A Tale of Two Books

I've been thoroughly enjoying two books simultaneously. Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit by Francis Chan is a study we're doing for our small group. It's life-changing stuff. The second book, which I just started reading yesterday is Worship Matters by Bob Kauflin.  More life-changing stuff. At first I thought these books would have very little in common, but as it turns out, I was wrong. I think I have cracked open a gaping problem, certainly in my own life, but most likely, in the lives of many "average" Christians as I have been reading these two books. I just want to share with you today what I am processing through as I am reading these two books.

First of all, we have neglected the Holy Spirit in our churches and in our lives. I would highly suggest that you listen to the message from my church this past Sunday if you want to hear some solid, biblical teaching on the Holy Spirit. It should be online within the next couple days. You can do so by using the following link to LCC's messages: http://yourlcc.org/messages/
I think there are a lot of misconceptions in my own mind about the Holy Spirit because of my church history and background. There are some strange things going on in churches today being done in the name of the Holy Spirit. In my lifetime, I have seen people "pass out", falling backward in a stupor because a pastor touched them on the forehead. I have seen people run laps around a church building. I have seen people laughing and rolling hysterically on the floor, acting completely intoxicated. One time a guy who was "drunk in the Spirit" tried to get a drink at the water fountain in the entryway just off of our sanctuary and the water just fell right out of his mouth and he laughed and laughed, came into the sanctuary and spit it all down the front of his shirt. This, supposedly, was the work of the Holy Spirit.

These incidents from long ago have certainly shaped the way I believe the Holy Spirit works. I am very cautious and even nervous, not so much about the Holy Spirit, but of the fear that people around me will choose unbiblical ways to display what they think is the power of the Spirit in their lives. I have been very skeptical when someone says they have a word from the Lord.  I walk a fine line between discernment, being overly-cautious, and being downright critical. But I am beginning to see that I have to let these things go. I have to release my fear of what people have displayed in the past and believe that the Holy Spirit is not strange. I have to really examine what I believe and why.  This examination raises a host of questions: Do I believe that the Holy Spirit speaks to people? Yes. Do I believe that the Holy Spirit can come in power and cause people to react physically? Absolutely. But I do not believe that the Holy Spirit causes mass confusion, chaos, or reflects upon Himself in a manner that does not glorify His name and His cause. If you disagree with me, I invite you to look in your Bible and see where it says that the Holy Spirit does bizarre things that make people look like drunken, out-of-their-mind idiots. You won't find it. Dancing and celebrating His goodness with joyful singing? Sure. Working diligently to bring justice and mercy to those in need? Absolutely. Bringing a greater knowledge of who God is and imparting His attributes, character, and desires to those surrendered to Him? Definitely. I have always believed in the Holy Spirit and have felt the strong anointing and power of the Holy Spirit in my own life, but there has always been this fuzzy area of disbelief and uncertainty in relation to what the Holy Spirit does in our lives. I am coming to understand that the Holy Spirit is good and wants the best for us and for the world for which Jesus died. Only when we are surrendered to the true workings of the Holy Spirit will we understand our role in the story of God and have the power to carry out that role in an effective, revolutionary manner.

Secondly, in the book Worship Matters, Bob Kauflin talks about how worship leaders, and Christians in general, are not students. We do not study the Bible and we do not have a good understanding of theology for a variety of reasons. In my case, and I believe in the case of many Christians, we just believe what we have always been told and don't feel the need to take it upon ourselves to really understand our faith. We are largely undisciplined and lazy. We will research for hours upon hours about a new car we want to get or will study relentlessly in preparation for a degree or our jobs, but we do not devote the time to study and learn about the Word of God. I have lots of books, but I probably have one or two theology books among them. And they're really dusty. Maybe we feel like we have a relationship with God and don't need the "religious" knowledge found in theology books. To that, I would point to 2 Timothy 4:13 where Paul is writing a letter from prison requesting "the books" from Timothy. Charles Spurgeon says,

   " He (Paul) is inspired, and yet he wants books! He has seen the Lord, and yet he wants books! He has wider experience than most men, and yet he wants books! He has been caught up in the third heaven, and had heard things unlawful for a man to utter, yet he wants books! He has written a major part of the New Testament, and yet he wants books!"

We rarely read theology books. It's difficult. It's time consuming.  We are used to instant everything in our culture. I saw this devotional called "The One Minute Devotional" the other day. What a shame. We're trading in true, life-changing knowledge for dumbed-down, quicker than quick readings that barely skim the surface of the information we need. We don't want to have to think too hard or examine our lives too closely. As Kauflin says in his book, "Given our small minds, our absolute dependence on revealed truth, and the immensity of God, how can we think there's an easy path to knowing the God we worship? There are no shortcuts. Only a grace-motivated, steadfast lifelong pursuit of the God who created us and redeemed us for his glory." Kauflin then warns that knowledge on it's own is never enough. Our hearts are what God truly wants. "If our doctrine is accurate but our hearts are cold toward God himself, our corporate worship will be true but lifeless. Or if we express fervent love for God, but present vague, inaccurate, or incomplete ideas of Him to those we're leading, our worship will be emotional but misleading- and possibly idolatrous. Neither option brings God glory."

As I process through all of the truths I'm reading, I'm nearly overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with how I've gone all this time without a full trust in the ways and workings of the Holy Spirit. Overwhelmed with how I am willing to squander so much of my time on pointless pursuits while a treasure of information sits on bookshelves waiting to be explored. Overwhelmed by the idea that God loves me and wants to hang out with me everyday. Overwhelmed that even in my inadequate and childish thinking and ways, He chooses to work through me anyway. I'm excited to put these ideas I'm reading about into practice. My greatest prayer as a worship leader is that as I grow in my relationship with the Holy Spirit and in my knowledge of God, that maybe I will present a picture of who He is that's more glorious and powerful than any song I could ever sing. Maybe people will be more excited by my God than by my music. I couldn't ask for anything more.