As a pastor's kid I grew up in the church, and for good and bad in many ways it helped form who I am as a person today. There were always choir rehearsals, and committee meetings that created a need that allowed for all kinds of self entertainment. It was always fun to run around the church, finding the hiding places back behind the baptistry that lead you from one side to the other. We were always in to something, and I loved more than anything to play on the piano, organ, or turn the sound system on and sing into the microphones. I would practice my sermons from the pulpit, never realizing that some day I would lead worship and preach from behind a very similar oak stained pulpit after God called me to ministry. My brother John, and I even practiced baptisms in the pool or spa. For some reason when it was my turn I got held under a little longer, my brother tried to tell me I was "more sinful" and needed to be held under longer. Thanks John. I believe that in many small ways God used these seemingly innocent moments to prepare my heart for something greater. I see now that I was acting out the things I saw lived out in the lives of my parents. All that to say that I now see those realities in my life today. When my son stands up on his "Lightning McQueen" stool and practices his sermon like papa, (which is rather good, he normally quotes Psalm 107:1), or when he makes all of his toys into microphones, and leads worship like daddy. My heart rejoices, but I am also scared to death. My desire is to live out the things of God in my life so that Joseph sees God through his earthly father, but admittedly some days I do better than others. It was in one of these events that the Lord used Joseph to speak to me about worship yet once again. Joseph was running through the worship center, which the two scars above either one of my eyes will prove is not a good proposition, to his favorite place, the instrumental pit. First he played the piano, then the drums, then when that got old he raced up the steps to the sound booth. I was not too far behind him, as my goal was to go up the stairs and turn off the lights. Joseph has always been a frequent visitor to the sound areas in the worship center, even from his early days at First Baptist Hurst. He knows how many of the devices function, and loves seeing them in action. So as I got to the top of the steps there he stood looking intently at all of the different machines. In our sound booth all of the different devices are connected to a main power source that is turned on by turning a key in either direction depending on whether you want to turn the equipment "on" or "off". When I got closer to Joseph he looked up at me, and excitedly said "Turn on the worship, daddy", and then a second time even more emphatic "Turn on the worship". All I could do was laugh. What he meant of course was that he wanted me to turn the power on to all of the technology that we use to help facilitate worship in our church, but what came out was quite different. While Joseph's statement was very innocent, I began to wonder how many times have I come to God in worship, and in my heart said "OK God, turn on the worship", or sat back in my chair wanting to "hear good music", without letting my heart be penetrated by the truth of God's presence in my life. I think that sometimes we see worship a lot like we see our cable television or our TIVO. When ever we get ready, we just turn it "on" or we turn it "off", fast forwarding through the parts that we feel "don't relate" to us. I believe that God desires to engage us in worship on a daily basis throughout the week, and on a corporate and personal level on Sunday, but because He is a loving God we have a personal choice in our response. Worship from a robot is meaningless, but worship from a heart that has been transformed by a loving God is priceless. So we basically have two responses, we can respond in active worship, or we can choose to sit back and let the remote control of our minds "channel surf", until we find those songs and acts of worship that make us comfortable, and suit our tastes. I hope that we will ultimately find out that just as the key on the sound equipment opened up the power source for the sound board, the Holy Spirit, who lives within each of us is the key that opens up for us an incomprehensible source of power in life and in worship, and ultimately we must fully engage ourselves in worship so that we respond to Him as He moves among us.
Friday, June 1, 2007
Turn on the worship
As a pastor's kid I grew up in the church, and for good and bad in many ways it helped form who I am as a person today. There were always choir rehearsals, and committee meetings that created a need that allowed for all kinds of self entertainment. It was always fun to run around the church, finding the hiding places back behind the baptistry that lead you from one side to the other. We were always in to something, and I loved more than anything to play on the piano, organ, or turn the sound system on and sing into the microphones. I would practice my sermons from the pulpit, never realizing that some day I would lead worship and preach from behind a very similar oak stained pulpit after God called me to ministry. My brother John, and I even practiced baptisms in the pool or spa. For some reason when it was my turn I got held under a little longer, my brother tried to tell me I was "more sinful" and needed to be held under longer. Thanks John. I believe that in many small ways God used these seemingly innocent moments to prepare my heart for something greater. I see now that I was acting out the things I saw lived out in the lives of my parents. All that to say that I now see those realities in my life today. When my son stands up on his "Lightning McQueen" stool and practices his sermon like papa, (which is rather good, he normally quotes Psalm 107:1), or when he makes all of his toys into microphones, and leads worship like daddy. My heart rejoices, but I am also scared to death. My desire is to live out the things of God in my life so that Joseph sees God through his earthly father, but admittedly some days I do better than others. It was in one of these events that the Lord used Joseph to speak to me about worship yet once again. Joseph was running through the worship center, which the two scars above either one of my eyes will prove is not a good proposition, to his favorite place, the instrumental pit. First he played the piano, then the drums, then when that got old he raced up the steps to the sound booth. I was not too far behind him, as my goal was to go up the stairs and turn off the lights. Joseph has always been a frequent visitor to the sound areas in the worship center, even from his early days at First Baptist Hurst. He knows how many of the devices function, and loves seeing them in action. So as I got to the top of the steps there he stood looking intently at all of the different machines. In our sound booth all of the different devices are connected to a main power source that is turned on by turning a key in either direction depending on whether you want to turn the equipment "on" or "off". When I got closer to Joseph he looked up at me, and excitedly said "Turn on the worship, daddy", and then a second time even more emphatic "Turn on the worship". All I could do was laugh. What he meant of course was that he wanted me to turn the power on to all of the technology that we use to help facilitate worship in our church, but what came out was quite different. While Joseph's statement was very innocent, I began to wonder how many times have I come to God in worship, and in my heart said "OK God, turn on the worship", or sat back in my chair wanting to "hear good music", without letting my heart be penetrated by the truth of God's presence in my life. I think that sometimes we see worship a lot like we see our cable television or our TIVO. When ever we get ready, we just turn it "on" or we turn it "off", fast forwarding through the parts that we feel "don't relate" to us. I believe that God desires to engage us in worship on a daily basis throughout the week, and on a corporate and personal level on Sunday, but because He is a loving God we have a personal choice in our response. Worship from a robot is meaningless, but worship from a heart that has been transformed by a loving God is priceless. So we basically have two responses, we can respond in active worship, or we can choose to sit back and let the remote control of our minds "channel surf", until we find those songs and acts of worship that make us comfortable, and suit our tastes. I hope that we will ultimately find out that just as the key on the sound equipment opened up the power source for the sound board, the Holy Spirit, who lives within each of us is the key that opens up for us an incomprehensible source of power in life and in worship, and ultimately we must fully engage ourselves in worship so that we respond to Him as He moves among us.
