You don't like it? Deal with it!

Ok, there is one thing I have a problem with...well there are lots of things I have problems with but this one makes me shake my head in disgust. I have a big problem with people saying they do not like a particular worship song. I know I know, there are plenty of songs out there that really are NOT good, a one bit. Just listen to the Fish every now and then and you will hear some songs that musically are not that good. But don't listen to the Fish now because all they are playing is Christmas songs. They have been playing Christmas songs since Halloween! Yes, Hallo-freakin-ween!! Who are the ad wizards that came up with this one? Still, the focus and heart behind the song is Jesus and what He did and is doing for us. How can you dislike this?! And even more absurd is that one can have the nerve to go up to somebody else and say, "Hey, you know that song that talks about praising God? Yeah...I don't like it. Let's not sing that one anymore." What?! Please do not confuse this with singing a song too much or too often on Sunday mornings. I am totally in favor of putting a song on the bench for a while and bringing it back some time later. It tends to have a rather profound effect on worship. Nor am I talking about playing a song the same way every single time. I am all about doing the old songs in a new and fresh way. I'm talking about criticizing a song because of how it sounds or because you don't like the wording.

Anyway, I'm sorry to be venting a little but sometimes I get fed up with "too" opinionated people. More people these days are getting their theology out of the songs we sing than by liturgy or a good Sunday sermon. Music across the board is very influential, especially the words inside the music. I used to be a big cynic when it came to worship songs and I was full of musical snobbery. But after realizing how much music affects people, and how much people are paying attention to the words they/we are singing, I've slowly but not so gently, put the proverbial foot in my mouth. Writing songs is hard; writing congregational worship songs is THE hardest thing to do (I know, I'm trying and I can't seem to finish nary a song). I truly believe God anoints and speaks songs to those with the gift of song-writing. So by criticizing and passing judgments, you are doing the same thing to God. Stop it!!

Sorry this came out of nowhere. People just need to think before they speak.

Incredible!!

I was going through old emails today and I came across this one that was sent to me by Amy Norris. This kid is like 12 years old I think at the time and he is SICK!!! Throughout the whole video my jaw is dropped open in awe of his skills. There's a part towards the end where he starts playing the toms with one hand...you can barely see his hands. Anyway, hope you enjoy.

Grace and peace.

Mentors

As I sit down after playing guitar non-stop for over like 4 hours (and after reading most people's blogs that are doing the daily blogging), I feel the need to write a little somethin somethin. I just got back in town from a Continuing Education seminar in Raleigh, NC. Veterinarians here in Georgia have to have 30 continuing education (CE) hours every 2 years to maintain their license. Anyway, at this conference, there was a professor/clinician I had at vet school. He was/is a mentor of mine and he is awesome...I mean he has his own Infectious Disease Book (Infectious Diseases of the Dog and Cat). Dr. Greene is an amazingly smart doctor. One time during one of our clinical rounds sessions, he asked me if I had considered this one particular bacteria as the cause of this cat's swollen joints. I of course answered no (in my mind I said heck no). Dr. Greene then chimed up, "It's on page 430, 2nd paragraph on the left hand side." I was like, "Wha?!" I got out his book at home and checked his referencing skills. He was exactly right! Way too smart for me! Well, he is also really stinkin funny. If you know a little about medicine, steroids (not the kind that's plaguing are sports these days) do have some benefit, but also have some bad side effects. Dr. Greene will not call these steroids by their name. One in particular is Prednisone. He calls it "Vitamin P", or "Pixie Dust", or "the exogenous unmentionables" to name a few. He used to randomly call me after I graduated, introducing himself as "El Presidente" or "god" and ask if I was keeping my "gun in my holster," which meant that I was not using any steroids. I would tell him of course...I was a little bit of a brown-noser. Anyway, before I left for North Carolina, I picked up 2 toy guns with a holster and put "P"s on all the handles. I gave them to him before one of his talks and he thought it was pretty funny. He actually used them in a few of his sessions! Again, I am a little bit of a suck-up.

You are probably wondering where the heck I'm going with this. I do have a point, just be patient! As I thought about Dr. Greene and how he has influenced how I practice medicine, I began to think of other "mentors" in my life that have influenced or affected me. The first person I thought of was Kevin Mann. He has been so instrumental in my walk with the Lord and my passion for worship. He is such a kind, gentle and wise man of God and I thank the Lord everytime I think of him. Kevin, if you do read this, I plan on coming up to Nashville the weekend of Nov 17-18th. I hope to see you, Mandy and Bennett!. Then I thought of other mentors of mine. Here they are in no particular order: Bill Tanner, Mark Fritchman, Tom Tanner, Steve Hambrick (miss you dude), Clay Kirkland and of course, my dad. All of these people spoke words of life, wisdom and encouragement into me, whether through meeting one on one, praying for me, teaching and admonishing me, or just simply being my friend.

What I've realized is that I need to tell these people that they have been a huge part of my life and have helped mold me into who I am today, and that I need to thank them! So, if you are on the list and you read this blog, THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!

I encourage you to think about those who have affected and influence you and find them! Find them and tell them thank you. I just hope one day someone will find me and tell me how I influenced them. It would be such an encouragment to me!

Grace and peace.

Approaching His throne with boldness...

Last night at cell group during the prayer time, Tom asked a very unique question to a group of the guys. He asked, "If you could ask God to give you one thing right now, what would it be?" I thought that this was a mesmerizing question. I then thought, could God follow though and actually give us this one need/want instantly? Obviously the answer is an emphatic "Yes!" But, would He? I'll admit, it is a little difficult to believe. I mean, I want to believe it. In my mortal, infantile mind I find it hard to fathom that God could instantly grant a want or need that I have been praying for for the past however long. May God rid me of this doubt.

Anyway, I asked God to allow certain dreams and past prophecies to come to fruition sooner rather than later. Over the past 10 years or so, I have had numerous dreams and prophetic words spoken over me regarding my kingdom destiny, which is to lead worship. I know that I know that I know that this is what I will be doing in the hopefully near future. For some, this may come across as redundant (because you know where my heart is), but that's ok. If you so desire, you can read past posts of mine that cover my thoughts on worship and my journey: Worship, Make a Joyful Noise, So timely, Got to Crawl.

At times I find myself leading a particular song in a corporate worship setting, or I see myself leading worship with other "more famous" worship leaders. I often wake up at night singing certain worship songs! The only way I can explain this is that there is a much higher purpose in my life. I believe there are interests in your life and there are your passions. I can only speak personally on this matter and for some, the two line up. For me, the interest I have had since I was a wee lad was working with and being around animals. God has allowed me to have a job (and be good at it...I think) that pertains to my interests, so that I can perform to the best of my abilities because I enjoy doing it. However, the PASSION in my life is worship. God is slowly working this out. I understand that it is all on His timing, but I'm believing that He will make this happen soon!

So, maybe you are reading and you are feeling what I'm saying. You have heard God speak kingdom purposes over you and you are waiting for those to fall into place. Or, maybe you have something else that you would ask God to fulfill NOW or give you NOW. Maybe you need wisdom? In James it says that if any of you lack wisdom, he should ask God to give you wisdom and HE WILL! Whatever it may be, I encourage you to be bold in your prayers. Approach His throne of grace with boldness (and humility) and ask for a speedy granting of your needs. He is a God that longs to give good gifts! Don't forget that promise!!

If you feel led, you can leave a comment saying one thing you want God to give you right now and I will join with you in prayer for this...if you will join with me.

Grace and peace.

Working it out?

"Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling."

Philippians 2:12

For a long time I have wondered what it means to work out my salvation with fear and trembling. To set this up, I want this post to be more of a forum-type setting, where a dialogue if you will (and I will) is created. So I will start with what I think Paul is trying to say here and I really would like for others to post with what their own take on it.

Here it goes: First off, salvation is a free gift from God, which we all know. I think that after we received this free gift afforded to us by the amazing grace of God, it is our job to perfect our salvation - ie. reading, praying, listening, loving, serving, encouraging, etc. By this we will avoid falling into the category of living by "cheap grace" that so many Christians do. Their sole motivation is to avoid hell, not to go deeper or fall more in love with our Beloved King Jesus. Will they make it to heaven? Sure. Will they be close to the throne? Probably not.

The second part of this particular verse stems from the fact that only He is the author and perfector of our faith. The fear and trembling arise out of sheer awe of who God is. We are a weak people that depend on God to be and provide for whatever we need. He is a Holy God, and our Sustainer! Once we realize this fact, and realize that He is our strong and wise adversay, then automatically the attitude of fear and trembling will be birthed.

Thoughts?

Grace and peace.

Why not?

I was reading today in 1 Thessalonians and a few phrases stood out to me. It probably won't do much for you but it really motivated me. The first one being in chapter 1, verse 3:

"We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ."

The bold print is there for emphasis. "Your labor prompted by love." I think that the Word itself says enough and my attempt to analyze it is, well, wimpy. But I think it is worth taking a second of your busy day to ask yourself, am I prompted by love to serve or labor? Is love the motivating factor in my day-to-day life?

The second comes from verses 7-8 from chapter 1:

"And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia-your faith in God has become known everywhere."

The question I asked myself after reading this was, "Why are we not hearing more of people's faith in God from other parts of the world or other parts of the U.S.?" Thessalonica was the capital city of one of the largest and influential provinces back then. So, one would have to assume it involved a large people group. Would it be egotistical to strive after being known everywhere for our faith in God? I don't think so. Maybe it starts with community transformation, which our church is so passionate about. Will people one day being able to say that they have heard about the faith of the people of Cobb county (or wherever you live)? Will people one day say that they have heard about the faith of the people of Atlanta? Even more unbelievable will be people talking about the faith of the Americans. I can only say 3 words, hopefully one day.

I know this post is a little random and my thoughts are probably incomplete. But it was just something I thought about today. Maybe some of you can offer some input?

Grace and peace.

My job

This is a late night, tired and frustrated post. I'm laying here, about to fall asleep (cuz I'm friggin tired), but I need a little release. I will say that this weekend has been one of the busiest weekends at work I've had in a long time. I've already expressed this to a few people, but I need to blog it out. Ok, if you don't know, I work most weekends down in Sandy Springs at a specialty and emergency clinic. My job is entitled, "Staff Emergency Doctor." I see emergency cases that walk in or are referred over by other private practice veterinarians, and I have the job of training interns (ie. fresh graduates). Teaching others, whether it be owners or interns, is something I truly enjoy doing. But, it can be quite frustrating too. Annie I'm sure you and the other teachers understand. As their supervisor, I get a little bothered when proper care (or sometimes just plain common sense) isn't taken. But I have to hold back the "you blew this one" comments, and try to gently correct them and hope they don't make the same mistake twice. Completely belittling them, though tempting, is not the way to build up a new doctor. Although sometimes I wish I could be more like the sarcastic doctor on Scrubs and make fun of them every chance I get. But I can't.

But the thing I have to remember is that I was once in their shoes, and not too long ago in fact. Eyes wide open, pupils dilated, heart racing and the feeling of, "oh crap," rushes through your head, as multiple emergencies come walking through the door. Some are very critical, some are the easy emergencies. But still, it is overwhelming. At this particular clinic, when there is an emergency, the receptionist calls on the overhead speakers, "Emergency, your next patient has checked in." I used to cringe everytime I heard their voice! I would say to myself, "Nooooooo!"

Anyway, back to the point of it all, was I that inept in what I was trained to do?! To put it bluntly and honestly, was I that stupid?! Answer...probably. Actually, probably more so. You learn as you go. And the exciting thing is that I/we will continue to learn new things. Mistakes will be made, no doubt. Don't dwell on it. Learn from it and be dang sure it does not happen again. Encouragement is the key. Tell them things they are doing right and then bring up the things they really didn't handle the right way. I have one patient right now that I'm hoping survives. Proper care was not taken and this dog's life is hanging in the balance. Granted, it has an awful underlying condition, but I have to wonder if his situation would be a little bit better if a different approach would have been chosen. But I held back the idiot comments and tried to correct them in a non-attacking way.

Words have the power of life and death. This is so true in every avenue of life. Train them and BUILD THEM UP. Kids these days don't need more ridicule and comments of inadequacy. They need encouragement. WE ALL NEED ENCOURAGEMENT. Wherever you are in life, sharpen one another. Speak life and purpose.

I know this is kind of a random post, but I felt it needed to be said. I just hope my mind, which is working on about 3-4 hours of sleep, made it comprehensible.

Grace and peace.

Splendid Day

I say splendid day, well, because it was. The afternoon got started off with a trip to IHOP-Atlanta for one of their intercessory worship sets. It was good to be back at "the House." I haven't been back there since they left their previous location at City Harvest Church off Indian Trail Rd and moved into their new building, which is the old Crossroads Church. I had spent almost 2 years there as part-time staff, or "Family" as I was called, playing drums for 2 intercessory sets a week. Their new location is a little ways away down 316 and that is way too far for me to drive once or twice a week. I don't know why I just wrote down all of that pointless knowledge, but whatever. This afternoon Caleb Andrews was leading worship. He is crazy good! I love his style of worship, and his voice is very unique and excellent. Not to mention his wife can belt it too! Anyway, so I was blessed just to worship with him again, but more than that, the Lord blessed me with the opportunity to just sit in His presence. Cause it was there...thickly (is that even a word?). I encourage any and everybody to go to IHOP. You will meet and become friends with amazing, genuine, Spirit-filled Believers, and the Lord will fall on you. You can check them out at www.ihop-atlanta.com. If you click on the "Music" section of their web-page, you will see that they have a CD of songs written by the worship leaders there. It doesn't say on their website, but the guy playing percussion on those songs...none other than yours truly. No big deal.

After IHOP, we continued down 316 to Athens, GA. We ate at 5 Star Day, enough said! If you have been to Athens and have NOT eaten at 5 Star Day, slap yourself. Right now, slap yourself in your face if you have not eaten there. Then, take tomorrow off from work and go eat there. I'm serious! After dinner we went to the Wednesday night service at the Wesley Foundation. Our own Elliott Dejarnett led worship with Tate Welling. Incredible time of worship! They did a LOT of old school songs, which are always good to bring back every now and then. Maybe I'll try to get some old school songs played at Riverstone (ie. We Make a Way, My God Reigns, You Alone, etc). Elliott is quickly moving up my top 5 worship leaders to play with (Kevin Mann and Tate are still 1-2 in my book). I also got to talk to Clay Kirkland, Aaron Biddle and Aaron Vickroy to cap off the trip!

It was so good to go back to Athens. I really do miss that place! Maybe I will move back there one day? Who knows?!!

But the best part of it all was having an evening of incredible worship and spending time with our INCREDIBLE GOD! I need to do it more often...

Grace and peace.

Sunday Sunday, na na...na na na

Sorry about the title of this blog. It was the first thing I thought of when I was thinking of a tile for my Sunday recap. And I know that it is supposed to be Monday Monday (na na, nanana), but I still hope it leaves you humming that jingle in your head for a few minutes. So, I haven't sat down and wrote down my thoughts for a week or two and as I sit down on my sofa before I call it a day and read some of the Good Book, I felt like recapping my day.

First, it was Mission Sunday at church today. Here they announced the different mission trips the church is taking in 2008. Teams are heading to India, Ghana, Guatemala, Spain, Camp Hope, Born Again Blessings (local ministry here in Marietta, and last and certainly not least, Scotland! Annie Downs, Katie Bedingfield, Tom Tanner and myself have the wonderful opportunity to lead a team back to Scotland to put on another youth camp. I've yet to sit down and compile my thoughts and emotions from last year's camp. In one word...amazing! For more day-by-day details you can check out the blog, www.scotlandteam07.blogspot.com. I'm just going to touch on a few things that ministered to me the most. To start, the youth are stinkin incredible. From the first day we arrived there the kids befriended us and opened up to us. There wasn't that day or two of awkwardness. Their hearts were so soft and open to whatever we were doing, and more importantly, to whatever God was doing! Scotland is a very dark country and the younger generation is forgotten in man's eyes. But thankfully, not in God's eyes. He has amazing Kingdom plans for the youth there. Scotland has had numerous revivals, but none of them have stood the test of time because the church is dead. I'm being honest, the church is almost non-existent. There are a few there that are thriving (like the one we are working with), but a majority of them are simply cold. There have been numerous prophetic words given to missionaries and pastors over there saying God is bringing another revival to Scotland, and He is going to do it through the youth. After being there, I believe it with my whole heart. Over half of the members of the church we are working with are youth! And let me tell you, the youth of this church are going to move mountains in Scotland, bringing God's glory and the Kingdom of Heaven to Scotland and to the ends of the earth!

During the camp, I had the priviledge of leading worship. If you don't know me, my heart is broken for the younger generation and I have a longing to see youth truly grasp what it means to WORSHIP. So I had a bird's eye view of how God moved in and transformed many lives that week. The first night of worship was tough. Most of them just sat there and watched me, Andrew Taulbee and Elizabeth Smith lead songs. However, as the week progressed, their hearts opened, and God began to take a hold of their lives! This was definitely made evident in the worship services. Each night more and more youth remained standing, some even closed their eyes! Crazy I know. But then on Thursday night, heaven broke open. That night Annie had an awesome talk on Worship; that there is more to worship than just singing songs...it's how you live your life. Worship is laughing with your friends. Worship is being alone in nature, sitting in awe of God's creation. Worship is reading your Bible. Worship is honoring your parents. Worship is being a friend to the lonely. Worship is serving others. Worship is gathering together and lifting up the only Name that is worthy to be lifted up. And that is what we did. I swear, after Annie's message we worshipped for close to 2 and a half hours! Guys and girls, young and old, stood in awe of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, with arms high and their heart completely abandoned to Him. Some were on their knees. Some wept. Some had an overwhelming joy written all over their faces. I stood there and soaked it all in. I was so thankful of the opportunity God gave me to be a part of the beginning of a huge move of God sweeping across Scotland. It got to a point that night where I was literally out of songs to play. I even had to ask for requests! Well...I tried to ask, my voice was pretty much shot! Even after the service ended the kids continued to worship together in their rooms (and showers!). Tears welled up in my eyes as I walked the halls and heard boys, whose ages ranged from 8-15, sing with all of their heart Love Song, Holy, For Who You Are and Blessed be Your Name. I will say it was more of singing and crying mixed together, but it was still altogether beautiful and moving.

I can't wait to go back! We are leaving July 9th and returning July 23rd, with a youth camp stuck in the middle. Our goal this time is to not just have our team put on the camp, but to really get the adult leaders over there involved. We want to teach and train them to put on youth camps in the future on their own so if there ever comes a day when we don't make the trip to Scotland, they will be fully prepared to keep it going. Don't get me wrong, I believe Riverstone (and myself) will be involved with putting on annual youth camps for many years to come. But this is truly a partnershp; Riverstone partnering with their church, as we both partner with God and jump into His river that is flowing through Scotland.

So if reading this moves your heart, join us. Join us as we pour into the youth of Scotland to bring God's light to a dark country; to breath life into the dead and dry bones!

I'll leave you with one of the most profound statements I have ever heard (and it came from one of the youth):

"I felt the love of 5 million people, then I realized it was just God." WOW!

Grace and peace.

You Got me Dancin...

This morning was so much fun and an incredible blessing. The worship band I play in (The Fourth Man) led worship at Riverstone Church. There was such a sweet spirit during the worship, and there was an intensity in the congregation (yes, even the 9am crowd) that I haven't seen in a while! Most of the band was there, minus a few folk: Aaron Biddle on lead, Kyle Hutcheson on keys, and the ever-talented, always funny Jason Laiche on percussion. But, we had the tasty lick-laying Nate Bedingfield sitting in on lead guitar. Anyway, our set list was:

Not to Us (Tomlin)
Hungry (Falling on My Knees) - Vineyard
Free (chorus by Tate Welling)
Holy (Vineyard)
Victory in Jesus (the 9am service was dancing around! Crazy I know!)
Lord of Lords (Hillsong's new album Saviour King)
Prince of Peace (chorus)

Ministry Time:
It is You (acoustic) - Newsboys
Better is One Day
No Sweeter Name (Throneroom worship, Kari Jobe - listen to her please!!)
Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone)

Anyway, I really do not know why I'm posting about this except for that I had fun and I'm proud to be a part of this worship band/team. Each person's heart for worship and the Lord is so encouraging to be around; and the leadership of Tate, Elliott and Caroline is amazing. I hope we are able to come back soon and lead again. We had numerous people come up to us afterwards and tell us how refreshing worship was to them and how they enjoyed learning new(er) songs. So, I am thankful that the Lord brought this team together and I'm humbly and boldly asking for more!

Welp, that's all I got. Kind of random but I'm proud.

Grace and peace.