Practice, Practice, Practice

Last week I had the opportunity to be in Louisville, Kentucky.   Louisville is a very old city and it is famous for several things, among them being the Kentucky derby, as well as being the birthplace of boxer Muhammad Ali.  For fans of baseball, it’s also the place where they produce the Louisville Slugger.  1.8 million or so baseball bats are made at the factory in downtown Louisville every year.  I got to see the process first hand (I also got to hold the bat Mickey Mantle used from 1961-1964) and they had lots of stories about the game of baseball and the players, as they toured us around their factory.  One story in particular was about the high standards they used in producing bats for the professional players.  They have these mechanical routers that can cut through a baseball bat in about 30 seconds.  These are great for the recreational players, but for the pros something else is demanded.  They have this very precise computer controlled router that cuts a bat to the exact specifications of each player. Each player knows exactly the feel of their bat.  In fact, they told the story of how one player sent a bat back to them because it just didn’t feel right.  They measured it and sure enough, it was out something crazy like a hundredth of an inch.  The guy giving the factory tour explained that these players swing their bats continually, uncountable amounts, and that of time makes them extremely discerning.

Psalm 119 has the dubious honor of being the longest chapter in the Bible.  I’d like to suggest that you read it.  I mean it, go right now and sit down and read it (I can hear the groans already – you don’t really mean all 176 verses !!??!).  To count the verses is to relegate this chapter to mere Bible trivia, and it is so much more than that (and yes, I do mean all 176 verses).  You see, Psalm 119 is actually the climax of the book of psalms.  It’s a 176 verse ode to how great the word of God is.  Verse 105 says : “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path”.  This great Psalm is a discussion of God’s word and how the writer needs to spend time in God’s word.  God’s word is what will help the writer live a live pleasing to God.  Time in God’s word enables a follower of God to obey.  Reading, meditating, and memorizing God’s word is what keeps a person on the path God has for them.  If there is any chance of being discerning in the life of following Christ, it has to do with spending time, lots of time, continually in God’s word.

I may not be a professional baseball player, but I am a follower of Christ.  Baseball is just a game, yet there are people that devote themselves fully to it, and give it their best personal time – all in the service of a game.  And so I’m challenged.  Because being a disciple is far more significant.  I want to develop that kind of discerning sensitivity to the word of God.  Only then will I be able to excel in service, and be obedient in every aspect of my life.

I’ll Be On the Next Plane

I finally had the opportunity to see the movie This is It which is essentially a compilation of the rehearsal footage of Michael Jackson and his creative team preparing for upcoming concerts in London.  While those concerts will never happen, this movie does give people a chance to see the creative process as it unfolds in the midst of spectacle and technology.  It’s really interesting to see how these very skilled people interact with each other, and what drives them to perform at such high levels.  In particular, they focus on the team of dancers, and the auditioning process.  They auditioned hundreds of dancers, and only the best will come to this audition – dancers that have spent years learning and training.  As they interview individual dancers they talk about how they jumped at the opportunity to perform in this show.  One guy from Australia talked about how he found out about the audition two days before it happened, and how he jumped on the first plane to make it.  He jumped on the first plan, just for the chance to audition – no guarantees.  He just jumped at the opportunity.

It really made me question my commitments; to God and to the service of his name in the church.  It’s all very easy to say one is committed, but what does that look like?  Do I actually demonstrate commitment in my life, or is it just an aspiration?  Is Christ significant enough in my life that I am motivated to action?  Think about the worship gathering.  Do I make it a priority to come to church and worship with other believers?  Do I come engaged and prepared, or am I just looking to be served.  These dancers weren’t there to get tickets, or to be impressed by the show.  They wanted to be a part of it.  And what about serving God?  When an opportunity comes along to serve, do I jump at the chance, or do I have a list of reasons why I can’t be involved.  I’ll use music in the church as an example, though we could apply it to any kind of service we offer to God.  Say we had worship team auditions.  We would advertise and set a date and a time. Please come - opportunity to serve God by being on a worship team.  Would people line up outside the building waiting for it to start?  Would people come from near and far just for the opportunity to serve God in the church?  Would we find a person would buy a plane ticket and travel half way around the world just for the opportunity to try serving?  If we weren’t skilled enough would we be challenged to go back and work hard and develop our gifts?

Paul’s letter to the Philippians says “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.” Sometimes I live a very weak version of following Christ.  But there is an alternative: the power of Christ’s resurrection.  While there is so much in this world that can be enjoyed and explored, Paul reminds us that there is nothing more significant than knowing who Jesus is and what he has done.  That is the greatest adventure we can live.  But Paul also says it isn’t an easy road.  Spiritual maturity doesn’t happen over night.  It comes with spiritual discipline and sacrifice.    I need to continue to prioritize God’s word in my life, and be happy when I’m called on to serve.

Nothing is greater than being able to serve God and glorify Him through my life.  I need to be driven to pursue excellence in the service of my God.  And the reward is beyond great.  It is a life that moves me from the sidelines, from observer status, into a life of amazing and complete fullness.

I’ll be on the next plane.

Pastor Lorn

Israel Trip 2010 – new dates -

What can you do to really increase your understanding of the Bible?  Let me make you an offer.  This winter I will be leading a tour to Israel departing Saskatoon February 21st through to March 5th.  This will be my 5^th trip to the Holy land and with each trip I have used the same Jewish tour guide.  He is a remarkable man who will help you understand the scriptures in a way you would never have imagined.  You will come back to Canada with a brand new appreciation of your faith.  You will have a renewed hunger to study the places you have had the opportunity to visit.

Imagine with me riding in an open boat on the Sea of Galilee while reading the story of Jesus walking on water.  We will walk into the Garden of Gethsemane and you will enter the empty tomb or at least what they believe is the best possible location for the empty tomb.  I will take you to the top of Mount Carmel where Elijah fought the prophets of Baal.  We will walk the ancient cobblestone streets of old Jerusalem.  You will sit on the slopes of the Mount of Beatitudes leading down to the Sea of Galilee where Jesus fed the multitudes.  This is just a small sampling of the many places you will experience on our tour.

We will also be going into the country of Jordan for a one day trip where we will see one of the wonders of our world…Petra.  Much has been written about Petra but you really have to see it to believe.  I was blown away the first time I walked that path in that remarkable country.  Petra does have Biblical associations which you will learn about while journeying there.  For many people the trip to Israel truly ends up being a trip of a lifetime.  The greatest joy I have is when I return and hear people say, “I read my Bible differently now.”

I have a full two week itinerary and a price schedule for you if you are interested.  Please contact Kathy Janzen at our church office either by phone or email and she will get you the information you need (ask Kathy about the trip, she’s been there).

cornerstone@sasktel.net

Time for Worship

I love to worship God.  Sunday morning is honestly one of the high points in my week.  For me it’s not about going through the motions of religion.  And even though I’m the worship pastor, my joy in worship takes me so much beyond the fact that planning worship is my job.  Psalm 122 says “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let’s go to the house of the Lord’”.  I am that person.  I am glad.   This is the presence of God we are talking about.  We are destined to worship Him in eternity.  Yet Church time often becomes an optional item on an already packed list of leisure activities.

“The average person is awake 112 hours a week (assuming he or she sleeps eight hours a night).  If a person goes to a weekend worship gathering that lasts two hours, then 98.2 percent of their week is not in a weekend worship gathering.  To most people, “church” involves only 1.8 percent of their time.  The rest is supposedly not “church.”  This is pretty crazy because in reality you and I and other Christians are the church 100 percent of the time”  (Dan Kimball in Emerging Worship).

It’s funny then that time always seems to be an issue when it comes to church.  At Cornerstone, give or take, our Sunday morning worship time lasts one hour.  When you look at the hours, it’s a pretty small investment.  But it’s also a pretty large misunderstanding of what the church is.  One hour on Sunday is not Church.   Church is not the building.  Church is not the one hour program.

Church is you and me.  As followers of Christ, once we make a commitment to follow Him, we become the body of Christ.  We are the church.  Every day of the week we wake up in the morning and by the power of the Holy Spirit the first breath we breathe is church.  Christ followers live a life of a worshiper with all aspects of prayer, devotion, commitment and the study of God’s word.  This is our daily joy to live.

When we arrive on Sunday morning, in essence, we are continuing to explore what we have been doing all week.  That means we need to be reading our Bible, preparing our hearts in prayer, working to give, and serving others.  The only way Sunday morning has any corporate meaning is because worshippers are gathered.  Notice the language here.  You don’t come on Sunday to worship.  You already come on Sunday morning as a worshiper.  If we don’t come as a worshipers, then maybe we need to do a little more soul searching.

What God want is for us to be glad; to delight in His presence at every opportunity.  Coming to worship should never be an obligation or a chore.  Neither should other things in this world become more delightful in our eyes so that at the earliest opportunity we opt out of being in God’s presence.  A song written by Chris Tomlin says in the chorus that you and I were made to worship.  Worship is often a word we associate with singing, or with prayer.  It is a much bigger word than that.  Worship is about God in His mercy reaching out to us in relationship, and about us responding in love, adoration, and obedience.  Could life really be any better than joining with other followers of Christ in worship?

Pastor Lorn Gieck

You and I were made to worship
You and I are called to love
You and I are forgiven and free
You and I embrace surrender
You and I choose to believe
You and I will see who we were meant to be

Made to Worship by Chris Tomlin

Summer Worship Service Time

Starting June 6th Cornerstone will be moving to our summer worship schedule.

One service, Sunday worship at 10:30am.

Summer 2010 Music Schedule

If you’ve read Russ’s recent blog posting you’ll hear him begin to ask questions about the emphasis we place on Sunday morning.  So much of our time and energy goes into making the Sunday worship experience a well polished, smoothly run production.  We often judge our experience and connection with a church based on what happens Sunday morning.  For us as musicians that’s even more so because we spend a lot of time preparing, rehearsing and practicing for Sunday morning.

Reading Tim Milner’s book again I’m reminded of how God is not seeking our worship.  What God wants is relationship.   Worship is only an expression of our relationship with God.  So the question is: what quality of relationship do we have if it is based only on one hour on Sunday.  We stand up for all kinds of things in Jesus’ name; we occupy ourselves so busily with “the Lord’s work”.

Psalm 46 has this amazing imagery of God putting an end to all the dizzying activity of the nations of the work.  He shouts out “STOP!”  The passage is actually “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).  But it’s not the peaceful comforting tone we tend to read into it.  It’s a command to put down our efforts, and take time to just be still before God.  This shouldn’t just be one Sunday morning hour.  This shouldn’t be a weekly religious routine.  Being in relationship with God, worshipping is an amazing blessing we have; to be with our Holy, awesome, creator.

Spend some time this summer being still in the presence of God.  Out of that, Sunday mornings become another opportunity to do what we’ve been caught up in doing all week.  Worship.

Pastor Lorn

Easter Sunday – 1 service only

A special reminder that on Easter Sunday, April 4th, there is only one Sunday morning service at 11am.  Please come and join the entire Cornerstone community as we worship God, and remember the resurrection of Jesus.

A Challenge

Disturb us, Lord, when
We are too pleased with ourselves,
When our dreams have come true
Because we dreamed too little,
When we arrived safely
Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, when
with the abundance of things we possess
We have lost our thirst
For the waters of life;
Having fallen in love with life,
We have ceased to dream of eternity
And in our efforts to build a new earth,
We have allowed our vision
Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
To venture on wilder seas
Where storms will show Your mastery;
Where losing sight of land,
We shall find the stars.

We ask you to push back
The horizons of our hopes;
And to push back the future
In strength, courage, hope, and love.

This we ask in the name of our Captain,
Who is Jesus Christ.

– Sir Francis Drake

Volunteer/Called

It’s volunteer appreciation month here are Cornerstone church, and we have  a very dedicated and creative group here in Music & Arts. Being able to serve God, and build the church through the use of our gifts is a great thing.  In reality, we are not just volunteers, it is something more significant than that.  We who serve the church need to understand the concept of calling, and that it is God who gives us the purpose and the power to call others to come and know the glory of his name.  So what does calling mean to a musician?

1.   Calling means that band rehearsal is another opportunity to be used by God.

2.  Calling means that I’m grateful for constructive feedback so I can serve at my best.

3.  Calling means that I put in my best effort.

4.  Calling means that I look out for the health and interests of the whole group, not just my own.

5.  Calling means that I come prepared and well practiced.

6.  Calling means that I don’t back down when it becomes difficult or challenging.

7.  Calling means that I will allow myself to experience spiritual growth as I stretch my faith and my skills.

8.  Calling means that I encourage and cheer on the other musicians I get to serve with.

9.  Calling means that I resolve conflict and look for opportunities to bless other musicians.

Oswald Chambers said it this way “When God has put His call on you, woe be to you if you turn to the right hand or to the left.  He will do with you what He never did with you before the call came; He will do with you what He is not doing with other people.  Let Him have His way.”

Keep up the good work Music & Arts Volunteers!  Be encouraged knowing that when God has placed the call on your life He will be faithful to equip you and to bless you as you serve with joy his presence.

Lorn Gieck

CD Review – Steven Curtis Chapman, Beauty Will Rise

CD Review
Steven Curtis Chapman, Beauty Will Rise

Out of personal tragedy comes this very remarkable release from veteran artist Steven Curtis Chapman.  Its been a long time since an album has affected me quite like this one has.  In terms of production it has a very intimate and raw feel.  They seem to have left some of polish off of this one, and yet we are rewarded as listeners with a warmth and honesty that comes through in every note.  Musically it is also excellent.  The songs are also really well written, and very creative.  It isn’t a standard rock band style of album, instead taking a more minimalistic approach to instrumentation and arrangement.  Somehow they seem to do more with less.  Lyrically, it has some very dark moments, and there is a tremendous honesty in grappling with both personal pain, and the problems of pain and suffering in the world.  In the face of such big questions Steven continuously goes back to God.  The personal tragedy is somehow enlarged to look theologically at the whole world through the eyes of God.  What’s amazing in this album is that we don’t get answers, instead we receive glimpses, glimpses of the glory of God and His work and His plan.  It’s really remarkable and precious to be able to listen to art like this and have your picture of God enlarged, and be instilled with a greater sense of His glory.  This is a great dose of hope.  I don’t know how he could even sing and play this, yet he does it with such integrity and artistic excellence.  Take time to really stop and listen to this album.

Reviewed by Lorn Gieck

Next Page »