Category Archives: Worship

Get Away from Sloppy Worship

6 A son honors a father,
and a servant honors his master.
But if I’m a father, where is my honor?
Or if I’m a master, where is my respect?
says the Lord of heavenly forces
to you priests who despise my name.
So you say, “How have we despised your name?”
7 By approaching my altar with polluted food.
But you say, “How have we polluted it[b]?”
When you say, “The table of the Lord can be despised.”
8 If you bring a blind animal to sacrifice, isn’t that evil?
If you bring a lame or sick one, isn’t that evil?
Would you bring it to your governor?
Would he be pleased with it or accept you?
says the Lord of heavenly forces. (Malachi 1:6-8, CEB)

The issue with Israel in Malachi was half-hearted worship. It was probably “no-hearted” worship. It was going through the motions.

When I was growing up, my particular church group loved to make fun of more liturgical churches because they repeated “vain words.” There was no heart in their worship.

It’s easy to point the finger the other way. What we need to realize is that is very easy for ANY of us to come with sloppy worship. We come with “polluted food” by our attitudes. We come with “polluted food” by our lack of preparation as we meet the HOLY ONE.

The very things we would not want someone doing if they came to OUR house… we do going into the house of God. We would be appalled with people coming to see us in our home, and then not talking to us. They would talk to everyone else in the house… all the other guests… but not us.

Imagine someone coming to your house (who you invited) and they arrived with fresh flowers… for another guest. Not you. Or, they arrived with wilted flowers.

“Oh, I bought these off a street vendor the other day and had them on my desk. I needed to get rid of them.”

Come to worship. Worship the One who has sought you out. Worship the One who has loved you with an everlasting love. Worship him. Not with your leftovers. Not with last week’s effort. Love him fully. Give him the present of your presence.

The Hungry Heart

The opportunity of worship is the opportunity to gaze on the power and beauty of the Lord. Coming into worship in a church isn’t about the “entertainment” value. It is the incredible opportunity to come face to face with the living God.

Yes, I’ve seen you in the sanctuary;
I’ve seen your power and glory. (Psalm 63:2, CEB)

David would come into the sanctuary and allow the elements of worship draw him into the presence of God. Worship together needs to draw our attention to the One worthy of worship. It is about the Lamb on the throne. It is not about US. David would come into the sanctuary and find the elements of the liturgy drawing him to seek the Lord. It was in that worship he found the power and the glory of God.

Come hungry! When you come to church, come ready to feast!

Too often we come exhausted. We drop into our seats and hope that the worship team has something for us. It may just shock our entire system to think WE are supposed to come in with hearts hungry and asking, “Lord, what can I do for you?”

When you come to worship with the Body of Christ, begin with an appetizer at home. Feast on the Word. Read a Psalm or two. Take the time to put on some worship music that begins to draw your heart to the worship of the Lamb on the throne. Have those songs in your heart on the way to church. When the Israelites came to the Feasts, they would sing the “Songs of Ascents.” They came worshipping.

As you come in tasting the Word of God and preparing your heart with song, you may find that you can more readily experience the power and the glory of God when you are there.

As a pastor, and along with our worship team, we want our hearts hungry when we come as well. I have feasted on the Word all week as I try to prepare a great meal for those coming to church. I have asked for a song in my heart. I don’t always come with a song… but I try.

The realization is that neither I nor the worship team can put that song into the hearts of those coming. We can only supplement that song. I’m long done with the guilt that I’m supposed to “crank it up” for those coming. No show. We’re hungry hearts coming to feast on the greatness of our God. And with hungry hearts we will see his power and glory.

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The Privilege of Living Dead

As I am challenging myself with John Wesley’s work on entire sanctification, I am meeting incredible people who live out the heart of Wesley’s message on a daily basis. They are people I can’t even name on a website because of the sensitive work they do.

Their call is incredible. One organization challenging the Christian community with reaching the unreached in East Africa is called Live/Dead. You can learn more HERE.

This morning I am beginning a 30 day journey through their “Live/Dead” journal. The first challenge is to tithe my time to Jesus. To abide in Jesus is to spend extravagant time with him. It is to know him. That is prayer. That is reading the Word. That is listening to him. A tithe of my day! (I get exhausted just thinking about it.)

But the question is this: Is Jesus worth it?

When I am around incredible people like some of these friends who put together “Live/Dead,” I know the answer. They spend extravagant time with Jesus. And it is beautiful to see.

Sunday

Sometimes we may get asked about our excitement for Sunday. Sometimes I get asked about why I am excited for Sunday above other days, or excited for the Church on a Sunday when the other days are just as important. Others days are important. But the Lord’s Day is simply a highlight and Chittister’s quote sums it up quite nicely for me.

Even now, in a world gone computerized, gone glotalized, gone mad, Sunday mornings have a taste of otherness about them. For Christians, Sundays arrive like moments out of time, bringing, in their invisible mist, the sight of another way to be human. (Joan Chittister, The Liturgical Year)

Intentional, Confessional… Pentecostal

Is that even “legal?” ;)

Intentional. Pentecostals are known more for spontaneity than intentionality in worship. If it’s planned these days, it’s more pragmatism than thoughtful worship.

What I seek is intentional worship. Careful attention to the songs we sing, the Scripture we read, the education we give our children… all of it. As a Pentecostal pastor I am also looking at weekly communion. (Cue gasps.)

There is a rhythm of Kingdom life for the Church and I want to catch that rhythm. That takes intentional worship.

Confessional. We need to return to the basics. Last week (my first week back after a month long sabbatical) I had us read the Apostles’ Creed out loud in the service. We need to be reminded of the basics. We need to confess our faith and the ancient creeds help us formulate our confession. They did a good job back then. Why have we left it behind?

Pentecostal. It is simply out of my belief that the Spirit is still fully active today. We believe in the gifts of the Spirit and each believer can operate in those gifts as the Spirit gives them. We can pray for the sick and they can recover. We can see deliverance flow to those who are bound by oppression. We are empowered to be witnesses. I am intentionally Pentecostal.

As I have come through my sabbatical, and also my reading leading up to my sabbatical, those are three words that have captured my thinking. Intentional. Confessional. Pentecostal.