Three Worship Albums to Inspire

March 13, 2012 in Music, Worship with 4 Comments

There seems to be an overabundance on worship albums in the mainstream today.

There’s even a portion of the music industry dedicated specifically to ‘worship.’ We’ve come a long way from four part harmonies and an old pipe organ. Or maybe we haven’t. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been less than satsified with the latest offerings over the past few years.

Yes there have been a few gems, but even those diamonds in the rough have a tendency to get stale. Those bands or artists that were cutting edge and leading the way, have in many ways been lost in the over saturated worship market.

We have our worship wars between old school hymns and new school choruses. We have blended services, traditional services, and contemporary services. All proclaiming the value of their style and methods. And each having a right to their own.

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The Power of Humility in Worship

March 12, 2012 in Worship with 3 Comments

Humility is something we’ll never conquer. Yet its something we must consistently face.

You’ve put the work into your set. You’ve prayed through the songs and flow and have been purposeful in your song choices. However, it just didn’t come together as you had planned.

There was something missing. Maybe energy or enthusiasm. Maybe lack of preparation. Maybe you can’t put your finger on it but you know worship fell a bit short of your standards.

You walk away scratching your head wondering what you could have done differently vowing never to allow another Sunday like this one.

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Pursuing Inspiration and 5 Ways to Find It

March 9, 2012 in Inspiration with 2 Comments

Are you taking time to be inspired?

Such a simple question yet hard to accomplish. Inspiration, many times, comes as a result of an action or movement. It’s proactive. Very seldom is it reactive although it is possible.

Inspiration is a result of creative influence, a stimulation or arousal of the mind, feelings, soul to a special activity. In it’s essence, it’s the act of inhaling and breathing.

There is a difference between Inspiration and Creation. Creation is often the result of something inspiring like Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel, or Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. Art, music, poetry, nature, all have the power to stir our hearts and emotions to push us towards a new creation.

And I believe that this is essential in every leader, creative, or pastors life. It keeps things fresh and can be that extra motivation that we sometimes need when we accidentally fall into a rut. Inspiration can help move us from our current state of staleness and routine to a whole other plain.

Simply put… we need to actively pursue those things that inspire. We need to tap into the rhythm of life and escape the doldrums of mediocrity.

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Planning Easter – Wunderkit, Collaboration, and You

March 8, 2012 in Creativity, Worship with 4 Comments

Easter presents us with an unbelievable opportunity.

Christmas and Easter are those two times during the year that everyone gets drugged. Well, at least ‘drug’ to church. People that have given up on God or the church miraculously appear in pews and sanctuaries across the world.

It’s a great opportunity to show them the love and grace of God. Christmas and Easter attenders usually come with family, get dressed up, and may even take a family photo. Then it’s off for an Easter egg hunt and a honey baked ham. But could there be more? What if we could reach them?

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6 Ways to Recharge from a Worship Hangover

March 7, 2012 in Life, Worship with 6 Comments

Don’t you dread Monday mornings?

There are the obvious reasons why Monday’s are the most hated day of the week. It marks the end of the weekend and the start of the work week. It means leaving the people we love the most and working with folks we don’t particularly care about.

Hopefully, for those of us in full or part time ministry, this isn’t the case. I for one, love the staff I work with and consider myself very blessed in that regard. But there are other reasons to over sleep on Mondays.

The Spiritual Hangover

I’m not a fan of hangovers or movies, however funny they might be, about hangovers. But there is another form of a hangover that proves to be quite a struggle in many other regards besides being overly intoxicated.

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The Art of Standing in Worship

March 6, 2012 in Series, Worship with 12 Comments

Is there anything more silly than singing your heart out to God:

“I’ll Stand with Arms High and Heart Abandoned…”

And you look out at your church and only a handful of folks are actually standing?

Isn’t it strange to sing a song, a worship song, about standing with arms high or in awe while we debate whether or not it’s worth our energy to actually stand up? Yet this happens quite frequently.

A week or so ago I wrote about the expression of raising our hands in worship, today, as we explore this series on Expressions of Worship, I wanted to look at the role of standing.

Is it biblical? Should we do it? Is it okay not to do?

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Community Matters

March 5, 2012 in Creativity, Inspiration with 5 Comments

Community Matters…

It matters to our churches and the sacred places we call home. Here’s a short video we produced (myself and Nathan Hall of Anchor Media) for our church this past Sunday.

Video is powerful… but Authentic, Real Community is even more powerful!

Have a great Monday.

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