My Worship Revolution

Was trying to get a hold of Sacred Pathways today to get some thoughts for tomorrows message I’m teaching.  Got it referred by Rich.

Unfortunately, NOBODY in the the area had it for sale.  But I did find a test online to find out my Sacred Pathways.  The idea is that we all have different ways to connect with and worship God.  Here’s what it looked like for me and the meaning of the terms:

Summary of spiritual temperaments:

Intellectual – Loving God with the Mind:
These Christians live in the world of concepts. They may feel closest to God when they first understand something new about Him.

Contemplative – Loving God through Adoration:
These Christians seek to love God with the purest, deepest, and brightest love imaginable. They want nothing more than some privacy and quiet to gaze upon the face of their heavenly Lover and give all of themselves to God.

Enthusiast – Loving God with Mystery & Celebration:
Excitement and mystery in worship is the spiritual lifeblood of enthusiasts. They are inspired by joyful celebration; cheerleaders for God and the Christian life. They don’t want to just know concepts, but to experience them, to feel them, and to be moved by them. They like to let go and experience God on the precipice of excitement and awe.

Caregiver – Loving God by Loving Others:
Caregivers serve God by serving others. They often claim to see Christ in the poor and needy, and their faith is built up by interacting with other people. Caring for others recharges a caregiver’s batteries.

Activist – Loving God Through Confrontation:
These Christians define worship as standing against evil and calling sinners to repentance. They are energized more by interaction with others, even in conflict, than by being alone or in small groups. Activists are spiritually nourished through the battle.

Ascetic – Loving God in Solitude and Simplicity:
Ascetics want nothing more than to be left alone in prayer. Let there be nothing to distract them–no pictures, no loud music–and leave them alone to pray in silence and simplicity.

Traditionalist – Loving God Through Ritual and Symbol:
Traditionalists are fed by what are often termed the historic dimensions of faith: rituals, symbols, sacraments, and sacrifice. They tend to have a disciplined life of faith and have a need for ritual and structure.

Sensate – Loving God with the Senses:
Sensate Christians want to be lost in the awe, beauty, and splendor of God. They are drawn particularly to the liturgical, the majestic, the grand. They want to be filled with sights, sounds, and smells that overwhelm them. The five senses are God’s most effective inroad to their hearts.

Naturalist – Loving God Out of Doors:
The naturalist seeks to leave the formal architecture and the padded pews to enter an entirely new "cathedral", a place that God himself has built: the out-of-doors.

Take the test yourself here.

This post is just my quick irritated rant.  Feel free to skip.  Or better yet, if you are a Blackberry owner, tell me if I am alone.  Especially if you’re a Blackberry owner with a Mac.

I could write for days, so I’ll give the way readers digest version.

Get T-mobile service with Blackberry 8100.
Experience excitement because Ive always wanted a Blackberry to try and organize my life.
Within 8 months or so, I start to have issues with the phone.
1 happens when MyFaves on phone don’t match system.  Not necessarily a Blackberry fault yet, but throw it in because T-Mobile customer service sucked, spoke to several rude agents, and was forced to drive 40 minutes to nearest authorized dealer to fix it.
Sorry, back to Blackberry issue.
Blackberry starts turning itself off at random times and in middle of conversations.
They have me reinstall new software.
Still has jacked buttons so they replace it.
New phone comes.
Now the real fun begins.
Get all my numbers and info in it.
Within weeks it gives me a JVM error and erases everything.
So I start over.
Less than a week later we go to Tahoe with staff.
On the way there…yup – JVM error.  But this time the phone won’t even turn on.
I call T-Mobile.
Once again reinstall new software.
Seems to be working now.
That was somewhere in the vicinity of a month or so ago.
A few days ago – JVM error.  But it only wipes out my call logs. So I keep using it.
Today – you guessed it – JVM error.
All my numbers, pictures, calendar, etc – gone.
Call T-Mobile.  Call goes something like this:

Agent: It was a JVM error?
Bobby: Yes.
A:  Then it’s a software issue.  you need to reinstall the software again.
B:  The first phone never did this.  This one’s done it multiple times in 2 months.  But you’re telling me it has nothing to do with the phone?
A:  It’s not a hardware issue.  It’s software.  It happens.  You may have downloaded something corrupted, like a game.
B:  I don’t download anything.
A:  It could even be a corrupted text message.  That’s why Blackberry’s are so good, they give you the software so you can replace it.
B:  They would be better if it didn’t happen in the first place.
A:  I’ve had 3 Blackberry’s and I’ve had to reinstall software within weeks because of JVM errors before as well.
B:  On all of them?
A:  On 2 out of the 3.
B:  So what you’re telling me is Blackberry just isn’t a stable device in general.
A:  No, if that were the case I wouldn’t keep using Blackberry’s.  The good thing is you can reinstall the software.
B:  So how many times do I have to have it crash and lose my info before you guys will do something about it like replace my phone?
A:  There is no number.  It’s not a hardware issue.  All you can do is install new software.
B:  Your product sucks.  I’ll just wait till it does it again and I’ll be calling you again.
A:  OK.  Go ahead and do that.

I’m done with Blackberry.
I’m really done with T-Mobile.
Has anyone else with a Blackberry had these JVM issues?
Or am I just special?

OK.  So yeah, since joining the bandwagon, I’ve had a few posts on Twitter.  However, as I’ve talked with some friends, they still don’t see the value.  I’m sure the reason for this isn’t that there is no value, but I must not have explained very well how to use it.

So, today I came across a great video explanation at Nate’s blog.  Twitter in plain english.  I was once Carla.  I was the skeptic.  Now the believer.  Watch and understand:

There ya have it.  Even if you don’t sign up, at least you get it.
Do you Twitter, yet?

Oh and for those of you who missed this in the past, or still don’t understand the whole RSS thang, be sure to check out this video, a reposting from the past.  I would have to rank this as way more important than Twitter when it all comes down to it.  Enjoy:

I was having coffee this morning with an amazing couple from our church.  God has birthed in them a growing passion to reach out to the builder generation and the retiring boomers to help them see their continuing value in the body of Christ and his work.

We got to talking about music styles and he said something that I found interesting.  Loose paraphrase to follow:

I think one of the reasons that lots of older people desire to see more hymns in the church isn’t just because of their preferences.  These are songs that have been passed down in the church from hundreds of years through the church.  Now, if this generation chooses to throw them away, they feel that they are responsible as the generation that was not able to successfully hand down this heritage.  The line is broken with them.

I thought that was a pretty interesting perspective.  One I haven’t heard or considered before.

Your thoughts?

That’s right.  just a quick check in today to celebrate.  Three years ago on March 1st this blog was born.  And lots about it has changed in that time.  Maybe some more thoughts on that next week if I feel so inclined.

A couple real fast and easy stats.  In the past three years there has been 568 posts…this would be 569.
Y’all have left 1,206 comments.
According to sire meter (bottom left) there’s been 30,550 visits here.

Anyways, point is, thanks to all of you for stopping by and reading my random ramblings.
And happy blogiversay, blog birthday or however you wanna say it!

Here’s a final installment to share the impact Life Group has had on peoples lives.  Unfortunately, it’s kinda hard to share this one without some of you knowing who they are, so hopefully they don’t mind.   

This is from a great couple that used to go to our church that was a military family and have since been restationed in another state.  Here’s what she had to share about their time involved in Life Group before leaving:

The life group [we attended] really helped us even though we were only able to attend 3 or 4 times before we left. I always felt that I was being upheld in prayer during the week and [we] really felt like it was great for our marriage and family.

Not only was it good for our family, but our friend hadn’t been to church since she was a little girl. Her brother had passed away last year and she was really having trouble understanding and dealing with it. But she later told us that the life group she attended with us was a great support system and she felt so at home there. She is now regularly attending church here on base and often says how much she misses the life group.

Wow…I love that!  Yay God!  To see not only a member of our church family blessed, but another person reconnecting with God as a result of relationships…that’s the kind of thing that keeps me going!

So, whether you go to CLC or are a part of another faith community, it’s you turn to respond.  Are you a part of a Life Group/Small Group/Care Group/Cell Group or whatever you feel like calling it where you are?  If so, have those relationships changed your life in some way?  If you’re not a part of one, why not?
Share with us.

Alright friends, so here’s the deal.

Several weeks ago, for the last day of Re:create, I got to participate in a bonus session at EMI records with some songwriters and publishers.  As part of that workshop, we were all invited to bring an original song of our own that the group, us and one of their producers, would critique.

I have felt a desire to write for years now, but I have had a lot of trouble getting past the whole artist insecurity thing.  The idea of actually sharing something I wrote freaks me out.  A while back I collaborated with a few others to write a song while on a retreat.  Outside of that, nothing much…until recently.  I mentioned it in a Worship Confessional here.

So here’s the deal.  I got some good feedback to improve the song at that workshop.  But I also wanted to go ahead, open myself up, and share it with you, my blogging community,  as well.  Several of you are worship leaders and songwriters and the rest of you are just flat out opinionated.  So I want your critique now.  before I work on the stuff they mentioned, what do you think of it?  How could it be improved?  And don’t worry about hurting my feelings.  Trust me…I’m my own worst critic.  So bring it!  Here’s the story of how the song came about, and embedded below that is the audio file with the lyrics.  Check it out:

We used this past Christmas to do a series on worship as we shared the Christmas story.  We spoke one week about Luke chapter 1 and Mary’s magnificat, her song that she offers up to God in response to his message to her.  We talked about the importance in worship of bringing ourselves and our own talents to God.  As response after the message, during the worship, we invited people to write their own "songs" to God.  To write out their own words and thoughts from their lives.  After a few songs, we brought it down and invited people to share with our community what they had written to God.  It was amazing!

Well I figured that if we were asking people to step out of their comfort zone and share their responses to God, I needed to do the same and write a song for our body (although, I of course didn’t mention I had written it).  So this is the song we sang immediately after sharing with each other what we had written to God.  The verse was kind of inspired by that passage in Luke 1 from The Message.  It’s real simple: a verse and a chorus, with a quick recording in my office.  Here ya go:

HEAR OUR SONGS

Verse
Our souls are bursting with the news of Your good works
Our feet they dance the song of our savior
Your mercy flows in waves and washes over us
The things that you have done, they will not be forgotten

Pre-Chorus
And so we respond to You
We offer You these songs

Chorus
Hear our songs to You God
Receive these offerings from our hearts
We worship You
Hear our songs to You Jesus
This is our offering, oh God

Alright people…
fire away!!

Here’s a few pieces from another email I received when I asked some people at our church how Life Group had changed their lives.

Overall, Life Group has been extremely impactfull in a positive way in my life. For the first time in my life I feel like I’m involved in my church and that I can make a difference.

In just a few short months, between CLC on Sundays and Life Group [during the week], God is transforming my life in radical ways. I never was really passionate about reaching out to others, but God has really been working on my heart in this area. I now have a sense of belonging to a group that can make a difference in the world and I’m genuinely excited to see all the ways we can positively impact others. In the past 16 months since I came back to Christ He’s been doing a lot of work in my life. I don’t think it’s by any accident I found myself hooked on CLC where God is visibly drawing me closer to Him…I now am in a personal relationship with Christ I’ve never felt before and I know this is only the beginning. And the more He draws me near to Him the more compassion He puts in my heart to be Christ to those around me.

I love that.  That’s why we do Life Groups, to see genuine life change in people’s hearts.  If you’re not involved in a Life Group, now is as good a time as any to jump on board.  You can see our current groups at our webpage, and/or email me for more info.

If you go to CLC and are not in a Life Group, you are missing out on a HUGE part of the experience of our community.

The past couple of nights we have started to go through our typical routine around dinner time.  One of us gets Caleb and puts him in high chair.  Actually, I think last night he knew it was coming and was actually standing there looking up at it.
We put the table on it, serve up out food, and begin to get his ready.
And then we look at Caleb and notice him with his hands out, just kinda looking at us, like, "We’re gonna pray now, right mom and dad?"
Here’s a pic of it:

So we all grab hands, and thank God for His provision.
Asking God to bless our food, especially when it isn’t healthy is kinda a pet peeve of mine.
We finish and say "Amen" at which point Caleb blurts out something and pulls his hands in with a big smile on his face.

I love that our son is only 17 months old and already reminds us to pray!

This week I’m sharing some responses I got to the question put out to some CLC folks, regarding if/how their lives have changed.  We got some real encouraging responses and life stories.  Here’s an excerp from another email I got back.

The stories and perspectives we share in the groups are great ways to learn about how God is working in our lives.  Through the Life Groups I feel more "a part" of the church now than "apart" from the church, like before. The Group experience gives me an opportunity to hear God speaking into my life through the experience and voices of others.
I think the most important thing though is that I feel a stronger sense of community because of this experience.

I’ve prayed to God to bring me closer to Him and He has. The Life Group is one way He is working in my life to do that. The opportunity to serve [on Sunday morning’s] is another.
Now, just recently, I prayed to God to help me deal with my commute. He found me a carpool buddy for the rest of the school year but best of all, He’s giving me the opportunity to work in Santa Cruz by connecting me to a possible position here in town! God finds a way!
This is such a big deal for me. I didn’t want to leave my church, my daughter, or the beach (in that order).
What brought the church to the top of the list? An increased sense of fellowship.

Some of that email, specifics and what not, were altered a bit to "protect the innocent."   
So awesome to hear stories of people feeling more connected to our community through life groups.
And there’s more to come!