Our Purpose is to Worship

Tweet

By Robert Stearns

There’s been a lot of talk in the Body of Christ during recent years about purpose. Maybe you yourself have questioned what your purpose is as a Believer on this planet. Having a sense of purpose in life is a noble thing. However, before we are called to anything – before we are called to preach, prophesy, raise the dead or win the lost, we are called to worship. The purpose of your life is to know and worship God.

When we engage in worship not as an activity, but as a lifestyle, we begin to touch the heart of God. From this place, signs and wonders happen. Individuals are set free. Nations get transformed. But God makes it very clear that His call to the people of Israel – and to those of us grafted in to the family of God – is a call to worship.

What does it mean to worship? Is it singing? Music? Acts of service?

Worship can be all of these things, and much more. Acceptable worship unto God is an issue of motivation – of why we’re doing what we’re doing. It is also a matter of obedience – of doing God’s will God’s way. Once this formula is in place, really anything could be considered worship unto God… Painting a mural; baking a cake; singing in the car; volunteering. Worship is the key that unlock doors of purpose.

When we worship God, something happens. Throughout all of Scripture, the catalyst for any Divine act involved God’s people worshipping Him acceptably. Abraham received Isaac back through his obedience and trust. The woman who sacrificially anointed Jesus days before His death earned herself a place in Scripture through her giving. Joshua and the Israelite army toppled the walls of Jericho through their prophetic praise. As the early Church worshipped and prayed, God sent an angel to set Peter free from prison.

If you’ll notice a common thread throughout all these accounts, it is that these worshippers based their actions on what God wanted, and not on what the situation seemed to dictate. Because they, in faith, chose to honor God in the circumstances they faced, they were able to move the heart and hand of God.

And what about us? Are we, above all else, worshippers of our Almighty God? Do we seek to obey, exalt and serve Him at all times? Too often, we relegate “worship” to 90 minutes on a Sunday morning. Friends, worship should be our very identity. Meditate with me on this verse of Scripture that has been much on my heart lately:

“Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship,” (Romans 12:1).
Do we take New Testament Scriptural exhortations like this literally enough? Do we take them seriously enough? Have we fallen into the trap of thinking that worshipping is God is optional? That it requires any less of us than everything? Have we forgotten that God’s power is linked to our praise?

Can you imagine what would happen if Christians exhibited as much passion, enthusiasm and energy in their Sunday morning worship services as they did at their Sunday afternoon football games? Do we think that God was being metaphorical when He urged us to shout, clap, dance and raise our hands in His Presence? Could the reason for our lack of physicality in worship be that our hearts aren’t in it either?

The unlimited and irrepressible power of God is at your fingertips – quite literally – when you lift your hands and heart in worship. Could it be that the answers we’re seeking – for provision, joy, transformation and healing – are ready to be poured out over our lives as we worship?

Ask God to give you a burning passion to know and worship Him. And then, start intentionally worshipping God throughout each and every one of your ordinary days. As you worship, you will find your purpose, because our purpose is to worship.

Former Growing Pains star Kirk Cameron will be speaking tonight at Eastern Hills Wesleyan Church in Williamsville, NY at 7:00PM. Cameron will be unveiling a 10 minute trailer of his new documentary film, Monumental.

Benji and Jenna: Church @ Buffalo

Tweet

Benji and Jenna Cowart may not be Western New York natives but they are convinced God is doing something special in their new hometown of Buffalo. Moving to Buffalo after helping to plant a church in Las Vegas, the Cowarts serve as Worship Leaders in their local congregation encouraging unity and passion for Jesus in our region. Their latest CD release titled, “Letters to the Church at Buffalo” came out of a desire to minister to and encourage believers in their own congregation (The Chapel at Crosspoint). Their message? God sees your effort to serve and love Him even when others don’t. It’s a message they believe God is speaking to not just their church but to the Church at Buffalo. Benji explained, “It has been really exciting to see churches of various denominations coming together and partnering to plant new churches and partnering to carry out Kingdom endeavors. I lived in a lot of different places throughout the country and I have never seen churches partnering together under the same mission like I have witnessed here in Buffalo.”
     The Cowarts drew inspiration for their new CD from the little things people in their own congregation did to express love for God. In one of their already popular tracks on the CD “They Will See God” the Cowarts sing, “Blessed are you who have chosen to choose the right way no matter the cost, you do what you say when you say what you do, not counting the gain or the loss. Blessed are they who hold on to faith when everything is coming undone, day after day they stand in the face of the wind and the rain and the storm, they will see God, they will see God.” The lyrics point to the conflict believers often face and yet remain faithful to Christ and finish strong even when no one is looking. Benji explained, “In the beginning of this project Jenna and I wanted to do a recording with just she and I as a married couple ministering together but this project grew into something more beautiful. When I went down to Nashville to write songs, I realized that I just wanted to write songs that would work in my church and the churches in the WNY/Buffalo region. As I sat in the writer’s rooms with the songwriters, I would just begin to tell Buffalo church stories…stories about people in our church and how they lived out the Gospel doing things like recycling water bottles so that they could send others on missions trips….or the three brothers (two have since passed away) who drive an hour, one way, to show up at our church and work on our grounds keeping team every Thursday morning simply because they just want to use their gifts out of gratitude for what God has done for them. All of the songs that we wrote on that trip just came out reminding me of Buffalo and the people that comprise the Church at Buffalo (in the same way that Jesus referred to the church of a city in the book of Revelation).”
     In terms of the CD being a letter to the Church at Buffalo, the Cowarts explain it has been a process of wrestling with two questions in the context of their own church and the greater Body of Christ in our region, something they have been working through collectively with other churches for some time. “Our church along with many other churches in this region has been walking through a process where we have been wrestling with two questions. What does God want for Western New York? And what would it look like if God got what He wanted? We have landed on this as an answer— that every man, woman, and child would have multiple opportunities to see and hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Western New York area. With that being said, it becomes very obvious that no single church can possibly accomplish such a huge undertaking. We all have to be a part of this process and start treating other churches’ wins as our wins and other churches’ losses as our loss. It is too important a task and the times are too urgent to be competing with other churches. It has been really exciting to see churches of various denominations coming together and partnering to plant new churches and partnering to carry out Kingdom endeavors. I lived in a lot of different places throughout the country and I have never seen churches partnering together under the same mission like I have witnessed here in Buffalo. It’s not perfect and we certainly have not ‘arrived’ in the whole area of working together but it has come a long way over the past five years,” explained Benji.

The seven song album, “Letters to the Church at Buffalo” is presently available for download on iTunes and the physical CD should be available by the last week of June to purchase at The Chapel and other Christian music vendors in the area. At this point, the Cowarts are not doing any public concerts but are content leading their local congregation in worship each week. However, the Cowarts also lead the Vintage Band (college and college age ministry) and will be playing at Kingdom Bound on the Park Stage on Tuesday morning August 2 at 10:00 a.m.. As Benji explained, “We are worship leaders first and our calling presently is to the local body. The irony is that I was that guy who said I would do anything for God ….except, be a vocational minister… and here I am, and I can’t imagine doing anything else with my life. That’s just how God does it I guess.”

Final Thought: Mission: Reaching a Post-Modern Generation With the Gospel.

By Lou Perez

     For better or worse, today’s Church lives in the postmodern era. When I first began hearing about postmodernism many years ago, I would always walk away with a foggy understanding of what it was. Then I looked at the term “Postmodernism”. “Post” speaks of what comes after. In this case, modernism, was the era we have been transitioning out of for the past 60 years.  What helped me to understand postmodernism is when I started to notice the things it reacts to. Postmodernism is a reaction to the age of Modernism that began during the Renaissance and focused on science and reason as the way to find truth. In modernism, Sunday morning Church was based on many hours of Bible study, apologetics, and exegesis, which although is important, does not always connect with postmodern seekers.

     Postmodernism is characterized in general by a rejection of objective truth. You might hear post modern’s say things like, “There is no such thing as one way to God”. They tend to reject a single definition of truth. In fact, for postmoderns, truth is based on each person’s own experience. Postmoderns take a wrecking ball to the last era of modernism and rebuild it with materials borrowed from every religion and philosophy the world has to offer.

Postmodernism has not been without impact on the Church. Here are some ways this has occurred.

Challenge of authority: Postmodernism challenges the authority of the Church and the revelation it stands on. This is all done in an attempt to discover truth for oneself - a personal “journey of spirituality.”

No Objective Truth. Since postmoderns don’t believe in “one truth fits all,” Christianity is seen as just another buffet line where you pick and choose what you like and then go to other religions and philosophies for the rest. 

The image has replaced the truth. Postmoderns tend towards a shallow understanding of truth. Because we live in a media saturated “copy and paste” society where ideas can be remixed and photo-shopped, there is a tendency for postmoderns to create their own image of the “truth”. To put it simply, an image has replaced what is real. This is no different that Aaron’s golden calf in Exodus 32:1.

The problem with postmodernism is that Christ taught a specific set of non-negotiable truths that are relevant for every age.

“I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”   

John 14:6 ESV

So how do we as the Church thrive in a post modern world? How do we reach postmoderns?       Here are six suggestions:

     We can continue to do what we have always done and see what the next age brings. It may be a while however. Or we can go to where the postmodern lives. Paul did this by “becoming all things to all men”.  

“To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law.” (1 Corinthians 9:20–23 ESV)

     We can engage the postmodern person. We can do this by affirming what is right and challenging what is wrong. If there is one area where postmoderns are correct it is that intellect and reason is not enough to find truth. At the same time, we can lovingly challenge the postmodern’s notion that “there is no absolute truth”. The problem postmoderns cannot account for is that it’s impossible to make absolute statements when you don’t believe in absolutes.

     Let’s be sure that we are fighting for the right thing. We don’t want to contend for the “good old days” of modernism where people swooned at our insights. One of the faults of modernism is the arrogance and condescension that came from knowledge.

     Let’s change our methods without changing the message. In an honest effort to reach people, some postmodern seeker-sensitive churches have reworked certain Bible passages to soften their blow. It is a dangerous thing to amend what one did not write, especially when it involves a saving truth.

     Experience and encounter. Provide opportunities for people to encounter God. This brings them beyond just head knowledge and into intimacy with God.

     Use stories and metaphors to illustrate Biblical truth. One final thing we can do to reach postmoderns is to tell a story to illustrate a deeper truth. Postmoderns love stories and will respond to the truth easier when it is embedded in a story. This isn’t just postmodern, this is Jesus. Jesus used parables as a delivery system for eternal truths.

      The Church has a sacred responsibility to engage the postmodern world, and with the wisdom and discernment of the Holy Spirit, to bring people to the unchanging Gospel truths that are relevant in every generation.

   

Lou and Louisa Perez both grew up in New York City, and met in the first Church Lou pastored in Schenectady, NY. In 1999 they started Destiny Christian Church in Niagara Falls with the vision of taking Church outside the four walls. Find out more at www.destinychristianniagara.com.

Picture Page

Dr. John Perkins was the keynote speaker at Going Beyond Charity. His message: city transformation by the Gospel.

See More Pictures

With All Your Heart, Mind, Soul & Strength.

By Kyle Patterson
Photos by Matt Brown

Loving God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength is the highest calling of our lives—the truth is we were created with a longing to be wholehearted and abandoned, and thus to know the joy of love. There is nothing more satisfying than having the power to give the deepest affection of our heart to God and to be loyal in love. We live life at the fullest  in the joy of holy love for God giving ourselves fully to him and receiving all he has for us. We long to possess the power to be abandoned instead of being stuck in boredom, passivity, disloyalty, and compromise which leave us broken and discontent. When God told Abram in the book of Genesis that God himself was his exceeding great reward, God had also promised to make him great, bless him, increase him and make him the father of a great nation and in fact established his covenant with all people through Abram (later Abraham). Despite the incredible earthly honor God would give to Abraham  on this earth, God established that he himself was his “exceeding great reward.”

Embracing the Romance of the Gospel

To embrace Christ as our exceeding great reward and love him in return we must understand that the Gospel is a story of romance, passion and desire—believe it or not. The greatest stories on earth are just a glimmer of what we have in Christ. The lengths at which Christ was willing to go for us and the suffering he endured for love is nothing short of extravagant. That fact that God eternal, immortal and invisible would set aside his divinity and humble himself as a Man to suffer, die and embrace us for eternity is beyond my understanding. Throughout Scripture we see glimpses into the heart of God—what he is thinking, what he is feeling and what he is really like. We get a glimpse in the book of Hosea where God shows his faithful steadfast love, as pictured in Hosea and the prostitute, for a people who are unfaithful to him. As a picture God spoke to Hosea the prophet to marry an unfaithful prostitute as a prophetic picture and declaration of the love of God to a people who continually go astray. Throughout Scripture God compares his love for us to a bride and bridegroom—Isaiah also catches a glimpse into the love of God’s heart in chapter 62 when he writes and compares God’s affection to a bridegroom rejoicing on his wedding day over his bride. He then says in that same way God will express his love toward us—he, God, will rejoice over us. Jeremiah also echoed God’s heart in chapter 2 when he says, “I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the wilderness.” John the Baptist goes so far as to actually introduce Jesus to the nation of Israel as the bridegroom who has a bride when he stated, “The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice.” Going further, Jesus himself spoke of himself  as a bridegroom when he stated in Matthew 9:15, “Jesus answered, ‘How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.’” Paul taking it further stated, “I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him,” and again in Ephesians, “’For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.”

     By weaving the beauty of his love for us in Scripture and comparing it to that of a bride and bridegroom, God is calling us to embrace his affection and love him in return. The Lord throughout Scripture is revealing and calling for those who would love him with all their hearts as a bride her husband in abandon, following him where he goes, giving of ourselves, our time, talent, treasure, affections and obedience at all costs. 

Loving God Is Our Response

    

     According to the Scripture, it takes God to love God. By that statement I mean that it is only by the power that God gives the human heart, by his grace and the revelation he imparts to us that we can grow in love and heartfelt affection for God. To love and know an invisible God takes supernatural ability, according to  Romans 5:5, “The love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit,” and in Ephesians 3, Paul prays that God would give s the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of God.  The truth is, our ability to love God is directly related to his love for us in that we love because he first loved us as we see in 1 John. AW  Tozer writes of the importance of Godward love when he said, “Not only are we all in process of becoming; WE ARE BECOMING WHAT WE LOVE. We are to a large degree the sum of our loves and we will of moral necessity grow into the image of what we love most. Our loves changes, molds and transforms us. What we love is therefore not a small matter to be lightly shrugged off; rather it is of present, critical and everlasting importance. It is prophetic of our future. It tells us what we shall be, and so predicts accurately our eternal destiny. Loving the wrong objects twists and deforms the life and makes it impossible for that life to image the Lord Jesus Christ. This furnishes in part a rational explanation for the first and greatest commandment: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” To become like God is and must be the supreme goal of all moral creatures. This is the reason for their existence, and apart from this reason there can be no excuse found for existence. (Thus the hopelessness of our day.)”

Loving God for His Beauty

When King David described in the book of Psalms the supreme passion of his life, it wasn’t power, military victory, earthly success or wealth, it was his undying love and passion to look upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple. David’s longing heart to see and know the heart of God inspires us today. What does it mean to see the beauty or glory of the Lord? David both gazed on God, and He inquired of God according to Psalm 27:4. We gaze on God by the meditation of the Word specifically related to the beauty of his emotions and the beauty of his throne. We inquire of God by prayer, petition and the communion of the Spirit. We do this best when we have a paradigm of a God who is a beautiful. Revelation Chapters 4-5 give us a glimpse into the beauty of God’s throne—by meditating in the Word we begin to fall in love and our hearts become fascinated with him as he grants us revelation into his heart.  The revelation of God’s beauty is essential in our quest to live holy before God. We resist sin far better when God fascinates our hearts. When the Holy Spirit reveals the Father and the Son to our hearts, our hearts become fascinated and exhilarated with God. There is no greater pleasure in the human experience than when God reveals God to the human spirit. Moses prayed to see God’s glory and God answered Moses and promised to proclaim His name to Moses. When God proclaimed His name, He was proclaiming His character and His personality, in other words, God promised to manifest His personality to Moses. The way in which God reveals His glory or beauty to us is by revealing His heart and His personality.

Loving God with All Our Heart

Loving God with all our heart means to love him with all our affections and our emotions. We “set” our affections on anything we choose. We can determine some of our emotions by the setting of the heart—we change our mind and God changes our heart. Our emotions will follow whatever we set ourselves to pursue—we can set our heart to be filled with zeal for God.  The Psalmist wrote, “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him.” (Psalm 91:14) 

     Another way to intentionally set our affections to love Jesus is to remove everything that diminishes our affections for him like bitterness, lust and being over stimulated by entertainment. This requires that we focus on pursuing love for Jesus more than gaining things and influence. David declared that he would love God and therefore set the intention of his heart to love God. In Psalm 18:1 he said, “I will love You, O Lord, my strength.” John the Apostle leaned on Jesus’ heart or set his heart to love and be as near to Him as possible.  Likewise, we  can set our heart to love Him by committing to walk in obedience even when it is costly. We  also set our heart on loving God by regularly asking for supernatural help to love Jesus. Ask God to pour his love for Jesus into your heart and to direct the reigns of your heart into His love—”May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God. (2 Thessalonians. 3:5)

Loving God With Our Souls

To love God with all our soul means to love him with our personality which is expressed mostly through our speech. When we determine to express our personality by speaking and acting in a way that enhances not diminishes love we express love for God in doing so. It actually moves God’s heart when we control ourselves from cutting down someone and instead choose to lift them up and encourage them. That is the difference between life and death—which as Proverbs tells us is in the tongue. 
      The most common way to use our soul to quench love is by grieving the Spirit by our words which in turns diminishes our ability to receive from God in the same measure.  We walk in love by purifying our speech (Eph. 5:1-6) rather than diminishing love by wrong speech that affects our inner man. For example, when we speak in dishonoring ways about the saints the Scripture tells us we are acting worldly and immature. We are to renounce grumbling and evil speaking against one another and rather encourage one another, singing and making music in our hearts to the Lord.
     The important thing however is that when we do fail in this our confession is not that we are a hopeless hypocrite nor are we despised by God. Rather we confess that we are loved by God and we are a lover of God, therefore this defines us and makes us successful. We are not defined by failure or by our accomplishments. By choosing to live in our spiritual identity of being loved and loving God in return our lives become secure in God rather than wrapped up in our appearance or performance before people. This is the principle of living before an audience of One. Not that we are not accountable and connected to people—that is absolutely vital to a vibrant Christian life. But we are also not devastated or puffed up by the rejection or the approval of people. Rather than needing affirmation from people, we receive it directly from God and affirm our agreement with him by our confession even when we don’t feel it—our emotions will catch up with the confession.  A great way to start is by saying to God, “Jesus, I am Your beloved, Your favorite one, a disciple You love.”  In a similar way John the Apostle described himself in his Gospel— “Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord!’” John 21:7.

Loving God With All Our Minds

To love God with all our mind we must actively fill our minds with long and loving meditation on God’s Word and resist putting anything in our minds that diminishes love for Jesus and quenches the Holy Spirit.

     To love God with all of our mind is our decision to take time to fill our mind with God’s word and to agree with biblical paradigms of God. We gain revelation of God’s love by meditating on it from God’s Word. We position ourselves to receive by sitting long hours before God in his Word.
     

Loving God With Our Strength

Loving God with all our strength and with our resources includes time, money, talents, reputation and influence.

Loving God With Our Time

Does anything really speak more loudly to someone regarding your love for them and the way you feel about them than the time you spend with that person? When we slow our lives down just a bit and give God our time, which isn’t always easy but is necessary, we honor God and he is able to work in and through us. As his partners here on earth and his ambassadors, we must daily come to him and be filled with the Spirit and filled with faith and love to represent him truly. As with the nature of any love relationship, time is essential to developing it. Spending time getting to know Christ is the essence of eternal life—to know him. It is the “good part” that Mary of Bethany choose and Jesus declared would not be taken from her.  Give God an offering today of time, sacrifice that TV show, that Facebook update and even that meal to come away with the Lord, receive his love and give him your love in worship and prayer. Quiet yourself before him and allow him to touch your heart through meditation on his Word.

    

Loving God With Our Treasure 

You can’t serve both God and money is how Jesus described the relationship with earthly riches. As the saying goes money makes a poor master, but a good servant. When we love God and honor him with our finances by making him our treasure and pursuit of life, not more stuff, it moves the heart of God. According to Scripture when we make him our great Treasure rather than earthly pursuits he responds and blesses us for it. The Scripture explains that when we seek first his Kingdom and his righteousness he will add everything else to us. If God who owns all silver and gold and all things on the earth makes a promise like that, should we not trust him? So seek him first and expect his blessing. As Hebrews states, God rewards of those who diligently seek him. As C.S. Lewis said, “We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” 

Loving God With Our Talent 

  

For from him and to him and through him are all things. When the very breathe we breath is from him, we present our very being to him to use as he pleases. Paul explained to the Roman church that they were to present their very bodies and all its members to the Lord as a living sacrifice, for this is reasonable and it is your very act of worship. He gave his all for us and we give our all for him. How could we offer him half hearted love when he spared no expense for us? As the elders and living creatures around his throne never stop saying—he is holy and he is worthy. Our lives are meant to be one with his, this is the invitation to the divine romance.

True Worship

As one who leads others into God’s presence, I have realized how important it is to have a correct perspective of what worship is. Being a musician, I always felt that if I can just focus on God when I am playing my instrument, it means I worshipped and when I finish playing my music I can focus on other things. One day God revealed to me a higher view of worship. He said to me as I was writing a worship song, “Many of my people are only intense and passionate about Me when they are singing and playing. Why do I have to wait for the music to receive intense attention?” Then the revelation fell into my heart. I need to be intense about God all the time.—which gave me the understanding that worship is not a song, not a thirty-minute period in our service to God, it’s not even lifting our hands, and closing our eyes. Worship is a lifestyle, this is why God seeks such (John 4:23), who would worship Him in Spirit and in truth.

The Lord has shown me that a song, lifting my hands, and closing my eyes and playing my instruments are outward manifestations of what has been going on in my heart all week. If you are married, how would you feel if your spouse only showed interest in you when you are intimate, but after that it’s back to business as usual? In a similar way this is what we do to God when we only show passion for him when we sing and play at worship services and not in our everyday life. Every spouse wants someone who they have a great relationship with all the time, and then out of that great relationship you can express it emotionally, sexually and physically. Ultimately, I believe God is looking for what I call lifestyle worshippers. Those who naturally come into His presence in their daily lives—like fish in the sea—the only time the fish suffers and dies is when it’s out of its natural environment. Likewise, our very life depends on us coming to God and living in his Spirit daily. Today do not box your expression to God in a song or a service, be free and worship Him in and with your life.

Here are a few ways to get started.

1. Meditate on his Word daily.
Joshua 1:8 says, “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”

2. Sacrifice your will for his will.
Mark 8:24, “Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”

3. Make personal time each day for just you and him to talk.
2 Corinthians 13:14, “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”

4. Be transparent and talk to him about everything that concerns you.
Psalm 139:1 says, “You have searched me, LORD, and you know me.”

5. Acknowledge him in all your daily decisions.
Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”

6. Keep a thankful attitude all day for everything he’s done for you.
Hebrews 13:15 says, “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.”

Now you can take these steps and then express them in a song, with instruments, and any other forms of expression. These have been some things that have made my worship unto God more amazing and life changing. Make up your mind today that you will be one who the Father seeks for. Make God the center of your very being, and you will begin to see His peace, love and joy overshadow you from day to day.

Interview: 5 Questions with Donna Russo

What has been the most rewarding part of running Kingdom Bound and seeing God's faithfulness to the ministry and vision?
To hear how someone’s life has been impacted or changed by a message they heard or a concert they attended during the festival is the most rewarding experience. Ministries have been launched as a result of a vision being cast by one of the speakers. We know that there are many stories we will only hear in heaven but every time a person takes time to write us and share what God did for them at a festival, it reaffirms why we do this event. Presenting the Gospel through the Arts with the purpose of seeing people come to Christ as well as encouraging believers continues to be the focus and mission of Kingdom Bound Ministries.

Starting out did you think it could grow into one of the premier festivals in the country? Probably not – I can remember each year on the second to last day of the festival the board members, staff and Fred Caserta (our President and Founder) would meet with the Darien Lake staff and announce that we would go forward for another year.  It was always an exciting time.  Now, of course, we plan the next year much earlier but it does not change our excitement and gratitude for God’s consistent provision for the festival. It truly is only by His grace that we take this walk of faith that results in the Kingdom Bound festival every summer.  We are very blessed to enjoy a wonderful partnership with the staff at Darien Lake Theme Park who allow us to fulfill this mission.

Do you have a favorite testimony of how God touched someone at the festival? Several years ago a family attended the festival as a last vacation together – the couple was heading for divorce.  They attended a seminar and had an opportunity to receive prayer and left the festival with a renewed sense of family and resolve to stay together.

What would you say to an aspiring musician trying to make it in Christian music? Pray a lot, be sure of your motivation, pray some more, be open to wise counsel and pray some more.

What is one exhibit/show/event you will make sure to see this year? Exhibit – the Kingdom Bound Justice Experience presented by Let Them LOL.  It WILL change your life. Concert – this is a tough call.  If you are a veteran Kingdom Bounder, you will not want to miss Classic Petra, Rebecca St. James or the Kingdom Bound rewind Band featuring Rick Cua (our current President), Will McFarlane, Margaret Becker, Phil Keaggy, Morgan Cryar, Michael Peace and more.  If you are newer to Kingdom Bound, you definitely want to take in Casting Crowns, Skillet and Chris Tomlin. Event – Enemy Opposition presenting extreme sports demos and testimonies is not to be missed.  For 2011 we are bringing back the Sports Experience featuring Soccer, Basketball and Flag Football – also not to be missed.

For more information please visit www.kingdombound.org or call 800.461.4485.Tickets and campsites are still available for the festival.

Table of Contents

Partners
Events
News: Running Water, Neil Boron, London Fletcher, Interview with Donna Russo, more….
Photos
Cover Story: Benji and Jenna……Kyle Patterson
Feature: 7 Recommendations at Kingdom Bound 2011
Feature: Loving God with All Your Heart, Soul, Mind, Strength
Columns: Our Purpose is Worship...Robert Stearns
True Worship....Nathan Salter
Resource Review: brought to you by Bender's Parable Christian Store including Tim Tebow, Becoming a Man of Unwavering Faith and A Love That Multiplies, Plus One True God by New Song, and the film documentary Furious Love
Camp Special: Featuring Branches of Niagara Campground and Resort and Camp Duffield

Editor's Note: June/July

“If you want to change the world, pick up your pen,” is a quote by the great reformer Martin Luther and something I enjoy thinking upon when contemplating why we do what we do. It is one of those loaded statements that has the ability to encourage me even when things are tough, when it takes everything in me, including late nights, tired days and extra stress, to get the issue out, knowing that the work matters—that is enough to keep me going.

      Not only did Martin Luther believe in the power of the written word, but consistently throughout Scripture God commanded his people to record and make record of the things that were happening and thus we have documentation and proof of the work of God throughout history something still edifying readers to this day.

Take a look:

Isaiah 30:8 (NIV)

“Go now, write it on a tablet for them,
   inscribe it on a scroll,
that for the days to come
   it may be an everlasting witness.”  

Luke 1:3 (NIV)

“With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.”

     So with this in mind, my prayer is that you will be blessed by this issue, encouraged and strengthened knowing that you are not alone, God is alive and well in Western New York and is working all things together for the purpose of his will. Be blessed and as always feel free to contact me at any time.

Kyle  R. Patterson

Digital Issue Online

Zion Dominion's Legacy Conference was the premier sponsor of UNITE's June/July issue

UNITE Magazine released its 3rd issue this week online, digitally and this weekend and next week the magazine will be distributing 10,000 copies in print. The issue features Benji and Jenna Cowart and their new CD release, "Letters to the Church at Buffalo" on the cover with inside features including a piece by editor Kyle Patterson on Loving God with All Our Hearts, 7 recommendations for Kingdom Bound 2011, an interview with Donna Russo and columns by Robert Stearns, Nathan Salter and Lou Perez.

Special thanks to our premier sponsor Zion Dominion Global Ministries and their annual Legacy Conference for making this issue possible.

View our latest digital issue by clicking here. 

EVENTS: Now posted

July 2011

1 Fireworks Family Weekend at Camp Hickory Hill, July 1-4: Campfires, archery, rest, canoeing, hikes, great food, time with your family, the climbing wall and… a great FIREWORKS display! Contact us at 716-631-5028 or www.CampHickoryHill.org.

6 Father & Son Shootin’ Camp at Camp Hickory Hill, July 6-9 or July 7-9: Nerf Guns, Airsoft Guns (ages 12 & up), Archery, Riflery, Water Balloon Launchers, etc.! More information at 716-631-5028 or www.CampHickoryHill.org.   SEE MORE EVENTS...

Preview: UNITE's June/July issue

This issue's cover features Benji and Jenna Cowart, worship leaders based in Western New York who just released their seven song album, "Letters to the Church at Buffalo." Cowart told UNITE Editor Kyle Patterson, “It has been really exciting to see churches of various denominations coming together and partnering to plant new churches and partnering to carry out Kingdom endeavors.” Read the full article and all the rest of this issue starting next week!

How to Live a Happy and Healthy Life Today - Stop Worrying!

By Tunya Griffin
Blogger at Happy and Healthy LifeGiver

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matt. 6:34 NIV

What do you think about most of your time? Is it “Will my future end up the way I anticipate it” or “will I be rich” or “will my children be successful?”

There is for most of us a mental habit we’re all have fallen prey to at one time or another and that is that we often deal with the future and not the present. If we consider our problems, some of them are created by us concentrating too much on our future. I’ve been there more than I would have like to visit, considering my future, planning my future, and saving for my future. However I was still left with thoughts about “what will my future actual look like when it is here!” I was for a lack of words, playing God, in a sense.

If I finished school, if I saved, if I planned then I would not end up poverty stricken, uneducated, or stigmatized by those single parent or teen mothers statistics. Overall I would eventually avoid the outcome I feared the most: failure. As I woke up morning after morning, I worked, studied, prayed, planned to be successful, but not just for me, but for: my children and my family so that we would not become failures. “Why was I worrying and fighting so hard to overcome the big monster in the room no one wanted to discuss: failure?

I remember preparing the night I was to speak at a graduation. There I was writing my speech and in the mirror rehearsing my speech so that I would not make the big fumble. I was consumed, almost paralyzed by worrying “what if I stumble over my words? Then the Principal of the school introduced me and I walked over to the podium, and all the feelings of worry dissipated. “Why was I so worried about the outcome?” I learned that we don’t have control over all outcomes of things.

Dealing with worry about tomorrow seemed that it had become something I was doing everyday. I wasn’t able to relax. I was stressed, and worry was robbing me of living and enjoying the present moment. I have heard by many that “In life you were either blessed or cursed.” If something turned out the way a person wanted it to turn out then this person was blessed. If not then you were cursed. As a result, I worked hard and worried everyday so that I wouldn’t appear that my children, my family, nor I was viewed as cursed. “I worried day and night how could we be blessed,” or “what could I do to ensure we would be blessed?” However what I didn’t know is that all that worrying was stealing my life in the present.

As I pondered these thoughts of worry, I considered Matt. 6:34 that states “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” After considering this Scripture, I have now revised my outlook. Better yet, today “I have a new attitude,” and that is Live in the moment. Remember the only thing that any of us can truly control and that is “Being the best that you can be.” Make a conscious decision today that you will stop worrying and live a happy and healthy life today.

Friends of the Buffalo Christian Center

The Friends Campaign at the Buffalo Christian Center is coming up!  A fundraiser for youth staff and game room improvements!

Friday night June 24 th 6 - 9 pm -  Youth Rally & Concert !

Saturday June 25, 10 am - 2 pm  - Street Canival in the parking lot - bounce houses, carnival food and games!

Saturday night June 25 th 6 - 9 pm Evening Concert and Celebration for the rest  of us Be blessed,

at the Buffalo Christian Center 512 Pearl Street

Global Day of Prayer 2011

This Sunday, June 12 is the 11 annual Global Day of Prayer happening in over 200 nations calling on God to fill the earth with the knowledge of the Glory of the Lord. (Hab. 2:14 “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”)

The growing momentum of the last 10 years has laid the foundation to saturate nations in prayer. Started in 2001 by South African businessman Graham Power with a vision based on 2 Chronicles 7:14.

1. To call Christians from all denominations in Cape Town for a Day of Repentance and Prayer at Newlands Rugby Stadium.
2. To challenge Christians across the rest of South Africa to unite in a Day of Repentance and Prayer.
3. To challenge Christians in Southern Africa to unite in a Day of Repentance and Prayer.

This year's focus is to facilitate a lifestyle of prayer with as many people in as many places as possible. In this new season, the Global Day of Prayer will no longer aim at the goal of having organized events in every single country of the world, but rather to increase the number of gatherings on Pentecost Sunday in smaller settings, such as local churches, family homes and businesses instead of stadiums and assembly halls.

Below is a prayer developed by the International Prayer Council to guide effective prayer this Sunday:

Almighty God - Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

Together with believers all over the world,

We gather today to glorify Your Name.

You are the Creator of heaven and earth.

There is no one like You, holy and righteous in all Your ways.

We submit to Your authority as the King of the universe.

We pray with one voice to enthrone You in our hearts

    and to honour You before the world.

Lord God, You alone are worthy of our praise and adoration.

Our Father in heaven,

Thank You for loving the world so greatly.

You gave Your only Son, Jesus Christ,

    to die on the cross for our sins

    so that we could be reconciled to You.

We are grateful to call You Father and to be called Your children.

Nothing can separate us from Your love.

      Thank You Father, for adopting us into Your family
     because of Jesus Christ our Saviour.

Lord Jesus Christ,

You alone are worthy to open the scrolls of history,

    for You were slain and have redeemed us to the Father by Your blood.

We confess that You are Head of the Church

    and Lord of all heaven and earth.

May people from every tribe and language become Your followers

    so that Your blessing brings transformation among all peoples.

Let Your kingdom be established in every nation of the world

    so that governments will rule with righteousness and justice.

And may Your Name be great, from the rising of the sun to its setting.

  Jesus Christ, You are the Saviour of the world and the Lord of all.

Father of mercy and grace,

We acknowledge that we have sinned

    and that our world is gripped by the power of sin.

Our hearts are grieved by injustice, hatred and violence.

We are shamed by oppression, racism and bloodshed in our land.

We mourn all loss of life in murder, war and terrorism.

Our homes are broken and our churches are divided by rebellion and pride.

Our lives are polluted by selfishness, greed, idolatry and sexual sin.

We have grieved Your heart and brought shame to Your Name.

Have mercy on us as we repent with all our hearts.

  God of mercy, forgive our sins.
     Pour out Your grace and heal our land.

Spirit of the living God,

Apart from You, we can do nothing.

Transform Your Church into the image of Jesus Christ.

Release Your power to bring healing to the sick,

    freedom to the oppressed and comfort to those who mourn.

Pour Your love into our hearts and fill us with compassion

    to answer the call of the homeless and the hungry

    and to enfold orphans, widows and the elderly in Your care.

Give us wisdom and insight for the complex problems we face today.

Help us to use the resources of the earth for the well-being of all.

  Holy Spirit, we need Your comfort
     and guidance. Transform our hearts.

Lord Jesus Christ,

Because You were dead, but are now risen,

    and the Father has given You a Name above all names,

    You will defeat all powers of evil.

Tear down strongholds and ideologies that resist the knowledge of God.

Remove the veil of darkness that covers the peoples.

Restrain the evil that promotes violence and death.

Bring deliverance from demonic oppression.

Break the hold of slavery, tyranny and disease.

Fill us with courage to preach Your word fearlessly,

    and to intercede for the lost faithfully.

  Almighty God, deliver us from evil.

King of Glory,

Come and finish Your work in our cities, our peoples and our nations.

We lift our voices in unison with believers from Africa and Asia,

    from the Middle East and Europe, from North and South America,

    and from Australia and the Pacific Islands-together we cry: 

  Lift up your heads, O you gates!
Be lifted up ancient doors
     so that the King of glory may come in!

As Your deeds increase throughout the earth,

    and as Your blessings abound to all the nations,

    they will seek You, asking, "Who is this King of glory?"

Together we will answer:

He is the Lord Almighty!

Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!

Come fill the earth with Your glory as the waters cover the sea.

The Spirit and the Bride say:

Amen! Come Lord Jesus!

Culture Making Conference

Northeastern Seminary invited Christian author and social commentator Andy Crouch – winner of the 2009 Christianity and Culture Book Award from Christianity Today and a “starred review” from Publisher’s Weekly for his book Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling – as the keynote speaker for its 2011 Conference on Ministry, June 7-8 in the Cultural Life Center on the Roberts Wesleyan College campus.

In his acclaimed book, Crouch unleashes a stirring manifesto calling Christians to be culture makers. For too long, he explains, Christians have had an insufficient view of culture and waged misguided “culture wars.” But they must reclaim the cultural mandate to be the creative cultivators that God designed them to be. “Culture is what we make of the world, both in creating cultural artifacts as well as in making sense of the world around us,” Crouch says. “By making chairs and omelets, languages and laws, we participate in the good work of culture making.”

As keynote speaker at the NES Conference on Ministry, Crouch will unpack the complexities of how culture works and recommend tools for cultivating and creating culture. He navigates the dynamics of cultural change and probes the role and efficacy of Christians’ various cultural gestures and postures.

Crouch’s keen biblical exposition shows that “creating culture” is central to the whole scriptural narrative, the ministry of Jesus and the call to the church. He guards against naive assumptions about “changing the world,” but points to hopeful examples from church history and contemporary society of how culture is made and shaped. “Ultimately, our culture making is done in partnership with God’s own making and transforming of culture,” he says.

Plenary sessions will address the following topics:

* The Horizons of the Possible: Defining and Understanding Culture
* Gestures and Postures: Recovering a Biblical Framework for Our Cultural Calling
* The Broken Image: Injustice, Idolatry and Restoration
* Learning to Play: Excellence and the Disciplines in Everyday Life
* A Model of Cultural Change

Workshops will be conducted on the following issues:

* What the church needs to know about ministry in the city
* Images and Culture: Making room for visual creativity in ministry
* Theological underpinnings for integrating music styles
* Blogging and the “missio Dei”: Addressing the central cultural issues


General admission for the two-day conference is $110, with discounts available for groups and NES students and alumni. For more information, contact Northeastern Seminary by phone at (585) 594-6800 or 800-777-4792, or online at www.nes.edu/com/2011.

Crouch is special assistant to the president at Christianity Today International, where he was executive producer of the documentary films Where Faith and Culture Meet and Round Trip, and editorial director of the Christian Vision Project. He serves on the governing boards of Fuller Theological Seminary and Equitas Group, a philanthropic organization focused on ending child exploitation in Haiti and Southeast Asia. Crouch studied classics at Cornell University and received an M.Div. summa cum laude from Boston University School of Theology. He also is a classically trained musician.

Editor's Note: April/May 2011

By Kyle Patterson
Since the launch of our first issue of unite this past February, we have seen a great response from churches, advertisers and readers. I would like to thank you for reading and sharing unite with your friends and family and encouraging us that indeed the Church in Western New York needs this. We are encouraged to see churches welcoming copies of unite into their churches and people responding to the mission of working together as the Body of Christ for the purpose of reaching our region with the Gospel. Unite exists to equip, strengthen and serve the Church of Western New York with timely news, edifying articles and inspirational teaching. Our heart is that what God is doing will be documented for generations to come through the medium of print, online and digitally. I also recommend the additional articles, pictures, video, blogs and interviews we are posting weekly at www.unitemagazine.us and on our Facebook page.

I personally invite you to send me your news and press releases from your church or ministry, helping us and our readers stay up to date on what God is doing in your neighborhood and encourage the rest of the Church in our region. Secondly we are looking for a variety of contributors including full length print contributions, online bloggers and commenters as well as photos and feature story ideas. Lastly, we are in need of volunteer drivers to help us distribute unite across our region including Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Batavia and Rochester. We break down our distribution into five to ten stops all within a seven mile radius so if you are interested in getting involved in any of these ways I welcome you to contact me.

I would like to thank all of our church partners for their faithful support, our advertisers, contributors and photographers who literally make this publication possible. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.