The Private Worshipper

greetings y'all,

i like to start my blogs with a joke, no not really but thought id share one here with u guys that i thought was pretty funny.... actually made me think of pastor stephen cause he tells me relative stories...sorta.

A minister parked his car in a no-parking zone in a large city because he was short
of time and couldn’t find a space with a meter.

So he put a note under the windshield wiper that read: “I have circled the block 10 times.
If I don’t park here, I’ll miss my appointment. FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES.”

When he returned, he found a citation from a police officer along with this note.

“I’ve circled this block for 10 years. If I don’t give you a ticket, I’ll lose my job. LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION.”

LOL, pretty funny yea? (maybe cause i feel the minister when it comes to parking in the city) ;P

not that this happened to Pastor Stephen or anything of the sort, but just thought he'd enjoy it as much as me.. lol!

ne way,

this past Sunday service @ D.E.M. was awesome as usual and alot of love was going around since our beloved Jason Lee visited for the weekend from RutgersU, it was his birthday as well and our sister Ailee had the pleasure of caking his face, or smothering rather~

 priceless ;)

Jason, 

As you grow older may u draw nearer to your Maker my friend. Let every fiber of your body declare His glory (1 Corinthians 10:31), you are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalms 139:14). Thank you for loving Jesus and thank You Jesus for loving Jason. =)

Another highlight from this Sunday was the sermon, 

 "The Private Worshipper".

text taken from Matthew 6:2-7, 

2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

 5And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words."

Pastor Stephen posed a crucial question to every and any kind of worshipper out there,

"who are you when no one is watching?"

from Pastors to you & i, everyone has, is, or will be held accountable for this question.

ya kno, i think it ez to put up fronts and facades... heck i've done it myself!

and when doors closed.... hands, eyes, or mind idle... there's a spiritual war going down during those moments.

and we are demanded to equip ourselves with the armor of God. (Eph. 6)

strategize, mobilize, & memorize!

 

we have to understand GRACE and the power of Jesus on our side~ then we can OVERCOME and let it be about, "Christ in me" whereas we are "dead to sin".

Therefore, Christ can take our hearts and not our empty traditions or head knowledge.

there's a difference between knowing God and knowing about God.

there's a difference between knowing how to worship and worshipping.

from the miniscule decisions to the grandeur ones.... what movie to watch, where we hang out, what we do infront of the computer, what website we spend most of our time on, what games we spend our time on, what kind of car we drive, what kind of clothes we wear, what kind of music we hear, what kind of shows we watch, and the list goes on.... 

we take for granted these small kinds of decisions which turn into patterns which then leads to type of character or person we are and if we can agree that who we are is not glorifying God then shouldn't we make that effort to either examine or change some patterns or decisions in our lives?

don't get the wrong impression of legalism here.

i'm simply amplifying..... 

"Jesus didn't come to make bad people good, 

He came to make dead people alive!"

we don't have to live mediocre lives or lukewarm Christianity (REV 3:16)

we are alive in Christ and dead to sin y'all, cmon now~(Romans 6)

let's be as my brother Jason says, "Souled out" for Christ and find Him in that secret place, behind closed doors, outside Sanctuary pews, beyond the doors of friday night service, in the bedroom, in the library, by still waters, in empty auditoriums, under the stars, behind the bleachers, in the bathroom! etc... =)

i just encourage anyone and everyone who reads this.... 

to keep your secret place w/ God.

werd.

as i write this, i found my secret place with God or found God in the secret place rather...from Mon-Thurs.. 1-2 p.m... he leads me to still waters.

and so i took a picture...

"The Heart of Worship"

When the music fades 

And all is stripped away 
And I simply come 
Longing just to bring 
Something that's of worth 
That will bless your heart 

I'll bring You more than a song 
For a song in itself 
Is not what You have required 
You search much deeper within 
Through the ways things appear 
You're looking into my heart 

I'm coming back to the heart of worship 
And it's all about You 
All about You, Jesus 
I'm sorry Lord for the thing I've made it 
When it's all about You 
It's all about You Jesus 

King of endless worth 
No one could express 
How much You deserve 
Though I'm weak and poor 
All I have is Yours 
Every single breath 

I'll bring You more than just a song 
For a song in itself 
Is not what You have required 
You search much deeper within 
Through the way things appear 
You're looking into my heart 

I'm coming back to the heart of worship 
And it's all about You 
All about You, Jesus 
I'm sorry Lord for the thing I've made it 
When it's all about You 
It's all about You Jesus 

Its all about you 
Jesus