Happy New Year! The 1st day of 2008 finds me in the studio finishing the guitar tracks for the new CD.

As a follow-up to Simple Worship 1, I am excited to get Simple Worship 2 finished up. This will be my 4th worship CD and has more originals than any other project.

I have been getting some great feedback on a song called “Tired.” You can view and listen to a rough cut of it here.

Keep your eyes open and I will let you know when the CD becomes available. In the meantime, if you would like to order Simple Worship 1, just drop me a note at the contacts page.  Take a look at both Tired and Simple Worship 2 at www.scotlongyearmusic.com.

Back to the studio

35 When Jesus heard what had happened, he found the man and asked, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
36 The man answered, “Who is he, sir? I want to believe in him.”
37 “You have seen him,” Jesus said, “and he is speaking to you!”
38 “Yes, Lord, I believe!” the man said. And he worshiped Jesus.
39 Then Jesus told him,“I entered this world to render judgment—to give sight to the blind and to show those who think they see that they are blind.”
40 Some Pharisee’s who were standing nearby heard him and asked, “Are you saying we’re blind?”
41 “If you were blind, you wouldn’t be guilty,” Jesus replied. “But you remain guilty because you claim you can see.  - John 9 (NLT)

Jesus had just healed a blind man and had caused quite a stir.  The Pharisee were furious with him, the man’s parents were wimps, and the crowd was likely just watching and keeping their mouth shut.  Only this kid had the guts to tell it like it was:  he didn’t know much but knew that he was once blind and can now see.  He would come to see that Jesus was the son of God.

In this context Jesus again states his purpose.
1.  To give sight to the blind
2.  To judge the blinded (the "religious" -  those who  think they can see).

He came for the non-believer and the religious.  But, what about those who were God-centered people who had it all together?  Those who were neither blind nor hypocrites?He did not come for them.  He did not come for sold out church folk.  That is a hard one to swallow. 

A note to those who are Christ-centered people.  Those who would show marks of devotion through prayer, study, giving, and serving - God does not exist for us.  His passion is not to get us- he already has us.  Does he love us?  Yes.  Does he want the best for us?  Absolutely.  Does he want to bless us?  You bet.  But we are not his target.  We are not his passionate focus.  His focus is for those who have no idea who he is, and those who think they know but are mistaken.  But, but, what about us?  What about the God-centered people who do all that he asks? 

He has for us a great adventure.

He invites us to be part of his cause.  He invites us to join the millions throughout history who have served the heart of God by focusing on the blind and the blinded.  What could be better than that?

———-

photo by violator3

He who speaks on his own does so to gain honor for himself, but he who works for the honor of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him.
- John 7:18

I am the one I claim to be and that I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me
- John 8:28

Here Jesus is making claims about himself to others. They are accusing him and some are looking for a way to arrest and kill him. Jesus states the source and purpose of his teaching.

His source: he speaks not on his own, but only what the Father has taught him.

His purpose: He works for the honor of the Father and no one else.

I speak. Too much. I have to make sure that I am not speaking my own thoughts. Otherwise I might honor myself. The glory may come to me. Or worse, I might screw up his reputation. I have to speak what the Father is teaching me. That way, he gets the honor. He gets to choose the content, the context, and the clock (the right time).

On my own, I can do none of this well. When I speak what the Father is teaching me, I am becoming a mouthpiece for the creator of the universe. He gets the glory. He gets lifted up. Others come to know him.

Let’s face it. We are simple creatures. We can all too easily mess things up. Beyond that, we don’t have the insight to speak into people’s lives on our own. However, when we allow ourselves to be taught by God, he uses us in the right place at the right time, teaching the right things, and kingdom things begin to happen. The air becomes thin.

We often want the results without the prep work. Step #1 is to allow ourselves to be taught by the creator. Pray like it is a holy conversation. Get in the Word each day. God is wanting to use us, but he must be teaching us. It’s time to get busy knowing the Father.

photo by duchamp

In part 3 of the Springsteen series, we explore another thought from Rick Newman and US News and World Report. Rick’s third observation from the Boss is that he gives the people what they want. Here are Rick’s own words:

Experiments get a more welcome reception when mingled with something familiar. Throughout the show, Springsteen deftly blended unembellished hits such as “Badlands” and “Born to Run,” performed pretty much the way everybody knows them, with darker, topical music; after appeasing his conscience, he quickly reverted to happier songs such as “The Promised Land” (irony intended, I presume) and “Dancing in the Dark.” The result: His message of protest got across without turning anybody off.

I know what you are thinking here. “The church can’t give people what they want. We would compromise or values and morals.” Hmmm, not sure I buy into that objection. To me, it is an issue of relevance.

Someone once said that “The church has historically been answering the questions that nobody is asking.”

Ouch.

Jesus always looked beyond the obvious. He looked into the lives of people. What were they struggling with? What were the things locking them up? What were their dreams?

Somewhere along the way we have to be able to answer the question of what people are looking for. Every year the people of exchange volunteer to work one of the biggest musical event in town. Bluesfest draws people from all over the Midwest. Several thousands come to enjoy some good blues with some great friends. Last year I stood in the middle of the crowd and again had to ask myself:

Is the church being relevant? Are we addressing the questions that these people are struggling with? Is the song we are singing familiar to people outside of Christ?

I never want to stop asking those question. As a church, we better wrestle with it. I am not asking that we compromise the message or the values. I am asking that we look at the questions that people are asking and begin to address those in relevant ways. Jesus did it, why should we do any different?

The heart of Christ beats for those who have yet to know him. Find out what they are asking and you have an inroad to the familiar in their life.

Photo by Sister 72

This is Emily.  She embodies community, Christ, and cause.  She reminds me of what it looks like when it works.   Thanks Emily! 

I think I just got schooled.

But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.  - Heb 3:13

Sin is deceitful.  It lies to me.  Makes me think that I will be better off.  Fills a void that I have.  It encourages me and makes me feel important.  Could it really be that a simple act of encouragement could knock the legs out from under sin?

Imagine a church that is so encouraging that sin gets beat down hard.  Imagine a city where encouragement reigns and darkness is suppressed. Imagine a world where the wealthy are encouraged and the poor are encouraged.  

Shouldn’t the church be the most encouraging place on the planet?

Maybe it is time for a revolution of encouragement.

Who will you encourage today?

———

Photo by More than Corn Here.

I’ll be honest, I am not impressed with most Independent artists (A.K.A. “Indies”). Yes, I realize I am an Indie artist :>

Last year Dave Frey (a former youth group kid of mine), sends me a copy of his latest project. At Anderson University, Dave teamed up with Ben McDonald. Together they formed Sidewalk Prophets. Expecting to be less than impressed, I gave it an obligatory spin. Sha-zam!! I was impressed big time. The vocals are tonally wonderful and the song writing is as fresh as Grannies homemade pie. One of my favorite songs, Where I Stand, hits me hard every time. Not only is it a beautiful picture of hope to a struggling young woman, but I hear it as a song of hope to the church. I get fired up every time I listen.

Still not impressed? These guys have opened for some big names in the biz and shared the stage with Audio A (among others). Not long after there last US tour, Sidewalk Prophets packed up and headed overseas. They recently released an EP and are heading back to Europe in a few weeks.

Keep these guys on the radar.

This is a must have CD. Check out all the details on the Sidewalk Prophet’s Website, or at Myspace.

Dr. Wayne Cordeiro, Sr Pastor of New Hope Christian Fellowship in Oahu, cranks it out again.

Pastor Wayne authors Mentoring Leaders, a blog for church leaders.  In Cordeiro-esque  fashion, he keeps the articles brief and packed with goodness (like a power-bar for leadership).

Check it out.  You’ll be glad you did.

Thanks Wayne!!

Thanks once again to Rick Newman from U.S. News & World Report for the article on what the Boss can teach CEOs. Crossing it over from Business to church leadership, we explore Rick’s #2 observation: Innovate. In Rick’s own words,

Springsteen’s knack for turning old material into something completely new seems like a magic touch compared with all the lame efforts to create hip, modern variations of old TV shows or movies. Instead of copying success, he creates it all over again.

Can somebody testify? I must admit, when my pal Glen Baldwin offered to take me to my first Springsteen concert a few years ago, I figured I would be watching a washed up old man playing the same tunes for the millionth time so he could get enough money to pay his back taxes (tip of the hat to Willie).

I was wrong. Dead wrong.

The reason people flock to a Springsteen show is that you never know what this cat will do, but you know this: he takes old tunes and makes them new. Brand new.

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