Taking in Romans 12:1-2 today as a reminder that worship is more than music and great sound. Worship is much deeper than getting a lead sheet perfected or keeping steady rhythm. It is in fact a time to view God's mercy for us and in return offer Him what we would rather keep.
Webster's Dictionary defines worship as "the reverent love and devotion accorded a deity, an idol, or a sacred object". We are innately equipped as beings to put things into the position of reverent love and devotion. Sometimes they are tangible things that most of us understand like money, material possessions, career, unhealthy relationships, fancy ascots, food or substance abuse. But what about the underneath. What about the root vices that hold the heart captive and take the throne of our reverent love and devotion? The unseen and unspeakable. The things that lead us into action. Our pride, our envy, our selfish ambitions, our fear, our anger, our insecurities, our agenda. It seems for me that it is most natural to hold to and keep the comforts of what these vices produce. It is also less desirable to practice the discipline of recognizing that they have taken residence. If you fall into the camp that claims that these vices are nonexistent, why would one slow down long enough to reflect on the need for forgiveness, grace, understanding, and the freedom that mercy gives.
But without these imperfections, why receive mercy? And without admittance, there is no sacrifice. You see, most would rather hold on to pride then reveal that we are insecure. Most of us would rather spend what we do not have to be accepted by our peers than to be grateful for what we have now. Most of us would rather justify why we don't pursue God sized dreams than to be vulnerable in unknown territories.
But doesn't God already know this? We have no way out of worshiping something or someone. So pour out your weakness. Reveal not only to yourself but to those who witness a God worthy of our worship. View from the best seats in the house his mercy show. Then give him what you'd rather keep. He'll turn it into something much more beautiful.
And to those entrusted to lead, take the time to challenge your singers/musicians to think about the words in each song. Challenge them to reflect on the things that may hinder their worship! Take the time to dwell on how he has shown mercy... and give up the God of performance, perfection, & perfect pitch! It may just change your worship!
Friday, December 10, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
Time Travelers
I'm not really a big sci-fi movie fan. It's not that sometimes they don't stroke an interest, but more that they are hard to believe.
I once sat through a movie that had these two guys that went through time on a big adventure. Dude that movie was good. What was that one actor's name? Dude?
But there are somethings to me that seem scientifically inevitable. Somethings to me that are impossible not to believe. Take mortality. Our mortality is a reality. As soon as we are born we are on a path that leads to an expiration. Kind of like the yogurt that I'm eating that was purchased 2 weeks ago and should have been eaten two days ago. We are on "borrowed" time. So why is it so easy to forget about a truth that is so big it demands our attention?
Could it be that our attention is already directed? Who has the time to think about these things with kids, career advancement, academics, purchasing a house, losing a friend, rolling the trackball of a Blackberry, dancing a jig (you know you want to)... we're busy! Aren't we? It seems that busyness is the substance that numbs us of truth. It gives us purpose to our attention. It allows us to justify what we deem valuable. Could it be we think we are too busy when in fact we are creating the busyness? Why do we value busyness? Why is it so hard to slow down?
"For I am your guest - a traveler passing through, as my ancestors were before me. Spare me so I can smile again before I am gone and exist no more." Psalm 39:12b-13
Sounds like the psalmist would say busyness steals your smile. Why? Have you ever been a host? We are in the middle of planning Emma Grace's 3 year Birthday Blowout Bonanza (that is not the official title... thankfully my wife will chose the real one!) Creating an environment for anything takes exceptional work! Oh and patience. Blood, sweat and tears even. That is if you are the host.
But what if we are positioned to be guests? Being a guest suggests that we have been invited to spend some time in another location and we aren't staying. It also suggests that we are to receive hospitality from someone. This someone is a host. So in order to be a guest there must also be a host. Someone that has planned the party or the fancy "stick your pinkies out" appetizers. Come to think of it, for whatever reason most parties that we attend call for a gift. Maybe it's because we assume that the host is putting alot of effort into entertaining us or maybe because of the expense of the gathering itself. I'm not sure. All I know is that we always bring a gift to a shindig! But after all the pinatas are broken, the cake is devoured,the music stops playing and the gifts have been given we are off to somewhere else.
What if we really are travelers? Or "travelers as our ancestors were before us". What kind of traveler would you be? A traveler is someone on a journey in which they have taken off from their starting place and are on route to their destination. Someone taking in the scenery between points A and B. A traveler often leaves marks on the adventure. Maybe that mark is bungee jumping in Cancun or cow tipping in North Dakota. Or maybe just trash you threw out on the road between I-95 and the 528. But travelers leave marks.
As I write this my daughter is reminding me (by pulling on my leg and asking me to get off the computer and come play) of the bold principle and law that exists this very moment. We are guests traveling through... we are following ancestors and becoming them as well. What mark am I leaving? What kind of guest have I become? Don't buy into busyness. It devalues your worth. Believing that we are busy alters the direction of our life and ends in severe ramifications. You see the God of Jacob has a road trip planned for us (Jeremiah 29:11)... that is if we aren't too busy.
We are mere guests traveling through. We can enjoy the journey with Jesus because we know the destination is already determined. Drink in the expedition that has been penciled in. It will spare you and make you smile again!
TB
I once sat through a movie that had these two guys that went through time on a big adventure. Dude that movie was good. What was that one actor's name? Dude?
But there are somethings to me that seem scientifically inevitable. Somethings to me that are impossible not to believe. Take mortality. Our mortality is a reality. As soon as we are born we are on a path that leads to an expiration. Kind of like the yogurt that I'm eating that was purchased 2 weeks ago and should have been eaten two days ago. We are on "borrowed" time. So why is it so easy to forget about a truth that is so big it demands our attention?
Could it be that our attention is already directed? Who has the time to think about these things with kids, career advancement, academics, purchasing a house, losing a friend, rolling the trackball of a Blackberry, dancing a jig (you know you want to)... we're busy! Aren't we? It seems that busyness is the substance that numbs us of truth. It gives us purpose to our attention. It allows us to justify what we deem valuable. Could it be we think we are too busy when in fact we are creating the busyness? Why do we value busyness? Why is it so hard to slow down?
"For I am your guest - a traveler passing through, as my ancestors were before me. Spare me so I can smile again before I am gone and exist no more." Psalm 39:12b-13
Sounds like the psalmist would say busyness steals your smile. Why? Have you ever been a host? We are in the middle of planning Emma Grace's 3 year Birthday Blowout Bonanza (that is not the official title... thankfully my wife will chose the real one!) Creating an environment for anything takes exceptional work! Oh and patience. Blood, sweat and tears even. That is if you are the host.
But what if we are positioned to be guests? Being a guest suggests that we have been invited to spend some time in another location and we aren't staying. It also suggests that we are to receive hospitality from someone. This someone is a host. So in order to be a guest there must also be a host. Someone that has planned the party or the fancy "stick your pinkies out" appetizers. Come to think of it, for whatever reason most parties that we attend call for a gift. Maybe it's because we assume that the host is putting alot of effort into entertaining us or maybe because of the expense of the gathering itself. I'm not sure. All I know is that we always bring a gift to a shindig! But after all the pinatas are broken, the cake is devoured,the music stops playing and the gifts have been given we are off to somewhere else.
What if we really are travelers? Or "travelers as our ancestors were before us". What kind of traveler would you be? A traveler is someone on a journey in which they have taken off from their starting place and are on route to their destination. Someone taking in the scenery between points A and B. A traveler often leaves marks on the adventure. Maybe that mark is bungee jumping in Cancun or cow tipping in North Dakota. Or maybe just trash you threw out on the road between I-95 and the 528. But travelers leave marks.
As I write this my daughter is reminding me (by pulling on my leg and asking me to get off the computer and come play) of the bold principle and law that exists this very moment. We are guests traveling through... we are following ancestors and becoming them as well. What mark am I leaving? What kind of guest have I become? Don't buy into busyness. It devalues your worth. Believing that we are busy alters the direction of our life and ends in severe ramifications. You see the God of Jacob has a road trip planned for us (Jeremiah 29:11)... that is if we aren't too busy.
We are mere guests traveling through. We can enjoy the journey with Jesus because we know the destination is already determined. Drink in the expedition that has been penciled in. It will spare you and make you smile again!
TB
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Love & Live Passionately
So my wife and I were at Target yesterday and decided to buy a wonderfully inexpensive ($16) espresso colored bookshelf to house all the hundreds of books that I have chosen to keep just in case I ever decide to read some day! After toting this item home and pumping myself up with some encouraging self-talk, I decided to open up the bookshelf box and pursue putting the marvelous tower together. Needless to say, there were thousands of parts and I started to feel extremely overwhelmed with the idea that such a craftsman like myself (Tim Taylor) could part this thing together! There were thing-a-majigs and whosaly-whats and many boards that seemed to look and measure the same. But then there was this beautiful 4 page booklet that gave me a simple step by step path empowering me to make this thing look just like the model bookshelf I had seen at the store. Thank you Target for your simple, clear path that made me look like a seasoned carpenter in front of my beautiful wife! She may now even think I can start fixing stuff around the house!
Imagine if we were given such simple steps in our other pursuits. Relationships, life, love. What if it could be written and revealed in such a manner that by doing so, we too look like the model we desire to have?
1John 2:5-6
5But if anyone obeys his word, God's love[b] is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did
Start today by changing your LIFE... One valued focus at a time
The L.I.F.E. Acrostic
(L)Love God and Love others
(I)Invest in someone's life
(F)Find a group to live it out with
(E)Embrace your current situation and serve the world
TB
Imagine if we were given such simple steps in our other pursuits. Relationships, life, love. What if it could be written and revealed in such a manner that by doing so, we too look like the model we desire to have?
1John 2:5-6
5But if anyone obeys his word, God's love[b] is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did
Start today by changing your LIFE... One valued focus at a time
The L.I.F.E. Acrostic
(L)Love God and Love others
(I)Invest in someone's life
(F)Find a group to live it out with
(E)Embrace your current situation and serve the world
TB
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