Archives for October 2016

If there’s one tool worship leaders use more than any other, it’s songs.

Songs are our currency. We listen to songs, rehearse songs, lead songs, study songs, write songs, and oftentimes have entire conversations using song lyrics. Songs are what we do.

I’m not here to bash worship songs. I’m not here to say worship isn’t about songs. Actually, it is. Of course, worship isn’t only songs. That’s like saying water alone keeps us alive. Actually, we need more than that. We need breath. We need food. The definition of worship isn’t songs, per se, but it’s a massive part of worship, particularly corporate worship.

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Let your imagination wander for a moment.

What if this Sunday morning, rather than singing worship songs as a church, you showed a painting of the Mona Lisa? Or some impressionist art from Monet? Or what we filled the stage with painters and sculptors creating for the glory of God?

It’s a beautiful expression, but is it helpful for corporate worship? Probably not.

Or what if instead of sung worship we showed a series of short films and encouraged people to give spoken words to each other? A beautiful expression, but quite chaotic for corporate worship.

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There’s nothing more scary than parenting.

Well, except maybe public speaking in your underwear. But seriously. More than anyone else on the earth, you as a parent have the most influence on the lives of your kids.

I’ve only been a parent for four years, but I’ve found parenting is mostly about getting out of the way. I can screw things up more often than not.

I’ve seen both extremes. Some parents are completely unavailable and distanced. They don’t seem to care. They leave parenting up to daycare, nanny’s, the nursery, or even kids ministry. The other extreme is being so hard on your kids that you crush every ounce of pure, innocent life they have.

And let me tell you, kids are amazing. The longer I live, the more I want to be more like my kids. I want to get rid of the hardness of heart, jaded attitudes, hidden sins, and just jump into life with every ounce of passion I possess.

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