What the Lakers showed me about worship, part 2

If we hold a wider view of what a worship team is, we realize we’re on the team whether we are musical, technical, oratorial, hospitable, or running late to service. Not one single fan interviewed looked like a potential NBA player, but they came anyway and claimed their place in the organization’s 16th win. They might not have added to the final score, but they came with everything they had, ready to do things we need to do in corporate worship. Continue reading…

What the Lakers showed me about worship, part 1

I don’t know that I love the Los Angeles Lakers because I can’t quite make an unconditional commitment to an imperfect NBA team [my SGV friends will appreciate that reference ]. However, I will say I like them enough to make an effort to watch them on television and even record their tournament games if I know I’ll miss the broadcast. I draw the line at buying a ticket to Staples Center, but that’s more of a financial issue. If you didn’t see game 7 last Thursday, I’m sorry you missed it! Amazing happened. To come back after being 13 points behind their biggest rival — and to wait until the last quarter to get it done — made a low scoring game unusually exciting. I even watched the award ceremony and the victory parade, which I almost never do…except for the time I actually went to their parade in 2002. Working at home has its privileges.

Something that has been consistently repeated in interviews over the last few days caught my attention and helped underscore what the Lord been steering me toward. All of the hype, combined with what I’ve been picking up at different conferences, has been re-shaping my idea of what a worship team is. What we don’t always see at a weekly worship service can be learned from the Lakers and their fans. Before you accuse me of heresy or unsound doctrine, let me explain… Continue reading…

Hello! It’s officially summer! And Happy Father’s Day to all of you dads. Hope you had a great day…

This week, can you please cover me in prayer:

• as I process all the information that’s been fed to me over the last two weeks
• as we discern God’s heart for integrating our mentor network a little more with global impact and how that might play out this fall
• as we continue to explore a new approach for international teams
• as we take a few more steps toward a test run for domestic efforts

Thanks! Enjoy your summer!

Hi! Hope your past week was as full of God’s mercy as mine was and you can see more to come! Thanks for praying for us at our staff retreat. We were so blessed with a beautiful environment, great weather, and significant time together. We walked away with some short-term goals that helped clarify our next steps.

This week, could you please pray for me during:

• a three day conference (Monday-Wednesday)  to learn about worship technology…this will be helpful both in my own ministry at my home church and in helping our teams focus and prepare for their ministry trips around the world
• a short update presentation to a gathering of outreach leaders at my church on Saturday morning…and to receive divine inspiration in the days leading up to it so I’ll know how to communicate His heart for me in this ministry within 5-7 minutes
• Thursday-Saturday, to make up for not being able to begin on Mon-Wed to tackle that long list of steps toward our six-month goals
• His peace and power to carry me through a packed week…and discipline to go to bed early and get consistent exercise! I forget sometimes how it’s the basic stuff that makes a way for the spiritual stuff.

Thanks so much! Have a great week!

Hello! It’s a beautiful June day here in So Cal. Hope it’s just as nice wherever you are…

This week (and next) will be pretty “active.” Please pray for:

• our first overnight staff retreat…it was hard to even find one two-day/one-night period to meet, and we finally settled on June 9-10. Pray we will bless one another as we bless God in our service to Him. And we’ll be humble enough to slow down and receive from Him, as well.
• the Lausanne conversation on June 10, 7pm, Saddleback Community Church. I’ll be going (because it’s free! ) to get to know that movement a little more personally, to network, and to fellowship with that community.
• personal growth in how I worship God and how I integrate that into my life, WFI or otherwise…
• a keen spiritual awareness of the movement of God throughout this week. With so much activity, it’s easy to just look at the surface of situations and not dig deeper. Still, I want everything He has for me in all that is happening.

Thanks so much! Hope you have a wonderful week. Let me know how I can be praying for you, too…