Trees Talk (revisited)

One of the clearest voices God speaks through is the tree. Here, in this one beautiful symbol of life, we have all the stages, the actual rhythm of the human experience.  And ultimately, we have the reminder that through the use of a tree, God’s redemptive plan for his fallen creation was accomplished, and we are restored, we are made right with Him.

Several years ago, one of my favorite contemporary Christian lyricists, Nicole Nordeman, wrote a song called Every Season (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-JgsOMiqCs). If you want one of the most honest, insightful windows into the human experience, you need look no further than the songs of this gifted writer.  Read along and see if you don’t agree that God has given her wisdom into a language that is all around us, spoken almost completely in silence.

                                                                                                                                                                  

Every evening sky, an invitation to trace the patterned stars.

And early in July, a celebration for freedom is ours.

And I notice You in children’s games, in those who watch them from the shade.

Every drop of sun is full of fun and wonder.  You are summer.

As the seasons of life go, I think of the summer of our days as the best of the best.  And it’s not necessarily a confined season or stage of our life.  It’s just when life is good, when we’re hitting on all cylinders, and all seems right with the world.  This experience comes and goes, but when we’re in the middle of it, we don’t want it to end.  It’s also a time filled with discovery and awe.  We often find the drudgery and grind of the rest of our life tolerable because we anticipate summer’s arrival.

And even when the trees have just surrendered to the harvest time.

Forfeiting their leaves in late September and sending us inside,

Still I notice You.  When change begins and I am braced for colder winds,

I will offer thanks for what has been and what’s to come.  You are autumn.

Personally, autumn is my favorite season of the year.  The colors, the smells, the cooler temperatures, the activities unique to fall:  they all remind me that just because something changes does not mean it can’t be beautiful or purposeful.  And I have learned the longer I live, that something wondrous happens even in the process of dying—if I look for it. 

And ev’rything in time and under heaven fin’lly falls asleep.

Wrapped in blankets white, all creation shivers underneath.

And still I notice You when branches crack and in my breath on frosted glass.

Even now in death, You open doors for life to enter.  You are winter.

I can honestly say this is probably my least favorite season of the year and of life in general.  It is often used to describe that stage which precedes our own death, when we fall asleep and are ‘no more’.  We hear the phrase the winter of our years.  Actually, I usually greet the start of winter with enthusiasm.  Certain elements like freshly fallen snow, the warmth of a fireplace, even the beauty of dead trees and vegetation against the backdrop of a beautiful white landscape—all of these intrigue me…initially. 

But then comes the waiting, the frustration of life slowed down, the lack of freedom, the lack of life, the sameness of it all.  At times, the bitter winds and uncertain conditions actually seem to oppose me in my journey, blocking my forward momentum.   And then, it happens:

Everything that’s new has bravely surfaced, teaching us to breathe.

And what was frozen through is newly purposed, turning all things green.

So it is with You and how You make me new with ev’ry season’s change.

And so it will be as You are recreating me, summer, autumn, winter, spring.

You and I, along with all of God’s creation, are reborn, given a do-over, awakened to life as it was always intended. Solomon once wrote: “Lo, the winter is past, the rains are over and gone; flowers appear on the earth, and the time for singing has come.” It reminds us that even the bleakest of periods in our lives have an ending point.  It’s as if God hits the refresh button and voilà!  Reboot! 

Our Maker is always at work moving us forward.  He has made seasons to illustrate the spectrum of our human experiences. And He has made trees, including the one that was used for His own son’s death, to remind us, that in whatever stage we find ourselves, He is at work for our good.  Let the seasons speak to you. Let trees talk to you. And be reminded, God is not finished with you yet.

[Jesus] Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins,

might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.  1 Peter 2:24 NKJV

tad

What’s your job description?

As worship leaders, I like to think of yours and my role as primarily prophetic, not aesthetic.  If corporate worship can be viewed as entering the temple of God, the place of His dwelling, then our role is more akin to the pillars or columns supporting the structure, not the artifacts which merely provide artistic beauty.  Personally, I’d rather be a support beam than a statue or a stained glass window any day. 

And as support beams, what is it, exactly, that we are to hold up?  Three things come quickly to mind: the name of Jesus (Philippians 2:10, 11), the truth of His word (2 Timothy 2:15), the prophet’s arms (Exodus 17:10-13).  In these specific ways, we lead others into the praise of Jesus, the proclamation of His word through song, and receiving the seed sown by our preaching pastors. The writer to the Hebrews gives instruction to public gatherings with these words from chapter 10: 

“Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

This Sunday’s anthem speaks to one of the foundational roles this ministry can have in our corporate worship life—declaring truth, and more specifically—illustrating God. Who is it that we worship? What’s He like?  Is He worth worshiping?  Beginning with the first verse, we assert that He is unlike any other god. He has no equal; He has no rival. Our God is three in One—a community, whose very being calls us into shared lives entwined with specific function and distinct purposes. Before you declare these truths this week, be sure and live with the text yourself. Believe and receive the life contained in these verses.  For example, aren’t you glad that the One who is your judge is also your defender?  How amazing is that?!

Then come Sunday ready to sing the words of this anthem into the very souls of our people, proclaiming with conviction the truth of God’s word.  And all the while, remember you are pointing them to Jesus—that is the work of the Holy Spirit in you, friends.  That’s what He does. In John 15:26, Jesus says, "I will send you the Advocate--the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me.” So preach it, choir!

Our Father everlasting, The all creating One—God Almighty

Through Your Holy Spirit conceiving Christ the Son--Jesus our Saviour.

I believe in God our Father, I believe in Christ the Son, I believe in the Holy Spirit—Our God is three in one.

I believe in the resurrection, that we will rise again, for I believe in the Name of Jesus.

Our Judge and our Defender, suffered and crucified—forgiveness is in You

Descended into darkness, You rose in glorious life; forever seated high!  I believe in God the Father…

I believe in You; I believe You rose again. I believe that Jesus Christ is Lord.  I believe in God the Father…

I believe in life eternal, I believe in the virgin birth,

I believe in the saints' communion, and in Your holy Church

I believe in the resurrection when Jesus comes again,

 for I believe in the Name of Jesus.

By doing our “job” well, we also help till the soil of the peoples’ hearts, helping to ready them, prepare them to receive the sown Word of our preaching pastors. In so doing, we are “lifting up the prophets’ arms” and aiding them in displaying the wonder and power of God.

Do you know your job description?  Do you comprehend the high calling to which you have been called?  I, for one, can’t wait to join you in fulfilling our role this weekend.

tad

Accustomed to His Face

Remember that classic song from My Fair Lady…”I’ve grown accustomed to her face, she almost makes the day begin”? It reminds me of a tender passage from Psalm 27, in which King David writes of His relationship with God in a most intimate way:

One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek:

that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life

to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.

My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek.

Imagine that—seeking the face, the presence, the expression of the Living God in prayer and worship.  Pursuing intimacy with God is just that—growing more and more accustomed to His face, His voice, His move.  If we loosely define being intimate as being relationally close to another, it becomes apparent that intimacy with God has less to do with what we know to be true about Him and more about really knowing Him…relating to Him, focusing on Him, talking and listening to Him, loving Him. 

A former pastor of mine described it like this.  Imagine, for a moment, the difference between sitting around your table on your birthday and having your closest friends and/or family members enthusiastically (sometimes humorously) singing happy birthday to you.  You are aware that beyond their singing skills and the familiar words are numerous shared experiences which over time have yielded a closeness and intimacy with them that transcend this simple tradition. 

Now imagine dining out at your favorite restaurant on your birthday and having total strangers surround you—your waiters and waitresses who have been conscripted by their boss to acknowledge your special day with some local version of Happy Birthday.  First, if you’re like me, you are feeling awkward or, worse, dying inside of embarrassment, and secondly, you are aware that these well wishers had little choice in the matter…it’s part of their job. 

Sometimes we as followers of Christ can fall into patterns of “doing our job” as the worship leaders at Hope…going through the motions, even saying and singing the right things, but feeling empty inside or at least a bit disingenuous.  I have even heard teammates confess that they feel hypocritical when they sing worship songs because their personal lives or walk with Christ have hit a rough patch or even flat-lined. 

It is at times like these that we can do a quick inventory, asking a simple question:  “If God seems far away from me right now, who moved?”  It is even in the dark and desperate times that God reminds us “Draw near to Me, and I will draw near to you.” (James 4:8)  For His part, He never stops calling, never stops wooing, never stops pursuing us.  Just move toward Him.

Also, there is an urgency to God’s invitation to stay close to Him when He warns: Seek the Lord while He may be found, call on Him while He is near. (Isaiah 55:6)  Yes, He promises to never leave us or forsake us, but there is something about delaying or postponing getting close to God for a more convenient season that becomes less likely the more time passes, and we grow comfortable with the distance.

My encouragement to each of you is to have at least one other person in your life who routinely asks you how you are doing in this area.  Close, personal brothers and sisters in the faith can help us fan the flames of our passion for God before we find ourselves running on spiritual fumes.  Fumes are more like the remnants or even memories of former days when we really walked hand in hand with our God.  Let’s make a covenant in the worship ministry to lovingly encourage and challenge each other to keep the main thing the main thing.  As worship leaders, let’s commit to growing more and more accustomed to His face before inviting others into His presence as we lead.

tad