Courage is a high virtue. But fear can be our friend. Fear is actually a lifesaver. I agree with writer Elizabeth Gilbert who says,

Don’t leave home without a good healthy fear reflex, or you may find yourself wandering drunk through dangerous neighborhoods at 3am, or riding your bike through city traffic with earbuds in. In these situations, your fear may indeed save your life.

Indeed, fear can save us a lot of pain and heartache. Jesus warned us:

Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.

Matthew 7:15

Here are five types of people we should love but also, may I propose, fear.

• Jekyll and Hyde People

These are the emotionally unhealthy, unpredictable, and combative people who swing from one emotion to another. We all have Jekyll and Hyde people in our lives. They can be devastating, causing you to walk on egg shells and doubt your standing with them. Love them because you are called to love them, but limit your exposure to them because they can knock you off your mission.

They will deliberately say something to harm you while acting like they didn’t know it would bother you.

They waver in their support of you based on your performance. And if you don’t live up to their expectations, they will pout and alienate you.

Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.

James 1:6

They will enthusiastically agree to do something but then act moody and irritated while performing the task.

• Werewolves People

 The werewolf is the person in your life who supports you until they have a “full-moon” moment. Their “full moon” moment may be instigated by a crisis or it may just occur without any measurable cause. They are secretive and love the darkness of anonymity. 

Henri Neowen offers some questions for us to ask ourselves as we consider the werewolf:

Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone’s face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love? These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits, here in this world and the life to come.

• Frankenstein People

Frankenstein people have a head transplant when they really need a heart transplant. These are the people who have correct doctrine and know all the right answers, but they have no compassion for the strugglers. They are not swift in their walk because they are constantly running into people with whom they disagree on an intellectual level. Their heart is not engaged and compassionated because they are too busy judging people. Therefore they are the original walking dead.

• Blob People

Blob people take up space and have no arms or legs for service and mission. These are the people that focus on feeding themselves, satisfying themselves and justifying themselves but never do any good for the people around them. Everything is focused on how it affects their standing and not the overall health of the church or organization. Blob people are analysts and taste testers. They attend but rarely volunteer. 

• Godzilla People

These folks are bigger than life, ego-driven, and often destructive. Godzilla people display many talents and lead many organizations, but their success, while initially undeniable, is often short-lived because they leave so many people in their wake. They are excellent at tearing down and shaking up– a necessary task from time to time, but they don’t have the desire or acumen to build. 

St. Paul encourages us to use our words to build up:

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29

So what’s the silver bullet for these villains?  

Community!

Chances are, you’ve been the monster from time to time. I certain have!  We tame the beast through community. We must work on each other. Monsters have allies but few deep friendships. To overcome monstrous episodes we must find communities that nurture authenticity and truth-telling. 

And if you find yourself in relationship with a monster, speak the truth but also avoid feeding the beast. Their curse is infectious.

A Baby born—outcast and obscure

You are still Jesus

Master Craftsman of the universe

born a carpenter’s Son.

You are still Jesus

Walking in the wilderness 40 days without.

You are still Jesus

In a borrowed tomb, the casualty of my sin.

You are still Jesus in the middle of my struggles,

In the center of my life.

In my dreams, tears, brokenness and fears

You are still Jesus.

Comforting, guiding, loving, filling

You are still Jesus.

When an upside-down world quakes and trembles

You are still Jesus.

In the silent nights and fragile days

You are still Jesus.

~

Maybe it was the the election of 2016, or the shootings of police officers and unarmed black men, or maybe it’s the peril of social media where people make blanket statements about race, or party or policy. No one can doubt that we are more divided and in need of a revolution. Not a national revolution but a soul revolution. This revolution will occur when we are weary of people who claim to be Christians and yet support, for their own culture, people who act contrary to the teachings of Jesus for the sake of their own good causes. We are in need of a revolution.

 Jesus was the greatest revolutionary figure in history. Jesus shattered the religious systems of the world with a new commandment, “Love.” He overthrew the greatest empire with one weapon: “Love.” He served the greatest meal ever eaten and the primary ingredient is the recipe was (you guessed it) “Love.” It was a different kind of love than the world had ever truly experienced. God’s love is revolutionary because it is redemptive, unearned and holistic. While others were involved in a debate about who was holier, who was more righteous, Jesus was uprooting hatred and dispatched violence through love. It’s practical, astounding, freeing and, yes, revolutionary.

A Revolution of Love

But I say to you who listen: Love your enemies, do what is good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
Luke 6:27-28

Where does your mind go when it’s in idle? Our natural tendency is to go to places that we have experienced hurt, worry and uncertainty. We all have rehearsed future exchanges with enemies and rivals. We think, what could I have said that would straight this person out?
What could I do to get the upper hand in that relationship? How could I prove my own righteousness and legitimize my place in this situation or that predicament.” In short we have a taste of revenge. We can too quickly be drawn into greed, defensiveness and self-pity.  When we go into those shadowy places of self-preservation we are on a collision course with something that goes against our natural bent. It’s the unconditional love of Jesus. This is the very essence of grace that draws us out of the path of destruction and draws us into the life Christ offers. We must ask ourselves, “Does my living, walking, doing and reacting square up with this teaching?”

A Revolution Against Hypocrisy

“Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but don’t notice the log in your own eye? 42 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself don’t see the log in your eye? Hypocrite! First take the log out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck in your brother’s eye.
Luke 6:41-42

 

Have you ever known someone who was constantly on a witch hunt? There are people who gain a sick gratification through the process of analyzing, condemning and judging even their closest of friend. Many times this judgment never reaches the ears of the person being judged. In these two verses we see Jesus commending believers not to sit in judgment of other people. Jesus is saying, work on yourself, first and foremost. We can’t go into relationships say, “I bet I can fix this person.” And can I say this just between me and you? Nobody really wants to be your project. The first person in your life that God wants you to fix is you. This is so true when it comes to marriage. So many times couples come to me, asking how they can fix their spouse and I have to say, “Perhaps God is using the faults of your spouse to fix YOU! Maybe He wants to teach you about patience, meaningful dialogue, prayer, and unconditional love.” College is a great place to work on yourself so that you are ready to enter into a lifelong relationship. You’ll also find that once the two by four is out of your eye, you are able to watch God change the people whom you love because you are emotionally free and healthy.

A Revolution of Action

“Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and don’t do the things I say? 47 I will show you what someone is like who comes to Me, hears My words, and acts on them: 48 He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. When the flood came, the river crashed against that house and couldn’t shake it, because it was well-built.
Luke 6:46-48

In this ancient sermon, it becomes clear that Jesus is not looking for people just to tip their hats to Him. He’s doesn’t want people to simply affirm Him as a good teacher or as some sort of life coach that can tweak their lives. He wants to be Lord, not just hear the word “Lord.” Jesus posts a warning sign and the very end of this message. He says “Danger! Religion ahead!”  Jesus didn’t come to establish another religion. He came to make dead people live. If you build too close to a sandy beach you will one day face a spiritual tsunami. So what is the sand you need to back away from? Is it self-reliance? An addiction you lean on more than God? Is it your physical appearance? Is it your popularity? We all have some beachfront property and it’s tempting to want to build on it.  Please don’t.

Jesus wants the best for you, but often it doesn’t feel like it. Revolutionary living requires us to have a spiritual coup a regime change. Jesus desires more than anything for you to trust him. How do we trust Him? We say, “Lord,” but we don’t stop with that word. We treat Him as Lord. We live by this new life principle of love. We invite God to change our hearts and we stop trying to change other people. We make our core value to be the teachings of Jesus and we listen patiently to get direction from Him and not our baser instincts.

I’ve seen and have been a part of so many different types of churches– relevant churches, traditional churches, hip churches, formal churches, house churches, city churches and country churches. But I am so thankful that I’ve had the opportunity as a visitor and as a member to experience a few churches that welcomed, fostered, and created atmospheres of reckless abandon to God.

We see this kind of church in a small home in Bethany. Jesus was there as well as the religious, the healed and the curious.

While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. (Cost of a slave) She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head. Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, “Why this waste of perfume?

 

The question posed by the indignant onlookers is still asked today. Should a Christian be wasteful?

Absolutely.

We should encourage each other to waste our lives, our resources and our destinies at the feet of Jesus just like this woman did. The economy of heaven is much different from the economy of earth.

It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.” And they rebuked her harshly.“Leave her alone,” said Jesus. “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 7 The poor you will always have with you,and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. 8 She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial.
Mark 13:5-6

The choice:

1. Waste your life on Earth for Christ and save your soul for eternity
2. Save your life on earth and waste your soul for eternity.

Your alabaster box is exquisitely built over time. It is beautifully plated in the things you have treasured. It is sealed in your talents. It sits on the altar of the life you’ve built for yourself.

Break it or worship it. It’s your choice. 

 “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

Matthew 6:19-21

You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.
Revelation 3:17

We want to acquire so that we can feel we don’t need anything.God wants us to waste our lives on him so that we are in a constant state of need and faith.

TREASURE: For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?
Mark 8:36

TIME:  “But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’
Luke 12:20

TALENT: I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Romans 12:1

Broken people connected through Jesus produces a beautifully broken church.

Here are 6 basic characteristics og the opposite– an unbroken church.

1. The unbroken church is passive during worship services
2. The unbroken church is rarely daring in finances
3. The unbroken church is concerned more about itself than those far from God.
4. The unbroken church longs for structure over substance
5. The unbroken church is sheds no tears, vies for power, and worries about its reputation
6. The unbroken church refuses to change

• Is Jesus worth it?
• Is Jesus enough for my circumstances?
• Is Jesus enough to trust with everything?

What do you think about more than anything else? What do you fear more than anything. Look and your thoughts and your fears and chances are you will discover the alabaster box in your story that must be crushed.

• Your life is your alabaster box.
• Our church is an alabaster box.
• If we refuse to be broken the alabaster box becomes an idol.

Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders You have done. The things You planned for us no one can recount to You. 

Psalm 40:5

God has plans. (and He won’t tell.)

His nature is so unpredictable. We never know what is just ahead. But God has plans. (And He won’t tell.) His hand is not seen but His activities are witnessed by those who feel His strong hands on the clay of our lives.

He doesn’t do what we think He should. I’ve been getting rid of a whole lot of pretty bows that once used to hold my life together.  Life is best lived untied. Because that’s life- A holy unloosing like the graveclothes of Lazarus. It remains a fantastic surprise that some will know darkly, yet face to face. But none will see crystal clear until the great unvieling of grace that will happen on a different continuam. It will surprise us all. Even theologians. The prescribed answers to life’s mysteries including escatology, the book of Daniel and blackberry cobbler will all be revealed in perfection and all of us will gaze in wonder that we got it all so wrong.

I see blind Samson

Goliath headless

Martha in the kitchen

and Mary in worship.

That’s life.

The beloved beside him,

The betrayer behind him,

the Baptist before him

and I say,

That’s life.

I see Jabez successful

and Jeremiah broken

Elijah hungry

and King David feasting

and I say that’s life.

let me see what’s today.

let me trust for tomorrow.

let me laugh, let me weep in the same precious moment.

and if I do I will bow down before Him

because He is our Daddy and we are His children.

I don’t understand it, but I’ll trust in the growing

and squeeze every drop from the fruit of the not-knowing.

that’s life.

So your pastor preaches on giving? Thank him!

He’s giving you some important news about one of life’s greatest secrets. A pastor who invites members to tithe invites them into a life-changing, soul-transforming experience that affects every area of their lives. In truth, it’s unfair to you if he’s not teaching you about this principle that’s changed history in ways we’ll never completely know until we get to heaven!

So here’s the short list of reasons you should be giving a tithe (10% of your income) to your local church.

1. It’s worship
   Whether you’re in a church with electric guitars or pipe organs, everybody should have an opportunity to give because from Genesis to Revelation, giving is true worship. Think about what you are doing when you illogically say goodbye to a large slice of your income that you could be using somewhere else, doing something else. You are saying, “Lord, above everything, I believe in You. It all belongs to You! This is a symbol of my complete belief, trust, and dependence on You to be my everything.”
2. It’s a promise.
   Here’s the deal, the Lord says. “If you’ll be faithful in this area of obedience, I promise you that I’ll take care of everything you’re going to need. Trust me in this. You cannot out-give me.”
3. It’s a teacher
   If you want to teach your kids the best way to handle money and to be financially responsible, teach them about the tithe. Tithing has taught me how to avoid the virus of materialism and learn the bliss of generosity.
4. It’s a blessing
   A young adult tried to convince his 86 year old grandfather that he really didn’t need to worry about tithing because he wasn’t really making any money and was living on very little. The grandfather replied, “Why would I want to give up doing the one thing that makes my life have meaning and purpose?” He knew that the once you begin the journey of generosity and tithing Go will carry you through and enrich your life far beyond any money that you hold on to.
5. It’s a provision
   When you tithe, you’re taking care of the facilities of your church, the minster(s) and their families. If your church gives through the Cooperative Program you are a solution to ministries and missions all over the world.
6. It’s a test
   Throughout scripture, God is continually testing those who follow him. Across the pages, we see men and women struggling with a God who dares them to trust Him a little more every day. But there is one area of our lives where God invites us to test Him. It is in this thing called the tithe. He says, “Test me! I dare you! I will come through.”It’s also a test for you as a follower. God knows that money is a strong and effective indicator of the condition of your heart.
7. It’s an investment
   So much of the resources we spend are slippery. They’re spent on things that will be broken, consumed, experienced, expired, and cast aside. The investment of the tithe is sure.
8. It’s eternal
   And the reason it is sure is that it is eternal. None of us will bring our cars, our homes, our 401ks, our boats, our jewels or our food into Heaven, but our tithe is a different story all together. We are investing in a kingdom that is built to last. And last FOREVER. The calculations of compounding interest over 30 years are quite impressive to most people. Can you get your brain around compounded interest over 30,000 years? The lives that are saved, the movements that are started, the resources that are provided are used to do eternal things. There is no greater investment than the investment in eternity!
9. It’s a miracle
   When you open yourself up to giving through the tithe you get a glimpse into the supernatural. Ask the tither if supernatural provision has ever happened in their years of giving, and inevitable the answer is, “Yes.” For some reason, God rewards the tither with a glimpse of the supernatural.
10. It’s tax-deductible
    Sorry, but the accountant in me had to point out this minor little benefit!
11. It’s a faith builder
    It’s true, tithing is an illogical risk, but it strengthens your faith muscles. The more you tithe, the more God shows up, the more you trust, and the more you are willing to do things that are beautifully unsafe. Once you begin to trust your money to God, you’ll find it easier to trust him with everything else in your life.
12. It’s a joy
    The givers are the happiest people on the face of the earth. There’s a certain deep feeling of bliss that comes from giving with no regard for receiving. We realize that it wasn’t ours in the first place and so money takes on a transcendent meaning that can’t be found in wealth accumulation.
13. It’s unifying
    Tithing can unify believers in a church. Tithing believers are believers that say to God and their church family, “I’m all in.” Tithing husbands and wives are saying to each other, “There’s something a whole lot bigger going on in our marriage than just us.”
14. It’s contagious
    Once tithers experience God in giving, we want to share with others about the grace and provision God has provided us. We share the joy of giving and God’s graciousness to us and others are inspired to give.
15. It’s a greed-slayer
    One of the most debilitating characteristics of unhappy people is greed. Like generosity, greed can go viral. And when we feed the greed, it spills over into every area of our lives.
16. It’s biblical
    Last, but not least, we give because it’s a biblical principle and promise. Here are a few excerpts from the tithing narrative that God threaded throughout his Word. Here are just of few of the promises God gives in His Word regarding tithes and offerings.

Bring the full tenth into the storehouse so that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this way,” says the Lord of Hosts. “See if I will not open the floodgates of heaven and pour out a blessing for you without measure.”
Malachi 3:10

The Lord also said to Moses, “Tell the Levites to give to the Lord a tenth of the tithes they receive—a tithe of the tithe, to be presented to the Lord.”
Numbers 18:25 (ESV)

The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
2 Corinthians 9:6-7 (ESV)

Every tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the trees, is the Lord’s; it is holy to the Lord.
Leviticus 27:30 (ESV)

Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the Lord your God that he has given you.
Deuteronomy 16:17 (ESV)

Our culture knows the Lord’s Prayer from movies, locker rooms, hospitals, masses, worship services, funerals, and turbulent flights. It’s a cultural default prayer that we use when we want to pray but we don’t have the words to pray conversationally.

We often forget that the Lord’s Prayer reveals a powerful outline and a radical message about prayer that we tend to forget. Most Christians pray for God to work. But prayer is God working on you.

I pray because I can’t help myself. I pray because I’m helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time- waking and sleeping. It doesn’t change God- it changes me.

C.S. Lewis

That’s what the Lord’s Prayer does. It is intended to help us refocus our priorities around the movement of God.

James, the brother of Jesus, tells us, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” If you want to stop praying wrongly, follow the outline and revolutionary model we call the Lord’s Prayer.

Here are its 8 movements.

Movement 1: “Hallowed be thy name”

God is the focus of our prayer. It changes us because we have perspective. You are not God. His name is set apart from all the other names. In an OMG world we have forgotten how holy God’s name is.

God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.
Exodus 3:14-15

Most live their lives promoting their own name and tribe. The Christ-follower promotes God’s name because she realizes that it is the only name worth promoting.

“Humility is nothing but the disappearance of self in the vision that God is all.”

― Andrew Murray, Humility

Lord may I disappear for Thy glory!

Moment 2: “Thy Kingdom Come”

It’s not “take me to the Kingdom.” It is bring the kingdom to me. So many of our hymns and songs focus on that glad morning sweet by and by when we all get to heaven on some bright and cloudless day when this life is over.

Jesus’ focus in the model prayer is for us to pray for the Kingdom to come to earth, not believers to enter heaven. Everyday our prayer and focus should be, “How could I make this world more like the Kingdom.”

Honestly, many of us forget what the Kingdom is like because we have been so focused on surviving the world and getting to Heaven.

Remember, the Kingdom is love, forgiveness, understanding, mercy, justice, compassion, and peace.

Movement 3: Your will be done.

Jesus invites our prayers to be immersed in absolute surrender to His will. It’s a surrender of your will to His.

“Doing the will of God leaves me no time for disputing about His plans.”

― George MacDonald

Our greatest prayer should be “Thy will be done.” It’s not a cop-out prayer. It’s a transformational prayer, giving God free access to every side ally of you life. We pray for the intention of God.

And beware, lest you be seen on the wrong side of God’s divine intention.

The repentant thief who died with Jesus on Calvary was far more perfect than the holy ones who had Him nailed to the cross.

Thomas Merton

Movement 4: Give us this day our daily bread.

The focus is the present. It’s not on tomorrow’s provision or need. How often have I missed the feast of today while stockpiling fortification for tomorrow.

Movement 5: Forgive us our trespassers as we forgive our trespassers.

Life is all about reconciliation. It’s the true communion of our daily walk. We walk in freedom which ultimately allows us to forgive. Love and forgiveness hold hands throughout eternity. Do we think we can succeed in the journey with bitterness tagging along with us?

“In the evening of life we shall be judged on love.” Madeleine L’Engle

Movement 6: Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.

From the moment we begin our journey, we are enrolled in spiritual rehab. It’s where we live. Jesus leads the program and our quest is deliverance. Everyone you know is in recovery from something. And if they think they are fully recovered they are a recovering Pharisee.

Movement 7:  For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever and ever.

We surrender to Him. It’s His kingdom not ours. It’s His power not ours. It’s His glory, not ours. This is a leveraging of every single shred of accomplishment, notoriety, achievement, account, and glory over to Him. It transfers the ownership of everything from our house, to our head, to our heel to the Kingdom of God.

Movement 8: Amen “So let it be.”

Growing up, I thought “Amen” was Hebrew for “open your eyes. Prayer is over.” Seriously though, Amen is not a cue, a cheer, or a religious way of approving a statement. Amen is dynamic. It  links us to God. It’s a covenant stamp between God and man. It’s saying, everything that I just talked to You about I am willing to live, claim, and represent today.

The Lord’s Prayer is a reminder that

The Journey isn’t about

• Being impressive
• Being happy all the time
• Getting as much stuff as you need in order to feel safe.
• Hanging out with the right crowd.
• Knowing all the right answers.
• Filling out all the check boxes.

It is about being a fully devoted in every aspect of life to the One who gives us everything we need.

Worship changes us. However it begins with letting go. We worship best when we empty ourselves. That’s the mystery of worship. We must find ways to completely abandon our self-importance. It’s a paradigm that is opposite of “show business.” Amazingly we seem to get the two paradigms confused. Worship is mystery. Not agendas, not strategy, and certainly not business. It’s the mighty confession that we are totally at His mercy and covered by His beloved grace. It’s not a celebration of glitz. It is a celebration of brokenness. Worship is a rehearsal for eternity.

A.W. Tozer said it like this:

“No one who knows Him intimately can ever be flippant in His presence.”

We worship a God who changes everything. He apprehends our destiny and forges new trails in our lives. In the midst of our brokenness, like holy putty put in the eyes of a blind man, we are only asked to be still and obedient to the instructions. I often lose the simplicity of transformation. I can’t transform myself any more than I can jump to the moon. It’s surrender to something bigger than me. I must jump in the rocket and hold on. Even though I can’t do it on my own I have to acknowledge that he is changing me constantly. We can either be changed by worship or we refuse to worship and we can be changed by life. When we’re changed by life, it’s rarely for the good. Naomi, Ruth’s mother-in-law, was changed by life.  I read her words in the book of Ruth and I am reminded of people I know who share her experience: “Don’t call me Naomi. Instead, call me Mara, for the Almighty has made life very bitter for me.  I went away full, but the Lord has brought me home empty.” Suffering through the death of her husband and both of her sons, she echoed a deep sense of hopelessness and yet God wasn’t through with Naomi, even though it seemed as if she was through with God.

Worship is a relentless act of engaging God.  We take the focus off of ourselves and cry out to the one who gave us the breath to cry out. As a worship leader I realize that there can be no pretences, no masks, and no bartered exchanges. It must come from deep in our bones or it is nothing. It’s like serving make-believe food or wearing the emperor’s new clothes. It’s shallow, trite, and powerless. It’s lukewarm water and baby food bland. But as painful as it is, when we come broken before Him privately he comes to us in the sanctuary of worship. When I honestly engage Him, He engages me. Remember the night long rough and tumble bout of Jacob fighting God’s ambassador. At the end of the night before the sun rose again, this otherworldly man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered. Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.”

God changes us when we come into His presence. He changed Simon to Peter, Abram to Abraham, and Saul to Paul. Each name changed in a time of clarity and sudden unexpected worship. Every weekend we have the same people coming into our places of worship. Their names are wounded, worried, hopeless, doubting, skeptical, broken, trite, distracted and weary.  As you read their names, I would bet you know their faces! But something happens when we gather together. When God is exalted our names begin to change. We look around and see the faces now hopeful, trusting, peaceful, submissive, humbled and blessed. At least that’s what we pray would happen. And when it does we can say to each other. This is church. This is worship. As you consider how to meet God in worship consider these 10 truths of worship.

1. Worship must begin privately before it is experienced publicly.
2. Worship is your gift to God. If you don’t participate in the worship you attend you are disgracing His presence.
3. Worship requires you to find the experience that allows you to express your love to God authentically.
4. No matter what style or genre of worship you experience, if its boring it’s not of God.
5. Worship is all about change. If you expect things to stay the same in worship you might be experiencing something that is self-defeating.
6. Worship should touch the logical, emotional, and supernatural.
7. Worship must be vernacular. We should not have to enter a past era to experience worship.
8. Worship is personal. Worship is not a voyeuristic form of entertainment where we watch others connect with God but refuse to make it personal.
9. Worship is dangerous. We must approach it with a sense of awe, fear and expectancy.
10. Worship is eternal. Start enjoying Heaven today through worship.

A scripture reading that works well for Christmas or Easter.

Scriptures: Luke 2:6-14; 23:43; Mark 15:12-32; John 19:30

Reader 1: So it was that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.

Reader 2: And Pilate answered them, What shall I do with this man you call King of the Jews? And they cried out, Crucify Him!

Reader 1: And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn.

Reader 2: And they clothed Him in purple and fashioned a crown of thorns about His head.

Reader 1: And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night.

Reader 2: And they smote Him on the head with a reed and did spit upon Him, and bowing knees, worshiped Him.

Reader 1: And the angel said unto them, fear not, for I bring you good tidings of great joy that will be to all people.

Reader 2: And Jesus said unto him, truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.

Reader 1: For unto you is born in the city of David a Savior which is Christ the Lord.

Reader 2: Likewise, the chief priests mocking said among themselves with the scribes, let this Christ King descend from the cross that we may see and believe. When Jesus, therefore, had received the vinegar, He said, It is finished. He bowed His head and He died.

Reader 1: And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of heavenly host praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace . . .

Download the Powerpoint!  14 Ways to Pray

St. Paul urges us to:

Rejoice always!
Pray constantly.
Give thanks in everything,
for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians  5:16-18

Here are 14 prayer modes that allow us to pray always in all circumstances, all postures, and in every emotion of life. 

1. Together Prayers

When they had prayed, the place where they were assembled was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak God’s message with boldness. Acts 4:31

2. Face-down prayers

Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the LORD. 2 Chronicles 20:18

3. Hands lifted prayers

Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground. Nehemiah 8:6

4. Silent Prayers

Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes. Psalm 37:7

5. Closet Prayers

Surely You desire integrity in the inner self, and You teach me wisdom deep within.
Psalm 51:6

6. Walking Prayers

And he said to the people, “Go forward. March around the city and let the armed men pass on before the ark of the LORD.” Joshua 6:7

7. Fasting Prayers

And then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. Luke 2:37

8. Singing Prayers

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God,
Acts 16:25

9. Waking Prayers

Then Eli understood that the Lord was calling the boy. 9 He told Samuel, “Go and lie down. If He calls you, say, ‘Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.’” 1 Samuel 3:9

10. Warring Prayers

The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 2 Corinthians 10:4

11. Enemy Prayers

“You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, Matthew 5:43-44

12. Groaning prayers

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. Romans 8:26

13. Weeping Prayers

Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. (James 4:8–9)

14. Scripture Prayers

The LORD said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.”
Jeremiah 1:12

Download the Powerpoint!  14 Ways to Pray