It started off like most morning sessions at the New Room Conference. Worship. Prayer. Teaching. The speaker paced as she pieced together bits of her story, lacing it full of Scripture – when suddenly the atmosphere in the room shifted. Something unspoken. And holy. Within minutes the flow of people to the front altar wentContinue reading "Embrace Worship: Atmosphere"
Embrace Worship: Power
Creating deep wells in Christ requires a willingness to keep digging even when we don’t find water – trusting that we will. Think about digging. It’s a whole body effort. Arms slamming the shovel into the soil. Feet stomping it deeper into the dirt. Back, legs, and arms pulling out the dirt then emptying itContinue reading "Embrace Worship: Power"
Embrace Worship: Wells
If we’re to become followers of Jesus who truly embrace worship for all that it is, for all that He is and with all that we are, we’ll need to learn how to go beyond the surface. And dig deep. So far our exploration of worship has hovered around altars – moments of encounter withContinue reading "Embrace Worship: Wells"
Embrace Worship: Sacrifice
We’ve arrived at another facet of worship that flows right out of last week’s offerings on the tabernacle’s burnt altar: sacrifice. On one hand, ‘offerings’ and ‘sacrifice’ can be used interchangeably – the animal laid upon that bronze altar was an offering to God, standing in as a sacrifice for the person. But today we’reContinue reading "Embrace Worship: Sacrifice"
Embrace Worship: Offering
Have you ever stopped to consider the scenes we read about in the Old Testament where animals are killed and burned on an altar as an offering to God? All the mooing and bleating. All the blood. All the smells. In truth, it’s an assault on our modern sensibilities. But in its day, offerings onContinue reading "Embrace Worship: Offering"
Embrace Worship: Presence
As I’ve been digging into this topic of ‘worship’ with the Lord, I have been sorting through the subtle, yet significant, differences between two facets of worship: an encounter with God and entering into the presence of God. Early on in my research the two ideas surfaced quickly, but I must confess I struggled toContinue reading "Embrace Worship: Presence"
Embrace Worship: Altars
The phenomenon called Frequency Illusion happens when we become aware of something we hadn’t before, and ‘suddenly’ that thing appears frequently. Like when my husband started working for Hyundai and I started seeing Hyundai cars I’d never noticed before all the time. I’ve had that kind of experience with the word ‘altars’. I’m not completelyContinue reading "Embrace Worship: Altars"
Embrace Worship: Holy and Wholly
While we might be inclined to ask why we should pray when we think about lifting up a request to God, it’s probably not our habit to ask why we should worship each time we come before God. To ask ‘why pray’ often names a nagging whisper of wonder about the effectiveness of prayer.While askingContinue reading "Embrace Worship: Holy and Wholly"
Embrace Prayer: It Is About Asking
Embracing prayer is a lifelong pursuit, practice, and gift. As we embrace prayer, we move beyond a “prayer life,” where we compartmentalize our moments of prayer from all the other segments of our busy lives. And we step into a “life of prayer,” which is all-encompassing1 – like syrup that flows into all the pocketsContinue reading "Embrace Prayer: It Is About Asking"
Embrace Prayer: It’s Not All Asking
I’ll never forget the day I told my high school senior, as he headed out for a big day at school, that I’d be praying for him. He stopped in his tracks and looked at me, genuinely perplexed. Then asked, “Why would you need to pray about that?” Knock me over with a feather. WhatContinue reading "Embrace Prayer: It’s Not All Asking"