Words of Encouragement

The Purpose of the Door

MONDAY
Verily, Verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth is own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers…Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man entered in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. – John 10:1-5, 7-9


The Purpose of the door. Entrance through the door. When we think about a door, we think of several things. The first purpose of a door is to keep things inside. The door shut and locked keeps those on the inside protected, yet they always have the opportunity to go in and out, they have the key. The second purpose of a door is to keep things on the outside. Those that would try to break into the house or to take what is not theirs is kept on the outside.


Jesus is addressing that which was spoken about him. The Pharisees’ stand was that Jesus was some how one that did not have a right, but here Jesus corrects them. He explains that he is not the one entering into the sheepfold as a thief, but as one that has a right.

Jesus correctly says that he is both the door of the sheep and one that enters through the door. Jesus does not enter into the sheepfold as a thief, but one that has the key to enter in. He enters into the fold because he is the owner of the sheep. He comes into the fold to feed them and to care for them. He is also the door by which the sheep enter and exit. The sheep cannot become part of the fold until they have gone through the passageway into the fold. For you and I, that passageway is through the blood of Christ. We become part of the fold when we pass through the doorway of hope and salvation.

We are kept safe behind the door (Jesus). He locks out the enemy that would want to try to take from us that which belongs to us. We are safe and provided for behind the door. We are not locked in the house like prisoners, but one that has freedom in the house. That freedom comes because we have the key, which locks the doors. When we accepted Christ as our savior we were given the keys to the kingdom, to the door.


We also can go in and out as Jesus states. We are not leaving our place with God, but have the freedom to go out and reach others in this world of sin, without it being able to overtake us. I pray for us today that we remember our entrance into the family of God is not by our own power and strength, but by the gift of God. You or I have nothing to boast in other than the power of God. For it was God that first had to help us recognize we were even lost. Then when he, through his Spirit showed us our sinfulness, he then offered us the entrance, the door to salvation. And when we accepted that entrance through the open door, we became part of the sheep, protected and cared for. It all points to the Jesus as the door, the entrance in.


TUESDAY
For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. – Exodus 12:23


The Purpose of the door. The protected door. Moses has tried to talk to pharaoh to convenience him to let the people of God go, but he refuses. The plagues that fall upon Egypt are because of pharaoh’s refusal to let the people go. This plague is the killing of the first born of all in Egypt. However, God gives instruction for the children of Israel on how to protect themselves.

The instruction is to place blood upon the beams and the two sides of the door. When the destroyer (death) comes past the house that has been cover on the top, bottom and the sides will be passed over.

In this instance that the door is used, it is important to see the significance of this instruction. Those on the inside of the house and behind the door would be protected. This protection does not come simply because they are behind the closed door, but because of the sacrifice of the blood that covers the door. Closing a door is something possible in humans to do, even locking or securing the door is possible. This however is something that is impossible in mankind to do; this is an act that only God can do, salvation of those behind the doors.


There is something I also think we need to see is that even though the act was only something that God could do, it is important for us to see where the Israelites played a part. There was instruction given for the people to follow. The first part of the instruction called for a hearing of the words. The second part of the instruction called for an acknowledging and receiving of the word. The third thing was the obedience to the word. If these three steps were not taken, then those behind the door would not be protected.

What that signifies for us today is that we are given instructions and if we are to be saved from destruction, we must follow them. We must first hear the words of God. They are given to us in many ways and we are to heed them all. The word is spoken to us across the pulpits, studied in our Bible classes, taught in Sunday school and read in our own times of devotion. We are instructed to hear the words. Then when we hear the instruction we must acknowledge the truth and receive the instruction of the word. And finally we must obey the word. This is the action then that places the blood of Christ on our doorposts securing us in on all sides, covering our heads and directing our footsteps.


It also reminds us of our hearts. Our hearts our the doorway to who we are and if we are not covered by the blood of Christ because of lack of obedience to God’s instruction, we stand waiting for the destroyer to come and smite us.


I pray for us today that we take the steps and allow the blood of the Lamb to cover our doors and protect us from destruction. Lord help us to follow your instructions completely as you give them. Help us to hear your, obey you and live.


WEDNESDAY
Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon they gates; That your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth. Deuteronomy – 11:18-20


The Purpose of the door. Doorway to understanding. The instruction is regarding the word of God. The instruction is to lay the words in your heart and then bind them for a sign upon your hand and as a frontlet between your eyes. Can you image something on your hand so whenever your hand reaches out to sin, the word of God is there to remind you of the right way to go. When you are walking you cannot help but see the words of God dangling in front of you, so that as you would want to walk into a path of disobedience, the word would remind you otherwise.

Then you shall teach the words to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk along the way, when you lie down and when you rise up. When you would want to put other things before God, his word would be mentioned so often that it would serve as a reminder of what is right. And then the instruction is write the words upon the doorposts and upon your gates so that your days may be multiplied.

Here we have another example of a doorpost. The words of God are written upon the post and the gate so that as you go in you see them and when you go out you are reminded of their wisdom. This too calls for instructions to be followed. First, the word must be read and then the time is spent writing them down. In other words, they had to have spent time with the word so that it could be placed on their doorposts.

After we have placed the blood of Christ upon our doorpost (hearts) we then must cover it with the word of God so that we can take possession of the promises in it and to prosper in the fullness of God’s glory. This is how we are afforded life, through the life giving word. Otherwise, the things we do will continue to lead us to death and separation from a loving Father.

I pray for us today that we allow the word to become not simply something we pick up from time to time to read, but that it becomes like the very air we breath, for without it we die from lack. Lord help us to read, understand and live your word. Help us to post your word on our heart so that as we go in and out (as the sheep did in the sheepfold) we will have your word to guide us. This is what will keep us safe, being under the protection of the almighty.


THURSDAY
Lord, I cry unto thee: make hast unto me; give ear unto my voice, when I cry unto thee. Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice. Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips. – Psalm 141:1-3


The Purpose of the door. Control of the door. The psalmist seeks God for his control over his life. The psalmist cries out that God would quickly come and see about him, to hear his cry for help. The request is receive my prayers as sweet smelling incense unto you. He asks God to accept his up lifted hands. Then the psalmist says something important. He asks God to watch his mouth and to keep the door of his lips.

What do you think it means to keep the door of his lips? The psalmist understands the weakness in himself that his mouth that should bring forth living waters, can also (if unchecked) bring forth bitter waters. So his request is that God would be the watchman over his lips. He is yielding himself to the control of God.

It is important that we grasp the necessity of giving control of the door to the best doorkeeper. You and I cannot keep ourselves, as we should without the power of God to equip us to do so. Doors allow things in and things out. In this instance the psalmist is asking for control to keep those things in that should not be let out. As believers this tends to be an area that many of us struggle in, keeping our lips shut. We should think as the psalmist did. He wanted God to quickly come to see about his needs, to accept his lifting of holy hands and to hear his prayers. He also seems to understand that he needs God to do something first so that his request is not hindered and that is to guard his mouth.


If we began to think about this matter more closely, might we be slower to speak some of the things we do? What if God said to us, I will not hear your prayers or accept your raised hand because you have consistently brought bitter waters from your mouth, what would we do? Oh to think my unbridled tongue could be such a destructive devices, even though it is so small.


Lord, today help us to be mindful of our lips. You have protected us from the destroyer because of the blood on our doorpost. You have instructed us to write your word on our doorpost so that we can live long, but if we do not give you the control of the doors in our lives, we set ourselves up for missing your provisions. Keep the doorway of our lips so that the words that come forth are only those that are acceptable to you. Help us to hear you speaking to us when you either tell us to be quiet, or to speak. We want our words to always be like rivers of living water, leaving life in their path and not destruction.


FRIDAY
The great God that formed all things both rewardeth the fool, and rewardeth transgressors. As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly. Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? There is more hope of a fool than of him. The slothful man saith, There is a lion in the way; a lion is in the streets. As the door turneth upon his hinges, so doth the slothful upon his bed. – Proverb 26:10-14


The Purpose of the door. Don’t be a swinging door! What a proverb, this proverb of wisdom. The writer tells us that God will reward to everyone, what is do him or her. To the foolish man or woman, to them their rewards is from that foolishness. To the transgressor, their reward is from that sinful state. We would not call these rewards, but in the sense it means payment. Each one will stand to receive payment for their lives (based on how you spent your life).


The writer compares the foolishness of a dog to that of a fool. Just as a dog returns to its vomit, so does a fool return to his/her foolishness. In this instance the writer wants us to see how disgusting and repulsive it is for a dog to go back and put his nose in his vomit. It is sickening for a fool to go back and put his/her nose into the sin they are regurgitating from the depths of their soul.


The writer also talks about the slothful man or woman. The slothful are like the hinges on a door that swing back and forth. The inactive or slothful (spiritual lazy) easily turn back and forth as it suits them. Have you ever held a door hinge and watched how quickly it swings back and forth without anything controlling it? The warning then to each of us is this, we need something holding us securely so that we won’t swing back and forth, opening and closing at the whim of every wind that blows. Instead, we need God to take control of our doors; the doors to our mouths, to our heart and to our minds.

When we go to service this weekend, let us go understanding that God is able to sustain us against the destroyer because of the blood of Christ on the doorpost of our hearts. We also can have abundant life in Christ when we post the word on our doors so that we see them as we go in and out. The word will become that which keeps us safe from the evil one that wants to take away that which belongs to us through Jesus. We then can run this race because we have yielded ourselves to God and he has the control of our lives. And finally we are warned not be swing back and forth with ever wind of doctrine. We are told don’t be tossed to and fro, but be grounded in the truth of God, and not a door swinging on its hinges in the wind. So Lord help us be what you have called us to be.

The Week in Review

God’s Truth in Song

There is much debate today regarding singing hymns or not. Some feel that hymns are too old and need to be retired. Others believe hymns are the only way we should go regarding worship and that contemporary songs are wrong. I contend that we need not an either or, but a both. There are contemporary songs that express how we feel and they help us to be drawn into worship. I also believe the hymns are good because they continue to teach us the truth we stand on.

If you read the words of some of the songs from the hymnbooks, you will realize these are words that were penned to tell the truth of the Bible. The Hymnal of the Church of God supports the theological concepts of “sin”, “salvation”, “sanctification” and the “indwelling of the Holy Spirit” in the early years of the movement. Look at the songs listed below and what the verses mean–

Sin - “Sin Can Never Enter There” –
VS. 1 - Heaven is a holy place filled with glory and with grace; Sin can never enter there: All within its gates are pure, from defilement kept secure; Sin can never enter there.

VS 2 – If you hope to dwell at last, When your life on earth is past, in that home so bright and fair, You must here be cleansed from sin, Have the life of Christ within.

These verses explain that with out the saving grace of Christ, no one can enter into heaven and one can only expect hell. The song says in verse 4 “to the regions of the lost. This song also explains that sin is what keeps us from a right relationship with God and from receiving any “good thing” from him, until we are cleansed. This is a scriptural truth. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” – Romans 6:23

Salvation – “Calvary Covers It All” –

VS 1 – Far dearer than all that the world can impart Was the message that came to my heart; How that Jesus alone for my sin did atone. And Calvary covered it all.

VS 2 – The stripes that He bore and the thorns that He wore Told His mercy and love ever more; And my heart bowed in shame as I called on His name.

VS 4 – How blessed the thought, that my soul by Him bought, Shall be His in the glory on high, Where with gladness and song I’ll be one of the throng.

These verses explain that first God’s spirit through prevenient grace brings one to the place of acceptance or rejection in Christ and when one has the understanding of what Jesus did for them at Calvary, that one “bows in shame (repentance) as they call on His name. And the promise is that once you are his, you will have an eternal home with him among others that have also confessed and believed. “but he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed” – Isaiah 53:5

Sanctification – “Let the Fire Fall on Me” –
VS 2 – I would have sufficient grace Ev’ry foe to bravely face, And an overcomer ever more to be; That I well may fill my place, And that I may win the race, Let the holy fire from heaven fall on me. The fire of Pentecost, consuming sin and dross.

VS 3 – Holy Spirit from above, Fill my longing soul with love, till the Master’s image all in me may see; Make me gentle, true and kind, Meek of heart and humble mind.

VS 4 – In the Kingdom I would stay, There to labor night and day, Any way and anywhere Thy will may be; But that I may do my best, And that others may be blest.

This song explains the working of the Holy Spirit within the life of a believer. He matures us in the things of God, doing his “perfecting” work within our lives. Helping us to be gentle, true, kind and humble. He equips us to do the work of the Lord and to hold fast to our faith in God so that we can stay within the safety of God’s presence. “That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.” – 2 Timothy 1:12

Indwelling of the Holy Spirit – “Are you Adorning the Doctrine?” –
VS 1 – …walking so holy before Him, following where he has trod, So when the world looks up-on you, Nothing but Christ s in view?

VS 2 – Are you adorning the doctrine, and making attractive the way, honoring Christ by your actions and by the words that you say? Are you, my brother and sister, proving the Bible is true?

VS 4 – If you’re adorning the doctrine, Its beauties your soul will array; shower of grace will be given Strength from the Lord as your day; light from on high will be streaming, Over the pathway you tread.

I’m not sure if others see this song as one expressing the indwelling of the Sprit, but this song explains to me what it looks like not just to be “doing right or doing doctrinal things”, but it shows me that when one is living for God, his spirit is what will enable you to do what is biblical. It is not by our own power, for we cannot resist the fleshly things without the power of God. When we are living by the Spirit of God then and only then, will we show the world Jesus in us. As we release ourselves to God’s Spirit we begin to reflect more the image of Jesus and less of “self”.

So why do I present these songs? Let’s not try to eliminate the heritage of the songs from our past. We can revisit them and make them new and fresh again for a new generation to understand the greatness of the word of God. So should we sing hymns only? Should we sing contemporary music only? I say not an either or, but both.

The Week in Review

Assignment #5 – Theology of Worship
February 9, 2007

The including of artistic elements in worship has met with some acceptance and also with some concern. The problem has been whether artistic elements are biblical and necessary in the worship service. If one looks at the Bible, elements of artistic elements can be seen in worship.
The first example is when the children of Israel had safely crossed the Red Sea and began to sing a song of praise to God. In Exodus 15:20 it states, “Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her, with tambourines and dancing”. Some have argued that this was not the same as today’s praise dance because it was a spontaneous dancing before the Lord, while today’s dancing is planned. However, we cannot overlook this important fact, while we do not see this as a planned dance, we can see they were comfortable expressing themselves in the dance and felt it was not dishonoring to God. Dancing was also done to musical accompaniment and was done as a celebration of a joyous occasion (examples Psalm 30:11, Eccl. 3:4, Luke 15:25, Psalm 249:3, 150:4). Dancing was also done to celebrate military victories (1 Samuel 18:26). Women were the ones mostly listed in scripture as dancing, but we also have David as he danced before the Lord with all his might (2 Samuel 6:14).

I believe one of the greatest artistic elements was the work of the tabernacle itself. In 1 Kings the 6 chapter, it gives the details of the building of the tabernacle. In order for this to be accomplished, those skilled in the use metal and woods for example were allowed to come and work on the tabernacle. The tabernacle had to be a visual reminder of the splendor of God. So each time the people saw it, they could be reminded of the beauty and wonder of God. How can we view this today? It let’s us know that we should allow all people to come and use their talents for the building of the kingdom. The artisan should be allowed to create in paint, wood or metal so they help the people visually connect with some of the attributes of the Lord.

Lastly, drama within the worship services, does it have a place as well? I can only go to one person to answer this questions, Jesus. Jesus when he taught to the people he could have given straight answers to the questions asked him, but he chose to paint a picture with a story. He used parables to teach his lessons. In Matthew 21:23, for example, the priests ask a question of Jesus about what authority he has to do these things. Jesus turns their question around, and then he begins to teach in parables. Some would say that is different from drama. It does, however show that Jesus would use other means of bringing home truth about a subject. It is the same with drama. A storyteller will tell a story that relates to the everyday, yet in the process can reveal deep truth about biblical matters, which can make individuals think.

It is important for the church today to look at the possibilities of using artistic elements within the worship service so that individuals utilize all there senses in the worship of the Lord and allowed to have the freedom to respond to his presence. That is what is most important in reading and understanding the word of God. The people had freedom to praise and yet they were aware of the importance of worshipping God’s way. Today we can worship using artistic elements in the service and still be worshipping God, as he requires.

Words of Encouragement

MONDAY

“UNTO thee, O LORD, do I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me. Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed: let them be ashamed which transgress without cause. Shew me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths.” Psalm 25:1-4

Confidence in prayer. Trust. This Psalm of David reminds us of how we should pray when we are faced with situations that seem unmovable. We know how much David went through as he ran from Saul who was trying to destroy his very life.

When we are in situations that seem too hard to move or that we feel like we are running just to stay alive, we can take comfort and know we can trust in God. We must lift our hearts to the Lord. Just as was stated last week, when we lift our situations up to the Lord we give him access to them, because we are no longer trying to solve them alone.

We can lift our downcast souls up to the Lord and know that we can trust in him. We can ask the Lord for the victory in our situations just as David did. He asked the Lord not to allow his enemies to triumph over him. Are you under attack and things seem not to be going your way? As a child of God he will not allow the enemy to triumph over you. Yes God may allow us to go through situations for our perfecting, but he will not allow them to destroy us.

God allowed Satan to test Job but he didn’t allow him to destroy him and when it was all done, God still had the victory in the life of Job. We can know for ourselves that we are overcomers, victors in the Lord. For the Lord will judge the unrighteous and he will deliver those that belong to him.

So in our walk, we can say unto the Lord teach me your way and show me how I should walk. If we are following after God, we can be confident in our prayers and trust that God will answer. He will not bring us to shame. There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus. We will not be ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

So today in whatever situation you are facing, be it at work were you are being ridiculed or lied on or even passed over. Maybe it’s in your home or marriage, it seems as it the enemies is laughing at you and mocking you by the decline happening right in front of you. Whatever the situation you face that seems to be trying to bring you shame, know you can trust in God and he will deliver you. Praying for us to have confidence in our prayers and to trust God’s leading.


TUESDAY
“Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day. Remember, O LORD, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses; for they have been ever of old.” Psalm 25:5-6

Confidence in prayer. Guidance. This Psalm continues in the request for God’s direction. In these two verses, the request is for God to lead in his truth. To be lead in God’s truth means we read his word and then allow God’s spirit to direct our path based on the word. We don’t just hear the word and walk away from it, not being changed or affected.

In order to be taught by God we must be willing to let go of our own thoughts and our own ideas. We must be willing to allow God to direct our understanding of his words. See if we go in with our own agenda’s we are not going with a teachable spirit. In our pray life we must start first by asking the Lord to bring us to the place where we can be lead by his truth and to be taught by him. What we are really asking is for the dying of ones self.

We must be willing to wait on God. Waiting means we don’t try to fix things ourselves and we don’t try to work it out in our own way. See our ways are not God’s ways and our thoughts are not his thoughts, for his are greater and higher. In our waiting we can remind ourselves of how the Lord has been and is being merciful to us. We can remind ourselves of his love toward us. We see it in our lives and in the lives of his people as recorded in his word. His mercies are from old, from times gone by.

Today we can have confidence in our prayers that God will guide us and he will teach us if we but ask him to. And in our asking go with the attitude that I will die to myself, so that I can live for Christ. Praying for us today to be lead by God and to be taught by him, so we can be a people mighty for the Lord.


WEDNESDAY
"Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions: according to thy goodness' sake, O LORD. Good and upright is the LORD: therefore will he teach sinners in the way. The meek he will guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach is way. All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies." Psalm 25:7-10

Confidence in prayer. Forgiveness. Want a wonderful thing it is to know that God will forgive us of the foolishness of our youth. Not just our youth in physical age, but our youth in spiritual age, our time of immaturity. God will forgive us of the wrong choices made if we ask and turn to him.

This scripture reminds us of Gods goodness. Because he is God he will teach the sinner that comes to him how to move from that place of sin into a new life. He will teach us his ways.

The scripture says all paths of the Lord are mercy. This doesn't mean ALL paths lead to God, but wherever the Lord leads you personally is filled with his mercy and his truth. See some believe everyone can get to God no matter the path they take. That doesn't agree with scripture. Scriptures says Jesus is the only way to God.

Once we are on the right track, God has different assignments for us to accomplish. So my journey or path may be different than yours, but it is one lead and directed by God. And as long as we are following after his righteousness and seeking his face, we have access to all his provisions.

So today when we take are times of prayer, let us remember to be thankful for the forgiveness that has been given to us. Let us be thankful for our past sins being no longer held against us. Let us rejoice in the fact that God is good and upright. We can have the confidence in our prayers that our Heavenly Father will answer us, because we have been forgiven and now have access to the father’s provisions. Thank God for he is the God of our salvation.


THURSDAY
"For thy name's sake, O LORD, pardon mine iniquity; for it is great. What man is he that feareth the LORD? him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose. His soul shall dwell at ease; and his seed shall inherit the earth. The secret of the LORD is with them that fear him; ad he will shew them his covenant. Mine eyes are ever toward the LORD; for he shall pluk my feet out of the net." Psalm 25:11-15

Confidence in prayer. God's mercy. This part of the chapter starts with confession of sins. He says for my sin is so great, yet for your names sake you can pardon. In our daily prayers we must continue to take inventory of ourselves before the Lord. Lord is there anything in me that needs to be removed? If so, Lord then I place it in your hands and I ask that you teach me how I should think, how I should live.

When a part of our prayer life is focused on walking rightly before the Lord, we can have to ease or peace with God and in God. We can have the security of God's protection when we dwell with him.

We can also have confidence in our prayer of God sharing with us from his treasures. He will reveal to us the secret things that no man can understand without the working of God's spirit. We can have confidence in our prayer that God will rescue us from the traps set to destroy us.

As we go to prayer, let us remember to seek God regarding our daily walk. When we do, he will teach us, he will protect us, he will show us his ways. We can have confidence in the mercies that God shows us, for they are new every day.

So today I pray for us to be mindful of God's mercies and how he is available to us for all that we stand in need of. Let us remember that no matter how hard the situations look that we face, if we are in Christ Jesus, we have God's power to protect, guide and deliver, for the scripture says he will deliver us from the net. Praying for us.


FRIDAY
"Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are enlarged: O bring thou me out of my distresses. Look upon mine affliction and my pain; and forgive all my sins. Consider mine enemies; for they are many; and they hate me with cruel hatred. O keep my soul, and deliver me: let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee. Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on thee. Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles." Psalm 25:16-22

Confidence in prayer. God's protection. As you read these verses you get the true sense of a person in need of help. I know we can all identify with that. If you aren't there now, you have been or will be, at the place were it seems everything is going against you or everything is seeking to destroy you.

On your jobs people are plotting against you. That would be enough, but then you're going through a hard place in another part of your life. It really just seems like this is too much and you can't handle it.

That is our time to pull out the weapon we have against the things that trouble us, our prayers. When the heat turns up, we need to turn up and pray. We need to turn our focus upward and voice our concerns to God. The one thing I really like about this scripture is it shows God can handle our complaints.

I've had people tell me before that when you pray to God you shouldn't complain or talk about negative things. Well if I'm wrong, I'm sorry, but I talk to God about everything and some of it's negative. I tell him when I'm having wrong attitudes about things and I ask him to help me.

I talk about when I'm hurt and how I really, really don't like it. Yet I'll handle it if he helps me. That's just what our psalmist did, he talked about his troubles and how they were weighing him down. And then he asked God to come and see about him. To not allow the enemy to get the victory over him.

God can handle our prayers. Even in the midst of the complaint, the main message was sent, God you are my protection and I wait on you. That is what the message should be in our prayers. Yes God I don't like this or that, but you are my protection and I wait on you.

We can have confidence today in our pray life because we know that God will receive our prays. He wants us to bring our cares and our concerns to him. There is nothing we can tell God that he can't handle.

So when we go to worship this week, let us rejoice in knowing we have the ear of God regarding our concerns and our request. We can have confidence in how he will lead us and that he will teach us his ways. We can have confidence that he will protect us and he will remove our foot from the net. We can know God will never leave us or forsake us. Let us rejoice in the God of our Salvation!

The Week in Review

View of Chapter 1 & 6 Pastoral Ministry
Foundations of Ministry – March 12, 2006

Ministering within the church requires God’s people to be prepared biblically for the task. The church of today is faced with choices that could lead them away from being a biblically based church thus rendering it ineffective. John MacArthur, the author of Pastoral Ministry: How to Shepherd Biblically, gives the readers some insights into how to shepherd the church God’s way.

One of the first things the author, John MacArthur, wants his readers to understand is that the title or position of shepherd is one of responsibility and not status. The shepherds in many cultures were the ones that occupied the lowest positions. This encourages all that will accept the call to minister God’s people to understand that this is a way of sacrifice. One must be willing to accept the challenges that will come along with this call. In doing so, one must be willing to also look at how they minister alongside God’s mandated.

In the first chapter, Richard L. Mayhue writes, “A growing number of respected evangelicals believe that the present redirection of the church toward being less biblical and more acceptable to man will ultimately lead to a Christ-condemned church” (3). The writer points out ministers and pastors can take one of two routes. One is the need-based, man-centered, consumer-driven and culturally defined way (4). This way is constantly changing and is based on the desire of the people. The second way (which is the way the writer suggests) is based on God-focused, biblically defined and scripturally prioritized ministry.

It is important to care for the church but it is not in her best interest to give her everything she wants and not the things needed. The responsibility of leadership is to equip the saved for work in the mission and bring the message to the lost. When a church becomes too concerned with making believers “comfortable” one can lose the focus on the true mission of the church.

The writer warns that because of the trends of the church, people are equating religion with Christianity and “going to church” with salvation (13). He also mentions the confusion with emotion as a sign of worship in Spirit and truth and the cleverness of man’s words with the power of the gospel (13). The concern is that if the ministers and the shepherds do not lead biblically, the church will lose it’s power and be replaced with an “impotent, idolatrous religion” (13). The trend of today makes believers act as if they are attending an “elite” club or gathering. Some believers do not see or understand the importance of their part in the mission. That is why the belief of attendance as salvation is so easily accepted. If one attends, then they are part of the body and have done what is necessary to do. If the word of God is not given to combat this belief, the people will continue in this fashion.

What is the way to combat this trend? The writer, James M. George, in chapter six gives some suggestions. It is for the called to serve in a way that is in line with God’s directives. The called must confirm with God and with others they are called to the ministry. They must also have a deep desire to serve in the ministry. The called must be able to teach others or equip them for service.

I agree with the writers of these two chapters that the state of the church is greatly linked to those in leadership over the churches. This warning, however, is not a new one. Jeremiah was sent by God to the priest and the prophets of his time to give them a warning about how they were teaching the people to transgress against his laws. “The priests said not, Where is the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit” (Jeremiah 2:8).

God is still seeking leaders that will follow after him and teach the people what is right and just. The writer states, “This aspiration for the ministry is therefore an inward impulse that releases itself in outward desire. Sanders noted that it is not the office but the work that is the object desired. It must be a desire for service, not for position, fame or fortune” (90).

The call and acceptance to the ministry is to be entered into with prayer and assurance from God. When the assurance is received, then the undertaking should be done only with biblically based instruction. If one tries to lead with selfish desires or gain, the result will be a weak church, with believers not equipped for the true mission because the focus is not on God.

Work Cited

MacArthur, John, et. al. Pastoral Ministry: How to Shepherd Biblically. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 2005.

Thompson, Frank Charles, D.D., PH.D. The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible, 5th ed. Indianapolis, IN: B. B. Kirkbridge Bible Co., Inc., 1988.

The Week in Review

Assignment #4 – Theology of Worship
January 11, 2007

The greatest challenge for today’s worship leader in a postmodern world is how to help individuals feel and think within the worship experience. These challenges cause trouble for the worship leader because they must try to blend different worlds together. In the book Experiencing God in Worship, Leonard Sweet, the author of the piece titled, A New Reformation: Re-Creating Worship for a Postmodern World, states “Here’s the point: In postmodern culture, the experience is the message. Post moderns literally ‘feel’ their way through life. If postmodern worship can’t make people furiously feel and think (in the old ‘modern’ word, we would have said only ‘think’), it can’t show them how God’s Word transform the way we ‘feel’”(177).

With this understanding, it is vital for the worship leader to seek God’s direction for the Spirit to guide the worship process as stated here, “worship is not about style; it’s about spirit. If the ‘spirit’ isn’t right, presentation means little – no matter how contemporary or high-tech. Ten times zero is still zero. And, if the Spirit is there, presentation also means little – no matter how traditional or bookish” (Sweet, 181).

The worship leader’s job, with the help of God is to help the congregation address some of the problems facing worship today. First, the congregation needs to be given an understanding about the purpose of worship. In the book Experiencing God in Worship, George Barna in his piece titled, Worship in the Third Millennium, states, “Most adults will contend that a Christian has a responsibility to worship God. However, when asked to define what worship means, two out of three are unable to offer an appropriate definition or description of worship…For most Americans worship is to satisfy or please them, not to honor or please God” (15).

A worship leader must allow God to work through them to create a worship service that will grasp the attention of the worshipers and call them to interact with God. The worship leader must create an atmosphere that calls for individuals to thirst for God, and that can be difficult when trying to blend different music and artistic styles. It is important then for the leader to introduce changes, such as music, dance, video or other artistic mediums in the service in a gradual way, with much prayer and leading by the Spirit of God. Some will complain and that is unfortunately due to the fact that individuals think worship is more about them and their likes or dislikes. “The problem is that American Christians do not have a heart that is thirsting for an experience with God, eager to express gratitude and praise to him, and open to his response to their efforts to convey humility, appreciation, acknowledgement of his love and character, and joy in knowing and serving him” (Barna, 16).

A worship leader may also face difficulties because of the age and cultural differences within the worship services, along with the difference in music preferences. The step that can be taken to help is to teach the importance of worship. “Teaching individuals how to worship by helping them achieve a sense of God’s holiness, understand the meaning of worship, and commit to worshipping God is often necessary if more than just a scattered handful of attendees are to be engaged in real worship” (Barna, 25).

The greatest help the worship leader can give is to help individuals experience God in worship through the flow and choices made using different styles of music and artistic blends. The individual can then begin to move from the idea that worship is about one’s self and understand that it is more about giving to God. There is no one way of doing it, so each worship leader must seek to present what is needed for their congregation remembering that the most important factors are the leading of the Holy Spirit and prayer. Alas, with all changes, both good and bad, there will be individuals that will resist. The leader must not give up, but patiently help others see that the changes are not to move the church away from God, but to move his people closer to experiencing his presence.

Work Cited

Barna, George, et. al. Experience God in Worship. Loveland, CO: Group Publishing, Inc., 2000.

Words of Encouragement

(let us keep our men and women in our prayers as we show care for them in this way)

MONDAY
And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you. – Ephesians 4:32


Commanded to Care. By being kind to others. As we talked last week about changing our unrealistic expectations in one another, we move to how to care for one another in a godly way. In this verse of scripture we are told to be kind to one another. We are given a mandate on how we are to treat each other. I cannot confess to belong to Christ and yet not be unwilling to choose to show the same things I have received from God to others.


God was kind to us. When you and I did not deserve fair treatment, God was more than generous in being kind to us. He was tenderhearted towards us. Our lives, our attitudes and our behavior warranted us to be sentenced to death immediately, but God showed us kindness by softening his hearts towards us and extending his mercy to us.


God was forgiving towards us. When he extended his mercy, he was willing to offer forgiveness to us for all that we had done against his will. We had wronged him because of our sinful nature. God was in a rightful place to demand payment immediately of our sins, yet he extended forgiveness instead of punishment.


This was all offered to us because of Christ. If God, who owed mankind nothing, was willing to offer so much, how can you and I be unwilling to offer so little compared to what we have received?

God tell us to turn to our brothers and sisters and show them kindness. He wants us to have compassion regarding their feelings and their situations. He wants us to tread gently on situations that involve others emotions, not to harm them with our actions and words. He wants us to be thoughtful in what it is we go to others. He tells us to be kind to others because he was generous with us so be generous with others. “I forgave you, so be willing to forgive others, extend mercy to them” is what God is saying to you and I. Even if your brother or sister has offended you, be willing to offer forgiveness to them. If they reject it, know that God will still honor you for the offering of kindness.


Today I pray that we follow the command of God and care for one another, first by showing that we can extend kindness, consideration and forgiveness to one another. I pray that we remember how at the hand of a merciful God we received so much. If we have been given much, surely do we not know that much is also required of us? Soften our hearts God to be tenderhearted. Give us patience with each other so that we can extend forgiveness, even if undeserved. Help us to keep your commands.


TUESDAY
Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. – Acts 12:5

Commanded to Care. By bearing others burdens. While Peter was in prison the church did not give up hope for God to intervene in Peter’s life, so they did not stop praying. How many of us continue to pray for individuals in difficult situations? We sometimes become discouraged or sidetracked because we do not see the results quickly in the lives of those we are praying for, so we give up the fight and stop interceding for them.


Yet, we are encouraged to continue to pray for those in “bondage”. Peter was locked inside a prison where he had lost the freedom he once enjoyed. Some times people are in situations were they are not free and they are in need of intervention from the body of believers. They need us to pray until God releases them from the things that have them in bondage. What has the people in bondage? The sins in their lives sometimes have them in bondage where they are not free and are in need of deliverance. Sometimes people are in bondage because of the things people are placing on them and they are in need of release. Some times people are in situations where they are being held captive (hostage) by something, maybe a habit, a bad relationship or sins in their lives. Whatever the problem is, the person is in need of being set free.

God uses the body to care for itself. Do you know in your physical body it has what it needs to take care of common sickness? If you get a cold, you body sends signals that a foreign object has entered the body and it begin to set up the attack against those objects. That is what we as the body of believers should look like. When something strange, ungodly has entered into any part of the body we sense it and we set about the attack of ridding the body of that unwanted foreign object (sin).

If one in the body is hurting, the entire body should feel it, if not there is some “nerve damage” in the body. That means some vital connections are not connected. Are we connected to the Father? Then if we are, then we should be connected to one another, for we belong to the same Father. If our brothers and sisters are burdened in their lives for one reason or another, it is imperative that we stand in the gap for them and with them. What if you were in need and there was no one willing to pray for you? What if there was no one to encourage you? How would you feel if you had no one to trust in or lean on? It would be devastating. The good news is we are not along; we belong to a family that is mandated to bear each other’s burdens.

I pray for us today that we care as God does regarding our brothers and sisters and we stand with them in their situations that cause them to be in bondage. We don’t do it to discourage them, but to earnestly pray with them until the changes of oppressions fall away. For whom the Son sets free, is free indeed!


WEDNESDAY
Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins. – James 5:19-20


Commanded to Care. By guiding others to the truth. This scripture instructs us how important it is for us to care enough to know about our brothers and sisters walk. If I care about you, then I care enough to tell you the truth (in love) even if you don’t want to hear it. This is not always an easy stand to take. It is not always easy to tell someone they are going in the wrong direction and are heading for a spiritual death. Yet as hard as it is, we are instructed to do so.

We must look past ourselves to what this action will accomplish. It requires personal sacrifice. I must sacrifice my comforts and what is easy for me, for what is best for others. Now for a word of caution, this does not mean we have the license to tell people things because we “think” they need to be told. This is speaking to telling someone the truth of God’s word and not your understanding or your way of doing. Too many of us get in trouble telling people what we think they should be doing and because you are not doing things my way, then you are in error.

We cannot tell someone about living the truth, if we are not doing so ourselves. This means that we must be walking rightly before the Lord in our words, actions, and even our thoughts. I cannot be thinking thoughts that are unholy and then tell you that you are in sin because of what you are doing, when I’m thinking those things you are doing. Which one of us is right? Which one of us is wrong? I would have to say we are both wrong. Jesus warned that adultery for example started in the heart even before it became an action. That means if you allow yourself to dwell on unholy things too long, you are in fact sinning in your heart. So in order for me to help someone else I must place all my thoughts, actions and words into God’s hands so that when I need to help another I am able to do so in love and with a clear heart.

Today I pray that we understand what God is requiring from us when he instructs us to guide others to the truth. It is not done out of our selves but as the Holy Spirit instructs us. Help us Lord to do as you instruct so that we can show true love for others to help them find your way. Lord we are commanded to care so help us care enough to help someone miss eternal damnation.

THURSDAY
Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. – Ephesians 4:25


Commanded to Care. By keeping our word. Members one of another. You and I are accountable to one another. I do not live only unto myself. God has given a mandate that we should speak the truth to each other. This first starts with our relationship with God. If we are children of God we should look like our father.

Our father is truth therefore we should show evidence of truth in our lives. That means we live by the truth, we walk in the truth and we speak the truth. Not truth relevant to me, but truth as God ordains it. In our time everyone has their own truth that is relevant to what is important to them, therefore some believe they can lie if it serves their purpose. Some believe they can omit truth from what they speak if speaking it would stop them from getting what they want. Whatever the reason for lying, God says it is not acceptable.

Instead, we are told to speak the truth with everyone. Part of this reason is when we speak the truth we keep our word and others can trust us. If we lie, then the truth is not in us and others will not trust us. You know how difficult it is to trust someone that has lied to you. You always wonder, are they telling the truth now? Can I trust what they say now? The joy is we never have to worry this way about God. He is always truthful and trustworthy. We never have to think, is he telling me the truth? Can I trust what he says? Oh, we know the devil comes to tempt you into believing that God will not keep his word, but we have assurance that God is trustworthy.

I pray today that we reflect this wonderful characteristic of our heavenly father. Lord help us today to be trustworthy and truthful. Help us to keep our word so that others will know whom we belong to. Help us to mirror you in our life today. And in that mirror let others when they look at us, see the image of your son, Jesus. Let us speak the truth at all times. Let us speak it to encourage, to help, to direct and to enlighten others. Let us speak your truth, your way.

FRIDAY
Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. – Matthew 18:19-20

Commanded to Care. By praying for others. I saw a movie about a month ago that was rather interesting to me. I was getting my hair braided and there was an African Christian movie on. The part of this movie that was most interesting was when different believers at different times began to see with spiritual eyes the situation that was at hand. There was a man that was under demonic influence and everyone was noticing how he was changing. The turning point in the movie was when one of the characters said, we have done all we can, what can we do now? And the answer came back, we can pray. Everyone began to pray because this was the urgency that God had placed on his or her heart and the bondage was broken.


That’s what this scripture reminds me of. We always think only of the last part of this scripture, where two or three are gathered…we look at it only as saying when we are all in the same place and praying then God will answer. That is partly true. It does say when we gather in his name he will be in our midst but when you go back to the first part of this scripture it says that if two of you agree on anything the Father shall do it. This lets us know that God covers our agreement when we are together or when we are in separate locations. What is important for both instances is agreement or unity of purpose. Just gathering together does not guarantee God’s presence, it is our agreement or unity with each other and with his Spirit.

God will begin to bother you in your spirit about individuals when they are in need of intervention. You might not understand why suddenly someone appeared on your mind and you could not shake it. That is because God does not want you to shake it. Instead, what he wants is for you to join in on the “fellowship” of prayer warriors that he has gathered from their perspective places to meet in unity of purpose. That purpose is to care enough to pray for someone else. God fixes is so that you and I join in the choir of prayers that are going forward for someone that is need. We might think we are the only one in prayer, but God has already gathered others to come and pray until the one in bondage has been set free.


God commands us to care for each other. He wants us to be kind, tenderhearted and loving because these are the things he showed to us when we did not deserve it. He wants us to bear one another’s burden, to help them carry the load that is too heavy for them to carry by themselves. He wants us to keep our word, especially to him. We told God we would serve him and obey him, so he expects us to keep our word and do that which he commands us to do. He wants us to pray together for others. He wants us to both come together in physical presence and pray for the needs of the people and he wants us to come together spiritually in agreement with the Spirit of God on behalf of needs in the body.

When you go to worship this week, go asking God to help you be more committed to having compassion on others. Ask him to help you walk in his way and in the understanding of his word. Seek his will for your life so that you can then show forth his love in your day-to-day walk.

The Week in Review

Pollard Book Review

Jewel D. Williams

How do you evangelize a world that is not interested in hearing about Jesus? Nick Pollard, the author of, Evangelism Made Slightly Less Difficult, tries to answer that question. The book examines new insights for evangelizing the lost. Pollard brings several interesting facts to light that we will look at to observe how they can help evangelistic efforts.

One of the most interesting facts comes in the very first pages of the book. Pollard states people you meet tend to come in four categories. Three of these categories are: people that are ready to become Christians, those that want to be Christians but have some doubts, and those that are interested but are not sure where to begin because they do not know much about Jesus. The fourth group is the largest group and they are those that are simply not interested (14).

After that statement, one could get discouraged, but Pollard takes the steps to show how this large group can be reached. One important fact was to understand people have different worldviews. What is a worldview? “Since everything anyone does has a reason behind it, it is evident that we live by propositions. A system of the propositions underlying a person’s actions and beliefs comprises a person’s philosophy of life or worldview. Such a system is unavoidable because humanity strives for meaning” (McDowell, 2). This is an important step in understanding how to reach others. If one does not understand what a person believes and what governs their decisions, it will be almost impossible to bring fact or truth to their beliefs. Pollard did not examine all worldviews, but he touched on two types. These were the bottom-up worldview model and the top-down worldview model. The bottom-up model is, “people take the answers they find for these fundamental questions and combine them to form their worldview” (33). The top-down model is, “people will give particular answers to the fundamental questions because they hold a certain worldview, rather than holding that worldview because they have given particular answers to the fundamental questions” (34).

I have found having an understanding about worldviews helpful in my dealing with others as well. When people have stated, “Christianity is fine for you but not for me”, I am aware this is a relativism worldview. If I did not understand the view they were using, I could have found myself going in circles to bring clarity to the situation and only probably defeating my efforts. In teaching teens, I find myself having to give an answer to correct these views. I had a student say they should be able to believe what they want as true and that there was no way something could be true for everyone. I realized this child had a view that there are no absolute truths. I asked the student, “What color is the sky?” “It is blue most times”, is how the student answered. I said, “but I do not want it to be blue. I do not like blue. Blue is not a good color for me, so I choose the color of the sky to be purple”. All the students laughed at me. It began a dialog about why that was not possible. It brought everyone back to this truth, there are things that are true for everybody and I was able to share that God’s truth was one of those things.

Another point made is that non-believers as well as believers need to have their worldview’s examined. There are believers that have wrong views that have hindered their understanding of biblical things. These views have made it more difficult for the believer to help those not interested in hearing about Jesus.


Pollard uses a term, “Positive Deconstruction” which means, “helping people who are currently comfortable with their non-Christian beliefs to think again about them – and possibly to become uncomfortable with them, so much so that they begin to want to find out about Jesus” (15). People need to be taken through steps to examine what they believe alongside the truth of the Bible, before they are able to take the next step of accepting the Gospel message.


Another point that Pollard formulates is about the attitude of the one giving the message. He states, “‘make the most of every opportunity.’ It is important to note that we are not told to ‘make the opportunity’” (20). This was very encouraging information. The message normally given to the believer is, “you go and get them”. The believer supposes it is there responsibility to go out and beat the bushes and the by-ways to bring in the lost. This can be very discouraging when one comes back empty handed. Instead, Pollard informs the reader that God is the one that makes the opportunity, but the believer must be ready to take it.

Pollard states, “I was motivated more by a desire not to feel like a failure than by a real concern to help people” (21). I found this statement in line with statements made in the book, Biblical Foundations & Contemporary Strategies: Missions. The author, Gailyn Van Rheenen, also states the mission is God created and the body of Christ is to carry out the mission. He also states “Almost all Christian missionaries and ministers have defective motives that do not reflect the heart of God. These motives are intermingled with secondary and primary motives” (43). This is vital information for believers. Believers should stop and look at the reasons why they want to give the message of salvation to others. If one’s motives are not in line with God, then this is the time to seek God to be given his heart for the mission.

Pollard also tells the reader, one must understand the gospel story in order to share it with another. He suggests one first prepare it within their mind so when asked, they are ready to “give an account of it”. This is also important information to all believers, regarding being prepared to tell others that which they believe. He shows how important this is in other areas, such as when asked about suffering, is the Bible true and can you prove it. Those are not answers one can come up with quickly if study and preparation has not been done.

The author’s main purpose, I believe, is to give the reader encouragement to be ready with answers, not for debating but for giving honest answers to heart felt questions. People have a right to question what they do not understand. Believers must not feel intimidated because they are questioned regarding what they believe. Again, the mission is God’s and the believer is the avenue to the world. Rheenen states it very well in a graph that reads, “God originated the mission, Jesus enacted the mission, the Holy Spirit gives power to the mission, the Church carries the mission and the world hears the mission” (18).

The most significant message I received from this book was on the last pages. Pollard states, “But if the results we hope to achieve are our prime motive for evangelism, what happens when people don’t become Christians? So what should be our motive for evangelism? The answer is this: love…I urge you to join me in praying that God will give you such a passionate love for people – that you, like Paul, will find that this love compels you. And if you have found this book helpful, will you pray that prayer for me also?” (176).

As I read these words, I began to weep. I weep because I want God’s love for the lost. Not simply to add numbers to the church I attend, but for the solitary reason that I love God and I want to do what he is pleased with. So I prayed for myself as well as the author. This is a very important power the believer has, prayer. If the believer prays for one’s self as well as others, for God to give wisdom and the ability to give the message clearly, he will do it.

It is fitting to end with this message in scripture, “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” (Col 4:2-6). May the words of the missionary and minister be made clear, as it should be so that the hearer can hear and respond, and evangelism can then be made slightly less difficult.

Work Cited

Josh.org: worldviews. 2004. 9 February 2006. http://www.Josh.org>.

Pollard, Nick. Evangelism Made Slightly Less Difficult. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1997.

Rheenen, Gailyn Van. Biblical Foundations & Contemporary Strategies: Missions. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996.

Thompson, Frank Charles, D.D., PH.D. The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible. 5th ed. Indianapolis, IN: B. B. Kirkbridge Bible Co., Inc., 1988.

The Week in Review

Assignment 1 – Theology of Worship

January 11, 2007

What does it mean to worship? To gain an appreciation of what it means to worship, one could start with how one defines experiential worship. A person’s aesthetic capacity helps them experience God and find spiritual meaning in worship; it can also help characterize ones understanding of what it means to worship. When one answers these questions, an individual can begin to define their theology of worship.

What does it mean to worship? I like the definition given by author Stormie Omartian in her book, The Prayer That Changes Everything, where she states, “Worship and praise is the purest form of prayer because it focuses our minds and souls entirely away from ourselves and on to Him…That’s because praise welcomes His presence in our midst.” (9). She also states, “We were created to worship God…Worship must become a lifestyle” (22). Therefore, worship is devotion, adoration or love for God. We fulfill our purpose when we reverence God in our times of worship.

Worship involves one’s experiences. Experiential worship involves one’s thoughts and emotions. In the book, Experience God in Worship, the contributing author, Jack W. Hayford states, “One of Jesus’ most profound statements about worship came as he offered the woman at the well an opportunity to empty her cup of loneliness and brokenness and have it filled with his love (John 4:3-26). This passage illustrates that worship involves an exchange between God and his people. Healing and joy flow into our lives from heaven as we offer ourselves to God as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1)” (137). When believers do as scripture instructs, “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30), individuals experience worship.

The individual is involving their heart (how they feel), they are involving they mind (their thoughts) and with the strength of their being. In the online article by Rich Warren, titled Planned for God’s Pleasure, he states, “God wants me to love him thoughtfully “with my mind”, passionately “with my heart and soul” and practically “with my strength” (1). Experiential worship then calls for the individual to become part of the worship by entering into the presence of God through their thoughts, as they think on the goodness of God. Just as Jack Hayford stated, when Jesus invited the woman to empty her cup of loneliness and brokenness, he was inviting her into an experience of worship where she would receive healing of her spirit from God. That is a vital part of worship. We come into the presence of God and experience his power to heal us of our brokenness and to fill our cups until they overflow with his goodness. When we receive these blessings from the Lord, we are to praise him in our thoughts, in our heart and souls and with our very strength. “God desired to bless people with victory, mercy, and lovingkindness. As we observe the worship life of David, it’s impossible to avoid one powerful conclusion: Not only is God unopposed to emotional, expressive worship – he welcomes it” (Hayford, 139).

This calls for us to come to a time of worship giving of ourselves, emptying ourselves so God can fill us. “There are three things God does not have unless you give them to Him. He doesn’t have your attention unless you give it to Him. That’s loving God with your mind. He doesn’t have your affection, unless you give it to Him. That’s loving God with your heart and your soul. And God doesn’t have your ability, unless you give to Him. That’s loving God with your strength…Whenever you take the things God has given to you and give them back to God, that friends, is the heart of worship” (Warren, pp. 7 –8).


When one accepts that worship involves experience, the next step is to understand that it is also an aesthetic experience. From the online document titled, Experiencing God through the Human Aesthetic Capacity, it states “God created us to know Him. He gave us sensory capacities to meaningfully experience His spiritual reality…He made us to be ‘aesthetic’ beings. It is God’s gift to us. It engages all dimensions of human experience. It is the interaction of cognitive properties with affective meanings and values, producing a psycho-biological/psycho-physical response” (1 –2). Man’s aesthetic capacity allows the individual to realize meaning, significance and value in one’s life (2). One-way of exploring and expressing the human aesthetic capacity is through art.

Artistic input into the worship services allows individuals to focus all their senses. “Our attention is directed toward a particular artistic stimulus. There is an exchange of human life-energy” (Experiencing God, 2). Some artistic inputs are in music, plays and visual productions, poetry and dance. It allows the believer to experience worship in different ways. The individual may have an emotional reaction to an artistic input, which may invoke previous experiences. Our attention is captured as we are engrossed by the artistic input before us, which draws upon our experiences.

The purpose for us having aesthetic capacities as stated is, “Aesthetic experiences in worship can happen either in responding to art, creating art, or expressing through an art form. God made us to find meaning in our interaction with art and artistic stimuli. Our aesthetic capacity was not given primarily for enriching the human experience; it was given to us as a means by which we may interact with God himself” (Experiencing God, 3).

Therefore, aesthetic experiences alongside our faith in Christ can help us to know God better, to sense his presence and to express our love toward God. God reveals himself to us through our experiences. When the believer allows him or herself to express their experiences in worship (in a biblical way), they are in fact allowing God to direct their worship. “Before we can experience a true sense of biblical worship, we must allow God’s Word to command our behavior. This includes active participation in expressive worship” (Hayford, 144).

Work cited

Barna, George, et. al. Experience God in Worship. Loveland, CO: Group Publishing, Inc. 2000.


Warren, Rick. Planned for God’s Pleasure. 2002. 7 January 2007. http://webct.macu.edu.


Pmin-3303 Unit 1. Experiencing God through the Human Aesthetic Capacity. 7 January 2007. http://webct.macu.edu/