come to me like little children

• Author: Brad
• Filed under: Christianity, Communion, Gospel, New Testament, authenticity, evangelism, family, fatherhood, missional living, parenting, prayer, sacraments, the art of...
• Date: May 19,2009

Parents often forget that their most important mission field is the home. Living missionally as parents means that God’s goodness should infect our homes as we humbly live out the power of the Gospel in our own lives. And as this happens, we pray God will woo our children to his saving grace.

I am so excited to share that last night, I had the privilege to lead my daughter Margo in a prayer of faith and trust in God’s grace for her salvation. What an unbelievable opportunity! Since Cooper trusted in Christ back in January 2008, Margo has been asking a lot of questions. There have been many moments over the last year of her life where I thought I saw the “lightbulb” come on for her, only to be convinced that she needed some more time.

Last night, we were reading the story of Jesus and the children from Matthew 19 from The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones (an amazing Gospel-centered children’s Bible) and I could tell that something clicked in Margo’s spirit. She got it. The part of the story that she resonated with said this:

…no matter how clever you are, or how good you are, or how rich you are, or how nice you are, or how important you are – none of it makes any difference. Because God’s love is a gift and, as anyone will tell you, the whole thing about a gift is, it’s free. All you have to do is reach out your hand and take it.

…You see, children loved Jesus, and they knew they didn’t need to do anything special for Jesus to love them. All they needed to do was to run into his arms…

After I read this, Cooper said, “That’s what I did, Dad,” and Margo said, “That’s all I have to do, Dad?” I told her yes. It knew it was time. It had all been leading to this moment. We went upstairs and we talked for a bit and prayed together. Wow…

What is beautiful about this is that Cooper was drawn to the saving knowledge of Christ through the Word by the same Bible almost a year and a half ago. God’s word is alive!

She is so excited to get baptized, especially to show her grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins about her decision, but she is almost more excited to take communion as a family. At The Journey, we come forward to take communion and Holly, Cooper, and I have been doing this together for the past year and a half. Margo has been joining us as we go forward but not partaking. She has been asking more questions lately about what the elements represent.

I think this has been another big part of her journey to Christ. It reflects what can happen when, as an ordinary family, as Tim Chester and Steve Timmis say, you do ordinary things with Gospel intentionality. Just having Margo around the sacraments made an impact on her. It drew her into wanting to be a part of God’s family.

I thank the Lord for the professions of faith of Cooper and Margo and continue to pray for my two youngest, Sloan and Everett. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord…

For further reading, the following post was written in January 2008 and captures my heart on bringing the Gospel to your children, highlighting what is most important and exposing some misconceptions. I would encourage you to read: Bringing the Gospel to your Children: What I’ve Learned So Far

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cre:ate day 3, 4, + 5

• Author: Brad
• Filed under: CCM, Communion, Psalms, art, authenticity, community, concert, food, futurism, history, humor, leadership, ministry, pastoring, relationships
• Date: Feb 7,2009

Day 3

Morning worship with 10th Avenue North. Young guys with a passion for worship…

The morning session was led by cre:ate creator, Randy Elrod. Let me just say this talk wonderfully ruined me. Probably one of the best talks I’ve EVER heard on leadership. My big takeaway again, much like Ian’s talk the day before, was not so much what Randy said, but what he modeled: in order to speak into people’s lives, you have to go deep with God. Randy lives a deeply “inventoried” life. I will no doubt do a blog series on it in the near future. Wowsers…

Lunch was my favorite meal of the week: cajun-boiled shrimp, onions + summer sausage, red potatoes, + salad.

The afternoon session was led by comedian Ken Davis. We cried and laughed at the same time. My big takeaway is that God loves me. Sounds simple but I needed to hear it. Ken is a master communicator. As Randy has said, comedy is one of the highest art forms and Ken has the gift.

The afternoon was closed out with the most impacting Eucharist I’ve ever been a part of. Ian led us in a modern liturgy and communion. His insights on the subtleties of this time was priceless. My new friend, Mark Roach, who is worship pastor at Fellowship in O’Fallon, MO, literally right down the road from me (I’m looking forward to hooking up with him back in St. Louis), led the worship and did a phenomenal job.

Sidenote: I’ve heard people say that as you get older, the more you walk with Jesus, the less you feel you know about Him. He becomes more mysterious and Other, which I think is actually a really good thing because He is. The more I think about worship – I teach it after all – I realize that I have less figured out than I think. This is a interesting time of convergence with the continuing influence of the modern worship music industry, the resurgence of the liturgical, the glocalization of the world via the internet, etc. My mind is racing with possibilities. I am a futurist. It’s a blessing and a curse.

The conference day was closed out with dinner at Saffire at The Factory in Franklin. Had the best prime rib I’ve ever had in my life. We were led in concert by Carl Cartee, Travis Cottrell, + Chris Sligh.

The highlight of Day 3 happened at the very end of the day. Randy and his wife, Chris, invited me over to their house to take part in a scotch “tour,” led by the venerable John Voelz, a new friend I’ve followed virtually for a while (he is the Coriolis:Experience leader @ Westwinds Church in Jackson, MI). John walked us through three different types of scotch: 1) the Glenlivet – mild, approachable, honey-tinged, 2) the Talisker – smokey, peaty, and 3) the Balrenie – a desert scotch. Not sure I’ll become a scotch connoisseur but I could do the Talisker again. What a great time of fellowship! Thanks John for teaching me about a finer thing in life!

At the Elrod’s, I spent a lot of my time hanging with Matthew Ward, who I mentioned yesterday is a huge pioneer of the CCM industry with 2nd Chapter of Acts. He shared with me about his favorite session players, studios, producers, and solo albums from his past. Matthew may come and speak at MBU sometime soon. How cool would that be?

Day 3 was the highlight of the week for me. Touched beyond measure…

Day 4

Morning worship was led by one of Sparrow’s new signees, Sarah Reeves. Genuine heart and great songs…

The morning session was led by Anne Jackson, author of Mad Church Disease and blogger at flowerdust.net. She shared her testimony of how her father’s burnout in ministry led her to think about what the church asks of people. The book is a reflection of this journey for her. Great session. Authentic and real…

Lunch was at Stoveworks at The Factory. Southern cooking at its finest: chicken in a cream sauce over cornbread and apple cobbler…

I had to steal away for the afternoon to meet with my friend and missional crony, Ed Stetzer. We are conspiring on a couple of big projects connected to the current missional conversation that I am really excited about. Stay tuned…

I actually was so bushed from the week, I decided to spend the evening with my wife. I had missed Lost the night before so we chilled, reconnected, and got our Lost on…

Day 5

Yesterday morning, I joined about 40 other songwriters at EMI/CMG Publishing Company in Brentwood for a great time of conversation on the issue of worship songwriting. We heard from staff writer Audray Assad and again from the Sparrow roster, Sarah Reeves, as well as a forum of some of the EMI/CMG music publishing staff on the 5/5: the five elements of a great song and the five traps for songwriters…

It was a bit surreal because we met in a room right next to a rehearsal room that I played my original music for Brad O’Donnell of Sparrow Records, which ultimately led to a showcase a local club called The Basement in June of 2002. It was cool to be back there and reminisce. I definitely got the itch to start writing again. Yikes…

We had lunch catered in and before I left, I had the chance to speak with Randy and tell him about his influence on my life and what this week meant to me. It was a sweet time of conversation…

In all, this was such a refreshing week for my soul….

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the sacraments: constancy or constantly? – part 2

• Author: Brad
• Filed under: Bible, Christianity, Communion, church, leadership, planning, sacraments, worship
• Date: Jun 8,2007

The Sacraments: Constancy or Constantly? – Intro

The Sacraments: Constancy or Constantly? – Part 1

If you’ve been following this series, we are talking communion. I am focusing in on a specific aspect of communion: its frequency. How often should we observe this sacrament? Does the Bible prescribe a model or pattern?

In Part 1, we saw what sparked my letter to the Worship Leader forum from Ken Guidan. Today, you see my comments to that ’spark.’ Here are my comments that were printed about a year ago in the March/April 2006 edition of Worship Leader magazine:

Communion Concern
In response to Ken Guidan of Palo Alto Church of Christ in the November/December 2005 “Worship Leader Forum,” he asks, “Why are we backing away from weekly communion during our worship services?”

Scripture clearly asserts that communion is one of the church’s ultimate duties. And in giving this sacrament prime importance, Scripture gives us an indication that it should be done recurrently. We must never lose the wonder and mystery of this ritual in a day of short sermons and pop religion [or humorous worship, as Ken says.]

But with any issue related to Christian practice in the context of corporate worship, we must let Scripture inform our traditions and not vice versa.

In short, the Bible does not dictate how often the Lord’s Supper should be observed; it just says is should be. My belief is that when the Bible does not mandate the frequency of a specific practice, there is freedom for the local church to determine its regularity.

I share Ken’s passion for communion, especially his concern with those who do not regularly observe it. I believe it should be a recurring part of corporate worship. But when he asks, “Why do so many of our churches celebrate communion less than weekly?” I hear “Why don’t all churches agree with our belief that communion should be observed weekly and no less?”

Communion is an essential in Christian worship, but its frequency is a non-essential issue. For me, I am more concerned that the Church embraces communion’s meaning and importance whenever it is observed, not how often its observed.

Later this week, we will look at the flurry of comments that found their way to future Worship Leader forums over the next few months related to this conversation. The mere quantity of interest in this issue showed me that communion is something we need to be talking about as worship pastors, local churches, and Christians as a whole…

At the end of this series, I’ll talk about why I responded the way I did. And you might even be surprised on my take of the issue at hand: frequency.

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the sacraments: constancy or constantly? – part 1

• Author: Brad
• Filed under: Bible, Communion, church, leadership, planning, sacraments, theology, worship
• Date: Jun 4,2007

At the end of May ‘07 on this blog, I wrote:

In the 2005 November/December edition of Worship Leader magazine, Ken Guidan, Worship Coordinator for Palo Alto Church of Christ in Palo Alto, California, wrote an interesting aside about Communion in the Worship Leader forum – a place for people to sound off about all things worship. For some reason it hit a nerve. And I responded. And Worship Leader printed my response. And then a flurry of responses came in. And they were printed as well. And to boot, Ken and I began further discussion offline.

Over the next weeks, I would like to unpack this for the relevintage readers. Some of this may not be revolutionary stuff, but it is interesting to observe real-life conversation about such an important thing for the church and church leadership, including worship pastors/leaders.

That brings us to part 1 of this series. To kick off this series, I am going to reprint Ken Guidan’s comments to set the groundwork for where we will be heading over the next few weeks. Here’s Ken:

Including Communion
I am wondering why we are backing away from weekly communion during our worship services? I have visited several worship services in several churches, and the praise team is exciting and encouraging, the songs uplifting and the message inspiring [and often humorous]. But Jesus said, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me” [Luke 22:19]. And in the Worship Leader Profiles, I cannot remember a time where the sample worship set included communion.

Although usually a solemn time during any worship service, this should be the pinnacle event of our worship. It is Jesus’ death and resurrection that gives us hope; it is why we are here.

It doesn’t make sense that we should skip it, or only do it once a month or twice a year. Why do so many of our churches celebrate communion less than weekly?

My response to Ken’s statements coming later this week…

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the sacraments: constancy or constantly? – intro

• Author: Brad
• Filed under: Communion, planning, sacraments, theology, worship
• Date: May 20,2007

“This is the body
This is the blood
Broken and poured out
For all of us
And in this communion
We share in His love
This is the body
This is the blood”

-from “Communion” by Third Day

For Christians worldwide, the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper is the rite that Jesus gave Christians to do in his memory, reported in 1 Corinthians 11:24-25. It is a sacramental or memorial reenactment of what he did at his Last Supper in giving his disciples bread, saying “This is my body,” and the cup, saying “This is my blood.”

The ordinance of the Lord’s Supper is one of the most important things we do as a church. It is a theological masterpiece – a renactment of the Gospel – memorials of Jesus’ death on the cross. It encompasses both reverence and joy as we both examine our lives [1 Cor. 11:27-32] and remember Jesus is coming back for us. Jesus told us to ‘do this in remembrance of me until I come again.’ Not only do we remember what happened in the past but we look forward to what He is planning to do for His bride, the Church.

As a worship leader, I have the privilege of planning our monthly communion service. It is always a highlight of my church’s monthly calendar. And the mystery of Communion uniting me to Christ and to one another is something that seeps deep into my soul every time I observe it.

But as most things in the church, there is debate on surrounding issues. Much of the debate with communion centers around the idea of transubstantiation. Do the bread and wine literally become the body and blood of Jesus Christ? We’ll save that for another time….

I want to focus in on another aspect of communion: its frequency. How often should we observe this sacrament? Does the Bible prescribe a model or pattern?

In the 2005 November/December edition of Worship Leader Magazine, Ken Guidan, Worship Coordinator for Palo Alto Church of Christ in Palo Alto, California, wrote an interesting aside in the Worship Leader Forum – a place for people to sound off about all things worship. For some reason it hit a nerve. And I responded. And Worship Leader printed my response. And then a flurry of responses came in. And they were printed as well. And Ken and I began further discussion offline.

Over the next weeks, I would like to unpack this for the relevintage readers. Some of this may not be revolutionary stuff, but it is interesting to observe real-life conversation about such an important thing for the church and church leadership, including worship pastors/leaders.

[I haven't forgotten my series on the worship wars. Stay tuned for the continuation of that series...]

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God’s riches at Christ’s expense

• Author: Brad
• Filed under: Communion, Gospel, music, reflections
• Date: Jan 3,2007

We just finished a impactful Communion service and I’m struck by how amazing God’s grace is once again…

First, my pastor said these profound statements:

Justice: Getting what we deserve

Mercy: Not getting what we deserve.

Grace: Getting what we don’t deserve

Absolutely beautiful…thank you God that we get mercy and grace. It makes me think of that old Susan Ashton song “Beyond Justice to Mercy.”

And second, we sang one of my all-time favorite worship songs tonight, “Jesus, You Are Worthy,” by Brenton Brown. The bridge of that song sums up the gospel as beautifully as I’ve seen [next to John Newton, of course]. Let the words seep deep into your soul:

Perfect sacrifice
Crushed by God for us
Bearing in Your hurt
All that I deserve
Misjudged for my misdeeds
You suffered silently
The only guiltless man
In all of history

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