ENDEAVOR

A Watchful Eye

2011-06-09T11:09:00.002-04:00

Had a great time with the Lord this morning as I continued reading in 1 Corinthians. The passage I was reading was dealing directly with the Lord’s Supper, but I believe the principles being written about here are applicable to any situation as brothers and sisters in the Lord. Check this out:

Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:27-32 ESV)

As I read these things about examining ourselves I was reminded that maybe taking the time during the celebration of the Lord’s Supper to examine is rushed and not enough weight being given to it. Do we take the time to really do this? Especially in light of how the Lord feels about how we should approach his table. The Bread. The Cup. Read and understand that there is much caution in taking the Lord’s Supper. I know for me, often I can find myself simply viewing that as another part of the Sunday morning plan...rather than a time to truly reflect, confess, examine and cast a watchful eye on the motives and actions of my heart.

But it wasn’t just with the Lord’s Supper that these things are true. As I read this, I was convicted that there are so many things that I do....(Plan services, have coffee with people from our church, lead a small group, talk on the phone with people, write music, develop people in my department here at Harvest) where I need to make sure that I’m keeping a watchful eyes on my heart and examining the motives of why I do what I do, when and how I do it and with whom. Is it for my glory? My advancement? Or for the glory of Christ and the advancement of His Gospel. Think about those things today. Examine yourselves and ask the right questions about your heart before a Holy God. Have a great day!

Groove

2011-05-03T12:01:00.003-04:00

Here are my two boys getting their groove on. "J" loves to shake his "booty" to this song.

The Upper Room Night Of Worship

2011-04-21T11:10:00.001-04:00

We had such a wonderful time of worship last night at our church. Our goal in planning the Upper Room Night Of Worship (URNOW) was to really take people there. What happened there....what did Jesus do....what did He say...?
It was such a joy to see people really engaging with the truths of what took place there. The main focuses of the night were HUMILITY and COMMUNION. Both themes were explained greatly by our Senior Pastor, Ken Gentzler. I think the teaching really helped us understand more fully what was going on in the upper room and the significance of it all. During the time when we were teaching on humility, I had the extreme privilege to wash the feet of the band and praise team. What a humbling time for me and for them I’m sure. I have never had that opportunity before at this church to do that with people and it was a rich time serving them in that way...not only as an object lesson for the night but also just to come before them and tell each person that I loved them and embrace them. What an awesome moment for me personally. Great songs and then a great time of prayer. We challenged people to go and find someone they didn’t know and pray for them thus forcing them to step out of their comfort zone and serve the other person by praying for them and their needs. There was a “prayer buzz” all over the room. It was so fun to watch. We then had teaching and took communion together which was awesome to do near the end of the night. I sensed that people really had a chance to prepare their hearts for taking the elements of the bread and the cup. Wonderful time of reflection. All in all, God was lifted high and glorified last night. I pray that from now until Sunday, He continues challenging us with the realities of the cross. Can’t wait till tomorrow night when we show The Passion Of The Christ and then on Sunday morning when we have an all out celebration of the Risen Christ!

2011-03-17T16:31:00.001-04:00

It’s a good day today. Getting a lot done at work and had some great meetings with some people from church. My family and I are getting ready to leave for a couple days and spend them with my sister and brother down in Indiana. Pray for safe travel. I’m looking forward to continuing this preaching series on Sunday. Can’t wait to worship with my church on Sunday morning. God Bless and have a great weekend.

LISTEN TO THIS!

2011-03-16T11:25:00.003-04:00

I have been on a completely different planet to have missed this song. A woman from our worship department told me about it and I then discovered that churches have been doing this song in their church for awhile. The version you're hearing is from The People's Church in Franklin, Tennessee. WE'RE DOING IT!!! Get ready Harvest, the weeks leading up to Easter morning will be filled with us shouting this song to the Lord and ascribing worth to Him! You can buy the song by clicking here

Great link

2011-03-15T16:37:00.002-04:00

This is a great review of the book. Check it out. It’s long but well written.

http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2011/03/14/rob-bell-love-wins-review/

A Little Bothered.

2011-03-15T14:00:00.000-04:00

This will not be drawn out..(maybe). But, I did want to write about what I saw today on Good Morning America. I am so deeply frustrated by the recklessness (I’m not going to call it heresy...yet) by Rob Bell. In typical Rob Bell fashion, the guy wants to have the “conversation” and ask all the “questions”, all the while knowing the answers...BUT HE RARELY GIVES IT! I have to say, I’m sick and tired of the “conversation”. Those of you who know me well know that I have zero patience for pointless things. That goes for everything. But even if it’s a conversation with somebody...if it’s not going anywhere or is simply words tossing in the wind....then I’m done. I feel like every time I see Rob Bell in a video, read a book by him, see an interview....it’s pointless. There, I said it. What a waste of time. It’s maddening. When asked a question, he SELDOM answers it. That seems to be his style and I find it very disturbing. Rob Bell strikes me as the kind of guy where I have to wonder...Does he actually believe the things he says and writes? Or does he just enjoy dropping verbal “bombs” and watching people get themselves all worked up while he takes their turmoil all the way to the bank. I find it refreshing that within my circle of friends, my small group and my church, the very thing Rob Bell questions and throws in the toilet...TRUTH, is the very thing we strive to elevate. You know what Rob? Love WILL WIN in the end. I agree with that. Love will win because while we were sinners Christ died for us. Not all will be saved....but some will...and that’s LOVE. God is also Holy and He can’t stand sin. And He has very clear things to say about sin and where it leads. It’s called DEATH and if not for the precious blood of Jesus, we all would spend forever in hell. It’s actually a place. So is heaven. You know what else Rob? Our congregations, or “tribes” as you call them don’t decide the process of coming to salvation. God did in His Word. It actually is through confession, repentance, and turning to the only Way, Truth and Life, which is Jesus. I don’t like the way you disregarded this process of coming to Jesus. I’m tired of the “conversation” that has no answers. You’re a pastor. Return to your first love and preach the Word of God. I’m begging people to return to their first love. I’m trying to do that. I’m striving, not with perfection, but I’m striving to do that. The Word of God holds every answer. How do I know that? Because the “Bible Tells Me So”!

I’m praying for you Rob. I’m praying that the Lord of Lords gets a serious hold of your heart. I’m also praying that if there’s any sinful motive in my heart, that He would first reveal that to me.

Hope this wasn’t too long of a rant.

Let me end by writing this. I am going out today to buy his book because I simply do not want to speak or write with anymore ignorance than I may have already done. I also want to do that because it's really the only way I guess to really know what Bell is attempting to say. If it turns out that I'm wrong about Rob Bell or his book? I will be the first person to say so and I will make that known right here on my blog. God Bless.

Praying this morning

2011-03-11T08:56:00.001-05:00

I woke up this morning to images coming across my television screen of towns being swept away by a wall of water, airplanes, cars and semis being tossed around like matchbox cars. What a horrible sight to see and to know that lives, in an instant, were being lost. It's one of those kinds of moments where I don't question God's sovereignty, but rather I have to pause and decide to rest in it. God is sovereign. He's in control and I'm resting in that precious Truth this morning. Here's an encouraging thought for us and anyone who cries out to the Lord for spiritual rescue.

And David spoke to the LORD the words of this song on the day when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said,

“The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold and my refuge,
my savior; you save me from violence.
I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,
and I am saved from my enemies.

“For the waves of death encompassed me,
the torrents of destruction assailed me;
the cords of Sheol entangled me;
the snares of death confronted me.

“In my distress I called upon the LORD;
to my God I called.
From his temple he heard my voice,
and my cry came to his ears.
(2 Samuel 22:1-7 ESV)

Song From Sunday

2011-03-01T09:19:00.001-05:00

A few people have commented on one of the songs we did this past Sunday in church. The song you’re asking about is:

Jesus (Your Name Is Lifted High) and you can download it here:

Glory to our God on high
For He reigns in majesty
And the heavens worship still
For they always have and always will

Marvel at His strength and power
Stand in awe and be amazed
For the One whose voice we heard
Has the greatest Name in all the earth

Jesus, Jesus, the sweetest Name I’ll ever know
Jesus, Jesus, Your Name is lifted high!

For the cross on which He died
For the pain that He endured
For His willful offering
This is why we love the King of kings

Magnify the crucified
For He bore the wrath we owned
And He took our guilt and shame
Let us honor and exalt His Name

1st Corinthians Devotional

2011-02-24T13:56:00.000-05:00

I love my job

2011-02-11T08:54:00.001-05:00

No job is perfect. So when I say that I love my job, like your job, there are parts of it that I don’t like. But most often, my days are spent doing things that I truly hope are furthering the Kingdom in some small way. I just wanted to write a quick note this morning to express my thankfulness for the most special part of my job: the people I work with. I’ll be the first to say that I love it when a worship set is just “special” or “memorable”. You know what those services look like. Every service we see God in some unique way, but there are some services where the presence of God is felt so clearly across the room and in our hearts here at Harvest. It’s probably a good thing that those kinds of services don’t happen every single week. I’m not sure we could handle ALWAYS being on the mountaintop. I love executing a song that we’ve worked hard on just as much as the next person....but the performance and execution of a worship song is not the best thing to me. I love the people I’m surrounded by week after week. The elders I’m called to serve, the staff that I serve alongside with every single day, the praise teams, bands and tech people in our ministry and our choir. What an awesome thing it is to serve with all of them. Just wanted to quickly write and say that this week was especially meaningful to me.

Wednesday night, at choir rehearsal, I shared out of Galatians 4 where Paul is rebuking the church for leaving their faith and living according to the law and in turn enslaving themselves instead of living in the freedom that Christ provides. We had a great time talking about that and then learning a new song. Last night, with the band and praise team I shared that same devo out of Galatians 4 and we had such a great time. What I loved most was that there were people in the group who openly shared about the things they are personally enslaved to. There was transparency and honesty and I know the Lord loves that.

I know that in every area of my life: at home, at church, small group, worship department, etc. If our investment in one another is simply just hanging out, playing or singing together and we never get to the deeper things of life. Things like discipleship and holding each other accountable and building one another up....well, then we’ve completely missed the point of why we’re here. I know that I want to be more about people. Do you? More about OTHERS instead of OURSELVES? I hope so. I’ll pray for you as you pray for me in this regard. Have a great day.

Good Morning

2011-02-04T08:41:00.001-05:00

Let this thought ignite your worship this morning.

Galatians 3:13 says:

“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us...”

What an awesome and encouraging thought that I don’t have to be perfect to be called a child of God. Nobody can live up to bar of perfection that the “law” of God required. But any who believe in Jesus can live forever if they simply have faith in Christ. Wow. Wow. Wow. I know when I look at my life and my sinful ways and motives, I KNOW I would be cursed for falling short. But this morning I thank the Lord for He became sin on my behalf and became the curse for me. Thank You, Jesus for Your cross and Your sacrifice for me.

This morning

2011-02-01T11:42:00.001-05:00

I wanted to share briefly some excerpts from J.I. Packer’s “Knowing God” These thoughts were very challenging to me this morning. I’m seeking to apply these to my life. I pray you do too.

The word “majesty”, when applied to God, is always a declaration of His greatness and an invitation to worship.

The Christian’s instincts of trust and worship are stimulated very powerfully by knowledge of the greatness of God. But this is knowledge that Christians today largely lack: and that is one reason why our faith is so feeble and our worship is so flabby.

He has us in His hands, but we never have Him in ours. Like us, He is personal, but unlike us He is great. In all its constant stress on the reality of God’s personal concern for His people, and on the gentleness, tenderness, sympathy, patience, and yearning compassion that He shows towards them, the Bible never lets us lose sight of His majesty, and His unlimited dominion over all His creatures.

Galatians 1 - A thought

2011-01-12T09:09:00.000-05:00

Had an awesome time this morning reading in Galatians Chapter 1. Two things, in addition to many others, really jumped out at me. First of which is in verse 10 where Paul is discussing whether he seeks the approval of men or of God. I thought to myself....”this is such an easy thing to screw up.” Even in church world. Is it a healthy thing to serve and respect the leaders/elders above me within the church. FOR SURE! That’s biblical...but the important distinction is “why” I serve and respect them. I strive to do this not first and foremost because of their position. But rather I do this first and foremost because it’s biblical and it’s what pleases the Lord. I love how Paul very clearly states at the end of verse 10 that you cannot be a servant of Christ is you are striving to please man. It’s not both....it’s either/or. Either I’m a servant of Christ.....or a servant of man. I have to choose. Secondly, I love how Paul ends chapter one. He’s sharing a bit of his testimony of how he, Paul, used to persecute Christians and destroy the church....and now Paul is preaching Christ and preserving the church. The people he’s preaching to are astonished at this and Paul ends this chapter by stating that “they glorified God because of him (Paul)” Instantly, I thought....that’s the measure. That’s the bar by which we’re supposed to measure effectiveness. For me....it’s not about who likes my songs, who knows the words, who’s moved by music, who raises their hands, who’s outward in their worship or introspective....not compliments, not pats on the back, not praise from a pastor or an elder board, not affirmation from my wife..........even though on a human level I love those things......the most important gauge of our effectiveness as followers of Christ is how much GLORY is given to Jesus, His Father and the Spirit. So let that be a question that you ask today.

How much glory do our lives really give to the Lord?

NEW SONG FOR THIS WEEKEND AT HARVEST!!!

2011-01-11T15:02:00.000-05:00

Brand new song from Chris Tomlin from Passion 2011. Very excited to teach it to all of you this weekend at Harvest. Hear it before we teach it!

INTRO

VERSE.1

Let.our.praise.be.Your.welcome.-.Let.our.songs.be.a.sign

We.are.here.for.You.-.We.are.here.for.You

Let.Your.breath.come.from.heaven.-.Fill.our.hearts.with.Your.life

We.are.here.for.You.-.We.are.here.for.You

CHORUS

To.You.our.hearts.are.open.-.Nothing.here.is.hidden

You.are.our.one.desire.-....You.alone.are.holy.-.Only.You.are.worthy

God.let.Your.fire.fall.down

VERSE.2

Let.our.shout.be.Your.anthem.-.Your.renown.fill.the.skies

We.are.here.for.You.-.We.are.here.for.You

Let.Your.Word.move.in.power.-.Let.what's.dead.come.to.life

We.are.here.for.You.-.We.are.here.for.You

BRIDGE

We.welcome.You.with.praise.-.We.welcome.You.with.praise

Almighty.God.of.love.-.Be.welcomed.in.this.place

(repeat)

Let.every.heart.adore.-.Let.every.soul.awake

Almighty.god.of.love.-.Be.welcomed.in.this.place

ENDING.1

We.welcome.You.with.praise.-.We.welcome.You.with.praise

Almighty.God.of.love.-.Be.welcomed.in.this.place

ENDING.2

(Be.welcome.in.Your.house,.Lord)

New Worship Song for 2011 - "Cielo"

2011-01-04T19:43:00.000-05:00

Seriously considering teaching this worship song to our church early in 2011. Note the verses are a story of someone seeing heaven for the first time and the chorus is the correct humble response of worship. There aren't many songs about heaven and I think this song is a great picture of heaven but also a very accurate picture of what needs to be modeled by every true worshipper....humility.

Reflections on another year behind us...

2010-12-31T19:13:00.000-05:00

Wow. I just said to my wife the other night that it felt strange to even say the words 2011. Another year is passed and a new year is right before us. Just wanted to take a break as I'm sitting in the basement up here in Canada and reflect on some of the highlights and blessings of this last year.

To me the greatest blessing in my life is certainly my relationship with the Lord. The Lord called me out of darkness back when I was 9 years old and so began my walk with Him. However, it was in 2008 that the Lord shouted to me that I was HIS and so began an even deeper walk with Christ as I laid aside the chains and bondage of habitual sin. The last two years have been such a rich time of blessing and growth but not without trial and heartache. Often blessing and growth happen through trials. I'm thankful for the trials and I'm thankful for the "ways of the Lord".

Second, is my family. God blessed Trisha and I this past year with a second little boy. So, now we are a family of four. We are blessed and we are loving every moment of it. Trisha really wanted a girl but God had different plans and we couldn't be happier with the plans of God. He knew what we needed and we for sure needed little baby Lucas. Jadon is a great big brother and we pray daily that both of our boys will grow to be God-fearing men who love Jesus. The greatest choice of my life was accepting Jesus. The second greatest choice of my life was asking Trisha to marry me. She is such a rock and such an encouragement to me and anyone that knows her. I love her and the family that she has given to me.

We had such great family and friends times this year. The birth of Lucas, going to the beach and playing in the waves so many times this summer with Jadon and friends. Having Uncle Troy and Aunt Jess down for Coast Guard week, going to Maranatha to visit Uncle Doug, Aunt Cyrstal, and the kids, fireside chats with the Hostetters, camping with our small group, going to Chicago in October, a great Thanksgiving at our house with family and Matt Loftis, hearing all about our other family's trip to Guatemala at Thanksgiving and now finally up here again in Canada for Christmas....SUCH GREAT TIMES.

Ministry was full of wonderful memories as well. This past year, Josh and I came up with an idea to make a devotional for the people in our church. We were able to have so many people involved in the writing process of the devo and that was such a HUGE blessing to me to see people write what the Lord laid on their hearts to write. As with many ideas though...it quickly launched into something much bigger and all of a sudden, God was giving song after song after song to go with the devotional and before we knew it we were releasing a new worship record called Forever Exalted. So we had the new devo, new worship record, new yearly theme for our preaching calendar, I was able to preach for the first time a short sermon on the cross of Christ and we had wonderfully successful kids and adult Christmas programs, Christmas Eve service and so much more. Whew....and these are just a FEW of the ministry highlights from the year. It's been a busy one and I personally look forward to another busy year serving the Lord and His church.

Pray for my family and I as we seek to balance ministry both at home and at church. Pray our church that we would see lost people converted and see those who follow Christ grow more in their walks with Him. Pray for the worship ministry as we launch Resonant Worship in hopes that we can continue making projects for both our church and other Harvest Bible Chapels.

Lastly, I would like to ask for prayer for something very personal. Trish and I have made some pretty major lifestyle changes with what we eat and how we exercise. We both have goals and we've been doing this since October so this is not some New Year's thing....just pray for us that we can remain consistent and focused as we believe this is a spiritual battle more than anything else. We'll keep you updated when the times are right to do so. God bless you in this new year. Make it a great one.

Check it. Wicked Cool!

2010-12-08T11:55:00.000-05:00

New Christmas Single!

2010-11-29T13:27:00.001-05:00

In just a couple of days, our new song from Harvest West Olive will be up on iTunes and other digital media sites. This song will be available for digital download only and no hard copies will be made. As we near the year's end God gave us one more song to record and I'm so excited that it's a Christmas song. The song is called God Is Here. If you like the song, we're asking that you tell other people about it too and look for it on iTunes and the rest of the digital world. Consider buying it and in turn support the ongoing efforts of the Harvest worship department in their mission to lift high new songs for the local church. Hope you enjoy!

(By the way, you can make comments about any part of the song too.)

God Is Here by RESONANT WORSHIP

Had to post this again. Such a great challenge.

2010-11-10T13:43:00.000-05:00

NEW WORSHIP RECORD IS HERE!

2010-10-19T09:18:00.001-04:00

Available today on iTunes!
Click on the link below to purchase your copy of the new worship record from
Harvest Bible Chapel West Olive. So much sweat and tears have been put into
this project and it's finally here. We're so excited about how the Lord has
already blessed these songs and trust that these songs will be a blessing to
you in your home, car or anywhere else you listen. God bless!

I invite you facebook and blog friends to get this new project and take part
in the Reverb initiative. Hope you like it!

GLEE

2010-10-06T09:18:00.000-04:00

Well, I have to say, I may have watched my last show of GLEE last night.
Trisha and I have been careful before with watching this show as it
sometimes can contain some suggestive things. Therefore, we turn it off.
However, last night was a whole new ball game. Now, I need to say that a lot
of things don't really shake up my world in the realm of television and
movies. I'm the kind of guy where Fight Club is a movie that I enjoy. Get
it?

So last night, as we're watching the show kicks off with a scene where a
young man burns a piece of grilled cheese sandwich and picture of Jesus
appears on the burnt bread. From then on out this man prays to "God" through
the sandwich referring to Christ as "Grilled Cheesus". So right out of the
gates we have a problem on our hands. Trisha and I kept watching hoping it
would get better where we could hear some good music and move beyond
this....but it just gets worse. Not only does this young man called God
Grilled Cheesus, but the things he prays for and that "Cheesus" supposedly
answers are the furthest thing from Godly. Things like, Cheesus, help me get
to second base with my girlfriend and other things of that nature.

The other premise of this show was that a classmates dad has a heart attack
and some of his friends want to "pray" for him but he doesn't believe in
God. Which, is fine. What wasn't fine is the level that Glee went in the
writing with how they described how ridiculous it was to believe in God and
how moronic people are that believe in Him. WOW. It was rough.

I'm not a hyper-sensitive person. However, my wife and I are thinking that
we shouldn't support Glee anymore. Love the music. But as a believer and
follower of Jesus Christ, NOT Grilled Cheesus, I can't in good conscience
watch something that outright mocks and degrades and cheapens the Savior of
the world. So, I think we're done. And would challenge other believers who
may have watched GLEE last night, to seriously consider not watching it. I'm
still weighing this out...but at this point just don't know how I can
justify watching something that so highly elevated the banner of mockery of
Jesus Christ.

Great candid talk on multi-site churches

2010-09-30T15:30:00.001-04:00

Multiple Sites: Yea or Nay? Dever, Driscoll, and MacDonald Vote from Ben Peays on Vimeo.

Loaded Video. Loaded Topic. Comments anyone?

2010-09-22T15:49:00.001-04:00

Great reminder to keep presenting Christ and Him crucified!

2010-09-22T14:22:00.001-04:00

Absent

2010-09-20T14:26:00.001-04:00

Just wanted to drop a line to let you know I was still alive. My family and
I have been dealing with a lot recently and the blog isn't the first thing
on my mind. I'll write more about the things below when I get some more
time...but here's what we've been dealing with.

We suddenly lost our great dane a week ago. Her name was Luna and we very
much miss her and are getting used to life without her.

Small group kicking off that I co-lead with Todd Hostetter (by the
way...really excited about this one)

Finished up REVERB Devotional and released it last week to our church

Finishing up the REVERB: Forever Exalted new worship record from our church

Nights of worship and Prayer

Choir kick off

Auditioning new people to serve in worship ministry.

Many other things too.....

Be Back Soon.

Final Tweaks

2010-09-09T14:01:00.001-04:00

Man oh man. I'm so excited to get the new worship record out to the public. Every day my co-producer, Matt Loftis, and I are making tweaks to the final mixes. It's always a strange thing being the producer and the songwriter of these types of things. By the time the songs are released and "new" to everybody else, I've heard them probably around 10,000 times each. I think, for me, the thing that keeps these songs fresh is the fact that they are corporate worship songs. The message doesn't get old to me and it's such an honoring thing to know that these songs on this new project resonate with our church and hopefully people in the greater CHURCH. Last night was an example of that at our kick off night of worship and prayer. We closed the night by singing Forever Exalted, the title track from the new record, and the Lord was really moving. Anyway, just a short line to let you know (those of you who read this) that we're getting closer. The devotional comes out in two weeks and the new record will hopefully be coming out mid October. Woo hoo! Thanks for checking in. God Bless.

In case you were wondering what songs will be on the new record:

COMMUNION - doing in church
GOD IS EVERLASTING - doing in church
HOLY, HOLY, HOLY - doing in church
WHO AM I - doing in church
FOREVER EXALTED - doing in church
SAVIOR OF MY SOUL - doing in church
GRACE AND MERCY FLOWED - church hasn't heard
JESUS (Your Name Is Lifted High) - church hasn't heard
SON OF GOD - church hasn't heard. A song with just the women in the choir
DESERVING KING - church hasn't heard
WORTHY IS THE LAMB - church has heard once.

I know nothing about mostly everything

2010-09-02T14:03:00.000-04:00

Just want to say that out of the gates....I know nothing about mostly everything. I'll plead ignorance in a lot of issues. This is one of them. The issue of why Francis Chan has made the choice to leave his very successful church and live and walk a different path. I believe, right or wrong, that Francis is an extremely influential writer with many thought provoking questions, many of which have rocked me to my core. I also believe, right or wrong, that he is taking a new popular path which almost makes people feel that if they don't live simplistically or in some level of poverty, that they can't really know Christ in a full way. Obviously his decisions to leave his church and head down this path spark a lot of questions amongst evangelicals today. Below is a wonderfully candid, informative and hard-hitting conversation between Francis Chan, Mark Driscoll and Joshua Harris. Check it out. Would love to actually have some comments on this.

What's Next for Francis Chan? A Conversation with Mark Driscoll and Joshua Harris from Ben Peays on Vimeo.

This Is Fantastic!!!

2010-08-26T13:05:00.000-04:00

The REVERB Initiative

2010-08-17T09:22:00.001-04:00

As we get closer and closer to the fall kick-off here at Harvest, there's going to be a lot of talk and attention to this thing called REVERB. The obvious question from a lot of people will be, "What is REVERB?"

Well, the REVERB initiative is made up of a few things. I'm going to be taking a few opportunities over the coming weeks to explain all that's going on and hopefully make it clear to everybody. I have to say that I haven't been this excited about something coming out of Harvest West Olive since I came here 5 years ago.

The REVERB Initiative is made up of 5 different things:

#1 - It was a preaching series that Josh Tovey preached this past June. This was a 3 week series designed to give you a taste of the hope and intent for what was coming next. In this preaching series, there were 3 things that Josh walked us through: A Picture of God, A Picture of Man and then in light of those things....what is Man's Resonating Response? It was a great series and it set the stage for the upcoming REVERB Devotional Aid.

#2 - REVERB: A 31 Day Devotional Aid. This idea to do a devotional was started by Josh and I late winter of 2010. After much thought and prayer, the elder and staff of Harvest felt that we wanted to release something to our church that would simply be a "help" or an "aid" to them in their daily time with the Lord. The intent of this devotional is not to take the place of your deeper time in Word, but simply to provide help in pointing you to Jesus. Each day will have a scripture verse or the "PICTURE OF GOD" section where the verse will simply describe who God is or what God has done. Then there will be a section (PICTURE OF MAN) explaining what this Truth about God then reveals about man. Thirdly, there will be a PRAYER section where the writer simply prays through the passage for the day. Lastly, the MY RESONATING RESPONSE section is there to provide you with tangible ways to apply these truths to your life. Each writer has provided a couple different applications that they think would be good. We've also left a blank page in each day so as you repeat this devotional from month to month, we're trust that God will reveal new resonating responses for you to apply. Included in this devotional will be......

#3 - The REVERB DEVOTIONAL EP. Part of the initial idea for the REVERB Devotional was to write music for some of the scripture passages. As the writing progressed, there became obvious congregational songs and then songs that we would not do in a corporate setting. However, both were tied to the devotional and therefore important. So, with this in mind, we decided to include in the upcoming devotional, a 6 song CD. This CD contains the songs not meant for corporate worship gatherings but rather simply meant to encourage you and point you to God as part of this devotional. So what happened to the other songs written......?

#4 - The full length new worship record from Harvest West Olive called REVERB: Our Resonating Response. Every track on this new project is linked to a day in the devotional. Therefore, every track is grounded in the scripture of that day and meant to drive home the truth of those passages. Over the last few months, we've been teaching you some of these songs and we're so excited about the resonating response of worship that we've seen. There are 14 tracks which includes 11 new worship songs and 3 scripture readings. This project will include songs such as, Who Am I, Forever Exalted, God Is Everlasting, Savior Of My Soul and many others. Look for this full length worship CD sometime late September or early October.

#5 - Last year's theme in our Sunday morning services was Blueprint. This year, Ken will be including the REVERB concepts as part of his weekly application for his messages. There will be a theme verse for the year and many times you will see a slide come on the screen listing ways that we can live out a "resonating response to God". I anticipate this to be a very powerful way to keep the REVERB mindset in front of our people this year.

I'm so excited about this because I've already seen God move in such a clear way. He's brought all of this together, 31 day devotional, 14 different writers, a 6 song CD, a 14 song new worship record featuring the band and choir..... and now we're very thrilled to make it available to you. Pray with us that God would continue to bless the efforts of the writers and the musicians and their hard work. Also pray along with us that God would richly and deeply bless you as you take part in this devotional. I know it will enrich your time with the Lord. God Bless.

SEPTEMBER RELEASES
31 Devotional Aid: $4
6 song EP: FREE with Devotional
LATE SEPTEMBER/EARLY OCTOBER
New REVERB Full Length Worship Project: $10
Available on iTunes, CD and Digital Download Card
Download Card will include sheet music for all songs in addition to the 14 songs and REVERB Artwork.

Off to beach....again.

2010-08-05T10:41:00.001-04:00

Trisha and I have had such a great time this week hanging out with her
brother Troy and his wife Jessica. This whole trip was a surprise for her
brother Troy for his 30th birthday present. It's been so awesome. Just
hanging out, eating way too much, laughing, making vomit sounds with our
burps....(it's what we do around here) and going to the beach almost
everyday. It's another hot one today and we're literally walking out the
door right now to hit the beach again. We will miss them when they're gone.
It's always bitter sweet when family from Canada is here to visit.
ALRIGHT.....OFF TO BURN ONCE AGAIN.

The focus of Christ and His Cross in our worship gatherings...

2010-07-27T11:25:00.001-04:00

I've been reading through Bob Kauflin's book WORSHIP MATTERS over the last few weeks. Let me first just say that I love it! It's convicting, challenging, encouraging, thought provoking and so much more and that's only after reading not even half the book. I wanted to share a challenging thought from one of the chapters. I'm going to post what he writes and then I would love to read some of your comments to see if this resonates with any of you at all. So, here it is:

"Over the years I've tried to develop a "gospel radar" that's sensitive to any mention of the Savior's work in verses, songs, messages and meetings.
Otherwise I might leave it out. For instance, I'm aware that the third verse of the hymn "It Is Well" addresses my sin being nailed to the cross and my bearing it no more. On the other hand, "Amazing Grace" describes how I've been saved, found and given sight, but it never actually articulates how that was accomplished through Christ's atoning death. That doesn't make it any less of a great hymn. But it does mean I'll want to do another song that's more specific about the cross. I think it also explains why "Amazing Grace" is so popular, even among non-Christians.

We must also be clear about what the cross actually means. Some worship songs leave the impression that the cross is about how important we are to God. One song claimed Jesus "would rather die than live without me." While it's true that God's love motivated him to send his Son to die in my place, the cross ultimately points not to the greatness of our worth but to the greatness of our sin. Yes, if I were the only person in the world, Jesus would still have come to die for me. But that's because my sins would require the shedding of his blood unto death.

The cross sets us free from misguided self-love to passionately love the ONE who redeemed us.

Therefore, one of our primary thoughts as we plan a Sunday meeting should be: Will our time together cause people's view of, trust in, and desire for God's glory in Christ and him crucified to increase?"

Really encouraging

2010-07-26T13:16:00.001-04:00

On Monday mornings here at Harvest, there are a group of people that gather to pray and sing together. This morning as I was walking by the room, I heard there voices singing this great song of faith. The lyrics encouraged my heart and reminded me that I need to be trusting in, leaning on and hoping in the solid rock of Jesus. Read through these lyrics and be encouraged:

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
But wholly lean on Jesus Name

His oath, His covenant, His blood
Support me in the whelming flood
When all around my soul gives way
He then is all my hope and stay

On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand
All other ground is sinking sand
All other ground is sinking sand

Amen.

Holy Bad Blogger!!!

2010-07-06T12:58:00.001-04:00

I have to say that this time many good reasons for not blogging. It's been a busier summer so far than I can remember in recent years. But it's also been great. Let's see.....

- a couple of weddings for some good friends of mine

- recording a 6 song EP

- recording a 14 song new worship record for our church releasing in the fall

- listening and approving mixes for those projects

- compiling a 31 day devotional aid for our church

- planning services

- reading through Bob Kauflin's book WORSHIP MATTERS (amazing!)

- spending time with family. Both my family and then my sister and brother n law

-then a lot of just fun stuff....such as

Fireworks, boardwalk, hanging out with small group, playing in the sand, going to beach, playing volleyball, mowing the lawn, cooking out all the time on the grill, looking at the stars with my beautiful wife, building new friendships, getting to know our new neighbors, camping trip with small group, elder/staff meeting, etc. etc. etc.....there's so much more!

One of the highlights for me has been the privilege to get to watch my growing family. I love watching my son interact with his new little brother. I love the fact that the Lord has my wife and I in a season right now where we are growing very close to one another. I know that's what God always wants to do. So my friends out there, pray that I remain faithful in nurturing that relationship more and more. Things at church have been going great. God has blessed me with so much new music and as we introduce these songs to our church, they have been going over great. I really am anticipating being able to release these songs on CD in the fall to our church and to iTunes. God has really been challenging me in so many ways lately and it's my goal to blog more and more about those things. This entry is not the time though. Just wanted to pop up and let you all know (all 5 readers) that the Busch family is still alive and kickin and very busy.

God Bless.

I know...I know...

2010-05-13T07:52:00.000-04:00

So I've been incredibly bad at blogging lately. But there's a reason for that. #1 - I don't think people are generally that interested in things I have to write. #2 - I've been slammed against the wall working on a new recording project. What started off as a small music CD that will accompany a devotional that our church is putting out, has now turned into a Devotional, an accompanying EP with the DEVO and a full blown new church worship CD. All will release in the fall. I'm so excited about these songs and the passages from God's Word that inspired each and every song. Numerous people are contributing toward this project from different musicians, devotional writers, artists, etc. Be looking for these releases from Harvest Bible Chapel West Olive fall of 2010. Be praying for us too as we seek to be faithful to what God is obviously giving us. God Bless.

I love this song.

2010-02-02T09:05:00.000-05:00

One of my old college friends, Wes Hampton, singing with the GVB. Wonderful harmonies, but even better message. Listen to the words.

Lord willing....the right time

2010-01-29T15:21:00.001-05:00

Well, it's been a huge year in my wife and my life and we give God all the glory for what He alone has done. My wife and I are living testimonies to the fact that what the world says should happen and what God's Word promises are two totally different things. God has taken the broken and put it back together. I'm humbled to be able to tell those of you who read my blog...which is like 4 of you :)...that the leadership at my church believe it's the right time to release this project. I truly hope that God uses these songs to encourage people to stay away from sin and possibly even call people out of sin and back into right relationship with Him. To God be the glory!!!

Give the new project a listen at: www.burningbusch.com

Matt Chandler

2010-01-21T13:59:00.000-05:00

Check the link out and listen to the message entitled: The Reign and Rule of God by Matt Chandler. This is a great message about what it means to be a Christian. Are you just a church goer from Sunday to Sunday or would people look at your life and see a passionate affection for Christ? Give it a listen.

O..o...Oh....Oh.. - For the longest time...

2009-11-25T09:50:00.000-05:00

It's been a long time since I have blogged. A lot has been going on here. My wife and I just found out that we will be having another baby boy in April, many rehearsals with our choir/band/praise teams for the Christmas Musical coming up, just got back from a missions trip to Liberia, Africa.....(take breath....) then it's Thanksgiving Eve service, new Christmas series kicking off, Children's Christmas Musical, Adult Christmas Musical, more rehearsals, Christmas Eve service, fly out to Canada for 5 days, come back for the new year with a new preaching series....and DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN next year. Whew...

Well, God is good all the time isn't He? Even when it's busy, it's still a joy and an honor to be busy for Him and to do His work. Hopefully, when the Christmas season is over I can start blogging again more regularly but until then I wanted to remind you of one event in particular.

JUST IMAGINE - December 20th at 10am at Harvest Bible Chapel - West Olive

(harvestwestolive.org) - Come and check it out. I promise you will will not sound like this:

Matthew 22

2009-10-06T08:28:00.000-04:00

This entry will be short and sweet. Read the parable of the Wedding Feast today and was incredibly humbled by verse 14. Many are called, but few are chosen. What? You mean a "loving God" would choose some and not others. That's right. That's what scripture teaches. Some would say...."well, that doesn't sound too loving at all..."

I would argue that it's a huge act of love that God chooses any of us at all. How merciful is that. Thank you God for sending Your Son, Jesus, into the world so that we could know You personally. If you know Him and are walking with Him and are bearing fruit in your life....then you are chosen by Him. Let that drive your worship today. God Bless.

I'm so excited for this...New CD and New Live DVD

2009-10-01T09:48:00.001-04:00

Tracking

2009-09-25T09:35:00.000-04:00

Tracking drums for Savior, Lord and King from "Just Imagine" - a Christmas musical I wrote this summer. On drums - Matt Loftis

No Package. No Plan.

2009-09-21T20:48:00.000-04:00

I've been leading worship for over 10 years and I can honestly say that the most meaningful worship service I have ever been a part of was at my own church this past Sunday.

A little background. Harvest Bible Chapel uses a number system to plan its services. In short, it goes like this. 1's are gathering songs, 3's are testimony songs and 5's are completely vertical songs only about God. 2's and 4's are songs that are somewhere in between. This past Sunday, knowing that the title of the sermon was "God on the throne: A picture of holiness",

I decided to only do "5" songs. I figured since the the message was all about God then why should the worship set be any different. By the time we were a few songs in, it was evident that something special was taking place right in front of my eyes. The room was responding to the God they were singing about in a way that was heartfelt and passionate.

We sang "Glory To God Forever" and then showed a video of what the world has to say about who God is. Immediately following this video we sang "How Great Is Our God" as our way of answering the world. There's something so powerful about singing great biblical TRUTH about God. Then Ken got up and started to give the morning message.

As Ken spoke about who God is and read from Isaiah and described the throne room, it was clear that the Holy Spirit was moving in people. As we learned about the glory of God and learned about the seraphim singing "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty ...", it was as if we were there. Reading in the scripture, a passage we had read a hundred times, it was obvious that God wanted to reveal something fresh to us. Can I just admit that I needed something fresh on Sunday. I have been so discouraged lately with the "seeming" lack of passion in our west Michigan area and in our church. I whispered to my wife half way through the message that Ken was knocking it out of the park. You could tell that God had gotten a hold of Ken's heart with this message and now God was using Ken to get a hold of ours. As the message ended, the Spirit was moving so powerfully and I could tell that our congregation wanted to join with the song of Heaven and shout out, "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty". And now was their moment.

After a short chorus of Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus, we started the song...."REVELATION SONG"....and here's one of the coolest parts...

We were not more than a few words into the 1st verse when I saw my pastor leave the row he was standing in and walk forward to the steps and kneel before the Lord. His posture before the Lord was a model for all of us. Many more gathered with him, bowing and kneeling before God Almighty. Tears were flowing and voices and hands were being raised to God not in an act of emotion but in a heartfelt, true emotional response to the biblical truth that God the Father, the Christ who is seated on the throne is the only One who is worthy and deserving of all glory.

Words cannot describe what happened on Sunday. This blog cannot do justice to the glimpse of God that was had by all this weekend in church. All I can write is that I have never seen a room so filled with the Holy Spirit more than I did this past weekend. As a worship leader I know that you cannot package a service or plan an order of worship and have happen what happened on Sunday. It's a GOD-SIZED moment and a supernatural event when God shows up the way He did. All I can do and all you can do is humbly pray that God would show us His glory again and again like that. I'm different after Sunday and those who were there....well, I hope they would agree. The more we see Him, the more like Him we will be. Here is my prayer:

God change me, then change us. God get a hold of my heart, then get ahold of your church's. God humble me, then humble your church. God, do with me and do with your church what you will so that we're ready to see You. God, I long for more God-Sized events, moments, encounters and sightings. I know You long to do those things, but I also know that the hearts of Your people need to be ready and willing. God make us ready and willing. God, break us down if You will...if that's what it takes to make us what You want us to be. - Amen

Great reminder

2009-09-17T09:10:00.000-04:00

Thanks Matt Westerholm for posting this. What a great reminder to those of us who call Christ our Lord.

Sunday's Song List

2009-09-09T10:52:00.000-04:00

Because Of Your Love - Paul Baloche & Brenton Brown -

And Can It Be - Hymn

How Great Is Your Faithfulness - Matt Redman & Jonas Myrin -

From The Inside Out - Joel Houston/Hillsong United -

Sovereign Hands - Mia Fields/Hillsong United -

Glory To God Forever - Vicky Beeching and Steve Fee -

2 weeks

2009-08-28T13:43:00.000-04:00

Awesome commercial about my favorite band U2. Two weeks until their opening show of the North American tour. I will be there with my wife and friends to see it. Awesome.

Could it be?

2009-08-28T08:06:00.000-04:00

Matthew 13:58 - "And he (Jesus) did not do many mighty works there, because of their unbelief."

The context of this verse was that Jesus was in his hometown teaching and was not accepted there. The people there didn't believe he was who he said he was because he came from a normal family and it just didn't seem possible. So Jesus, seeing there unbelief, chose not to perform mighty works in front of them because it would have fallen on deaf ears and blind eyes.

I wonder, here in this highly churched area we call home, West Michigan, does the Holy Spirit withdraw from doing awesome mighty things because of our unbelief. Could it be because we already "know everything about God" or "I know the Bible so well...." or whatever other attitude we display, is keeping God from doing what He wants to do with us? I wonder sometimes, even in our own worship services, after a message is given and a call to respond or repent is given and hardly anyone (sometimes nobody) responds....is this because the Holy Spirit is choosing not to perform a mighty work because of our arrogance and our unbelief? This is a loaded, hard but very important question to ask of ourselves....those of us who call ourselves Christians. I know I'm asking that question of myself right now. I'm not going to give my answers, but rather just post these questions. Write a comment. I'm interested to know your thoughts.

Who's Your Mother?

2009-08-27T08:15:00.000-04:00

Many times at the office, I will get a call from our secretary letting me know that my mom is either on the phone waiting for me or she is waiting for a call back and needs to speak with me. I'm always happy to talk with my mom about whatever she needs. She's awesome. I love her and respect her so much. She means the world to Trisha and I....I mean....come on....she's our mother.

Trisha and I feel the same way about her mom too. Actually, we're both extremely close to her brother too and whenever they call trying to get in touch with us, if we miss their call, we are very quick to call them back. Why are we so quick to respond to the people of most importance in our lives? Because we love them with a deep rooted love.

As I'm reading through the gospels, I'm discovering new things about Jesus. Today this thought struck me. Jesus surely loved his family. He surely loved his mother....the very woman whom angels came and delivered the message that she, a virgin, would carry the Son of God. WHOA!!! All that to say that for certain Jesus loved and cherished his mom. But I find it interesting that Jesus didn't love her above all else and he didn't drop anything and everything to respond to His mom and brother when they called.

As Jesus was teaching, outside the building his mother and brother were asking the "bouncer", if you will, if they could speak with Jesus. So the "bouncer" goes inside and tells Jesus that His mom and brother are outside and they want to talk with him. Jesus answers, "Who's my mother and my brother?" - let me just stop and write here and say that in my family or Trisha's, if that were our response, Thanksgiving would be a massive train wreck. But I was challenged by the actions of Jesus here. It's not that He didn't love his family, He just loved reaching God's people more. So, to the few people that read this blog. Don't read this and hear me to say that it's okay to ignore family and put them on the back burner. The challenging thought in this passage from Matthew is where the priority of people are in your heart. From this passage we learn that people who walk in the will of God are our brothers, mothers, sisters and fathers. Love your family, love your friends, but love the will of the Father above anything.

Awesome Video

2009-08-25T14:40:00.000-04:00

Here is a really cool video that a friend sent to me.

Leave Our City

2009-08-19T08:04:00.000-04:00

I was really challenged this morning as I continued reading in Matthew. Jesus has just calmed the storm and blown the disciples minds and has come onto shore to a region called Gadarenes. It's here that running at him out of tombs are two demon-possessed men. There are so many points of interest here to me. One of them being that we live in a world today where people deny God and here in this text we see that even "demons" acknowledge who God is. They know that Jesus is God and they say so. Now to the part that really made me think. Jesus cast the demons out of these two men and into a herd of pigs, which then runs over a cliff into the sea and drown. The herdsmen, standing nearby enough to witness all of this and more, run into the city and tell everyone of everything they had seen. The text says that they "especially told the people what had been done to the demon-possessed men." Does this mean that the herdsmen also witnessed the calming of the storm? Maybe. But let's stick with what they saw for sure. They saw two men completely, in an instant, delivered from demons. They tell the city and instead of being in awe of what has been done, the people from the city come out to meet Jesus and beg Him to leave their city.

We're sometimes like that aren't we? In our lives, in our actions, in our words....sometimes aren't we asking Jesus to leave our city, our dwelling place, our region, our homes, our personal lives, etc. I was just challenged that just like those people standing on the beach had seen and heard of great an marvelous things being done by Jesus....that I'm the same way. I've seen Him do great and marvelous things in my life. I've seen Him set other people free and set me free yet sometimes I choose not to see Him for who He is and let Him do with me as He wills. Instead, with the way I act, I basically tell Jesus that I would rather He just leave my life. I tell Him that I can do it on my own and He just needs to "leave the city". Are you ever like that? I'm interested to know your comments. Let's invite Him in rather than begging Him to leave.

WORSHIP GOD CONFERENCE 2009

2009-08-14T07:35:00.000-04:00

Wow. I wish I went to this conference. I went last year and had a blast. A friend of mine posted this message along with some other ones from this conference on his blog. This first message is given by John Piper. It is entitled "The God Of Worship". After listening to it and taking notes, I want to challenge you to download the file and listen to it yourself. I would argue that every follower of Christ needs to hear this message. In typical Piper style, give him 15 minutes to really get into it. The first part is a little slow (in my humble opinion) but it sets the stage for the whole message. This will radically change your perspective on the what the purpose of the cross was and still is and should be. Here are some quotes:

"The only eternal happiness for man is a happiness found in the riches of the glory of God in the face of Christ."

"Am I excited about the cross because there, God makes much of me? Or am I excited about the cross because there, I was purchased and freed to enjoy making much of the righteousness & glory of God?"

"The reason the cross is folly to the world, is that it's the end of human self-exaltation and it is the birth of human exultation (what we do) in the exaltation (elevating or lifting high) of God."

"When God's exaltation of God, in Christ at the cross, is your joy.....your joy can never fail."

My prayer is this after listening to this:

Oh God, forgive me for thinking that the cross and the work done there is primarily about me and my rescue. Rather, let me cease to be the foundation of salvation in my mind and remind me daily that the vindication and upholding of Your glory was the first and foremost function of the cross. - amen

DOWNLOAD MESSAGE HERE - files.me.com/sjbusch/q4nfbk.mp3

A long post

2009-08-13T09:23:00.000-04:00

I was reading this morning again from Matthew as Jesus is teaching the sermon on the mount. Three areas in particular jumped out that He was teaching on. Giving to those in need, praying and fasting. I want to first say that I have not done a lot of research on these topics in the past so I'm strictly speaking from what I read here in Matthew. But, I found it interesting that Jesus hits on three things that in "church world" are very common expectations and behaviors among Christians.

I was challenged about GIVING on a couple of levels. #1 - I don't do it hardly at all. Isn't that awful. This is an area that I have been convicted of only recently. Do I give? How do I give? When do I give? Am I obedient in the moment with my giving or do I always have a "better option" for Jesus when I'm prompted to give. I'm sad to say that to all of these questions I probably don't have the best or most God honoring answer. #2 - When I give, there's something in me that wants other people to know or take note of or praise me for. What is that something? It's PRIDE. Again....it creeps in. When I read this section this morning I just stopped and confessed the pride in my heart. When we give, Jesus tells us not to tell anyone. I'm to keep it to myself and do it in secret. That is the only way that a reward will be given by God. It says this a few times in this whole section....that "the God who sees in secret will reward us." Interesting thought.

Same with PRAYING. Jesus says that I'm to go into my room and pray, shut the door and pray in private. What does Jesus mean here? That I should only pray by myself and never go to another prayer meeting at church? I don't think so. I believe that what Jesus is addressing here and what I took away was this....make sure the motive of your heart in prayer is pure. If I'm showing up to prayer meeting at church just to fill an obligation...I shouldn't be there. If I'm showing up to prayer meeting so other people know how Godly I'm trying to be....probably shouldn't be in the building. More than likely, in this situation, I should be in a closet behind a closed door praying to God. If the heart is right, then pray wherever you want. But the heart has to be right.

FASTING: Wow. Let me a little bold in this statement. I don't mean anything mean by this at all but it's just my own personal observation. Every person that I've met in my life who goes through a fast seems to want the whole world, their friends, their church, etc. to know about it. Jesus speaks against this here. But in other places like Acts, it speaks of fasting together. But here Jesus says to keep it to yourself. Don't wear it all over your face that you're hungry. Do it in secret so the Father who sees in secret may reward you. I think fasting is an extremely spiritual and Godly act but done in the wrong way, with the wrong motive, in front of the wrong people for the wrong reasons.....a Godly act can quickly turn to being ungodly. I'm challenged in all of this. Wow. God's Word is powerful.

Sometimes an explanation can fuel worship...

2009-08-12T14:20:00.001-04:00

Check it out. Awesome.

Yahweh - Hillsong Faith+Hope+Love from Fred McKinnon on Vimeo.

POSTURE

2009-08-07T14:40:00.000-04:00

What's my posture toward the Lord? Is my posture one of obedience or one of reluctance when it comes to living full on for Jesus. I was reading in Matthew this morning. I'm a few chapters in and after praying that God would really challenge me with something today, there it was.....

When Christ called Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John, all of their postures were the same there in chapter 4. The verses clearly state that when they were called they didn't ponder what had been asked. They didn't "consider" whether it was the smartest, wisest or timeliest option on the table. The scriptures say that Jesus called and they IMMEDIATELY left to follow Him. So I ask myself: am I like that? When Christ asks me to set aside sin and self do I "immediately" obey? When Christ asks that I love others and extend to them the same grace and forgiveness that I have received, do I "immediately" reach out and show grace? When someone does something to me or says something to me that makes the pride rise up within me, do I "immediately" go to the Lord, repent and respond in humility? These are great questions to ask and hard questions to answer. If I'm honest, I know that I don't always "immediately" respond the right way. I'm working on it though and I'm growing in these areas by the grace of God.
So, how about you? How are you doing at "immediately" following Christ to wherever it is He's leading?

Powerful Video

2009-07-29T14:53:00.000-04:00

Thanks to my friend Joshua Seller for posting this video. It really made me think. Hope it challenges all two of my readers as well.

When tolerance overtakes truthfulness...

When the feelings of people overtake the feelings of God...

Passion diminishes into passivity

An awesome passage:

2009-07-17T08:21:00.000-04:00

This morning I was reading in 1st John and as I finished up the last chapter a few things just popped out and convicted me and got me fired up. Three things jumped out at me.

1. HOW I overcome the world and WHO will overcome it.

2. Living my life as a testimony of my belief and allegiance to Jesus.

3. Not believing the lie of sin but rather the Truth of God's Son.

Here it is:

Overcoming the World

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

Testimony Concerning the Son of God

This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

That You May Know

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life—to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.

We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols.

My Prayer

2009-05-07T08:12:00.000-04:00

6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

My prayer is this:

That I would come low before the Lord today and everyday. That nothing in this life would be a source of exaltation in my life. Not songwriting, not making CD's, God forbid, not leading worship, not praise from man, not my role as husband and father. I pray that the only source of exaltation in my life would come from God and God alone. I pray that I would come lowly to His throne knowing that when I am low....this is when He can finally lift me up. Amen.

Awesome reminder...

2009-05-06T07:57:00.000-04:00

This is a great reminder today that I read. It's awesome for every believer but I felt especially for musicians and artists trying to be great at their craft and at the same time trying to be great at serving their Lord. Check it out.

James 3:16-18

16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. 18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

I first thought of those moments when a bunch of Christian musicians are all on stage, leading worship or maybe Christian musicians getting together to write songs. What can exist? Jealousy and selfish ambition. I will speak only for me here. In my past, I was so concerned about being the best, bringing the best songs, worried about what someone else would write or sing and I didn't want to be outdone. There is no place for these types of attitudes in God's Kingdom. This is jealousy and selfish ambition and God says that were these things exists, there will be disorder and every vile practice. No wonder, whether in music, entertainment, or simply put...the everyday workplace, we find people, young and old, rich and poor, famous or not.....living lives of disorder full of vile practices. I know this was my testimony. On any level, any level at all, is it yours? Do what you do, whether it is singing, playing, writing, producing, leading worship, being a mom or dad, working a blue collar or white collar job, whatever...do it as unto the Lord to please Him alone. Then, there will be no disorder and no more vile practices. An awesome reminder of what to watch out for.

The United Tour Video

2009-04-27T15:36:00.001-04:00

2005 solo record now on iTunes

2009-04-15T14:11:00.000-04:00

If you're interested.....

Artist: Stephen Busch

Title: Letters

Original Release Date: 2005

Different Reflections...

2009-04-15T08:10:00.000-04:00

First of all, Easter. I love this Sunday of the year. People come into church it seems with a different anticipation and a different excitement than maybe any other time of the year. I wonder why that is....but that's for a different blog entry someday. But the energy is simply awesome. People were engaged with their God and their Creator in a way that I hadn't seen for awhile and it was my honor and privilege to lead our people in worship this past Sunday. I have to be honest though, I was completely worn out half way through the worship set. Here's what we did.

Brass ensemble Prelude

Christ Is Risen - Choir Special

Christ Arose - Hymn

Easter Cheer - Wow. wow. wow.

Happy Day

Mighty To Save

Adoration

Announcements and Offering

Jesus Messiah - Choir Special

Stronger

Revelation Song

Message - 3rd message in a series about the cross

Jesus, Your Name

Our God Reigns

Whew....It was awesome though. Now that I've had a few days to reflect and rest I wanted to share my thoughts. They are quite simple. When we sing with all of our hearts in worship, when we lift our hands, when we bow our hearts in reverence to Him....I literally feel like we are rehearsing for Heaven. I think this is why it is so important to me that the people in our church show up "ready" to worship with their hearts prepared. That's hard sometimes though. Maybe the kids are going crazy, maybe husbands and wives aren't getting along that morning...whatever. Even with all the distractions that long to rob God of getting attention, we must fight these distractions. Why? Because we are called to be worshippers. More than any other calling I would argue, we are called to follow Christ with all our hearts, which is worship. So I pray that our church and myself will rise to the challenge, every week, to lay aside all distractions and focus in on our dress rehearsal for the greatest worship event of all time....heaven.

Great New Song

2009-04-09T09:31:00.000-04:00

So this week I just bought the new Rascal Flatts record "Unstoppable". I'm not a country fan with the exception of these guys. I know that two of them are believers and love their harmonies. Anyway, on my way into work this morning I was listening to it and this song called "Things That Matter" came on. This is such a great song reminding us of the things in life that really matter. When work is stressful, when the condition of our lives and our circumstances are not all that we want them to be...God brings things into our view that remind us of what matters most. Maybe for you it's family time that matters most. Maybe for you it's knowing that you have friends that stand by you through anything and everything. There is a lyric in the song about coming home and being greeted by your family. That, for me, is one of the things that matters most in my life. Ministry can be hard and draining sometimes, storms of life and effects of poor decisions can weigh heavy on my soul....you name it....but when I come home and hear my little boy shout out "daddy" and see my beautiful wife, then I see what matters most. The world can fall apart and as long as I have them loving me and there for me to love, well, that's all a man could ask for. But what does really matter most to me? Jesus and His cross. Because most of my life was spent living in deliberate sin, I never really lived in a place where I longed for my Lord. I know I was just too consumed with me to long for anything other than myself. But now, living fully for Jesus, I long for Him. I long to see the One who died for me. I long to fall before the One and worship the One who died on a cross and took my shame and the wrath that I so deserved. More than a job, more than money, more than stability, more than ministry, more than even my family...what matters most to me is Jesus. Have a great Easter!

ENERGY

2009-03-24T16:06:00.001-04:00

Today is one of those days when it's just hard to find the energy to do anything. Let's plan, no. Let's write, no. Let's record, no. Let's respond to emails, no. Let's take a nap, yes. Just kidding. No, I know you all (those who read my blog) know how it is. Hopefully tomorrow will be different. Hopefully tomorrow I will not forget to teach the choir a song that I have been intending to teach them for about a month. It's for Palm Sunday so I guess I better get on it. I'm usually more on top of those types of things than this. So this week I meet with Paul Tarnow, (ptacoustic.blogspot.com) one of our worship leaders here at Harvest, to begin listening through some of the music he has written. Not a lot of people know this but we are going to be recording a solo project with Paul over the next few months in hopes of having a 2009 release. I think we'll get there. I can't wait for people to hear his heart come through via song and for people to see us put out a musical project of a different style. Should be fun. I'm really looking forward to taking a backseat/producer role along with my friend and producer Matt Loftis (MRL). He and I will produce Paul and I'm really excited about not being the "recording artist". So, to those who read this blog....pray for Paul. Pray that God would give him and us great songs and that God would be glorified throughout the process. That's all for now. More later.

U2's new project: No Line On The Horizon

2009-03-03T13:42:00.000-05:00

One word....

WOW...well, one more word.....ENJOY!

New Song Lyrics

2009-02-26T09:28:00.000-05:00

Only Because Of You

by steve busch

Forgive me Father, for I knew what I was doing

When I chose to love the world

Thank You, Father, even though my years of running

Led me far away from You - You still called me back to You

It's only because of You

That I have anything good in me

Search me Father, reveal the wicked ways in me

So I see my heart for what it is - see the way You see

Test my heart, and make it more like Your Son

So it's clear for all to see - Jesus reigns inside of me

I took the glory-that led to shame

I took the spotlight-I am to blame

I threw Your love away as if I threw Your blood down the drain

But You take the broken-You take the chains

You change the sinners into saints

You take the captives and set them free

You take the worst of all - You took me

Take all the glory - Take all the fame

Take all the honor - it belongs to Your Name

2009 Burningbusch Productions

Great Song

2009-02-24T09:17:00.000-05:00

Yesterday in church we finally sang a song that we first heard down in Chicago at the main Harvest Bible Chapel. It's called Revelation Song. It's one of those kinds of songs that just immediately takes you to the throne and focuses your heart and attention on Christ alone. Just awesome! Katherine Wisen and the Choir led us in this song and it was moving to just play and watch them worship the Lord. Hopefully, we will sing this song many more times as part of our worship here at Harvest. You can purchase and download the song on iTunes. Just go and search for Harvest Bible Chapel's project called "Lift Up The Name". It's the last song on the project I think. Enjoy.

Today's thought...

2009-02-23T14:04:00.000-05:00

I can't tell you how many times that the Lord has confirmed to me in the last 5 months the importance of His Word and being in it daily. I used to never regard that as a really important thing. Sure, I would pretend it was an important part of my life and a priority to me depending on who I was talking to, but it never really was a daily part of my routine. No wonder my paths always led to sin and self. No wonder all I ever thought about was me. No wonder my relationship with the Lord was just kind of coasting at best and never going deeper. It was because I was never and I mean never in the Word. It was such a huge revelation to me to be told that without time in the Word daily, that I had no relationship with the Lord. I didn't like hearing that but it was true. That's the whole point of this blog today. Ever since the Lord revealed that to me, He has confirmed it to be true to me over and over again. The power of His Word has never been so encouraging and inspiring to me as it is right now and I feel like I am getting to know the Lord in a whole new way. He has also confirmed the importance of this in other people's lives. When other people have confessed to sin and wanted to come clean I have always asked them how their time in the Word had been. Without fail, they always answer the same way.."IT STINKS". It just proves that if we are going to get after sin, know the Lord personally, live and walk with Him....that we need to do that via daily time in His Word. It's really not rocket science. So it's just like the old saying says...."Sin will keep you far from this book...or this book will keep you far from sin." It's our choice. I pray that we all make the right one. Let's pray for each other okay?

Walking in the Spirit

2009-02-17T08:33:00.000-05:00

It's been so long since I've posted and there has been good reason for this. In short, God has called me out of a life of habitual sin and my wife and I have been spending the last 5 months healing from that and also loving what the Lord alone has done. I have been involved in a ministry called Pure Life Ministries - Overcomes at Home program and it has been used in such a massive way in my life, our marriage and my walk with the Lord most of all. This could get really drawn out so let me just write that God has opened my eyes to tremendous pride and arrogance that was rooted in my heart for most of my life. Above all else...I thought of me. Above all else...I served me. If someone or something didn't serve some purpose that exalted me...well, I just didn't have time for it. I have learned that I although I was saved, I wasn't really walking with the Lord. I also learned that although I was married, I didn't treat my wife as though I loved her the way I should have. God has taken the blinders off and opened my eyes to see things the way they really are. I see my sin for what it really is. God has shown me that sin is sin and it all hurts Him. Comparing my sin to the sin of someone else doesn't change the fact that my sin drove a wedge between the Lord and I. I need to compare my sin to a Holy God who is perfect. Then and only then will I really see it for what it is. Thank God for revealing that to me. It's been too long since I last posted and I could write a book of all the things that God has revealed to my wife and I and how He has challenged our hearts and our perceptions about things. I just wanted to quickly write a note and let people know that I was alive, God is good and kind and gracious and we are surrendering all to Him one day and moment at a time. Please continue to pray for Trisha and I as we submit ourselves to Him.

The Worst Blogger Ever

2008-09-23T15:22:00.000-04:00

I am the worst blogger ever. I tend to go through phases where I blog and I'm really interested in letting everybody know what's going on and then I enter this phase where I forget I even have this blog. So, with that said. I apologize. (to anybody that really cares)

I am thrilled to say that our church's new worship record is finally finished. It is available on iTunes and everything for your ease. So far it's getting great reviews from people in the church. I've heard that some people are missing phone calls because they have it cranked so loud in the car. Other people just look like idiots because they are raising their hands in the car. Awesome. I love it. Let me encourage anybody who is reading this. If you are looking for solid worship songs that point to the Lord, then go to iTunes and purchase this record or just start attending our church and buy one in our bookstore:)

God has been moving tons lately. The ministry year has officially kicked off and we are busy once again with Choir, the weekly Prayer Gathering, band rehearsals, recording a new solo record, working with high school ministry, writing new music, the Straight Up Conference in Chicago, went and saw Hillsong United last month, teaching our people new music, praying weekly with the staff and for our senior pastor and finding time with all of that to hang with my beautiful wife and son. They were gone in Canada for over two weeks. God is good to bring them back to me.

Pray for the Busch's as we balance ministry and home. I'll try and do better at this blog thing. God Bless and feel free to write any comments via my email address at sbusch@gracehbc.org

Long Time, No Blog

2008-08-28T16:28:00.000-04:00

Okay, very random thought. I heard of a font today and the fonts name was "Bleeding Cowboys". I immediately thought that would be a brilliant name for a band. Any takers? Anybody want to start a band called the Bleeding Cowboys? We could wear really ugly shirts and have dance moves and everything. Kidding. Anyway, thought I would apologize for the fact that I haven't posted anything at all recently. Things have been busy.

Our church worship record is officially done and should arrive here fully packaged in the next couple of weeks. I'm excited. I'm also very excited about a new solo record that I am recording. It's being produced by an old friend of mine from Nashville. His name is Matt Loftis. It's pretty rockin. We're taking a whole new approach to the way I normally set out to record things. Less keyboards and synth sounds and more organic sounds. More guitars, bass, pianos...all with keeping the 'Busch' style of vocals and harmonies. Look for that sometime in the future.

Finally, let me steer you all to the Harvestsongs.org site. I have heard some mixes from this new LIVE RECORD, recorded with many of the worship leaders from different Harvest Bible Chapels. Great songs. Great production. The excitement of a live crowd behind it. You will find new material for your churches and if you are already doing some of these songs, you will be reminded as to why they tugged your heart in the first place. Go to their site and pre-order it. You will not be sorry. More to come later.

Random Greeting

2008-07-28T09:49:00.000-04:00

Good morning all. We had another great weekend at our church. I know God was lifted up but at the same time, I sense a real heaviness in our congregation. I don't know if it's just summer time or if people are really dealing with things. I hope it's just summer time. But, it was a great time of worshiping the Lord as a church body. We are in the final stages of our church worship project. I'm listening to mixes and making changes and approving other ones. The artwork is done and it looks great. And it looks as though we will hit our release date as scheduled which is beginning to mid September. I'm very pumped. I'm also excited to be leaving this week to go to the WORSHIPGOD Conference in Baltimore, Maryland. I am meeting up with a couple of the Harvest guys and Matt Stowell in Chicago and then flying from there out east. It should be a great conference and I hope to come away refreshed and renewed. Things are also gearing up for the fall as we plan a series on PRAYER called "Fuel For Living" I'm really pumped to see what God will do in this series in the lives of our church.

BUT, the latest thing that is exciting to me is that I got a random call last week from a guy that I have not spoken with in like 8 or 9 years. We used to be on the same record label and toured together when I lived in Nashville. He also designed my tatoo. That's just a side note though. Anyway, turns out he's been living in my town for the last year up here in Michigan. CRAZY. So we met up, started to talk and in just the last few days really felt led to ask him to produce my solo project. He's produced bands/artists in the past and I just really felt that we could create something great together. AND, he plays drums too. I'm really excited to have him produce and play on my record. I'm praying the Lord will lead Matt to plug in to our church and maybe just maybe we'll see him playing the drums at our Harvest. More later. These are just my Monday morning random thoughts.

2008-07-24T15:43:00.000-04:00

I just thought I would share some photos with you. I have been blessed along with a few others from my church to go to Liberia, Africa this November. There is a church there that is becoming a Harvest and we get the privilege to be their sister church and help assist and raise them up. What a joy it will be to come alongside them and build into them and their lives and also allow them to build into us. Here are some pictures of this war ravaged land. These were just sent to us last week as they are dealing with severe flooding. Please pray for them, us and our joint ministry together. Also, please begin now praying for the trip this fall.

Weekend Review

2008-07-20T17:18:00.000-04:00

This week most of our band were on vacation. That's right. All on the same weekend. So, I didn't know how this weekend would go over with it just being me on the piano. Turns out that it was exactly what God wanted to happen. I always know that and believe that, but it still always amazes me when God uses something so simple as our setup this morning and uses it in such huge ways. So the setup was our piano center stage and our vocalists on stools on either side of the piano just giving our all and leading our people in worship in a very intimate close up way. God moved.

Announcements/Welcome/Stand and Greet

Song Set:

God of Our Praise

You Are Holy (prince of peace) - by this point people are really starting to sing LOUD!

Hosanna (brooke fraser version)

All Praise Belongs To You

At the end of this song I felt very convicted to share and challenge our congregation to list reasons why our Lord is worthy of our praise. I just shared with them that I don't always live out the last line of this song. Does God really get ALL of my praise or does God have to share my praise with other things in my life? So I asked the question and it seemed that the congregation deals with the same question. All over the worship center, people began to shout aloud reasons why the Lord is amazing. It was awesome!! I was moved to tears to hear people just praising the Lord.

Our God Reigns (passion)

Message - Ken closes his series on Ephesians today and he was on fire. He delivered the Word passionately and without apology.

Prayer Time - people stood in response to fighting the WAR and their need for prayer to fight the fight with all the parts of the armor listed in Ephesians. God was still moving!

Great Is Thy Faithfulness

God used something so simple as a piano day in church to bring His people to the foot of His throne. We met God today. Those moments aren't planned and are always awesome!

What a weekend!

2008-07-14T13:13:00.001-04:00

I had an awesome weekend hanging with my boys from Harvest down in Chicago. We started off the weekend by traveling down to St. Louis to play at an event called Men At The Cross. We think there were between 5 and 6 thousand men there. Grammy nominee, Heather Headley, was there and we were her band. She is also involved in singing from time to time at Harvest Bible Chapel. We then traveled back and during our travels, Josh Caterer was kind enough to share some unique music with us. The song KITES ARE FUN by the free design. For the rest of the weekend, this song was stuck in our heads. We then went on to lead worship at the Elgin campus for their Saturday night service and both of their Sunday morning services. It was a great weekend and we saw people challenged through the word. It was a powerful message from James MacDonald on salvation and freedom. All in all, great to serve with my friends down there and see those relationships go even deeper. There really is something special about what God is doing through the Harvest churches as a whole. We see it up here in west Michigan just like we saw it down in Chicago. It's all about the Lord. It's just such a humbling thing to be able to be a part of it all.

Only God

2008-06-26T12:41:00.000-04:00

Wow. What a year. It was around a year ago that I sent out a newsletter to our church announcing a new solo project that I was working on. Through a few different events, I decided to put that on the back burner until the right time and focus my writing attention on a new worship record for our church. I just really felt led that God was saying..."strike the iron while it's hot.." God was using certain songs that I was writing in a great way in our church and really felt led that we needed to get these songs into our people's hands as soon as possible. SO, I'm happy to say, that a year later I find myself nearing the end of the recording process of our second worship record. Only a few more vocals and guitars to record. YEAH!!!

Right now the working title is "Only God". That is because this record has a theme. It was not intentional but it seems like most of the songs either address the exclusivity of Christ and that it is He Alone that our praises go to and He Alone is God. Or the other theme addresses that it is Only God who made a perfect sacrifice. It is Only God who extends such a perfect grace. So an appropriate title so far I think is Only God. What do you guys think? Interested to know your comments. Keep on checking the blog and our church website for more information on the new worship record.

Wish I wrote it...

2008-06-16T13:14:00.000-04:00

I just had to write another post. I am sitting here in my office today like a blubbering baby. My good friends Andi Rozier and Matt Westerholm from Harvest in Chicago wrote a song called "Thank You, Jesus". This song moved me since the first day I heard it last winter. It is going to be on the new Harvest Live worship record and every time we recorded or rehearsed it down there for the live project, I found myself deeply moved not only by the lyric but also by the melody and the soaring chorus. We sang this song last week again in our services here in West Olive and from the stage perspective it was incredible to watch. People raising their hands, standing with heads and hearts lifted high, tears flowing....it was powerful. Thank you so much Andi and Matt for letting God speak to you through song. Many believers will worship the Lord for years to come through this song.

My life lived for only me

My days spent so sinfully

My heart was dark, my eyes too blind to see

My pride destroying me..

Thank You, Jesus for the cross

Thank You for the price You paid for us

For giving up Your life to save the lost

Thank You, Jesus for the cross

Awesome stuff. Can't wait for the record to come out so everybody can hear this song.

Weekend Review

2008-06-08T22:56:00.001-04:00

Everybody else is reviewing their services...so why shouldn't I?

Welcome

Song Set: Our God Saves

You're Glorified (harvest live version:)

Offering (paul baloche)

PRAYER - this was cool this weekend. As we have been focusing more and more on prayer. Todd, our assistant pastor came forward and led this time. He had everybody raise at least one hand to the Lord and whisper offerings of praise out loud to the Lord. What a cool sound to hear God's people whispering their prayers to Him. Great stuff

One And Only God - new song I wrote. It's a 5. Very vertical. It is getting a great response so far from our body of worshippers.

Message - Ken is teaching out of Ephesians right now and gave a challenge to be done with the sin in our lives and allow God to change your heart. Surrender. There were people that came forward as a response to God challenging them. Those are my favorite moments in ministry....when you can visibly see God working in people's lives.

Closed with CREATE IN ME A CLEAN HEART

and THANK YOU, JESUS FOR THE CROSS written by my good friends Andi Rozier and Matt Westerholm. Great song guys!!