Ok so this post is a little old, but I don't think anyone's posted it on Conversant yet.

Check out the opener for this past year's Saddleback Worship Conference that pays omage to the original king of Christian sub-pop.

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prPXjVVRi5I

(I'm purposely not embedding and taking you to the URL so you can read the comments too.)

 

Why Why WHY do things like this keep getting made???

 

 

On the heels of a new year with hopes for a more prosperous, less chaotic tomorrow, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button debuts with a timely and sobering declaration: “You never know what’s coming to you.”

…bummer. So whether we brave the recession storm to see our 401k’s intact, whether our facebooking efforts successfully manage to adjust our identities as they appear to others, or whether we blanket our emptiness with credit card purchases collecting more stuff to fill the void, there will come a point where we cannot control the life, the ambitions, the relationships, or the bank accounts we’ve worked so hard to maintain.

And that’s where the tale of Benjamin Button begins, at the apex of this conundrum…a hospital room.  A deathbed provides the backdrop for the film’s narration where an old woman with a faint and withering breath admits, “I’m curious what comes next.” What follows is a stylistically unconventional narrative about the significance of “letting go.”

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What's gonna follow is really a blog and a half. I'm just warning you, it's kind of lenghty. It's an email exchange between me and a guy I greatly respect who came to me while I was doing worship ministry at Biola and asked if we could discuss some things over email.  We'll call him Joe. I really like Joe because he's an older gentleman who likes things a certain way...but had the courage and humilty to step outside himself enough to ask a young punk like me what I thought of the things that didn't sit right with him. Correct me if I'm wrong, but you don't see that too often. What follows is a dialogue between me and him about worship in the church. 

JOE: I believe that worship is a clear indication of  our view of God.  Worship is intended to be an offering to God, not a means of entertaining us or our guests.  Since He is holy beyond our ability to understand, acts of "worship" that are designed for purposes other than a true means of adoration, confession, or praise are suspect.  An act of self-indulgence cannot be worship since it is directed at self and others, not to God.  What I see in 90% of churches today is "worship" that is designed to evangelize or entertain or indulge, not really to declare God as God and express our submission to Him.

ME: I agree with you up until the last sentence. I believe that the common evangelical has been brought up to associate the word "worship" with the type of praise music sung in church. However, I have had the privilege to work along side some of today's post-contemporary song writers and worship leaders and they would be the first to say, not only in their music, but in conversation and pastoring, that worship encompasses so much more than the music we sing in churches. The part of the worship service where music is sung and there is congregational singing should really be called "praise" as a small part of worship, which is a much bigger concept, mainly offering your body as a living sacrifice.

JOE: This kind of thinking appears in every worship style.  I see it in people who want to impress everyone with their knowledge of Bach, but I also see it in those who want to show how "cutting edge" their "worship" can be.

ME: Now, here comes the struggle. For the past thirty or so years America has developed this "seeker sensitive" movement in a vast majority of our churches where we've put such a strong focus on the presentation of our services from aesthetics to sound to food services to bookstores, etc that we've lost touch with what it means to be the church, a group of real, broken sinners coming together in desperate need of a Holy God. Instead, we've tried so desperately to make everything look and sound perfect that we have ended up fooling ourselves as well as a generation of non-christians into believing we can actually attain perfection apart from God.

Flip Side: God is control of everything. He has given us all unique gifts and wants us to use those gifts for his glory. I firmly believe that art, whether it be visual, audio, or technological can be used as an offering of worship and praise to God. I attend a church that changes its "set" monthly. Every month you walk into the sanctuary and it looks completely different. You are surrounded by paintings and sculptures and different lighting elements and it’s truly beautiful. It is evident however, that these elements were not created to simply draw people into the church or to showcase the artist, but to glorify God out of servanthood and the creative skill he instilled in man. Now, a lot of churches have this backwards mind you, doing "cool things" simply to look cool, or cutting edge or what have you. But if that is their main motive they've missed the point.  I am excited to see my generation rise up and counter this trend, using their skills and talents to worship and glorify God (which draws people in because it's beautiful).

You might not agree with my last sentence. I think there is a huge chasm between what helps your generation see God and mine. My culture is so media driven you can't escape it. Movies cause men to sin. Images cause women to think lowly of themselves. Songs teach kids to swear and resort to violence and defile woman.

Our generation sees it as a divine command to be counter cultural, redeeming art for its original purpose, God's glory. Worship songwriters have come such a long way from repetitive choruses like "Shine Jesus Shine" and "Our God is an Awesome God". They are borrowing from the deep theological truths found in the hymns of the past while speaking directly to the present culture, all the while trying to be as scriptural as possible.

 JOE: Most of the time, when I see Christians performing, I want to stand up and say, "STOP!"  You are just putting on a show!   You need to be--figuratively--on your face before God as you lead His people in worship.

ME: Haha, I hear you.  Here's the problem that I think has always been around and won't go away. Worship leaders are fallen people...and they're artists. They're number one sin is usually pride (I heard once from somebody). So there's this constant war in art between creating so that you're name will become significant and creating because you want God's name to become significant...and I think every artist has struggled with this at one time or another. But check out these lyrics from to 2 of my favorite "cutting edge" worship songs

Our hearts unfold before your throne
The only place for those who know
It's not for us, It's all for you
Send your holy fire on this offering
Let our worship burn for the world to see
It's not for us, it's all for you
(excerpt from "Not to Us" by Chris Tomlin)

Your will above all else my purpose remains
The art of losing myself in bringing you praise
Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending, your glory goes beyond all fame
(excerpt from "From the Inside Out by Joel Houston)

Post-contemporary writers are speaking against pride in a pretty significant way, and like many hymns, focusing their attention from themselves back to God (I believe this can be done even if the words "I" or "me" are used in a song. You have to consider the overall theme).


JOE: If you read scripture carefully, and comprehensively, you will see that from Genesis to Revelation, the dominant response to a clear vision of God is reverence and fear, not a warm fuzzy, feel-good thing.  For those who see that as the "Old Testament God,"  see John 20:28, II Cor 7:1, Eph 5:21, Hebrews 12:18-29, I Peter 1:17, 2:17 Revelation 1:17, Rev 4:10-11, 5:13-14, 14:7.  Instead of healthy fear of a totally holy God,worship today seems to breed familiarity, and a cheapening of God's majesty and power.

CJ: I don't think a lot of modern songs are meant to give congregational members the warm and fuzzies nor do they cheapen God's power simply because they view God as relational. It's true that many songs focus on the joy and celebration we have because of God's redemption (a concept which many older churches fail to make a big deal about) and there aren't a lot of songs out there that go something like "How Wrathful is Our God" =). But we already defined that songs are sung more as a time for praise. There are songs that talk about God's justice, our depravity, and utter dependence on him. MANY songs bring hope and are meant to remind us that even if we are a broken and messed up people, our joy, our strength, and our salvation are found in God alone. I don't think this simply gives people good feelings about God, it reminds a desperate and godless culture that salvation, hope, love, and peace are found ultimately in Him and nothing else…I’m convinced these are truths worthy of praising God for.

This is not to say all songs aren't shallow. I personally try to weed out ones I think are weak when I lead. But we all need to keep an open mind and remembering the global church is pretty dang diverse. For example, I may think that some gospel songs are repetitive, but they work for that community, and I wouldn't dare say they're "doing worship wrong" or "I can’t worship to that music." Those are just ignorant statements, but it's sad how many people say these things flippantly without stepping outside themselves.

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5 points to you if you can tell me what's wrong with this picture:

 

 

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

- 2 Corinthians 5:17

God bless us...everyone. 

Here are some new Christmas albums you may not have seen advertised at Wal-Mart or Target, but are definitely worth giving a listen to:

Rosie Thomas – A Very Rosie Christmas

The Michigan native distinguished by her melancholy acoustic poems brings forth a collection of covers and originals with more pop and commerciality than her non-holiday albums. “Why Can’t it Be Christmastime All Year,” the first track on this month’s Paste Magazine sampler, breaks open with a pounding piano hook and catchy horn stabs. For the most part, Rosie removes the glitz and fluff from many holiday standards expanding upon their nostalgia and thematic roots. She even manages to reinvent the classic Chipmunk tune “Christmas Don’t Be Late” as a sentimental ballad that effectively communicates adult feelings of hope and longing.  Her renditions of classics like “River,” “Silent Night,” and “Christmastime is Here” are cadence driven, rhodes sweetened creative retellings that seem to hang in mid air before  they slowly drift back from the nostalgia where  they first came.  On the other side of the coin, Rosie’s original pieces push the envelope but remain commercially listenable.  “Alone at Christmastime,” is a capturing of holiday loneliness and struggle while “Snow Day” is an ambient instrumental tribute to those oh so popular Manheim Steamroller holiday collections.  Rosie’s comedic alter ego, Sheila Saputo, makes a guest appearance along with her husband Jeff Shoop and brother BT. The album is a testament to the values of Christmas ending with a personal message from Rosie thanking friends, fans, and family for their love and support.

Sojourn – Advent Songs

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So because I know sometime throughout your busy week you thought to yourself, "Gee, I wonder what CJ likes to listen to at Christmastime," I decided it's only fair to answer this question with a top 10 list and put your wonderings to rest. Here's a list of my favorite renditions of Christmas Songs. Some new, some old.

10. I Saw Three Ships Come Sailing in - Sufjan Steven -  If you haven't picked up Sufjan's Christmas CD from 2 years ago do it today. There are some great renditions of carols and hymns along with some original Christmas tunes in the classic Sufjan style.

9.  White Christmas - The Drifters - If no one is around, you know you break out into the falsetto part during the second verse. Don't lie.  

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“Graduation” may have come too early for Kanye West. In his new album, he retreats to an admission of discontent, loneliness, and heartache. In short, Kanye wants his soul back. As a result, he’s produced one of the most important albums for spiritual discussion this year. An enormous departure from his last album both in lyrical content and musical composition, Kanye carefully and thoughtfully crosses genres to communicate his brokenness through honest, often haunting stories.

The good life just doesn’t seem to be cutting it for Kanye anymore. In 808s & Heartbreak, the rapper-turned-singer paints himself as a modern-day Ebenezer Scrooge, a man so obsessed with his own self preservation, he’s haunted by what’s passed him by. You’d have to tune out every verse, chorus, and bridge not to catch Kanye’s spiritual search and hunger for redemption as the album’s overarching theme.  Each song takes the listener on a personal, honest journey through the age-old question, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul?” In “Welcome to Heartbreak,” Kanye confesses, “Chased the good life my whole life long. Looked back on my life and my life gone. Where did I go wrong?”  The first single, “Love Lockdown,” is about a relationship that won’t work because of his inability to step outside himself and give: “I have something to lose so I got to move. I can’t keep myself and still keep you.”

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