Five For Five

The last couple of days the people in my church have really been on my heart. I know they are hurting because our pastor is sick, but that's not why I've been thinking about them. At least, not entirely. The main reason is that I want so badly for them to see all that God has planned for their lives. I don't want them to miss anything that God has in store for them. He has created us for a purpose, in fact 5 purposes.

It just occurred to me (I tend to be slow) that there are 5 purposes and there are also 5 days of the week. So this week I am going to pray for my church and for God's purposes to be played out in all our lives.

Today I pray that our church will know or be reminded that we were planned for God's pleasure. I pray that we will all remember that worship is more than the first 15 minutes of our Sunday service. God is holy and righteous. He is the creator of all things and He wants us to live our lives as a reflection of his glory. We can do the mundane things of our lives every day as an act of worship by doing them as if we were doing them for God and by talking continuously to Him through the process.

"The Lord is pleased with those who respect him,with those who trust his love." Psalms 147:11(NCV)

Square Pegs

Who says the Bible is boring?  There is a story in Judges 4, where this chick drives a tent peg through a guy's head.  This could be a scene in a Quentin Tarantino movie.  Boring?  I think not.

But, then something interesting happened... they wrote a song about it.  I'm sure it was rock and roll, because I can't imagine a song about a guy with a tent peg in his head set to easy listening music... or adult contemporary for that matter.  Why did they write it?  So that people would remember what the Lord had done and it could be celebrated.  They knew that their stories in song would help the faith of others.

The same is true for you.  Has the Lord done something cool in your life?  If he has, and I'm sure he has, you have to tell someone.  In fact, you should tell as many people as you can.  You owe it to them, because it will strengthen their faith.  There might be someone in your life that needs a booster shot, or that is not quite a believer yet.  A great story might help them inch closer to the one that can change their life.

You don't have to write a song about it.  Most of us don't have that talent.  And there's a lot of us that don't have any business singing either.  But, you can put them in stories and pray for opportunities to share them.

Long Live The 80's

Let me start by saying that I love music. Every significant era in my life can be defined by music. Because I love music so much, I have to admit I also have developed a deep love for my iPod, but that’s a story for another post.

I have tried to instill my love of music in my kids and I think they are getting it. I have a playlist for them on my iPod that we listen to every morning on the way to school. I call it the “Morning Mix” so I include music that is upbeat that will get us singing, playing air guitar and air drums. Michael has even perfected some dance moves that he can do even in the confines of his seatbelt.

Some of the songs I added are my favorites from back in the 80’s (where all great music comes from). Yesterday we were listening to What I Like About You by The Romantics and I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Bryanna was dancing. That concerned me because Bryanna gets her rhythm from Stephanie (again, a topic for another post) and I was afraid that she might hurt herself or do substantial damage to the car. When I looked over at her though, she wasn’t dancing. During the chorus, “That’s what I like about you, that’s what I like about you!” she was pointing both index fingers to the ceiling as if pointing to God. She was worshipping! She was taking the lyrics of this song and redirecting them to our Father. At seeing this, a couple of thoughts ran through my head.

First, I am so thankful for our church. The programs her and Michael are involved in are making such a difference in their lives. I have noticed consistent changes in them both. For example, I have noticed a change in their prayers which are becoming less about them and the things they want and more about the needs of other people. And, I have noticed them showing more of an interest in reading their Bibles. Many times they will reach for their Bible instead of Junie B. Jones. Now this!

Secondly, it just drives home the point that there is no defined formula for worship. Worship is not directly related to a Chris Tomlin song and doesn’t have to take place in a church on Sunday. It comes from the heart and a desire to connect with God. If your heart is searching for Him, why does it surprise us to find Him in the lyrics “You’re whispering in my ear, tell me all the things that I wanna to hear”? He tells us what we want to hear. Things like, “I love you and I accept you”, “You’re not an accident. I made you with purpose”, and “I want the very best for you.”

Sometimes I forget to look for Him in the everyday things. I’m glad Bryanna and The Romantics reminded me. Long live the 80’s!