Worship God Live, or looking a gift horse in the mouth
Sovereign Grace Ministries offered a free cd of "Worship God Live" to people who would then post a review on their blog. This is that review. I liked the CD.
Worship God Live
There's an explanation of the title on the CD insert:
"What is worship? Certainly it's ... the things that take place in churches every week all across the globe. But it's so much more.
Worship is a life lived in grateful response to God, who sent his Son to save us from our sins.
So take it outside the church doors. Everywhere you go (into all the world). In everything you do (all to the glory of God).
For a world that needs Him. For the joy of living for Him. For the glory of the Savior. Worship God. Live."
The CD opens with a strong beat (turn the volume down when you load the CD in - you can always turn it up again later!) and the 14 songs begin. They were recorded live.
The songs have a strong doctrinal content - e.g. You are the way is my favourite song. It is largely based on Ephesians 2 and deals with depravity and God's irresistible call. Count it all joy acknowledges that trouble is part of the Christian life and of our sanctification.
The CD includes songs by the Altrogges, and by Steve and Vikki Cook as well as by other writers less familiar to me. Some old hymns are reclothed, too.
Here is no simplistic, prosperity, feel-good stuff. The atonement is a ransom, the payment of a debt, a substitution, satisfying the demands of justice and wrath.
With words like these you can worship God with your understanding - in Spirit and in Truth!
Also Sovereign Grace Ministries make songsheets available for free download - you can get words, melody and guitar chords in pdf format on their website: http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/
But for me the most surprising and disappointing - even shocking - moments are at the end of track 8 and 14 - moments where the tune is lost, the words forgotten, but the band plays on as enthusiastically as ever - chords, arpeggios, cymbals crashing - while everyone sings whatever. After such powerful lyrics with such strong content and meaning it is a real sudden descent into chaos and meaninglessness. A nosedive.
But what a metaphor for "post-christian" Europe, where we have forgotten the words of life, and lost the tune that gave unity and a sense of direction - yet everyone sings at the top of their voice just the same - senselessly, meaninglessly, hopelessly.
Thank God, pray God and please God that through the preaching of his word meaning, sense and hope return!
Worship God Live
There's an explanation of the title on the CD insert:
"What is worship? Certainly it's ... the things that take place in churches every week all across the globe. But it's so much more.
Worship is a life lived in grateful response to God, who sent his Son to save us from our sins.
So take it outside the church doors. Everywhere you go (into all the world). In everything you do (all to the glory of God).
For a world that needs Him. For the joy of living for Him. For the glory of the Savior. Worship God. Live."
The CD opens with a strong beat (turn the volume down when you load the CD in - you can always turn it up again later!) and the 14 songs begin. They were recorded live.
The songs have a strong doctrinal content - e.g. You are the way is my favourite song. It is largely based on Ephesians 2 and deals with depravity and God's irresistible call. Count it all joy acknowledges that trouble is part of the Christian life and of our sanctification.
The CD includes songs by the Altrogges, and by Steve and Vikki Cook as well as by other writers less familiar to me. Some old hymns are reclothed, too.
Here is no simplistic, prosperity, feel-good stuff. The atonement is a ransom, the payment of a debt, a substitution, satisfying the demands of justice and wrath.
With words like these you can worship God with your understanding - in Spirit and in Truth!
Also Sovereign Grace Ministries make songsheets available for free download - you can get words, melody and guitar chords in pdf format on their website: http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/
But for me the most surprising and disappointing - even shocking - moments are at the end of track 8 and 14 - moments where the tune is lost, the words forgotten, but the band plays on as enthusiastically as ever - chords, arpeggios, cymbals crashing - while everyone sings whatever. After such powerful lyrics with such strong content and meaning it is a real sudden descent into chaos and meaninglessness. A nosedive.
But what a metaphor for "post-christian" Europe, where we have forgotten the words of life, and lost the tune that gave unity and a sense of direction - yet everyone sings at the top of their voice just the same - senselessly, meaninglessly, hopelessly.
Thank God, pray God and please God that through the preaching of his word meaning, sense and hope return!
Comments
Thanks for taking the time to review the Worship God Live CD. I appreciated your comments, and your noticing the intentionality of the lyrics. We truly do want to write music that helps people see more clearly the glory of what God has done for us in Christ.
I wanted to respond to your comments about the moments of "chaos and meaninglessness" that you found shocking and disappointing. I imagine that you aren't used to spontaneous expressions of praise in a corporate worship setting. However, if you listen again, I don't think you can miss that the enthusiasm is directed towards what we have been singing about, and our hearts are simply spilling over into more praise of our great God. No, the words haven't been forgotten, and people aren't singing "whatever." It is an expression of hearts that are overwhelmed by the mercy, greatness, and goodness of their Savior.
I don't know if you'll agree with that explanation or not, but wanted to at least give you another perspective. Like you, I don't think God is glorified in emotional, purposeless chaos.
Thanks again for taking the time to listen to and review the CD. Very kind of you!
Bob Kauflin