This is a question that I have been asking myself for sometime now. I obviously haven’t come up with the answer yet and so I’m posing this question to all of you. What do you think comes first, worship or community? It will probably help if I explain myself a little bit.

When I speak of worship, I am speaking in the corporate sense. We are obviously called and designed to worship the Father. People worship all types of things, if you don’t believe me, find a story in the early Old Testament. But I’m talking about the concept of worshiping with other people. Coming together in worship and prayer and song and the Word. All of these things. Is this the thing to come first, or is it the community?

I’m speaking of people choosing to come together for the cause of loving Christ. Churches. Prayer Groups. Bible Studies. Family dinners. Cookouts. You know, living life together. There’s something about worshiping with people that you KNOW. I mean, as a worship leader it’s par for the course to spend some time leading worship for people you don’t know in churches you’ve only driven by or in towns you’ve never heard of. But you can’t beat coming home to worship with friends and family and fellow church members. You have relationships with these people. You have lived life with them. That makes the time a little bit sweeter.

So after laying both of the sides out, which one comes first? Can you do one without the other? How much does one filter into the other for you? The floor is now yours.

This is the question I continued to ask myself after watching last night’s State of the Union Address. After watching President Obama talk for a little over an hour, it was obvious that there was much discord in the room. Throughout the speech he seemed to be calling everyone out in hopes that they would attempt to work together for solutions to the country’s problems. After his speech was over there was the rebuttal from the Republican party. To me, the fact that there is someone ready to blow holes in what the President says before he even gets out of the room good speaks directly to my question. Was everything that he said true? Probably not. Will all of the things that he is pushing for happen? More than likely not. Is the chance lessened by the fact that everyone believes that they can do a better job than the person they are sitting next to at the table? You bet they are.

I don’t claim to be political by any stretch of the imagination. I try to stay current on thoughts an ideas because I believe it is a good idea to know where money is going and what my country is doing to keep us safe and educate our children and keep us moving forward for years to come. But I notice that every time I try to get a little deeper than that I’m turned away by the ugly underside of politics that shows its head in times like these. Something tells me that there has to be a way to wade through some of the egos to get to a working medium. If it weren’t for the fact that I’m sure that people are being paid to stand and clap, you would think that everyone had a great working relationship and was willing to take major steps toward fixing the problems in our country. But if that was really the case, I don’t think we’d be sitting here in the constant aftermath of problems that beset us.

After watching this whole thing, I thought about the church and how we relate to each other. I saw some nasty similarities. Unfortunately, lots of times there are people in the church who always feel like they can do a job better than the person doing it. There are factions and cliques that use harsh words in relation to the leadership and it creates instant division. At the same time, people spend time talking to the pastor or leaders and encouraging them to keep up the good work. It reminds me of the initial walk into the room for the President and his exit after he finished the speech. That may be the most superficial parade I’ve ever witnessed…except for right after church in the foyer. Eerily similar again…

Unity seems to be the one thing that everyone is asking for and no one is willing to really work toward. Maybe I’m speaking with cynical overgeneralizations, but that’s what I see. I see it in our country and I see it in the church. I don’t know if will ever happen in either place. But when it comes to the church, there’s one thing that always stands in the middle and if we continue to move toward that, we have a better chance to get this right. The cross, has been, is and always will be right where we need to be. If we aren’t moving toward it, then we will find unity a fleeting thought. So here’s what I’m going to do: I’m going to keep praying for my country and I’m going to keep moving toward the cross. Who’s with me?

Infections are a serious thing. When you get an infection, based on what it is you can get a round of antibiotics that will help take care of whatever is ailing you. There is rarely a time when you will come across someone who will take infections lightly because if they are gone untreated they can cause major damage. Then there are some infections, like a sinus infection, which won’t necessarily kill you but they make it so uncomfortable to live that you have to find some relief. Even with those, if they don’t get treated they can be a major problem and and hindrance to your everyday life. It is amazing to me that something so small as a microscopic germ can cause such harm to the whole human body. Just a speck is all it takes to slow our bodies way down.

What if we gave that a positive spin? What if we took the time to really infect people with love? What if that little speck that got inside of a person’s life stream was something that infected their lives with love? How in do you think that would change things? That is what I feel happens when true worship is experienced in the body of Christ. When we come together on one accord to worship our Creator, we are infusing each and every person with the love they need to overcome all kinds of things. True love can provide hope and encouragement when it is needed. That’s what I experienced last night at hour Show Me Hope concert. The concert was put together to raise money for Joplin, Missouri. We had an awesome time of worship with people from all over the city. In the end we raised quite a bit of money for the cause. But even more than the money, we were able to lift up praise to God and infect people with the love of Christ that they could then take to wherever they ended up after the show.

I believe this has to be our mindset each and everyday. I wonder what would happen if we took that approach to life? I’m just sayin’…

Happy March everyone! Yes, I used a ridiculous pun just now. But I couldn’t really find any other link between the two major things I wanted to mention this morning. The first of them being how crazy it is that we’re already in March. It seems like I was just bringing in this year yesterday with friends and watching 2010 fade away. Now we’re starting the end of the first quarter of the year. This life moves so fast and sometimes I wonder what in the world I’m doing here. I was already wrestling with this thought last night and when I woke up this morning my friend had already written a similar post. I would implore you to go check it out. Here’s a link to Bry’s blog. But read it after this one .  However, I came to my conclusion as a result of something a little different.

So in the Christian author and theology world there is a huge controversy going on right now. Normally I don’t get into these big time theological debates. And I don’t really plan to get into this one, but I was intrigued by this and have paid a little more attention. Evidently Rob Bell, who is one of today’s most popular Christian figures with books, videos and sermons being accessed all over the globe, has made a splash with his upcoming book “Love Wins” where it sounds as if he has taken a rather awkward view of Christianity and God Himself. Since this news came out I have read many blog posts and other articles about this and they range from blasting his face off to at least giving him some benefit of doubt until the book comes out. Now based on this video, the stance that Rob has taken says that there is no way that a loving God could send anyone to hell. Now that sends people reeling in all kinds of directions, and I’m not trying to fight that battle right now. But I find something really interesting. The whole concept of this book is that love will reign supreme in the end. Now, I don’t know where you stand on this whole idea, but I do believe that love should reign in our lives. We have to love each other no matter what they believe. Differences will always occur, but we can’t let them drive us to where we treat people in horrible ways. This book hasn’t even come out yet and we have nailed Rob Bell to the wall. From the sounds of the video, it’s pretty safe to say that we know what to expect when we read it. But at the end of the day, until March 29th gets here the only people that know what are on the pages between that cover are Rob himself, publishers, editors and anyone he’s had to help him in this writing process. I don’t know any of those people, but I’m pretty sure that it isn’t ANY of the people that have blasted him on the Internet.

Now I say all of that to say that sometimes it’s REALLY easy to see why people tend to shy away from Christianity and everyone associated with it. If we blast someone this bad that is supposedly one of our own, what in the world does it look like to non believers? Are we displaying love? I think if nothing else Rob has proven yet again that we will like you if you agree with us. And if that’s the message we are sending out then it’s no wonder that people are already looking at a world that is post Christian and how that will affect the world that we live in. Now I plan on reading this book because I want to see what it is that he’s really saying. In the mean time I will, and you should, be praying for this man. Right or wrong he needs to be loved with the true love of Christ. In the same vein, there is someone around you in your neighborhood, on your job, at the store you frequent that doesn’t know the saving love of Christ. Pray for them. Love them. Love them to the foot of the cross. Happy March 1st.

It is SOOOO hard to make time to spend with people just connecting and talking about life. I have always felt like I should be making time for this, especially since the second bullet point in my tagline is Enrich Your Community. Lately I have been working on ways to do that consistently. With that being said, last night was truly awesome for me.

We were supposed to be having our regular men’s Bible Study when, for a plethora of reasons, everyone sort of canceled. When it was all said and done, I ended up at Pho Grand in South St. Louis City having chicken wings with my friend Mark Patterson. We had a great time catching up, sharing prayer requests, talking life. I realized just how important it is as worshipers to spend time off the stage and face to face with people. I woke up refreshed this morning because I was able to be real and have real one on one time. So, even though you may not see this, thanks Mark for sharing life with me. I probably needed it more than you. Love you bro.

I may not like their baseball team (from the Northside that is…), but I must say that they have some people in the area that love God. That means more to me than anything. God truly blessed this weekend and I’m glad that I was invited.

I spent this past weekend at the The Church of the Good Shepherd in Joliet, IL. I was a part of a ministry team put together by Lay Renewal Ministries to do a Congregational Renewal Conference. I didn’t know what to expect because I had never done this before. I was a part of a group put together from LRM people from St. Louis, Green Bay and the upper peninsula of Michigan. We all descended on Joliet to lead this weekend conference. I obviously led the worship times, but I was also leading small groups and sharing testimonies. We got to get into the people’s homes with the coffee groups on Saturday morning. We also got to have some time where the women and men were split during Saturday’s lunch. Even though the men’s luncheon was outside, we really enjoyed it.

Now you may think that I’m being horribly insensitive, but one of my favorite times of the trip happened at Wendy’s. Yes, I love Frosties and Fries. Glad that Illinois was stocked with Wendy’s because I was REALLY needing it. Thank you, Illinois…thank you!

I am so grateful for the experience of leading these people to the foot of the cross. God did some great things during this weekend and I’m glad that he allowed me to be a part of it. I also got to meet some other great Christians. And I got to spend some time with people from Wisconsin with that great northern accent. Fun times…

So what’s on tap for this week? Well, I have vocal and band rehearsals this week as well as working with the ministry groups at mobap. Then this Sunday morning I have a concert at Waypoint Church. I will be a busy man this week. Please be praying because I am hoping that this ministry can take off. I would love for this to be my full time job, but it takes a lot to get going. We will see…

I owe you all a finish to that cliffhanger from last week. Maybe later today, maybe tomorrow…

This Sunday was week 2 since the decision to choose a church home that had nothing to do with where I was leading worship. I will say this…there are definitely pluses and minuses. Plus, I didn’t have to get up early to get to church for sound checks and stuff like that. I even got to church a little “after” the service started. Haven’t done that in about 15 years! Anyway, being able to sit back and listen to others lead and see that others have a heart for the same thing was good. Great job, Gina. You rocked this morning!

Minus, I REALLY love doing what I do. There’s a part of me that likes to sit back and listen. There’s an even larger part of me that loves to lead and be on stage. It is not because I need to be in front of people, but I know that’s what God has called me to do and I love being able to use that gift. Minus, I haven’t practiced or listened to any music in the past couple weeks. So there is a little bit of both on either side. But I am learning to enjoy where God has placed me right now. I’m still praying that God would lead us to a place to serve Him, but in the mean time we are serving God the best way we know how where we are. Where are we, you ask? Well currently  we are a part of the Quest Service at E-Free.

Something else that has happened this past week that was really cool. I have been given the opportunity to do something really special this year. I was asked to help out at my Alma Mater (which I just got a couple months ago), Missouri Baptist University. Since I started, the number of ministry groups have grown from 3 to 6. The number of ministry group leaders has grown from 2 to 2. Which means they need some help leading these other groups. That’s where I come in. I get to help a couple groups with their instrumental stuff as well as some vocals. I also get the chance to help develop some worship leaders. I am so pumped. For those of you that have been praying, this is not a paying thing right now, but it’s a great opportunity and I’m so excited about it. I will keep you posted on how things work our over the course of the year.

Lastly, I’m going to stop punking out and get back at working on my own music this week. This is my plan for myself. I’ll keep you posted on how that goes as well. Enjoy the rest of the weekend. and to my friends that start school tomorrow, good luck and let God bless you as you start this year off right!

So I thought I’d report on what’s going on since my last post. Once I decided to stop making excuses, I realized why I had been making excuses LOL! Once you start making plans for things and people get excited with you, then you have to keep moving and going forward because people are ready to go. I started talking to people about helping me make this whole CD project happen and I have gotten great response.  I’m excited. First rehearsal is this week.

Anyway, that’s not what this one is about. Yesterday, I got to spend some time with some dear friends at Timberridge Community Church yesterday. What an amazing time! We were going to have lunch together, and we did. However, the fellowship was so amazing that we ended up having dinner together as well. God really gave us all some rest. We kept talking about how cool it was to actually get some rest because we move so much and never really stop. I am so glad for friends and family and glad that we were able to have that time.

July is starting off fresh and I can’t wait to see what else God is going to do this month. I’ll keep writing if you keep reading…

I can’t even begin to explain how good God is! When God is working, there’s nothing else that you can do but sit back and watch the show. This first month without a permanent job has been so much more than I thought it would be. I was just hoping to get by and do what I had to do. Instead, we met our neighbors and have started a great friendship with them. I met a radio celebrity (she’s probably gonna kill me for that one!), got to sing and lead worship with 2 amazing bands, and build connections that would have never happened otherwise…and that was all at one church! That doesn’t even include my trip to Godfrey at the beginning of the month which was totally awesome. I had such a great time riding with and leading worship with my friend, Erica DeVilbiss. I’ve also met people from a couple of churches who have shown interest in me. I’m pretty sure that I wouldn’t have met any of these people had it not been for God’s working. I can’t wait to see what he has in store for next month.

If you are interested in where we’re going next, the month of July looks sort of like this…

July 5th I’ll be at TimberRidge Community Church. Still not sure if I’m leading there yet, but we’re going for a visit. Love the people down there.

July 12th I’ll be leading worship at Rockwood Baptist Church in Wildwood, MO. This is becoming one of my favorite places to go. There are some really nice people there and they love God. I love leading for churches that love God…

July 19th I will be leading worship with family at West Hills Community Church. There’s not much else to say about this one except for this is family. Pastor Gary and his wife Jenny are lovely people and it’s always good to go home.

So as I was saying, sometimes you have to look back and realize that things are happening in ways that only God can make them happen. OH! Before I forget, my expectations were really blown away this month. I set a goal for myself to have 200 visits to my blogsite here. I thought it would be a stretch, especially since last month netted about 50. Either way, I set my sights and went for it. That meant a lot of writing for me, and also a lot of praying. The last time I checked we were sitting at about 320 visits for this month alone! Thanks friends for continuing to check in a read what I have to say. I’ll keep writing if you keep reading. Have a blessed week. You’ll probably hear from me again.

Well, I’m doing my best to continue writing my thoughts about worship styles and how I see them. In response, to my friend Charlie, I’m making sure to write about worship from a contemporary viewpoint today. I may take a break tomorrow and write about another on Monday. With all that being said…

So my answer to this question will be the same as the answer to the previous blog’s question…NO! I will step out on a limb and say that everything about contemporary worship is not good. We have gotten some great songs over the years from some great musicians and writers. We have also seen this music be something that has brought up some new musicians. We think about songs like “How Great is Our God” and “Your Grace is Enough” and you wonder how anything about contemporary music can be bad. But here is what I feel has been the BIGGEST issue with the world of contemporary music. Surprisingly enough, it won’t have anything to do with Chris Tomlin or Steve Fee. It has to do with the people in our churches…

People who have contemporary worship services tend to be alienating of other worship styles. Most of my experiences with people who sing contemporary music has been where the singers have negative thoughts about hymns of the past.  Now I know that to some degree this is an overgeneralization, but I’m just speaking for arguement sake.  I feel that sometimes we can get so excited about something new that we just blast whatever was old. That is something that hurts harmony within the body. Then we start seeing seperate services for traditional and contemporary in the same morning. Although I’m not a huge fan of separate services because of differences in style, I’ll take it over the other thing that tends to happen.

Some churches will attempt to update music and do things in a new way, but with people who don’t understand the music. When musicians try to do things they aren’t familiar with without the help of someone who IS familiar with it, that is really frustrating to me. I will try my best not to run off on a tangent, because I’m sure that’s not helpful to anyone. I think at this point I’m going to stop and leave this up for discussion…