Shout To The LORD

Scripture

Shout joyful praises to God, all the earth! 

~Psalm 66:1, NLT

Quote

Sing lustily and with good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength.

~John Wesley

Every romantic relationship, and I am speaking of a man and a woman, needs passion. Eros is the most conditional of loves and it must be nurtured. It is like a fire and to keep a fire burning, you tend to it, you stir the embers, you fan the flames, you refuel it again and again. If you don’t do these things, the fire goes out. When the fire goes out, you simply act a part, you go through the motions but real passion is missing. What is true in marriage is true in worship.

Just imagine how the LORD must feel when we come to worship and our attitude is…”OK, I know we have to do this but can we just get it over with so I can get by to my TV show or ballgame.” David was passionate in bed and that got him in some trouble but to his credit, he was also passionate in his worship. David didn’t sing like he was half asleep; he didn’t have the “let get it over with attitude.” He loved worship and was grateful for the opportunity. He couldn’t wait to get to worship whereas we can’t wait to get out of worship. The difference between David and us is passion–David had it, we don’t. Eros demands focus. You want to be the most important person to the one you love romantically. If they are focused on someone else, it is very distracting. How distracted are we when we come to worship? Who are we really focused on? Some of us are more concerned about what the others on the pew think rather than what God thinks. We have to get focused on HIM and HIM alone. If we love Jesus the way Mary Magdalene loved him, we will be passionate in our worship. It helps to be deeply in love. No love, no passion–little love, little passion–intense love, intense passion.


  • Didn’t get any numbers yesterday. We had a ton of folks absent but still had a fair crowd. Hey, I had fun and so did Jesse, I don’t know about everyone else. I had one person tell me that he would be glad when Joe David got back. I asked him why and he said, “I relate to him better.” I guess he was inferring that I am over his head. I tried to make it simple. His comments upset me so much that I went home and ate a BLT, a bad of chips, a brownie and a bowl of ice cream. Then I took a three hour nap. By the way, I don’t think my new diet is working: I think I have gained weight.
  • We tried out the New Zaxby’s in Hartselle last night–very good. Can’t wait for Arby’s to open.
  • REVISED BLOCK PARTY WEEK SCHEDULE
    • Wednesday night August 2 @ 6:00–Pizza Bash, Media Blitz and Work Night. You can bring a 2 liter drink if you like.
    • Thursday night August 3 @ 5:00–Set up GRACE BARN, begin bringing things to GRACE BARN. If you can’t make it at 5:00, come when you can. We will probably be there until 8:00-9:00 pm. We will also start the fencing on Thursday night.
    • Friday August 4th work day beginning at 9:00 am until 8:00 Friday night. LIFE SOUTH will be on campus to take blood.
    • Saturday August 5th @ 9:00 am, game set up, gates and tents. Lunch break and then we meet at 4:00 pm for workers meeting. We will have three prizes for workers. After the workers meeting, everyone helps wrap dogs and burgers. GATES open at 6:00.

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