“Worship is all of Life”

Did you ever notice that while this correct teaching has become more commonplace in the church, very few people actually explain what it means? When I was in college I heard this phrase a lot. Unfortunately, it was usually being used as an excuse to not go to church or to avoid gathering with people to sing and proclaim God’s praises. They would say things like, “I can worship God while playing (or watching) basketball.” My response was, “Yes, you can. But do you?” Even still, I struggled with what “worship is all of life” actually means and how it relates to the gathering of the church.

In this book, Mr. Noland effectively shows us how we can consciously and obediently worship God every day of every week and how that can affect our Sunday gatherings. He gives practical suggestions to enliven your personal times of worship, to help you use your gifts and abilities to the glory of God, and to reorient your life to make all of your life one of worship.

It’s about the Heart

We have articles, blogs and books galore about the practicalities of leading worship. Those are helpful in their place, but they are fleeting and meaningless if our hearts aren’t right. I’ve read The Heart of the Artist four times and it still pokes me in the eye every time. Likewise, there were definitely moments of Spirit-filled conviction in the reading of this book.

Telling a Story

If you read The Heart of the Artist, you would remember that each chapter began with an anecdote regarding the content to come. The Worshiping Artist continues this thought-provoking tradition. Noland knows what worship leaders and team members go through every week, and you will most certainly find a memory of your own reflected in most, if not all of these stories. Better yet, he includes questions that help you think through how to overcome the challenges that face worship teams each Sunday. I have been using just these case studies with my team to get them thinking about what it is that we do on stage and behind the scenes, and they have been tremendously helpful tools.

Putting our Task in Context

It is often pointed out that the term “worship leader” or anything like it is not found in the Bible. Is this just something we made up? Is it a legitimate job? Mr. Noland points to three key precedents, both biblical and historical to whom we can look for spiritual guidance. He draws God-honoring principles from the lives and ministries of Asaph, the Levitical musicians, and the iconographers. While I think the last one is slightly a stretch due to the Roman Catholic theological under-girding of the iconographers’ code of conduct, Noland skillfully draws out biblically sound elements we can learn from them.

So if you have the time, give it a read. It is well worth it…

Chew up the honey, spit out the wax.

That’s what my pastor (Jamie Mitchell) always says when you go to a conference. There are always really good things you will learn at a conference, and there are always things that are not so good. So you must take away the good and seek to apply it in your church context as well as learn from the not so good things, and remember not to do them.

From my perspective, here’s the honey and the wax from the Worship Together conference I recently attended in Lenexa, Kansas. My hope is to post on each of these things individually in future posts, but here’s the summary:

HONEY

• Phil Wickham – Phil was in concert with Matt Maher and Leeland the first night. I had heard a few of his songs previously and had been thinking about exploring more of his stuff, and after his set I was convinced, blown away, blessed, and hungry to spend a couple bucks on his music. It had been a long time since I heard lyrics that were so hope and wonder-filled. Most of his songs looked forward to our future hope of Christ’s return and reign and were written in a way that was new and fresh. Different melodies, different hooks, unique ways of saying things, new thoughts to ponder, words that made me (and God, I’m sure) smile again and again because of their lyrical artistry and reverence. Not to mention Phil is a great worship leader, performer, and vocalist.
• Rich Kirkpatrick’s Seminars – Rich has a blog where he has addressed some worship myths. When I read his list of myths, I thought we were in for a fight. I disagreed with most of them at first glance. But he presented them in a way that was thoughtful, open for dialogue, and he clarified the context of the statements which helped me to get my dander down. He also had some helpful tips on how to have a conversation. Rich and I are from 2 different worlds, I believe, but I think I could learn from him, even if we don’t agree all the time.

WAX

• Where was the gospel? – I don’t know if I’m spoiled by going to Sovereign Grace conferences, but I honestly only remember one person referring to Christ’s life, death, or resurrection, and that was at the very end of the conference. The focus was definitely more on music and the experience of worship than on Christ, which is off-target in my opinion. Maybe I just wasn’t listening well??
• Rick Cua‘s messages – Rick gave 2 talks on “10 Things Every Musician Should Know.” Some of what he said was decent, but there were some things that really raised some questions in my mind. His most troubling statement was, “If worship is the road to God, then worship+technology is the super-highway.” Any takers on why this is troubling?
• Unbelievers on the worship team – I don’t know if this was the case on any of the teams that led worship at the conference, but I know there were numerous comments made in the seminars I attended about the blessing of having unbelievers on your team. Doesn’t Scripture warn against this?

Any initial reactions or comments? Any questions about these things that you would like me to address? Can’t guarantee I’ll be a big help, but I can try.

But anyway… Carlos has been working on an album of original material. While it’s not out yet, he put out a three song EP earlier this year. I bought it from iTunes immediately, of course, and started listening to it right away. The short version of this review: it’s excellent.

The EP opens with “Rain It Down”, an upbeat worship song calling upon God to rain down His healing waters upon us. One of the reviews on iTunes described the sound of this song as U2 being led by Chris Tomlin, and that’s not entirely inaccurate. It’s a great song that really moves, and that should be easily singable by your congregation:
There’s nothing like Your healing water
Pour it out on Your sons and daughters
Our eyes are lifted high
We are here and we are waiting
Flood our hearts ‘til they’re overflowing
Our hands are lifted high

Carlos follows that song with “Jesus Saves”, which features a line that blows me away: “I am the sum of the failing and of grace.” Wow. What a great way to summarize that we are the products of our own personal histories and God’s grace on us. This is another upbeat song with shades of Tomlin and Bono. It, too, features a memorable and simple melody that should lend itself well to congregational worship:
Your innocence has covered my shame
Your love has spoken me by name
And I have victory over the grave
You overcame

The EP ends with “We Will Worship You”, my personal favorite of the bunch. This one is the slowest of the three, but probably the most powerful. I’ve already introduced this song to my congregation, both the Saturday night and Sunday morning crowds. It was a big hit, and I think the credit for that goes to its powerful lyrics. I could write volumes about this song, but instead, I’ll just let the chorus speak for itself:
Save us from these comforts
Break us of our need for the familiar
Spare us any joy that’s not of You
And we will worship You
Yeah, we will worship You

The three songs on the EP are great, and they left me anxious to hear the full album that’s on its way. And as a bonus, Carlos has generously made the chord sheets available on his website in PDF format for free (click here to access them). Carlos Whittaker – EP is available at iTunes and Amazon.

5/5 stars.