“When Jesus heard what had happened, He withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place.”  Matthew 14:13

“…He went up on a mountainside by himself to pray.  When evening came, He was there alone…”  Matthew 14:23

“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up…”  Mark 1:35

I believe focused time alone with God is crucial for every believer.  Without it, we’re unprepared, running aimlessly and punching at open space as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9…picture a noted computer entrepreneur dancing on TV, its bad (ok, he tried, but it was still bad – not that there is anything wrong with bad dancing). Sadly, without focused time alone with God, we’re missing out on [don't miss this] communion with the Creator of the whole universe. This is nothing new or profound, but it is basic.

If you have this area covered, cool!  I pray that your times of personal study are special and encouraging.  If this area is a challenge, be reminded, encouraged, challenged (if needed) to model our awesome Lord and Savior and set aside focused time alone…just as He did.

Having just expounded the importance of focused time alone with God…let me make a distinction:  I multi-task my daily worship – basically seeing my entire day as a time of continual prayer, praise, and worship of our Amazing and Gracious God AS WELL AS striving to do everything to His glory and honor.  Remember: Worship = Life for a Christ Follower. Multi-tasking one’s worship isn’t bad – in fact, it’s biblical…I got a verse!

I have been reading Nehemiah lately and in 1:6, Nehemiah prays to God, “…let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night…”  BOOM! Did you see it?  He is multi-tasking before God!  Think about it, Nehemiah heard the news about Jerusalem in the month of Kislev and didn’t make his request to the king until 5 to 6 months later in the month of Nisan (based on my best layman’s read of the Hebrew calendar – thanks to my ESV Study Bible.)  I’m SURE he still lived his life (he had to – the king still expected him to do his job!), but Nehemiah did it with a heart broken for his (and God’s) people.

The cool part in verse 1:6 is that he is asking God not only to HEAR him, but SEE him…leading one (me, you) to believe that God honors both closed-door, time alone AND the day-to-day, lifestyle of worship!  BTW – it’s not just an Old Testament thang:

Romans 12:1 “…God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life-your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life-and place it before God as an offering.  Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him.” [The Message]

Colossians 3:17 ” Let every detail in your lives-words, actions, whatever-be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.” [The Message]

As Nacho said, “Pretty dang exciting, huh?”

I still feel we need uninterrupted, focused time with God – again, Jesus modeled it – but hey, multi-tasking ROCKS and it biblical!

WORD!

The Cool!

I am always looking for cool backgrounds for church and was looking through my “finds” last week and saw the one to the right.  A while ago, I StumbledUpon this site that had a “visual” of the Bible and its linkages.  Visually, it is pretty cool – seeing the rainbows of colors and their interconnectedness.  But…if it ended there, it would be just another interesting image.  The truth of the “coolness” is that this picture represents God’s Awesome Word!

As faithfacts.org puts it:

“…the Bible contains 66 books, written by approximately 40 different writers, over 1600 years, on 3 different continents, in 3 different languages, on thousands of different subjects, yet with one central theme-God’s redemption of mankind from sin won for the whole world by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

The story behind the image is interesting (and sure, you could do this to many other books, including other works related to world religions); but, it is so much more than just a neat image with and cool back-story about how it was made.  WOW!!!!

BTW, there are some other cool visualizations on this person’s site…check them out!

The Scary!

I have been reading through Nehemiah veerry sloowwly in my quiet time, letting the verses sink in (this book is jam packed!) and this past week got a visual that scared me.

I tend to read from the English Standard Version during my study and was in Nehemiah nine last week.  In verses 6-25, the Levites recount the faithfulness of God to the assembled Israelites…then verse 26:

“Nevertheless, they were disobedient and rebelled against you and
cast your law behind their back.”

I just stopped.

In my mind, I saw what it looks like when I sin.  What God effectively sees me doing when I knowingly do or don’t do something He has commanded in His Word.

I effectively take His Word in my hands…and toss it…with disregard… over my shoulder…behind my back.

Scary.

Lord, I know I will never be without sin until I am in your presence.  Thank you for the visual of what my sin says about Your Word.  Help me to remember this visual before I sin; and bring it to mind immediately after I do, so I can maintain a posture of confession before You.  dennis

I was in chapter eight where the people, after they have re-built the walls, gather to hear Ezra read the Law. He is assisted by many, but I focused on the Levites (who were appointed, under David, to a ministry of music and praise – specifically as, “ministers before the ark of the Lord, to invoke, to thank, and to praise the Lord.”) I focused on the Levites because they are basically what we call worship leaders today…just like me!

From Nehemiah 8:

2 – So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard

5 – Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people [on a box], and as he opened it all the people stood.

7 & 8 – …the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law, while the people remained in their places. They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.

Verses seven and eight hit me like a ton of bricks – a lump even formed in my throat. I am firm in the knowledge of my responsibilities as a worship leader (first) before the Lord and (second) to those I lead/serve; but what a profound and challenging reminder! Thank you Lord!

Check it out. What an example and model to imitate as a worship leader:

“…the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law” – They didn’t just lead singing, they facilitated understanding of God’s Law/Word.

“while the people remained in their places.” – They went where the people were…they didn’t minister or serve from Ezra’s side. It wasn’t just a “stage” thing – it’s an “in the trenches” thing.

“They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, they gave the sense…” – They didn’t just focus on singing or playing instruments with skill. They had an understanding of the Law themselves so they could impart its meaning.

“…so that the people understood the reading.” – Their involvement was active and equipped people to worship the Lord with a clear understanding of Him and His precepts.

A common plea from worship leaders to those they lead is that worship is more than just singing or what we do on Sundays – I know I try to message and model this regularly. To me, this short verse was the equivalent of the phrase “one finger pointing at you and three at me” we’ve heard when someone is preaching or teaching.  As a worship leader, my ministry must be more than leading in a traditional worship format. Being just a “song leader”, in light of this verse, just isn’t biblical.  Certainly leading corporate worship is part of this ministry, but modeling a life of worship and seeking to help others “understand” who they are worshiping are also key.  I knew this, but I always appreciate the one-two punch the Holy Spirit uses as I read the Bible!

So, what am I doing writing this blog?

Aside from being a space to share random thoughts on life, I guess I see this forum as just one of the extensions of my leading worship in the traditional format at church.  I’m just someone dependently following Christ, surrendering (although imperfectly at times) my life to His purposes, and following the example of those who came long before me.  BTW, all my posts probably won’t have a heavy, biblical message; but, as a follower of Christ, its hard not to see God in all the areas of my life.

Amen!