Jump: Part 1

I've been on a very interesting journey since my 7th grade year, an adventure that has taught me so much about music, God, and the Church (big C = all Christians as a whole body)...a journey called worship leading. Full-time, part-time, volunteer - I've run the gamut, and I've still got a lot of blocks to go around. One of the coolest worship leading experiences I've had in my career is Jump Camp, a middle school Christian camp I've led worship at for the last three years. That's where I've been this past week, and every year, that's where I wish I could stay just a bit longer.

Camp is a little piece of heaven - leading worship with my great friends and pro musicians/worship leaders Joy, Tylar, Mike, and Kevin (Kaio is at Hillsong's school in Australia this year, but he was our awesome drummer the first two years!). The camp, like most every Christian camp, is full of activities, games, sessions, and spiritual growth. Every year, we lead these teens/pre-teens in worship before each session, and to put it mildly, it's pretty wild :)  We sing in worship at the top of our lungs, bounce around like jumping beans, dance in the occasional conga line - the most fun you could ever have in corporate worship. It really made me daydream about how corporate worship usually goes in most church gatherings in America - let me give you a hint: it's not nearly as fun or lively. And that's sad, isn't it? 

My wife and I absolutely love being part of a church that embraces spirited worship and teaching, but most Christians can't say the same. So here we go, right? The old merry-go-round debate over contemporary vs. traditional. Well, I'm not exactly trying to get into all that touchy business, so don't get all defensive, mmmk? I love hymns, and I love modern worship songs - to me, the difference is in the energy. Of course God is present in the silent moments and the quiet worship - just as present, actually - but what is worship if it doesn't have some kind of energy behind it? And when I say energy, I don't just mean the conga line :)  I mean the spirit behind the worship. The fervency. The burning heart. The uncontrollable itch on the inside to express your passion for God on the outside. That's it, and most people just don't do anything about that itch. "Oh, that's improper. This God-stuff is supposed to be solemn, not slap-happy. Plus hey, I don't wanna look like an idiot in front of all my friends, all these strangers...nah, God knows my heart, I'll just stand here with my hands folded so as not to raise any eye-brows and distract from worship." 

Wow, I can't tell you how many people are thinking this on any given Sunday morning. And wow is it frustrating the heart of God, not to mention worship leaders like myself. Sometimes I feel like I'm trying to lead zombies in worship. Dead, rotting, moaning, drooling, limping zombies...maybe not physically, but definitely spiritually. What is holding us back? If you are afraid of what others think, God doesn't want your worship anyway. In Matthew 10:32-33, Jesus says "Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven." Jesus is being brutally honest here: if you're embarrassed about Jesus, about worshipping Him, about being associated with Him in any way, He's gonna give you exactly what you are advertising on your personal billboard: absolutely zero ounces of Him or His presence. If you're too proud to put some sauce behind your worship, what makes you think you'd even want to be in Heaven? Heaven is an eternally glorious place of ongoing praise, where all of creation worships Christ as Lord in various ways...if you can't do that and put some energy behind that here on Earth, would you really want to in Heaven? Tough pill to swallow, so chew on it for awhile. 

So at this point, hopefully I'm painting a picture of something stirring your heart. If so, come back in a couple days and I'll tell you how to get out of the blase worship rut. If not, forget about it and go back to your comfy style of zombie worship...but if you haven't responded to that stirring yet, I sure hope you come back.