New Christian music is BLASPHEMOUS!

“There are several reasons for opposing it. One, it’s too new. Two, it’s often worldly, even blasphemous. The new Christian music is not as pleasant as the established style. Because there are so many new songs you can’t learn them all. It puts too much emphasis on instrumental music rather than Godly lyrics. This new music creates disturbances; people act indecently and disorderly. The preceding generation got along without it. It’s a money making scene and some of these new music upstarts are lewd and loose.”

How many of you agree? How many hearty "Amens"?

The author of these words is an Anglican Pastor named William Romaine and his critique was featured in An Essay on Psalmody. It was written in 1723. The “new music” he was referring to? The hymns of Isaac Watts.

It’s really easy to criticize new music, idolize old music, and demonize what you don’t like.

This was totally stolen from this blog

Cheers

Dan

I Stand By The Door

I mined yet another nugget of deep truth from my book of devotions "A guide to prayer for ministers and other servants" which I really cannot recommend highly enough. This nugget is entitled "I stand by the door" and is written by Samuel Shoemaker, who was one of the men who helped draft the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. Why I'm blogging this poem is because it causes something deep within myself to long to occupy that place at the door:

I STAND BY THE DOOR
Samuel Shoemaker

I stand by the door.
I neither go too far in, nor stay too far out,
The door is the most important door in the world-
It is the door through which people walk when they find God.
There's no use my going way inside, and staying there,
When so many are still outside and they, as much as I,
Crave to know where the door is.
And all that so many ever find
Is only the wall where a door ought to be.
They creep along the wall like blind people,
With outstretched, groping hands.
Feeling for a door, knowing there must be a door,
Yet they never find it ...
So I stand by the door.

The most tremendous thing in the world
Is for people to find that door--the door to God.
The most important thing any person can do
Is to take hold of one of those blind, groping hands,
And put it on the latch--the latch that only clicks
And opens to the person's own touch.
People die outside that door, as starving beggars die
On cold nights in cruel cities in the dead of winter—
Die for want of what is within their grasp.
They live, on the other side of it--live because they have not found it.
Nothing else matters compared to helping them find it,
And open it, and walk in, and find Him ...
So I stand by the door.

Go in, great saints, go all the way in--
Go way down into the cavernous cellars,
And way up into the spacious attics--
It is a vast roomy house, this house where God is.
Go into the deepest of hidden casements,
Of withdrawal, of silence, of sainthood.
Some must inhabit those inner rooms.
And know the depths and heights of God,
And call outside to the rest of us how wonderful it is.
Sometimes I take a deeper look in,
Sometimes venture in a little farther;
But my place seems closer to the opening ...
So I stand by the door.

There is another reason why I stand there.
Some people get part way in and become afraid
Lest God and the zeal of His house devour them
For God is so very great, and asks all of us.
And these people feel a cosmic claustrophobia,
And want to get out. "Let me out!" they cry,
And the people way inside only terrify, them more.
Somebody must be by the door to tell them that they are spoiled
For the old life, they have seen too much:
Once taste God, and nothing but God will do any more.
Somebody must be watching for the frightened
Who seek to sneak out just where they came in,
To tell them how much better it is inside.
The people too far in do not see how near these are
To leaving--preoccupied with the wonder of it all.
Somebody must watch for those who have entered the door,
But would like to run away. So for them, too,
I stand by the door.

I admire the people who go way in.
But I wish they would not forget how it was
Before they got in. Then they would be able to help
The people who have not, yet even found the door,
Or the people who want to run away again from God,
You can go in too deeply, and stay in too long,
And forget the people outside the door.
As for me, I shall take my old accustomed place,
Near enough to God to hear Him, and know He is there,
But not so far from people as not to hear them,
And remember they are there, too.
Where? Outside the door--
Thousands of them, millions of them.
But--more important for me--
One of them, two of them, ten of them,
Whose hands I am intended to put on the latch.
So I shall stand by the door and wait
For those who seek it.
"I had rather be a door-keeper ..."
So I stand by the door.

Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. (Psalm 84:10)

Essential Church?

I've started reading a book called "Essential Church? (Reclaiming a generation of dropouts)"
It's to do with the North American exodus of young adults from the church. Over the past couple of weeks, this is something that's been brought to my attention. I think perhaps it's God. I say this because I got an email in the same week I first had these thoughts and got hold of the book (but not because I was looking for it). The email was worded as follows:

"... the eAdvising/Development…it is basically a cost effective way in providing consulting, advising, and developing as it relates to Young Adult/20-30’s Ministry. Each session will be done via conference call and the web. The purpose is to assist and equip churches in finding ways that they can “retain” the 20s-30s in their local churches and “reach” them in their communities. We will look at context and culture, both within the local church and their community. Each church has it’s DNA, and we want to find out how they can uniquely reach this emerging generation for Christ!

I've suddenly started to notice and care that there seems to be something lacking between youth age and fully-fledged adulthood...namely the lack of community for young adults - the 18-30 age group. I guess I've noticed for longer than a couple of weeks - but it's crystallized in my mind just recently. I'm not talking about creating a program, but I am talking about some kind of community for the young adults who are going through so many life-changes with little or no community-base on which to anchor.

Let me just share a couple of points from the book, so you'll know where my head is right now (where it says "America / Americans", feel free to read "Canada / Canadians")

"Why do more than two-thirds of churchgoing young adults Americans leave the church? Or to ask the question positively, why do one-third of churchgoing young adult Americans stay in the church? The answer to the latter questions emerged from several years of research. Young adults are likely to stay in the church if they see church as essential to their lives. But the reality is that most churches in America are doing little to become essential to the lives of their members" (page 5 of "Essential Church")

The authors then going on to set the following structure for the rest of the book:
"Church members (of essential churches) see the local congregation as a biblical fellowship that they deem critical for their lives. The essential church has four major components.
1) The church has learned to simplify. Too many churches are filled with activities that have little coherent purpose.
2) The church moves its members to deepen their knowledge of God's word and His truths.
3) The church has high expectations of its members. When expectations are low, commitment is low.
4) An essential church is committed to helping its members multiply spiritually. Evangelism is part of the heartbeat of the church.

Taken from "Essential Church?" (Reclaiming a generation of dropouts). Written by Thom S. Rainer and Sam S. Rainer III. Published by B&H Publishing Group.

Cheers
Dan