Prepare for Worship – People Matter: Connecting Our World (Oct. 3-4)

(Author’s Note: This will be the final “Prepare to Worship” post. Inside Worship will be going on indefinite Hiatus within a week due to scheduling constraints. More to come soon…)

If you grew up going to church, you have probably heard of “The Great Commission” – that Jesus told his disciples (and by extension, us) to “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” (Mark 16: 15 NIV) It can sometimes seem pretty trite to say that, and sometimes we just take it for granted that there will are people who are willing to go into the far corners of the world to preach the Gospel. But did you ever stop to think about why God gave us this command?

As we finish up our super-series entitled “People Matter,” we are going to look at just that. If we, as people, matter to God…and the people in our families and our community matter to God, then doesn’t it stand to reason that people all over the world would matter to God. Sounds simplistic, doesn’t it? But just think about it for a moment. What does that really mean for us as a church taking on the branding of a place where people matter?

Join us in worship this week and find out!

The readings for this week:
Old Testament:  Isaiah 6: 1-10
New Testament:  1 Timothy 2: 1-6
Gospel:  Mark 16: 14-16

Sunday
Gathering:     “Salt and Light”
Opening:       “Great is The Lord”
Communion:  “Change My Heart O God”
                        “Leave Your Heart With Me”
                        “Breathe”
Offering:        “Shine Jesus Shine”
Closing:         “You Are Holy (Prince of Peace)”
Sending:        “Go and Do”

Saturday
Opening:       “Days of Elijah”
                        “God of This City”
Prayer:          “Hungry (Falling On My Knees)”
Communion:  “Breathe”
Closing:         “You Are Holy (Prince of Peace)”
Sending:        “Salt and Light”

Worship Renewal 6 – Leadership and Teaching Worship

It’s been a little while, but I want to get back to looking at The 7 Steps to Worship Renewal – a conglomeration article in the July/August issue of Worship Leader magazine. In this section, written by Steve Fee – national recording artist with the band, Fee, and worship Leader at North Point Community Church in Atlanta – we look at the leadership’s role in worship renewal. Steve writes:

“Worship renewal. We long for it. We wait for it. And we pray for it knowing that is comes initially from an outpouring of the Spirit of God. We don’t manufacture it. But as leaders and teachers of worship, we play a role in the process of encouraging our people towards worship renewal.”

But what is the leader’s role? Steve puts forth these thoughts:

• Begin with personal worship renewal. Ask God for a renewed sense of reverence and awe to ignite within you – and then lead others to that place.
• Lead through teaching worship as a response to events unfolding in our local community. Things that happen in our city or our congregation effect our worship…and need to be a part of that worship.
• Lead through teaching worship as a response to what’s happening worldwide. Steve tells of leading a Tuesday night bible study on one particular week in 2001 – September 11, 2001 to be exact. In the midst of faces asking “So, what now?” the teaching leader was able to say that the only correct response to anything in life is to worship.

When those of us in leadership are passionate about our worship renewal need to let that spill over to the people we’re entrusted to lead. That’s been one of my goals in writing this series. And my challenge is this: Can you take this to heart? “The only correct response to anything in life is to worship Jesus.”

Worship Debrief – People Matter: Communities – Connecting with Western New York (Sept. 26-27)

The Gospel tells us that Jesus went to His hometown to they synagogue and was asked to read from Scripture. He opened the scroll to Isaiah and quoted the following: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (as recorded in Luke 4: 16-21) Jesus came to help people. But who?

• “The Poor” – those who have not. This can be those in material poverty, moral poverty (lack of integrity), or spiritual poverty
• “The Captives” – those who are imprisoned: physically, by circumstances, or by secrets from their past
• “The Blind” – those in the dark. Again this can be physical blindness, relational (hurting others and don’t know it), or spiritual (eyes closed to God’s grace.)
• “The Oppressed” – the kicked around. Oppression can be political, gender based (as in, domestic violence, rape, abuse), or spiritual.

We have all of these right here in our communities in Western New York…and God calls us to share with them the grace we have found in Christ. Here’s what we learned from Jesus’ example:

• “Preach good news”: tell others they are not an accident and that God loves them.
• “Proclaim liberty”: tell others the truth of God’s word
• “Provide recovery of sight”: Shine the light of God’s truth in their lives.
• “Release the oppressed”: through prayer and God’s word, effect their beliefs so they know that they matter to God.

If you were in service, you were asked to write down the name of someone you could reach out to this week. I challenge you to stay in prayer for that person and ask God for 1) opportunities and 2) boldness to share His truth, mercy, and Grace.

Saturday, 9/26 – 7:00pm:

•          Small crowd…and yet they sing. Love that!
•          Drama in all four services this weekend. Thanks to Karen Cassidy (our drama coordinator) for stepping in for this service!
•          Zach, filling in the sound board, did great with the addition of the drama.

Sunday, 9/27 – 11:15am:

•          As mentioned, we had a drama in all four services. Thanks to Glen & Kim Gordon and David Cascio for their service in this ministry this weekend! In the drama, Adam (me) connects with 3 other church members and invites them to an Evangelism workshop…with varying, but similar reactions.
•          Following the 8:45 service, Carla Stone came up to me all excited and asked if the drama was about something that would be happening in real life: getting an Evangelism Team together. While I know of no plans for this right now, it’s a great thought!
•          Missed Marcus on guitar, but enjoyed having Annie and Jennie Morris stepping in on vocals. The nice, full vocal sound covered some of what was missing in the instruments…at least I thought so!
•          Thanks to Sue Steege and Kingdom Quest for the use of their microphones for the drama.

Prepare for Worship – People Matter: Communities – Connecting with Western New York (Sept. 26-27)

It can be pretty easy to complain about where ever we might live. Take New York State, for example: We have some of the highest taxes in the Union and our Senators took that rather embarrassing month back in June to play power games. Even here in Western New York we can feel like we are getting the short end of the stick – forgotten by downstate lawmakers, reduced salary scales, never-ending recession…

It can be easy to think that Western New York doesn’t matter. But it does. Especially to God!

Politics aside, Western New York is populated by people. And as we’ve been learning during this super-series, “People Matter!” In fact, God is all about people. And that means that the people around us – including the politicians! – are important. And with the financial situation that’s on everyone’s mind right now, it’s a field that is ripe for the harvest! Throughout scripture God has used His people to impact the communities where they lived; from Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to the Samaritan woman Jesus met at the well. So join us this weekend and find out more about your role in reaching WNY. 

The readings for this week:
Old Testament:  Daniel 3: 26-30
New Testament:  2 Corinthians 3: 1-3
Gospel:  John 4:4, 21-30

Sunday
Gathering:     “God of This City”
Opening:       “We Come to Praise You”
Offering:        “God of This City”
Closing:         “Forever”
Sending:        “Be Glorified”

Saturday
Opening:       “We Come to Praise You”
                        “God of This City”
Prayer:          “All Who Are Thirsty”
Closing:         “Forever”
Sending:        “Be Glorified”

Worship Debrief – People Matter: Connecting with Families (Sept. 19-20)

I’m willing to bet that most of us consider our families a blessing…on most days…in most circumstances…if and when we really think about it…but not too much…and…

We have all been given a family. And, let’s face it. None of our families are exactly alike or have exactly the same composition. But whatever your family looks like, God set it up to be the foundation for our lives. In the beginning when Adam was given Eve and they were told to multiply on the face of the earth, God laid out the framework which would shape the lives of every person ever to be born.

While a family has many purposes, Pastor outlined 3 from the scriptures that we looked at on this second week of the People Matter super-series:

1 – A family is to be a shelter for storms. It is to be a place of security.
2- A family is to be a learning center for life. Through the family we can learn that:

• God wants us to learn about relationships
• God wants us to learn about values
• God wants us to learn about character
• God wants us to learn to know and love Him

3 – A family is to be a launch pad for ministry.

Many of us may feel that our family is/was not any of that. But through God’s grace, that can begin to change today. 1 Corinthians 16: 15 reads: ”You know that the household of Stephanas were the first converts in Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves to the service of the saints.” If we let God begin to work in our hearts, then it will (eventually) spill over and work in the hearts of those we love. Maybe you can be the Stephanas of your household!

Saturday, 7/25 – 7:00pm:

•          We joked before we started about how people sit all across the sanctuary during this service. When you think of the church as a family in and of itself, that seems kind of…ironic.
•          Even with a small crowd, I could hear people singing. So great to be part of a congregation that loves to worship!
•          We had taken Tuesday off to be with a band member who had lost their brother. And God honored that ministry by equipping the band to come in relatively cold and lead without a hitch. God is good!

Sunday, 7/26 – 11:15am:

•          As with the Saturday night group, our band came in cold this morning as we were supporting our fellow member in their loss. Again, they lead without a hitch and God reminded us that He equips us to do His work when we are faithful to His leading!
•          Need to resolve the battery issue with our handheld mics. The altar mic was out again at prayer time. Fortunately, I noticed the problem before it was too noticeable.
•          The children’s message…with kids surrounding and praying for Sue as she celebrates 25 years here at FTLC was Awesome. Thanks to Christine Hartnett and Lisa Cross for doing such a great job with it!
•          Tweaked the narthex speaker a little bit because the volume seemed really low. While we’d love to have you in the sanctuary with us for worship, if you happen to be outside during the service please let me know if it’s a little easier to hear.

The family is such a sensitive topic because we all – in one way, shape, or form – have a family. I’d love to hear how God was speaking to you this past weekend.

Prepare for Worship – People Matter: Connecting with Families (Sept. 19-20)

As we move into Week #2 of our People Matter super-series, we come to that vast and diverse foundation of our society: The family. Have you looked around? Families come in just about every shape, size, relation, and flavor you can imagine. There’s two-parent, single-parent, traditional, blended, extended, racially mixed…and the list could probably go on.

So, how do we navigate this finicky and often stressful thing we call our family? It’s never as easy as it sounds. And whether we realize it or not, we need help! God created the first family (Adam and Eve…and kids) and has designed our families to be our primary “classroom” for life. That’s why it’s so important that God be at the center of our families.

Fortunately, God has not only given us our physical families. He has also brought us into His family…and all the benefits that go with it! To hear more, join us this weekend.

The readings for this week:
Old Testament:  Ruth 1: 6-14
New Testament:  2 Timothy 1: 3-7
Gospel:  Mark 3: 31-35

Sunday
Gathering:  “Just a Closer Walk With Thee”
Opening:    ”That’s Why We Praise Him”
                   ”How Great is Our God”
Communion: “Throne of Grace”
                      “All Who Are Thirsty”
                       “Freely, Given Freely”
Offering:     ”We Believe In God”
Closing:      ”Love the Lord”
Sending:     ”Abba Father”

Saturday
Opening:     ”That’s Why We Praise Him”
                   ”Throne of Grace”
Prayer:       ”How Great is Our God”
Closing:      “Love the Lord”
Sending:     “Just a Closer Walk With Thee”

Worship Renewal 5 – Reflect on the History of Your Congregation

Believe it or not, a church’s heritage, traditions, rituals, and historic practices are more than just the things of traditional worship. In fact, these things help to define the context of worship at any given church and provide significant insight when looking forward. When you consider that the congregation of First Trinity is 170 years old, reflecting on our history could take a while!

Todd Proctor  – songwriter, worship leader, and Lead Pastor at ROCKHARBOR Church in Costa Mesa, CA – calls this a “worship of remembrance.” In his contribution to Worship Leader’s “7 Steps to Worship Renewal” he writes:

“It seems our eyes can easily fix on the ‘next,’ our hearts continually captured by the adventure before us. But as we enter our second decade of doing life and ministry together, we are working harder than ever before to embrace the worship of remembrance. … For our church, reflection helps us find context for the season we are currently in. As we intentionally consider where we’ve been, we rediscover vital lessons learned along the way.” (emphasis mine)

When our youth were headed to Nashville, TN this past July for Work Camp, they swung by Piqua, OH – the site of last year’s trip – to remember what God has done in and through them a year earlier. In so doing, they were setting a context for ministry and preparing for the current trip. Todd’s article reminds us that God frequently calls His followers to remember. Think of the Israelites crossing the Red Sea! They were directed to erect a memorial that, 40 years later when they are still in the desert, would remind their children of what God did.

So…what are our memorials? What is our history of worship at FTLC – those things we don’t do anymore that worked; those we’ve been doing for some time now that are hollow? Think back over the history of FTLC and share those significant times when God was noticeably moving and working

Worship Debrief – People Matter: Individuals – Connecting with God (Sept. 12-13)

So…what was your first car? That was Pastor’s question to us as he started his message this past weekend. 10 to 1, it was a beater…and if you were in high school or college, it was probably regularly running on empty! There are many – way too many – people in our communities, and even in our church(es), who are running on empty. We need to connect (or re-connect) with God.

The trick is, connecting with God is not something we can DO. It is Jesus who connects us. In His word Jesus says: come to me, follow me, be with me. Our problem is that we try to connect with God ourselves – like a duty we have to perform – and it doesn’t work. Pastor put it this way:

Feeling I’m not doing enough is a performance based faith that leads to feelings of spiritual emptiness. [But] Jesus offers us an invitation to connect.

So, how do we connect with God? Here’s three principles:

1. Stop feeling like a failure! (or: Stop feeling guilty!)
2. Start seeing ourselves as God’s friend
3. Look for opportunities to connect – natural ways, because of love; not a checklist out of duty!

Saturday, 9/12 – 7:00pm:

•          We had Matt back! It’s always good to have the regulars back.
•          Small(er) crowd, but seemed into worship. It was a good set of songs, too!
•          So, how did God meet with you during worship this week? How did God show you that you matter to Him?

Sunday, 9/13 – 11:15am:

•          I want Sue Steege’s first car!!! (does that violate the 10^th commandment, even if she doesn’t still have it???)
•          We had some mic issues with the prayer partner this week. Not sure what they were – mic seemed to be working after the service – but will try to get it corrected by next week.
•          It’s great having 3 guitars in this band. It’s a challenge to arrange the music, but they give a really full sound.
•          Our theme is People Matter. Did you come away from worship knowing that you matter – first of all, to God; and secondly, to us? 

It’s not about ritual, it’s about a relationship
It’s not about performance, it’s about presence
It’s not about guilt, it’s about grace
It’s not about form, it’s about friendship

IT’S ALL ABOUT GOD!

Prepare for Worship – People Matter: Individuals – Connecting with God (Sept. 12-13)

As you may have heard, for the month of September we are going to be getting the whole church “rowing in the same direction.” That is, our worship theme will also be the theme for every other ministry – Life Groups, Bible Classes, Kingdom Quest, etc. Our goal is to work toward getting our church mobilized to carry out our mission to “Transform our world one life at a time by the power of God’s living word!”

If you’ve been receiving and reading the daily devotional that we’ve put together, then you know that are theme for September is “People Matter.” If not, you now know the theme and can find the devotional readings here. This weekend will be the first of four-parts to that theme: “Individuals – Connecting with God.” We want people to know how much God loves them and that every individual matters to Him. If you are feeling alone, lost, unloved, unappreciated – or even if you are feeling the opposite of all that – then join us this weekend and discover that you matter to God…and to us! 

It’s not about religion, it’s about relationship.
It’s not about performance, it’s about presence.
It’s not about “have to,” it’s about “want to.”
It’s not about guilt, it’s about grace.

The readings for this week:
Old Testament:  Psalm 139: 13-16
New Testament:  Ephesians 3: 14-20
Gospel:  John 15: 12-17

Sunday
Gathering:  “In the Secret”
Opening:     ”Hosanna”
                    ”And I Love You”
Offering:     ”Rescue”
Closing:      ”Trading My Sorrows”
Sending:     ”We Want to See Jesus Lifted High”

Saturday
Opening:  “In the Secret”
                 ”And I Love You”
Prayer:    ”Rescue”
Closing:   ”Trading My Sorrows”
Sending:  ”We Want to See Jesus Lifted High”

Worship Renewal 4 – Understand the Culture of Your Community

Two weeks ago, when I began this journey into Worship Renewal, I quoted Graham Kendrick as noting that worship renewal is really a “renewal of people, transformed from within by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Well, it stand to reason that if you are going to facilitate worship renewal in your congregation that you have to be able to relate to your congregation. In order to do that, you need to understand them and the language they speak.

Recording Artist and Worship Leader Calvin Nowell likens the above task to that of an interpreter. He writes:

“An interpreter understands the language of the person they are speaking to, and the language of the person giving the message. Worship leaders have to be interpreters, of sorts—understanding the heart of God, while also understanding the language of their communities. This means taking into consideration the culture that they are a part of.”

I guess that makes those of us planning worship at FTLC “interpreters.” The job requires preparation – gathering information – and then converting that from one language into another. Converting is something we planners have to do on our own. But you can help with the preparation! Please consider and respond to the following:

• What kind of music do you usually listen to (list either a type or some groups)?
• What kind of movies do you like?
• On a scale of 1 to 10, do you like Nostalgia/Traditions or Modern/Innovative?
• Are you a life-long church attendee, or are you new(er) to “church?”
• Do you Twitter/Facebook/MySpace? (Yes/No/What’s that???)

These answers will help us to better know you as a congregation and in turn better help us to plan worship that will speak to you and draw you into God’s presence.