This past weekend I celebrated 7 years of marriage with my wife. We were completely blessed to have been given the whole weekend to ourselves. We were able to reconnect and spend time just being us. Once you have kids, you lose a lot of that and it’s harder to make time for it. Anyway, I learned quite a few things about myself this weekend. Some of them were things I actually rediscovered. Here they are…

1. I love reading mystery novels. I love mysteries and thrillers and didn’t remember. We went to Borders a couple times this weekend (see #2) and I starting reading a book that I couldn’t put down so I ordered it at Amazon.com. I’m so excited to get this book and read. I’ll probably write about it when I’m done.

2. I love Borders. I don’t know if there’s a difference between all the bookstores in the world, but Borders has a more inviting feel to me. I love the colors on the inside and I felt compelled to stay and read. Eva and I love reading books and we love spending time together in that way.

3. There is a lot of good music in St. Louis, MO. I love this town. It’s home for me, but as I grow older I’m finding out things that I didn’t know when I was little. There is good music here that isn’t always on the radio. We went to a GREAT concert Friday night (see Concert Review) and I’m sure that I’m missing so much good music here.

4. I have amazing friends. The more time we get to spend with them the more I realize that God has really blessed us with some great people. I can’t wait to see what God does over the next few months as we get to know them better.

5. I must really be growing up. Eva and I went to a couple movies this weekend and one of the movies we saw was profanity laced. It did nothing for me and sort of took away from the story of the movie. There was a time in my life where I didn’t care and would watch anything. That’s not the case anymore.

6. Jim and Jeremiah may quite possibly be the perfect storm of public embarrassment. They may also be the perfect storm of straight fun in many forms as well. There’s not much else to say about that.

7. I will, always have, always will, love ice cream. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

8. I don’t write new music because I’m lazy and can find many things to do besides sitting and writing.
8a. I really want to start a music group. That has been my dream and it won’t go away. I’ve done all I can to turn away from this idea, but it keeps putting itself in my line of vision.

9. I adore my children. I loved having the time away where I could connect with Eva, but I was quite happy when my kids came home last night.

10. I cannot live without my wife. Period.

11. God is amazing! He continues to bless me in ways that I KNOW I don’t deserve. I’m not sure why He keeps it up, but I’m so glad He does. Thanks be to God for everything I learned this weekend. I also pray that I keep learning things. If I stop learning, I’m dead.

Even as I’m sitting here writing this sentence, I can’t believe that I’m writing it. I love this idea and am slightly overwhelmed by it at the same time.  As I was getting ready to sit down and really think about this idea, I was having an awesome conversation with a very good friend of mine, Charlie. He was sharing some excerpts from a book that talked about how we must realize that the circumstances around us are put there by God and if he had something different for us that would work better he would use them. I look at the circumstances that have happened in my life and I realize that if it weren’t for the people that God has placed in my life I wouldn’t be where I am today. I won’t even begin to name people because I’ll forget someone and they’ll be the person to read this   Here are some of my thoughts though…

We as a people are so enthralled by the idea of doing things on our own. There’s something about being able to say that I did something myself or I made it somewhere without any help. But in reality, we weren’t even designed to do things on our own. We are built to help each other and be helped by each other. God loved us enough to put people in our lives so we wouldn’t have to try to be independent. Why do we run away from what God has for us?

I am so thankful for all the people in my life that help me get through this crazy life. Even though I have so many people in my life that want to be there for me, I find ways to try to be independent as well. What am I doing? I have a guide that shares all kinds of way for me to depend on Christ and the people that he puts in my life. No where does it mention me being a loner or trying to handle this life by myself. However, I try to do it all the time. It gets even harder when, like me, you’re married with a family. Now I have people closer to me all the time and instead of embracing that fact, I work harder to try to be independent. We are weirdos sometimes…

What am I saying? I guess what I’m trying to say is Christians are called to help each other. We aren’t doing anyone a favor when we don’t lend a hand to help or we don’t make ourselves available for our brothers and sisters. One day we will realize this. Who knows how much of an impact the body can have when we decide to finally work together in the ways that God planned…

⁹ Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their work:

¹⁰ If one falls down,
his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls
and has no one to help him up!

¹¹ Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?

¹² Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

So I’m sitting here on campus while I watch the ice fall from the sky. I’m also trying to figure out why I’m here. But that’s beside the point now. I’m writing now to tell you all about an event that’s coming up that I’m really excited about. We finally put it all together and have things in place for the first event that is being called story:song:life.  This event comes from the idea that songwriters are also storytellers and we are sharing our stories through music. It was also created as a way to bridge the gap between Christian and non-Christian songwriters and musicians. We are excited to see this thing take off. The first one will be February 20th at 7pm. It will be held at West Hills Community Church. The goal and desire is to have the event be held at different venues for the sake of variety and involving other people. If you want to hear more about it, be there Friday night. By the way, there’s going to be some good music, too. Along with myself, Brittany Howard, Eric Bausell and Christy Kelly will be performing that night. You don’t want to miss this at all, I promise. If you have any questions, email me at harry.walls4@gmail.com. I might even write something else about this as it gets closer because we are in the process of creating a site for this ministry. Stay tuned…

I actually started writing about this the other day, but stopped because I wanted to think about it some more. And so I did. My thoughts are pretty simple, and I don’t claim to be anything special, but God has given me something and I choose to share it with others. Here’s what I’m thinking…

I’m asking this question because I know that I’m guilty of having done this before.  We try so hard to make sure we say the right things or put up the right faces and fronts, that we overlook what it’s all about. I learned all the good stuff to say when I was younger, and now I’m realizing that this life is really only about one thing. Jesus Christ and what he did for us. As I continue to grow in Christ and this walk, I am seeing that people want to know what’s real. And at the end of the day, the one thing that I know is real is Jesus Christ.

I’m starting to realize that Paul was right (which has been the case for awhile). In his writing to the Corinthians, that was his prayer. I want that to be my prayer. I want to be able to say to everyone around me that I want to know nothing but Christ. That’s where everything starts, that’s where everything ends. Oh yeah, Happy birthday, Brittany Howard!

So, this year has already brought challenges in my life. I expected it to, because life always brings challenges. I didn’t think that I wouldn’t get through 10 days before things started to happen. Oh well, that’s life I guess. I think that God is getting me ready for something big…something I haven’t quite imagined yet. I don’t really know WHAT God has for me right now, but he doesn’t do anything half way. Here’s what I do know. I’ve been called to lead people in worship through song and I’ve been given a gift that I cannot take for granted. I know that if I’m going to do what it is I want to do I have to just step out and start doing it. I am preparing myself to move forward. I don’t know what that means quite yet, but I’m writing again. I’m even going as far as starting to set up possible opportunities to sing. For those of you that know me, this is a big deal. I don’t normally just promote myself. I don’t really know how to do that.

Anyway, I’m asking for your prayers as I attempt to step out of a comfort zone that has been there for a really long time. I’m quite scared, but I want to be obedient to God. Pray that I can listen to God AND respond the way I’m supposed to. That’s been the big issue for me. I have been running from some things because I’m scared of the outcome because I can’t see it. I need to start following God’s lead. Believe it or not, I’m not that great a leader…

I am called to lead people in worship. I am called to minister to people through song. I am called to be a servant. I am called to be a leader. I am called to help people unite their hearts with Christ. I am called to help people turn away from the distractions of life and focus on the God that saves and sings over us.  I can’t do any of that while I’m looking backwards and holding on to my fears. I can only do that if I turn around and begin to move forward. So lead the way, God, lead the way…

I am very excited about 2009! I can’t believe that God has brought me to this point in my life. I have a lot of things to be thankful for, and I know that God is continuing to use me, which is why I’m still here. What does that mean for this year, though? I believe that this year is going to be a year for letting God of the things that I’ve held on to for so long. I am not a selfless leader or father. I am not good at taking care of myself. I am not a great studier and reader of the word. All of these things I want to do better this year. Along with all of that, I want to be a better worshiper. I am called to lead people in worshiping the Father. That’s what I’m here for and I’m committing to going all out in 2009.

Keep your eyes out for the Worship180 project this year. I know that God is calling me to move forward with this ministry, and I know that He’s going to do what’s necessary to get me in line with Him.  I don’t know what else to tell you about it right now, but keep praying for me and I could use your encouragement in making this thing come to life. I am willing to share with anyone who is willing to listen. I am also preparing information about what this ministry that I’m calling Worship180 is all about. If you would like to know more details or be involved in an email newsletter type thing, send me your email address. And if you like to get mail (like I do), send me your address and I can send things that way.

Ultimately, I want to say Happy New Year to all of my friends. This will be a New Year, Redefined…but it has to start on the inside. Who wants to go with me?

Community Life…It’s sort of a buzzword in the church. We like to use it as a catchy name for our small groups. It invokes thoughts of people being together doing life together. What does that really mean? I believe we are called to be in each others lives intimately. Knowing each other and being together in peace is what God wants for us. One of the things we overlook or input on our own is community ‘part of’ life. In the church our groups are part of our busy lives. Now I know that these are generalizations, but hear me out…

I’m a sports fan. Whenever you watch sports news or interviews, people are always talking about chemistry. It’s not only what happens on the field, but it’s the relationships and ‘life’ that happens off the field. The most successful teams always talk about how much they were like a family. Yeah, things got tough and I’m sure they fight, but they were family. The things you don’t see highly affect what you see on television or in the stadiums. What’s in the heart comes out on the field.

How does all of this apply to corporate worship? I’ve read and talked to people who have said they feel like something is missing on Sunday mornings. When you ask them about it, they feel disconnected to the people around them. Church becomes more like a concert or a conference. It is easy to get lost in the crowd and then you begin to pick and choose the things that you like and don’t like about a specific church. Then it becomes more and more about you. It makes it easy for you to choose one place over the other and jump from church to church.

We can begin to experience deeper, more intimate worship when we know the people around us that we are worshiping with. What relationships do you have with the people around you on Sunday morning? Do you really know them? Do you have any community within your church body? If there’s one thing that I’ve learned, it’s that people need community. Churches need people in community. Worship needs people that are in community. Think about what the worship in your church could look like if the people worshiping together actually KNEW each other? I don’t think I’m quite done with this thought, so there may be a part 2 to this one in the near future…