Just wanted to let everyone know that The Worship Project now has a channel on YouTube. I posted a few videos from last months Worship Night. The video quality is not great, but the audio is not bad.
We will be posting new videos from time to time.
http://www.youtube.com/user/worshipprojectmusic
-J
Monday, April 26, 2010
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Truth and Ink
So I am going today to get a new tattoo. Through this process I always think, "ok this thing is going to be on me forever, I want to make sure it says something to ME, before it speaks to someone else." And that it speaks to my life as it continues to develop.
As i have been contemplating what I would like to have done I began thinking about how this process should apply to life.
Some of the dumbest things I have ever done or said came out of such heartfelt conviction at that moment. It would seem that what was "truth" at that moment caused me to act in a way that defended said convictions .
It is strange how in just a few short years as we develop and learn more "that specific truth" doesn't look as "holy" or compelling as it once did. I once thought, for example, that certain genres of music would send you to hell. I was thoroughly convinced of this, and felt I had God's approval to believe so.
I am not implying that we should live in a gray area of complacence or indecision. I am simply asking if your current belief was a tattoo would you be as quick to put it on for all to see forever? I think that some of the most damaging things I have ever seen have come out of strong religious or moral fervor.
Ultimately truth is as sharp as a two edged sword, but we are those entrusted to wield the sword. We must always be cautious that the truth we are carrying is correctly dividing soul and spirit.
I never want to be someone who looks back at my impact in someone's life and sees it as an old tattoo that I don't even recognize.
J
As i have been contemplating what I would like to have done I began thinking about how this process should apply to life.
Some of the dumbest things I have ever done or said came out of such heartfelt conviction at that moment. It would seem that what was "truth" at that moment caused me to act in a way that defended said convictions .
It is strange how in just a few short years as we develop and learn more "that specific truth" doesn't look as "holy" or compelling as it once did. I once thought, for example, that certain genres of music would send you to hell. I was thoroughly convinced of this, and felt I had God's approval to believe so.
I am not implying that we should live in a gray area of complacence or indecision. I am simply asking if your current belief was a tattoo would you be as quick to put it on for all to see forever? I think that some of the most damaging things I have ever seen have come out of strong religious or moral fervor.
Ultimately truth is as sharp as a two edged sword, but we are those entrusted to wield the sword. We must always be cautious that the truth we are carrying is correctly dividing soul and spirit.
I never want to be someone who looks back at my impact in someone's life and sees it as an old tattoo that I don't even recognize.
J
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Darkness and Light
I have been thinking allot lately about the power of darkness and light. It would seem that we have been programmed to think that darkness, and anything regarding darkness, is evil or bad. This is a very curious thing. While i do recognize the scriptural precedence for evil works and darkness I do think we might need to refocus.
As I have considered light and how it is established throughout creation i feel that darkness might not be the absence of light, but rather an appeal for light to come.
If you consider the first instance that light and darkness are found in the Bible you find a world that has been touched by the rebellion of the enemy and those that followed him in the fall. The scriptures state that the result of the world, or creation, when confronted or faced by iniquity was darkness. The spirit then moved upon the face of the waters and subsequently darkness was separated and light was reintroduced.
1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. 3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. Gen 1:1-5
The Bible mentions again in the Gospels that in the beginning, dealing with creation, that light was there but darkness could not comprehend it. (John 1)
I think that creation itself has been touched by darkness as a result of iniquity. As a result darkness comes as an appeal for light to be known.
How can we expect to know where to shine unless darkness is the current state. A candle in a lightened room does no good, but a candle in a dark room makes the whole room illuminated.
I think that the Lord is telling us that if we expect to shine as light we need to stop trying to shine a flashlight in the daytime.
Process is just as important as content. The Bible says that when we receive new wine we must recognize the importance of new methods wherewith to house and steward the wine. New wineskins are vital.
It is time to do things like we have never done them and see results like we have never seen. It is time to see places that have been dark for decades, waiting for light to come, being illuminated with the light of the Lord.
Let's go shine.
-J
As I have considered light and how it is established throughout creation i feel that darkness might not be the absence of light, but rather an appeal for light to come.
If you consider the first instance that light and darkness are found in the Bible you find a world that has been touched by the rebellion of the enemy and those that followed him in the fall. The scriptures state that the result of the world, or creation, when confronted or faced by iniquity was darkness. The spirit then moved upon the face of the waters and subsequently darkness was separated and light was reintroduced.
1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. 3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. Gen 1:1-5
The Bible mentions again in the Gospels that in the beginning, dealing with creation, that light was there but darkness could not comprehend it. (John 1)
I think that creation itself has been touched by darkness as a result of iniquity. As a result darkness comes as an appeal for light to be known.
How can we expect to know where to shine unless darkness is the current state. A candle in a lightened room does no good, but a candle in a dark room makes the whole room illuminated.
I think that the Lord is telling us that if we expect to shine as light we need to stop trying to shine a flashlight in the daytime.
Process is just as important as content. The Bible says that when we receive new wine we must recognize the importance of new methods wherewith to house and steward the wine. New wineskins are vital.
It is time to do things like we have never done them and see results like we have never seen. It is time to see places that have been dark for decades, waiting for light to come, being illuminated with the light of the Lord.
Let's go shine.
-J
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Something To Say
/This is a re-post from a previous blog that I had./
I once heard someone say that the ultimate measure of a song comes down to one thing; does it move someone?
I continually find this to be true. If a song does not stir me then how can I expect it to stir anyone else. With that said, how can I expect it to stir the Lord?
There is an old saying, that while crass, rings true even now. "Poop or get off the pot". The idea is that you can write lyrics all day long. You can write cord progressions that flow beautifully, but neither of these mean that a song is found within them.
Don't try to sing when you don't have anything to say. Make absolutely sure that each song contains a part of yourself. If your heart is the thing that God wants in worship, then make sure that your heart is given each time you offer a song. In that sacrifice of yourself you offering will be a sweet smelling savor before the Lord.
- Joel
I once heard someone say that the ultimate measure of a song comes down to one thing; does it move someone?
I continually find this to be true. If a song does not stir me then how can I expect it to stir anyone else. With that said, how can I expect it to stir the Lord?
There is an old saying, that while crass, rings true even now. "Poop or get off the pot". The idea is that you can write lyrics all day long. You can write cord progressions that flow beautifully, but neither of these mean that a song is found within them.
Don't try to sing when you don't have anything to say. Make absolutely sure that each song contains a part of yourself. If your heart is the thing that God wants in worship, then make sure that your heart is given each time you offer a song. In that sacrifice of yourself you offering will be a sweet smelling savor before the Lord.
- Joel
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
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