I love preaching.  Matt Chandler is one of the best communicators of the Gospel and if I could ever sit down with someone and talk preaching, he would be at the top of my list.  This video was recorded several years ago, but is fill of great advice from Matt for preachers.

Theology and Doxology are deeply intertwined.  Theology isn’t exclusive to the business of pastors and doxology isn’t exclusive to the musicians and rock stars.  While there is a tendency in the church to see these on opposite ends of the spectrum, this couldn’t be further from the truth.  Matt Boswell, in Doxology and Theology writes, “Worship leaders ought to come to lead the people of God with a guitar in one hand, a Bible in the other, and know how to use each weapon well.”  Doxology & Theology is not just a book for worship leaders, but a book for anyone who is doing pastoral ministry.  Matt Boswell and a host of other brilliant theologians and worship pastors have gotten together to be a resource for worship leaders calling us to take this task seriously.

This book is clearly written to music people, but I think that despite it’s clear tone and audience of “worship leaders” it is a book that is valuable for all roles.  You are a worship leader, whether you have a guitar in your hand or bucket full of candy.  If you serve people – whether that be through music, children’s ministry, student ministry, or preaching – understanding your role and specifically the connection between doxology  and theology is important to the life of the church.

I love the call throughout the book to have worship leaders who have a deep love for their Savior and also be pastoral in how they lead people.  The book even covers a range of topics from the more philosophical like “Doxology, Theology, and the Mission of God” to the highly practical (yet equally theological) “The Worship Leader and Creativity” or “The Worship Leader and His Pastor.”

I’m not a musician and don’t lead the congregation through music, yet I was inspired to take seriously my calling to lead worship with our students, in my home, and when I’m given the opportunities in front of our church.  I have not read a better book when it comes to the theology of worship ministry, and I hope this book shapes the way that worship leaders, pastors, and church-workers think about worship.

To give you a taste without spoiling the whole thing for you, here are a few quotes:

“We should never boldly proclaim into a microphone that which we wouldn’t have the courage to share with our neighbor.” – Matt Boswell

“Gifting may gain a man a platform, but character is what gives him a voice.” – Matt Boswell

“The church cannot afford to settle for worship leaders who are capable musicians but are incompetent theologians.” – Michael Bleecker

“Christians and churches that are intensely doxological will be intensely missional, and those who fail to worship will fail to spread worship.” – Matt Papa

“They  [worship leaders] are public figures who symbolize private holiness and, therefore, are either drawn to their knees in regular, humble prayer, or are forced to become expert thespians, maintaining a consistent facade of righteousness.” – Stephen Miller

“If nobody’s following us Monday through Saturday, we’re not leading worship; we’re just leading songs.” – Aaron Keyes

Buy this book.  If you’re not directly involved in worship ministry, it’s worth your time.  If you are, you must read it immediately.

“Fear. It was fear that killed my parents. On the far side of the world, I tasted fear in it’s purest form and thought I’d conquered it. But, fear followed me home…” – Batman

I have to make a confession; I am afraid of most animals. I think they are all cute and stuff, but at the end of the day I want to keep myself at a distance and be ready in case they attack. Perhaps my fear of animals is silly and I just need to get over my dog destroying my G.I. Joes when I was a little boy, but don’t we all have fears?

What do you fear?

Fear will always cause a person to react. If you are afraid of getting pulled over by a cop, you will drive slower. If you are afraid of getting caught cheating, you will either avoid cheating or be more secretive about it. Fear might cause you to run away or it might cause you get ready to fight. Depending on how you view God, you might look at him with fear. If the thought of God causes you to be afraid, it will cause you to react.  You might react by rebelling against him, you might react by ignoring him, or you might even react by doing what he says with hopes that you might appease him.

If you are afraid of God, what do when something bad happens? Certainly fear would lead you to think, “Perhaps God is punishing me.” In 1 Kings 18, there are a group of prophets worshipping their god in hopes that they will get him to pay attention. They shout, they dance, the cut themselves. But nothing. In their view of god, what do they do? Was their god too tired? Was he busy dealing with somebody more important? Did they screw something up and he didn’t care anymore?

“In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgement, because in this world we are like Him. There is no fear in love.  But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment.  The one who fears is not made perfect in love.  We love because he first loved us.” – 1 John 4:17-19

We don’t need to be afraid of God. We can approach him confidently because of what we know about him. While we are certainly sinners, because of the fact that Jesus suffered and died to pay the price for our sins, we can approach God confidently knowing that our relationships have been made right with him.  Because of Jesus, we don’t need to be afraid.  The sacrifice of Jesus drives out this feeling of being afraid that might creep into our relationship with Him.

At the same time, Psalm 111:10 says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.” This is another kind of fear. This is the fear that looks at God in awe and reverence. This is the fear that doesn’t cause us to react in a way that’s afraid of God but in a way that trusts God. The devil seeks to drive us to being afraid. He seeks to make us afraid, which might lead us to react in anger or rebellion. But God seeks to drive out that kind of fear and instead drive us to a fear that trusts because “He first loved us.”

If you want to download the free mini eBook I put together with these lessons and a set of discussion questions that go with it, head over to iTunes and download “What’s Your Kryptonite?“

My wife is a stay-at-home mom; I have no doubt that this is one of the most significant callings in the world.  What if women who stayed at home with their kids understood the significance of the calling that God has given them as a mother?  My dad has this boss who recently told them that he needed to make sure to not be in work on Sunday so he could spend time with his family.  What if more bosses didn’t simply try to maximize the profit an employee can make, but also actually cared that their employees were spending time with the people who matter most?  A recent survey said that 77% of teenagers want to be their own boss someday.  Imagine the world we would live in if we helped these teenagers understand the significance of starting businesses in a God-honoring, kingdom building kind of way.  What if the future businesses in your city were all run by people who believed they have a calling by God to be a blessing to the world through the running of their organizations.

The way you understand your calling has a significant relationship to the way you live your life.  This can be both a good thing and a bad thing.  This is great news if you feel like God has called you to something, but if you are like most who struggle to figure out what exactly it is they’re supposed to do with their life, it might feel like bad news.  A survey from the Barna Group indicates, ”only about one-third of Christians (34%) feel called to the work they currently do.”

Think about that.

“Only about one-third of Christians (34%) feel called to the work they currently do.” – the Barna Group

Only 1/3 of Christian people feel like the work that they do is the work that God wants them to do.  Only 1/3 of Christians feel like God has placed them in the jobs they are working in because he wants them in that place for this season.  The majority of Christians believe that what God wants is for them to be doing something other than what they are already doing.  The biggest problem when we talk about vocation is not whether or not somebody has a calling, but instead how we understand what it is that God has called us do.

I don’t want to minimize career aspirations and goals; we should absolutely be thinking about how God has created us and what that means long term.  But what if instead of simply focusing on our God’s calling for some day, we focused on God’s calling right now.  After all, God doesn’t say “Serve me once you get a degree” or “Love your neighbors once you get a good paycheck.”  He calls us do to those things right now – we have may have a future calling that we are trying to figure out, but we also have a present calling that we need to be living out.  What are the places God has placed you in, the people he has put you around, and the opportunities he has presented you with?  He has give those to you because he has called you.  God has called you to live out your faith in your schools, in your families, in your neighborhoods, in your workplaces, and in your churches.

What if you thought of your calling not only as one of a career but also all the places in which God places you to make a difference in the world?

Do you like stuff?  Everybody likes stuff, right?

We live in a world that is all about having more stuff. We want more apps, more music, a new phone, a new video game, more friends, and so on. This desire to have more is a common temptation for people; it’s the temptation that we need more in order to be happy. Somehow we have been convinced that we need something it would make us happy. If we had this phone, if we made this much money, or if we had these friends then we would be happy. But the problem is that our stuff might make us temporarily happy, but they will not bring us joy.

In Ecclesiastes, Solomon searches for stuff that will make him happy. Solomon actually denies himself nothing that he wants. He looks for happiness in money. He throws giant parties and quickly finds that once the party is over he just needs to throw another party, with more people and a bigger band. He pursues relationships with women. He builds tons of buildings. And in all of this pursuit he says, “I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.”

Notice the things that Solomon pursues aren’t actually evil things. There’s nothing wrong with making money, having friends, or getting married. But it is the greed, this unquenchable desire for more, that causes Solomon to realize that his greed cannot be satisfied and that the things he is pursuing are all meaningless.

“The new gadget or a new wardrobe or a new house or a new boat or a new car promises a weird relief and excitement, doesn’t it? Have you ever thought about how weird that is? A new cell phone, the cool one, makes you feel better. This kind of consumerism comes with an emotional stroking, like a narcotic high. But then it wears off. New stuff becomes old stuff really quickly, and we need the next new thing. The Scriptures are saying, ‘Give me a break. Trinkets are trinkets.’” – Matt Chandler, The Explicit Gospel

What’s Your Problem?

When you struggle with greed or jealousy or coveting, your problem isn’t with the stuff you have, but it’s actually with God.  The struggle with these things, if we are honest, is not because we have a problem that can only be solved by acquiring stuff. The problem is that we are not content with the gifts that God has chosen to give us or not give us.

In Matthew 20, Jesus tells a story about some workers in a vineyard. At the beginning of the day a landowner hires some men to work in his yard. They agree to work for the standard wage. Half-way through the day the owner decides to hire some more workers and agrees to pay them a full days pay. He does this again near the end of the day and agrees to pay them the same. At the end of this story as the owner is paying everybody the same amount, the workers who got hired earlier were upset. They worked longer, shouldn’t they have gotten paid more? The owner answers saying, “Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn’t you agree to work for a [day’s wage]? Take your pay and go…Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because because I am generous?”

God has blessed us in incredible ways.  When we are content, we have no problem celebrating the ways that God has blessed those around us.  If we struggle with the sin of greed or jealousy, we commonly fail to be content with how God has blessed us and look at other’s blessings with envy.

For discussion questions and a suggested movie clip, check out the mini eBook available for free on iTunes, “What’s Your Kryptonite?“

“Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not.” – Ira Glass

HT: Echo Hub

God.  Religion.  Consumerism.  Confession.  Sin.   Truth.  Marriage.  Money.  If these were the words of a preacher, it would be no surprise.  Ben Haggerty, commonly known as Macklemore, has made fame rapping, or should I say preaching, about topics which often are undiscussed in the genre of hip-hop.  He writes words like, “The greatest trick that the devil ever pulled was convincing women that they looked better in makeup” and, “When I was at church they taught me something else, if you preach hate at the service those words aren’t anointed.”

Macklemore is a preacher.  He may not have the same agenda, the same source of truth, or even the same beliefs.  But he is a preacher.  He has set out to proclaim a message; he has set out to inspire people and start a movement.  He wants to change culture.  And I think preachers could learn a few things from the way he approaches his art.

1. People want to talk about spiritual things.

For Macklemore, spiritual topics are not off limits.  He has no problem getting into spiritual discussions in interviews or in the lyrics of his songs; whether to proclaim what’s wrong with religion or to point out what’s wrong with society, spirituality is a frequent component of his music.  People want to talk about the things that matter.  Macklemore’s album calls out the problems with commercialism and the dangers of money, he preaches about his beliefs about gay marriage, and he talks about his confession habits as he goes to the bar.  These are all topics that preachers talk about…and people want to talk about it.

2. Put yourself in the seat of the listener.

“I put myself in the place of the listener when editing my writing. The last thing that I want to do is be preached at and told who to be or what to think when listening to an artist. However, I do want to be inspired. There’s a fine line.” – Macklemore from Interview Magazine

When Paul preaches the Gospel he understands the people that he is preaching to.  The content of the message doesn’t change, but the context of the message does.  When he preaches to the Jews, he preaches in a way that resonates with a Jew.  When he is preaching to a group of spiritual people who aren’t familiar with the Hebrew scriptures, he quotes pagan prophets and poets to share the Gospel.  In order to preach the scriptures faithfully, we must be committed to both the content of the Word and the context of the people.

*note: this video may have some explicit lyrics

3. Inspire people to something better.

In the song Wing$, Mackelmore boldly calls people to leave their lives of consumerism:

“It started out with what I wear to school
That first day, like these are what make you cool
And this pair, this would be my parachute
So much more than just a pair of shoes
Nah, this is what I am
What I wore, this is the source of my youth
This dream that they sold to you
For a hundred dollars and some change
Consumption is in the veins
And now I see it’s just another pair of shoes”

Macklemore preaches by pointing us to the reality of what consumerism does and tries to inspire us to live differently.  This is not all that different than what happens on a Sunday morning – just what we do on Sundays tends to not be nearly as artistic or memorable.  Macklemore points people to the reality of consumerism or whatever other issue he is rapping about.  Preaching points people to the reality of their sin and the consequences of it (which could even be the sin of consumerism).  Macklemore tries to inspire people to live differently.  Preaching proclaims the Gospel, which sets people free and in turn inspires people to live differently.

What lessons have you learned about preaching recently?

This post comes from an excerpt of a mini eBook and small group curriculum available on iTunes called “What’s Your Kryptonite?”

“If you’re using half your concentration to look normal, then you’re only half paying attention to whatever else you’re doing…You want society to accept you, but you can’t even accept yourself.”  - X-Men: First Class

Who are you?

My first instinct, if I’m trying to answer that question, is to start by describing myself. I might describe the roles that I have – a father, a husband, a youth minister.  Or I might describe some of the things I like to do. This question, while on the surface is quite simple, is loaded with depth. How you answer it describes the way that you see yourself. As a Christian, how do you see yourself? Where do you find your identity? If we’re honest, that’s not always a simple question.

Being someone you’re not

Throughout your life, there will likely be seasons where you are confused about your identity and maybe even pretend to be something you’re not. It might be that you’re simply not happy with the person that you are or feel like the person you are is not good enough. So what do we do when we feel that way?  Naturally, we pretend.  We put on masks and try to behave the way we are supposed to behave.  We try to say all the right things at all the right times in hopes that we’ll feel the right way.

There’s a great example of this in the Old Testament.  Isaac has two sons, Jacob and Esau.  Esau is the firstborn and as the firstborn he gets a blessing from his father.  Jacob is unhappy.  He is unhappy that he doesn’t get what God has given his brother so he decides to pretend to be someone else.  He decides to pretend to be his brother.

“So he went in to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?” Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me; now sit up and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.” But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “Because the Lord your God granted me success.” Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not.”  And he did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands.  So he blessed him.  He said, “Are you really my son Esau?”  He answered, “I am.” – Genesis 27:18-24 (ESV)

It’s a bit sad to read about Jacob lying to his own father about who he is.  But don’t we often do the same?  For moments with think “if only I had this,” “if only I were like this,” or “if only things were different” and we will deceive those around us in hopes of making things different.  When we base our identity in the things we do or what we have, we are bound to have an identity crisis like Jacob and end up lying in order to improve our false identity. And this is so often what happens – we base our identity on our degrees, on our careers, and on our significant others – and it doesn’t fufill us.  Our identity should be founded on who we are in Christ; when we base our identity on who we are in Christ we can be confident who we are now and not dwell on who we wish we were.

When we base our identity in the things we do or what we have, we are bound to have an identity crisis like Jacob and end up lying in order to improve our false identity. 

So…Who are you?

Later in Jacob’s life, he finds himself in a situation that would forever alter his life.  Jacob actually wrestles with God.  An interesting thing happens in this encounter with God – and it’s not simply the fact that he actually struggled with God – but its the question that God asks Jacob.

“But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed.” Then Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And there he blessed him. – Genesis 32:26-29 (ESV)

The first blessing that Jacob went after, he did so by lying about his identity.  But this time he encounters the son of God in a wrestling match and he answers the question “What is your name?”  And he answers it correctly this time… and then God changes his name.  We may often get our identity confused and not know who we are, but something significant happens when we encounter God.  Because of Christ we are identified with him and our lives are forever identified with His and not with what we do, what we own, or who we know.

For discussion questions and a suggested clip from the movie X-Men: First Class download the eBook on iTunes.

Riet Schumack, mixing her passions of gardening and children, has been living out her calling in the city of Detroit by making community gardens.  Brightmoor moved to the city of Detroit in 2006 and this is how she has been serving her neighbors.

Church is weird.  And don’t worry, I’m not suggesting we change that.  Acknowledging our weirdness can be helpful for those of us who have become accustomed to the way church is done.  As more and more people are less interested in church, more and more people are not familiar with the common practices of church.  This means that churchgoers and church workers would do well to be aware of how weird our weekly practices are.  Let’s learn to be a church that not only embraces our weirdness, but also help new people understand why we do what we do.

7 Practices That Make Church Weird

1. We are all supposed to sing together.  This is not a very common thing to do.  You may have sung with a group of people in your high school choir, at a major league baseball game, or maybe even a birthday party.  Outside of that, it’s not very common.

2. We listen to a guy giving a monologue.  Outside of conferences and comedians, when else do people gather to hear someone talk at them?  This is unique.  Preaching is an absolute essential part of the gathering of the church, but we should also acknowledge it is a bit weird.

3. Everybody sits in the same spot.  Nobody has tickets, but seemingly everybody knows exactly where they are supposed to go and where they are supposed to sit.  If you are new to church, this makes for an interesting scenario – how do you avoid sitting in “somebody else’s seat?”

4. What do I do with my hands?  As the music gets going, it can get tricky trying to understand what to do when you are singing to God with a bunch of other people.  Should I clap my hands?  Should I just stand with my hands at my side or cross my arms?  Some people are raising their hands in the air – what’s that all about?

5. Other people work here too.  There tends to be a select few that are visible on a Sunday morning.  As soon as someone finds out that there are other people who get paid by the money put in the offering plate, the question soon to follow is, “What do they do all week?”

6. We have some weird relatives.  Let’s face it, there are plenty of people who are Christians who we would rather not claim the title.  People who give Christians a bad name, are really weird, or just fall into a different theological tribe.  There’ve been a number of times when talking with non-church people about ministry and they’ve asked, “Wait, you’re allowed to be married?”

7. We love dead people.  The primary book that we spend our time reading was written by a bunch of people who died a long time ago.  Some of the songs we sing we written hundreds years ago by people that aren’t around anymore.  And chances are during the monologue portion of the service, the pastor even quoted some dead theologian.

Let’s keep church weird.  But let’s also help people who are new to understand why we do these weird things.

What else makes church weird?