Oh yes, the first day back to school. It has a distinct smell that is hard to shake even after it's over. In a sense that smell is literal (the freshman who bathe in it before going to class for the first time with "college girls"), but in a different sense it's almost like a tangible excitement that just permeates the campus. Whether it's upperclassman finding their old friends in the hallways or the freshman looking for t a friend in the hallways, it's just an exciting time to be here.
I'm currently sitting in the laptop section of the computer lab trying to figure out where my classes are. As of now I only have two classes on Monday, a first since I've been at school. Usually by this time I would have already had a class or two, eaten almost two meals and had at least one cup of Jazzman's coffee. I almost don't even know what to do with myself since I've got an hour in between convo and my next class. I guess I could go meet some of those bright eyed freshmen who are wandering around the halls trying to figure out where DeMoss 1113 is.
Or I could just sit here...
This year holds a lot of interesting things for me. For one, I'll be turning 21 in less than a month. Two, I'm trying out a fantasy football league thing for the first time ever. Three, I'm living in a hotel, the one on Odd Fellows Road. I like it so far, and hopefully it stays that way. It's weird 'cause there are girls on the second and third floors. I guess that's not so weird, but I'm so accustomed to Liberty's male dorm thing that I kind of freak out a little when a girl walks down the hall to get to the staircase. I feel like I'm in third grade a lot when there are girls around the dorm and in my mind I'm saying "No! Forbidden!" Maybe I'll get over my fear of girls this year too... or maybe I'll be more frightened. After reading Twilight, I'm not any less scared.
Well, I'm about to go and get some coffee and wake up. Here's to another school year at LU...
Hosea and Me
Friday, August 21, 2009
I've been reading in Hosea lately and I cannot get over the first 3 chapters. Hosea is basically the man, and through his story I'm learning more and more about how I fall short of where I need to be.
Hosea is faced with an intense command from God. Chapter 1, verse 2 says this: "When the Lord began to speak through Hosea, the Lord said to him, 'Go, take to yourself an adulterous wife and children of unfaithfulness, because the land is guilty of the vilest adultery in departing from the Lord." I don't know what I'd do in this situation. Take for myself an adulterous wife? Really? But since Hosea is the man, he obeys God and marries this girl named Gomer. I don't know what her parents were thinking when they named her this... but whatever.
Chapter 2 talks about Israel and how adulterous it has been to God. There is some pretty harsh language towards Israel throughout this entire chapter and it seems pretty grim for the Israelites at this point. But this is where the story gets interesting: the start of chapter 3.
The Lord then says to Hosea "Go show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adultress. Lover her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes." Even through Israel's total deprivation in sin and turning to anything but God, He still loves them. He tells Hosea to do the same for his wife. Hosea searches out his wife and finds her immersed in sin to the point of being put on auction for other men. He looks at her with love and buys her back for 15 shekels of silver and asks her to come live with him again for "many days". Hosea takes his wife back even after she has openly and freely given herself away to other men. What a picture of redemption this gives us!
It says in Exodus 21:32 that the price for a slave is 30 shekels, so in essence, Hosea's wife here is being sold for half the price of a slave. She is cheapened so much that she is being sold for next to nothing practically. But Hosea still sees worth in her. To me, this gives me great hope because I am worth less than Hosea's wife. I have cheapened myself so much by sin that I am worth next to nothing, but Jesus Christ loved His bride enough to come and not only buy us for half to the price of a slave, but He came down and saw us in our nakedness and shame and adultery and decided to give His LIFE for us. I'm chosen to be His, and I can think of no one greater to serve than Someone like that.
May we realize this and grab hold of Christ's extended arm that's buying us back from adulterous slavery. And may we live with Him for "many days" learning through the words that He's spoken through the Bible.
I'm ready to start preparing the bride for the Bridegroom's return.
Hosea is faced with an intense command from God. Chapter 1, verse 2 says this: "When the Lord began to speak through Hosea, the Lord said to him, 'Go, take to yourself an adulterous wife and children of unfaithfulness, because the land is guilty of the vilest adultery in departing from the Lord." I don't know what I'd do in this situation. Take for myself an adulterous wife? Really? But since Hosea is the man, he obeys God and marries this girl named Gomer. I don't know what her parents were thinking when they named her this... but whatever.
Chapter 2 talks about Israel and how adulterous it has been to God. There is some pretty harsh language towards Israel throughout this entire chapter and it seems pretty grim for the Israelites at this point. But this is where the story gets interesting: the start of chapter 3.
The Lord then says to Hosea "Go show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adultress. Lover her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes." Even through Israel's total deprivation in sin and turning to anything but God, He still loves them. He tells Hosea to do the same for his wife. Hosea searches out his wife and finds her immersed in sin to the point of being put on auction for other men. He looks at her with love and buys her back for 15 shekels of silver and asks her to come live with him again for "many days". Hosea takes his wife back even after she has openly and freely given herself away to other men. What a picture of redemption this gives us!
It says in Exodus 21:32 that the price for a slave is 30 shekels, so in essence, Hosea's wife here is being sold for half the price of a slave. She is cheapened so much that she is being sold for next to nothing practically. But Hosea still sees worth in her. To me, this gives me great hope because I am worth less than Hosea's wife. I have cheapened myself so much by sin that I am worth next to nothing, but Jesus Christ loved His bride enough to come and not only buy us for half to the price of a slave, but He came down and saw us in our nakedness and shame and adultery and decided to give His LIFE for us. I'm chosen to be His, and I can think of no one greater to serve than Someone like that.
May we realize this and grab hold of Christ's extended arm that's buying us back from adulterous slavery. And may we live with Him for "many days" learning through the words that He's spoken through the Bible.
I'm ready to start preparing the bride for the Bridegroom's return.
A Non-Seriously Serious Post
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
List of Awesome things:
- Cheesy scary movies
- Sleeping in a bed
- Growing Pains (the TV show, not the pains you get from growing.)
- Chocolate milk
- New car tires
- You
- Kyle Cumming's CD "The Interstate"
- Spending all summer traveling with cool guys and playing music
List of Not-Awesome things:
- Hip-hop music so loud it hurts my body
- 98 degree weather (however, 98 Degrees the band might be a different story...)
- People who scream a lot
- Twilight (sorry. It was so hard to finish reading for me.)
- Forgetting what you were about t........
ANYWAY, I'm in Wilson, North Carolina right now just hanging out for the next couple of days before Ministry Team training camp starts. I'm looking forward to getting back to a routine.
Kthxbye.
- Cheesy scary movies
- Sleeping in a bed
- Growing Pains (the TV show, not the pains you get from growing.)
- Chocolate milk
- New car tires
- You
- Kyle Cumming's CD "The Interstate"
- Spending all summer traveling with cool guys and playing music
List of Not-Awesome things:
- Hip-hop music so loud it hurts my body
- 98 degree weather (however, 98 Degrees the band might be a different story...)
- People who scream a lot
- Twilight (sorry. It was so hard to finish reading for me.)
- Forgetting what you were about t........
ANYWAY, I'm in Wilson, North Carolina right now just hanging out for the next couple of days before Ministry Team training camp starts. I'm looking forward to getting back to a routine.
Kthxbye.
Genuine
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Culture force feeds us a false idea of satisfaction. We are told by the shows that we watch and the music that we listen to that sex and wealth can gratify our needs, but it only seems to fuel itself and perpetuate a stronger desire for those things. Once the smell of those things reaches our nostrils the idols of our stomach cry out to be fed. The funny thing is that we (Christians) think we can subside the stomach pain by teasing it with a little bit of what it’s calling out for. “Maybe if I go that one website just this once my desire for lust will dissipate.” What a backwards way of thinking.
Maybe we should fill our sense of smell with the sweet aroma of the Word of God. Maybe if we did this our stomachs desire would change from the filth and garbage that we wave in front of our faces daily and start to crave that which it was intended for. And maybe, just maybe, if we were to feed on Scripture the church would look drastically different; the hands and feet of Christ might finally have the strength to move forward and make a difference.
May you begin to fill yourself with the beauty of God’s Word. May we, the church, the body of Christ, hold up what we are taught and hold it up to the Light and see if it is genuine or counterfeit.
Maybe we should fill our sense of smell with the sweet aroma of the Word of God. Maybe if we did this our stomachs desire would change from the filth and garbage that we wave in front of our faces daily and start to crave that which it was intended for. And maybe, just maybe, if we were to feed on Scripture the church would look drastically different; the hands and feet of Christ might finally have the strength to move forward and make a difference.
May you begin to fill yourself with the beauty of God’s Word. May we, the church, the body of Christ, hold up what we are taught and hold it up to the Light and see if it is genuine or counterfeit.
Dancing and Applause
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
*I just re-posted this because I didn't like the inconsistent font between this post and my others... so.. yeah..*
I think God taught me a little more about worship these past few weeks and I want to get my thoughts down on paper (or pixilated screens) before it gets lost in the small mundane thoughts of my life.
We lead worship last Sunday morning for the youth at Northstar Church in Atlanta, GA (Lauren Boyd’s church) and for the next couple of days we were able to be a part of their youth outreach program called “Leap” where they go out into the community and serve in the name of Jesus Christ. The place we went on Monday was a youth center in an apartment complex. It was kind of like a Christian daycare almost. At this youth center, the kids are broken up into 4 or 5 groups and in each they did a different activity. I chose to go to the “Human Video” class, which was pretty much interpretive dance for 2 hours. It was one of the most memorable things I’ve done all summer. Not only for the fact that I, Jesse Phillips, did interpretive dance for 2 hours, but also for the fact that the children that were in that class left a huge impact on me. One kid named CJ loved the fact that a “big kid” would come hang out and dance with them and he taught me all the dance moves to “Shackles” by Mary, Mary. Another girl who was too shy to tell me her name taught me the dance for “Potters Hand.” It wasn’t a super spiritual “I can see Jesus in all of their faces” moment, but it was a time where God used the kids to let down my guard in a sense, and just worship in a way that I don’t think I would normally have even thought of.
That night we attended a service at First Baptist Woodstock that was called “Prime.” It happens once a month and is geared towards college aged kids. Something that the worship leader said at the very beginning of the service that was very thought-provoking for me was something to the effect of “let us lay down our own agenda of what we want to sing to God and rather focus on what God wants us to sing to Him.” I wish I could remember the exact quote, but that’s the general gist of it. At that moment, I felt conviction that I have always focused on what I want to sing to God rather than what He wants me to sing. Whenever a worship song that I’m not too fond of comes up in the set-list it seems as though I give God my half-hearted worship, but when a song that I enjoy comes up I feel more inclined to raise my hands. What a hypocritical way to worship! That’s me saying that the worship is about me rather than about Jesus.
A few days ago we were in Summerton, SC playing for Hickory Grove Baptist Church’s youth camp. It was a great experience and I think God really used this one particular night to encourage me to worship Him in a deeper sense. I don’t remember which night it was, but on the 2nd or 3rd night the rain just started coming down in torrents. The room that we were gathered in to worship and hear from the speaker started to take in water. The ceiling was leaking in a few spots and water was coming in through the backdoors on both sides of the room. The adult leaders were cleaning up the mess during our worship set and for some reason I had one of those moments where it felt like time just stopped. The rain clapped onto the tin rooftop and it sounded like thunderous applause. God was receiving a standing ovation from the rain falling down on that roof. I felt at that moment the Holy Spirit teaching me to let God reign down in my life so that He could get a standing ovation from what was going on in my heart.
I think it’s about time I lay myself at the altar and give God my undivided worship. Worship that is not based on how I’m feeling, a song that’s being played, or an atmosphere, but rather worship that is as unstoppable as a rain storm, clapping with fervency at the amazing work that God has done.
I think God taught me a little more about worship these past few weeks and I want to get my thoughts down on paper (or pixilated screens) before it gets lost in the small mundane thoughts of my life.
We lead worship last Sunday morning for the youth at Northstar Church in Atlanta, GA (Lauren Boyd’s church) and for the next couple of days we were able to be a part of their youth outreach program called “Leap” where they go out into the community and serve in the name of Jesus Christ. The place we went on Monday was a youth center in an apartment complex. It was kind of like a Christian daycare almost. At this youth center, the kids are broken up into 4 or 5 groups and in each they did a different activity. I chose to go to the “Human Video” class, which was pretty much interpretive dance for 2 hours. It was one of the most memorable things I’ve done all summer. Not only for the fact that I, Jesse Phillips, did interpretive dance for 2 hours, but also for the fact that the children that were in that class left a huge impact on me. One kid named CJ loved the fact that a “big kid” would come hang out and dance with them and he taught me all the dance moves to “Shackles” by Mary, Mary. Another girl who was too shy to tell me her name taught me the dance for “Potters Hand.” It wasn’t a super spiritual “I can see Jesus in all of their faces” moment, but it was a time where God used the kids to let down my guard in a sense, and just worship in a way that I don’t think I would normally have even thought of.
That night we attended a service at First Baptist Woodstock that was called “Prime.” It happens once a month and is geared towards college aged kids. Something that the worship leader said at the very beginning of the service that was very thought-provoking for me was something to the effect of “let us lay down our own agenda of what we want to sing to God and rather focus on what God wants us to sing to Him.” I wish I could remember the exact quote, but that’s the general gist of it. At that moment, I felt conviction that I have always focused on what I want to sing to God rather than what He wants me to sing. Whenever a worship song that I’m not too fond of comes up in the set-list it seems as though I give God my half-hearted worship, but when a song that I enjoy comes up I feel more inclined to raise my hands. What a hypocritical way to worship! That’s me saying that the worship is about me rather than about Jesus.
A few days ago we were in Summerton, SC playing for Hickory Grove Baptist Church’s youth camp. It was a great experience and I think God really used this one particular night to encourage me to worship Him in a deeper sense. I don’t remember which night it was, but on the 2nd or 3rd night the rain just started coming down in torrents. The room that we were gathered in to worship and hear from the speaker started to take in water. The ceiling was leaking in a few spots and water was coming in through the backdoors on both sides of the room. The adult leaders were cleaning up the mess during our worship set and for some reason I had one of those moments where it felt like time just stopped. The rain clapped onto the tin rooftop and it sounded like thunderous applause. God was receiving a standing ovation from the rain falling down on that roof. I felt at that moment the Holy Spirit teaching me to let God reign down in my life so that He could get a standing ovation from what was going on in my heart.
I think it’s about time I lay myself at the altar and give God my undivided worship. Worship that is not based on how I’m feeling, a song that’s being played, or an atmosphere, but rather worship that is as unstoppable as a rain storm, clapping with fervency at the amazing work that God has done.
Exodus Update: Mobile
Friday, June 12, 2009
There must be something in the water here in Mobile, AL. Something really good. Something like... the Holy Spirit.
I have been greatly challenged by the youth here in Mobile to get my act together and worship unhindered by pride. Each youth group we have lead worship for here have been so passionate in their worship that I have felt embarrassed by my lack of zeal for singing praise to God. I don't believe that passion is just manifested in physical form with hands lifted high, but I do believe that some of what's in your heart should infiltrate your physical response to what is being sung. I have seen youth raise their hands during the lyric "so we raise up holy hands, to praise the Holy One", dance during the lyric "the redeemed have come to dance", and shout for joy during the lyric "make a joyful noise to the Lord all the earth." I think I've been learning about response in worship a lot during this tour.
The devotions of the leaders here in Mobile have been penetrating my heart as well. One youth leader spoke about sponges and how when you stick a sponge in water it becomes saturated with that water. The water infiltrates every pour of the sponge and when you squeeze the sponge, whatever was soaked up in it will come out. Matthew 12:34 reinforces this in saying that the overflow of our hearts come out in speech. I have a confession to make: I'm not soaking in the word of God like I should be. I have not been writing the words of Christ on my heart by memorizing them. How different would I look if I soaked in Scripture instead of pop-culture? I think I would look drastically different. In a good way too. Not to bash pop-culture though, I do believe this has its place in our society (especially in being able to relate to non-believers) but at the same time, I know that I spend to much time revelling in things that are not of God.
I believe that God is moving strongly here in Mobile. I believe that He brought me here to teach me more about worship. I also believe that this has the potential to affect the world we live in. May I never forget what God has taught me here. And may you beging to saturate yourself in the words of Jesus Christ. May you become immersed in the Word so that when the world grips you tightly and tries to suffocate you, what overflows is Holy.
Luke 6:45 - "The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart the mouth speaks."
I have been greatly challenged by the youth here in Mobile to get my act together and worship unhindered by pride. Each youth group we have lead worship for here have been so passionate in their worship that I have felt embarrassed by my lack of zeal for singing praise to God. I don't believe that passion is just manifested in physical form with hands lifted high, but I do believe that some of what's in your heart should infiltrate your physical response to what is being sung. I have seen youth raise their hands during the lyric "so we raise up holy hands, to praise the Holy One", dance during the lyric "the redeemed have come to dance", and shout for joy during the lyric "make a joyful noise to the Lord all the earth." I think I've been learning about response in worship a lot during this tour.
The devotions of the leaders here in Mobile have been penetrating my heart as well. One youth leader spoke about sponges and how when you stick a sponge in water it becomes saturated with that water. The water infiltrates every pour of the sponge and when you squeeze the sponge, whatever was soaked up in it will come out. Matthew 12:34 reinforces this in saying that the overflow of our hearts come out in speech. I have a confession to make: I'm not soaking in the word of God like I should be. I have not been writing the words of Christ on my heart by memorizing them. How different would I look if I soaked in Scripture instead of pop-culture? I think I would look drastically different. In a good way too. Not to bash pop-culture though, I do believe this has its place in our society (especially in being able to relate to non-believers) but at the same time, I know that I spend to much time revelling in things that are not of God.
I believe that God is moving strongly here in Mobile. I believe that He brought me here to teach me more about worship. I also believe that this has the potential to affect the world we live in. May I never forget what God has taught me here. And may you beging to saturate yourself in the words of Jesus Christ. May you become immersed in the Word so that when the world grips you tightly and tries to suffocate you, what overflows is Holy.
Luke 6:45 - "The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart the mouth speaks."
Hey Thanks, Peter...
Saturday, May 30, 2009
I was reading 2 Peter today and something shook my soul. I was a little fearful that chapter 2 might have been talking about me. Peter writes about false prophets and teachers of destructive heresy because many will follow their "shameful ways" and "will bring the way of truth into disrepute." I couldn't help but to think of how I am somewhat of a 'teacher' of true worship to the congregations that I play music for with the Sounds of Liberty. Am I teaching a false gospel by the way I live behind the stage? Are the kids that I'm going to be in contact with this summer traveling with Exodus going to hear me preach a message of hypocrisy or a message of Truth through my behavior?
What about you? What message are you preaching with the way you live?
Verse 10 of chapter 2 mentions those who follow the desires of the sinful nature, despise authority, are bold and arrogant... in many different ways I fall into each of these categories. These kinds of people bring "disrepute" to the name of the Lord. I had to look up the word disrepute to even know what it meant, but it means "the state of being held in low esteem." Our behavior as followers of Christ can cause others to look on the name of Jesus with low esteem.. what a huge responsibility we have then, as followers of Christ to hold his name up with high esteem and live in a way that is worthy of the Name we represent on Earth.
The ending chapter of 2 Peter states that Peter wrote this letter as a reminder to stimulate us to wholesome thinking. I'd encourage you to read this book... it has certainly stimulated my mind to revert back to thinking soberly.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. - Philippians 4:8
What about you? What message are you preaching with the way you live?
Verse 10 of chapter 2 mentions those who follow the desires of the sinful nature, despise authority, are bold and arrogant... in many different ways I fall into each of these categories. These kinds of people bring "disrepute" to the name of the Lord. I had to look up the word disrepute to even know what it meant, but it means "the state of being held in low esteem." Our behavior as followers of Christ can cause others to look on the name of Jesus with low esteem.. what a huge responsibility we have then, as followers of Christ to hold his name up with high esteem and live in a way that is worthy of the Name we represent on Earth.
The ending chapter of 2 Peter states that Peter wrote this letter as a reminder to stimulate us to wholesome thinking. I'd encourage you to read this book... it has certainly stimulated my mind to revert back to thinking soberly.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. - Philippians 4:8
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)