The Heart of Worship

This coming Sunday our Essentials topic will be worship.  So leading up to Sunday, I’ll be posting some things to think about regarding worship.  

Worship is a many-faceted experience for the believer, and the “how” is not as important as the fact that we worship. 

2 Cor 3:18
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.

But we need to realize that a heart of worship is not brought about by having good praise music. In fact we must be careful here.  As a church that is gifted musically, we run the risk of falling into the trap of becoming "connoisseurs of worship”. That's when we start thinking “I like/don’t like that song,” or “I like/don’t like the way he/she sings,” or “I like it better when _____ (fill in the blank!) leads the worship”. If we are not careful, we can idolize the music of worship, which is just as idolatrous as bowing to an image of a pagan god.

One of our well known songs “The Heart of Worship” was the product of just such an error.  Matt Redman was part of a church in England that was growing, and as you might expect the music was awesome! The guys realized one day that the music was part of the reason the church was growing:  People were coming to hear the awesome music. Matt and his team made a courageous decision, "We have created an idol with our music. We are going to stop playing all music in our corporate worship until the Holy Spirit clears us of our conviction about idolatry."

Essentially, he said "we're going to put ourselves out of work.” So the music stopped. I’m sure some left, but many saw the error of their ways and stayed, and prayed, and read the word, and grew.  The church even continued to grow because these folks were seeking something real, something beyond a good worship set and emotional times in the music. The were seeking the LORD.  At the end of it – Matt wrote “Heart of Worship”, and the theme of the song is “It’s not about the music, Lord it’s about you!”

This is not what everyone should do, stop the music, but it is a good example for us in that we should be in a continual state of examination of our heart.  We want to ensure that we are not seeking an emotional experience, or a state of spiritual bliss ... or anything else ...except God

A heart of worship is a byproduct of our love for the Lord.  If He is in us, and we are in Him, then our fruit will be apparent, including a desire to worship Him: A heart of worship is had by developing a relationship with the object of our worship

Pastor Clay

The unborn have a right to life...

This Sunday our church will be joining many other area churches to stand for the right to life of the unborn. This is the story of Gianna Jessen, a Christian recording artist who was born in 1977 in Los Angeles, CA. Her mother went to a Planned Parenthood facility to obtain a saline abortion in the third trimester.  However, instead of dying in the womb, as was the plan, Gianna was born in the abortion clinic - severely injured but alive.  This is her story.



Gianna Jessen from LMF CAM on Vimeo.

Join us Sunday - click here for info

For real?

I ran across this article today - for real?


Athiests and agnostics know more about religion according to new survey

to be sure, this doesn't apply to Calvary Chapel folk!  Do you guys know who Martin Luther was?

PC

Why the bible?

Someone passed this on to me and I thought it was a great follow up to the message on Sunday.  And, Ravi Zacharias rocks!

The Bible - message notes...

I received some requests for the message - the audio and the notes are up on the website...

www.calvaryofwilmington.org/TLW/Essentials/EssentialsSeries.html 

PC

The bible and why we can trust it

The Bible exists among us as one book. Yet it is in fact it is made up of sixty-six books, written by forty authors. Its compilation extended from the days of Moses (1400 BC) to the days of the apostle John (end of 1st Century AD); a period of 1,500 years. Its narrative extends from the creation, and extends through history right up to the present day; then goes further and tells what will happen to man and his world in the future.

The Bible maintains one view of human nature from beginning to end:  Man is not only mortal, a creature destined to die after a period of years, but he is morally weak as well. Endowed with the most remarkable powers of intelligence and reason, conscience and will, he is also subject to the pressures of his own desires to please himself. He is constantly under pressure to be self-indulgent, covetous, and above all to defend his own pride. Knowing what he ought to do, he so often fails to do it. In the terms of the Bible, even when men know the will of God, in general they prefer to do their own will instead.

The bible details the birth of a people: The nation of Israel.  A people called by God to follow Him, yet who failed time and time again to live up to God’s calling.  The portrait of the nation which emerges is that of a people constantly abandoning the true worship of their God and adopting the corrupt idolatrous practices of their pagan neighbors, with the inevitable immorality. The writings of the prophets without exception contain substantial passages exposing Israel’s failure to obey their God, and prophesying the judgments which would come upon them, if they did not mend their ways. Those judgments were fulfilled in successive invasions by surrounding nations.

The bible clearly speaks of a coming Messiah to the nation of Israel; then fulfills that prophecy through the account of the birth, ministry, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The bible devotes significant room to the exhortation of the New Testament Christian, through the writings of Luke, the Apostle Paul, James, Peter, Jude, and John.

Finally the bible spells out in vivid detail what will come to the present age: The rise of a world power, lead by none other than Satan and the Anti-Christ, who will be defeated at the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who will then establish His Kingdom here on earth.

There is no other book in the world which has such a range and scope as this.

The question is, where did it come from? Judging by the evidence of the past, no man nor any human authority could have thought out this view, nor would they have been able to maintain it over a period of many centuries. The one explanation that remains is that the bible is truly the Word of God, given to us through the hand of man.

For, “All men are like grass,and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you. 1 Peter 1:24-25

Join us Sunday for “The bible, and why I can trust it”
Pastor Clay

The practice of prayer

Last Sunday we talked about the practice of prayer, and I challenged each of us to spend time praying this week for one thing that was “God sized” in our life.  This is your reminder!  And remember that we would love to hear about it when God answers your prayer!

And remember when you come to the Lord in your quiet time, to spend some time in each of these areas:  Adoration (praise), thanksgiving, confession, forgiveness of others, supplication (asking), and contemplation (listening).

I cant wait to hear what God does!

Pastor Clay

When to pray

Someone has said, “If you are swept off your feet, it’s time to get on your knees.” Scripture backs up this claim. In its pages we find ample evidence that prayer can dramatically change situations, people, and sometimes even the very course of nature.

• Nehemiah prayed before he made a request to king Artaxeserxes for materials to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem (Neh 2) , and the Lord gave Nehemiah favor with Artaxeserxes, granting his every request!
• Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, was a king after God’s heart, yet one day he awoke to find himself surrounded by a coalition of armies bent on destroying Judah (2 Chron 20).  Jehoshaphat prayed and God set the coalition forces against each other, so that Judah did not even have to fight!
• When Joshua needed extra daylight to finish off the Amorites (Josh 10), he prayed and God made the sun stand still in the sky!

In James chapter five we are given a list of times when we might pray:  when you are suffering, when you’re cheerful, if you’re sick, when you have sinned, telling us “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (Ja 5:16).  Paul tells us that we should pray “everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting” (1 Tim 2:8).  Come to think of it, I think that whatever the circumstances, prayer is always a beneficial!

Join us Sunday, September 19, at 9 & 11 am, as we look into the practice of prayer.

… till the whole world hears,

Pastor Clay

Prayer - Everyone's doing it!

This morning I read an astounding fact:  according to a 2008 study by Brandeis University, ninety percent of Americans say that they pray every day.  Wow!  And it seems to be a growing trend;  A 1996 Time/CNN poll found that eight out of ten Americans pray every day; the numbers are growing!  With the growing economic and political problems our country is facing, it wouldn’t surprise me if that number weren’t even higher today.  There are simply a lot of things to pray about, it would seem.  But is prayer just about getting God to help us out when we’re in a pinch?

This coming Sunday we’ll be talking about prayer, and its place in the life of a Christian: Why we pray, how we pray, and what we can expect of prayer.  But we will also discover that the fundamental purpose of prayer is not about ‘getting things from God’, but rather ‘getting to know God.’  Prayer is about the relationship between God and man.  Just as our verbal conversations are the lifeblood of relationships with our family and friends, our prayer conversations are the lifeblood of our relationship with our Heavenly Father.  Prayer is like air to the Christian:  Prayer is as essential to knowing God and growing spiritually as breathing is to living and staying healthy.

Prayer is our connection to heaven, and heaven’s connection to us; that is why we should always keep the lines open!

…till the whole world hears,

Pastor Clay

Why I need a church... because its a time to spend with my heavenly Father!

Our last post this week of “Why I need a church”, it is because it is a time to spend with my Heavenly Father.  King David wrote in Psalms: “O Lord, I love the habitation of Your house, and the place where Your glory dwells.” (Psalm 26:8)   Think about it, as a Christian I am a child of God.  My heavenly Father is not cold and aloof, He loves me!  He delights in spending time with me.  He wants to reveal His plan for my life, and as His child I want to get in on the details, to cooperate with Him in that plan!  “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” (Jeremiah 33:3)


But see God is not only my Father, He’s our Father.  And Christ is not only my Savior, He’s our Savior.  Jesus said in Matthew 18:20, “For where two or three have gathered together in My name, there I am in their midst.” When we gather together to spend time with the Lord, he assures us He is there with us. As we worship God together, Jesus is in our midst, the Holy Spirit is moving in our hearts, and our Heavenly Father is enthroned in our praises, “But You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel.” (Ps 22:3)

Over the course of the past week, we have seen five very good reasons why we need church in our lives.  Doesn’t it make sense to plant our family’s roots deep into our local fellowship?  I think so.   See you Sunday!

…till the whole world hears,

Pastor Clay

Why I need a church... because its a refuge

Do we think that God instructed us to have a Sabbath one day a week because He wanted to hinder our progress?  I think not!  Our heavenly Father, who created us, knows that we need one day a week not only to take it easy, but we need a day to be refreshed, to be renewed, and to reflect on Him!  For the Christian Sunday is that day!

Coming to church is a way for us to get away from the busyness of the world and the stress of our lives, sort of like a mini-retreat.  It is a place to let the troubles of the world go, and focus my heart on things above, as I worship the Lord.  Coming together with the community of believers, worshipping God in the congregation, allowing the Spirit of God to renew our hearts; this is the essence of a church service.  I don’t know about you, but I have experienced incredible times of healing and refreshment in the midst of a church service.  The Psalmist David wrote “O taste and see that the Lord is good.  How blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!” (Psalms 34:8)  I think David knew what he was talking about.

…till the whole world hears,
Pastor Clay

Why I need a church... because its a billboard!

Have you ever noticed that you can tell what is important to your friends?  Some people love to fish, and you can tell because they spend all their extra time and money keeping up their boat, and they talk about fishing all the time!  I have a neighbor that always has the prettiest yard in our neighborhood, and you can tell it’s important to him because he is out there every day keeping it looking nice (yes, I have yard envy, but that’s another topic).  It is interesting to watch people and observe what is important to them.

We may not realize it, but people are watching us too, and one of the ways that the people in your life can tell that your faith is important to you is when they see you attend church services week after week.  Our commitment to church services makes a strong statement about our relationship with God to our family, our friends, and our neighbors.  Early in our marriage, Tammy and I made a commitment to each other that we would 1) be in church every week, and 2) that we would tithe faithfully.  I believe that these commitments, while they might seem ‘legalistic’, have played a significant part in testifying to our friends, our family, and especially to our children that our faith is real.

In Second Corinthians 3:2-3, the apostle Paul tells the people in the church at Corinth, “You are our letter written in our hearts, known and read by all men…written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the Living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts.”

Join us Sunday at Calvary Chapel Wilmington, at 9 and 11, as we explore this living organism called “the church.”

…till the whole world hears,
Pastor Clay

Why I need a church... because it's a classroom!

As we continue our commentary on the church, and why it’s important in our lives, today’s post is “Why do I need a church? Because it’s a classroom!

For the rest of my life I will be enrolled in a course entitled:  “Growing strong in Jesus Christ,” and each weeks lesson builds upon the one before.  Indeed, our personal time of Bible reading and study is important, but along with that God has placed some within the church who are gifted teachers to help equip us.  In Ephesians 4:11-13, the apostle Paul tells us that: “He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastor-teachers, for the equipping of the saints (that’s us!)…”

Whether it is a small group bible study, a men’s study, women’s study, an Equipping the Saints class, or the Sunday morning message, let us make full use of the many opportunities that we are given through the local church to grow in our faith.

…till the whole world hears,

Pastor Clay