Journey of Worship

Posts Tagged ‘Music’

I like music. That’s probably a good thing since a huge part of my work deals with music. I like good music. I like music that is well done. I like music.

I especially appreciate music when it is obvious that the person/people playing it are really enjoying what they are doing.

I came across the following video on one of the many blogs I read. We’ve all seen actors and professional artists having fun while doing music – sometimes for real and sometimes for the show. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen the amount of enjoyment and creativity going into a musical performance like is being done by this 26-year old conductor and the Venezuelan teens he is leading. The video is a bit long, but it’s worth it. The first piece is good, but the second piece is amazing.

Be inspired.

Do you enjoy what you do as you serve Christ, whether it’s music or something else?

(via worshipvj.com)

There are lots of groups re-doing older songs we call hymns in new formats these days. Many recognize the value and content of these songs that have been sung for generations and the value of recasting them in new wrappers for a new generation of Christians.

One such group doing this is Page CXVI. They are a group of artists working to help the church re-engage with some of her musical history. In their own words, “Page CXVI is a project started with the idea of making hymns accessible and known again. They are some of the richest, most meaningful, and moving pieces of music ever written.”

Their first project, Hymns I, was released a while back and included selections such as
Come Thou Fount,
In Christ Alone,
My Jesus I Love Thee,
When I Survey the Wondrous Cross,
Nothing But the Blood,
Solid Rock, and
Joy.

They’ve recently released their second album, Hymns II. This new album is now available. Selections on this new album include:
How Great Thou Art,
Praise to the Lord,
Jesus, I Am Resting, Resting,
Rock of Ages,
Abide with Me,
Battle Hymn of the Republic, and
Doxology.

To help people get familiar with what they are doing, PageCXVI is giving away the first album completely free for one week only. Head here to receive the Hymns I album completely free. It will be available until midnight on May 4, 2010.

If you’re looking for some new music, then check these folks out. They’re doing some great work. And you can find out what they’re doing for free this week.

As we gathered on this morning in culmination of a week of remembering, reflecting, and celebrating, we again took time to praise the Lord for His mightiness. After walking through the events of Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the vigil of Easter Saturday, it was good to be able to gather and celebrate something that is worth celebrating every single week – the resurrection of Jesus Christ who defeated death, sin, and the grave.

This morning was a part of our ongoing series “Do You Believe?” as we again looking at the truth of the resurrection of Jesus through some of the encounters in John 20 and asked if people believed.

For the full service experience, click for more. Read the rest of this entry »

We began our second series of the year this past Sunday called “be People of Prayer.” If you are the observant-type, you may notice that the title and look is similar. This is by design, as the previous series (Be People of the Word) and this one (Be People of Prayer) are designed to work together. We’ll be taking the next four weeks looking at some different aspects of prayer and helping people to begin to establish or continue a pattern of prayer.

The first week was focused on looking again at the example of Jesus and the time He spent in prayer. We looked at Mark 1:35-39, Luke 6:12-13, and Luke 22:39-46 as Jesus prayed often, He prayed hard, and He prayed through. Click for more info and video! Read the rest of this entry »

What does worship look like?  As the practical, pragmatic, and action-oriented Americans we are, how do we do this thing that is supposed to draw our attention to God so that we can give Him all glory and honor with our whole being?

The event of worship takes many forms.  One of the biggest ways that worship happens is through music.  This is true today and has been for centuries.  Psalm 69:30 tells us that “I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.”  Music, in its various forms, provides an avenue where worshippers can open their hearts to God and one another.  There is power in the corporate application of music.

Martin Luther (the one who nailed the 95 theses to the door and kicked off the Protestant Reformation), was a huge proponent of the role of music in worship.  Charles Moss in The Musical Reforms of Luther writes that “Martin Luther viewed music as having powers to repulse evil and to glorify God at the same time.”  In the forward to his Symphoniae, Luther himself wrote that “next to the Word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world.  It controls our thoughts, minds, hearts, and spirits. “

As vital as music is, there is a downside to the association of music with worship.  Unfortunately, we have made worship about music and the two have become synonymous in our minds.  Instead of music being an aspect of worship, worship is music.  Then we find ourselves in a place that says we can’t worship without music.

The fact of the matter is, as songwriter Paul Baloche says, “worship has more to do with relationship than with music.  Worshipping God with music is simply a tool to help us connect relationally to a living God.”

So, we return to our original question of what does worship look like.  We know one way is music.  But what other ways can we connect with the living God?  How about things like reading, hearing, and applying the Word of God, tithing, living generously, serving, loving others, meditating on who God is, making our prayers more than just requests, developing an attitude of thankfulness, surrendering full control of our life to God, and responding to the truth of God by living it out in our daily lives.

There’s a reason why the event we attend each Sunday is called a “worship service.”  All of the elements that take place in it should facilitate our whole self connecting with God and choosing to live for Him.  It’s not called a “music service” as music is but a part of the whole.

Worship looks like a lot of things. We can connect with God in a variety of valid ways both corporately and personally.  We should not be limited in our ability to worship the living God based on whether there is music available or not.

What does worship look like to you?  What helps you connect with God?  Let me know in the comments.

We’re in the third week of the “Be People of the Word” series as we focused on the value and benefits of the what the Bible offers us as an owner’s manual for life. We tackled Psalm 119 (all of it), and approached it be first focusing on the blessing of obedience that comes from studying the Word and then presenting a number of “tips” based off of the main themes in Psalm 119.

We began with Welcome and Announcements, and then as part of the Call to Worship, I took a teachable moment focused on why we sing when we gather (because we are instructed to and because it helps us to remember and declare the truth of who God is and what He has done). I mentioned that the songs we sing are from Scripture, some of them exactly, and that the reason we often put verses on the screen during musical interludes was to help people connect the songs with their Scriptural basis. I then read a medley of Scriptures (Col 1:19, John 3:35, Phil 2:9-11, Eph 1:21, Col 1:16, Rom 14:9, Col 2:10, John 1:16). Read the rest of this entry »

It’s been a while since I’ve done a post about our Sunday worship services. Not intentionally, it’s just that when things get busy, some things don’t get the attention they did before. Blogging happens to be one of those things. Which is probably why I’ve had a whole bunch of posts over the last few days – getting some stuff out that’s been waiting.

Anyway, with the new year, we started a new series called “Be People of the Word.” Each year, our senior pastor wants to focus people back on the importance of the Word and prayer in our spiritual journey.

This week we focused on what it means to be truly blessed and the role the Word of God plays in that. I tried video-taping the service this week, so click to check out the video and for more info. Read the rest of this entry »

We’re into our Christmas series for 2009 called “Catch the Christmas Spirit.” This year, we are focusing on helping people remember and capture the true meaning and spirit of this time of year. As soon as Halloween is over, we are thrust into the season of red, green, and sales.

The rush to get the right stuff for the right people is all that many people know and experience at this time of year. But, when we settle for that, we settle for a cheap substitute of what this time of the year is really about.

In Isaiah 9:1-7, God promised an amazing gift for the people. If we can catch the true Christmas spirit, our holiday celebration will not be the same, and neither will we.

Click to find out about the first two weeks of the series.

Read the rest of this entry »

Paul Baloche is getting ready to release a new CD – “Glorious” – tomorrow, November 3. I’ve long been a fan of Paul’s music and ministry. I’ve gotten to see him live a few times and experience his teaching. He is a humble man who is passionate for God. His songs have been a huge part of the worship repertoires of the various churches that I have been able to serve at. He is committed to helping worship leaders lead their local churches in authentic worship. His website at www.leadworship.com offers a ton of resources, many of which are free.

You can get the album digitally at AmazonMp3.com here, or you can head over to a couple of worship blogs I read and enter a contest to win a copy of the CD.

www.richkirkpatrick.com
www.chrisfromcanada.com

However you do it, I hope that you check out this latest offering from Paul.

Imagine this scenario with me…you’ve arrived at the church building for a Sunday morning service. You’ve made your way in and found a seat. The service begins as usual with a welcome and announcements about important things. Perhaps you hear a missionary share about the work they are doing. Maybe there is a video conveying a spiritual concept. Then the music starts. You’re invited to stand with everyone else as the leader encourages you to express praise through singing. You’re singing along with the words that declare the truth of who Jesus is, and then it happens. The words disappear off the screen, and there is just music playing. What do you do now?

In our modern gatherings where the same types of things happen regularly and we know the routine, it can be hard to know what to do in those “free” moments. Our natural tendency is to look around, wonder what’s going to happen next, or think about where you’re going to eat lunch. Read the rest of this entry »