Dream...Again.

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New Posting Style...Cause my fingers get lazy.

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Merry Christmas!!

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Dream

So, I've written a post about this book before, but seriously, if you've ever felt like you have been called to do something great with your life (and in my opinion everyone has) then I would like to encourage you to pick up a copy of Erwin McManus' book Wide Awake. He has some great insight into dreams being realized and fulfilled. 

You see, I'm a dreamer. I have been my whole life. I can remember practically living in my own world throughout most of each day. And I'm not talking about having some sort of crazy ADD sort of thing. I was just a little boy who used his imagination quite often. It just so happens that I get to do that on a weekly basis now, as I dream, brainstorm, and develop creative ideas for worship services at my church. I find that it is a wonderful fit for who God has designed me to be. 

Have you ever felt that God was calling you to open your eyes in order to live out a dream that you've had for quite awhile? 

What is holding you back from pursuing that dream? 

I fully believe in the potential that I believe God has given everyone in order to further His Kingdom. In the book of 1 Corinthians (12:11-13), Paul writes to the dysfunctional Corinthian church and uses the analogy that we are all members of the same body. however, we are all a different part of the body. We have different functions, different gifts that God has given to us...different dreams. And it is imperative that we understand, assist, and aid each other in realizing that our dreams must align to the furthering of God's Kingdom. 

"Have you ever found it interesting that while our imagination is not limited, our thinking often is?" (paraphrased, Wide Awake, pg.5)" 

"What would the world look like if our best dreams became the world we lived in?" (pg.5) 

Interesting food for thought huh? There is a quote that is often associated with being said by James Dean: "Dream as though you'll live forever, live as though you'll die today." 

Live out your dreams. Live as though you aren't promised the next second, or minute or hour. As James wrote in the Bible, man is like a mist that is here today and gone tomorrow. We are not promised the next day. 

Dream wide awake. 

Creativity in Worship

This morning I was doing a devotion and spending some time with God. I recently have been personally evaluating my ministry and how I can humbly look for ways in which God is trying to show me ways to grow as one who, on a weekly basis, leads others to His Throne in corporate worship. The obvious facets and factors in life can sometimes make us unresponsive, callous, and uncreative when we come to times of worship, and I certainly am no different from anyone else. Bear with me as I explain a little more. 

In my ministry we try to bring the creative gifts/talents that God has given us as offerings to God as well as offerings to the body of Christ as we try to communicate to others the Glory of God in ways that sometimes aid and sometimes have the ability to surpass that which words cannot describe. At the same time, as with all artists, there are moments or spells in life where we feel creatively drained (the good news is that we are the CHURCH and have other brothers and sisters who can help pick up the slack when we find ourselves in this kind of "funk"). I am so incredibly grateful to have people surrounding me who are blessed with amazing creativity. To be completely transparent, there creativity often surpasses my own, even when I am having a good day! (creatively speaking). 

I was reading an excerpt from a book called Inside Out Worship by Matt Redman (and friends). It is a truly wonderful book filled with tons of wisdom from prominent worship leaders, pastors, and authors of our day. I was reading an entry from Matt Redman called " The Adventurous Pursuit of Creativity" and to say the least, it really spoke to things that I have been thinking about lately. 

Redman writes, 

"Creativity in its purest form is a reflex-- a flash of inspiration coming forth from the artist who has glimpsed the splendor of the Divine. Putting that into the context of a church worship service, creativity does not come from a desire to be musically clever, or to do something new just because variety, as we say, is the spice of life. Instead, it's an imaginative and heartfelt response to the received revelation of God. As we see more and more of the goodness, greatness, and majesty of God, we find ourselves responding ever more imaginatively with creative expressions of joy, thanksgiving, and reverence. As well as being a response to God, creativity is also a reflection of Him." (Inside Out Worship, pg. 70)

Creativity is extremely important to the Body of Christ. It assists ever so greatly in how we proclaim, respond, and reflect what God has done for us. It's something that as Redman states, "...is a mind set that needs to be actively developed-- especially if we have fallen into the 'this is the way we do things' trap." (pg. 73) It can thrive or die in very fine circumstances; we must constantly be encouraging to those who are seeking creative ways to communicate the awesome Works, Glory, and Splendor of our God. Whether or not you are an artist and you just happen to be stumbling upon my blog, we are the Church, let us lift one another up, and together worship and serve this truly magnificent God. 

Blessings, 

Brennan 

 

Hope

I recently saw a video for the Obama campaign where people were wearing shirts the word Hope printed on the front. In light of Obama's recent election as President, I know there are a lot of people who are concerned about the future of our country. There are a lot of problems in our country right now, and whereas I will not make my political platform, I believe that God gave me a little nugget to ponder on as I was reading this afternoon. 

In St. Augustine's Handbook on Faith, Hope, and Love he writes, "...hope deals with good things, and only with those which lie in the future, and which pertain to the man who cherishes the hope...Faith and hope have this in common: they refer to what is not seen, whether this unseen is believed in or hoped for." For some reason, that section resonated with me as I thought/think about the future for our country. We don't know what lies ahead for any of us, but we can hope for a brighter tomorrow and do our part as Americans to make our country a better place; regardless of who is leading it. as Jesus says in Matthew 6:26-27, "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?" 

Let's hope for a brighter tomorrow and as St. Augustine said, "...we patiently wait for it."

Inside Out Worship

The following is from a book that I have in my library that I can honestly say that I have never read all the way through, but I should; it has wonderful insights into the way we worship and the way that we lead worship. Enjoy. 

"Remembering the Story" by J.D. Walt

We need more songs that narrate the story of God--songs that cause us to remember the great saving acts of God in history. If you look through the Psalms, they are continually lifting up the imagery of Passover and Red Sea, of Sinai adn Promised Land, of Exile and Return. The story of God is itself embedded in their worship. 

We need to find better ways of doing this in our time-- ways of explicitly embedding the story of God in our singing, which serves to make it more alive in our communal memory. Doing this will give rise to Kingdom imagination. For it is only in remembering the mysterious, unconventional and unpredictable ways of God that we imagine them in our time. 

But first and foremost we remember the story not for how it benefits us-- though it does greatly enlarge our souls--but because it glorifies God. 

My New Nephew

So, my little brother just had baby, which, in case you can't do the math, makes me an Uncle. That's right. Not a fake uncle, like say, Uncle Kracker...no, I am a bonified real Uncle. I think I'll go by Uncle Bren-Bren. But I thought I would show all of you how awesome my nephew Jude is. For one, as opposed to the other babies in the little baby nursery at the hospital, Jude could have seriously have kicked some tail if there were a baby nursery brawl. He would've taken 'em on. No diggity, no doubt. Fo' real. Here are some pictures of him...

"I'll tear those other babies apart, look at my fist!" 

"No seriously, I really will tear them apart." 

I think he looks like a mini, cute version of that trainer guy in Rocky. Mainly because of that beanie and the poker face. And, look at that fist!

Here, he is really just looking cute...'cause he is. 

Where's the Time Gone?

It's been pretty crazy lately. Since Natalie and I have started new jobs, we've both been working like crazy. She has had to get used to the routine of teaching and has had to prepare lesson plans each night. Needless to say, we haven't gotten to spend much time together. And that's an overstatement. I haven't seen her at all actually. So, imagine my abounding joy when we got to have a sort of date tonight. I know that sounds girlie or whatever, but is has seriously been bugging me. No time with my wife = suckville. 

Anyway, it'll get better soon, and I'm very proud of her. She is a great teacher. I love her. 

P.S. Because of our crazy schedules our dog thinks that the middle of the night is time to play and to have to go to the bathroom. I guess i still love him though. 

Current Life and Books

Regrettably, whenever i tend to write on my blog, it always seems to be at least a month after my last post. Anyway, life has been pretty crazy lately. Not that anyone else's life isn't crazy, but Natalie and I have both been getting used to new jobs, and that seems to have put more on our plates, because we both strive to succeed and do the best that we can in our vocations. and on that note, we are both really excited about our new jobs and love them very much. 

On another note, lately I've been flipping back and forth between a couple of book that I'm trying to quickly finish (to move on to other books that I would like to read as well), and thought they are noteworthy of putting a little plug about in my blog. 

Crazy Love by Francis Chan is the first book that I started reading. It's a really easy read for those who tend to just read stuff at face value and don't pursue a challenge of the intellect, soul, and heart. The first two chapters have been pretty redundant to those who are well along in their faith, however, in a way that I can't really describe, Chan challenges the reader to really take into consideration things that we, often times, just callously say that we believe. Perhaps it's just me, and it's just the place that I am in spiritually, but this book has been very challenging to me as a person who has grown up in a Protestant Evangelical Church my entire life. 

The other book that I've been starting to read is called Wide Awake by Erwin McManus. I'm still too soon into the book to really give a good "review" on it, but so far it seems like a good read. The introduction and first chapter have really just posed the challenge that often times we just settle for things in life instead of actually trying to fulfill and carry out a calling that God has laid on our hearts. 

So far, I would recommend these books for anyone, and I'm looking forward to hearing any sort of good books that you guy's are reading right now. 

Cheers, 

=Brennan=

Rainy in the Lou

it's been pretty rainy out lately, which i won't complain about too much, because it is summer in St. Louis and it's often really hot and humid; so the rain cools things down a lot. and as the weather has a bittersweet feeling to it, so does my mind...or so it seems. 

see, lately i have been in the middle of changing jobs, ministries, and churches. kind of weird when one effects all three. does a little more to my emotional and spiritual than i would like it to. The church that my wife and i left was a great one. It's one of those churches that just feels like a family. i am really going to miss the people and staff there. 

But God leads us to places where He would have us to serve, and i really feel like the church that we are going to is going to be a great place for us to serve and do ministry. 

*on a side note, i don't really feel like blogging right now so that's all i'm going to write...'til lata. 

cheers. 

also...

check out Francis Chan's video blog...

it's a link on the right side of the screen.

So...

i'm feeling pretty lethargic today. it doesn't seem like i have recovered from vacation. have you ever felt that way about vacation? in theory, you are vacating your familiar habitat for one that is strange to you for the purposes of relaxing and getting away from the daily grind, but then it turns out to be crazy because you want to enjoy your new surroundings for however long you may be there. and then you come home tired and just wanting to crash. 

that sounds odd to me. 

so i'm in no way ready to be back at work, because my mind is still somewhere in the humid, jellyfish stinging Gulf of Mexico of the Florida panhandle. but it was seriously a lot of fun down there with my wife's family, and the ocean was quite a beautiful picture for this landlocked Midwestern boy to behold each morning. 

reminds me of this passage in the Psalms... 

By the word of the Lord 

the heavens were made,

and by the breath of His mouth all their host. 

He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;

He lays up the deep in storehouses.

let all the earth fear the Lord; 

Let all the inhabitants of the world stand 

in awe of Him. 

[Ps. 33:6-8]

Cool stuff to think about. God created the mighty ocean that can do some pretty terrific and tremendous things...and it covers 65% of the planet that we inhabit...and He made it! i don't know how someone could not be in awe of that and worship Him with every breath. 

may we worship Him well. 

Response to Kyle's Newest Entry

My friend Kyle has been interning at a church in Vegas since January and i am happy that he and i have both decided to renew our blog entries. He wrote an interesting entry the other day that i think deserves a response. the basic premise of his entry was the question "What inspires you?" 

for a long time now, our senses have been on overload and sometimes we think we find inspiration in something, but if we were/are honest with ourselves we would have to admit that sometimes we have to force ourselves to be "inspired" by something. i think the reality is often times because we are looking for something to inspire us, we will drag any  image or idea or belief into our little web and try to weave something that we say that we are passionate about, or something that we say that we care about. 

i think that is why i've seen students in youth groups and churches, who have grown up in the church that is, act so callous to what is trying to be taught to them. i think that most people (not just students), are drawn into the glitz and

 glamor, the bright lights and the boardwalks....... because things are tangible...we can touch them, we can reach for them. 

God, the Bible, the Trinity....those things don't seem so tangible, they are simply just a moral obligation...something that might make me a little bit better of a person or score me points with God. 

but often times we don't think that church, nature, God, etc... could ever send any sort of inspiration into our lives. i think that this is often shared in the fact that most of us don't know about spiritual disciplines or practice them at all. even in our prayer lives, we often talk at or to God and never listen. 

i felt that God gave me some inspiration on this topic and a song i wrote a few months ago encourages us to slow down. we may think that we have a lot of things to say or sing, but often times what we need is to listen. so these lyrics that follow are from a song of mine called "In the Silence." 

In The Silence  by Brennan Loveless (10-10-07)

i have too many songs to sing

but all i have i bring to You. 

all of the dreams that i seranade

they don't add up to the life You gave to me.

so now i bring 

all i have to lay at Your feet. 

with every breath i take 

Lord breathe in me.

Chorus

fill my lungs 

to sing Your Praise

of Who You are

my saving Grace. 

open up my eyes 

to see your face

your beauty Lord

shines new with every day. 

Verse 2

i have too many words to speak

but in the silence Lord, You speak to me

and with all of my fears, i've run away

but Your lamp is there, to lead me in all my ways.

prechorus

Chorus

bridge: 

Let every moment that i'm awake

let all that is within me declare Your Name. 

Chorus

May your life be inspired, not from those words, but by the things that surround you, and may Life 

Resonate  through you.  

Response to Mr. Seay's Entry

i am: listening to an awesome new Coldplay album!

i think: that worship practice should go well tonight

i know: that my wife loves me

i want: to be somewhere tropical right now

i have: many blessings that i take for granted

i wish: that the clock would move faster today

i hate: long days and long drives home from work

i miss: those summers when i was a kid and didn't have to work a job

i fear: getting old 

i feel: young and happy and blessed

i hear: an awesome song playing thru my headphones

i smell: a candle

i crave: a nice cheeseburger from Red Robin (Whiskey River Burger baby!) 

i search: for great deals on just about everything

i wonder: what i am going to eat for dinner

i regret: not caring more about missions work

i love: the Church

i ache: for the Church to know why they believe what they say do, and to worship God with their lives

i care: for my family

i always: walk around singing 

i am not: a politician

i believe: that God moves thru His people

i dance: hardly ever

i sing: always

i don't always: sing well though

i write: as often as i can though i just started writing on my blog again

i win: at Wii Tennis all the time and Mario Kart Wii

i lose: at Wii bowling usually

i never: am at a loss for words

i confuse: people with my long stories

i can usually be found: at church, at home watching a movie, or DRIVING

i am scared: that i will die too soon

i need: a vacation

i am happy about: vacation next week

You GUYS know what this face is?

That's right men.... this is what you look like after an entire day of shopping with the wife....on Michigan avenue, in Chicago (which is awesome by the way), and right after you've walked many miles, eaten bad Mexican food, and she wants to take a picture while you're thinking about the trek back to the hotel and thinking....ugh. 

bread and butter, faith and actions, knowledge and application...these things go together

as one of my teachers at school recently put in his syllabus for one of my classes, "Gaining knowledge for mere pleasure or for knowledge sake is not enough; knowledge is meant to be applied."
when we were going over the syllabus and he said that, i had to stop and evaluate what i had been doing in college. have i been merely gaining knowledge for the sake of knowing more, or to actually apply what i learn in school to my life and ministry? as i thought about it, i quickly came to the conclusion that i have been doing both, for the last couple of years. there is knowledge that i simply do not care about, like in a concepts of math class, where i learned about different methods of counting votes, and there have been classes such as a history course (that i find very interesting), where i had to learn things and retain the knowledge to simply do well on a test. on the flip side, there are a great many of my classes that i find superb to generic math courses (courses for mathematically challenged people such as myself), where i have longed for more and more knowledge and wisdom from my professors, so that i could learn to excel more in my life and in my ministry.
to go along with that, i wonder how many people (the people that i am directing this to being professing christians), actually read their Bibles merely for knowledge sake, to score a good work with God, or to search for knowledge, wisdom, revelation, and truth, in order to apply it to their lives. many people i have overheard in conversations, and even people that i personally know, have said, "oh, you know, i usually turn to Bible when i am going through something difficult in my life..."
what i have to say to that is that the Bible IS the best place to turn in times of strife, mourning, grief, and depression, but it is not only time when we should be searching for knowledge. again i will say, it is either consciously or sub-consciously an effort for a person, in times of trouble, to turn to the Bible for knowledge, because they either want knowledge to apply to the situation they are in, or they want to read words that will make them "feel good." however, i believe that that MUST NOT be one's only motive for reading God's Word, or for worshipping Him.
God deserves our ALL, and we must strive to give that to Him. we must apply everything that procedes from the mouth of God to our lives. our every moment and movement needs to be directed towards worshipping and glorifying God. practicing of Christian disciplines is a must. meditation, prayer, fasting, serving, worship....these disciplines are all practices that as Christians, must be in our lives. to use James 2 as a guideline: one must fervently be striving for sanctification and righteousness. i don't, for a moment, think that it is my place to say that one is or is not saved, but as James puts it "what use is it, my brethren, if someone says that he has faith, but no works? Can that faith save him?" (james 2: 14) He continues on to say that faith without action is dead, being by itself.
to summarize, one must search for God's Wisdom, through mentors, studying His Word, Christian disciplines, and by actions. bread and butter, peanut butter and jelly, faith and actions, knowledge and application... these things go hand in hand with one another, and it is our calling to listen to God's Word and instruction and then to obey and carry out His Will...His good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12 and James 1: 17-18, 2: 8-26 were scriptures that i reflected upon before writing this blog.)

RENOVATION of the Soul

RENOVATION.

it's a word that until recent pondering, i almost always associate with the rebuilding of a house or other structure. however, while recently driving to the church i was trying to think of a name by which to associate the worship ministry with. (let me add this disclaimer: worship ministries do not NEED a name for themselves. one could simply refer to the worship ministry as "the worship ministry" and it would suffice; this is not an attempt to be "relevant" or "postmodern," 'cause the town in which i work is very far away from being a cultural "postmodern" center.)
i started thinking of something to call the worship ministry, because in recent conversations with some of the members of the worship team, i realized that some, if not most of them, don't really think of the worship team as a ministry. the word ministry itself means to aid someone, or to serve in some way. but the feeling that i get is that some people (in the collective body of the church) act as though worship is, in some regards, a self-serving act. nothing could be further from the truth!!
worshipping God is not something that we do on sunday mornings, but something that we should do with every breath we take. playing an instrument on sunday mornings, and being up on stage, is not something to do for self-glorification or for self-satisfying reasons, but an act of service and worship to our God. (sometimes i wonder what is going through the minds of worship leaders at megachurches during a service)
my job as a worship leader is to help lead others to the throne of God through song and other art, but my job as a christian is to be willing to let God take my thoughts, words, and actions wherever He choses, and to give Him glory when He works through me to implement a RENOVATION in someone's life. so anyway, the name that God laid on my heart was the name Renovate, by which my church has started calling our worship ministry, because we wish to (by God's gracious movement) implement change in other's lives, so that the unbeliever might see, and the believer will continue to move along in his/her sanctification.

when we worship what goes through our minds? maybe a better rhetorical question to ask would be, what is worship? do we worship?

when i was younger, i remember hearing a few sermons about worship. i can also remember being in school and learning about the Israelites and how they often turned from God to worship other idols; gods that they created for themselves. i remember those sermons that i heard on the topic of worship, where the pastors often led one down the road of "what is it that YOU worship?" it's a good question, but i remember asking myself, "do i worship?"
the answer is a resounding 'yes.' every one of us worships and when we realize that we then come back to the first question, "what is it that we worship." we hear in sermons, "every person is created with a God-shaped void in our souls, that only God can fill." i think another way of looking at it is that while people fill that black hole in their soul with other things than God, in the same way we worship everything else but God. Christians are just as good at this as non-believers. often times we do not live a life of worship that we are supposed to. we definitely worship, but the question and the answer is "What do we worship?"
this post is not to describe what IT is that we worship, but to point out that we were made to worship and glorify God in all that we do. so we worship all the time, no one escapes the act of worshipping something, but most of us simply do not worship God. even as a worship pastor, i find the Spirit reminding me that my mind is often not where it should be and that place where it should be is being aware of my actions and making sure that God is being glorified in all that i do.

Be Still

be still and know that I am God.



i drive too fast. i recently (two months ago) just got an 06 mazda 6 ...it's beautiful, but that is besides the point. i drive a lot, and with recently starting at a new job in Union, MO (i live in the Saint Louis area), i drive a whole lot. i often find myself rushing a lot. the other day i was driving to Union, 53 miles away from my house, and i started thinking about how much we rush through our lives. this can be taken in many different ways, but the point that i am getting at is that we never seem to relax. as a matter of fact, we have to fit it into our schedule to go on vacation...the rest of the time we rush through everything.
as a Christian, i know that i don't often take the time to be still and spend time in study and prayer, or simply just listening for God to speak to me...in any way. it has become our habit to go through life as fast as we can, perhaps to do as many things as possible in the duration of our lives, because if we think about it (and i am convinced that we all do), we all know that we will die someday. no one denies that, so many people consciously or subconsciously try to cram as many things as possible into their everyday.
i encourage everyone (including myself) to try to be quiet, be still, and take in what's around you. enjoy the life God gave you and seek Him in all that you do, because He IS the hope we have, and He comforts those who seek Him.