Spirit-led Worship

The ongoing classes have been stupendous! I have had so many positive responses. But the most exciting thing that has happened as of late has been growth in the worship team. 

One of the biggest concerns I have for worship teams in the West is to help them step out of the structured worship when the Spirit is leading. The people on the worship team at Remedy have such great hearts, and one of the privileges I've had here is to speak into the group and help guide them into following the leading of the Spirit. 

So, since being here God has been guiding me in helping the worship team to not be afraid when the Spirit is leading, to find the freedom to flow with him and let him lead. It’s been going great, and this past week was a huge breakthrough!

That weekend God put on my heart to tell Amy, the worship leader, some things in regards to worship that would encourage her and help her "go with the flow". The conversation went so well, and that Sunday ended up being the best time of worship I’ve had with the band yet. It was clearly evident that Amy was free and following the Spirit, and we all went with it. 

Afterwards I heard people saying that God really spoke to them during the time of worship. SO AWESOME!!! There really was a freedom that flowed throughout the whole congregation.

Later that day Amy wrote to me, “Joel, I know I say this all the time but thank you so much for all you are doing all Remedy! I thank you today specifically for what you are doing with the band - thank you for allowing the Holy Spirit to work through you to show us how to truly worship!!! God's doing amazing work here! And it is so great to have you a part of the band each week. Love you bro!”

My favorite part is, “Love you bro!”  : )

Pouring Love

In Romans 5:5 Paul says that one of the roles of the Spirit is to pour God’s Love into us. As I pondered this I realized that this is exactly what has been happening to me over the past few months. 

There have been many moments where I might be driving or kneeling in prayer or riding my bike and the Spirit will suddenly start doing something (like pouring Love into me) and I’ll just start crying. It’s hard to put these experiences into words. All I can usually say in response is, “Thank you.”

Fellowship: Welcoming Everyone Like Family

This past Wednesday night we showed a film about Fellowship at Remedy. As I set it up I told Bob, “This is one of the main reasons my generation is leaving the church.” Immediately he asked me what I meant. I replied, “My generation wants community, and for many in my generation, all they have found is a service. They want more than a service. They want more than a ‘Good morning’, a ‘Hello’, or a handshake. They want a community.”

Bob then told me that being a father and a husband (and not single), he spends most of his spare time with his family. He asked what that looked like for him. I paused for a second before responding. Then a thought came to mind. God’s been teaching me something that everyone can do. It’s simple, but it’s powerful.

A few weeks ago Bob told me that people, when asked to describe Remedy, said that it was a very welcoming place. Upon entering they explained that they felt loved and accepted. After Bob said this to me another thought came to mind. This is what it was, “This is the way people should feel when they meet you. The people in Remedy should be following the example of Remedy.”

So I began to ask myself that question. “Am I like Remedy?” When people meet me, do they feel welcomed, loved, cared for, accepted…no matter who they are? I thought of the people who I tend to welcome, and those who I tend to shy away from. It was embarrassing to consider. Since then, whenever I interact with people I ask myself, “Does this person really know that they are totally welcomed and loved by me?” and everything changes!

I’ve even been going back to the people who I realize that I didn’t treat in this way (though I was nice) because of their appearance or demeanor. It’s a beautiful and freeing thing to be able to show such welcome and love to anyone. As I’ve been doing this, I’ve been reminded of a quote I once wrote down from a powerful teacher. He said, “You will learn more about Jesus when you live like him for 10 minutes than you ever will by listening to 10 years of sermons.”

We all want to be loved and cared for, to feel like we matter. The challenges is that we, as “the church,” need to take the initiative in engaging the world in that way, letting people know that they are welcome into this family instead of leaving that responsibility to the building on Sunday mornings.

Bob’s response was to have me share this before the “Greeting Time” at the Sunday service.