Beyond Sunday Worship

Worship Podcast

Missions Trip to "Nowhere" – Day 1

Today begins our Young Adult “Missions Trip to Nowhere” – a missions trip with 30 young adults focusing on outreach in their everyday lives. Each day involves a verse of Scripture to memorize and a particular outreach challenge. I thought I would share each day what we are doing. Feel free to join with us in this experience.

Verse to memorize – II Corinthians 5:20

“We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.”

Challenge for the day:

Think through something kind that you could do for a coworker(s) today. Take someone out to lunch. Bring coffee in for your office. Bring someone a small gift. Wash someone’s car. Be creative. The goal is to financially and relationally invest in someone. If they ask what is going on, feel free to explain what you are doing this week. Be ready to share with your small group what you did today. Go forth as ambassadors of Christ!

Augustine Quote

“‘Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.’ Now you love yourself suitably when you love God better than yourself. What, then, you aim at in yourself you must aim at in your neighbor, namely, that he may love God with a perfect affection. For you do not love him as yourself, unless you try to draw him to that good which you are yourself pursuing. For this is the one good which has room for all to pursue it along with thee. From this precept proceed the duties of human society.”

– Augustine

The Impossible Side of Worship

“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgements and how inscrutable his ways! ‘For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?’ ‘Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?’ For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen” (Romans 11:33-36).

Biblical worship will always be shrouded in mystery. While we are commanded to love the Lord “with our understanding”, we will never fully understand. If you are waiting till you fully understand God before you worship, you will never worship. The eons of eternity will be insufficient in revealing the fullness of God.

I love this passage of Scripture. Paul just finished unpacking a very deep theological passage that is Romans 9-11. What is his response to truths that are hard to understand? Worship.

When it’s all said and done, worship remains. When our minds cannot fully grasp the depths of God’s wisdom, what can we do? Worship.

Is this an excuse for lazy Bible study or no Bible study? Nothing could be further from the truth.

If you study the Bible for the rest of your life and seek to understand every theological position, yet lack worship in your heart, it is lifeless. Stare into the mystery of God’s glory today…and worship.

New Future of Forestry album

Really looking forward to this new album. Future of Forestry is one of my favorite bands. They blend heart, God, rock, experimentation, hooks, and unprecedented coolness into all their stuff. Check out a brand new song on their myspace. And be sure to buy the album on May 5. They are planning to release three EPs every four months through January of 2010.

This is gonna be a good year.

Worshiping is Cherishing

It has been great going through these 40 Days of Consistency with my worship team. It has personally helped me to be driven by Biblical values instead of just a task list. Tasks lists are good, but they must proceed from faith and the Word of God.

Consider the verse for this week:

“I cried to him with my mouth, and high praise was on my tongue. If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened…” (Psalm 66:17).

It is possible to cry to God with our mouth, have high praise on our tongue, and yet cherish iniquity in our hearts. Remember Isaiah 29:13?

“…this people draw near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me.”

God does not listen or receive that kind of worship. It is a dishonor to him rather than a cherishing of His name. The essence of worship is cherishing God. He is our treasure. He is our highest value. Growing in our worship means growing in our cherishing of Jesus.

Is He daily becoming more valuable to you? Are your affections for Jesus growing as you worship with your local church or are you worshiping with your mouth and yet cherishing sin in your heart?