Clear The Stage | Worship Is More Than A Song

CLEAR THE STAGE

Clear the stage and set the sound and lights ablaze
If that's the measure that it takes to crush the idols.
Chuck the pews and all the decorations too
Until the congregations few then have revival.
Tell your friends that this is where the party ends
until you're broken for your sins you can't be social.
Then seek the Lord and wait for what he has in store
and know that great is your reward and just be hopeful

Cause you can sing all you want to.
Yes you can sing all you want to
you can sing all you want to
And don't get me wrong, worship is more than a song.

Take a break from all the plans that you made
And sit at home alone and wait for God to whisper.
Beg Him please to open up his mouth and speak
And pray for real upon your knees until they blister.
Shine the light on every corner of your life
Until the pride and lust and lies are in the open.
Then read the word and put to test the things you've heard
Until your heart and soul are stirred and rocked and broken.

Cause you can sing all you want to.
Yes you can sing all you want to
you can sing all you want to
And don't get me wrong, worship is more than a song.

Anything I put before my God is an idol.
Anything I want with all my heart is an idol.
Anything I can't stop thinking of is an idol.
Anything that I give all my love is an idol.
We must not worship something that's not even worth it.
Clear the stage and make some space for the one who deserves it.

Cause I can sing all I want to.
Yes I can sing all I want to
I can sing all I want to
And still get it wrong, worship is more than a song.

And you can sing all you want to.
Yes you can sing all you want to
You can sing all you want to
But don't get me wrong, worship is more than a song.

- Ross King

Such a beautiful line. Such a beautiful truth.

I was reminded of the song "Clear The Stage" by Ross King not long ago by my friend Lynsey Koles (@OneBlindMouse) This song always gives me perspective and helps me to drop my pride a bit if you will. I was thinking this morning quite a bit about the role of "worship" in our churches. I thought about how much time and effort and money and staffing is put into our "worship ministries" in our churches. We spend so much money to create worship environments that are extremely visually engaging and interactive for our congregations. This song reminds me that in order to truly worship sometimes we need to strip the stage. We need to get rid of all of that and simple get alone with God. Worship in public can't happen if worship in private is not happening already. What things do you need to clear out of the way to make way for genuine authentic worship that is seeking God completely looking for nothing for self but giving completely and sacrificially to God in Spirit and in Truth?

Solitude | Pt. 3

SOLITUDE

I've decided to spend this time of solitude and silence sitting out on my back porch this evening. It's raining and dusk is setting in underneath the cloud cover, my duck friends are as happy as can be swimming about on the pond enjoying the weather. It's here I'll spend the next few moments reflecting in silence asking God to reveal himself through these variables and constants of weather.

THE EXPERIENCE

I pulled up our deck chair close to the railing of our third story apartment overlooking the pond and whipped out my headphones to put them in my ears to close out any white noise that may come from inside my home, my cat meowing at the screen door wanting my attention. In silence I've watched the wind blowing through the leaves of trees as each individual leaf twists and turns dancing underneath the cloud cover and rain in the worship of their Creator. So funny how they worship so easily. They know who created them and what they were made to do and there they are doing it.

My duck friends are grouped up close to one another quacking excitedly I think they as well may be thanking and praising God for the rain. In the silence I'm thanking Him to. Rain always reminds me of God's restoration and renewal. It reminds me of how God washed clean my sin sick heart of crimson to make it white as snow.

A group of small bats just flew by my porch at eye-level. It's another joy of being so high up birds and bats and all other form of flying creation come just inches from me and I see first hand the craftsmanship of the Carpenter.

Back to the rain. Rain does much the same as Christ did in my heart. Rain washes away impurities, it cleans of the dirt and pollen from what it touches and gives the nutrients needed for new life and growth in all in touches. Jesus is my Restoration. He is my saving grace. My only hope. My source of freedom. He is love. He is my love and is in love with me and I with Him. I don't know what my life would look like without Jesus. To be brutally honest, I'm not positive I would actually exist on the planet had it not been for Him.

I'm reminded of a song written by the PA band twelve.o.one (rip) entitled My Limbs, Once, Like Legos

my limbs, once, like legos, were snapped into place, by the hand of the father, i was showered with grace, he stitched me together, my sinews like thread, untied me and told me to walk with the dead, my heart much like adamantium, more stagnant and stalwart than ever before, for love to flow from these veins alone as painful as pulling a sword from a stone, and i sung, "hold me father, for i am lost in my love for what is not of you, my hands are trembling, my heart pleads with my body, hold me closely, make me new," (the only step that i should take would be to put my faith in what you have made me and though i feel a little bit lonely, i am yours) and written on the back of my hand was a reminder, in smeared black ink, to give you all of the glory, for i know now that i cannot save myself, and in giving you the pen, i surrendered my story, for i was lonely, but you were with me, and i was helpless, but you strengthened me, you saw right through me, and i sung, "hold me father, for i am lost in my love for what is not of you, my hands are trembling, my heart pleads with my body, hold me closely, make me new," and "only love can save me now, only you and i am longing, for something, amazing love, unchanging love, spirit breathe into me now!" every morn, when i awaken, sunlight pours through the window pane, i am reminded of your mercy, with each drop of falling rain, and the showers so refreshing, they revive me from my grave, i begin to bloom, arising from the grass in which i laid...

- James Edmund Porter

Had it not been for the great love of my dear savior I would be "lost on my love for what is not of" Him. It is His grace that saved me and restored me and constantly renews me.

Thank You Father for the rain.

Solitude | Pt. 1

SOLITUDE

"Where shall the world be found, where will the word resound? Not here, there is not enough silence."

- T.S. Eliot

"So I think I'll stay caught up in silent prayer, I believe in silence our hearts speak the same word."

- Blindside | Silence

The lyricist and frontman of the band Blindside sings something very true in those lines. How often is it that I am caught up in silent prayer. Prayer without any distractions of noises. Prayer that is so silent and still and alone from all other things that in those moments our hearts speak the same words as God in that He moves in us and speaks to us in the silence and solitude.

Solitude has a great deal to do with getting away from normal distractions in order to quiet oneself and listen for the voice of God. Silence then is a large part of this as well. Foster writes, "Our fear of being alone dries us to noise and crowds. We keep up a constant stream of words even if they are inane. We buy radios that strap to our wrist or fit over our ears so that if no one else is around at least we are not condemned to silence." Giving further instruction on the discipline Foster continues, "We can cultivate an inner solitude and silence that sets us free from loneliness and fear. Loneliness is inner emptiness. Solitude is inner fulfillment. Solitude is not first a place but a state of mind and heart."

So how does one experience or take part in this discipline of solitude? Do we just sit around silent staring at walls or what? "Simply to refrain from talking, without a heart listening to God, is not silence." Our time alone in silence must be intentional. It must be for the purpose of honing in on the supernatural voice of the Creator of the Universe who is longing to speak to us if we are willing to listen. Solitude is a mindset of being.

Foster gives some great advice concerning how to move into a lifestyle that reflects the discipline of solitude. "Discipline yourself so that your words are few and full. Become known as a person who has something to say when you speak." This is something I would like to be marked by. I've known, and know, men who I consider to be plethora's of wisdom when they speak. They may not say much, but when they do you'll wish you had a pen and paper ready to write it down and remember it. Foster challenges the reader to "Try to live one entire day without words at all. Do it not as a law but as an experiment. Not your feelings of helplessness and excessive dependence upon words to communicate. Try to find new ways to relate to others that are not dependent upon words. Enjoy, savor the day. Learn from it." I may try this one before I'm through with this discipline. Keeping a journal of the things God speaks to you in the silence is also recommended.

Overall the spiritual discipline of solitude is designed to strip away the noise in our lives and focus us in on the voice of our God.

For my first experience with the spiritual discipline of solitude I'll be spending 20 minutes "caught up in silent prayer." I've brewed a cup of decaf coffee and I'm planning on just sitting and enjoying it while listening for God to speak. If you would like to participate in this discipline yourself a good way to begin in prayer is to simply pray something like this: "God I'm here. I'm silent in Your presence. I'm here to listen and hear Your voice if You are willing to speak." Then remain silent with your heart tuned in and focused on God's voice and what He has to say to you. Write down what He speaks to your heart.

THE EXPERIENCE

For starters lets just say I may be the most easily distracted person I know. I've been sitting on my living room floor in silence trying to focus on God's voice with my decaf coffee just as I said I would and it felt like every single distraction possible came my way. My Macbook started making update noises, I had forgotten to turn off the sound so I came over and turned that off. Then my cats wouldn't leave me alone and decided it was time for me to interact with them. So I shooed them away and continued on in my silent prayer. Then every single noise that I normally don't hear because I'm making my own noise seemed like it amplified. The clock on the wall ticked louder than ever, my fish tank's water filter began humming like a bee buzzing around my head and it seemed like even my own heavy breathing was loud enough to distract me. I tried my best over the last 20 minutes to focus in on God's voice. This stuff takes time and practice though so I don't know that I'd call this attempt a failure... simply a step forward in my journey into spiritual disciplines. I may try this discipline again tomorrow morning and perhaps in the afternoon as a rest from the day... we'll see. Blessings.

A Change In Disciplines

Until recently my final two disciplines I would be taking part of in my study of the spiritual disciplines were solitude and watching. However with finals week approaching the idea of take 3 all nighters to pray just didn't seem like a wise choice. While I would still at some point like to participate in the discipline of watching I'll be removing it from the line up. It will be replaced with the discipline Foster calls The Discipline Of Study. I'll write more on it when I reach it. This week I'll be taking advantage of moment ins solitude and blogging about my experiences. Thanks for staying with me on this journey. I really appreciate your comments and thoughts along the way. Thanks so much.

SOLITUDE

STUDY

Spiritual Disciplines | An Introduction

As I mentioned in my last post I will be blogging through some personal experiences of various spiritual disciplines, in response to the reading of The Celebration Of Discipline by Richard Foster. I am mainly doing this for my own personal growth and for a Pastoral Leadership course I'm taking online but felt it might be interesting or beneficial for some of you out there. I'll be including the type of discipline I'm doing in each post and my experiences after partaking in each discipline. Enjoy.

The Four Disciplines I'll Be Taking Part In Are:

MEDITATION

FASTING

SOLITUDE

WATCHING