As the Deer and Sunday, September 6, 2009

Hahaha! I always like to add a picture to my posts (for my friends who just look at the pictures - you know who you are) and so I searched for "As the Deer" and it ended up that the picture I clicked on was from my own music blog! http://bearhollowmusic.blogspot.com/2008/02/as-deer.html How funny is that? I guess I like this picture.

September 6, 2009 AM

Everlasting God
Fellowship Song – Jesus Saves
Mighty to Save

Choir anthem – Our God Saves

As the Deer
Higher Ground
Draw Me Close

Special Music – Tyson Harris

Message – Dr. Larry D. Robertson

Invitation – I Surrender All

Branded a Spammer Again

Last year I had to blog about Charter thinking I was spam.

http://hilldaleworship.blogspot.com/2008/02/charter-thinks-im-spam.html

I included this picture.

So I wanted a different picture this year.

I gagged several times scrolling through the Spam pictures.

Did you know Spam comes in special flavors. (just gagged again)

All this as an introduction to the e-mail I sent out today that many of you did not get.

Here it is for you.

Many of you won't get this. We've been put on a few SPAM lists and can't convince one or two that we aren't spammers. So you'll need to check our worship blog to see what you missed. http://www.hilldaleworship.blogspot.com/
If you know someone who works for the State of TN (like Shannon) you might forward this to her because I already know form earlier this morning that she can't get e-mail from me right now.

Open mic night THIS Sunday night at the Labor Day picnic.

Some of the bands we thought we had lined up can't come this weekend. (Three bands and a quartet all had different reasons for not being able to bring a little entertainment to our Labor Day picnic.)
So… I want YOU to bring a CD and sing something. Maybe even two songs. Don't be shy. Sing a duet if you want. Get your kids to sing too. This will be a fun family night where everyone needs to sing something.

Welcome new choir members (and some returnees)

Lena (Song) Page - S
Lois Ann Gassdorf - S
Lil Smith - S
Jasmine Chong - S
Michelle Wilson - S2
Brittney Brake - A
Melissa Woodling - A
Rick Stephenson - T
John Woodcock - B
Tim Baggett - B

Comments from Yesterday's Post

Before you read today's post you need to look at yesterday's.

http://hilldaleworship.blogspot.com/2009/09/how-to-have-fantastic-worship-every.html

I have received a couple of e-mails in regard to yesterday's post. Since they didn't leave a comment with their name I'm going to remove their names from here, but I wanted you to see what they had to say and encourage you to add your own comments either to this post or yesterday's.

"For me worship is a love song filled with joy and thankfulness, sung to my God, my Savior, my King! "

"Your blog yesterday was so encouraging. My Sunday school class got into a discussion about worship. Everything you mentioned that was not about worship they said. Some stated that southern gospel music was real worship; others blamed the imperfections of people that caused them not to worship, etc…. NO ONE mentioned loving, adoring, thanking, and praising God. I was so saddened.

The best way I can describe worship, since I am a visual person, is to picture myself in a sanctuary where everything is dark and a spotlight from Heaven is shining down on me. You do not see anyone around you, just you and God, and you spend time with Him. That is the main focus of worship, Jesus. Maybe we need to hear the words again from the song, “The Heart of Worship”, “I’m coming back to the heart of worship and it’s all about you, it’s all about you Jesus. I’m sorry Lord for the thing I've made it, it’s all about you, it’s all about you Jesus”."

Your turn. Has this discussion got you thinking about worship?

How to Have Fantastic Worship Every Sunday

I work with a lot of wonderful musicians. Some weeks the music is really good. Some weeks the music is really great! Some weeks are better at one service than the other.

However... it's possible to have fantastic worship EVERY Sunday. Here are just a few ideas for you to help you make your time of worship - at Hilldale or wherever - a great time with God.

1. Remember that you are at church for God. It's not really all about you (don't mean to hurt your feelings). If your focus is on Him and not on hoping to hear your favorite song then true worship can happen.

2. Don't rely on the worship pastor or the band or the choir to get you all revved up or feeling good. Feelings are great, but in reality, worship is telling God how great He is and how much you love Him.

3. Worship with your mind as well as your heart. So many of the songs we sing have really terrific texts. We sometimes sing songs so many times that we just sing along and don't even think about the words. But the words are really the point. They tell of God's greatness, they encourage us, they teach us, they inspire us...

4. Come to worship expecting it to be wonderful. In most things in life you get out of them what you bring to them.

5. Pray before you come. (don't make me tell you everything. figure this part out yourself)

6. Worship during the week. It's good practice and your heart will be more in tune with God.

7. Some thinking about others more than yourself. (Ooops. There we go again with the "it's not all about you part.") Be happy to sing some old song knowing it speaks to the hearts of so many others. Be happy to sing that new song you don't know because it speaks to the hearts of so many others. (Get the idea?)

Well.... there are probably more, but these are the first things that popped into my head. Why don't you leave a comment with YOUR ideas of how to have worship be wonderful every week. I would love to hear from you.

Christmas Is Coming

♫ ♪ It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas♫ ♪ (the choir room is getting all Christmassy)

♪♫ It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year♪ ♪ ♫ (Choirs get to celebrate longer than anyone else!)

♫ I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas ♪ ♪ ♫ (as long as the snow comes after our performances)

Tomorrow night at 6:30 is our annual Christmas Preview Party in choir. Actually, you'll probably want to come a little early to fill your plate so you don't miss any of the music! Bring someone with you who needs to be in choir. Call up your missing friend. This is the perfect time to join choir.

See you tomorrow night!

Here's an old picture of Papa and Gibson from 2003.

Music for August 23 - Grace

8:27 - Welcome & Prayer – Dr. Larry D. Robertson

Your Grace Is Enough

Fellowship Time – Since Jesus Came into My Heart

Choir Anthem – Enough

Covers Me for Life
Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone)

Bro. Lyndel – Your Grace Still Amazes Me
Wish I could get Phillips, Craig and Dean here (the ones on this video), but instead you'll have to hear me sing it Sunday.

Message – Dr. Larry D. Robertson – The Grace of Salvation

Invitation – Marvelous Grace

Offertory – Gena Tate

Closing – Bro. Lyndel Littleton

Where the Devil Is

Hahaha. You know the old saying - "The Devil is in the details." Well, if you have ever looked at my quotes on facebook you'll see that one of my favorite quotes is "The Devil's not in the details, he's in the sound system." I may have heard that from someone else, but I don't remember that, so I've attributed the quote to myself.

I guess we have a short in one of the channels or perhaps it is going out.

Oh, for my readers around the world, here's what happened yesterday. I had perhaps the biggest choir of the summer up in the loft for our first service (8:30!) and we were singing with a track yesterday. We don't sing with a track every week, but yesterday's song had a great track.

So it was time for the choir number and I was waiting - patiently - wondering why they hadn't started the track thinking - "Oh! this is taking too long. start the track, start the track, start the track!" when all of the sudden loud voices started singing!

The track is a split track CD with instruments on the left and voices on the right.

"Oh no! I know I remember telling the sound guy to turn off the right and just play the left!" I thought to myself.

Well... I won't bore you with all of the details if you weren't there, but long story short - we didn't get it to work first service. After a few failed attempts we just went on with the service. The service was still nice, I just was very disappointed that the big choir didn't get to sing by themselves.

As you've read before from me, God Loves Choirs!

http://hilldaleworship.blogspot.com/2007/08/god-loves-choirs.html

http://hilldaleworship.blogspot.com/2008/04/god-loves-choirs-part-2.html if you only read one, read this one

http://hilldaleworship.blogspot.com/2008/04/god-loves-choirs.html

Sorry, I've distracted myself. Going back to the original point. We think there is a short in one of the buttons or in the channel because between services we just touched one of the knobs on that channel and we could hear the track. We'll test it this week and see if we need to move the CD input to a different channel.

Life is sometimes like a mixing board. It looks like you have everything set just right and all the right buttons pushed or not pushed (depending on what you need to have happen) and yet still things go wrong. The first thing we want to do is assign blame and then we want to know "WHY?"

I don't think either of those is the correct response. Rather than trying to find someone to blame or asking God "why did you let this bad thing happen?" our response should be to find out how God can use this for our good or for His glory. It's not really about you, you know. It's about Him.

Here are some questions you may wish I hadn't asked, but you should try to answer them honestly the next time the devil shows up in your sound system, or car, or workplace or school or ______.

Does your reaction point people to Jesus or does it make people want to avoid you the next time something bad happens in your life.

Do you continue on in faith knowing God is greater than your circumstances or do you look for a rock to sit on where you can have a little pity party?

Would friends and family who don't know the Lord have any reason to want a relationship with God if your reaction was the only witness they had of a person walking by faith?

Have a great week.

Keep your eyes open for the "roaring lion" and walk by faith and not by sight.