Showing 23 posts tagged quotes
Los has a fun list for worship leaders today about 5 Things To Get Off Your Sunday Stage. We liked #3:
3. The Emo – Nehemiah 8:10 says The joy of the Lord is my strength. Joy. Strength. Of’course there are times to be serious, focused, and still. But for the love… Smile. Laugh. Show the people you are leading that heaven isn’t gonna be so serious. Cause they won’t wanna go.
How emo is your worship? Can you be too happy?
“The people designing and running the projection are no longer simple “button-pushers,” and the congregation is not simply “observing.” Environmental projection engages people. It allows designers and artists to use their gifts to glorify God through photography, graphic design, and art just like the stained glass maker did in those old cathedrals. The people designing the projection are to be thought of as “visual worship leaders.”
“Christ endured the full penalty of our sin and satisfied all the claims of God’s justice against us. He drained the cup of God’s wrath bone dry, leaving not a drop for us to drink.”
“Worship leaders - you must defeat the lie that Easter Sunday is the week to celebrate the resurrection. It’s a lie. You must actively celebrate and lead people towards celebration of the resurrection every single time you gather. If you leave this out when it comes to the reason why the church gathers, you are helping to promote the lie.”
“A RELATIVELY new field, called interpersonal neurobiology, draws its vigor from one of the great discoveries of our era: that the brain is constantly rewiring itself based on daily life. In the end, what we pay the most attention to defines us. How you choose to spend the irreplaceable hours of your life literally transforms you.”
from The Brain on Love by Diane Ackerman on the New York Times
Terrifying and reassuring - and we’d say it is exactly why a life spent worshiping the God who loves us is essential.
Okay, yes, so this blog lately seems to be sponsored by Valentine’s Day. Mostly, that’s because we’ve been going through all of our Valentines-related content for the last week or two. That will soon pass.
But before it does, here’s a paragraph from a 6-year-old blog post by Tim Challies about Christian men and Valentine’s Day. The whole piece is worth the quick read - whether you love or hate the whole fabricated season.
What continues to surprise me about reactions towards Valentine’s Day, and the reactions of men in particular, is their hesitation to celebrate their wives. Valentine’s Day may be a fabricated holiday. There is nothing special about February 14 that dictates that we must lavish gifts and attention upon our wives. But when the opportunity presents itself, why would we hesitate?
-Tim Challies from A Valentine’s Day Reflection on Challies.com
Ouch.
“Self-justification and judging others go together, as justification by grace and serving others go together.”
- Dietrich Bonhoeffer in Life Together
Bob Kauflin at the Worship Matters blog is talking today about a book called Engaging with God: A Biblical Theology of Worship by David Peterson.
We liked this excerpt from the book, about worship and the book of Revelation, one we don’t always turn to for the content of our songs to God.
The hymnic material in the book of the Revelation…should alert us to the importance of singing God’s praise in a way that is truly honoring to him and helpful to his people. Do our hymns and songs concentrate on praising God for his character and his mighty acts in history on our behalf? Do they focus sufficiently on the great truths of the gospel? There is always a temptation to focus too much on the expression of our own immediate needs.
Russell Moore’s blog is mind expanding today, especially if you’re ever overcome with the sense that the all the great movements of the church have already happened. God is active now in the lives of unbelievers of whom he will make much.
The next Jonathan Edwards might be the man driving in front of you with the Darwin Fish bumper decal. The next Charles Wesley might be a misogynist, profanity-spewing hip-hop artist right now. The next Billy Graham might be passed out drunk in a fraternity house right now. The next Charles Spurgeon might be making posters for a Gay Pride March right now. The next Mother Teresa might be managing an abortion clinic right now.
This startling reminder from Sinclair Ferguson made us rethink our New Year’s Resolutions:
“Christian contentment … is the direct fruit of having no higher ambition than to belong to the Lord and to be totally at his disposal in the place he appoints, at the time he chooses, with the provision he is pleased to make.”
Yikes! This is hard. We’re working on being this ambitious, but we’ve got quite a ways to go from here.
(quoted by Dave Harvey in Rescuing Ambition)
The Shift Blog is where we show and tell about new content, creativity, worship and ministry. Our company, ShiftWorship.com, makes backgrounds, mini movies and other media to help churches help all of us shift worship from self to God. Get access to everything on our site for $149/year.
