So, yesterday in worship we celebrated what happened over the course of the week at our Vacation Bible Camp (yes we call it camp and not school because camp is more fun than school).  It was a great opportunity for the congregation to experience what the kids learned during the week.  We had the kids sing some of the songs they used during the week, the two youth that did the daily opening skits participated, we heard and saw what the 5th and 6th graders got to do and we learn about the mission that would be the recipient of the money the kids raised throughout the week.

The only possible downside was that they took quite a bit longer than we had planned for.  Why is this a problem?  Well, this service is at 9:30.  We have an 8:30 and a 10:45 service also.  All three services are held in the same location.  This can make for some logistical “hoop-jumping” as the 9:30 service utilizes a full praise band.  We try to keep this service to under 60 minutes so that there is time to change things over before the 10:45 service and to keep the editing of the service to a minimum as it is broadcast weekly on the local cable access channel.

We had opened up the service with a welcome, then sang “Not To Us” and then went into the VBC Celebration.  We then did two more songs (“Love the Lord” and “Your Grace is Enough”) and went into the prayer and message.  The problem – by the time we got to the message it was about 10:20.  Jim did not have any time left to deliver the message that God had placed on his heart.  This was the final message in our Acts Alive! Series that we had been doing over the last month plus.  In addition to his message he wanted to make sure and include a time of sharing for the congregation to talk about the ways in which they have seen the church reaching out and showing the love of Christ and reaching out to the community.  He went straight to this portion as he knew his time was an issue.

Once the sharing was done the team started to get up to do our closing song (OK – I started to get up).  Jim and I shared a moment in front of the congregation and it was decided not to do the final song (we were going to end with the first verse and chorus of “Blessed Assurance” to emphasize the point that we all have a story to share and that we need to share it).  Jim gave the benediction and we ended.

This is where the hindsight comes in.  Looking back I really think I should have nixed the two songs and given Jim that time for his message.  At the time, the thought didn’t really occur to me as this is not something we ever had to do in the past.  Now it seems like it would have been the perfect thing to do.  Jim’s message is a vital part of this service and I know how he was hoping to use this to wrap up the entire series.  Sure, we would have had to cut some music but in the end would that have been terrible?  I know I would love to have heard where his message was going.

This also seems like a recurring theme lately – cutting short the message because of a lack of time.  In an ideal world time wouldn’t be an issue but because of the way we are structured it is something that we have to be able to deal with in a appropriate way that is pleasing to God.

What do you think?  Have you ever had to deal with this?  What would you have done?  How many songs should be in a service?

You know, I’ve been looking at this black and blue screen and text and am thinking about changing to a different theme.  It’s still water based but it’s got more orange.  Oh, and the background is white with black text.  I think it will make things easier to read.  The site just looks too dark.  So, if you check back later and it’s different – you’ll know why!

Here’s the theme I’m thinking of going to:

What do you think?  Do you like the black and blue or is it time for a change?

A couple of friends of mine recently recommended the book “Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire” by Jim Cymbala. Jim is the pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle. I’ve gotten through about 100 pages of it so far and I’ve got to say that I think this needs to be on the must-read list for everyone out there – especially those that are directly involved in ministry.

I’ve always believed in the power of pray, in the importance of prayer. As a worship leader I’ve always said that to think of worship as just music not being fair and authentic to the biblical view of worship. I think that when the body of Christ comes together in prayer that amazing things can happen. This book is taking my thinking to a whole new level and giving me even more “ammunition” and things to really dig into and study. Couple all of this with what Ben over at Mustard Revolution recently posted about the book he has been reading (this one is going to be next on my list). It’s really challenging me to think about what God is calling me to do to further his kingdom and to re-think what I can do to reach the lost.

As Ben did I’m going to post just a few excerpts from what I’ve read so far. Please note – THESE ARE NOT MEANT TO CONDEMN but to begin a thought process. I encourage you to read the book yourself. All I ask for now is that you think about this, think about where you and your church currently are and think about what God may be calling you to do.

I discovered an astonishing truth: God is attracted to weakness. He can’t resist those who humbly and honestly admit how desperately the need him. Our weakness, in fact, makes room for his power.

“From this day on, the prayer meeting will be the barometer of our church. What happens on Tuesday night will be the gauge by which we will judge success or failure because that will be the measure by which God blesses us. If we call upon the Lord, he has promised in his Word to answer, to bring the unsaved to himself, to pour out his Spirit among us. If we don’t call upon the Lord, he has promised nothing-nothing at all. It’s as simple as that. No matter what I preach or what we claim to believe in our heads, the future will depend on our times of prayer.”

“You can tell how popular a church is by who comes on Sunday morning. You can tell how popular the pastor or evangelist is by who comes on Sunday night. But you can tell how popular Jesus is by who comes to the prayer meeting.”

Prayer cannot truly be taught by principles and seminars and symposiums. It has to be born out of a whole environment of felt need. If I say, “I ought to pray,” I will soon run out of motivation and quit; the flesh is too strong. I have to be driven to pray

The more we pray, the more we sense our need to pray. And the more we sense a need to pray, the more we want to pray.

Salvation itself is impossible until a person humbly calls upon the name of the Lord (Acts 2:21), for God has promised specifically to be rich in mercy to those who call on his name (Rom. 10:12-13).

If our churches don’t pray, and if people don’t have an appetite for God, what does it matter how many are attending the services?

As a preacher myself, let me be blunt here. Preaching itself can easily become just a subtle form of entertainment. When I stand at the Judgment Seat of Christ, he is not going to ask me if I was a clever orator. He is not going to ask me how many books I wrote. He is only going to ask whether I continued in the line of men and women, starting way back in the time of Adam’s grandchildren, who led others to call upon God.

What does it say about our churches today that God birthed the church in a prayer meeting, and prayer meetings today are almost extinct?

Here’s how I spent my Father’s Day last weekend. We headed up with the neighbors to Kalahari Water Park in Sandusky, Ohio and spent about 24 hours getting as water-logged as possible. Great times with great friends.

Wow – it’s been WAY too long since I updated this thing.  I’m working on a video from my fabulous weekend up at Kalahari Waterpark & Resort that I hope to have up tonight or tomorrow.  It was a great weekend with the family and a great way to spend Father’s Day.  I also had the chance to spend Saturday with my Father down at his house.  We had a nice visit, great food and even a brief visit by a State Trooper (my cousin Dave).

As I spent time with my own kids making some great memories I couldn’t help but reflect on my own father and all the great times that we had growing up.  My dad was always there for us, always had time for us, was always willing to wrestle, play catch, teach me woodworking skills, teach me how to drive, how to fix things (like my car after I drove it into stationary objects).  He always made time.

One of the things I remember is that he was a baseball coach for a Hot Stove team.  I’ve no idea how old the kids were that played, if they were any good or not, all I know is that I was there for all of the practices and the games.  You see, my brother and I were the bat boys.  We had uniforms just like the rest of the guys and we’d run out, pick up the bat and bring it back – just like the big leagues!  The practices were held out at the fields by Stark State College and there was a killer hill between the field that my brother and I would hang out on and roll down.  We were close to an airport as I remember the planes flying over the fields as well.  But what I remember most is just riding back and forth to the practices and just hanging out with my dad.  We may have talked, I know we listened to a lot of “classic” 70′s music, and I’m sure we probably hit our share of ice creams stands.  Later when I got older my dad coached my baseball team and I’ve got lots of great memories from that as well, but I still remember those days as a bat boy for the Avondale A’s (I think that was the team).  It wasn’t anything specific, it was just the time that we spent together.

Now that I’m a father this is one of the things I love to do my my son.  If I’m heading to the store I’ll ask if he wants to tag along – not because I need the help, not because I want to buy him anything – just because it’s a chance for us to hang out.  They say that our time is the most important thing that we can give our children and I definitely believe this is true.  Now, am I the best at making that time?  Nope.  Do I have a tendency to tell my kids that I’ll come play “in a bit”?  Yep.  Do I want to change that?  You bet!

So, on this fathers day (OK, a few days after) let me just say, “Thank you, Dad.  Thank you for making time for me.  Thank you for playing with me, for wrestling with me, for teaching me what it means to be a man and for just spending time with me.  I pray that I can follow your lead and continue to create those same memories with my own children.  Happy Father’s Day – I love you.”

So, the last few days here in beautiful northern Ohio have been in the low 90′s!  YIKES!  It’s the kind of weather where you are thankful for air conditioning!  So, Sunday afternoon were all acting like a bunch of couch potatoes when I realize – we need to do something.  We ask the kids their opinions and hear back – movies, Amazone, bowling – and all I hear is $$$$. 

So, then I remembered that a few days prior while at the local Wally-world I picked up a few bags of water balloons.  It’s time to prepare for battle…

So, tonight was the night. I’ve gotta admit it has been an interesting last 24 hours. Let’s go back in time, shall we?

Friday 4:10 p.m. – I decided to stop by the church to do a few set-up things: tables, sound equipment, etc. They were moving the grand piano up onto the main stage area…at least they were supposed to move the grand on Friday. They were supposed to move it between 2 and 4. When I got there – well, the grand was still in it’s original place. I checked with the Pastor – he hadn’t heard a thing. So, I called the company that was doing the work…no answer. I left a message and hung around for a while hoping maybe they were just running late.

Friday 5:15 p.m. – Went home.

Saturday 8:30 a.m. – Got up and called the piano moving company – left another message.

Saturday 9:04 a.m. – Talked to the person that arranged for the piano to be moved. She was surprised as well. She’s used this company hundreds of times and never had a problem.

Saturday 9:30 a.m. – Called again (hey, maybe they don’t get in until 9:00 on a Saturday) – left another message.

Saturday 10:32 a.m. – Get a phone call from Ben Stewart – the guy I’ve been working with for the last few months to book Shaun. I have to admit, I was surprised to hear from Ben. Ben’s on vacation, Ben’s not supposed to be calling me. Turns out, Shaun missed his flight. Luckily, he was able to get booked on a later flight, but that 4:00 sound check and 5:00 dinner – not happening. Shaun was scheduled to land in Cleveland at 3:50.

Saturday 12:05 p.m. – Get a call from the church secretary. Turns out there was a message on the church’s voicemail with a cell number for the moving company! Called them immediately and found out that they will be there this afternoon between 1:00 and 3:00. Sure, it was cutting it close, but at least I knew it was going to get moved.

Saturday 1:30 p.m. – Head to the church to wait for the movers. It is hot! I mean crazy, sweaty, sticky hot. One of these days were supposed to get air conditioning in there. Tonight, we have a few fans.

Saturday 1:51 p.m. – Piano gets moved. Of course, not exactly the way you would want it to be – that’s another story – but at least it was moved.

Saturday 4:45 p.m. – Shaun calls. He’s just gotten on the road after picking up the car. Looks like about a 5:30 sound check. No worries, right?

Saturday 5:26 p.m. – Shaun gets there we run a quick sound check, set-up the merch table and the Compassion Table and he heads down for a light dinner of fruit and carrots.

Saturday 7:05 p,m. – Start the concert. Shaun plays and speaks for about an hour and a half. The music is great, Shaun is going back and forth between the guitar and the piano. Good stuff. Good stuff. He quickly realizes that Methodists are not big into clapping. Plays some more. We get to hear a little about his kids and his wife. He does a song which…well, I’m not really sure how to describe it other than moo, baa, sssss. Then he gets into some really good stuff. The one thing I love about Shaun is he pulls no punches. We here about his trip to Ethiopia. He talks about sitting there with leaders of the church in that region. About how he was made aware of some of the differences between the songs we sing to and about God and the songs they sing. Then he sings a new song he’s working on called Kingdom Come. Man, this is one powerful song. He’s still calling it a work in progress but the message is really powerful. He plays a few more and then gets into his closing talk. He states it like it is and really brings the message of The Good News home. He ends the night with his refrigerator story and an opportunity to sponsor a child. Good stuff. Good Stuff.

Saturday 8:35 p.m. – Shows over, Compassion packets are being filled out, people mingling, talking to Shaun, getting pictures.

Saturday 9:30 p.m. – Finally finish packing everything up. Shaun figures out where he’s heading next -
Tecumseh, MI. Get a quick picture for myself and give him brief directions to the nearest Chipotle.

Saturday 10:00 p.m. – Get home, kiss my wife goodnight and come down to blog.

Thank you Shaun for coming to Wadsworth. While I would have loved to see more people there tonight there were 11 kids saved tonight. My family is now sponsoring a new child, a beautiful little girl from Columbia named Julieht.

So, no matter what, late piano movers, missed flights, skipped dinners, a hot and humid sanctuary – in the end it’s all about doing what God has put us here to do – God’s will here on earth as it is in heaven. To see this world changed one life at a time, to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, care for those in need. If you missed the concert tonight but would like to sponsor a child it’s not too late. You can simply click on that picture over on the right of this page – the one in the Compassion widget – and sponsor a child for just $32 a month. What can you give up to see God will be done on earth as it is in heaven?

One final reminder that tonight is the free Shaun Groves concert.  In case you were wondering what I mean when I say free – that means no admission charge, no cover charge, no drink minimum (yes – that was a joke), nada, zilch, zip.  You come, you hear some music, you hear some speaking, you enjoy your self and you leave.  You may decide to act on something you heard, maybe buy a CD, maybe you’ll decide to save a child’s life through sponsorship with Compassion International – but that’s your decision alone.

So, be there tonight – 7:00 p.m. at 195 Broad Street – the Wadsworth United Methodist Church.

Don’t forget, two more days until Shaun will be putting on a free concert and speaking at the Wadsworth United Methodist Church – Saturday the 7th at 7:00 p.m.

Also, the painter here is Mike Lewis – aka The Jesus Painter. I’ve been blessed to see Mike paint live and it is amazing. He will not be with Shaun this weekend but you can find out where he will be by checking his site.

So, here is my entry for today’s Creative Chaos entry over at Ragamuffinsoul.com.  This is an opportunity for those involved in worship to blog about something unique or creative that has been done in a worship service and share it with other like-minded worshippers and bloggers. 

So, a few weeks back our church’s director of young adult ministries and fellow blogger over at Mustard Revolution- came up with a really neat idea to create paper handcuffs that we were all to put on and wear during the service to symbolize how many of us are bound by things of this world and our sin and to symbolize how that can inhibit our ability to worship the Lord fully. 

Now, there were a few “bumps” along the way in the service which I encourage you to read about on Ben’s blog; however, after the sermon communion was served as the team played Chris Tomlin’s “Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone)”.  The congregation came forward, broke their chains and laid them down prior to receiving the elements.  It was a really powerful physical reminder to us that only through the sacrifice that Christ made on the cross are we forever truly and completely free!  While I couldn’t wear the chains myself (I haven’t figured out how to play guitar with my hands chained together) I stood there playing my guitar and trying to sing through the words to that chorus and the emotion of watching people break their chains to receive the body and the blood of Christ almost overwhelmed me. 

May we never forget that we are set free only through the broken body and shed blood of our Lord and Saviour!  God’s Word tells us:

“Christ has set us free to live a free life. So take your stand! Never again let anyone put a harness of slavery on you.” – Gal. 5:1 (MSG)

“My chains are gone, I’ve been set free
My God, my Saviour has ransomed me
And like a flood, His mercy reigns
Unending love, Amazing grace.”