Sunday, October 27th Order of Worship at Zion Bible Church

Opening Hymns:
Like a River Glorious # 371
It Is Well with My Soul # 381

Worship Set:
10,000 Reasons
Knowing You
O Lord, You're Beautiful

Closing Hymn:
Take My Life and Let It Be # 152

The story behind the song "It Is Well with My Soul" (http://www.sharefaith.com/guide/Christian-Music/hymns-the-songs-and-the-stories/it-is-well-with-my-soul-the-song-and-the-story.html) reminds me of Job's life.  Job could look beyond his troubles, and see God for who He really was - his friend.

Job 16:20 reads, "My intercessor is my friend as my eyes pour out tears to God; on behalf of a man he pleads with God as a man pleads for his friend."

Earlier, in Job 1:21, it reads, "Naked I cam from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart.  The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised."

I find it difficult to understand why Job did not curse God.  In our own lives, we always ask "why God?"  May God give us the strength to know that whenever we are going through what seems an impossible situation, we must continue to bless Him for His faithfulness, even when it does not seem evident.

My Thoughts on Hymns

Peridically, I try to do a hymn sing at Zion.  This week, with our fall outing and prophecy conference behind us, is one of those weeks.  I know that many in my generation do not have the same appreciation for the old hymns as I, but I know that the carefully chosen words can help teach us sometimes moreso than the more self-centric words in more recent "worship" songs.  It is important to note that while it is a personal choice how we choose to honor God through our time of worship, the most important thing is that we keep our minds on Him, and not ourselves.  As John 3:30 states, "He must increase, but I must decrease." (KJV)  Only when we see take the focus off of ourselves and see God for who He is, can we come to the realization of how much we need Him.  He is perfect, and we are far from.

I do, however, especially enjoy hearing the old hymns put to new music, such as these from Chris Tomlin:

Amazing Grace (Our Chains are Gone)
Come Thou Fount, Come Thou King
Crown Him (Majesty)
Fairest Lord Jesus

Recently, Steven Curtis Chapman recorded his version of "What a Friend We Have in Jesus" on his album Deep Roots, released in March of this year.  I love hearing this song on the radio.

Last year, I purchased the compilation entitled "Positively Hymns", recorded with various Christian singers.  This is by far one of my favorite compilations.  I highly recommend this CD for your meditation.
http://www.amazon.com/Positively-Hymns-Jeremy-Camp/dp/B008XRSQ94/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383361073&sr=8-1&keywords=positively+hymns.

Sunday, October 13th Order of Worship at Zion Bible Church

Opening Hymn:
Faith Is the Victory # 216
My Savior First of All # 480

Worship Set:
Days of Elijah
Revelation Song
Open Our Eyes, Lord

Closing Song:
Ancient Words

During this past week, we had Micah Winefeld as a guest speaker at Zion.  He is the founder of Prophecy Today Ministries, a ministry that looks to connect recent events in history and God's prophecy of the end times.  This is the third time Micah has come to speak at Zion, and each time it is a blessing.  His message this morning was entitled "The Eyes of Faith" and had to do with learning to connect our faith to the importance of prophecy.

Life, he stated, was just like driving a car - we constantly have to not only know what is in our rear-view mirror, and be aware of our surroundings, but most importantly we have to have our eyes looking down the road.  Living faith day-to-day without knowing where we are headed is a dangerous idea.  In the Bible, 1/3 of scripture deals with prophecy, and he is alarmed at how little the average Christian knows concerning where we are headed.  His message was geared towards the importance of prophecy and how it should affect our daily lives.  For instance, we can look across the isle and see another for who they are today.  Or we can see them as God sees them, as immortal beings - headed either for an eternity in heaven or hell.

My song selection this morning focuses on prophecy, and how God's Word can help us "open our eyes".  This is the first time we have sung "Ancient Words".  Normally, I try to introduce a song slowly, but the chorus of this song touched me insomuch as to hope that God will allow it to inspire us this morning especially.

The opening lines of the chorus goes as follows:
Ancient words, ever true
Changing me and changing you.

Hear and follow along with the entire song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nsz9NRclKa4

Sunday, October 6th Service at Zion Bible Church (@ Shady Grove Park)

On October 6th, we enjoyed our fall outing at Shady Grove Park, located in Windsor, PA.  The building was beautiful, and we had a good turnout for the service.  Our special guests for the service were Jim and Wendy Allshouse, good friends of Nikki's family in years past from Lancaster, PA.  The shared some of their new music from their new album, Absolute Peace, as well as some older gospel medleys as well.  http://www.jimanwendy.com/

Our congregational singing included hymns focusing on praising God for His beautiful creation.  Among the hymns sung were: Blessed Assurance, Praise Him! Praise Him!, and For the Beauty of the Earth (and a few others I unfortunately did not have backup tracks for...I am thankful for a congregation that can carry a tune and keep a beat, even a capella when needed!

Hope, Nikki and my daughter, actually made it until around 1:45 without a nap, amazingly.  She followed all the other kids and played on the playground after enjoying some hot dog wraps Nikki had made for the soup and sandwich dinner.  I particularly loved the soups, which were plentiful!  They included (all home-made) - chili, vegetable, cream of crab, cheesy broccoli (yum!), chicken corn, chicken noodle, and chicken pot pie.  I do love a good potluck dinner!

We all enjoyed a good time of food and fellowship.  It is great when we can glorify God for His blessings to us, and our closeness as a church family.  He is faithful!

"Praise the LORD, all you nations; extol Him, all you peoples.  For great is His love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD."
Psalm 117:1-2

Sunday, September 29th Order of Worship at Zion Bible Church

Opening Hymn:

Holy, Holy, Holy # 86

Worship Set:
Majesty
How Great Is Our God
Above All

Closing Song:
He Leadeth Me # 330

Key verses this week:
Psalms 139:7-12 - Our God is so great, He will guarantee that there will never be a time we are without Him.
⁷ Where can I go from your Spirit?  Where can I flee from your presence?
⁸ If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
⁹ If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,
¹⁰ even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,”
¹² even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.

Colossians 1:16-18 - Jesus is "Above All"
¹⁶ For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. ¹⁷ He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. ¹⁸ And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.

Sunday, September 8th Order of Worship at Zion Bible Church

Opening Song:

Glorious Day (Living He Loved Me)

Worship Set:

Standing on the Promises # 147
Jesus Is All the World to Me # 28
As the Deer

Closing Hymn:

The Way of the Cross Leads Home # 162

 

Our theme verse today is John 14:6 -

"Jesus answered, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.'"

 

With this promise of salvation, comes a promise that is also dangerous - if we depend on anything else other than Jesus' and His finished work on the cross, we will never make it to heaven.  We do not have to depend our enough good works, nor should we depend on anyone else who is not God's only Son.  Jesus' greatest promise it that He is our way, our only way.  Thus, we need to look to the cross for our way home.

 

The refrain of the song Glorious Day (Living He Loved Me) contains more promises we can depend on:

 

Living, He loved me
Dying, He saved me
Buried, He carried my sins far away
Rising, He justified freely forever
One day He's coming
Oh glorious day, oh glorious day

The Message of the Cross

This Sunday, we will be singing many hymns and songs that focus on Jesus and His sacrifice for us on the cross. We will also be observing the Lord's Supper, in remembrance of Him.  Little did I know, the Lord would open my eyes to two new websites that focus on returning the church to its roots - THE CROSS.  Both of the following blogs offered ways to turn your eyes back to the Lord.  Both are written by experienced worship leaders that reveal the best way to lead music is to simply "Lead Me to the Cross."

The first is written by Bob Kauflin, director of Sovereign Grace Music, one of my newer favorite groups.  I find their music refreshing because it offers great, focused, and biblically-based lyrics.  (And I love the "modern day hymn writer" style of it.)  I listed their website below, as well, with a link for a song I just listened to this evening entitled "Jesus Died for Me."   Sovereign Grace's newest release is entitled "Grace Has Come: Songs from the Book of Romans."  In Bob's post entitled "Idolatry on Sunday Mornings", he addresses different forms of idolatry we can have in our lives that even pervade our Sunday Morning services.  He points out that our music can become an idol to us, leading us away from Christ instead of toward Him.  Many more good posts can be found on his site www.worshipmatters.com.

The other blog is written by a veteran worship leader named Jim, who serves in the American Evangelical Church.  He offers the challenge that many of today's churches have lost their focus on the cross, instead focusing on bringing in people with things exterior to the Gospel message.  I find his thoughts on coffee interesting...

WARNING!  These blogs will challenge you to think about your faith!  I know they challenged me!

"Whatever happened to the message of the cross?" - http://notforitchingears.com/2010/11/09/the-cross-versus-coffee-and-the-winner-is/

"Idolatry on Sunday Mornings" - http://www.worshipmatters.com/2005/11/29/worship-service-idolatry-on-sunday-mornings/

Also, check out http://www.sovereigngracemusic.org/.  There is even free music to download.  I definitely look forward to getting my new CD sometime in the next week or so, entitled "Before the Throne" by Steve and Vikki Cook, Sovereign Grace songwriters.  Their song "Jesus Died for Me" I also learned about from the Worship Matters website (I had a terrible time finding a CD with it, as they are no longer on Sovereign Grace's website.  Thank you Amazon!)  Listen to it and follow the lyrics at http://www.worshipmatters.com/2008/01/29/new-song-%E2%80%94-jesus-died-for-me/.

That's all for now.  Thanks be to God for the Cross!

What "Who Am I" says about "Who I Am"

It has been a while since Casting Crowns released their song "Who Am I", but we will be singing it this Sunday morning for the first time during our service.

The words to the chorus tell the whole story behind the meaning of the song:

Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done.
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are.

To further answer the question of who we are, the closing to the chorus states, "You've told me who I am.  I am yours."

Ephesians 2:8-9 reads, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast."

John 1:12 states, "Yet to all who receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God."

And finally, Galations 3:26 states, "So in Christ you are all children of God, by faith."

It is not who we are or what we have done that causes God to love us.  In fact, it is in spite of ourselves that God loves us.  Romans 5:8 says Christ gave himself for us while we were yet sinners.  It was His action that caused us to become who we now are.  We are no longer sinful creatures by birth, through Adam.  We are saved in Christ, and through Him we can be made righteous (Romans 5:19).  Taking that thought further, our new identity in Christ is now so much more than we ever were when we counted on our own devices.  Our own glory and faithfulness is fading (I Peter 1:24 and Isaiah 40:6-8) and our time here is earth is but a vapor - gone quickly (James 4:14).  However, through God and His Word, which endures forever (Isaiah 40:8), we can become His own, His sons and daughters, children of God, heirs to His kingdom.  First, however, we must receive Him, and actively believe, though faith, that He is our saving grace.  It is then and only then that we can finally say, "I am Yours."

Building on the Rock

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."
Matthew 7:24-27

I enjoy weather.com, and for more than just weather.  My job preparation as a mail carrier depends greatly on the weather, but many times I visit the site just to read interesting stories.  I find their stories and pictures fascinating (albeit non-weather related most times).

This past week, I read about "9 Desolate Ghost Towns."  It was interesting to see areas once full of prosperity brought down to earth for one reason or another.  One intriguing example was Holland Island, formerly found in the Chesapeake Bay.  That's right, in the bay.  I'm sure we have all thought about owning or own little island at some time or another (even if as a child, when our imagination runs wild.)  What I found interesting about this former community is that the residents built their houses on eroding sand.  There was no rock on this island on which to build foundations, so the community of fisherman made due with clay.  The article states, quoting the Washington Post ""like other Chesapeake islands, [Holland Island] was made of silt and clay, not rock, so its land eroded readily."  The last house, it states, collapsed in 2010, bringing to end a community which at one time housed more than 360 people in 1910.  (See http://www.weather.com/travel/desolate-ghost-towns-20130618?pageno=9 for the full story and pictures.)

Now this story is more than fascinating because it has a direct parallel to our spiritual lives.  When I find myself depressed, angry or sad, many times I can directly correlate this to trying to do things in my life through my own efforts, and not through God's strength and power.  It is difficult, as we Christians do experience the same heartaches that those who do not believe do, to show and live Christ's example even through our troubles.  I get discouraged sometimes at the simplest things.  It is in these times that I find myself building on this sand and silt.  And sometimes, God needs to send the storm to bring us back to the realization that He and He alone should be our foundation.
God never promised we would be given a trouble-free life.  But we can lean on Him in times of trouble; He is our Rock.

Thoughts on Matt Redmand and "Jesus, Only Jesus"

"Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we MUST be saved." Acts 4:12

As a prelude to this week's service, I chose the song "Jesus, Only Jesus" sung by Matt Redman as part of the Passion 2013 lineup.  A newer song of Matt's, 10,000 Reasons, I hope to sing at a future service.  One of my favorite worship songs, The Heart of Worship, is also a Matt Redman song.  I like his combination of powerful lyrics, simple tunes, and his easy-to-lead worship style.  Many worship leaders are great song writers, but I find their songs great for personal listening, but not ideal for congregational singing.  Matt Redman's songs are definitely a break from this mold.

I also like that the great worship songs nowadays have more than one contributor.  This song has 6 total contributors.  Many times, we cannot fully express our own Christian faith until we work with and fellowship with others.  Christian songwriting is no exception.

Here are the words to Jesus, Only Jesus:

Who has the power to raise the dead?
Who can save us from our sin?
He is our hope, our righteousness
Jesus, only Jesus

Who can make the blind to see?
Who holds the keys that set us free?
He paid it all to bring us peace
Jesus, only Jesus

Holy, King almighty Lord
Saints and angels all adore
I join with them and bow before
Jesus, only Jesus

Who can command the highest praise?
Who has the name above all names?
You stand alone, I stand amazed
Jesus, only Jesus

You will command the highest praise!
Yours is the name above all names!
You stand alone, I stand amazed
Jesus, only Jesus!
Jesus, only Jesus!

Copyright A Thousand Generations, worshiptogether.com songs

Sunday, June 16th Order of Worship at Zion Bible Church

This posting is a little late, but here was our order of worship from Father's Day Sunday, June 16th:

Opening Hymns:

Tis to Sweet to Trust in Jesus # 198

Leaning on the Everlasting Arms # 145

 

Worship Set:

Here I Am to Worship

Shout to the Lord

He Knows My Name

 

Closing Song:

How Deep the Father’s Love for Us

 

Our theme was based on I John 1:4 -

"I have no greater joy than to hear my children are walking in the truth."

 

As fathers, we should set the example of walking with the Lord and trusting him through faith.  And what better example we have to follow than that of God himself, who chose to give Jesus for us.  The song "He Knows My Name" lets us know that our Father in heaven was, is, and will continue to think of us, and hope we come to him through the knowledge of His saving grace, through His Son, Jesus, His gift to us.

 

I have a Maker
He formed my heart
Before even time began
My life was in his hands

I have a Father
He calls me His own
He'll never leave me
No matter where I go

He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And He hears me when I call

 

Copyright 1996 Tommy Walker

In This World We Will Have Troubles...

But He has overcome the world!  See John 16:33

Here is a page with encouraging scriptures to help you through any of life's truly difficult times.

http://www.persevering.org/scriptures.html

Hope and Heaven

This week’s Theme is Hope and Heaven.  There are a lot of hymns focused on heaven, so it was difficult to choose.  And, of course, I Can Only Imagine, one of my favorite Mercy Me songs goes very well.  The Bible has quite a bit to say about heaven, however there is a lot we still will not know until we get there.  We know we will be surrounded by His glory, as the song goes, but do we really have a true idea how we will respond to being before a holy God?  The only way to truly find out is to accept His salvation here on this earth, and look forward to what is to come!  Let us live worthy for Him, so one day we can sing Worthy Is the Lamb to our Savior!

 

"Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming."

James 5:7

 

"Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure."

1 John 3:2-3

 

"For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words."

I Thessalonians 4:16-18

 

"Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

Revelation 21:1-4

 

Kiwi

One more resource before I call it an evening (or morning...)

Check out www.hymnpod.com for some good piano renditions of classic hymns.  It's a great resource for those of us who cannot play an instrument to save our lives.  Free mp3 downloads of hundreds of hymns, all ready for personal devotions, enjoyment, or, in my case, congregational use.

Here's his most recent listing of hymns available:
http://www.hymnpod.com/hymn-listings/

His most recent publication on his podcast - Grace Greater Than Our Sin.  I look forward to using this one in the not too distant future. We have not sung this one in years, and it's proclamation that God's grace is greater than all our sin is nothing short of a wonderful mystery we can be thankful for each day!

Mother's Day Humor:

One song I do find myself wanting to sing every year is Faith of Our Mothers, simply because there are so very few good hymns or songs dedicated to motherhood.  Here are some alternative lyrics I found while looking around for some ideas.

Faith of our mothers, living yet,
after church meetings, house-breaking pets,
Car-pooling Little League, lessons at 2,
None would get done if it weren't for you.
Faith of our mothers! Holy faith!
We will be true to you always.

Faith of our mothers, living still,
in spite of doc'tring others while ill,
Working long hours and dinner at 5,
Only by God's grace are they alive!
Faith of our mothers! Holy faith!
We will be true to you always.

Faith of our mothers passed on to each
child and grandchild, nephew and niece,
Sharing their faith, their hope, and their love,
Grant them your strength and peace from above.
Faith of our mothers! Holy faith!
We will be true to you always.
Happy Mother's Day!

Copyright © 1993 James N. Watkins

For more from James Watkins, see www.jameswatkins.com.  James Watkins is a Christian author, speaker, teacher, and self-proclaimed threat to society (see http://www.jameswatkins.com/threat.htm).  His website is entitled "Hope and Humor", an online ministry of the River Community Church.

Mother's Day is upon us, and thus comes the complicated song & hymn selections for this year's service.  Each year, it is more difficult, as there are only so many songs to choose which include thoughts about our mothers' roles in our Christian upbringing.  This year, I stumbled upon this website from the Baptist Press, which offers many ideas for conducting a Mother's Day service.

http://www.bpnews.net/BPFirstPerson.asp?ID=25634

Some ideas I like from the site: Mother's Day videos, Mother's brunch (we just had a breakfast conducted by the men at our church just a few weeks ago...very good), a special children's parade, or presenting gifts to the women in your congregation.

A side note on videos: Videos are very easy to come by, and I have a few downloaded from Sharefaith I can use each year.  Sharefaith is a Christian-based website, which for a subscription of around $129 or so (sometimes you can get a discount), you can download all sorts of worship backgrounds, motion backgrounds, bulletin templates, clipart, videos, and even website templates.  It has been a tremendous value to me over the past several years.  However, we no longer subscribe to their service, due to budget constraints.  (But I recommend you check it out for yourself!)  Or just try Youtube...amazing resource! (Remember to be as careful as possible about copyright infringement...)

The most important reminder from the Baptist Press article is the last - WORSHIP HIM, NOT HER.  While honoring our mothers and fathers on their respective days, it is important to remember (and I need reminded from time to time) that the service should be about honoring the Lord, and not His creation.  The article goes on to say: "Many unchurched family members will attend worship with their moms. Tell them how Jesus can change their life! It's a great day for a baptism, baby dedication or children's choir song. Joyfully honor mom on Mother's Day, but focus on the only One worthy of worship -- our God."

Thus, for this year's service, I selected hymns which honor God's characteristics which we can find in a godly person.  His faithfulness, holiness, goodness, mercy, and guidance are all things we hope to find in a godly mother, and are ideals we can all strive toward to become more like Jesus.

"But in your hearts, revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect."
I Peter 3:15

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  Against such things there is no law."
Galations 5:22-23

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."
John 5:27

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."
Joshua 1:9

Our theme this week for our music is the Fruit of the Spirit.  I have been challenged this past week to keep pressing on, with the joy of Christ, even when things seem to not go the way I want them to.  We can always turn our problems over to the Lord - whether they be at work, home, or elsewhere.  Remember, we are not of this world; we cannot let the things of this world overtake us.  Jesus himself said we would have troubles, but we should trust in Him because He has overcome the world.  The Fruits of the Spirit come from Him. We may or may not be happy in our circumstances, but our joy is in the Lord.

Kiwi

Welcome to Thoughtful Worship, my first attempt at blogging.  I continue to experience a new world in organizing my church's worship service, and wish to pass it along.  I am finding so many resources, good videos, other blogs, worship tips & ideas, and so on that I find I need to write my thoughts down.  I need to record them not only for my own benefit, but so anyone who wishes might be able to get a glimpse into God's leading.  It is amazing how God can use a simple thing like the internet to help us grow in our faith.  I hope it can also help me to become a better worshipper and worship leader.

My first resource - LifeWay Worship - www.lifewayworship.com

Today, as I was searching for a good instrumental backup for "Sing, Sing, Sing", I read another blog on LifeWay Worship's tweeter entitled "Scripture in Worship".  As I try to use my leading worship to praise the Lord, I try to find a way to fit Scripture into our worship services at Zion.  Joe Thorn published this blog, which offers some good tips on how you can fit Scripture into any service.  It can be found at http://www.joethorn.net/blog/2013/4/21/scripture-in-worship.

His one suggested reading, Psalm 19, offers a glimpse into God's glory, then His Law and Word.  Sounds like a wonderful start to our service tomorrow!

Also, LifeWay's featured song, Open Up the Heavens by Meredith Andrews, definitely fits the bill for a good opening prelude song and call to worship http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgJCB0ArawA

Some of my favorites songs for today:
Jesus, Firm Foundation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgLAk9S1gFA
Lord I Need You http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_q1cXSM_6o
Jesus, Only Jesus http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2o4dI3HA0A

Hopefully, this is just the beginning.  I plan on making an effort to share more going forward!

Kiwi