Why I Believe…

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WhyIBelieveIt forever shaped the world, & impacts every moment of history since (& according to Christian theology, before as well). What could have possibly occurred that had the power to quickly reshape a great many long-held convictions of a people radically opposed to change – the “new” was immediately suspect – to the point which they would all be willing to lay down their lives for this new truth?

Every year I edit & repost this because it IS the message I want my life to speak: Jesus, God with Skin On – the true King, defeating sin & death.  As a former Atheist, I did quite a lot of study before I was convinced that Jesus had not only existed, but that the resurrection was quite honestly the most logical explanation of what could be historically known about Jesus’ death and the origins of the early church. This is that research compiled for quick study…

One more thing: though I don’t go into it in any detail here, if you’ve heard somewhere that the Jesus’ story was based on earlier, pagan mythology, please don’t stop digging! Read THIS ARTICLE LINKED HERE as your next step. Really. For your own sake. PLEASE!

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Filed Under: Books, Brunswick First UMC, Easter, Kingdom of God, Shannon, Theology Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

New, Popular, & Undiscovered Songs: a response

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AsAPastorJust a few weeks ago my friend & fellow worship pastor, Chris Vacher, published a thought-provoking blog: “Thoughts on New Songs, Popular Songs, & Undiscovered Songs“, which has also been edited & republished over at TWC. In it he states that we should generally consider using the more popular worship songs because “…the reason that songs become popular and are sung around the world is that there are very talented songwriters who understand the craft of songwriting and have put together these various elements in a way that allows people of every musical skill level to sing as an expression of their worship to Jesus.” Though I have nothing against talented songwriters, I don’t necessarily agree with the first half of the blog.

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Filed Under: Brunswick First UMC, Kingdom of God, Music Review, New Music, Saint Lewis, Saint Simons Community Church, Shannon, Theology, Worship Confessional/Sunday Setlists, writing Tagged With: , , , , ,

The Real Reason we do not Sing

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WhyWeDoNotSingThere has been much talk across the blogosphere this week on a topic I’m thankful is being discussed: the struggle to get a church to actually participate in corporate singing.  The conversations was begun – a few months ago – by Jamie Brown in “Are we headed for a Crash?”  Good observations.  Leading to helpful responses by David Santisteven and Dan Wilt, both of whom made some very good points.  More recently, the Kenny Lamm of the North Carolina Baptist association has chimed in on the subject as well. Having led worship in a wide variety of churches – from traditional a cappella hymn singing to free-form, “Spirit-led”, 3 1/2 hour charismatic praise, and everything in between – I’m familiar with the problem.  All it takes is one Sunday morning service with the room staring back at you, uttering not-a-peep, for us to go home contemplative, asking, “What did I do WRONG?”  That said, though they make many good points, I’m not convinced any of the fore-mentioned blogs gets to the heart of the matter.  Here’s why…
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Filed Under: Resource, Saint Lewis, Shannon, Theology Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Christmas Song Tutorials for the Church: “Mary did you Know?”

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MaryI explained a bit about what this series is about in my last post POSTED HERE, so I won’t retread new ground, however I’m sure a few of you are puzzled: “Mary did you Know?” has been floating around for just under a quarter of a century! However, it’s a classic that moves my heart, & one that has some tricky spots for inexperienced musicians/worship leaders.

This tutorial video has two parts:

  1. A short intro & song demonstration and…
  2. A short breakdown of a few specific simplification strategies.

 Watch the video for more information:

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Filed Under: Music Review, Musicianship, Resource, Saint Lewis, Tutorial Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

On-Air Interview at Victory 91.5 in Atlanta

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logoOne of my favorite radio stations is Victory 91.5 out of Atlanta. I fell in love with them while passing through Atlanta, toying with the radio dial: I heard a song by IHOP artist Misty Edwards on the radio. That is NOT so common. Followed by a mainstream Chris Tomlin tune. “Wow, that’s quite a mix“, I thought to myself. Then – BAM – a really incredible unsigned indie worship band out of Atlanta. I was hooked. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Interviews, Saint Lewis, Shannon, Travel Tagged With: , , ,