JESUS AND...

This past Sunday at church we were challenged to confront ourselves concerning the idols we worship. I think that's one of my favorite subjects in church services; not because I like to judge people for their idolatry (God knows my idolatry all too well!), but because it reminds me what holds - and should hold - the utmost importance in my life.

Right around Christmas I saw this video on Twitter. It may be offensive to some (perhaps to many) but it encompasses the message that we serve idols ... often more than we serve God.

**DISCLAIMER** The following video has some language that may not be suitable for young ears. If such language is offensive to you or your young readers/listeners, please refrain from watching the clip.



The idol of stuff is a great big idol in the U.S. When we really get real about what we worship (especially those of us who claim Christ) it quickly becomes a severe case of "Jesus and..."

We're commanded to love God with everything we have - our heart, soul, mind, and strength - and to love people in the same way we love ourselves. (Luke 10:27) Also we are told that through God's riches we would have our every need supplied; we were never promised to have our greed supplied. (Phil. 4:19)

So what's the deal? Why are we so wrapped up in this idol we call "Stuff"? It's not going to love us unconditionally. It won't always be there for us. It won't last forever. (Matt. 6:19-21)

Jesus will. (Matt. 28:20b)

Will you choose to worship Jesus and Stuff, or just Jesus?

Peace, Love, and Jesus

TEN TOP TENS FOR 2010: part 5

Since it's Sunday I thought it would be appropriate to share my top ten worship songs for this year. All of these songs have helped me get through various situations over the course of the year, whether good or bad. I hope there's a song on this list that speaks to you in a very real way:

10. Glory And Honor - Acappella
9. Trading My Sorrows - Darrell Evans
8. Blessed Be Your Name - Matt Redman
7. Healer - Hillsong
6. Our God Is Greater - Chris Tomlin
5. Majesty (Here I Am) - Martin Smith; Stuart Garrard
4. God Holds The Future In His Hands - James Rowe; James Vaughan
3. Firm Foundation - Jamie Harvill; Nancy Gordon
2. All I Need Is You - Hillsong
1. Rejoice - Anthony Evans

Name some of your favorite worship songs.

Peace, Love, and Worship

THIS MIGHT HURT...

I have been thinking about idolatry quite a bit lately and I'm noticing more and more what an idolater I am. I pray that God will help me overcome my idols and worship only Him. Check out this clip. You'll understand what I'm talking about.



Whom/what are you worshipping?

Peace, Love, and Dark Chocolate

FAITH LIKE A CHILD

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PERFECT TIME

Quick update on Debbie: She is now in her own room and wants to go home. There is the possibility of her spending about a week in nearby Jim Thorpe Rehab Center to get some of her motor skills working a bit better before she heads home, but the fact of the matter is that she is making unbelievable progress! We praise God for his might, compassion, and faithfulness!!

It's Sunday morning as I type this. A perfect time to worship. Then again, it's always a perfect time to worship!



What are you thankful for today?

Peace, Love, and Dark Chocolate

ONE DAY WITH JESUS

Spending one day, just one day with Jesus, is better than spending thousands without him. Don't believe me? Then I dare you to try it. Simply allow the joy of Jesus to overwhelm you for just one day. You'll be eternally glad you did!


Are you ready to spend just one day with Jesus?

Peace, Love, and Dark Chocolate

HE IS THE CHRIST, THE SAVIOR, THE MESSIAH

Peace, Love, and Dark Chocolate

KAIROS: OKC

Something new is happening in Oklahoma City. By the grace of God the Aca-fam has set out on a new adventure that is exciting, to say the least. We have planted a new church! When we lived in Nashville several of us went to a worship service on Tuesday nights called Kairos (in Greek: "a unique moment in time"). At Kairos we were led in worship by a great team including Michael Boggs (Tulsa native and member of FFH), Melissa Greene, Anthony Evans, and many more. Our hearts and minds were taught the word of God by Mike Glenn. It was a great time!

When we moved to OKC, we missed Kairos. We tried different churches, and we liked them, but we didn't quite feel at home with any of them. We felt at home at Kairos. Zac and Lacey George, along with Steph and I, had been talking about starting Kairos here once we got settled in, but couldn't find a good time to do it. Then it occurred to us: "Since we don't have a church home, and we often travel on weekends, why don't we just do it Sunday mornings when we're in town?!" We settled on the "scriptural" time of 10:00 AM and Kairos: OKC was born!

Since most of us have a Church of Christ background, and we are affiliated with Oklahoma Christian University, a school associated with Churches of Christ, we do our services with a slight Church of Christ feel. We break bread together every time we meet, we (usually) sing a cappella, we read scripture and hear the word of God, we encourage one another. We don't call ourselves "Kairos Church of Christ" or any other denominational name. We are simply Kairos: OKC, a church that loves God, loves people, loves Oklahoma City, and is eager to serve however we can.

We started with ten people. Maybe we'll grow, maybe we won't. Either way, the name of the Lord of lords and King of kings will be praised here! We would love to outgrow our little Community Center. If you're in OKC on a Sunday morning around 10:00 in the morning and need somewhere to worship, swing by OC. We'd love to worship with you!

Peace, Love, and Dark Chocolate

ENOUGH

Are you content? Do you have all you need? What else do you want?


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I'M ALIVE!

Peace, Love, and Dark Chocolate

Who Would Have Thought...

...that a Lamb could rescue the souls of men?


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Amazing Love!

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.
We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.

Romans 5:1-11 New Living Translation



Peace, Love, and Dark Chocolate

One Million Strong and Growing

You, too, can release a child from poverty in Jesus' name.
Sponsor a child through Compassion International today.

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Pure Joy

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Praise Time!

"This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."
- Psalm 118:24 (NIV)


...and how 'bout them 'Canes?!

Peace, Love, and Chocolate

Come On, Get Happy!

First off, let me say thanks to all four of you who have been reading my blog! It really does mean a lot to me. Let me know what you think from time to time.

I appreciate the comments I've received lately regarding singing. Like I said before, I'm still trying to learn the truth about the Bible and all it has to teach us.

One thing I have noticed lately is the way many churches sang for a long time (and a lot of them still do). Even though there will probably always be the debate on instrumental/non-instrumental music in worship services, let us not forget that we have been encouraged to sing to God with our hearts with thanksgiving like we mean it (Eph 5:19-20). If we are rejoicing for being blessed the way we have, we should sing as such in worship. It's probably not the best idea to sing like this:


I'm just sayin'...

Peace, Love, and Chocolate

The Difference Is...

Before I begin answering my previous question, I want to say happy birthday to Bruce Springsteen and the late, great Ray Charles. Thanks for the great music!!

Now, on with the festivities.

The question: "What is the difference between psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs?
As a follow-up question, why does Paul make the distinction in both of these verses?"

In order to give my answer, I needed to find the origins of the words. This is what I came up with.

Word Origin & History

psalm

O.E. salm, from L. psalmus, from Gk. psalmos "song sung to a harp," originally "performance on stringed instrument," from psallein "play on a stringed instrument, pull, twitch." Used in Septuagint for Heb. mizmor "song," especially the sort sung by David to the harp.

hymn

c.1000, from O.Fr. ymne and O.E. ymen, both from L. hymnus "song of praise," from Gk. hymnos "song or ode in praise of gods or heroes," used in Septuagint for various Heb. words meaning "song praising God." Possibly a var. of hymenaios "wedding song," from Hymen, Gk. god of marriage (see hymen). Evidence for the silent -n- dates from at least 1530.

spiritual (adj.)

"of or concerning the spirit" (especially in religious aspects), 1303, from O.Fr. spirituel (12c.), from L. spiritualis, from spiritus "of breathing, of the spirit" (see spirit). Meaning "of or concerning the church" is attested from 1338. The noun sense of "African-American religious song" first recorded 1866. Spirituality (1417) is from M.Fr. spiritualite, from L.L. spiritualitatem (nom. spiritualitas), from L. spiritualis). An earlier form was spiritualty (1377).

song

O.E. sang "art of singing, a metrical composition adapted for singing," from P.Gmc. *sangwaz (cf. O.N. söngr, Norw. song, Swed. sång, O.S., Dan., O.Fris., O.H.G., Ger. sang, M.Du. sanc, Du. zang, Goth. saggws), related to sing (q.v.). Songbook is O.E. sangboc; song-bird is from 1774; songster is O.E. sangystre. Phrase for a song is from "All's Well" III.ii.9. With a song in (one's) heart "feeling of joy" is first attested 1930 in Lorenz Hart's lyric. Song and dance as a form of vaudeville act is attested from 1872; fig. sense of "rigmarole" is from 1895.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper

What I'm noticing here is that there are distinct differences between our three terms. In the original Greek, psalmos is used in reference to a song with harp accompaniment. The Greek word hymnos refers to a song used to praise God. Spiritual song was a little more complicated since it's two separate words. As I understand it, the word spiritual is used with the intention of something originating in the spirit (or given by the Holy Spirit to the human spirit). And, of course, a song in this case means music produced by the voice.

Interesting? I think so.

When Paul was writing his letters, there was no "New Testament" as we know it. The Bible Paul read was what we know as the "Old Testament" and he says twice that we should sing psalms (songs sung to a harp), hymns (songs of praise to God), and spiritual songs (songs produced from the depths of our spirits given by the Holy Spirit).

In the comments on my last post (and thanks a ton for commenting!), Shane wrote: "Here's my first lean: I see Paul encouraging and appreciating some diversity in our singing by choosing those words."

And Brenda wrote: "I believe a psalm to be a song. (instrumental or not) There are also hymns in the book of Psalms. But, in my opinion, the Psalms read more like a personal account or testimony of some sorts as to where the hymns seem to be songs written about the history of things. I think that spiritual songs are ones that are given to us by the spirit that are put on our hearts and tongues."

I think both of them are on to something here. It certainly seems that Paul is not only encouraging diversity in worshipping God, but possibly commanding it. If Gabby were to draw Steph and me a picture, we would love it. If she were to draw the exact same picture for us over and over and over again, after a while we would encourage her to draw something else for us. Something fresh. She would probably have no problem thinking of something else to draw, especially if we gave her ideas. That's the same thought process in this matter. When we worship God, I'm sure he loves us pouring our hearts out to him, but he gave us so much more creativity so that we could think "outside the box" and find new ways to worship him. That's why Psalm 40 says that God "put a new song in my mouth." He created us to be creative worshippers.

Psalms, hymns, spiritual songs. Three separate-but-equal ways to worship God. So, could that be considered as a "commandment" to worship with instruments?

Your thoughts?

Peace, Love, and Chocolate

Great Advice

"Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble.”- 1 Peter 3:8

Peace, Love, and Chocolate

Soon And Very Soon

Hey Kids! I just wanted to take a minute to apologize for not having written lately. We are in the process of moving and I simply haven't had the time to even think about writing, much less actually writing. So, until I get settled in and refocused, I'll leave you with this little gem.



Peace, Love, and Chocolate

Here I Am

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