I had the past couple of Sundays off from my normal church responsibilities and took the opportunity to visit a couple of area churches. Last weekend I visited The Merge, a church plant led by a couple of friends and colleagues, Scott and Lisa Womble. That was a great experience (I’ll post about the visit soon). This morning while my wife was working (she unfortunately has to work Sunday morning once in a while), my son Ben and I visited The Journey, on Kingshighway near Hwy. 44 in St. Louis. We visited the 11:15 a.m. service at the main Tower Grove campus.
I wanted to visit The Journey because I’d heard some exciting things about their ministry. It’s a relatively new church plant with multiple locations in St. Louis. Lead pastor Darren Patrick founded The Journey in 2002, and the church is part of the Acts 29 church planting network.
On my way to the church I drove right past it because the building (a former Catholic church) blends so well into the neighborhood. On my way back around the block I noticed where all the people were headed and followed suit. We had to park a block away because of the number of cars parked on the street around the church (definitely a good sign).
The sanctuary was about two-thirds full when we came in, but was almost full later in the service. The congregation consisted of what appeared to be people in their 20’s and 30’s. The worship songs were familiar to me (except for one or two) and the worship band did a great job with the music (which was very guitar-driven but with more of an acoustic feel). I would guess there were about 300 people there.
After the music came the Scripture reading from 1 John 3.1-10. I found this interesting because in most evangelical churches, the preacher reads the Scripture as part of the sermon. I liked having it read separately before the sermon–this somehow conveys a bit more authority and seriousness of Scripture. The women who read Scripture concluded it with a firm “the word of the Lord” (a nice touch that reminds us it’s God’s Word). Another interesting touch was the repeated reference to page numbers in the pew Bible, which was the ESV translation. This is the first church I’ve seen use the ESV for pew Bibles (score!). Nice touch.
Lead pastor Darren Patrick delivered a great sermon on dealing with sin in our lives. I believe it was about 45 min. long. He is a great communicator and has a very down-to-earth style. He has a gift for combining great biblical content with very practical application. He is very easy to listen to, which I consider a great compliment to any teacher or preacher. The sermon ended with several application questions for personal reflection.
I really enjoyed the communion time. One of the leaders/pastors gave a few brief instructions, they we were directed to come to the front, where several people held a loaf of bread a cup of juice.Ben and I stood up to get in the line closest to us. I tore a piece from the loaf, dipped it in the juice, and headed back to my seat. I loved taking communion this way.
The only real discernible difference between what I normally experience as part of a Restoration Movement church, and the Journey is that they didn’t offer a traditional “invitation” at the conclusion of the sermon. People were instead invited to talk to a church leader or pastor after the service. I assume if someone wants to become a Christian they would take the initiative to speak with someone from the church. Or perhaps there is something I missed. This approach seems fine because the process for someone coming to faith can happen a variety of ways. Church history tells us this much. The traditional “invitation” time is an innovation that has been around less than 200 years. There’s nothing wrong with it, of course; it’s just one approach among many that Christians throughout history have used.
The thing that impressed me the most about The Journey was the seriousness with which they approached worship. You hear a lot these days about young adults (and the Gen-X crowd) being turned off by traditional Christianity, but the worship I experienced this morning took a serious, hard-hitting approach to God, the Bible, and the need for obedience. Mr. Patrick’s sermon didn’t pull any punches.
In my view, the contemporary evangelical church has misread this generation (which is my generation). We aren’t looking for a church that soft-sells the Christian faith or portrays it as an easy road. On the contrary, young (and young-ish) people are drawn to a faith that is deep, meaningful and doesn’t pretend to offer easy answers to life’s pressing problems. They are looking for connection, meaning, and a transcendent connection with God. This partly explains why people are increasingly drawn to the Catholic and Orthodox traditions. While The Journey is still solidly evangelical, this group of believers seems to be doing something right in reaching a generation that has basically lost interest in traditional Christianity. Surely there is something we can all learn from this.
Bring up the topic of Halloween among any given group of Christian parents and it’s likely to cause a debate. Halloween is seen by evangelical Christians as a bastion for all kinds of evil associated with devil worship and ancient pagan festivals. Is Halloween a time for kids to dress up in costumes and enjoy some harmless fun, or is it harmful to a child’s spiritual health by encouraging activities that may expose them to Satan, the occult, and various other negative elements?
My interest here isn’t to elaborate the history of Halloween (you can easily find a wealth of historical information online), but to explain why we will unashamedly help our 5-year old son put on his Power Ranger costume tomorrow night and go trick-or-treating. This may seem like a strange position, given the fact that my wife and I are both committed Christians, have both served in full-time ministry, and I teach at a Christian college. Many Christian families choose not to participate in traditional Halloween activities at all, or take part in Halloween alternative events (sometimes called “Harvest parties”). Why would we choose to participate in Halloween at a time when many Christian families are saying “no”? There are a couple of reasons:
First, it’s the only time of the year when we have personal contact with many of our neighbors. I live in a suburb of St. Louis, and people in my neck of the woods don’t really socialize with neighbors. I have regular face-to-face conversations with only a few of my immediate neighbors. It’s not because I don’t want to know the other folks; it’s just that they are never accessible! People in our neighborhood, in typical suburban fashion, stay holed up in their castles the vast majority of the time. It’s really difficult to connect with them. So we cherish the opportunity to meet people on Halloween, even if their door is only open for a couple of minutes. We see it as developing relationships, which is essential to sharing Christ in an authentic way. I love the fact that we can take what many see as Satan’s holiday and use it instead for God’s purposes. Christians have been doing this sort of thing for ages.
Second, I don’t believe that Halloween as practiced by ordinary people is harmful. Many intelligent and well-meaning parents will disagree with me on this point. People must do the research and follow their conscience. I fully understand the pagan roots of Halloween, but do kids really make this connection? I think Halloween becomes what we make of it. We can see it as something that is intrinsically evil, or we can see it for what I believe it is–an excuse to put on a silly costume and have some fun. Sometimes I think we have taken the fun out of childhood traditions that are simple, harmless and fun. Just because some people have used Halloween for the wrong purposes, must that ruin it for everyone?
For those who oppose participation in Halloween based on historical pagan connections, what then do we do with other pagan traditions we incorporate into the church? We don’t find anything in the Bible about Christmas trees, December 25th, or Easter egg hunts, yet we don’t seem to have a problem including them in our worship and church life. And what about Valentine’s Day, Thanksgiving, the Fourth of July, Memorial Day, and others? Certainly we shouldn’t ignore these touchstones that are such an important part of our American history and heritage. Yet at the same time, we should be careful to keep them in their proper place. We must always be alert to the danger of worshiping something other than God, whether it be Halloween, American history, national freedom, false ideas of romance, or something else just as seductively powerful.
Jesus is still Lord on October 31st. Satan has no more power on that day than any other day of the year. And besides, do we really believe Satan is going to channel his most destructive power through a $14.99 Wal-Mart costume and a couple of popcorn balls? I think he is a little more subtle than that.
I think we have bigger fish to fry than making a big issue about Halloween. What about the consumerism and out-of-control spending they see from their parents at Christmas? What about the fathers who aren’t stepping up to the plate in the home (or in the church)? What about the constant danger of drug and alcohol abuse in school? What about an evangelical church culture that teeters on the edge of forsaking the Gospel for the sake of cultural relevance? Those, to me, seem like much more immediate and potent threats to the health of our children. Halloween seems to be the least of our worries.
This is, of course, a matter of opinion over which Christians will disagree. That is as is should be. I have great respect for anyone who studies the issue and responds with a clear conscience. But in the meantime, we will have a great time collecting candy from our neighbors, some of whom don’t know Jesus. I pray that God would help us use this opportunity to establish and build relationships with our neighbors, and that he may be glorified in the process.
My apologies for my absence on the blog lately. I’m back today with a short but great clip of an interview with Michael W. Smith by Don Chapman, founder of worshipideas.com. Worshipideas.com is a great site with tons of helpful tips for music and worship leading in the church, and Don sends out a weekly email with a helpful article. This is a site that is definitely worth checking out.
I have seen Michael in concert countless times over the years and appreciate his heart for worship and the local church, despite being a superstar in the world of Christian music. He is the real deal, and you see a wonderful glimpse of his heart here. I love his comment that worship leading is all about disappearing.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to visit the St. Louis Art Museum, a place I thoroughly enjoy. The Art Museum is a great place to visit if you’ve never been. Admission is free, and the museum has something for every taste. My favorites from the visit yesterday are the paintings by Vasari (who know Michelangelo personally), Van Gogh, and Monet. They really made an “impression” on me (sorry for the bad pun).
One thing you immediately notice in an art museum (or just about any art book) is the vast amount of nudity in painting and sculpture. This has sometimes been a point of discussion in my Arts class because it bothers some people. There is a general Christian perspective that views nudity as something inherently bad. But if you remember in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve felt no shame in their nakedness until sin entered the picture. The human body is a thing of beauty, a work of art designed by God.
However, in our sexually saturated society, it is very difficult for a Christian to view nudity of any kind without feeling a sense of embarrassment, shame or even lust. This is because even despite our best efforts, it’s difficult to have a biblical, healthy view of human sexuality in our culture. People throughout time have always struggled with issues related to sex (just look at the Bible!), but many of the great artists seem to have a healthier view. They included nudity in their artwork because the realistic portrayal of the human body was seen as a work of art, a way of acknowledging the master craftsmanship with which God designed each one of us.
In the end, I think we see what we want to see . If our minds are filled with lust, we will naturally be led astray by the portrayal of nudity. But if we have filled our minds with godly thoughts and understand the human body as God’s creation, hopefully we can have a more balanced perspective. There is nothing inherently wrong with the naked human body.
However–and this is a big “however”–we have to use a lot of discernment and judgment when it comes to how and when people view nudity in art. Certain things belong in certain places. People need to reach a certain age before they can handle nudity. It also depends on the context of the nudity and how it is portrayed. There also is difference (at least in my mind) between nudity that is painted or sculpted, and an actual image of a person. If someone has a serious struggle in this area, then I think it would be best to limit their exposure to questionable art altogether. “If in doubt, block it out” would be a good policy.
What about exposing kids to nudity in great works of art? Melanie and I were talking about what age might be appropriate for Ben to visit the Art Museum. It seems to me that the best strategy would be better to have open and honest conversations about nudity, sex and the human body at the appropriate age. (What that age is, I don’t know.) What seems to normally happen in households is that parents avoid talking about these issues altogether, thereby creating two problems: 1) kids grow up believing that sex and the human body are shameful things, never to be discussed; and 2) as they grow up they will seek our answers to their questions from sources that are prone to give them warped information: their friends at school, the media, the internet, etc. Shouldn’t parents be the ones to educate their kids on the human body and how God created it to grow and function?
Then again, Ben is only 5 years old, and all this is just theory for me. I would love to hear from some parents who have navigated these and similar issues successfully.
(A couple of notes: My intention with this discussion is not to offend, but to promote healthy, honest dialogue about some things that need discussed. In addition, I have “tagged” this post with a few terms related to sexuality in hopes that a few people searching for questionable items online would find this blog and locate something more helpful.)
Last Tuesday the David Crowder Band released its new CD called “Church Music.” I must say, it’s very different, even for DCB. Crowder has penned some great worship songs in recent years, although only a small number of them are really corporate-worship friendly. His music (at least in my opinion) is for the most part too difficult for the average congregation to sing.
But congregational songs have not really been his main purpose, I don’t think. The area where DCB truly excels is the marriage between cutting-edge music, creativity and lyrics filled with great theology. In this area they are basically in a league of their own.
My intent here is not to do a review of the CD, but I will say this: the more I listen to it, the more I like it. It has many layers than you can only appreciate after multiple hearings. I would describe the style as some kind of blend of techno/rock/pop/dance. This is not my normal cup of musical tea, but for this record I had to make an exception.
Question: Are you the epicenter of the band’s creative process, or is it a collective effort?
Crowder: I make up rules for a particular project and then give assignments based on these rules. The music of the church has been most effective at articulating faith for groups of people when it has embraced the language and art of that particular group of people. So we had to embrace what is going on within pop music. Pop music has moved more urban in the last decade and yet most progressive church settings are still trying to capture U2 and Coldplay. Not that they aren’t relevant, but when you have hip-hop producers like Timbaland producing rock bands, the trend should be considered.
One of the rules this time was that all of the music must first be composed in a computer. Then the rules stated that we must destroy what we made and recreate it with organic instrumentation. I felt like this would keep us from straying too far from where we’ve been and also allow for some of our rock and indie rock influences to be audible.
A couple of other rules were that songs had to lead into each other. Also, each must contain a nod to a formative moment within the history of music in the church, and these moments must appear on the album in historical order. It’s a musical puzzle.
I love it! The whole CD is like one long symphonic composition, although in modern musical form. This is some of the best the church has to offer in its music: cutting-edge, creative, with an awareness and appreciation of theology and history, and in a form that connects culturally. Thank you, David Crowder!
Several weeks ago I had the opportunity to review Donald Miller’s new book A Million Miles in a Thousand Years through Thomas Nelson’s Book Review Blogger Program. (Click the link to learn more about how to receive free books through Thomas Nelson.) I jumped at the chance since Miller is one of the most popular Christian authors around, based mainly on the success of Blue Like Jazz several years ago. Miller writes mainly what you would call “memoir-style” pieces in which he simply shares episodes and stories from his life. They are sometimes funny, often quirky, but always creative and interesting.
A Million Miles is easily Miller’s best book since Blue Like Jazz. At the beginning of the story we find Don Miller stuck in a rut, unable to cope with life and searching for a way to get his groove back. His life takes a surprising turn for the better when he has the opportunity to edit his own life story as the request of two movie producers (Steve Taylor and Ben Pearson), who want to make a movie based on Blue Like Jazz. The theme of the book could easily be called “living a better story.”
I can never recall being “sucked” into a book so quickly. I read it in less than two days, and would describe it as nothing less than poignant, hilarious, and beautiful. You might call this a story about a story, which connects to the Great Story. Very highly recommended; it’s certainly one of the best books I’ve read in a while.
This weekend at church, our new senior minister Brian Jobe concluded a month-long series on prayer. It has been a really wonderful series, and a great beginning to his ministry at Harvester Christian Church.
This weekend I had the opportunity to give the communion meditation. This is more of a challenge than it may seem because you only have a couple of minutes to share something that is concise yet meaningful. Normally we pass the communion trays while people reflect and pray. But this time we did things a little differently. After communion we had an extended time of music and invited people to respond. They could stay in their seats or come forward to pray and kneel. The point was for everyone to respond to God in a way they felt was appropriate.
In situations like this, people are usually hesitant to make a move. They don’t want to be the first to come forward. Yet when a few people do muster the courage to get up out of their seats, people feel a freedom to respond. It’s important for a few brave souls to lead the way.
It’s also key to have an atmosphere where people are expected and encouraged to respond. It would have been useless to ask people to come forward if there wasn’t already a “culture of response.” One thing I love about Harvester is that in our services, people are free to raise their hands, clap and be expressive in their praise. I couldn’t tell you how many times I have seen people come to the front during the commitment time to pray, bow or kneel. I don’t see this in a lot of Christian Churches.
One of the hardest truths a leader must hear is that is people take their cue sfrom us. Do we personally set an example of openness, warmth, generosity, and love during worship? If so, then the people around us will probably feel more willing and able to follow suit. Someone has to lead the way in worship, and that someone is you! If we want to change the way our churches experience worship, we must first begin with ourselves and the way we personally worship God. Only then will we be able to bring about any positive and lasting change.
Maybe it’s just me, but worship these days seems kind of exhausting. We have vocalists, worship bands, lights, complicated sound systems, computer projection, live video, a set list of worship songs we’ve rehearsed, and many other elements to coordinate. After I play or sings at our church’s weekend services (there are four of them), I’m pretty tired. (And I’m not even the worship leader or preacher–that’s much more exhausting!) I love being a part of our worship ministry, but anyone involved in contemporary worship would agree that it’s not a simple process.
Technology, worship teams, and the other elements that accompany contemporary worship aren’t going away anytime soon. But we don’t have to see those things as distractions. Really, leading worship is quite simple. All of the things we use in the process of leading worship (bands, technology, lights, etc.) are simply tools to help us lead people in giving worship to God. It can be easy to get overwhelmed by the technology and the details of a modern worship service. But when you realize those things can be a great help in leading people in worship, they cease becoming distractions and start becoming tools.
Worship today is complex, but it’s still very simple: we use the tools of our culture to help people worship God. The tools will change, but the goal remains the same. The challenge is to focus on the purpose of what we’re doing while skillfully using the many tools at our disposal.
Each fall when I teach Introduction to the Arts, my interest in the arts is renewed. I once heard a good piece of advice from a fellow teacher: every time he teaches a course he tries to read a new book related to the subject. I haven’t always followed that advice, but this semester I am having more fun than ever revising a couple of my courses and digging into related topics. I picked up a short biography of Leonardo da Vinci a few days ago and am enjoying learning some new information about his life and art.
One of the most intriguing aspects of da Vinci’s life is his incredibly wide range of interests. Although we think of him mostly as a painter and designer, he was also fascinated with biology, optometrics, mathematics, architecture, sculpture, medicine, flight, music, warfare, city planning, and a host of other fields. He was the original “Renaissance Man,” making contributions in a wide variety of fields. For instance, he dissected cadavers to learn more about the human body so he could portray is more accurately in his artwork.
This seems to be the opposite approach we encourage today. In order to be successful, common wisdom says, we have to specialize in one area and rise to the top of our field. There is surely something to be said for choosing area where we’re gifted and sticking with our strengths. However, I think it’s also wise to read widely and learn about a variety of things. This is called “cross-fertilization,” and I believe it’s one of the keys to Leonardo’s originality and genius. He gained fresh insights and creative ideas from exposing himself to a variety of seemingly unrelated fields of study. Then within those fields he found information and ideas he could apply to other areas. His main areas were painting, geometry, architecture and the like, but he was not afraid to be curious and learn from any source possible.
Have we lost our curiosity and drive to expose ourselves to new ways of thinking? Have we learned all there is to know? We literally have the information of the world at our fingertips, but we have only scratched the surface of what is possible. What is something new you will learn this week?
Last month we had a meeting for worship leaders in the St. Louis area and it was a lot of fun. The next meeting will be at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Sep. 10 at the First Christian Church of Florissant. We’ll do a tour of their worship facilities then head out to lunch in the area. If you are a pastor, encourage your worship leader to come. If you’re a worship leader, bring a friend from your church’s worship team, or from another church.
I was very happy with our last get-together. It was very refreshing to meet some other worship leaders in the area, hear about their ministries and be encouraged by their love for God. Life and ministry are too tough to go it alone.
If you’re in the St. Louis area, hope to see you there!
I had the past couple of Sundays off from my normal church responsibilities and took the opportunity to visit a couple of area churches. Last weekend I visited The Merge, a church plant led by a couple of friends and colleagues, Scott and Lisa Womble. That was a great experience (I’ll post about the visit soon). This morning while my wife was working (she unfortunately has to work Sunday morning once in a while), my son Ben and I visited The Journey, on Kingshighway near Hwy. 44 in St. Louis. We visited the 11:15 a.m. service at the main Tower Grove campus.
Bring up the topic of Halloween among any given group of Christian parents and it’s likely to cause a debate. Halloween is seen by evangelical Christians as a bastion for all kinds of evil associated with devil worship and ancient pagan festivals. Is Halloween a time for kids to dress up in costumes and enjoy some harmless fun, or is it harmful to a child’s spiritual health by encouraging activities that may expose them to Satan, the occult, and various other negative elements?
Yesterday I had the opportunity to visit the St. Louis Art Museum, a place I thoroughly enjoy. The Art Museum is a great place to visit if you’ve never been. Admission is free, and the museum has something for every taste. My favorites from the visit yesterday are the paintings by Vasari (who know Michelangelo personally), Van Gogh, and Monet. They really made an “impression” on me (sorry for the bad pun).
Last Tuesday the David Crowder Band released its new CD called “Church Music.” I must say, it’s very different, even for DCB. Crowder has penned some great worship songs in recent years, although only a small number of them are really corporate-worship friendly. His music (at least in my opinion) is for the most part too difficult for the average congregation to sing.
Several weeks ago I had the opportunity to review Donald Miller’s new book A Million Miles in a Thousand Years through 
This weekend at church, our new senior minister Brian Jobe concluded a month-long series on prayer. It has been a really wonderful series, and a great beginning to his ministry at Harvester Christian Church.
Maybe it’s just me, but worship these days seems kind of exhausting. We have vocalists, worship bands, lights, complicated sound systems, computer projection, live video, a set list of worship songs we’ve rehearsed, and many other elements to coordinate. After I play or sings at our church’s weekend services (there are four of them), I’m pretty tired. (And I’m not even the worship leader or preacher–that’s much more exhausting!) I love being a part of our worship ministry, but anyone involved in contemporary worship would agree that it’s not a simple process.
Each fall when I teach Introduction to the Arts, my interest in the arts is renewed. I once heard a good piece of advice from a fellow teacher: every time he teaches a course he tries to read a new book related to the subject. I haven’t always followed that advice, but this semester I am having more fun than ever revising a couple of my courses and digging into related topics. I picked up a short biography of Leonardo da Vinci a few days ago and am enjoying learning some new information about his life and art.
Last month we had a meeting for worship leaders in the St. Louis area and it was a lot of fun. The next meeting will be at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Sep. 10 at the First Christian Church of Florissant. We’ll do a tour of their worship facilities then head out to lunch in the area. If you are a pastor, encourage your worship leader to come. If you’re a worship leader, bring a friend from your church’s worship team, or from another church.
