One More Thing

Hi Five Oakers, The weekend’s coming and there are a few things I don’t want you to miss:

The Weekend

This weekend we look at the connection between worship and spiritual formation—how "worship gathered" forms your outlook and your life into the image of Christ.

Links You Might Like

Loving the two new songs and music videos John Mark McMillan has released so far from his newest album. (Email subscribers: You’ll need to my website to watch this. Simply click on the title of this post.)

The second song is shown exclusively here.

One More Thing

I just started reading The Good and Beautiful God: Falling in Love with the God Jesus Knows by James Bryan Smith. Each chapter has a “Soul Training” exercise. The first exercise he recommends is surprising.

"The number one enemy of Christian spiritual formation today is exhaustion. We are living beyond our means, both financially and physically. As a result, one of the primary activities (or anti-activities) of human life is neglected: sleep."

So he recommends practicing" the discipline of sleep." Find one day this week, he writes, when you can sleep until you can’t sleep any more. Stay in bed until you feel completely rested. He offers alternatives and suggestions for those who have family members who need their care and for those who have trouble sleeping. But here’s why it’s important.

"Everything we do in our lives, including the practices of spiritual formation, we do in and with our bodies. If our bodies are not sufficiently rested, our energies will be diminished and our ability to pray, read the Bible, enter solitude or memorize scripture will be minimized."

The weekend’s coming. If there's any way possible, get some sleep. Sunday is your only day to sleep in? Come to the 11:00 or come Saturday for worship gathered.

Blessings to you all, Pastor Henry

Lightning Round & Ten Tweets

Hi Five Oakers, Here are the items highlighted at our staff lightning round yesterday:

• Coffee House pulled in over 100 more people (250 total) than last year. More families than ever. Thank you to Kara Bubar and her team for pulling off a great event. I loved it.

• The conference speakers at last weekend's "Connected Families" conference said it was one of the most engaged groups they ever worked with.

• We have a Settlers of Catan night on Saturday evening in the Commons. Let me know  if you want to come.

• Sarah Bowers talked about the amazing time of ministry the Haiti team had ministering to the kids at the orphanage (about 105 kids live there now) and in the surrounding area.

• Women's evening BSF kicked off at Five Oaks on Monday with about 130 women and lots of kids in the kids program.

• We are publishing Group Life for the Galatians series and things are coming along well for that.

• Lots of great connecting in the Commons this last weekend thanks to Nicole Achterling and her team putting on the love them event.

Here's my sermon in 10 Tweets: "Worship One, Two, Three" (Colossians 3:16-17)

1// We all know people who say yes to Jesus and no to the church. We're in conversation with them about it.

2// Many who defend yes to Jesus and no to the church seem to have a one-dimensional view of worship.

3// There is ONE object and author of worship: God. "Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor 10:31)

4// Yes, we should do everything as an act of worship, but Bible calls us to worship in TWO contexts.

5// Worship scattered and worship gathered. God calls us to both.

6// Analogy: If I say all about family but never gather with them, just work "to provide for them," neglecting important responsibility.

7// THREE audiences of worship: God, the Church, The Watching World. Not about me or even all about me and God.

8// Address one another in Psalms, hymns and spiritual songs (Eph 5:19)

9// I don't know of any context that gathers more interested seekers together every week than in churches across America. Biblical worship considers the seeker.

10// Maybe it's time for a conversation. Listen well and compassionately. Provide a 3-dimensional, biblical perspective.

Blessings, Pastor Henry