Discovering the Guitar Un-Guru!

Learning you don’t know everything you thought you did – especially in your area of “expertise” – can be, in a word, disturbing. And while that’s partly due to the offense to our natural (albeit, possibly subtle) vanity, I think we often discover what we don’t know when we need it the most.

Here’s what I mean. I’ve been playing guitar for over 25 years – both solo and with bands/worship teams – and I like to think I know my way around the mechanics of the instrument. So…when my Gibson Les Paul tips over – in it’s road case, mind you – while loading my car after worship and the neck snaps at the headstock but I don’t discover it until the night before our mid-week rehearsal and the only backup I have is the first electric guitar I ever owned – a 22+ year old Strat-style Hondo Fame series 760 – which has been sitting around mostly unused for the past several years with dirty pots and only five of its six strings intact, I figure I have enough knowledge to do a quick clean and re-string in the hour before rehearsal so I can still be at least functional.

Wrong!

I was sidelined by the tuning – something I do every time I pick up the instrument. The quick clean and re-sting went fine, and I even thought to change the battery – yes, this particular electric guitar uses one! But I could not get the guitar to stay in tune no matter what I tried. I had told the group I would be ready, and ended up sitting though the rehearsal with just a borrowed pencil for notes. Talk about annoying!

Actually, it could have been a lot worse. The problem was really that I had not brought the right tool with me. I was able to get it (mostly) fixed within 30 minutes of returning home. However, it was a good, practical lesson in remembering Romans 12:3 – “…not to think of [myself] more highly than [I] ought to think, but to think with sober judgment…” (ESV). It’s easy to get the trap of thinking “I got this!” But in reality, wisdom is knowing that you don’t know…not what you don’t know. So…

…being a guitar un-guru: Sounds like something maybe I should celebrate.

God and a Garmin?

I call my blog “Journey to Worship” because I have learned that worship is as much a destination as it is an action. And that’s not just the former worship leader talking here! Life has a way of taking you down roads you never thought you would see and challenging your beliefs almost every step of the way.

It’s been four months since I moved my family of 6 in with my parents after our house sold somewhat suddenly. Don’t get me wrong, selling was part of the plan. But doubling the capacity of the home I grew up in was not…kind of like being “homeless” in my early 40’s. And the experience of starting over after finding – and leaving – the house we wanted (thus extending our stay indefinitely) has certainly been in the “road less traveled” category.

Think about driving down a winding country road that goes over mountains, through valleys, and around (not over!) streams. It takes a long time to get where you’re going, and there are points along the road where you are convinced you’re going the wrong way – despite what your electronic navigator tells you. Well, that’s exactly where life can take you sometimes. And, without drawing the obvious, cheesy parallel between God and a Garmin, that’s when we need to do what can be very hard for us humans to do: We need to get direction!

The passage of scripture I could consider my life verse is the first two verses of Romans chapter 12, which says in part: “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” God must direct our paths, and that means giving up control of our life. We have all sorts of questions right now about where God wants us to live and when He’s going to tell us. But our act of worship – our destination, if you will – is to be in the place where He can direct us.

In the meantime, I’m getting a new appreciation for Jesus’ response to those who said they would follow Him wherever He goes: “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” (Luke 9: 58)

Power Struggle

I’ve been having issues with technology again! These devices that are supposed to make our lives easier somehow seem to make it more difficult sometimes. For example:

• On our recent vacation, we found our baby monitor had stopped working. Upon our return I took it apart and found some broken parts causing a short…thanks to Joel (age 3) refusing to leave it alone! Some electrical tape to hold things in place and…it still doesn’t work.
• Middle of this past week, I somehow managed to leave our toaster oven on when I left for work, cremating a couple of Eggo waffles in the process! Saturday, I tried to toast more waffles and couldn’t get the thing to heat up. (Note: Samuel used it that day with no problem!)
• Plugged in my laptop on the train from Montreal to Toronto and used it a good bit of the way home last weekend. Got it out here on Tuesday, and found the transformer on the power cord shorted out. Unplugged and with a drained battery, the laptop is currently useless (grrr!!!).

The issue in all of these cases is power…or, more accurately, a lack of power. And I have realized that we can have the same problem: We don’t work because we lack power. As Christians, we need to stay “tapped in” to the power of the Holy Spirit in order to do just about anything in life that God has called us to do. Our problem is that things – like losing battles with electronics – can cause a short in our power connection.

It’s another reminder that we need to stay in constant contact with God through worship, prayer, and Bible reading. His power, through the Holy Spirit, can bring us through all kinds of difficulties, from life changing situations all the way down to…sharing the desktop computer with the rest of the family.

Shock & Awe (or…is that Awesome God?)

Something that has been settling in for me since our trip to Cape Vincent is the idea that I have…let’s say, forgotten…who God truly is. Or, at least part of who He is. We live in a very wealthy country and that can have an effect on how we look at our Creator and Lord. It brings a sense of entitlement that advertising and marketing agencies are more than willing to feed!

I was directed to the last chapters of Job – Job 38-41, specifically – during our trip and the possibility that God takes things away from us so that we will be able to see Him better. Having mourned in silence for seven days after unimaginable tragedy, Job asks the big “why” question, which seems perfectly normal to us. However, God doesn’t answer Job and instead asks several (mostly unanswerable) questions of His own. My friend in Cape Vincent suggested that God had taken Job through this valley so that Job would learn more about who God really is.

As I look at my prayer life, I’ve found my prayers to be rather informal lately…like I was talking to a friend. There’s nothing wrong with that. But this passage shows us a God who is much, much more! This is the God who created everything – literally!!! And that commands a great deal more respect than I think I give.

I want to be in awe of God…to stand in wonder at the being that created the X-Structure pictured in the banner above. I want to be blown away by the thought that God was planning me when he made Adam. And when I go to prayer, I want to tremble at the thought of being allowed to kneel before a supreme being I have no business coming before. Imagine what that will do to my worship, let alone my life.

I’m going to be seeking that awe in the coming months. Want to take the journey with me?

Hmm…What was I supposed to be doing again?

I know, I know! It’s been far too long (almost 2 months!!!) since I’ve posted anything here! I keep saying I want to get back to blogging, but family, job searches, and a myriad of other things keep jumping in the way of that goal. I’ll think of – and maybe even start – typing something up only to find that I’ve run out of time…or fallen asleep. Then, after a few weeks, I feel out of practice and everything I think of to write just feels forced; family activities feel too shallow, worship thoughts too deep, and politics too emotional. I mean, let’s face it, nobody is reading this thing anymore anyway and…

You get the idea.

It’s kind of funny how we make excuses for not doing the things we say we really enjoy. I’m not saying that life is always simple or easy. Sometimes have to do things we may not like, and those things are going to displace the “fun” stuff. But when it happens with any regularity, we have to wonder if the “fun” stuff we say we want to do is really something that we want to do…

…like this blog…or maybe eating food that’s bland because that’s what we are having for dinner (Samuel!!!)…or…maybe going to worship?

The question here is priority. Are your priorities in the right place? I haven’t been blogging because I’ve been rather busy working, spending time with the family, trying to find another job that better supports that family, and even resting occasionally. I really do like blogging and I intend to keep doing so when I can. But for now, those other things are – rightfully! – more important and have precluded any blog posts (for which I am sorry. Really!)

As a Christian, worship must be a priority…even over family and job searches and resting. Regardless of your situation, are you in regular worship? I could not have made it through these past several months if I wasn’t regularly coming before God’s throne and just telling Him how wonderful He is, remembering all that He has done, and thinking of all that He can and will do! It didn’t even have to be in a formal worship service. But what if I had let my other concerns get in the way of worship? Where would I be?

It’s something I’d rather not think about, personally. But there are those out there who, like me with my blogging, have let other things get in the way of worship. We say it’s important, but our actions say otherwise. And now, it’s hard to get back into it because we are out of practice.

Jesus says: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Luke 12: 34 (NIV)). And the writer of Hebrews encourages us to “not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing…” (10: 25a) If we value God, our faith, and our salvation, then we make worship a priority…and we worship. If not? Well, then, we plug on and wonder why things aren’t quite going our way. Even if it’s been a while, you can jump back into the saddle. Look at me: I finally finished and published another post!

Journey to Worship

When we think of worship, the first thought for most of us is our church service(s) on Sunday morning. Then we quickly expand those thoughts into something much more all-encompassing, like lifting praise and adoration to God, telling Jesus how much we love Him, or living our lives in such a way as to bring glory to God. If we are really good, we’ll add that worship is experiencing and building our relationship with God! The reality is that worship is a very personal act for any Christian and, as a result, we are all going to describe it a little differently.

Recently, I have started thinking of worship more in terms of a journey – more specifically, the goal of this journey we call life. To quote Chris Tomlin, “you and I were made to worship.” In fact, worship is woven into the very fabric of creation. When the Pharisees told Jesus to quiet His disciples during the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Jesus replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” (see Luke 19:40) So, putting our sinful nature aside, it is only natural that we would be geared to worship the God who breathed our very life into us. But, let’s face it: There are times when worship is not only the farthest thing from our minds, but is also difficult and even downright exhausting!

And that is where it becomes a journey. Almost any trip we take has its ups and downs, and yet we keep traveling because we have some place to be. The same is true with life, whether we realize it or not. We have someplace to be – no matter whether we are on the “broad…road that leads to destruction” or the “narrow…road that leads to life.” (see Matthew 7: 13-14) We all share a finish line! Paul writes to the Philippians “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on the earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2: 10-11). When the journey is over, we will all bow before God and acknowledge Jesus. Even those who do not acknowledge Jesus in this life will acknowledge Him – to their utter dismay – after this life is over. We will all bow…and we will all worship. We are far better off to make that our goal now than waiting until it is too late.

After a few months of trying (and more or less giving up) to reinvent this blog, I have figured out that the best thing for me to do is share the journey. It is the weekly journey between Sundays; it is the journey from one church to the next; it is the journey over the mountain tops and through the valleys of life. It is a journey from worship, through worship and…

…a Journey to Worship!

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.

Worship Debrief – God’s Will Be Done (Sept. 5-6)

OK…who here has not experienced the willful defiance of a two-year old that is not getting his/her way? (for me, that’s every day!!) How about that feeling that, just once, we’d like to be in control of our lives?

Moses learned the hard way that when we try to take over and make things work without God’s guidance and instruction, things can go a little bad. Or, maybe a lot bad! God gave us our will, but our sin has turned it into a lever that can pull us into trouble. This weekend, we looked at Moses’ experiences and what we can learn from them as we pray “God’s Will Be Done” … and mean it!

There are three aspects to willfulness and the cue us into when we are leaning on our own will rather than God’s:

1. A lack of dependence on God…and the number 1 sign of this is a lack of prayer.
2. Asking: Can I get away with it?
3. Acts of submission to other people – that is, if there’s no submission to others (e.g.: a church (membership) or life group), then there’s probably no submission to God.

So, here is the challenge for the coming week: Make this week an experiment in the prayer of surrender! Daily, as often as you think it, pray “Your will be done, not mine”…and see what happens!

Saturday, 9/5 – 7:00pm:

•          Yes, Tom filled in for Matt again on drums. I love having flexible people in this ministry!
•          If you stayed for our closing song, “Arise, Praise His Name,” then I’m sorry. It was pretty bad! Wrong key, wrong tempo, we were not together… If you missed it, then good choice!

Sunday, 9/6 – 11:15am:

•          Tom again on drums – filling in for Jubal this time. We’re just trying to get everyone confused with who’s playing in what band.
•          Speaking of who’s in the band, we had a lot of vocalists this morning. It’s great to have all the teens involved, but I’m going to have to get more mics!
•          I actually kind of liked Pastor’s children’s message. Kids are naturally willful, so trying to get them to see what it looks like can be a bit tricky. I know…I keep trying with my own kids!
•          It was mentioned to me that my mic was hard to understand when I was speaking…at least when the band was playing. As Worship Assistant, that’s not necessarily a good thing. Did anyone else catch any similar sound issues?

Worship Debrief – Lessons in Gratitude (Aug. 29-30)

Thank you, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU…

I’m practicing for a “No-complaining” day that we were all challenged to take following the message this past weekend. We live in a culture that likes to complain…and complain a lot. Just think about how often you’ve complained about traffic, your co-workers, the government, your family…you name it. Gratitude is a practice that we need to regularly participate in. It’s a choice!

To learn our lesson, we looked that the Israelites as they wandered through the desert. God provided for them regularly all that they needed. Still, there were four mistakes that the children of Israel made that led to their destruction:

1. Idolatry
2. Sexual Immorality
3. Testing of Christ (that is: Willful Defiance)
4. Grumbling

Scripture teaches us that gratitude is a result of a certain kind of character, which we must develop.

• Who do I make responsible for the joy and gratitude factor in my life? Me!
• When am I going to practice gratitude? Today…right now!
• What should I be grateful for? Everything.
• What about when I’m disappointed? Practice “Defiant Gratitude”…be grateful anyways.

Saturday, 8/29 – 7:00pm:

•          Thanks again to Tom for filling in for Matt on drums.
•          It was great to have both Elisa and Barb singing together!
•          I like that, with such a small congregation at this service, we can still laugh at the idea of a “25^th Anniversary Sue Steege” doll.
•          We’ve taken to doing a closing song while the congregation leaves…which can take as little as 30 seconds. Sometimes, however, some people stay to listen/worship more. Thanks for making it fun!

Sunday, 7/26 – 11:15am:

•          Thanks to Jubal for filling in the drums this morning.
•          We had Jake take the lead for one of the verses on “God of Wonders” at the beginning of the service. Did you know that he’s got a regular gig on Friday nights at the Good&Rich coffeehouse in Clarence?
•          Children’s message was interesting in that I took Joel up with the rest of the boys. Whenever Sue sent the kids to say “Thank You” to someone, Joel went with them…away from where I was. When she dismissed the kids, Joel again went the wrong way and Sue had to direct him back to me.

So, what in our worship particularly helped you draw close to God? What did not? Share your story in the comments below!

Prepare for Worship – Lessons on Gratitude (Aug. 29-30)

Do you ever feel that gratitude is lost in today’s society? We seem to feel that we deserve everything that we do (and don’t!) have. So when someone provides for or blesses us in some way, it doesn’t take us long to start grumbling for more. Sometimes we don’t take enough time to linger in the joy of being blessed and cared for. Other times we just don’t know how to express that gratitude. I had one of our band members this week share an incident for which they were extremely grateful, and the question was asked: “What do I do with this gratitude I’m feeling?”

This weekend, Pastor will be bringing us “Lessons on Gratitude.” The Bible is far from silent on the issue of gratitude and there are many examples written in scripture that teach (or, in some cases, warn) us to be grateful. Come and join us for worship, and hear from God’s word how joy can overtake us when we stop grumbling.

The readings for this week:
Old Testament:  Exodus 16: 1-3, 15-16
New Testament:  1 Corinthians 10: 6-12
Gospel:  John 6: 41-51

Sunday
Gathering:  “God of Wonders”
Opening:     “All I Have”
                    “I’m Forever Grateful”
Offering:     “Thy Kingdom Come”
Closing:      “Thanks Be to God”
Sending:     “Rock of Ages”

Saturday
Opening:  “All I Have”
                 “I’m Forever Grateful”
Prayer:    “Thy Kingdom Come”
Closing:   “Thanks Be to God”
Sending:  “Rock of Ages”