Quote from Forum Archives on February 22, 2001, 8:57 am

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

I can relate to this week's message from Larry Davies. I have
been a member of a church choir for many years. Recently, with
the changing forms of music and style (and participation levels),
I have been a "worship leader". I know that pastors will
sometimes change the message they were planning to give, the
songs we planned to sing might change, or even if things have a
fixed schedule and plan, they might not go the way we intended or
hoped them to go.

But I will tell you this: some of the most messed up, altered,
unplanned, seemingly disastrous church services (from the
standpoint of things going different than originally planned)
have been, at least for me, some of the most moving and stirring
worship events in our lives. I have seen people break down
completely, but when they have done so, God has moved, entered
into hearts, and changed lives. I have seen it, and I have
personally experienced it.

Here is a partial excerpt from a recent Quiet Walk Meditation
from crosswalk.com:

* Now pray this confession to keep your life aligned with God's
will:

Therefore I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the
God of my salvation; my God will hear me. Do not rejoice
over me, my enemy; when I fall, I will arise; when I sit
in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me (Micah 7:7-8).

* Confess any sins that God brings to your attention. Now voice
your affirmation of His Word:

I thought about my ways, And turned my feet to Your
testimonies. I made haste, and did not delay To keep Your
commandments (Psalm 119:59-60).

* As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

* sincere compassion for others,

* a grateful heart,

* single parents you know,

* whatever else the Lord has laid upon your heart.

* Close by meditating on this thought:

And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due
season we shall reap if we do not lose heart (Galatians
6:9).

As we have been discussing earlier, it is the worth and
worthiness of God that we recognize when we "worship". Let us
then prepare our minds and our attitudes to recognize and honor
God. My friend, Larry Davies, tells "The Rest of the Story".

Brian Masinick, "Good Day!"

From: "Sowing Seeds Ministry" <sowseeds@nesbeonline.com>
Subject: "Worship 3: We're Only Human"
Sowing Seeds Ministry Devotion February 22, 2001

For part one of the worship series:
www.sowingseedsoffaith.com/worship.htm

For part two of the worship series:
www.sowingseedsoffaith.com/worship2.htm

Sowing Seeds of Faith

Worship 3: Were Only Human Larry Davies

Sometimes things dont always work out as planned. Worship
services are no exception.

Rev. Ronna L. Swartz from Kenbridge, Virginia was preparing to
lead a communion service for the leadership team of an upcoming
Emmaus Walk. Holy Communion is always an important part of Emmaus
and she wanted to do her part as a minister to make the service
meaningful and inspiring. Several people on the team experienced
some particularly difficult situations so Rev. Swartz wanted to
offer Gods hope in the midst of their hardship. Her Scripture
reading came from Psalm 56:

You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears
in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book. (Verse
8) Ronna said, For me, this verse is a comforting reminder of
Gods love during the tears. God feels my pain knows your
struggles understands our sorrows.

Ronna then picked up the chalice holding the grape juice,
symbolizing the atoning blood of Christ and served each person on
the team. After setting it back on the table, she turned to face
the group and brushed her hand against the chalice, knocking it
to the carpeted floor where it shattered spattering grape juice
everywhere. Every preachers worst nightmare! said Ronna. The
worship service was momentarily forgotten. I felt as though I
could cry my own bottle of tears!

The team members were stunned. For several long seconds, nobody
moved; nobody spoke.

Despite our best efforts, worship is still an all too human
response to Gods impact on our lives. Musicians occasionally
make mistakes. Preachers can sometimes babble on and on. Babies
cry at inopportune times. We could stay at home and watch a
better performance on television. Why should we commit ourselves
to worship at a local church? What difference does it make?

For the answer as Radio Host Paul Harvey would say, we turn to
the rest of the story.

The team members were stunned. For several long seconds, nobody
moved; nobody spoke. Then everyone sprang into action. Three or
four people cleaned the carpet while another collected the broken
chalice pieces. Someone else went for the container of grape
juice while another cleaned the white-lace tablecloth. Soon the
rug and the tablecloth were spot free and the embarrassing moment
forgotten or was it?

The point of worship has never been about polished entertainment
but rather to enable you to respond to Gods desire to be in an
intimate relationship. At anytime, God can reach out and touch
someone within a worship service maybe during a quiet time of
prayer, through a song or a sermon. Even a flawed worship service
can be used by God to teach a life-changing lesson. The story
continues.

The next time the Emmaus team met, there was clearly no stain on
the carpet or the tablecloth but rather than forget Rev. Swartzs
embarrassing moment, the group decided to honor the memory of how
everyone pulled together to help their minister and friend. On
the table beside the new chalice were the broken pieces of the
old. A group that once struggled now gloried in their newfound
confidence of knowing God loved them and would see them through
any struggle any tragedy.

Later one member of the group collected the broken pieces of the
old chalice and had them made into jewelry. One broken piece of
the chalice was given to each member of the group as a
distinctive reminder of what God can do with the broken pieces of
our lives.

Ronna Swartz concluded by saying, I am wearing that chalice
fragment today. I learned that the very brokenness our group
shared actually turned out to be the glue, which spiritually
bonded us together. Is it not the brokenness of Jesus Christ on a
cross that not only brings us to our knees but also enables us to
feel loved, forgiven and whole?

Sometimes things dont always work out as planned. Sometimes God
makes them better!

----------------------------------------------------------

Sowing Seeds Ministry Prayer challenge for 2001: Prayer of Jabez
1 Chronicles 4:10

And Jabez called on the God Israel saying, "Oh, that You would
bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would
be with me, and that You would keep me from evil." So God granted
him what he requested.

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=====
--
Brian Masinick, "The Mas", mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/
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