When it comes to the topic of marriage as a committed relationship, we often use idealistic thinking. “I will get married when I find my idealistic mate”, we tell ourselves. Further, we say, “I will then begin to behave as an idealistic mate.” The problem with this way of thinking is that if and when we meet our “special perfect someone” we have spent no time practicing to reciprocate. Quick tip: if you want to be married, committed, enthralled, enchanted and 100% “for” your future mate, you have to make the commitment to be “for” that person in the here and now. Please act as though you are already married. Be faithful to the wife or husband you do not yet have.
Who Are You For?
Plans Interrupted
There are times in life when we are seeking a new direction. We think we know exactly which way to move forward. We make our plans and dream along those lines. But sometimes God steps in and redirects our course. We start to feel like we are shooting off on a path that is different than what we planned and dreamed. Rene Velarde is LCBC’s newest addition to the Worship Leading staff. He and his wife Jess were looking for an opportunity to be a part of a ministry or church that has an outward focus, but they were thinking it would be closer to there home in Salinas, CA. Through a series of circumstances and decisions, God brought them here to Lancaster. I asked Rene a few questions about “Interruptions”.
1)Did you ever think you would end up being on the other side of the country?
Never. When I got married a year ago, I would’ve never imagined spending my 1 year anniversary on the other side of the country. All Pennsylvania was to me was another state that took me a while to spell. It would never cross my mind. Now I’m here making this my new home.
2)Were you looking for God to interrupt your plans?
I was looking for God to make the plans. I had no plan. My plan was to find a plan. But ironically, God did interrupt my plans. I somehow grew attached to my lifestyle of searching and waiting. It became comfortable & familiar. My comfortable life of searching was interrupted when God brought me to LCBC.
3)How did you know that it was God bringing the interruption?
I had been praying and seeking direction for a long time and nothing was really coming my way. I decided to start fasting and really dig down deep into a life of focusing and pursuing God. I did a three week Daniel fast, which is pretty much living off of fruits, veggies, and legumes. It was during the first week of the fast that LCBC called. What also let me know it was God bringing this interruption was that it was not something my wife or I could have contrived on our own. It was something that was so random and so out of place for us. It took us straight out of comfort and familiarity and right into entirely new territory.
Rene will be leading worship tonight at Saturate Eight. We are excited to welcome him and Jess to LCBC!
TMF
Who You Are Underneath
One of my favorite movies is Christopher Nolan’s version of Batman: Batman Begins. Its so dark and full of gritty scenes – I love it. But there is one line in the film that sort of sums up the whole message of it that is kind of misleading. The line is this, “It’s not who you are underneath, but what you do that really matters.” Now, I understand the underlying concept. If you don’t act, who cares what you are like inside.
Agree.
But there is a deeper idea I’d love all of us to consider. If we are really in touch with who God wants us to be and we let Him shape our inner thoughts and desires, then our actions will flow authentically and genuinely out from a heart that desires to do His will. As we learn to let God “search our heart and know our anxious thoughts”, maybe we can rewrite the line from Batman Begins for our own lives in this way: “What you do matters when it comes from who you are underneath.”
Nothing But The Blood
Here is a new version of the classic hymn “Nothing But The Blood”. I want to introduce this song into our singing times at Saturate|Eight. This version is in the key of C minor. They say that C minor is the most sinister of keys. I love taking a song that celebrates the act of Christ’s death as our path to freedom and pairing it with a musical arrangement that sounds like what Jesus’ closest friends must have felt when he died. Hope you enjoy it!! TMF
Only Yours
I recently wrote a song called Only Yours. As we were preparing for This week’s message for Saturate Eight, I thought it would be fitting to talk a little bit about what it means to me to recognize that I need to give myself completely to God. What does that even look like? I always try to capture two things in a song. the first is the concept – what am I wanting to say? The second is the emotion – how do I feel inside when I think about this idea? I hope the content and the emotion of this tune resonate with you and prepare your mind for what we will be talking about tonite!
Faithful God
As we were preparing for Saturate Eight, we had numerous discussions revolving around the topic of God’s faithfulness. One of the big questions was, “How do you define God’s faithfulness?” I feel that one of the biggest indicators of God’s faithfulness is in our response. We may not think He is there. We may think He has let us down. But those doubts will not deter Him from being faithful. Eventually our understanding of who He is will catch up with His goodness and steadfastness. We realize at some point along the way that our story is a story of God’s grace. At that point we have the opportunity to respond to Him.
In the process of thinking thru these things, my response was to write a song. It’s not recorded yet, but I thought I would include the lyrics in the post. Maybe we’ll sing it one night. TMF
Faithful God
2011 Michael Ferrari
Forever faithful
Forever true
Forever making me like you
Forever loving
Always near
Ever-present in times of fear
Though I may doubt, fail to believe
I’ll sing it out to thee
Faithful God
Faithful one
Faithful Father, Spirit, Son
When I’m strong when I’m weak
When I’m proud when I’m meek
You are faithful even when I’m not
Faithful God
Songs With Heart
As worship leaders we are charged with one responsibility: Help Them Sing. No matter what, the most important thing is to create an atmosphere of permission and ability. One of the most fundamental ways to make that happen is to pick the right songs. My experience has been that the songs that people sing the loudest are the ones that have “it”. “It” could be authenticity, truth or soul. I think “it” rarely has to do with melody or tempo. While those are important and play a huge role in “singability”, they are not the primary concern for me as a worship leader. The biggest thing that a song needs to have is something intangible and even a little subjective. Heart. The song has to have heart. It needs to stir up the deepest part of a person’s soul when they hear the words and the notes. Right now, I want to introduce a song that I feel is one of these “songs with heart”. It’s called Be Lifted High from the Bethel Worship album of the same name. Give it a listen and see what you think!
The Slippery Slope Into Fall
It’s that time of year again. Summer’s almost over. Vacations are done. It’s all “nose to the grindstone” as our career/school semester/holiday seasons start to heat up. It’s easy to think that in seasons of relaxation we can let our disciplines fall by the wayside because when things get hectic, we’ll follow a strict regimen of healthy diet, balanced relationships and consistent prayer.
But here is a simple warning, the busier we are the less time we feel that we have.
When we start running around, trying to keep up the pace of life, it’s easy to forget to stop and say a prayer of thanks. It’s easy to forget to take a long enough pause to read some scripture. It’s all to simple to begin riding the slippery slope into unconnectedness – with God, Accountability, support of friends and family, etc. Let’s not become victims of our own short-sightedness. Take time to breath, pray, sing, rest, work and play. Everything in balance. Focus on God. In the next season, don’t fall away from a steady pace and a reliance upon Him.
Communion: Symbolism Over Substance?
This weekend at all of the LCBC campuses, we will participate in an age-old ritual called communion. For folks who grew up in a liturgically rich church environment, communion is a familiar practice. But for many, this special event can seem a bit confusing and even intimidating. Communion is a symbolic gesture by which we remember Christ’s words, “Do this in remembrance of me.” For those who are Christ-followers, Communion is an opportunity to reflect upon the miracle of Jesus’ death on a cross where he stood in the place of all humanity and took the punishment that was required by God’s law. We were the rightful recipients of retribution for our state of digression, compounded over centuries of selfish and blind choices. We were separated from our creator. But then God’s son, Jesus, came along and became the sacrifice of blood to forever cover our wrongdoing. Before He was taken away to His execution, He had a meal with His closest followers. At this time He took bread and wine and shared it with them and they ate and drank in honor of the terribly gruesome fate He was about to suffer. Today, we remember Jesus’ willingness to suffer for our sake by eating and drinking during a gathering together as His followers. If you are a follower of Jesus, I hope you can be around LCBC this weekend as we remember together. Communion is just a symbol. But it is a symbol of something much greater than we can describe.
One Sure Step
Here is a pattern displayed across all ranges of demography: We love options. We hate making choices. We want to feel like the path of our situation is unbridled and we can chose our way to a future of infinite possibility. Problem: That doesn’t happen.
This is a common theme in the exploratory and theoretical life of the 20something. Unfortunately, we are all told thru grade school that the world is our oyster, that we can grow up to be the next Michael Jordan (he was a really good basketball player), or the next President of the country. The reason this is unfortunate is because 99% of us spend our twenties realizing that (gulp) we have limitations. What? The world is NOT my oyster? I don’t even know what that means, but I’m disappointed. For many, their twenties are just a string of ill-advised choices that lead to a haphazard life. But for others, they come to a realization. All of this muddling around to try and figure out what you’re good at, it’s a gift.
Yes, our twenties are a gift to us. A decade in which we can spend all the time we need getting our heads out of the clouds and learning to put our nose to the grindstone, as they say. We will not use this time to stop dreaming dreams, but to start dreaming realities. Time to recognize our unique skill sets and find a unique way to apply them and solve a unique problem. I truly feel and have seen evident in the lives of successful livers that forward motion is not dependant upon knowing what the future should look like, then taking action. No way. The best way to find success for life beyond our twenties lies in a folksy saying from way back: “Do what you can with what you have where you are”. The only sure step is the one right in front of you. Take it. Then you’ll see the next one.
(Image by: betta design)