Chorus Christians

For all of you at Liberty... or in any "modern church" for that matter... have you ever stopped singing and just watched people during the praise songs in Convo or Campus church? I've been doing this more and more recently... its rather comical... and entirely predictable.

As one of my friends said the other day... they're Chorus Christians... or they only are "Spirit-filled" when the band is playing G-chords. As soon as the key changes, or the beat picks up, up shoots the hands.

Tim Hawkins, one of my all-time favorite speaker, comedian, and person in general has some really good videos on Worship Styles, Worship Songs, and others.

 However, this post isn't intended to hurt anyone's feelings. If you choose to worship by raising your arms while singing, that's all fine and good. I do it too sometimes. The main intent of this post is to get you to think about something...  

What are you worshiping when you're singing?

Are you worshiping the song?
The band playing them that sounds really good?
The words of the song?  
Or are you worshiping the One the song is really about?

I've taken a step back in the past few months and evaluated my worship, especially in places of corporate worship. In all honesty, the songs are shallow, the lyrics barely graze the surface of what God has done for us.

One of my biggest pet peeves is when the songs make it sound like you're singing to a boyfriend or girlfriend rather than to our awesome Savior and the Creator of the Universe. "When Heaven meets earth like an unforeseen kiss." Really? Those lyrics don't even make sense. (I do like that song, but that one line just bugs the bejeebies out of me). It was even worse when one band decided to change it to a sloppy wet kiss. What is wrong with our society today?!

What happened to the hymns? The ones with so much depth, and meaning, heartache and love that just seeps out of the lyrics when they're sung. Have you ever read the stories behind those hymns? It Is Well With My Soul was written after Horatio Spafford lost his four daughters in the sinking of the S.S. Ville de Havre in 1873 and seven years later also lost his 4 year old son to a childhood illness. Out of tragedy came a beautiful song that has impacted millions of people.

How about one of the most well-known songs of this day and age - Amazing Grace. Did you know that the original writer, John Newton, was the captain of a slave ship? It was during a horrific storm on May 10, 1748 that he had what he called his "conversion experience." Later, he wrote the hymn Amazing Grace, which had more verses added to by other writers throughout the years. He became a famous preacher and his life has touched millions of lives. The messages behind these beautiful songs are so much more powerful and meaningful than some of the songs we sing in "worship" today.

What are you worshiping? Do you raise your hands because everyone else is, or are you really lifting your hands in praise to the One who is worthy of your worship?  
Search within your heart the next time you sing... ask your self why.

Describing God

Professor : You are a Christian, aren’t you, son ?
...
Student : Yes, sir.

Professor: So, you believe in GOD ?

Student : Absolutely, sir.

Professor : Is GOD good ?

Student : Sure.

Professor: Is GOD all powerful ?

Student : Yes.

Professor: My brother died of cancer even though he prayed to GOD to heal him. Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But GOD didn’t. How is this GOD good then? Hmm?

(Student was silent.)

Professor: You can’t answer, can you ? Let’s start again, young fella. Is GOD good?

Student : Yes.

Professor: Is satan good ?

Student : No.

Professor: Where does satan come from ?

Student : From … GOD …

Professor: That’s right. Tell me son, is there evil in this world?

Student : Yes.

Professor: Evil is everywhere, isn’t it ? And GOD did make everything. Correct?

Student : Yes.

Professor: So who created evil ?

(Student did not answer.)

Professor: Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the world, don’t they?

Student : Yes, sir.

Professor: So, who created them ?

(Student had no answer.)

Professor: Science says you have 5 Senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Tell me, son, have you ever seen GOD?

Student : No, sir.

Professor: Tell us if you have ever heard your GOD?

Student : No , sir.

Professor: Have you ever felt your GOD, tasted your GOD, smelt your GOD? Have you ever had any sensory perception of GOD for that matter?

Student : No, sir. I’m afraid I haven’t.

Professor: Yet you still believe in Him?

Student : Yes.

Professor : According to Empirical, Testable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says your GOD doesn’t exist. What do you say to that, son?

Student : Nothing. I only have my faith.

Professor: Yes, faith. And that is the problem Science has.

Student : Professor, is there such a thing as heat?

Professor: Yes.

Student : And is there such a thing as cold?

Professor: Yes.

Student : No, sir. There isn’t.

(The lecture theater became very quiet with this turn of events.)

Student : Sir, you can have lots of heat, even more heat, superheat, mega heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat. But we don’t have anything called cold. We can hit 458 degrees below zero which is no heat, but we can’t go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold. Cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.

(There was pin-drop silence in the lecture theater.)

Student : What about darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as darkness?

Professor: Yes. What is night if there isn’t darkness?

Student : You’re wrong again, sir. Darkness is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light. But if you have no light constantly, you have nothing and its called darkness, isn’t it? In reality, darkness isn’t. If it is, well you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn’t you?

Professor: So what is the point you are making, young man ?

Student : Sir, my point is your philosophical premise is flawed.

Professor: Flawed ? Can you explain how?

Student : Sir, you are working on the premise of duality. You argue there is life and then there is death, a good GOD and a bad GOD. You are viewing the concept of GOD as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, Science can’t even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing.

Death is not the opposite of life: just the absence of it. Now tell me, Professor, do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?

Professor: If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, yes, of course, I do.

Student : Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?

(The Professor shook his head with a smile, beginning to realize where the argument was going.)

Student : Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor. Are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you not a scientist but a preacher?

(The class was in uproar.)

Student : Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the Professor’s brain?

(The class broke out into laughter. )

Student : Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor’s brain, felt it, touched or smelt it? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established Rules of Empirical, Stable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says that you have no brain, sir. With all due respect, sir, how do we then trust your lectures, sir?

(The room was silent. The Professor stared at the student, his face unfathomable.)

Professor: I guess you’ll have to take them on faith, son.

Student : That is it sir … Exactly ! The link between man & GOD is FAITH. That is all that keeps things alive and moving.

By the way, that student was EINSTEIN.

It has never ceased to amaze me that people complicate things in life and choose alternatives to faith in Christ. It is such a sad and hopeless world we live in... 

Waiting on God - Day 15

Read: Psalm 106

The waters covered their adversaries;
Not one of them was left.
Then they believed His words;
They sang His praise.
They quickly forgot His works;
They did not wait for His counsel,
But craved intensely in the wilderness,
And tempted God in the desert.
v. 11-14

How often do we thank God when good things happen, but then "curse" God when things don't go our way? I know I've done it. Haven't we all? Why is it, that when we need God the most, we push Him away?
I never understood that.

Challenge: Try to consciously turn your thoughts towards God when things don't go "your way".

Waiting on God - Day 14

Read: Psalm 40

I waited patiently for the Lord; 
And He inclined to me and heard my cry.
He brought me up out of the pit of destruction,
Out of the miry clay,
And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.
He put a new song in my mouth,
A song of praise to our God;
Many will see and fear
And will trust in the Lord.
Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders which You have done,
And Your thoughts toward us;
There is none to compare with You.
If I would declare and speak of them,
They would be too numerous to count.
v. 1-3, 5

Many people have told me that patience or "suffering" for God will build character. All those trials and hard times that I've gone through, its just making me better at waiting on God. In some ways I think this is true, but in other ways, I'm not so sure. Someone else told me "Suffering doesn't build character, it brings out character that you already have." I think I like her way of saying it better. I'm not saying that there is nothing to be learned during suffering and hard times, but I think that God brings out the character we already have, and either makes it stronger, or changes it during that time.
"True patience is so foreign to our self-confident nature, it is so indispensable in our waiting upon God, it is such an essential element of true faith, that we may well once again meditate on what the Word has to teach us. True patience is the losing of our self-will in His perfect will."

Challenge: How has God rewarded you as you waited patiently? 
I think one of the hardest things to remember is that patience is not a gift that we have naturally. It is God's gift to us. I have the tendency to try to keep things in my control. To have everything in its neat little organized box. But that isn't how God wants it to be. When I'm getting frustrated because things aren't going "my way" I stop and remind myself that God is seeing the big picture. I'm only seeing the puzzle pieces.

Someone yesterday was saying that the phrase "Let Go and Let God" was one of the stupidest phrases she had ever heard. "If I'm hanging off a cliff, why would I let go and then complain to God that I fell?" How about letting go and trusting God to have a net there to catch you.

There are so many ways that God has rewarded me. In big things and small things. One of the smaller things happened just yesterday. A few weeks ago I bought a new bed and moved everything to my new place. The only problem was, I didn't want to spend 70+ dollars on a bedding set. But I knew exactly the kind/style that I wanted to match my headboard. So I've been searching the various stores and places online for the past few weeks. No such luck. An hour before I was supposed to leave and come back to college yesterday, my mom says "hey there are two comforter sets advertised in the newspaper, why don't you call?"
Well, I called, and the older lady that answered described them as burgundy. I was thinking.... purple... this could possibly work... but I had wanted blue originally. I meet up with them, and the first comforter set is bright red with cold tassels. Not exactly my idea. Then he pulls out the second one. Its light blue and tan with the entire set included. All for a whopping $30.
I got home and was showing it to my mom and we realized the price tags were still on the wrapping. The original price was over $200.
God Rewards.

Waiting on God - Day 13

Read: Psalm 16

It's Easter Sunday morning, I had to work so I wasn't able to make it to church like I wanted to. However, once I got off work, I had the house to myself, so I put my sweatpants and sweatshirt on, grabbed a cup of hot tea, my journal and Bible and headed out to the deck to have my devotions.
Thank You Lord for a beautiful day!

"The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You support my lot.
The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.
I will bless the Lord who has counseled me;
Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night.
I have set the Lord continually before me;
Because HE is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.
Therefore, my heart is glad and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will dwell securely.
For YOU will not abandon my soul to Sheol;
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.
You will make known to me the path of life; 
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forever. 
v.5-11

"In every true prayer there are two hearts in exercise. The one is your heart, with its little, dark, human thoughts of what you need and God can do. The other is God's great heart, with its infinite, its divine purposes of blessing. What think you? To which of these two ought the larger place to be given in your approach to Him? Undoubtedly, to the heart of God: everything depends upon knowing and being occupied with that. But how little this is done. This is what waiting on God is meant to teach you. Just think of God's wonderful love and redemption, in the meaning these words must have to Him. Confess how little you understand what God is willing to do for you, and say each time as you pray 'And now, what wait I for?' My heart cannot say. God's heart knows and waits to give. 'My hope is in Thee.' Wait on God to do for you more than you can ask or think."

Challenge: Which heart do you trust more, God's or yours?

Waiting on God - Day 12

Read: Hebrews 5:11-12

"And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence,
So as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end,
So that you will not be sluggish,
But imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises."

This reminded me of the song Blessings by Laura Story.

Waiting on God - Day 11

Read: Psalm 37

I think I've just found another favorite passage of the Old Testament. I'm sitting here letting everything that I just read sink in and give me peace.

The past week has been pretty stressful for me. My phone broke, my car was having problems, I had a migrane that lasted a week, a presentation, a test, a paper, problems and fights with friends. It was one of "those" weeks.

Some of my favorite parts of this passage.
"Trust in the Lord and do good;
Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
Delight yourself in the Lord;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it."
v. 3-5
"Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way"
v. 7a
"The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
And He delights in his way.
When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong,
Because the Lord is the One who holds his hand.
I have been young and now I am old,
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken."
v. 23-28a

Challenge: What role does prayer, Bible study, and active ministry play in the believer's quest for patience? 
"All the exercises of the spiritual life, our reading and praying, our willing and doing, have their very great value. But they can go no farther than this, that they point the way and prepare us in humility to look to and to depend alone upon God Himself, and in patience to await His good time and mercy."
I completely agree with this quote from the devotional. While all these are good and God commands us to take part in each one, without patience and the trust that God will work in His time, we will not receive the maximum benefit of prayer, Bible study, and ministry. Its kind of like telling people that a certain ice cream flavor tastes really great, but you haven't even tried it yourself yet.

Patience and trust is the result of our faith in God.

Waiting on God - Day 10

Read: Psalm 33

Challenge: How many times is lovingkindness or mercy mentioned in this passage? What does that mean to you?
Four times in twenty two verses, God's lovingkindness or mercy is mentioned. 

Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, 
On those who hope for His lovingkindess."
v.18 

I think one of the hardest things for people to do is to reject the attitude of "God will forgive everything because I ask for forgiveness. Even if its the repeated sin. STOP making the same choices! There's a popular quote that says "The first time its a mistake, every time after that its a choice."

Don't make the same mistakes over again.
  
Thy Mercy, My God

1. Thy mercy, my God, is the theme of my song,
The joy of my heart. and the boast of my tongue;
Thy free grace alone, from the first to the last,
Hath won my affections, and bound my soul fast.

2. Without Thy sweet mercy I could not live here;
Sin would reduce me to utter despair;
But, through Thy free goodness, my spirits revive,
And He that first made me still keeps me alive.

3. Thy mercy is more than a match for my heart,
Which wonders to feel its own hardness depart;
Dissolved by Thy goodness, I fall to the ground,
And weep to the praise of the mercy I’ve found.

4. Great Father of mercies, Thy goodness I own,
And the covenant love of Thy crucified Son;
All praise to the Spirit, Whose whisper divine
Seals mercy, and pardon, and righteousness mine.
All praise to the Spirit, Whose whisper divine
Seals mercy, and pardon, and righteousness mine.

Waiting on God - Day 9

Read: Psalm 31

It's funny how God has a sense of humor, and He definitely loves irony.

 

"But as for me, I trust in You, O Lord, 
I say, 'You are my God.'
My times are in Your hands."
v. 14-15a





Challenge: What do you struggle the most in trusting God with? 
Yikes. Not only was I struggling with this all day today, there is a specific thing that I keep struggling to give over to God. I trust Him. But one of the hardest things for me to stop worrying about is money. Being in college and paying for it myself, money is always an issue. But somehow God provides. Every time. 
Its a constant give and take struggle for me to stop worrying about finances though. Every single day, multiple times a day, I have to give it back to God. Reminding myself that He is in control. 
Things happen on His time table.  

Waiting on God - Day 8

Read: Psalm 27

Word of God Speak  

I think this song goes well with v. 1-6 of this passage. It immediately came to mind this morning as I was reading.



Challenge: What kind of fears and doubts prevent believers from waiting on God? 

In the devotional series, the focus today was waiting on God by being strong and of good courage. Having the faith and the trust to place everything in God's hands and allow Him to work. For a little background story; I love visiting new churches. I love the different types of worship that goes on, the various types of music, and the preaching styles of different pastors. One particular week, a friend and I visited a Wednesday evening Bible study at a church. I had been there twice for regular services and wasn't impressed, but decided to try this Bible study. During the video message, it was made abundantly clear that one must give your whole self to God, but the man also said that if you give certain idols over to God, its a once and done thing. You give it to God and you never have to struggle with it again. Now, I don't know about you, but I'm human, and one of my faults is I like being in control. This poses a problem when I "give something to God." Do I trust Him? Yes, I do. But even so, I still feel like I'm an Indian Giver sometimes. I give, and then I take back, I give, and then I take back.

Back to the church. At the end of the video, we broke off into smaller groups of about 8-10 people. This was supposed to be a young adult class, but in reality it was a wacked out group of "single" people from 35-65+ years old. It was quite awkward since my friend and I were the only two people under the age of 30 in the room. During the little break-out session, we were supposed to talk about things that we've given over to God. Two or three people in my group shared saying they had give over these huge problems or idols in their life and they've never had to worry about them since. I was sitting there thinking, "holy cow, teach me!" I knew my turn was coming to share, and if I don't know people, I don't like sharing my personal struggles with them. So I simply said, being in college and paying for it myself, money and bills are things that I have trouble giving up control of. And then I admitted that while I've given it to God, sometimes I'll catch myself "taking it back" and worrying about it again, so I stop and pray and give it right back to God. A few of the "older" people of the group then proceeded to tell me that I wasn't trusting God enough and that I have a huge problem because I don't allow Him control over my finances. They said I need to sit back, relax and let God provide.

Is that wrong? Am I sinning because I don't trust God enough? Is it wrong that I have two jobs to pay for school and I'm not just sitting around letting God drop money into my lap?

Maybe I have a warped view of God providing. But I also think that God rewards those who work hard and honor Him in their every day lives. There are countless times when I have seen God work in my life, and seen how He provides for everything I need. Two jobs and nursing school doesn't really leave extra time for things, especially overtime hours. But there have been numerous occasions when I am down to the last minute on paying a bill, and somehow I have a few extra hours at work that week and I get paid just a little more than the bill amount. Or, I have needed something, like a bed last month, and because the guy accidentally sold mine, I got an $800 bed within my price range for $200. Because I was actively looking for a bed, and bargaining, and searching for deals; does that mean I don't trust God? No, I believe God gave me the brain and the money skills to be a good steward of my money. This means bargaining, sales shopping, and comparing prices. Do I trust God? Of course.

God provides... even a bed.

Waiting on God - Day 7

Read: Psalm 25:21

"Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for You."

Integrity: noun

1. adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty.

2. the state of being whole, entire, or undiminished: to preserve the integrity of the empire.

3. a sound, unimpaired, or perfect condition

Do you walk in integrity? Even when no one else is watching, and no one else will ever find out, do you make the right choices? 
I know every single person struggles with this... no one is perfect. One of the ways that I have dealt with making the right choices is to battle it with Scripture. Kind of like what Jesus did when Satan tempted Him. The hard part about this is you have to memorize Scripture; if you're good at memorizing - Great! If not, then take it one day at a time. Keep sticky notes with verses in different books, and places around your house. Put them on the bathroom mirror!
Have a friend or mentor pray for you. Its hard, you don't have to be on your own!   


Challenge: Make the right choice, even when no one else will know.

Waiting on God - Day 6

Read: Psalm 25:3

"Let none that wait on You be ashamed!"







During the summer three years ago, I was teaching 5-day clubs with CEF. I've always worked alone, so I had no partner to "back me up" if I forgot something. Usually I was prepared, I had my check-list, I'd leave early, do my devotions in the quiet of the car beforehand, and be ready to go.
On one particular day, this was not the case. The Bible lesson for the day was the Centurion's servant. (rare one, huh?) Such a fitting day for it too, because I realized I left my Bible with my lesson notes on my desk. The night before I had been putting together a special project for the girls in a later club, and I never put my Bible back in my bag. I always keep an extra Bible in my car, but really? How on earth was I supposed to teach the lesson on the Centurion's servant? This was the lesson that I used my notes for the most; all the other lessons I basically had memorized. I had no clue what I was going to do; I was embarrassed and ashamed that I wasn't prepared.
I had 10 minutes before I had to be inside. So there I sat, in my car, on the verge of tears and prayed. I texted my mom and asked her to bring my Bible to the next club, got out of my car, and went to the back to get my bag out. I was heading in to teach kids, completely unprepared, with no back-up plan. I sent up another silent plea asking God to help me. As I opened the back hatch of my explorer, my teacher's manual fell out of the car. The binder opened to all the lesson plans. I almost fell over with relief. God answered my prayer and had given me everything I needed to teach the Bible lesson that day.  

Challenge: Do you take your problems to God? Do you allow Him to show His awesome answers to prayer in your life?

Waiting on God - Day 5

Read: Psalm 25

Make me know Your ways, O Lord; 

Teach me Your paths. 

Lead me in Your truth and teach me, 

For You are the God of my Salvation; 

For YOU I wait all the day. 

v. 4-5

I know I didn't write much for today, but I feel like those verses speak for themselves. 

Challenge: Have a teachable spirit today. 

God, I ask You to give me a humble spirit. 

Break down any walls of pride that I might have constructed. 

Teach me Your ways today, tomorrow, forever.

Waiting on God - Day 4

Read: Psalm 145

 The focus of the passage is waiting on God for supplies. He supplies all we need, not necessarily all we want. I think many people forget that when they ask God for things. He sees the big picture, He knows the future, He knows what we need.
Whenever I hear of God supplying our needs, I immediately think of an army waiting for the necessary equipment required to complete their mission. They cannot complete the mission unless they have the needed supplies, so they wait.
We wait on God to supply us with the necessary "supplies" in life so that we can complete our "mission" here on Earth.

Challenge: How much time do you spend on your needs rather than focusing on God? 
When we wait in quiet peace, we hear that still small voice. If we're constantly focusing on our own needs, and more often than not, our own wants, we sometimes miss His voice. I'm not saying it isn't okay to pray and ask God for things, but He has already promised to supply our needs, so why not take more time focusing on Him.

The Lord keeps all who love Him,
But all the wicked He will destroy.
My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
And all flesh will bless His holy name forever and ever.
v. 20-21