i’m singing

kari’s jobe’s first single is now available on itunes!  co-written by kari with ed cash and chris tomlin, “i’m singing” is the beautiful first taste of her debut solo release which will hit on february 10.   pick it up today!

hook hands

one of my favorite blogs, stuff christians like, has a post today about “the top 10 hand-raising worship styles.”  they list out and name the top styles or approaches people typically take to raising their hands in church.  it’s really good stuff.  if you, like me, have spent most of or all your life around one of the brands of christianity who are particularly prone to hand-raising during worship, prayer or randomly at any other time of the service when you feel like you want to… you might really get a kick out of it.

what made it even funnier for me is that I actually had an experience yesterday that cause me to think about this exact same thing.

i was in dallas for the weekend and was able to go to church at gateway, where i attended when i lived there.  it felt really good to be there with good friends.  during the worship set, the praise team was leading “healer” (amazing song. if you haven’t heard it yet, you soon will). it’s a powerful song of faith, hope and confession.

during the big “i believe you’re my healer, i believe you are all I need” chorus, about 75% of the hands in the place went up, including mine. it was real, and i was passionately engaging God at that very moment.  so much so that i didn’t open my eyes and take down my hands until somewhere in the middle of the next verse. when this happened, I suddenly became aware that I seemed to be the only one with my hands still raised. until, that is, the next chorus came. then, UP they all go again.

i’m not sure that it is a “style” as much as it is a phenomenon… but i call it “hook hands”, because while the verses are nice, they are apparently just too wordy and it takes too much energy to focus on singing all those words… but nothing can get the hand raisers to unite like a good, solid hook!  it’s a corporate statement that seems to say, “yeah, we all agree with that“…”shout to the lord”, “forever”, “blessed be your name”… you name it. =)

people are funny, man!  what styles are popular in your church?

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recognizing God in the battle

// becoming… victorious \\

i want to share some thoughts and points from a message I heard about 2 years ago about “recognizing God in the battle”. it was relevant then… it is relevant now… and maybe this is not just for me…

it is important to realize the spiritual dynamic to “winning” and recognize and discern God in the middle of my situation. God does not always show up the same way or in the same form, so i can’t be so dedicated to a past experience that i miss
him altogether as i face new situations and seasons. we have to be careful that we don’t allow our past perspectives to shape our present situations.

in exodus 17:8-12, joshua was leading the battle against the amalekites in the valley, and while he was fighting, moses was on the mountain. as long as moses’ hands were raised, joshua would prevail, and when he dropped his hands, the enemy would prevail against joshua. today, we know this because we have the benefit of the perspective from the mountain. but joshua wasn’t on the mountain and didn’t know this. he was fighting in his strength and did not realize that that shift of the battle was because of moses on the mountain.

it is vital to realize that the things that we are up against are not about us. it’s not about me getting the victory. this is not me using God to get my victory, but rather it is God using me to get his victory. when we fully grasp this, we can operate from a position of strength and not one of strain. we spend so much time, energy and resources trying to do things in our own strength, trying to fight our battle. 2 chronicles 20:15 tells us that the battle is not ours, but it belongs to the Lord. so, why do we get so wrapped up in trying to fight our battle? the enemy is his. the battle is his. the victory is his. the enemies of God will attack us and try to cause us to believe that it is our fight, thus producing a self-reliant stance where we don’t turn to God and trust him to conquer the enemy.

when joshua encountered the Lord as he was preparing for his battle with Jericho (joshua 5:13-15), he didn’t know it was the Lord. when he realized it, he fell down and worshipped. what separates mediocrity from greatness is the ability to see holy ground on the battlefiled. can I actually start seeing the battle as an opportunity for a fresh encounter with God. can I see my situation as a sanctuary? can i drop to my knees and worship with the arrows flying just above my head? there’s a visual for you.

right when joshua recognized God in his battle situation, he turned it into a sanctuary by worshipping. once he did that, joshua 6 shows how God then gave him the strategy to overtake jericho. it’s very easy to see our situation as our battle, and develop our own strategy, things that we can do in our own strength and understanding. but seeing the battle as God’s frees me to receive his strategy for his victory.

selah

the weight of glory

// becoming… less = capacity as he is becoming… more \\

i am currently in south africa for my job with israel & new breed. i want to keep this short but want to say something about what i am experiencing.

last night we were in east london and tonight we are in durban. both nights, the presence of God has been so overwhelming and incredibly real… so not contrived or manipulated. it’s amazing how God will rush to inhabit worship void of hidden motives.

when 1200 beautiful people from durban pack to overflow capacity into a small church building that is easily over 100 degrees inside (with no a/c) and raise their voices in unison declaring “You are Alpha and Omega, we worship you our Lord, You are worthy to be praised”… are you kidding me?!?!? God can’t help but rush into the center of that!

we are encountering such a phenomenal and tangible weight of glory here. there is a passion and genuine hunger here like I have rarely seen.

i have alot of thoughts, but couldn’t help but think tonight that a lot of what is passed off as “the gospel” in the u.s. is a bunch of mess. if you can’t go anywhere in the world, preach your “gospel” and it be relevant to that culture, then you are preaching “another gospel”.

these people love Jesus because he has ransomed them and redeemed them from the law of sin and death… and they don’t care if they ever get a mercedes.

the presence of God here is ruining me…

i will never be the same….

God is seeking broken champions…