when Josh and I started writing this song last week. This song is an invitation to them and anyone else searching for real meaning.

I've placed it on my sound click if you would like to hear the recording. The lyrics are below. Josh does a great job on the vocals.


"Mighty Fortress, Our God"
(©2007 by Buddy Holt & Josh Brock)


You're wandering aimless
searching for answers
you've lost yourself along the way
clinging to shadows
that are now your prison
can't find a familiar place

Surrender to Him
He's mighty to save
He's a merciful father
and He's calling today
with his arms wide open
He'll welcome you in
and you'll find real freedom
if you come now to Him

He is Hope for the hopeless
and Home for the homeless
a mighty fortress, our God
A shelter of refuge
for the lost and the lonely
a mighty fortress, our God
a mighty fortress, our God

Parting ways...

Everybody worships something and music is a giant expression of that.

Yesterday we went to Six Flags over Texas. After a couple of hours of being beaten down by the sun we decided to catch a show for some rest and AC. We went to the Southern Palace because it was the show closest to where we were. The show was called "Extreme Country" which I knew would not be my "cup of tea" from the title, but I figured it would be better than the "Extreme Heat" outside. I was wrong.

Maybe I'm just becoming a prude (after all I just turned 40), but it was too difficult to sit there with my wife and 6 and 8 year old daughters watching the performers sing and move to a song called "Save a horse, Ride a cowboy". I guess I figured out what they meant by "extreme". For me the heat at that moment was better outside than inside so I got my girls and we left.

It just saddened me that so many others were there (lots of children and parents) who sat and rapturously consumed everything that was being celebrated on the stage. It really was a type of 'worship" as people celebrated what to them was "good" and "fun".

I was just reminded of the fact that because of Christ (the one I worship), me and the world have parted ways. So if you head to Six Flags you may want to keep some ice water in hand, either to beat the extreme heat outside or to splash on some Extreme Country dancers should they get around your kids. :)

Life and Death Miracles

"The fig tree withered on the spot, a dry stick. The disciples saw it happen. They rubbed their eyes, saying, "Did we really see this?" A leafy tree one minute, a dry stick the next?"...

...But Jesus was matter-of-fact: "Yes-and if you embrace this kingdom life and don't doubt God, you'll not only do minor feats like I did to the fig tree, but also triumph over huge obstacles...Absolutely everything ranging from small to large, as you make it part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of God.". Matthew 20 (The Message)

All of us at Cornerstone and Oakstreet were reminded today of how He has it all under control and the incredible work He is doing, when we got word of the decision Shawn made to surrender his life to Christ. I know that almost daily these days I catch myself in a state of amazement much like these disciples who stood there rubbing their eyes.

Its an awesome place to be, seeing His works, small and large, as we are striving to lay hold of God. I believe we are on the verge of an awakening!

For a thousand tongues...

The old hymn says, "O for a thousand tongues to sing my great redeemer's praise". This totally expresses the desire of my heart. It has been an enormously incredible weekend on so many fronts. Getting to fish with my friend Doug; getting to rescue a man out of the lake; kid's club; seeing the new bathroom at Oakstreet one step closer to completion; cultivating new friendships and celebrating old ones; rehearsing with Common Saints PB for the upcoming gig; participating in an incredible time of worship; being challenged by His word to confess my faults to others...I could go on...

God has been so good to me and there is absolutely no reason for it. What an incredibly awesome, generous, loving redeemer we have! I delight in giving Him my praise and I am in awe of His work in my life and those around me.

Don't sing another Pioneer Song!

We just finished VBS and it was a lot of fun! I did participate by leading the songs. Our theme was "Pioneer Days", but the funny thing was that in the literally hundreds of songs that I know, I couldn't think of one child's Christian song that had anything to do with pioneers (huh, go figure?).

So I got to write some little diddies that went over quite well with the children. Unfortunately, I can't get the songs out of my head. I spent the better portion of today singing "What a Pioneer Knows" and "The Prairie Song". It was really funny at first, but did I mention that I can't get them out of my head! MAKE IT STOP!!! :)

What you may be missing on Sunday...

I was looking at Mandy's blog and saw Praise Aerobics. Ever heard of Paul Eugene? You won't forget him after seeing this clip. Take a look and let me know what you think...come on "Pump it up!"
http://mandythompson.wordpress.com/2007/07/31/gospel-aerobics/

My favorite quote is: "you keep your own groove, your own praise, but of course…watch what I do”. I think I might use this line on Sunday during the worship set. :)

A proclamation...

I've been working late and just finished. This post is only to say that an Oreo with ice cold milk at midnight is a beautiful thing.

No substitute

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind. I have had so much activity and so many things going that it seemed I was going at a 'fever pitched" just to get to the essentials.

I have observed the same situation in the lives of many around me. It seems everyone I know is rushing. I wonder if this is a new phenomena of our times, or if our parents were the same way but we just didn't notice?

On Friday I was tired. The Lord reminded me that the activity that I do FOR Him is fine, but it is never a sustitue for HIM. So I repented.

There is a song I heard that says, "you can get what's second best, but you can never get enough". I believe this. I wonder if that is really the reason we work ourselves to these frenzies in activity for Him? Second best is easy. Its tangible. It feels great while were doing it. We can even falsely validate ourselves - "look at me doing this great service for God...!"

The Lord needs nothing from me. The only thing I really need is Him.

I suspect that if our age could get hold of this, it would result in more blank spaces on our calenders, less family casualties falling victim to "ministry", deeper devotion to God, and a stronger more effective church in our time.

It was a rough day...

( © 2007 by Buddy Holt)

"I am thirsty Lord and my soul is dry.
Let your living water flow inside.
Wash away my worry.
Come heal my hurt.
Pour your life into me
and quench my thirst"

"Famished I come before you.
My spirit yearns,
for the bread from heaven.
My hunger burns.
Come and fill me Jesus.
Restore my soul.
Only You prepare a table
that makes me whole"

I'm An Idiot! I hope this helps.

Ok...so I have learned the secret. Do you want a lot of hits on your blog and to get a lot of emails? Post a scandal. WOW!!! I never knew how many non-posting readers I had until now. Thanks for the emails, which far outnumbered the posts.

For the record it really never ocurred to me how short the skirt was. I am truly sorry about that. AND HOW!!!

I praise God for the cross of Christ, and while it is an offense (Gal 5:10), it is the way to life for me. Hiperbole is not always understood, especially in this format. So if my remark offended you, I pray that you will find it in your heart to forgive me. I can be passionate, I can be misunderstood and I can be wrong. I'm certain in this instance I was all three.

The one definitive lesson I have learned from all of this is: I'm out of the church sign designing business.

A Church Sign by Any Other Design...

For several weeks now we have been pushing around ideas for what the church sign should look like. I threw this one into the mix tonight for consideration. It is not the traditional church sign, I know. In fact, it was met with the comment that it might look like there is a new bar in town.

I thought for a moment and actually considered that given the group that we are trying to reach that this might be a good thing. I think at this point in ministry, I would rather get the lost into the church and "preach the cross" to them than put it on a sign and scare them off. What would you think if you saw this sign 25' in the air above the skyline of Mabank?

New Look

I have made some changes as you can tell. Here is a new format to look at. I hope you enjoy it!

Daddy's and their Kids

Well after several nights of sleep deprivation Friday is here! I have been working like a horse with blinders on a presentation that I made today to a potential client. My days were so long this week that I literally was unable to see my daughters for three days, as they were in bed when I left and in bed when I got home. I have some compulsive work tendencies that I have to work very hard to really keep in check, but tonight I am happy to be home.

I have two girls loving on me right now as I'm typing this (my youngest and middle). Fathers love to be with their children, especially after long periods of no communication. How long has it been since you spent some quality "alone time" with THE FATHER?

Ready? Action!!!

I feel like I've been dropped into the middle of a scene in an action movie. All kinds of things are happening and I find myself right in the middle of it and wondering all the time, "how in the world did I get here?" and yet simultaneously elated at what I am observing and experiencing as God is moving all around me!

We are rejoicing in being able to observe the baptism of 6 folks within the past two weeks. The LifeGroup that I am a part of is only two weeks away from splitting into two groups. The other groups which were started only weeks ago are experiencing equal situations, and our Sunday celebrations are growing like crazy! We are at near capacity in the little room where we meet in our present building, but God has provided the AC unit that we will need to double our space for Sunday morning worship. While all of this is well and good, the thing that I am most excited about is simply the genuine changes that I am seeing in the lives around me and experiencing personally.

This awesome opportunity, however, does not come without attacks and daily I find myself in vunerable situations, which left unchecked could move me to "the outside looking in." So I diligently pray for the grace to remain in this place.

Real worship is a response to the knowledge of God's working. Its not something we conjure, its something that happens as we are simply awestuck by His wonders and works. These past weeks have resulted in an incredible growth in my worship of Him and with the Psalmist I can proclaim, "better is one day in your courts, O Lord, than ten thousand elsewhere."

Thoughts from a Shallow Mind

My friend and fellow laborer in the ministry at Cornerstone Church in Mabank has just entered the "blogger world". Drop by and give him a shout. May I present to you Mike Cooper.

Breaks Over!

I spent the last week in Corpus Christi: reading, fishing, smoldering, eating seafood and spending money (not necessarily in that order :0) But I had a great time! Now here it is...Saturday night...and I am rushing to get things ready for Sunday...followed by the old "Monday as usual" routine...and now all of the sudden the past few days seem like such a blur .

Vacations seem fleeting, but then again I guess that is true of all of our days, isn't it? I thought about that as I was watching wave after wave roll in one morning, while strolling down the beach with my, now, 11 year old daughter. In her case, it seems I've blinked once and she is 11...I'll blink again and she'll be gone.

The endless waves remind me of one day after another that comes to us while the Lord gives us breath, to do whatever we can to make a little splash for His glory. I'm glad He has given me the ability to make a tiny splash for Him, whether its preparing for Sunday, working at my job, or making a memory with my 11 year old daughter during a morning walk. What a privilege to be in Christ and to have the opportunity to live my days for Him.

Breathing the Breath

I have been meditating through the past week on the following words from Matt Redman's song
"Breathing The Breath". How absolutely incredible is it that our God would delight in us. I am in awe of this.

We have nothing to give
That didn't first come from Your hands
We have nothing to offer You
Which You did not provide
Every good, perfect gift comes from
Your kind and gracious heart
And all we do is give back to You
What always has been Yours

Lord, we're breathing the breath
That You gave us to breath
To worship You, to worship You
And we're singing these songs
With the very same breath
To worship You, to worship You

Who has given to You
That it should be paid back to him?
Who has given to You
As if You needed anything?
From You, and to You, and through You
Come all things, O Lord
And all we do is give back to You
What always has been Yours

We are breathing the breath
That You gave us to breath

Homesick for God

The clock has just turned to the 2:06am mark on my PC. Why am I up so late? I had to make an appearance at a client's dinner party with Cher in Dallas and we had friends graciously offer to take care of the girls. This was especially a big deal because we don't let our girls "sleep over" at other people's houses. Tonight was our first foray into this, but only out of necessity. Shortly after midnight I got the call. On the other end of the phone I heard the sweet voice of my daughter, "daddy, I'm home sick". "I'll be right there" I said and grabbed my keys.

I suppose that some might feel perturbed from having to go out after midnight, but honestly, I felt delighted to do it. It causes a father's heart to swell when his child makes a declaration that they want to be where he is. For little girls different houses, different beds, and different surroundings on a first time sleep-over cause them to make that kind of declaration and their father's delight in responding to them.

To be honest though, I have been reminded over the past weeks that different houses, different surroundings, etc. also make God's adult children respond in much the same way. Tonight I am homesick. With all of the changes and new ministry directions I declare to the Lord that I long to be in His presence. I can't get enough of it! As I sit here and reflect on my experience with my daughter, I know, that He is delighted when I call to Him. He is never perturbed to answer, even when I am making that call to Him at 2am sitting here in front of my computer.

He is a Father who is truly crazy about each of us, His children. He is delighted to respond when we simply declare, "Father, I'm homesick."

My cup is running over!

A couple of Sundays ago our previous pastor and dear friend, Byron Jones, called us forward at the end of the Sunday morning worship service and prayed for us. Only one thing could take us out of the church body that we have been in since before our daughters were born; where we have forged deep roots and incredibly strong friendships; and where we have been so honored to be involved in active ministry. Only one thing - or should I say, "one person" - and He did. I had the firm resolve that after twelve years of being at FBC Gun Barrel City that God has called our family on to a new work. This has really stemmed from the outreach that we are doing in Cherokee Shores and our desire to see more of the unchurched in our area come into a relationship with Christ, and as importantly, into a community of believers. Our desire is to start a work to compliment that of the more "traditional" congregations in our area, so that together we can work to extend Christ's Kingdom.

We have began a very "non-traditional" Sunday morning worship service, but one that has been very much embraced by the participants. The format is "come as you are". We are three weeks into this venture and the Lord is doing some amazing things! We have also started "Lifegroups" during the week, which meet in homes and has proven to be very exciting!

I just want to share with you one example of the incredible opportunities God is presenting. Every Sunday after the worship time, we have a "potluck" dinner. This past Sunday, across the street from the church, there was a homeless man sitting in the grass behind the Food Fast convenience store. Without hesitation one of the men went across the street and invited this man into the church to eat with us. He was not in the right "Sunday" clothes. He was obviously partially inebriated and sweaty and hot from being afoot in the sun. As I sat down a cup of tea in front of him, I remembered Mathew 25:40 and was grateful for the opportunity. One of the men attending the Sunday meetings is running a homeless shelter and was able to offer this man a place to stay. This would have never happened in most congregations without some criticism from the more "pious" members. I don't say this to be critical, but to simply state a fact. Yet I am convinced that this is what the normative Christian life should look like. Presently, I am surrounded by people with such a heart for outreach to the lost that I am stretched personally everyday and it feels great!!!!

It has been many years since we were involved in planting the churches in Mexico. Many years since we were out of our protected enviornment, and exposed to the homeless, the addicted, the alcoholic, the abused, the sin scarred and the Christ-craved. It is so exciting to be a part of the new work that God is doing. I am overwhelmed and feel so incredibly blessed to see His hand moving from this vantage. My cup is running over!!!

Be Zealous about...pancakes???

Check out this article sent to me by my friend John. I thought it was pretty funny! I got it right after reading a four page article on George Whitfield, who was so zealous for God and preaching his word that he suffered incredible physical ailments but remained faithful. This article made me think of how tragic it is that many people outside of the church are so zealous about the wrong things , and how far too few within the church have zeal and expression of the right ones?

Bye Bye Galoneda Blog

There was no way I could keep it up. It is hard enough for me to stay posting on this blog, but having one seperate for the Galoneda outreach was just too much...so I killed it (not the outreach, just the blog). If you have linked to it...you might want to remove that link. I will post updates here going forward.

Please remove your hat and observe a moment of silence for my dead blog. It is gone but not forgotten.

Praise Habit

I just finished David Crowder's book, Praise Habit. He is an excellent writer and has a great sense of humor. His encounter with Richard Simmons at LAX had Cherie and I rolling! There is a lot of spiritual depth in this book and a challenge to bring "rescue" in a real way in a real world. It is definitely worth the read!

Burning the candle

My dad told me the other day on a phone call that "I am burning my candle at both ends". He is a good man that loves me very much and is concerned with my ragtag schedule (if he only knew how crazy my life really was!). I was thinking about the warning tonight while talking with Cherie on another subject and came to the conclusion:

I don't want to be a consumer of God's work in the world...I want to be consumed by God.

"For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him." 2 Chronicles 16:9

Putting Legs to My Worship

I really believe that worship is more than surrendering to God, but more specifically surrending my time, talents, treasure, etc. to His service. I have been thinking about Jesus' words "when you have done it to the least of these my brothers, you've done it to me" Mathew 25. In fact this has been on my mind a lot lately. As I pass through the center of Dallas on my daily commute and see the homeless and destitute every morning from behind the glass of my cozy air conditioned car I am gripped by conviction.

Thinking about the work that will be starting to outreach the lost in the methamphetamine infested addition within a couple miles of my home, where advertismentns for prostitution are posted on the telephone polls for anyone to call, and adults, young people and children are being abused. The souls of men and women are slipping everyday closer to an eternal hell that is inescapable, and makes the horrible life of their addiction the only heaven they will ever know.

My heart is to reach these people, not because they deserve it, but because the Lamb is worthy to receive the reward of His suffering. Every person that is the least worthy of His love and His grace that I extend my time, talent and treasure towards is an expression of the sincerest worship that I can express to Jesus himself from my heart. Ministering to them is ministering to Him.

Nothing Compares

"For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For he "has put everything under his feet." Now when it says that "everything" has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all. "1 Cor 15:22-28

I was reading this passage in preparation for Sunday School this week and this passage really "popped"out at me. Understanding that the Lord's ultimate purpose for my life is for Him to receive glory, I was reminded by this scripture that Christ himself is modeling this for me. He is the firstfruits. Each of us is given a vocation (or several); things that God has assigned us to do in order to complete His purpose. When we walk in obedience and fulfill His plan, we in fact show God that He and His plan are worth more to us than anything else. The scripture states that Christ himself will lay it all down so that "God may be all in all". The proclamation that God's worth is greater than any of my pursuits is the ultimate declaration of worship. This thought tonight brings to mind an old worship tune, and my heartfelt expression of His incredible worth to me as I meditate on Him:

"Lord you are more precious than silver,

Lord You are more costly than gold,

Lord You are more beautiful than diamonds,

and nothing I desire compares with you."

Galoneda

Bringing someone to Christ is our greatest act of worship. As some of you may know, the Lord has been been working in my heart to begin outreaching the Cherokee Shores addition. It has been amazing how He is at work and laying this vision on the hearts of many others. I have created another blog dedicated specifically to this outreach. It would be my honor for you to stop by for a visit.

You Complete Me...

If we don't worship God, we always end up worshiping something. My friend Jacki writes about this in her latest post titled "You Complete Me..." She says, "Maybe our worship needs to be shifted from a flawed man or woman to an undconditional loving King who came to bear the words “it is finished” and to make you complete." It's a good post. You should check it out!

The Wars of Worship

A couple of weeks ago we were part of "A Concert of Love" held at FBC in Kemp, Texas as a fund raiser for one of the churches in the area. There were twelve churches from various denominations, and the musicians from each of the congregations shared. It was a true hodgepodge of styles (from black gospel to country to contemporary) It was a great night! I really enjoyed the variety of all of the different musical styles and enjoyed worshipping in the spirit that pervaded the room. Everyone had an understanding that what was being offered was for the Lord. That night and the common understanding shared by everyone there got me thinking about all of the contention surrounding "the right way to worship" based on the musical styles.

Over the years I have seen people adamantly dispel the validity of contemporary worship music, because by their standards “it’s worldly”. It happened to Handel. When he wrote “The Messiah”, influential churchmen of the day denounced it as “profane and unseemly”. On the same note, I have known “contemporary worship buffs” to denounce older church music as “dead”. I have found these attitudes to always be equally grieving.

It does not surprise me that the first real contention (and murder) listed in scripture was spurred by a disagreement over "right way to worship"? Cain’s attitude of jealous rage was spurred by an improper understanding of who true worship is for, and his misunderstanding was soon translated into evil action. I think we should be very wary of giving our thumbs up or thumbs down when it comes to "the right way" of worshipping. The only “right” worship is that offered to the Lord, from the heart, in spirit and truth.

Breaks Over!!!

Wow! I don't know what happened but I look at my blog and realize that is has been weeks since I posted. I have all of these great ideas bouncing around in the dark, empty space between my ears, and think to myself "oh, that is going on my blog." Then I get busy and don't post. I'm sure that has never happened to anyone else, but just to set the record straight, I have officially terminated my break from blogging. I'm back like a bad habit. :)

Its All About Me!

In the light of many of the post concerning self-worship as opposed to God worship over the past days, I thought you guys might be interested in checking out this video from Sermon Spice.

http://www.sermonspice.com/videos/592/its-all-about-me/

Let me know what you think? :)

Worship is in the Air!

Two of my favorite people are blogging on my favorite theme. Do yourself a favor and take some time to read and comment on both of these excellent posts:

Kenya says: "God doesn’t need us…………His glory does not revolve around us…….WE are the ones that need God."
http://kenyablack.wordpress.com/


Julie says: "God is WORTHY of our respect. He is WORTHY of our time. He is WORTHY of our adoration. He is WORTHY of our reverence. He is WORTHY of our lives…and He is WORTHY of our worship!"
http://julieblack.wordpress.com/

How Do I Love Me?

I ran across another blog by a man named Bob Kauflin called WorshipMatters. He has a post called How Do I Love Me? Let Me Count the Ways where he discusses the pervasive attitude in our culture of self-love and sheds insight as to how the Gospel frees us from the lies associated with it.

In the post he states:
"self-love is rooted in at least two lies. The first is the lie that no one can love me better than me...A second falsehood is the belief that no one is more worthy of love than me."

He later concludes that:

"Every time we gather to worship God is one more opportunity to confront the idol of self-love. We should proclaim that we exist to love God as our duty and delight. "

Here are my thoughts on what he has written: I really like the idea that worship is more than a proclamation of God's glory...but a declaration of my complete dependence and utter "nothingness" in comparison. Worship is the place where I not only "confront", but deliberately tear down the alter to "self" in exchange for something of uncomparable delight and value: the worship of the one and only true God!

Worshiper or Critic?

Have you ever left a worship service, evaluating "how good it was" or stating the opposite? Would it surprise you to know that as worshipers the role of "worship service critic" was one that the Lord never left open for us? Why? Because worship is not for us. It is for Him! I am ashamed to say that there have been times when I have fallen prey to slipping into a critiquing mode, not from the pew but from the platform while I was leading worship.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Romans 12:1

In Romans the Bible tells us that OUR LIVES ARE THE SACRIFICE! In the OT the sacrifice was laid on the altar and consumed by the fire as an offering to honor God. The sacrifice was totally used up for God's glory and for His honor! How much more meaningful the worship service would be, if before I played the first note or sang the first word, I started by asking a simple question of the Lord; not, "Lord, what do you think of this service?" but, "Lord, is my life, that I lay before you in sacrifice this morning, something that honors you?"

Bringing others to Worship

You know our desire should be to bring others to worship in more than a metaphorical sense. I’m talking literally. It is like pulling teeth to convince someone of their need to overcome their fear and begin witnessing...but how easy is it to just simply invite someone to church? I had a great idea this morning. How would it be if in our affluent nation, every Christian who drives, would with God’s help purchase a 15 passenger van and submit himself/herself in accountability to others (who also have their 15 passenger vans) to fill them up with people that they know who are unchurched, in order to bring them to worship. Let’s bring it down a notch, what if every person in your church with a drivers license, did this?

Every chauffeur would be exposing people to the Gospel, building community, and using their time and resources every week in an active ministry. They would be making disciples of those who routinely ride with them by encouraging them to purchase their own van and to do the same thing, as their lives begin to show signs of a commitment to Christ and spiritual fruit. IT’S THE CELL CHURCH MODEL ON WHEELS!!!

I know that in reality the 80/20 rule would play into this, but what a difference it would make if the twenty percent of those in the congregation doing the work (aside from the paid clergy) committed to doing this?

You might be saying Buddy I am in no position to purchase a 15 passenger van. I understand that. So then for your sake, let me ask you to consider a little different tack. How many spaces for passengers do you have among all of the cars in your driveway if every one of the licensed drivers in your family drove a separate vehicle to church, instead of riding together? What if you started by committing not to allow one of those seats to remain empty on Sunday morning? I know in my family between our Yukon and Infinity we have twelve seats available, for our family of five. Cherie of course is picking up others every week, but I need to get busy filling up my vehicle so that corporately we can make up for those other seven spaces. How great it would be if the Christian community embraced this and we actually got to the place where we were embarrassed before the Lord to pull our vehicles into the church parking lot with the passenger seats empty!

Cherie told me this morning, that my idea reminded her of one of those sects where none of the ladies have "bangs cut in their hair", but I think she was venting, probably because I woke her up (way to early) to share with her this great revelation! :) What do you think?

The Greatest Act of Worship

My desire on this site, and on the larger platform of my life, is to inspire others to come to a place of deeper worship. It could be said that worship is simply the act of proclaiming who God is. When I sing my songs in church and I raise my voice, this is not only vertical communication of me lifting my voice to God, but also a horizontal act of me making His revelation known to others around me; proclaiming to them His wonders, His goodness, His grace, His love and His incredible mercy. I just finished reading my friend, Kenya’s, blog and am deeply touched:

http://kenyablack.wordpress.com/2007/02/09/anna-nicole-smith/

I am reminded that the greatest act of worship to our God, that we can involve ourselves in, takes place outside of the walls of our churches.

The moon and every star that we see in the sky on a clear night, is a proclamation that God has made of Himself. “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” Pslam 19:1. God since creation past has been glorified as His works are made known in the darkness of night. The thing that Kenya has called me to remember is that the work of evangelizing those that are walking in darkness, is the most significant act of worship that we can involve ourselves in. How honoring is it to our God when we proclaim His light and His glory in the darkness of the world of the people we encounter everyday. I believe that when we help someone to see His light and to glorify Him, it is better than a million choruses of praise!

Desiring God

A few weeks ago I purchased John Piper's "Desiring God". I have to say that I have found this to be one of the most spiritually provocative books that I have waded through in a long time. I am captivated by the third chapter on worship. It is like taking a drink from a firehose.

"All of the works of God culminate in the praises of His redeemed people. The climax of His happiness is the delight He takes in the echoes of His excellence in the praises of the saints. This praise is the consummation of our own joy in God. Therefore, God's pursuit of praise from us and our pursuit of pleasure in Him are the same pursuit. This is the great gospel!"

John Piper Desiring God

Will God stir our hearts?

http://kennethblack.wordpress.com/2007/01/01/part-1-a-question/

How could the church ever expect that God would stir the world’s hearts outside of the church walls, when we don’t allow Him to stir our hearts while we’re within them?

The "Who" and the "How"

A quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson:

"A person will worship something, have no doubt about that. We may think our tribute is paid in secret in the dark recesses of our hearts, but it will come out. That which dominates our imaginations and our thoughts will determine our lives, and our character. Therefore, it behooves us to be careful what we worship, for what we are worshipping we are becoming."

A group of us went to the Chris Tomlin concert (with Matt Redman and Louie Giglio) last Friday in Dallas . I felt so elated to be in a place with several thousands of others, just worshiping God with complete fervency and abandon. I thought of this quote from Emerson and thought about that experience.

I am convinced that we are transformed not only by what we worship, but also how we worship. I walked out of that theater on Friday more resolved than ever to hunger for and to cultivate a reckless abandon for God and His glory. I'm not just talking about the 20 minute set on Sunday morning, but the longing that I have that my devotion to the Lord would so dominate my imagination and thoughts that it would transform my life, character and identity into something that is pleasing to Him. I believe that is how a praise and worship set should always effect the participants. May I ever be so careful of who and how I worship!

Ecclesiastes

So...I was reading in Ecclesiastes today and came across an AWESOME scripture....

Ecclesiastes 9:10-12 "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity or planning or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol where you are going. I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise nor wealth to the discerning nor favor to men of ability; for time and chance overtake them all. Moreover, man does not know his time: like fish caught in a treacherous net and birds trapped in a snare, so the sons of men are ensnared at an evil time when it suddenly falls on them."

I've found myself, especially lately, getting caught up in going and doing and learning and planning my schedule, that I've totally missed the whole reason why I'm here, why God planted me in right here, right now....

I'm not here to go to school...I'm not here to do what I WANT to do...I'm not here to be the most active in church...I'm not here to sit on my rear in church every single Sunday and still not have told anyone Monday-Saturday about Jesus....What I'm here for is to quit worrying about myself and my plans, and instead spread the Gospel...

Jesus didn't come to Earth to sit and build houses, or go to the temple and learn....He came here to save people....Before he ascended he told us to GO therefore and make disciples of all the nations....Why then are there thousands of people around us are still lost and headed for hell?

Maybe if for just one moment we would take our focus off of ourselves and put it on God....people might get saved...after all who are we to think that we have the right to do something other than God's will?

Time's a wastin'.....tell someone about Jesus today.
Peace out!

We owe it to Him to think about it

"Among the many acts of gratitude we owe to God, it may be accounted one to study and contemplate the perfections and beauties of His work of creation. Every new discovery must necessarily raise in us a fresh sense of the greatness, wisdom, and power of God." Jonathan Edwards

We are studying creation is sunday school throughout the month of January. Last week we were looking at some of the hubble images of the cosmos. It simply blows your mind when you stop to consider the vastness, the beauty, and agelessness of this single aspect of His creation. You cannot truly attempt to wrap your brain around these things, without feeling incredibly small and finite. It also stirs another feeling; that of being nothing less than blown away by the vastness of Him who created it all.

Edwards said that our contemplation of these things is something that we owe God and serves as one way of expressing our gratitude to Him. No doubt He hung every bit of it out there for His glory and for our contemplation. (Isaiah 40:25-28) Are you feeling awestruck by God lately? No! Well maybe you should take some time to stop and really consider what He has made. Our consideration of such things always produces wonder and worship of His greatness, His wisdom and His power. What is it in God's creation that makes you stand in awe of Him?

He should be enough!

In my christian journey I have come to realize that the chief end of my existence is to bring glory to God. That is to say, I understand that I am here for Him and it is not the other way around. I know that sounds silly, yet I must embarrassingly admit that while I have known this truth in theory since my conversion, it is not something I truly realized in practice. For many years I, like many of the Christians I attempt to lead in worship every Sunday, saw myself at the center of God's universe. I was told that Christ loved ME; that He died for ME; the Bible was His word to ME; that He was in heaven preparing a place for ME, and so on. That is not to say that these are not clear truth's that are certainly revealed in scripture. The problem is that I somehow let myself twist the message in my mind to a point that I became duped into believing that God's work was all about me. Though I didn't even realize it at the time, I came to view Him merely as a means to an end. I didn't treasure Him, but rather treasured what He had to offer.

Worship is the method that we use to ascribe God's value to us, back to Him. Therefore, it is impossible to worship Him if at our core He is not really what we value. How precious is He to you really? Is God (Christ) alone your treasure or do you see Him, as I did for many years, as merely a means to an end? If heaven were a place that contained all of the richness of what God has promised, but He was not there, would you still want to go?