Got Worship?

For today consider this great blog post :

http://blogs.lifeway.com/blog/worshipproject/2009/03/got-worship.html

Chad Quarles

Outreach Coordinator

WHAT'S THE POINT? Aunthentic Worship

Acts 17:22-28
the Athenians erected an altar to an unkown god. They feared that they had overlooked or neglected some god and that in doing so they would offend him or incur his wrath.
Their motivation was not love but fear.
What is your motivation in worship? Is it to fulfill some religous duty, is it to look spiritual, or is it an act of love?
Jason Whitehurst
Lead Pastor

Dante LaCivita. He was a 5'5" Italian kid from Youngstown Ohio. Only child of a single mom - who like me hadn't had life handed to him on a silver platter.

We met my freshman year of college and spent a lot of time over the next four years hanging, laughing and seeing the world from two completely different view points. I was the straight-laced, eldest child of a very conservative family and Dante was, well, sort of an Italian hippie. Not so much the long hair and peace signs (although he did have a lot of tie dye in his room) but more of a "come what may" attitude about life. I was a worrier and he just knew that things were going to work out. I remember one time in particular talking to him about a missions trip that our school was hosting to Africa and how I really wanted to go but the cost just seemed so huge. A few days later Dante showed up with an envelope full of money that he had collected from some of the other guys on a floor - over $700. I was stunned.

But in this story and in so many others throughout our lives it's rarely what we feel equipped to do that God calls us to. Dante didn't have money to speak of but he was driven to give what he could and I won't ever be able to thank him enough for what his actions meant to me.

Just like Dante, we as Christ followers may not feel like we're able to contribute much to other's lives. What does smiling, giving $20 or even praying mean in the scheme of life or eternity? And you're right - that $20 probably doesn't mean anything in the light of eternity - but your actions, your love, your care for another person's life does more than they could ever express.

As we focus on outreach remember it's not what we're equipped to do that makes the difference - it's allowing God to use what little we have to reach out beyond ourselves and our inabilities and maybe, just maybe become someone else's Italian hippie.

Justin Fratt
Adult Ministries Director

Open Your Heart

As I sit and think about Authentic Outreach I think of my little girl, Madelynn.  She is my precious 6 year old and she has special needs.  I have always thought of her as my mission field.  As a stay at home mom my mission field is pretty much my back yard!  But I am so blessed when others decide to  reach out to Madelynn by taking the time to say "Hi",  talk with her, and even play with her.  She may not respond to these people or even play with them, but I know that God smiles upon such people.  Think of Jesus's words in Matthew 25:40, "When you have done something unto the least of these you have done it unto God."  I believe that verse speaks volumes about outreach.  Outreach can look like so many things.  Outreach occurs when we sit with children and teach them about God,  or when I step out of my comfort zone to help others.  Outreach happens when I purposely smile at someone or even let someone get in front of me in a grocery store check out line. What this verse tells us is that Outreach happens when we value others more than we value ourselves, our time and our energy.  I encourage you to open your heart and let Christ work through you!!  I don't want to miss a moment to teach my children about Christ.  God doesn't want us to miss a moment to reach out and help those around us in need.  Open your heart today to help that person sitting or walking next to you at work, the grocery store or even in your home.  Do something for the "least of these" in your life!

Staci Quarles

Outreach Coordinator

WORLD CHANGER

In Matthew 28:19, Jesus commands us to "reach out" to all the world and make disciples. At times that seems a little overwhelming because after all the world is a pretty big place.
I have learned that though I might not be able to reach out and change the entire world by my self, when I am kind to one person, show compassion to someone in need I have made a difference in their world and that is pretty cool.
Who's world have you changed today?
Tyra Whitehurst
Media Director

authentic outreach

I love that our church has made "Authentic Outreach" one of it's four primary focuses. It is amazing what it can do for you when you are able to look outside yourself and focus on the needs of others. It really makes for a healthy christian. We were never intended to take, take, take all the time and never give. As we all know, we can't eat, eat, eat and never exercise. It makes us unhealthy individuals. Yes, we may function normally, but are we functioning to our fullest capability. Apply this to the church and to yourself. We can't be so "fat" on the gospel because we are not exercising our faith, therefore completely ineffective. In order to be a church that is functioning to it's fullest potential, we must be reaching out to those around us and making a difference. An authentic difference.

Michelle Swift

Worship Leader

Lessons from Lil' K

Today on my way to work, I was thinking about the blog and racking my brain for ideas on what to write. I was feeling nervous about today's topic for two reasons: first, it is on outreach - which is something I don't feel I am very good at. Second, because I didn't get to hear Pastor's sermon about it yesterday. Instead, I was in Lil' K attempting to teach sixteen 3-5 year olds about prayer. So I started thinking about what lessons I've taught preschoolers about outreach over the past few years. Here are some of the highlights:

- Jesus is happy when I'm nice to others
- I can tell others Jesus loves them
- Jesus is happy when I am a good friend
- Jesus is happy when I share
- I can bring my friends to church

So there you have it - outreach oversimplified so a three-year-old can understand.

But what if that isn't oversimplified? What if it's us adults who have made outreach overcomplicated? What would it look like if I really lived out those five points in my life outside of church?

Am I really nice to others? Not polite, but nice. What if I really cared about people and the things going on in their lives? What if the people I supervised at work weren't just interruptions to things I wanted to accomplish that day? What if a positive encounter with them was the thing I wanted to accomplish today?

What if I really shared my resources cheerfully? How would it effect others if I gladly shared my time to assist them in their work or my money to assist others who need it more than I do?

What would it look like if I was a good friend? How many of my relationships don't revolve around my needs, my expectations, what's convenient for me? What if I viewed my friendships as ways that I could bless, support, and encourage that other person? What if I was willing to sacrifice what I want for the sake of having a better relationship?

When was the last time I shared Jesus' love with someone? When was the last time I invited someone to church???

What would it look like if we would take the earbuds out of our ears, put down our Iphones, close down Farmville, and start living out these points by showing love to those around us. As we say in Lil' K "Jesus is happy when we share his love with others."

Hannah Fratt
Children's Ministries Director

WHAT'S THE POINT? Authentic Outreach

Have you ever had God say "NO" to you when you were wanting to do something that seemed like a good idea? That is precisely the experience Paul and his companions had when wanting to take the gospel into Asia.

Acts 16

6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia.7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus; would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." 10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

It is obvious that Paul was passionate about getting the Gospel to Asia. He had rounded up the missions team to help him accomplish the task and at the boarder of their destination God said NO. What would have happened if they would have went when God said NO? They might have seen no fruit, they might have been martyered, or they might have seen such a great revival that they decided to hang out a while and keep them from establishing churches and preaching the gospel in other countries.

We will never know the answer to that question but what we do know is that Paul saw an incredible work done in Macedonia and he could sleep at night knowing that he obeyed the voice of God and the cry of the Macedonians to "come help us"!

What kind of outreach do you feel most passionate about?

Have you ever had God say “NO” to you about something you wanted to do, that you might focus your attention on something that He wanted you to do?

How did it initially make you feel? If you obeyed what perspective did you find on the other side of obedience?

I would love to hear your thoughts!

Jason Whitehurst
Lead Pastor

Discipleship... The chosen must choose

Greetings from Europe! As you read this I'm some where in Europe and I trust that this blog finds you all doing well across the pond.

What a great message pastor preached on Sunday. Throughout the week I've been thinking about what true and authentic discipleship looks like and how we live that out. I thought it was such a beautiful image of Jesus choosing the disciples saying "Follow Me". He was saying this to the men that weren't good enough. He was saying this to the men that were the rejects of the discipleship program. And while he chose them, he was only meeting them half way. The other part was up to them. They had to CHOOSE to follow. I've always felt that God being the perfect Father never offers a free ride to anyone. He will however always initiate and always meet you half way. This is exactly what he did for the disciples, he met them half way. The rest was up to them. This is how he Fathers us as well. Almost on a weekly basis I tell the youth of MCAG that everything in life and everything in our Christian walk involves a choice. We either choose to serve others or we choose not to. We either choose to love one another or we choose not to. We either choose to follow Christ or we choose not to. It all involves a choice.

We at MCAG are doing our best to offer the opportunity to follow Christ and to offer the chance to be discipled. However, like Jesus, we can only meet you half way. The rest is up to you. As the staff of MCAG it's our hope that you'll make the same choice that the disciples made so long ago, to be discipled and to make new disciples of others.

Craig Swift

Youth Pastor

My Life As a Bloated Sponge

Disclaimer: I am totally ripping off an idea from my beautiful wife -- whom I love. She wanted to use a picture of Sponge Bob in her blog earlier this week but I told her to use one of her and Kayla instead. I would highly recommend that you read her Blog before this one as they are related.

I must confess -- I am a Bloated Sponge when it comes to Authentic Discipleship. Recall the three attributes of a Disciple that Pastor spoke about on Sunday: Desire to Learn, Desire to Practice and Desire to Share. If you know me for any length of time you know that I "excel" in one of these areas --- unfortunately it comes at the expense of the other two!

I think my life is the perfect definition of Consumer Christianity -- which isn't a badge that I am proud to wear. I devour podcast sermons and new Christian books regularly. I simply can't wait to hear what Rob Bell, Rick McKinley and Jeff Manion are going to say each week. It was (and sometimes still is) nothing for me to listen to 8 - 10 sermons a week as I drive to work and back. Can someone say addictive personality? I know God gave me the desire to learn but I definitely struggle letting knowledge consume me!

Here is a perfect example that I often use in Sunday School. Everyday I have to sit on a shuttle bus that takes me from the parking lot to the University. Many times the sermon that I started when in the car isn't completed, so there are many days when I sit on the bus and continue to listen...... I sit on a bus ... next to a living breathing human created in the image of God and totally ignore them for the 10 to 15 minute ride to the University. All the while I am listening to sermons on how Christianity is relational and how I should be loving everyone around me.....

Hopefully the Bloated Sponge analogy is starting to make sense....

For many months this went on daily. I had the opportunity to practice and share the Way of Christ with people who I would likely never see again but chose to consume the Ways of Christ. Fortunately, I finally came to my senses and now my goal is to "add value" to any person I sit next to on the bus whether that be through a smile, a discussion about their kids, or just listening to what they need to say.

So how do we go from bloated consumer minded Christians to ones who will share Christ's love and knowledge with those around us?

I think one of the best ways to do this is to actively participate in a Life Group!

How do you get a bloated sponge to pour out its contents --- pressure. It has to be squeezed! You can come to church every Sunday and absorb years of knowledge but only real people in real relationships can challenge you to put in practice all that knowledge! We all need someone to ask us, face to face, how we are living out the Ways of Christ! Such "pressure" is only meaningful if it comes from someone we love and trust.

If you are not currently part of a Life Group within MCAG please come to the Connection Point at the end of the month so you can start your journey towards meaningful relationships that will help you take the next step in your Christian faith!

Chad Quarles, Ph.D. in Spongeology

Outreach Coordinator

Discipleship in a Nutshell

I had already completed my entry today (and believe me it was good ;) ) when I came across another blog that I think addresses more simply the core of discipleship.

Check it out here: http://withoutwax.tv/2009/08/17/measuring-spiritual-formation/

Justin Fratt
Adult Ministries Coordinator

Be a Sponge for Christ

A thought comes to mind when I think of Authentic Discipleship, my little girl Kayla who is such a sponge right now.  She repeats everything you say and do.   I think that is what a disciple of Christ should look like; one who totally mimics His ways (the way He walked and talked).  I love seeing her grow as she learns one word, then two words and even a sentence here and there.  As disciples of Christ we should grow and mature in much the same way.  I loved the three things that Pastor said about a disciple:  they will desire to learn, practice and share.  I believe that Life Groups are a great place to learn about and start practicing the ways of Christ.  Like that sponge, we can absorb the knowledge, and practice, of Christ to a point where we will be so saturated with His ways that we can't help but pour out His love into the lives of others.  Consider the purpose of a sponge -- to absorb and be poured out! This isn't a one time event. It happens continually over the course of our lives, over and over and over!  So I challenge you to be like Kayla, be that sponge, and soak up the knowledge of Christ and then let it pour into the lives of others.

Staci Quarles

Outreach Coordinator

Holding On to His Hand through Discipleship

The other day I was walking along with Mia, my two year old, and let go of my hand. Within a few seconds she tripped and fell down. I automatically reached down and picked her up…but only after a few more steps, she released my hand to only stumble again.

So…I took her by the hand tightly and told her to hold onto Mommy's hand…and the next time she tripped she did not fall. I told her, “As long as you are holding mommy’s hand I won’t let you fall down.”

And God hit me with this thought, “I’ve been waiting on you to learn that lesson for a long time!”

As I look back at the times in my life at the most painful mistakes that I have made I will have to admit that it was during the times I had wrestled my hand free…you know, doing it “my way.”

I am so thankful for a gracious God who pursued me during those times and didn’t allow me to be content in being apart from Him. He wanted to hold onto my hand.

Each day I am learning more and more about walking as a disciple with God. Becoming a disciple of Christ isn’t about trying to “connect with God,” but rather being submissive to the idea that He wants to connect with us. He desires to hold onto out hand so we don't trip up and fall flat on our faces.

I do believe there are times He allows us to fall on our faces so that we can see our need for Him. Throughout our life He uses these experiences to disciple and shape us into the people He wants.

Just because we are walking consistently with Him everything in life will not always go well. In fact, it might totally stink. But, Psalms 23 reminds us that when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death…not “if.” We will have bad days, but we know God will carry us through.

I believe with all of my heart that the key to living an abundant life, one that is not full of regrets, is reaching out and taking the hand that He extended to us over 2,000 years ago through His Son Jesus Christ and becoming his disciple.

So, how about it? Are you allowing Him to disciple you through life or trying to wrestle away so that you can do it your way?

As long as we hold His hand…we will not fall!!!

Tyra Whitehurst

Media Director

THE POINT- Authentic Discipleship

I made a decision to follow Jesus when I was 15 years old. The person who led me to a knowledge of how to make that decision was a man by the name of Rod Piper. For the next year, Rod took me under his wing and taught me how to be a Christ Follower. I remember him telling me that a disciple of Christ is someone who desires to learn the teachings of Jesus, practice the teachings of Jesus, and share the teachings of Jesus. If we are not careful it is easy to become one dimensional in our faith. We learn the teachings of Jesus but we never practice them or share them. Where ever you find yourself on this journey of discipleship, consider a few questions that will help you to grow into a more authentic follower of Christ.

1. When you honestly assess your relationship with God, do you consider yourself to be

closer to God right now than you were this time last year?

2. Are you closely connected with a community of believers outside of a church service (such as

a Life Group) that encourages you in your journey as a Christ Follower?

3. When is the last time you have given of yourself sacrificially?

4. When is the last time you believed God for something extraordinary?

5. When people observe your life, do they conclude that you "have been with Jesus"?(Acts 4:13)

CHALLENGE: If you are not in a Life Group be sure and come out to Connection Point on Sunday Aug. 30 following the morning service.

Continue in your reading of the book of Acts. Today we should be reading Acts 8 and if you continue reading a chapter a day you will be through the entire book on Aug. 30 when we conclude The Point.

Jason Whitehurst

Lead Pastor

212 degrees

So I've been thinking a lot about the illustration Pastor used about 212 degrees. I thought, "How do I apply that concept to my own life?" If you are looking at a pot of water that hasn't boiled yet, it might be hard to tell how hot the water is unless you touch it. You, at the very least, would have to get real close to find out just how hot the water is. On the other hand, you don't have to be close at all to a boiling pot of water to know that it's boiling. You would be able to see the steam coming off of it from across the room, maybe even further.

The same could be said about our walk with the Lord. You may be a committed Christian, but unless someone is directly involved in your life, they wouldn't know it. But a contagiousChristian is able to spotted from far off. It's obvious there is something different about them. Not because they walk around with a holier than thou attitude, but because they genuinelylove and care about those around them. The steam, if you will, of Christ is getting all over everybody that comes near. What if our community of believers represented Christ in this way.

Anyone who knew was even remotely associated with Music City Assembly of God, knew that we were a group of authentic believers that were contagious with the love of Christ.

So Holy Spirit, today and everyday, would you place in me that one extra degree of heat that will take me from being a committed Christian to a contagious Christian. Someone that brings glory to your great name.

Michelle Swift

Worship Leader

The Cost of Community

Last weekend, Justin and I attended a wedding of one of our friends. During the ceremony, the pastor gave a mini-sermon about marriage - that it will be life's greatest blessing, but also life's biggest challenge; it will bring you the most joy, but also the most pain. Having been married for almost five years, Justin and I just smiled at each other. It's no secret to anyone whose been married for any length of time (and to most people who haven't been married), that the marriage relationship takes a lot of work and a lot of sacrifice. You have to learn to put aside your own wants, ways of doing things, and time schedules. It's inconvenient and painful, but totally worth it.

But this isn't just true of marriage - it's true of all deep, meaningful relationships. To experience true community, it requires sacrificing some of our independence and convenience. It requires flexibility, interdependence, and commitment. Just like in marriage, we have to be willing to invest the time and energy into fostering the relationships to build connection. We have to be willing to work through conflict and commit to growing together when our differences cause tension. We must be vulnerable about our struggles and challenges to be able to really spur one another to growth.

We're embarking on a new phase in our church as we relaunch life groups this September. But just joining a life group does not guarantee community any more than saying your vows at a wedding ceremony guarantees a successful marriage. It's the first (and very important) step in a process to build lasting, meaningful relationships. I hope you'll join us in this process!

Hannah Fratt
Children's Ministry Director

Community

Acts 2:46-47

⁴⁶Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, ⁴⁷praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

I'm struck with the profound simplicity of this verse that pastor used on Sunday. This is how the early church created community. They lived life together. That's it. They went to church together and they ate food together and somehow their message of Jesus spread and became an unstoppable movement that has lasted some 2,000 years. Movements are built on community. The Civil Rights movement would not have happened without a community of people that decided to stand up and say racism is wrong. Our country would still be under English rule if a community of people had not stood up for our independence. Movements are built on community and community is built on relationships. This is our simple goal at MCAG to build relationships that birth a community that starts a movement that changes our world.

Craig Swift

Music Pastor/Youth Pastor

Family Reunions.

I come from a long line of short, food-lovin, uno-playing, hug-your-neck Italians and every couple of years or so we would all invade a park shelter near Detroit, Michigan in celebration of all we had in common, which oddly enough most often seemed to be our last name. Sure, we had t-shirts saying we were all related, and the stories of similar people made us all chuckle and jeer like it was only yesterday but really it wasn't our similar facial features, or blood types that made us a family.

We decided we were family.

For many it wasn't a conscious decision to have family - it came with the territory - but to engage and create relationships (even with people of the same last name) takes commitment and some sacrifice of "I" desires.

One of the things that amazes me about the church community in Acts was not how much they had in common (they didn't, many were foreigners) but how they recognized a cause bigger than themselves and therefore chose to lay aside the "I wants" and "I needs" that are so easily crop up among individuals and pursue the bigger picture that can truly only be accomplished by a united group.

I think we've seen the cause and we believe in it's power. Now, do we believe in it enough to look past the odd traits of another or disengage with someone because they're "just very different?" It starts with a choice to make it work. Do you want to be part of a family through not-so-funny jokes and cheek pinching through thick and thin?

The t-shirt has been made with your name on it and the party has been set - now all you have to do is make the choice. I hope you'll join in the "family reunion" at Music City.

Justin Fratt

Adult Ministries Coordinator

Remembering Christ in Authentic Community

Pastor did an amazing job yesterday contrasting a church full of disconnected tourists to one where people are intentional about living the Jesus Way through Community.

I would like to make a few comments about one of the verses Pastor read yesterday, specifically Acts 2:46, which says, "They worshipped together at the Temple each day, broke bread in their homes, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity."

Pastor discussed how life groups are going to be one of the primary opportunities people have to experience continual discipleship (or learning about and growing in the Jesus Way) within MCAG. So how does this happen? I think this one verse tells us a lot about how discipleship can occur in the context of home-based small groups within a church.

Consider the phrase , " (they) broke bread in their homes".

As you might expect this phrase is not just referring to the act of eating meals together, which we all know is a very holy and sacred tradition within the church (especially when it involves a group of friends around my wife's Taco Ring).

Luke, the author of Acts, is very intentional to point us to a discipline that Christ instructed the disciples to follow. The church traditionally calls this communion. Prior to the crucifixion, Jesus and the disciples shared a meal together. The book of Luke records the story of this meal in this way, "And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me. In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, " This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you."

Simply put the act of communion reminds us about the salvation Jesus provided through his crucifixion.

So every time an early-church "life group" met, one of their priorities was to remember and reflect upon the crucifixion of Christ and what it meant.

Also, remember that there were thousands of foreigners in Jerusalem that made up this early church. They had no where to stay except in the homes of other believers. For them the act of communion looked a lot different than what we typically experience today because it happened in their homes and it happened daily. With every meal, a group of believers would intentionally recall the death of Jesus and would likely discuss how this had and would change their lives forever.

Consider these questions:

1) How would your life be transformed if you found a group of believers where you regularly discussed the life, the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus?

2) What if this group moved beyond simple social politeness and common interests into honest and engaging relationships?

3) What if this group rejoiced in your triumphs and shared in your struggles as you seek to follow Christ?

4) What if this group of believers did not rush through a meal just to finish it and be done but used it as an opportunity to invest time in one another and deliberately discuss the Way of Jesus?

Welcome to MCAG Life Groups.

Get Connected!

Chad Quarles

MCAG Outreach Coordinator

WHAT'S THE POINT? Authentic Community

Thank you for checking out the Music City Staff Blog. We hope this will be a resource that will challenge you, encourage you, and help you to dig deeper into the messages that you hear at Music City.

Today we began a strategic message series entitle WHAT'S THE POINT? This week the blogs posted will focus on the subject of community. Here are a few questions that will hopefully challenge you and take you deeper in your own study on the subject of THE POINT of Authentic Community!

Read Acts 2:42-47

1. What two habits did the early church devote themselves to?
2. What activities marked these habits?

3. What were the results of these habits?

4. What do you need to do to go from tourist to one who is engaged in community?

CHALLENGE: Begin today with Acts 1 and read one chapter a day through the course of THE POINT. As you read it make note of the Authentic Community that marked the early church.