#AtoZChallenge: Zerubbabel

Zerubbabel is the guy who started rebuilding the temple (and finished it) after the long Jewish exile. His story’s scattered in across Ezra, Nehemiah, Haggai and Zechariah, so you don’t really get a clear picture of who he is and what else he does, except rebuilding the temple and being the governor of Judah, and also, apparently an ancestor of Jesus.

The thing about Zerubbabel is that there is quite a clear demarcation of his life - before the temple and after the temple, and most of this is mentioned in Haggai, one of my favourite books of the Bible because it (sort of) mentions my birthday. Anyway, the main idea behind the book of Haggai is that the Jews aren’t prosperous because they’ve focused their attention on building wealthy homes for themselves (though evidently not quite successfully) and forgotten about rebuilding the Temple — which was why King Cyrus let them return to Jerusalem in the first place. It isn’t entirely their fault because there was strong opposition and several kings in between forbade it, but now there’s a new king and God has decided that it’s time. The current king, Darius, is led to find the old verdict, commanding the Temple to be built, and so he allows it. So the temple gets rebuilt and eventually, worship is restored in Israel. And from that day when the temple was founded, God releases His blessings. In a general blessing of the nation way, but also in a specific word for Zerubbabel, with God declaring that he is chosen, and will be made like a signet ring (a mark of authority).

Whilst this story is based upon the rebuilding of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem, I think the same principle holds true - when you put God’s house first and honour Him in your worship, God releases His blessings over you and your life.

Our churches aren’t quite desolate or abandoned, but there is much more to do in building the house of worship. Your role as a worship leader, as a priest in God’s house, is an important one. God is seeking to fill His House with glory - and you will be a part of that as you spend your life building it.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Yearn

In all we do, a key point is to not be satisfied. This isn’t to say that you go around pointing out all the flaws and mistakes in everything we do and be a total sourpuss, making people’s lives difficult. Celebrate your victories. Rejoice in the goodness of God. Congratulate each other for a job well done, acknowledge each other’s strengths. Be content in what you’ve done and what you’ve achieved. But don’t be satisfied.

Yearn for more. Each and every day, each and every week, yearn for more — more of God, more of His presence. Strive for excellence in everything you do — if you’ve done it well this week, strive to do it just as well, or even better, the next. Don’t stay static. Don’t stay complacent. Don’t fall into a routine of “well, we’ve been doing well, and it’s great so let’s keep at this pace.” Don’t rest on your laurels.

Even Paul says it in Philippians 3:12 - 14: He’s still pressing on, forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead — to that goal that is Christ.

There’s always more to learn, more to discover, more to hone, more to do. It’s easy to think that we’ve got it made. It’s easy to say that oh, I’ve done well this week, so I’ll take a break next week. That’s how you fall into a rut. That’s how you go from pushing the limits to dragging your heels. Because once you start thinking in your head that you’ve arrived is when you stop asking.

Don’t stop seeking God. Don’t stop asking for Him to reveal more of Himself to you. Don’t stop asking for more of His presence. Even on the mountaintops, yearn for more of Him. There is more that He can show you, even when you think you’ve arrived.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Xenia

Xenia is the ancient Greek culture of hospitality, where generosity and courtesy is shown to those who are far from home. This was necessary in Greek culture (and mythology), in case they ended up entertaining the gods unawares (a theme known as Theoxenia). This isn’t foreign to Christianity, of course. Abraham entertained an angel (also speculated to be Jesus) who promised the birth of Isaac. An angel appeared to Joshua when he scouted the Jericho. An angel appeared to both Zacharias and Mary, announcing the respective births of John the Baptist and Jesus.

The church, as the house of God, should be an open, welcome space, that shows generosity and courtesy to all who visit, and, of course, to those who stay. What does this have to do with worship? Shouldn’t that be what the ushers do?

True, but worship also needs to be welcoming. It needs to invite people into God’s presence, offering them respite from their cares and worries. It needs to provide familiarity to those visiting from afar and regular members alike. It isn’t pushy, demanding the people stand and raise their hands, or clap and jump and shout, though it can encourage those outward actions. It isn’t all about the newest, latest, hippest songs that not everyone can worship through, though new music does help engage people in a fresh way. It isn’t showy, telling people that my band, my church is better than yours, though excellence is an excellent pursuit. It’s not about old songs vs new songs, though >50% new songs is still a risk and 20-year-old songs get boring.

Instead, it’s about the worship team welcoming the congregation into the presence of God, ushering them in spiritually, just as the ushers did for them physically. You are inviting them in in word and song, reminding them to check their baggage (spiritual and emotional) at the door in order to receive afresh from God. You’re acting as God’s spokesperson, His usher, His butler, even before the Pastor gets up to preach, and you’re telling them that it’s okay to come close. It’s okay to let go a little. It’s okay to be comfortable, because this is home.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Worth

I’m not going to talk a bunch about worshipping God because He’s worth it. You know that already. You’ve repeated it many times, in your words, your exhortations, in your song. And it’s true - He is worth it, the Creator of all that was, that is and that is to come. The Eternal one who was, who is and who is to come. That’s why we worship Him.

But that’s not really what we struggle with. We struggle with why I’m worship leading, why I should worship, why I should serve. And most times, past the pride (because I can do it! I have talent!) is the crippling self-doubt almost every artist struggles with. (I admit there are those who have huge egos who probably don’t struggle with this, or those who are already incredibly secure in God and in themselves - Kudos to you!)

Know your worth. You are a child of God, crafted and known from your mother’s womb. God has given you this gift, this talent, this calling because he has chosen you. And only you can do all the things He has called you to do in the way He has intended you to do it. Other people may seem to be better than you in skill or talent, but they are not you. You are unique in the way He has created you, in the things you think and you say, in the words that issue from your lips. You are unique in the way you worship Him!

You are not your success or failure on stage or in the arena of life. You are not the days you bombed, you are not the days you killed it. No matter how badly (or how well) you do, you are worth it. You are worth the time and the effort, worth the friendship and the love, worth the discipleship and the training.

It’s not a competition. It’s a collaboration, and you are a valuable contributor, no matter that you think of yourself. Not because how talented you are, but because of Who has made you. Anchor yourself in that.

Anchor your worth in God.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Vulnerability

One of the most difficult things to be is to be vulnerable. If there is one thing that we most often refuse to be - besides wrong, or humble - it’s being vulnerable. And yet, all great art requires vulnerability allowing people to look into your soul. Though “great art” is a strange thing to call worship leading, it’s the same principle. (Remember what I said about beauty?)

People respond to honesty, raw honesty, the kind of raw vulnerability that cries out to God for help from the depths of their soul. It’s what you find in the Psalms when David and the other psalmists cry out to God - in loss, in victory, in sorrow, in joy. It’s being honest about your struggles and open about your pain. You don’t need to tell the congregation your life story in detail - but they need to see your openness before God. They need to feel your emotions, even if they don’t know the details behind it.

They don’t really need to know anything you’re not ready to share either. But what they need is to see you there - on stage - with your heart bared before God, allowing Him to move in you. They need to see your passion, your tears, your joy. At times, it feels like a performance. Can I cry on cue? Can I look ‘enraptured’ on cue? But you’re not meant to put on a show. There is no right or wrong time to do any “worship moves”. You’re meant to model to the congregation what it looks like to come before God in spirit and in truth, in openness and abandonment, to allow Him to work in you in music and song, in the middle of worship, in freedom.

It is only in being vulnerable - seeing our true selves as we are - that we can really come to God in truth, as He requires — and free others to worship Him in like manner too.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Unity

Just as there needs to be unity in the body of Christ, there needs to be unity in the worship team. It’s a no-brainer. I mentioned in Listen that you need to listen to everyone and that in listening to each other, there is unity. And yet, unity is definitely not one of the first things that comes to mind when you think about worship and worship leading.

The truth is, even if you have the best musicians in the world on stage, if they don’t play together and listen to each other, you may very well have the worst band in the world. You could also have a bunch of moderate musicians who don’t always get the fancy guitar riffs right and can’t do that solo thing on the keys or drums, but because they don’t have the need to out-shine each other and they play to support each other’s strengths and shore up each other’s weaknesses, they sound really, really good as a band.

That’s what you should be looking for. You’re looking for a team to work with because you know that thing about you being the worship leader? You’ll find it pretty hard to lead worship all by yourself. Your team needs to lead with you, alongside you.

And this need for unity extends far beyond just music and musicality. You need to support each other spiritually too. You need to be accountable to each other and accountable for each other. Who else understands your temptations just as clearly? Who else is lured by the same craving for fame and recognition? Who else knows the struggles you face?

Pray for each other. Support each other. Hang out together. Jam together. Become friends and partners in this journey of life. The best way to learn how to play together is to play together. The more familiar you are with each other’s styles and quirks, the better you are able to predict what the other will do during worship. This unity is where the magic starts.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#bookreview: Subversive Jesus by @craigasauros

Subversive Jesus: An Adventure in Justice, Mercy, and Faithfulness in a Broken World by Zondervan Publishing
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

From its very title, Subversive Jesus: An Adventure in Justice, Mercy, & Faithfulness in a Broken World, is meant to make you stop and think.
Greenfield shares the story of his journey from New Zealand to the slums of Cambodia (more of that in The Urban Halo: A Story of Hope for Orphans of the Poor), to Downtown Eastside Vancouver, where he spearheaded a community that ministers to the poor and neglected. Nestled between ministry anecdotes and life stories are nuggets of truth about the way Jesus meant us to live.

Subversively.
Generously.
Openly.

You probably won’t have the same call that Greenfield had to minister to the poor in developing countries, or to live in the slums amidst the desperately poor and the drug addicts. Or you may (and now you have a model to look at). But that isn’t the point. The point is to shake you out of your comfortable Christianity that only seeks the blessings of God, and puts you back into the mission field, remembering that even from the start, from when God called Abraham, that we are blessed to be a blessing, so that all peoples on earth will be blessed. The point is to remind you that the mission field isn’t just out there in other countries, but right here, at your doorstep, amidst the communities that you live in, in the middle of your heart and your passion.
And whilst God calls some to go, he calls many of us to stay.

Read my reflections:

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 | Chapter 11

View all my reviews

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Craig's book launches on April 26th. Do go pick up a copy here!

Pre-order Subversive Jesus and get these resources free:

• A 14-day devotional e-book: 14 Days of Jesus, Compassion, and Justice: Rethinking your Faith in a Broken World.
• A 4-week e-book Small Group Discussion Guide.

(Head over to http://www.craiggreenfield.com/ to see how you can do that!)

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#AtoZChallenge: Theology

Songs can inform a person’s theology, or at least one’s view of God, a lot more than reading books or studying the Bible does. Reading or studying something is an act of the will, and each person accepts or rejects what they read based on their worldview and life experience. But songs, even worship songs, are things that seep into your subconscious without you really thinking about it. Because these subconscious ideas are what shape your worldviews, this makes worship songs extremely important - and potentially dangerous.

Wait, how can a song be dangerous? Look at it this way:

• You don’t always remember what the pastor says during his sermons, even if you take notes. Notes can also be lost, or be written in such an intelligible way that when you go back to them you have no clue what it was supposed to mean (been there, done that).
• You don’t usually remember the verses you read during devotions or bible study, unless you make a specific effort to memorise them. And come on, how often have you actually purposefully memorised a bible verse once you left Sunday School and didn’t get cool stickers or gifts in return?
• But you tend to remember the words to the worship song that caught your attention last week, even if it’s only the chorus or bridge that was repeated over and over until you were sick of it. They’re the things that get stuck in your head and won’t go away, no matter how you try. They’re even contagious! Someone goes, “hey, this song has been stuck in my head for weeks,” and then the next you know it, it’s stuck in your head too. 

If it is a chorus which reminds you about how great God is, or the miracles He has done, or how our prayer moves the hands of God, that’s great. It helps and uplifts and provides courage and faith in times of need. Actually the moving-the-hands-of-God thing always felt a little dodgy to me, as if just because I pray, God has to do something. When He doesn’t, really. He can choose not to. But what if the catchy song of the week was some generic “I love You” song that - though it has its place - doesn’t really teach you anything about God? Or what if *gasp* it’s been watered down so much and made into such a catchy phrase that it actually teaches you something wrong?

Which is why the songs you choose, or the songs you write, are incredibly important. They may be the only theology an average churchgoer remembers - or thinks of at all - during the week.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Sensitivity

Worship leading calls for a sensitivity to the Holy Spirit. In the middle of the set, in the middle of the million things that are happening at the same time, you, the worship leader, need to be sensitive to what the Spirit is saying, to what God is doing and to where He is wanting to go.

I don’t recall exactly where I heard or learnt this (probably from Josh Yeoh, the founder of PenHOP), but throughout the worship set, even whilst you are exhorting the people to praise and worship, even as you are juggling the many things that you need to do and decide, the most important thing you need to keep asking is this: “God, what do You want to do next?”

“What’s next” could mean moving on to the next song. It could mean staying in this song for a little while longer. It could mean leading the people into a new song, into free worship, into a roar of praise, or into a moment of silence. It could mean sharing something you never intended to share, or praying with words that you never knew you had.

It isn’t easy. You get distracted wondering if you’ve sung this chorus too many times already. You get worried about how to tell the musicians that you want to do something different and you don’t have the appropriate hand signals to tell them - or you just can’t think of the signals quick enough. (Well, you can always walk over and talk to them; also, there’s where listening and unity makes a difference.) And you get that worried feeling in the pit of your stomach which says, “What if I’m hearing wrong and everything flops?”

The main thing is this: remembering that worship is about Jesus and even as we set out to seek Him, He draws near to meet us. And you — blessed worship leader you — get to facilitate this by listening to what He has to say right now in this moment. Your sensitivity to the move of the Spirit is something you need to cultivate.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Rest

The thing with all this doing is that it’s doing. It’s busy work. It’s working and striving and perfecting and honing and just doing a lot of stuff. Which is necessary. Which is good. Which is what we’re meant to do. We’re meant to work. We’re meant to create. We’re meant to be active.

But it is also good to rest. God commanded the Sabbath and we remember that yeah, we’re supposed to rest at least one day a week, but most times we don’t. It’s not built into our lives, like it was for the Israelites. I mean, especially when you’re leading worship on the weekend, that results in 5 days of the day job, and maybe a 1/2 day work on Saturday (depending on your job), and then it’s practice in church, usually on a Saturday and then service on the Sunday (or both days, if you’re in a church like mine), and then Sunday is kind of when you need to hang out with family and friends or you have social appointments and the like.

Which is all very restful for an extrovert, I’m sure, but an additional stress for an introvert. Either way, extroverted or introverted, that’s not really translated into physical rest either - or even mental rest. And because of our culture of busyness, every time we sit down and decide to take an afternoon nap (even on a Sunday!) or we decide that we need to hide away for a while and take a break, we feel guilty about it. We feel as if we shouldn’t deprive others of our presence or our talents, as if we shouldn’t mess up other people’s schedules since someone would have to cover for us (especially when there are already limited volunteers), as if we do not have a right to rest when it was commanded.

Do what you need to do, seriously, but don’t forget the need to take time off and rest. Recharge your batteries. So that you have all you need to get going again.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Qualified

One thing I struggled with in writing this blog series was how qualified I was to talk about worship leading. I started leading worship while in youth group (because hey, when you’re young, you can do anything!) and then I took a break when I went away to study. Later, I continued worship leading in my home church and, several years later, in the next church I moved to. Then in late 2014, I felt that God was saying it was time to stop. So I haven’t been worship leading for a little over a year now (at the time of writing this) and I don’t know how qualified I am to pretend that I know anything at all about this subject when I’m not some famous worship leader or song writer, I’m not from some uber-famous megachurch and I don’t give sermons or preach about worship - or anything of that sort. I’m just a young woman trying to make a living by writing.

There’s this quote that says “God doesn’t call the qualified. God qualifies the called.” It’s one of those quotes that oversimplifies things because, hey, who doesn’t want a snazzy uplifting saying? Yet the truth of the matter is that we’re all unqualified anyway. We’re all sinners and no matter how we try to live by the rules, we’re going to fail somewhere or another. But Jesus has fixed that through His death on the cross. We come back to God righteous and holy through His blood and that is all the qualification we need. As long as we don’t purposefully go around trying to disqualify ourselves, He’s already got our backs. And whatever God is leading us to do, He has already qualified us for it.

So if I believe that God is the one who called me to write this (I started off thinking, ‘hey what a great A to Z Challenge Theme!’ and degenerated into ‘who the heck do I think I am to write this?’), then it is He who qualifies me and gives me the words to say. Similarly, even if you’re feeling like the smallest potato or the tiniest fish in the sea of worship leading, you’re in a small church where no one can carry a tune and all you have is a guitarist who gets half the chords wrong, don’t worry. Since God has called you to this ministry, He will carry you through.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Priesthood

I’d originally wanted to talk about priesthood under L (for Levites), but then Listen pushed its way through, so here we are. 1 Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” Backtracking to verse 5, it says, “You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

Back in the OT, not just anyone could go and seek God. There was this Jewish tribe called the Levites who were basically pulled out of the inheritance of the land promised to the Jews and set apart as caretakers of the tabernacle and aides to the priests. The priests themselves were Levites, but from Aaron’s line. Only the High Priest could go into the Holy of Holies once a year to bring sacrifices, and he had to go with this bell and rope tied around his foot so that if the bell stopped tinkling (meaning he wasn’t moving anymore), they would know to pull his body out because that meant he did something wrong and God had to strike him dead. Yeah, I know I’m glad we don’t live in that era anymore. (Also, I’m wondering, why do I know this? How do I know this? Am I even getting it all right?)

But so, the Levites were basically the people who helped the priests (and some of them were priests), so in a strange kind of parallel, the worship leader (and the worship team) are the people who help the pastors; whilst that is kind of true, it’s not exactly 100% right either. Because when Jesus was crucified, and the veil in the temple was torn, it symbolised the fact that now everyone had access to God; as is said in 1 Peter - we, the followers of Christ, are in fact the new priesthood.

As a worship leader, you come with that mantle of leadership - of priesthood. It’s true that each and everyone standing in the congregation has that calling, but right now, where they are, they are looking to you to lead them in to the presence of God, kind of like how the priests led the worship of God in the temple. And whilst God doesn’t strike people dead with lightning anymore (at least not that I’ve heard in recent years), it’s still an awfully heavy and solemn responsibility.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Obedience

I’ve been putting off writing this post for a while now, though it was one of those I titled early on (for reference, I’ve pre-written everything except Y and Z at this point). It’s difficult to talk about because I’m not a naturally obedient person. I’m stubborn and strong-willed — have been since I was a baby (ask my mom!) — and I won’t do what I don’t want to. If I have to, I’ll be extremely grumpy about it and definitely not gracious.

Obedience ties in with Discipline and Sensitivity, doing what you need to do when you need to do it. What’s the point of being sensitive to the move of the Holy Spirit if you’re going to dig in your heels and not do it? (More on that later.) What’s the use of obedience if you haven’t had the discipline to hone your craft and you just aren’t capable of doing what you’re supposed to do?

It’s a lot about Kingship and Lordship which I haven’t written about (because K and L were taken). It’s about remembering that if you call God your Lord and King, then you should act like it (even if you don’t want to). It’s surrendering your will to God because you’ve acknowledged him as the Lord over your life. God doesn’t strike people down with lightning anymore, but He still can, if He wants to. (I hope He doesn’t.)

It’s your Yes and your Yielding (which leaves me wondering what to write for Y), because if you have tasted of the goodness of God in your life, you know that the only right respond to God is yes. Yes, I will do as You say, because I know You have bigger, better plans than I can even dream of. Yes, I will yield my will to Yours because I know that Your ways are higher than mine, Your thoughts are higher than my thoughts.

And sometimes, obedience isn’t really obedience until it’s something you don’t want to do.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Name

All throughout the Old Testament, God has been gradually revealing Himself, accumulating Names to Himself like people accumulate wealth (or try to). It’s a fantasy trope that knowing a person or creature’s true name gives you insight to who (or what) they really are, thereby giving you power over them. Like I said, that’s fantasy, and a trope, but what’s true about it is that the Names of God reveal who He is, just as the way we label ourselves reveals much about how we view ourselves.

Our God is the Creator, the Redeemer, Saviour, Abba Father, El Shaddai, El Elohim, Jehovah Nissi, Jehovah Shalom, Jehovah Jireh, and many others. Each of these names mean something. They were revealed at specific times, in specific events or narratives, revealing another aspect of God, another view of the nature of God that was relevant — and important — at the time. The more you read your Bible, the more you discover who He is and His many names. The question isn’t about learning all the names of God, or memorising them, or using them as a badge of honour. Anyone can do that.

The main thing is knowing who He is to you. How has He revealed Himself to you this week? Has He been your provider? Has He been your healer? Has He been your support and strength? These things inform and direct your worship. You’re not coming before an idol to worship in fear. You’re coming before the living God who knows you and wants to be known by you. You’re building on your relationship with the One who loves you. You’re not singing your songs into the void.

Knowing His Name helps you process who He is, and what He really means to you. And you bring this revelation to others in your song and words as you bring them into His presence with you. A constant revelation of God refreshes your worship, it moves you forward, it draws you further in, providing you also the ability to bring your church one step closer to God.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Motive

The struggle over your motive isn’t unique to worship leading. It’s something every Christian in every ministry goes through. I think it’s just especially real and tangible for those in the arts because that’s really where fame and attention is gathered. Someone in, say, traffic ministry (helping direct traffic and parking) is probably not going to struggle with their motives and their need for fame as much as someone who is on the stage, a visible presence that everyone pays attention to for maybe the first 30 minutes of church.

There will be days when you know your motives are pure. You’re doing this because you love to worship God. You want to be in His presence, to revel in His love. You really want to help usher the church into God’s presence. You want to show people the way into this place that you’ve glimpsed before and you hope to go deeper into. Your heart beats for God and you know that He’s your only focus.

Then there are the days when you’re feeling a little diva-ish, and you know you sing (or play) better than that person there, and why on earth did they choose this song, or what are the musicians trying to do, mess up the song? And you need a reality check to remember that hey, this worship session isn’t about you at all. It’s about God. It’s about bringing your best to God and offering back to Him the talent He has blessed you with. Not about how great you sounded or looked on stage.

But it’s difficult. We live with divided hearts. Our culture promotes musicians and singers as “idols” or “stars” and it’s easy for the church to fall into that mind-set. Christian musicians who start off in church and crossed over to mainstream, “secular” music with the intention of bringing Christ to world often have failed miserably, ending up being dragged down into the mire instead of lifting people up.

Worship leading is a dangerous call. Lucifer led the angels in worship before he decided that he wanted all the glory for himself.

Check your motives and keep your pride in check.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Listen

One very, very, very, very important part of worship leading - or of being in the worship team actually - is listening.

First of all, you listen to God. You listen to what He has to say to the people. You listen to His heart for you and for your church. You listen because you want to know what He wants you to do and sing this weekend.

You also listen to your pastor. You listen to his vision and direction for the church. You listen to his preaching and the things God is saying to the church through him. You listen to his decisions - and hopefully the reasons behind them. You listen because you want to align yourself and your ministry with the vision and direction of your church.

You listen to new songs. You listen to the lyrics and what they say about God and the church. You listen to what they are proclaiming over your church, your city, and your nation. You listen to how other bands build in worship, to the ebb and flow, to the melodies and harmonies, to the rhythm and beat. You listen because you want to continually increase your team’s repertoire and to grow in your craft.

You listen to your band. You listen to how they’re playing. You listen to what they’re playing. You listen to the things they’re saying about what is (or isn’t) working out. You listen to the music they’re creating. You listen because you want flow with them - and you want them to flow with you - in worship.

You listen to your vocalists. You listen to what they sing and when they sing it. You listen when they sing in the Spirit, when they flow in free worship. You listen to the harmonies they create, and you listen when they do not sing. You listen because you work as a team, enhancing each other as you lead the congregation into God’s presence together.

You listen because in listening there is unity.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!

#AtoZChallenge: Kindle

To kindle is to light or to set on fire, and when used in terms of emotions, it means to arouse or inspire, to impassion or excite. We talk about love as a flame and the Holy Spirit as a fire and worship as a passion. The thing about fire is that it needs to be fed. It isn’t something that goes on and on on its own. If you starve it of oxygen, it dies. If it runs out of material to burn, it dies. If you freeze it (take away the heat), it will also die. Sometimes the fire doesn’t die out totally, but it slumbers like an ember. It’s hot, glowing, retaining the heat of the fire before it, but it can go both ways: you can pour water over it or cover it with dirt so that it dies out, or you can use it to relight the fire.

Our hearts are like that — not just spiritually, but emotionally too. If you feed your love for God (or your boyfriend), it will grow. If you starve it, or ignore it, or just let it run on its own, it will eventually die out. Surround yourself with people who are passionate about things of God. You may be passionate about the same things or about very different things — but that doesn’t matter. Passion itself is infectious (like a cold virus or a flu) and if you surround yourself with like-minded people — who are passionate about God — it’s easier to keep going. It’s easier to stay focused and to stay impassioned about something. Just don’t make them your sole reason for staying.

Interestingly, kindle is also used to mean to bear young, especially for rabbits. And do you know how rabbits bear young? They have a litter, i.e. many of them at the same time. I’d like to think that being passionate about worship in the church will reproduce many others who are passionate about worshipping God. And the more people you have who share the same heartbeat, the more your team can grow in excellence and in passion.

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Are you an A to Z blogger? Send me a message on my facebook page or twitter with your blog name and number and I will send you a coupon to get Coexist on Smashwords for only $0.99!

About the book:

Jane Hays has been told all her life that it’s dangerous to be out in the forest past sundown. At fifteen, she’s quite sure that it’s all old wives’ tales... yet, why does her village bar the gates every night? Why do they even have gates? When she is caught in an unexpected rainstorm on her way home, Jane ignores all the warnings and seeks shelter in a cottage in the middle of the forest. Soon, she is caught up in a world of magic and beauty – and in the storm of the Fairy Queen’s wrath.

The Fairy Queen is out for blood. There have been intruders – human intruders – in her domain and she will stop at nothing to find them and kill them. After all, it is only fair. She is only seeking retribution for the death that humans leave in their wake.

But Jane isn’t all that she seems to be. And the events of the night aren’t as innocent as they appear.

A tale of magic, fairy creatures and family, Coexist is a novella for the young and the young-at-heart.

Get Coexist on Amazon or Smashwords. Check out Book Depository or Createspace for paperbacks!