By Phil Laeger
As I write this, I’m listening to the near final mix of our live worship recording that took place in November of last year. I can’t wait to release the album and DVD. This project is—for me anyway—the culmination of the hopes and dreams and prayers and tears and frustrations and vexations and sweat and optimism and roadblocks and open doors of the past 10 years. Wow. Maybe I need to unpack that run-on sentence a little…
I have been so privileged to be part of music ministry in The Salvation Army over the past nearly 15 years. It has been a great journey and the groups I have played in and led have been given incredible leeway in a lot of ways. We’ve led worship at youth councils and conferences, camps, retreats, etc, etc. Some of those times have been life transforming for me. We have seen people give their life to Christ, people broken free of addiction, people transformed in a very real way by the power of God in worship. It has been humbling to be used by God in that way. We have had extended times of energetic praise and extended times of reverent and precious worship, dripping with the presence of God.
Read the rest of the article at: http://www.phillaeger.com/hope-glory-challenging-worship-perceptions-and-practices-in-salvation-army-gatherings/
Showing posts with label bible. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bible. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Being Real is a Big Deal (Part 2)
by Major Warren Dabis
Praise and Worship has always been about God and to God! What are the obstacles you are placing in front of yourself and your team as you worship God? Is it hidden sin that leads to hypocrisy as you sing or play? Is it an ego that places you above others and God as you sing or play? Is it an attitude that tells your peers, “I’m up here and you’re not” or something worse? Is it that you have an unresolved conflict with a peer that prevents them from accepting your leadership in worship? Is it that you want everyone to see you wear the latest fashions rather than seeing Christ in you? And on and on…
Let us be as David in Psalm 51: 10 – 13: “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. 11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
The progression here is a pure heart, the renewal of a steadfast spirit, a purposeful relationship with God, accomplished through an intimate, personal experience with the Holy Spirit. Consequently, this results in a joyful restoration of the state of salvation and a willing spirit to continue that state!
13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you.”
Then, this progression is expressed in who we are (authenticity) to those in our sphere of influence!
Being “real” is a ‘big” deal!
Praise and Worship has always been about God and to God! What are the obstacles you are placing in front of yourself and your team as you worship God? Is it hidden sin that leads to hypocrisy as you sing or play? Is it an ego that places you above others and God as you sing or play? Is it an attitude that tells your peers, “I’m up here and you’re not” or something worse? Is it that you have an unresolved conflict with a peer that prevents them from accepting your leadership in worship? Is it that you want everyone to see you wear the latest fashions rather than seeing Christ in you? And on and on…
Let us be as David in Psalm 51: 10 – 13: “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. 11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
The progression here is a pure heart, the renewal of a steadfast spirit, a purposeful relationship with God, accomplished through an intimate, personal experience with the Holy Spirit. Consequently, this results in a joyful restoration of the state of salvation and a willing spirit to continue that state!
13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you.”
Then, this progression is expressed in who we are (authenticity) to those in our sphere of influence!
Being “real” is a ‘big” deal!
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Being Real is a Big Deal (Part 1)
by Major Warren Dabis
I recently commented on a posting in this blog of a young lady in our Praise and Worship team that came to me to ask to not sing on a particular Sunday morning saying she was not right with the Lord. I had shared this with a group of WMI students and one young man quipped, “What’s the big deal? She was your lead soprano and you needed her! What is Praise and Worship without a lead singer to sing the melody for the congregation?” Good questions and I needed to clarify this before he went back to his Corps team!
Being real or authentic in our Praise and Worship is a big deal! Bigger than our “tight” vocals or instrumentalists, “big” sound, “best” equipment” and “great” lead vocalist! Ooops, and maybe “right on” worship leader! Being authentic is essential to Praise and Worship whether we stand behind our instruments or microphones because we stand before a holy and jealous God in leading people in worship of Him! Someone has said to me, “Be careful what you say (or sing) in His presence!” Our recovering friends say it even better, “You gotta walk the walk as well as talk the talk!” And I say, “You cannot give away what you do not have!”
Authenticity is being who you are! And if we are leading people in worship of God, we had best be “His own!” I want to get into this in another article about being transparent 24/7, but in a nutshell we as worship musicians and leaders need to know and experience intimately the One we are praising and worshipping! Anne Ortland, in her book, Up with Worship: A Call to Quit Playing Church, calls us “Upfronters.” This does mean that we lead from upfront! However, I believe we lead and praise and worship God from the “inside out.” What we do behind the mics and our instruments, must be an indication of what is taking place “inside” of us!
Click here to read Part 2
I recently commented on a posting in this blog of a young lady in our Praise and Worship team that came to me to ask to not sing on a particular Sunday morning saying she was not right with the Lord. I had shared this with a group of WMI students and one young man quipped, “What’s the big deal? She was your lead soprano and you needed her! What is Praise and Worship without a lead singer to sing the melody for the congregation?” Good questions and I needed to clarify this before he went back to his Corps team!
Being real or authentic in our Praise and Worship is a big deal! Bigger than our “tight” vocals or instrumentalists, “big” sound, “best” equipment” and “great” lead vocalist! Ooops, and maybe “right on” worship leader! Being authentic is essential to Praise and Worship whether we stand behind our instruments or microphones because we stand before a holy and jealous God in leading people in worship of Him! Someone has said to me, “Be careful what you say (or sing) in His presence!” Our recovering friends say it even better, “You gotta walk the walk as well as talk the talk!” And I say, “You cannot give away what you do not have!”
Authenticity is being who you are! And if we are leading people in worship of God, we had best be “His own!” I want to get into this in another article about being transparent 24/7, but in a nutshell we as worship musicians and leaders need to know and experience intimately the One we are praising and worshipping! Anne Ortland, in her book, Up with Worship: A Call to Quit Playing Church, calls us “Upfronters.” This does mean that we lead from upfront! However, I believe we lead and praise and worship God from the “inside out.” What we do behind the mics and our instruments, must be an indication of what is taking place “inside” of us!
Click here to read Part 2
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Monday, May 3, 2010
The Praise and Worship in Praise and Worship
written by Major Warren Dabis
As a worship leader for over 30 years, I have had the privilege in leading worship teams in Corps, Divisional, Territorial and International venues. I have also taught workshops and seminars at these levels and have answered many questions about Praise and Worship. The most intriguing to me came from a young lady, a very diligent student of worship and the worship leader at her Corps. She asked me, “Where is the Praise and Worship in Praise and Worship?” After a moment of pause, I exclaimed, “Excellent question!” and answered: “Praise and Worship is STILL in Praise and Worship!” Let me explain my answer to her as well as to you!
As a worship leader for over 30 years, I have had the privilege in leading worship teams in Corps, Divisional, Territorial and International venues. I have also taught workshops and seminars at these levels and have answered many questions about Praise and Worship. The most intriguing to me came from a young lady, a very diligent student of worship and the worship leader at her Corps. She asked me, “Where is the Praise and Worship in Praise and Worship?” After a moment of pause, I exclaimed, “Excellent question!” and answered: “Praise and Worship is STILL in Praise and Worship!” Let me explain my answer to her as well as to you!
Praise and Worship is still a vital aspect of this tradition, however, the main question is: WHO are we praising and WHO are we worshipping? Praise and Worship teams should be leading their congregations in the worship of God. However, much too often, these teams are praising and worshipping themselves!This can be characterized by listening after the service to the congregation: “Wow! The music was fantastic and really made me feel good!” “The guitar riff in the second song was outta this world.” “Where in the world did you find your drummer? Incredible rhythm!” If this is happening in your Corps, it is a tell-tale sign that you may be leading your congregation in praising and worshipping you and your team and not God! And of course, this is idolatry!
As Christians, we sometimes are like the people of the Old Testament in 2 Kings 17:33: “They worshiped the LORD, but they also served their own gods in accordance with the customs of the nations from which they had been brought.” We do all the right things on Sunday-we sing and play, lift our hands and look the part. However, we actually praise and worship idols - ourselves and anything that makes us look and be the part even more and more!
Many of us think idols are graven, carved or man-made images of some long-lost and forgotten so-called deity that we would never, ever worship! But what about name brand and designer clothing? The best guitars, musical or audio/visual equipment? And what of material goods; property, wealth, cars, houses. Exodus 34:14 reminds us: “Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.”
You may be asking yourself: “How could I possibly be worshipping idols when I devote myself to Praise and Worship every Sunday and at practices?” Yes, you may not be worshipping graven idols. America’s idols are a bit more subtle, which I believe makes them a bit more dangerous! Stop listening to people giving you the glory that truly belongs to God! Tell them to give God the glory! Then live lives worthy of being used to bring glory to God through your talents and abilities as Christian musicians!
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Traits
What are some important characteristics of worshippers (in this instance I mean singers, musicians, worship leaders etc.)? A popular quote comes to mind. "always preach the gospel and if necessary use words." It's no different in worship. If we are going to step up and sing/play an instrument/lead worship in a congregation, we must demonstrate worship in our lives and be an example of it, just as Jesus said he "set an example" of being servants in John 13:15.
I thought about it for a bit this morning and found this verse in my Bible: "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity" (1 Timothy 4:12)
Be an Example in Speech:
We need to be wise about what comes out of our mouths. If you lead worship, make sure you are biblically prepared and that you have prayed so that you are sure that what you are going to say is correct and comes from God. Secondly ALL OF US need to make sure our daily conversations reflect the message of the songs we sing in worship. Proverbs 12:18 says "...the tongue of the wise brings healing." So make sure to stay away from gossip, hurtful conversations or speech, and profanity. This includes our comments on Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, etc.
We need to have Kingdom priorities. Do we store up treasures here on Earth? The bible says that our heart is where our treasure is stored (Matthew 6:19-21). Many of us look for fame, popularity, recognition, and even status as musicians. Jesus said, "seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." (Matthew 6:33) So let's set our hearts on the Kingdom of God; God will take care of the rest.
We sing about God's love. We must demonstrate this love in our lives: We must love VERTICALLY (God) and HORIZONTALLY (our fellow man) genuinely and let it reflect in our lives. If our congregation can see God's love reflected in our daily lives, and a passion to serve and proclaim Jesus on and off the stage, they will truly be open to following us into worship. When the congregation feels that we genuinely love them as well, they will more willingly worship with us.
Worshippers need to have faith and grow in the faith. How is this accomplished? By studying God's word, and spending time with God. When we have a deep understanding of God, this is transmitted to the congregation. We must continually grow and constantly try to know God more.
Be an Example of Purity:
As worshippers we must reflect Jesus' character. Nothing wrecks our credibility more than moral compromise. Our lives must reflect a moral purity. This means we should know our moral standard (God's Word) and live in obedience to God. When we know God and live our lives in worship to Him we seek to please him in everything we do. We can live our lives in such a way that people will not have anything negative to say about us. Titus 2:7-8
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Wonder
"Most high, most excellent, most potent, most omnipotent; most piteous and most just; most hidden and most near; most beauteous and most strong, stable, yet contained of none; unchanging, yet changing all things; never new, never old; making all things new, yet bringing old age upon the proud and they know it not; always working, yet ever at rest; gathering, yet needing nothing; sustaining, pervading, and protecting; creating, nourishing, and developing; seeking, and yet possessing all things."1.
If you skipped over that last paragraph I suggest you read it over carefully. There is an incredible sense of wonder in it, as though when St Augustine spoke it he couldn't contain his awe toward God.
In a world where every bit of information is at our fingertips and everything can be explained it's easy to lose our child-like wonder at who God is and what he does in our lives. But we must never forget the GREATNESS of God if we are to worship Him sincerely. In Job 36:26 it says "Behold, God is great, and we do not know him." Can we ever know God or even explain him completely? No of course not. That's where wonder comes in. Paul wrote in Roman 11:33 "Oh the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgements and His ways past finding out!"
When you have your devotional time, or when you go up on that stage to play an instrument or to sing, remember to revel in God's wonder. Express your sincere praise to the Creator of it all and stand amazed at his awesomeness.
1.The Confessions of St. Augustine, in A Select Library of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, vol.1
If you skipped over that last paragraph I suggest you read it over carefully. There is an incredible sense of wonder in it, as though when St Augustine spoke it he couldn't contain his awe toward God.
In a world where every bit of information is at our fingertips and everything can be explained it's easy to lose our child-like wonder at who God is and what he does in our lives. But we must never forget the GREATNESS of God if we are to worship Him sincerely. In Job 36:26 it says "Behold, God is great, and we do not know him." Can we ever know God or even explain him completely? No of course not. That's where wonder comes in. Paul wrote in Roman 11:33 "Oh the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgements and His ways past finding out!"
When you have your devotional time, or when you go up on that stage to play an instrument or to sing, remember to revel in God's wonder. Express your sincere praise to the Creator of it all and stand amazed at his awesomeness.
1.The Confessions of St. Augustine, in A Select Library of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, vol.1
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