1 How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? 2 How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? 3 Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, 4 lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,” lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken. 5 But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. 6 I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me. (Psalm 13) David begins in the clutches of despair, discouragement, …
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Bruce Springsteen on Meaning and Purpose
Bruce Springsteen is on tour again. I’ve never been a Springsteen fan, but his music has affected millions. Recently, Scott Pelley interviewed Springsteen for the TV show 60 Minutes. His concert was described as “part circus, dance party, political rally, and big tent revival.” Here’s a portion of the interview, street language unedited. “You have got to be, wild guess, worth somewhere north of 100 million dollars. Why are you still touring? You don’t have to do this,” Pelley remarks. “What else would I do? You got any clues?” Springsteen asks. “Got any suggestions? I mean, am I going to garden? Why would you stop? I mean, you play the music …
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To Worship or To Lead – Is That the Question?
I’m hoping to follow a similar format each week for this blog. On Mondays I’ll be sharing a devotional, from Scripture or some other source, that will focus on our hearts. If you lead a music team these might be great to share with your group. Tuesday through Thursday I’ll be typically focusing on some theme, although I also plan to do book/article/CD/song/website reviews as well. Of course, since it’s my blog, I might do something totally different. (I’m sure this is helping you.) On Fridays, I’ll take time to respond to a question I’ve received either through e-mail on on the blog comments. This first question is from Phil. “I attended an …
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Worship Leaders – The Christian Musician Summit Reflections
This past weekend I had the privilege of joining 3000 or so folks at the Christian Musician Summit – Improving Skill, Inspiring Talent, held at Overlake Christian Church in Redmond, Washington, near Seattle. My good friend Pat Sczebel, joined me from Vancouver, BC, where he serves as a pastor in Crossway Community Church. I marveled again at how diverse the body of Christ is. Ages ranged from 15 to 75, and I talked to people from every kind of denomination, meeting format, church size, and musical preference. Over two days people could attend 9 of 170 seminars that were offered, three main sessions, and two evening concerts. It was a massive …
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So Much to Thank God For
When asked how he’s doing, my friend C.J. Mahaney often answers, “Better than I deserve.” He’s been responding that way for years, and it always reminds me that my sins far outweigh my trials. Yet God has dealt with my sins by punishing his own Son in my place. I will never know His righteous wrath. I will forever know the joy of His presence. So why don’t I have a more thankful attitude? I think my perspective is comprehensive, accurate, and authoritative. I think my complaining moves God. I think I’m ultimately responsible for my destiny. I think I’m immediately responsible for my justification before God. I think I rule everything …
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Should My Kids Listen to Christian Rap?
Ken, a dad with three kids ages approaching their teen years, sent this question to me: [My kids] show some interest in hip-hop/rap music, so I have started to look into Christian versions of it. I have listened to Curtis Allen (have to list him first, right?), Lacrae, and Eternal MOG (Man of God). From what I have seen and read, the words seem to be gospel-centered, God exalting. My hesitation is that the broader hip-hop culture is so foul and perverse that I am not sure I want to encourage my kids towards it. I was thinking that maybe I could cut them off at the pass with solid gospel-centered hip-hop music, but I am not sure if that …
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What’s So Special About Singing on Sundays?
People sing. Everywhere. In their cars. In the shower. In choirs. At football games. At birthdays. At weddings and funerals. At rock concerts. In musicals and operas. When there’s sunshine. When it rains. When it’s stormy. In the morning, afternoon, and night. But when the church gathers on Sunday morning (or Saturday night, etc.), our earthly voices join the choirs of heaven and the singing is like no other. I can’t count the number of times I’ve been moved as I added my voice to the beautiful, engaging, powerful, awe-inspiring, robust singing of a congregation. But sometimes our sound is halting and weak. Out of tune and …
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Reflections on Turning 60
I’ve had more than one conversation with a 20 or 30 something worship leader who was concerned about growing old. Will I have a job? Will people still want me to lead? Will I be out of touch? Last month I turned 60. I guess that puts me in the “old” category, although in my mind I still think I’m 28. I thought it might encourage a younger leader if I shared some of the things I’ve learned in 30 years of ministry that have shaped me, changed me, and given me faith for the future. Consider this a follow-up to the post I wrote five years ago on being a 55 year old worship leader. Five lessons learned 1. Direct your desires. God tells …
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What We Did Last Sunday – Feb. 7, 2016
People have asked me for a while to occasionally post the order of a Sunday service at Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville, my home church. There’s no perfect liturgy, but it can be helpful to hear how others are seeking to lead meetings that are theologically informed, gospel-rich, and spiritually transforming. So here’s what we did in our gathering this past Sunday. The italicized words are transitional comments. CALL TO WORSHIP We typically play instrumental music for 1-2 minutes to draw people in, and then one of the pastors gives the call to worship. This past Sunday I read from 1 Chronicles 29:11: “Yours, O Lord, is …
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Singing the Psalms in Worship, Pt. 2
Do the words we sing in worship matter to God? More than most of us realize. What we sing teaches us, shapes us, molds us, and affects us. So it might seem wise to only sing God’s Word, specifically the Psalms, back to him. But, while there is much we can learn from the Psalms for congregational worship, I believe God wants us to sing more than the Psalms when we meet on Sundays. I posted on this topic last week, and a couple folks left gracious comments that offered a different perspective. I started to leave a response in the comments section, but it got so long I thought I’d make it into a new post. We can’t start this discussion by …
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Monday Devotions – Kids, Kings, and Creeping Things
Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all deeps, fire and hail, snow and mist, stormy wind fulfilling his word! Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars! Beasts and all livestock, creeping things and flying birds! Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth! Young men and maidens together, old men and children! Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted; his majesty is above earth and heaven. He has raised up a horn for his people, praise for all his saints, for the people of Israel who are …
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What Does a Worship Leader Do? In Closing…
I was going to entitle this post “Final Thoughts,” but that’s probably not going to happen. One of the reasons I started this blog was to explore this role in an ongoing way. But this does mark the end of the series on the role of the corporate worship leader. Really. If you’re a musician who is responsible to lead others in praising God, I pray you’ve been served by this series. I’m grateful for those of you who have taken the time to post an encouraging comment, expand upon my thoughts, or ask questions. We need to continually ask ourselves if what we’re doing is lining up with Scripture. On most Wednesday mornings I have the joy …
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On Musicians and Reading Books, Pt. 3
Today I’m sharing two more reasons why Christian musicians aren’t known for dropping hundreds of dollars on theology books. 3. Studying God takes time. This is similar to the point I made yesterday about the study of theology being hard. We live in the age of instant everything. I still remember when there was no internet (much less wireless connections), e-mail didn’t exist, you had to wait a week to get your camera film developed, and microwave ovens were a novelty. My, how things have changed. We want to know God NOW. We want to have life-changing 15 minute devotional times, are drawn to the “One-Minute Bible,” and get anxious …
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Reflections on the 2017 Shepherds’ Conference
Last April a friend of mine at Grace Community Church texted me to say John MacArthur was going to invite me to lead the music for some of the main sessions at the 2017 Shepherds’ Conference. I thought he was kidding. There are a few reasons why this particular invite was unexpected. For one, I’m a pastor with Sovereign Grace Churches. John has at various times made clear in his preaching that we have a few theological differences. Also, the music at Grace Community Church, where John has served as the pastor for more than four decades, is primarily hymns led by highly skilled choirs, orchestras, and an organ. On a typical Sunday morning …
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Songs to Sing in a Pandemic
I originally posted this on my church’s blog, but wanted to share it here as well. In his excellent article, “Anxiety, Waiting and the Coronavirus,” Alasdair Groves reminds us of the unique kind of trial the current worldwide pandemic presents to us. We’re tempted to experience a “particular strain of anxiety that comes when we are waiting for a threat that is gliding toward us, its fin visible above the surface.” In other words, we know something bad is coming. We just don’t know what or when. To be sure, many are already experiencing the effects of the virus. Financial disaster. Loss of income. Loss of …
