PULSE #11 - Go Public & Vacation Video

Greetings! Here's the link to this week's Pulse blog. Thanks Kathy!!!

Pulse #11 - Go Public (@ Kathy's Korner)

And, for those that care...here's a video of where I've been. ENJOY!!

Airvangelism

Yesterday was amazing! His name is Tom. I met him on one of my many plane excursions. We had some great conversation about music & somehow that led to his visit to Chicago. He's from Houston (I lived in Houston for 5 years), but was visiting some friends in Chicago for what amounted to a weekend of partying. He was also reading a book that I was actually familiar with. It's a book called "Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas". They made a movie out of it a few years back. It's essentially an autobiography of a man on one long drug trip.

Then, the big question came. So what do you do? Oh man, things were going so well. Nine times out of ten, with guys like Tom, when I bring out the church card, the conversation turns a decidedly different direction...DEAD! However, by the grace of God, IT DIDN'T! I couldn't believe it, he continued dropping the F-bomb & every other four letter word in the book. I knew this conversation was not over. I don't know if it was our music connection, or just the fact that I didn't seem to look down on him. As far as he could tell, I was just another guy to hang out with. Except for the fact that I didn't drop the F-bomb & he was forced to sit next to me.

Anyway, Jesus was very comfortably weaved into the conversation on several levels. Yes, I did say comfortably. Should it really be like root canal surgery to share Christ? Everyone has a story. All in all I gotta say, for a day that consisted of running around ( and I do mean running) to catch three different planes, my divine intervention with Tom made it all worthwhile. Pray for him & for the Tom's of this world to find themselves forced to sit next to you. Whatever it takes!

Here's to Tom!

It's a privilege

As I sit in the airport waiting to hit the ski slopes, I can only think one thing. GOD IS GOOD! No, that's really not enough. HE"S AMAZING!! Can you believe that we, as followers of Christ, get the privilege of serving Him at all times, in all that we do. I know, to the world that sounds stupid. Happy about serving? You got it! It's an honor that so often we look past. We just go on living our comfy, church going lives & forget what we were made for. Let me ask you something. When was the last time you shared Christ with someone. I didn't say lead them to salvation. I just said share Him.

What are you waiting for?

GOD IS GOOD...NO, AMAZING!!

You have the cure for cancer!

Don't keep it a secret!

PULSE #10 - Dew Point

Hey everyone! I'm out of town for the next two Pulse posts, so I asked my good friend Kathy to take the blog baton for me. You can check this week's post out at Kathy's Korner. I can't wait to tell you what God is doing in my journey's. In due time...LOVE YA!!

PULSE #9 - Beyond

Welcome fellow bloggers. In many ways I think our last Pulse lesson could have been the final week. Why? In one word...Heaven! As much as we screw up worship here on earth with our own preferences, orders, liturgies, yada yada yada; worship in heaven is going to be...well...PERFECT!

I'm reminded of the intro to the original Star Trek. Not being a trekkie, I can't say that I remember the exact words. I do however remember that the general idea was that they were on a mission to continually be seeking what's out there. So, what is out there? The book of Revelation gives us a clear picture of what true worship is like in Heaven. What do you think it will be like? Will everyone look the same in our "new bodies"? Will we sound the same? Will we care? All I know is that in heaven, worship will be perfect, always, forever & exactly how God likes it.

So, in heaven, how does God like it? First things first, the focus of our attention will be on Him only! Let's look at Revelation 5:6:

"I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a lamb as though it had been slain."

The focus was on the lamb, not a worship leader. As the song states, "it's not about me", in heaven, it truly is not about me. I'm not saying that we shouldn't sing those songs while here on earth. On the contrary. We should always strive to be heavenly in our worship. However, our flawed bodies often get in the way down here. In heaven, once again...perfect.

Another thing we know about heavenly worship is that it's both loud & long. Let's check out verses 11-12:

"I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders...saying with a loud voice: 'Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing!' "

WOW, 'nuf said!

Also, our expressions of worship will not be half-hearted or weak. They will in fact be extreme in many ways! Get this, the twenty four elders will "fall down" before him. Not only that, but they will "cast down" their crowns at His feet. Isn't that the stuff that we say that wacko church across down does. The word is clear! The heavenly worship of our risen Savior will be EXTREME. Nothing will be held back. ALL FOCUS WILL BE ON HIM...& HIM ALONE! About those crowns that we will be casting down. How many of us spend our entire existence, here on earth, trying to acquire as many crowns as possible. Look, striving for personal excellence is not a bad thing, but when are we going to get it in our heads that it's all just temporary. One day, we will die! What then? Life does go on, & all that we've acquired will one day mean nothing...(silence).

So, that's it. Are you going to worship in the temporary, or will your eternally minded worship always be striving to touch a little bit of heaven? C'mon...don't hold back.

GO FOR IT!!!!

Stool Sample?

Alright already! Based on the comments from my last post & a few outside remarks, here's the deal. Last week we talked about making sure that the worship teams keep a constant check on their motives & hearts as they are leading worship. Well, to make a long story as short as possible, I suggested that our teams take a mental check of themselves every time they sit down on the platform. Since we sit on stools this logically has become known as the aforementioned "stool sample".

Don't you think God has a sense of humor. Of course He does, He created me didn't He! So, make sure the next time you are worshipping, don't forget to take your stool sample. I really think this is going to stick.

Doh! Did I just say that?

PULSE #8 DNA

This week's PULSE is definitely aimed to hit the "Worship Team" square between the eyes. Our small group is made up primarily of those involved in either a praise team, band or even the choir. However, there is one gentleman that decided to come even though he's not on a team. Let me tell you, I'm REALLY glad he's there. It keeps me honest. I hope and pray that God will move others to want to be sold out worshipers...even if they're not on a platform. All that to say, he admitted to the fact that this week's lesson didn't really do anything for him. However, he was quick to then say that the scriptures in the lesson were all he needed. HALLELUJAH!! So, without further ado, here's the first bit of the Word that got us started:

"These people draw near to me with their mouth, and honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. And in vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men."
Matthew 15:8-9

Okay, this weeks post was really supposed to be a veritable cornucopia of video lessons straight from our small group. To stay within copyright laws I created 4 short clips taken from PULSE. There's only one slight problem...IT DIDN'T WORK! I was able to make the clips, & they look great on my computer. They just happen to not be able to be uploaded to the internet. Something about wrong format or something. As with many things (so far), if I spent enough time on it, I would figure it out. Two hours yesterday morning seemed to be enough time for now. All that said, I really wanted to get this out, so I gave in...or up...however you care to see it.

So, back to the above mentioned scripture. Have you ever been guilty of just going through the motions. You know the drill, singing a song that's been sung a billion times simply because you know it well. Or, raising your hands simply because the guy next to you is. Or, better yet, because he's not. We've got to being checking our motives, and even deeper than that, our heart.

Worship teams...praise teams...or whatever you want to call yourselves, we as the leaders, must get this right. If our motives are out of whack, it can so easily effect those that we are leading. On the other hand, if our motives are kept in check & our hearts aligned vertically, we can so easily effect those that we are leading. Speaking of leading, are you following me? Check out these comparisons. I know they're a bit general, but I think you'll get the point.

Performance is: Worship is:
External Internal
Horizontal Vertical
Natural Spiritual
For Man For God
Organized Organic
Art-Focused Heart-Focused
Complex Faith
Play Prayer
Action Attitude

Every week in churches across America, worship teams get together to practice for the upcoming service. Is this right? Don't get me wrong, for those of you that know me well, you know that I think we should practice. I just think that often times, we can practice ourselves right out of a wonderful time of worship. There's only so much that any musician can perfect. Without prayer and always working to keep Christ at the forefront of what we do, the LIFE in our worship is gone, or, I hate to say it, may have never been there in the first place. As Lamar said, "Worship is an attitude long before it becomes an action".

So, all you worship teams out there. Next time you get together to "practice", keep in mind what you're practicing for. Excellence at what you do is biblical. Strive for it always! Just make sure that the perfect sound doesn't take the place of truly connecting with your creator.

Since I didn't have video for you, I want to leave you with the last paragraph in this week's lesson from PULSE. I urge you to read it, read it again, let it sink in & then, dare I say...LIVE IT!!

"Your heart colors the worship that you present to the Lord because worship comes from within. When your heart offers up worship to God, the atmosphere in your heart goes with it. Sometimes the atmosphere smells bad because of the pollution of sin, negative attitudes or self-centeredness within you. Conversely, when you've prayed, fasted & allowed God's word to wash you, your heart has a pleasant and fragrant atmosphere. The atmosphere of your spirit is drenched with the fragrance of a sweet & sincere heart, & there's a transparency in your spirit that allows others to sense & see the Holy Spirit. People often say that a singer or musician is 'anointed' because they sense the spirit & essence of a worshipper who has a soft & pliable heart as a result of being in the presence of God.

ISN'T THAT THE KIND OF DNA YOU WANT YOUR WORSHIP TO HAVE?

PULSE #7 revisited

Thanks for your prayers for me and my family. I stand corrected. The girls actually had strep. Much better than the flu, but nasty nonetheless. The room is also coming along nicely. I'm working on the floors right now & might actually get the door put on tonight. So, onto last week's neglected pulse post.





I'm actually going to defer to others for this one. I've been reading some great stuff lately that fits right in there with last week's lesson. Let's start with a great quote that kicked us off last Wednesday.

"Worship is an exercise of the Holy Spirit directed primarily to God."
-Ralph Martin

When we, as believers, are born again, we are now and forever directed from within by the Holy Spirit. Consider it you're gift from God as you enter into a new life. This impartation is the greatest gift that mankind could ever be given. Not only do we have eternal life as we pass from this world to the next, but we have a guide given to us while our journey remains here on earth. The question is, will we follow His leading, or continually seek our own way?

As we seek to worship him, both privately & corporately, the Holy Spirit resides within us to help us every exciting step of the way. Just recently I read a great article on this very subject. Rather than continue my ramblings (of which I have many), I thought I would give you the privilage of reading it as well. It came from the website myrrhworship.com, a once defunct record label that has recently been revived with a new vision. Anyway, here's what David M. Edwards has to say:

"The Holy Spirit works within each believer to do whatever He has to in order to awaken and deepen our awareness of and need for Jesus’ Presence in our lives. He does this by drawing our hearts closer to the Lord in: our faith in God, our love for God, our obedience to God, our communion with God, our hunger for God’s Word, and our praise and worship of God! It is “deep calling unto deep” (Ps. 42:7). The Holy Spirit—the deep in us—calling unto God—the deep in heaven. And the precious Holy Spirit draws us into the deep waters of worship where we can experience the Presence of God within the veil.
I cannot emphasize enough the role of the Holy Spirit in our worship. His is the still small voice that encourages us to lift our hands in surrender, to praise Jesus with everything in us, to fall at His nail-scarred feet in worship. The Holy Spirit is constantly and consistently working within believers to deepen our experience and walk with the Lord. He is the Leader and Guide to all truth and righteousness. He is the Light within that illuminates God’s Word and our understanding of it. If we will cooperate with His promptings, we will be taken to new places in our relationship with the Lord and in our times of worship.
True worship is mouth-to-mouth resuscitation…deep calling unto deep. Worship is coming into His Presence and allowing the life and power of God’s Holy Spirit to fill our lungs (Ezek. 37:1-14). The promise of His Presence will work every time. And when Jesus is present, everything is possible and available. Can you imagine Jesus showing up without wanting to touch us, heal us, assure us, comfort us, release us, deliver us, save us, fill us? You see, in the atmosphere of God’s Presence, our faith is emboldened and it reaches up to receive what we need. Jesus said, “With God all things are possible” (Matt. 19:26).
True worship will always break down pride and fear. In true worship, pride must go because we must admit that we cannot do anything on our own to make it and we desperately need God’s help, grace, mercy, and love. True worship confronts our fears because we are going to either have faith in God or give in to what we are afraid of. We realize that we cannot serve two masters.
Praise and worship build our faith as does reading and memorizing God’s Word and quoting it aloud. This sends fear scurrying for cover. Fear is the enemy of faith! God’s assurance to meet our needs and deliver us comes on the wings of worship. As we worship, He speaks back and we leave that encounter encouraged and built up in our faith. Don’t be afraid, God knows what He’s doing—put your trust in Him as you lift your praise and words of worship!"


I leave you with this question from PULSE. Are you occupied? If so, with what?

That should be enough to chew on for a while.


BLESSINGS!

PULSE #7 Delayed

We finally got it! No, I'm not talking about HDTV, iphone, or whatever the newest tech toy is. Not to say that I don't want it. I'm talking about that dreaded 3 letter word...the FLU! Samantha came down with it this morning. So, I'm presently trying to cram a full days work into a few hours. This afternoon I will playing Mr. Mom to my youngest while Samantha goes to the doctor to have a stick stuck up her nose. A stick that will end up costing no less than $75.00 after the medicine to follow. God bless the pharmaceutical companies.

We also decided to cut a hole in our wall the other night to expand our house a bit. So, needless to say, there are a few things going on in the Edington household today. All that to say, I'll be back asap with a new "Pulse" post.

I'm REALLY glad GOD is in control!

CIAO.