Week 3 Reflections

“For: The Institute Of Contemporary And Emerging Worship Studies, St Stephen’s University, Essentials Blue Online Worship Theology Course with Dan Wilt”

NT Wright in Simply Christian states: “Old forms and traditions of worship and prayer can indeed be a way of fueling genuine prayer, of enabling people to come with humility into the presence of God and to discover that, bit by bit, prayers that have served other generations well can become their own heartfelt outpourings, too.” [1]

I have been struck this week at the wealth of great material that many of us in more contemporary worship setting simply disregard. It is almost like we have adopted this posture of “only that which is spontaneous is genuine and has the unction of the Holy Spirit.” Of course we don’t really mean that, and I am not suggesting these comments to be a literal criticism of any worship style or order …  but maybe

My sojourn from Church of Ireland (Anglican) to Vineyard is quite the theological and stylistic leap, but its not until this last week that I have begun to appreciate again the value of ‘crafted prayer’, of liturgy and of tapping some ancient wells. We read great poets, because … they write great poetry, we appreciate the beauty and complexity of each piece … some of us even analyze the structure, study the form etc. And why, because its good stuff, it has meat and paradox to discover.

I have often wondered how many of our songs will stand the test of time … !!!

I have also thought of how we really need to be more intentional in simply reading the scriptures as part of our devotion of worship. No, preach or interpretation or other utterance … let’s just let the scriptures ‘land’ on each other; giving room for a few moments personal reflection on what has been read.

The other big confrontation this week was in my processing Wrights words: “You become what you worship.”[2]

Oh that stung! Thinking of how I spend my time, energy and money and realizing that for the most part I ‘worship’ my fifty inch plasma HDTV.  Tuesday nights are a blur of action with ‘NCIS’, ‘The Mentalist’,'Fringe’, ‘Law & Order’ and sometimes ‘Without a Trace’ …. man, after that lot I am exhausted ! !

But really all I have done is consumed some “chewing gum for the mind.” …..

[1] Simply Christian, NT Wright, (Harper Collins) 2006, p 167.

[2] Ibid p 148.

What does it mean to be human?

“For: The Institute Of Contemporary And Emerging Worship Studies, St Stephen’s University, Essentials Blue Online Worship Theology Course with Dan Wilt”

Two great quotes come to mind; the first is from David Wilkinson, a theologian from London, England who in an article for the BBC said:

“Within the Christian tradition, some have suggested that the key to being human is our ability of rational thinking, freewill, our moral sense or our capacity to face our own death. The fact that God may have created many other species in the universe does not diminish the relationship he has given to human beings However, the overwhelming view which can be found in the early chapters of Genesis is that human beings are defined in terms of relationship, and in particular their relationship to God. Being made in the image of God is about being given the gift of intimate relationship with God, and a certain kind of responsibility in the natural world. “

The next from geneticist Francis S. Collins who in an article for “Wired Science” said (Italics mine):
“What does the genome tell us? There’s surprisingly little genetic difference between human and chimpanzee. Yet clearly we’re different. There’s brain size and language. A language-related gene, FoxP2, evolved most rapidly in the last few million years. How did we develop empathy? Appreciate our mortality? And we should admit that there are areas that might not submit to material analysis: beauty, inspiration. We shouldn’t dismiss these as epiphenomenal froth.”

From the theologian to the scientist we are clearly not just the sum of our parts, we are mysterious creatures tied up very closely with the mystery of the Creator.

What does it mean to be a creative being? Quite simply it is nothing short of following in both the footsteps and design of the Creator. It’s about us living in light, in color and in shade in every area of our lives no matter what we create with the “works of our hands.” I walked past a colleague’s desk the other day (he is a computer programmer); above his desk was a sign, which said, “Code is Poetry.” I have to confess I never thought of code in that way at all. I think that might be a lesson to us ‘normal’ creative types. We need to be way more inclusive in our understanding of humans as creative beings!

To be creative…is to be able to be inspired and see in your mind, something that does not exist. It is not just forming a vision; it is also acting upon the vision with determination, faith, energy and passion to bring forth that which does not exist into something that does.

The love and passion I have cannot be expressed any better than by NT Wright in his comment on celebrating God through scripture. “Because Christian worship is the celebratory praise and adoration of God the creator, one of its key tasks is to tell, in a thousand different ways the story of creation and new creation.” [1]
If we ever needed a succinct job description as worship leaders, this would be it.

What does it mean to be a relational being? From Genesis to Revelation we see interwoven the covenant of relationship. Yet again, it is truly both Gods design and intention for His people. But is also very hard. The very design of some of our architecture and city planning conspires against us.  Some of our single-family homes (at least within a Canadian context) are and have been built with the highest value being given to the garage. You don’t have to see or interact with any neighbor should that be your choice, where have all the front porches and accessible back yards gone? Isolationism and independence are the biggest enemies of community. Wright again comments on the relational intent of our faith when he says: “From the beginning it was clear that Christianity is something people do together.” [2]

What does it mean to be a just being? This is a difficult one, quite simply because I am pretty fixed in ‘owning what I write’ … I don’t own justice! Perhaps its because I live in a world where justice can and is bought on a regular basis. I also know that in times past I have not been the greatest steward of justice.

Justice is costly and far from utopia. I think the best I can do honestly is to resonate with the words of Albert Einstein:
“My passionate sense of social justice and social responsibility has always contrasted oddly with my pronounced lack of need for direct contact with other human beings and human communities.”

What does it mean to be a spiritual being?  Wright poses that: “Many people in the world today hear the very word “spirituality like travelers in the desert hearing of an oasis.” [3]

For the Christian “…the sound of fresh bubbling water is hard to ignore.” [4]; the noise of the world is beginning to be silenced in the need and deep desire for a more simple, centered way.  Being spiritual is intentionality walking in the thin place, being aware that God and us are ready for a conversation, a revelation or just simply ‘being’ at any given time. Being spiritual is also about action, discipline and allegiance.  Being spiritual is also mysterious. John Chapter 14 shows the mystery of how Jesus is ‘in the Father’ and “the Father’ is “in Him.” We who have faith are also included.

[1] Wright, NT. Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense. New York: HarperCollins, 2006 p149
[2] Ibid p 157
[3] Ibid p 17
[4] Ibid p21

Daring to Dream Again?

Tony Campolo was a guest speaker at a couple of our Chapel Services at Trinity Western University as a pre cursor to “Missions Week.” As usual Tony is charged up with a message of action towards the Kingdom of God. Go to the lost, go to the poor, help the afflicted in all circumstances of life.  A terrific message for young university students to hear! But that is not what really struck me about his visit. First of all he called us to leave a ‘testimony’ that goes beyond titles and positions we might gain in society. Lives exclusively lived for the Kingdom of God.
Secondly he called us all to dream again …. quite honestly that was painful to hear! I guess life has the tendency to wear you down and disappointment compounds disappointment until you become as the great Pink Floyd song suggests … “Comfortably Numb.”

As he started quoting the sections from “The Impossible Dream” song from “Man of La Mancha I found myself almost breaking down (I know … what a wuss!!). Those lyrics reached down inside me and stirred up lost memories, hopes and dreams. Its worth giving you the full lyrics of the song. I hope they impact you and encourage you as much as they have encouraged me.

“The Impossible Dream” – from MAN OF LA MANCHA (1972) ~ music by Mitch Leigh and lyrics by Joe Darion

To dream the impossible dream
To fight the unbeatable foe
To bear with unbearable sorrow
To run where the brave dare not go

To right the unrightable wrong
To love pure and chaste from afar
To try when your arms are too weary
To reach the unreachable star

This is my quest
To follow that star
No matter how hopeless
No matter how far

To fight for the right
Without question or pause
To be willing to march into Hell
For a heavenly cause

And I know if I’ll only be true
To this glorious quest
That my heart will lie peaceful and calm
When I’m laid to my rest

And the world will be better for this
That one man, scorned and covered with scars
Still strove with his last ounce of courage
To reach the unreachable star.

The final ‘coup de grace‘  was when he was explaining his response when parents asked him if it was safe to send their children on inner city missions trips. In typical Campolo fashion he replied with gusto “Safe … of course it’s not safe!” My friend Scott Henderson and I just looked at each other, we didn’t have to speak to understand that this was a message for us (and the rest of the audience) to think again.

1. What legacy do we want to leave?
2. Will we dare to dream again?
3. Will it be safe … hell no!!!

The Nature of God (personal reflections)

“For: The Institute Of Contemporary And Emerging Worship Studies, St Stephen’s University, Essentials Blue Online Worship Theology Course with Dan Wilt”

Thinking of this week’s material by Dan Wilt on the Nature of God I am struck by three elements. The first one is the mystery of Trinity. God in Community! The paradox created when God on the one hand speaks to Israel in Deuteronomy 6:4 and says: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Yet that same  ‘one-ness’ transforms into ‘three-ness’ with the coming of Jesus and the promised Holy Spirit.

Instantly we have a contradiction or a conundrum in understanding given the limitations of our human minds.  Dan expands on this paradox in his video presentation within the terms of ‘cognitive dissonance.’ Cognitive dissonance is a psychological phenomenon that refers to the discomfort felt at a discrepancy between what you already know or believe, and new information or interpretation. It therefore occurs when there is a need to accommodate new ideas, and it may be necessary for it to develop so that we become “open” to them.

In grappling with understanding the nature of Trinity I was so grateful to hear the term ‘perichoresis’ Perichoresis is a combination of two words — “choresis” is from “dance” and “peri” is from “around” — it is a picture of the face-to-face endless delight on the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit with each other — one God in three persons.

The description of a ‘circular dance’ given by Dan Wilt really helps me ‘understand’ more deeply the concept of ‘one-ness to ‘three-ness.’ Ancient Celts seem to grasp this concept very early, it is seen in their symbolism of the ‘Trinity knot.’ The Breastplate of St Patrick’ speaks to this in the opening verse:

Atomriug indiu niurt tréun: 
togairm Trindóit
faístin Oendatad,
i nDúlemon dáil.

I bind to myself today
The strong virtue of the Invocation of the Trinity:
I believe the Trinity in the Unity
The Creator of the Universe

I think what I am loving is to again be captured by the ‘mysteries of God’ … learning to live again in the tension of ‘knowing God’, yet not having a clue at the same time … but wanting much more!!

The second thing that grabs me is the whole idea of ‘liminal spaces’ … those ‘thin places’ my ancient Celtic brethren knew so well.  A fellow blogger, Len Hjalmarson writes  an article called “Spaces Between”
“This metaphor of “spaces between” seems to me to be pregnant with the Holy Spirit. It connotes an element of mystery and chaos, and more obviously – a liminal place, a location on the margins. And yet, aren’t most of our lives lived in these places? I am riding partly on intuition here, but I believe that the Holy Spirit is intensely interested in these locations, and our neglect of spaces between imperils the work of the kingdom.”

This imagery of places on earth being ‘pregnant’ with the Holy Spirit draws me closer to the place where I can echo the voice of an ancient Celtic blessing:

Deep peace of the running wave
Deep peace of the flowing air
Deep peace of the quiet earth
Deep peace of the shining stars
Deep peace of the Son of Peace.

The third and final mystery exposed and rekindled this week has been the mystery of “God as Saviour.”  The mystery of atonement, of substitution. of redemption, of propitiation and of triumph … but much more that that was that all these elements were satisfied as …. an expression of the love of God. I cannot really express in words what I am processing as it just seems to come out as either ‘groaning’ or ‘tears’

Til next week …

Simply Christian

Over the next few weeks I will be posting comments on some personal observations on NT Wright’s book Simply Christian. Wrights work attempts to present a case as to “Why Christianity Makes Sense.” Tom Wright is the current Bishop of Durham in England and is widely regarded as one of the premier theological voices of of our time. In  Part One of the book Wright describes what he calls the “The Four Echoes.”  So off we go …

The ‘echo of relationship’ resonates most for me, with spirituality being a close second. Honestly, they all resonate at a significant level for me … what drives me deeper into relationship is a deep belief that the glue of relationships is what not only gives voice to justice but context for spirituality and an appreciation for beauty. We truly are made for each other.

Genesis 3:9 records God calling out to Adam “Where are you”? I often wonder whether this was the first time God had said that? I will take a leap into speculation and say that I don’t believe it would have been the first time. Using the phrase “where are you” can convey much more than an expression to find one that was lost. It can convey wanting to communicate with a loved one, or an excitement at being home or the need to be close with a friend.  For me this is the very nature of God, His desire is that we be with and in Him.

The concept of ‘Trinity’ depicts a commitment on relationship and while the mystery of ‘trinity’ is something we probably never understand it nevertheless drives us to relationship.

Ultimately, Jesus sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection, demonstrate God’s commitment to humanity through relationship.
I love what NT Wright says on the topic. “Relationship was part of the way in which we were meant to be fully human, not for our own sake; but as part of much larger scheme of things. And our failures in human relationship are thereby woven into our failures in the other large projects of which we know in our bones that we are part: our failure to put the world to rights in systems of justice, and our failure to maintain and develop that spirituality which, at its heart involves a relationship of trust and love with the Creator.” (Wright p. 37)

As I look at my song choice for worship settings this past year I would have to say that a lot of them would fall into the ‘echo of relationships.’  This has been a conscious choice (and maybe a selfish one) as I find my relationship with God similar to those of the rest of humanity. I need those relationships; I love those relationships, yet for the most part, those relationships are difficult.  Getting to know God is difficult, I find I have to ask Him “where are you?” a lot more frequently than I once did.

Outside of Brian Doerksen song “Creation Calls” I don’t believe I have ever used a song that deals with creation or the beauty of the earth.  Songs of justice are few and far between. What does concern me about songs on justice is that I am always betrayed by my own humanity. What I mean by that is I am painfully aware that in many instances I want ‘justice’ for a situation, usually one where either a friend has been wronged or I have been wronged. On the other hand I am betrayed by always wanting ‘mercy’ for me in a given situation. Now why this influences song choice I am really not quite sure.

I believe contemporary worship has been a catalyst for helping to make God tactile, someone who can be touched, spoken too and felt. Someone who we can interact with not just our heads but also our emotions and our hearts. But there is a bit of a dearth in representation of the other three ‘echoes’ Wright establishes when we look at songs that deal with “spiritual reality” or “justice.”
Perhaps this dearth of songs can be part of the role of the Worship Artisan as we seek to hone our craft and educate ourselves more fully on the nature of God.  Like the apprentice who seeks to be a journeyman, can we then take the next step to becoming Master Craftsmen and Women?

The Worship Artisan

“For: The Institute Of Contemporary And Emerging Worship Studies, St Stephen’s University, Essentials Blue Online Worship Theology Course with Dan Wilt”

Dan Wilt from ‘The Institute’ presents the case for us to aspire to be ‘Worship Artisans.’ My initial thoughts were not exactly positive or supportive of this ideal … why?

Well I think it comes from experience in living with one … my father! To call my Dad a craftsman is just the beginning of understanding the skill, knowledge, detail and quest for perfection that has been his life’s work.  My father works with wood, he builds period furniture and restores antique furniture. His hands ‘feel’ the wood, he understands how it moves and groans. He understands how glue, ancient and modern will react to wood of different species. He understands proportional dimensions, how to finish and pull out the inherent beauty of the grain … and that is just the beginning.

So my struggle in applying this to my craft of worship leading comes in the form of many challenges. Am I really good enough? Am I really committed to putting all my time and energy into this craft?

For my Dad it wasn’t just about the wood … the material. It is about understanding his tools, what they do, why they do what they do. For example: You cannot do great work with a blunt chisel! I watched my father sharpen chisels with great care and attention, indeed I watched him sharpen his chisels with love.

Therefore my reticence in using this word to describe worship leaders comes from my own frailty and limitations and my great expectation on what true ‘artisanship’ embodies.

So in short I would have to say that true artisans within a worship genre will be few and far between – BUT – Does that mean there is no hope, or no ambition?  Of course not!  Dan Wilt provides us with three areas of intentional development that we have an opportunity to commit too in our quest for ‘artisanship.’

1. Investment in theological and worldview studies and reflection.
2. Investment in history, what has gone before us … our past can illuminate our future!
3. Effective worship leading

Personally, what is so refreshing about these three items is that on the one hand they all relate to the ‘message of the song’; yet on the other-hand they move us outside the realm of the song and into a much broader context. If we choose this path our horizons will be much broader, richer and deeper than when we first started. Whether or not we reach the status of ‘artisan’ is truly immaterial in my mind … what matters most is that we be continually formed in the likeness of Christ.

What differentiates worship artisans I think is best described in the words of my father when I told him I was going to make my own acoustic guitar. His comment was this … “That’s great son, go ahead and make your first one … your next test it to learn how to make the wood sing.”

Hello world, who am I?

“Jontyspeak” is the personal web space of Paul Johnston. My  beautiful wife Alison would say that I am “complex in nature, light in spirit”; if any of you kind (now be kind) folks can ever figure out what that means, give me a shout with your thoughts. Basically I think she means “I am a bit of a handful at times.”  Couple of little droplets of information by way of introduction:

The acoustic guitar, writing, thinking and learning and are my ethical drugs of choice, these passion enables me to fully engage in another passion of mine … that of being a faltering but committed follower of Jesus. I am a Worship Leader at Langley Vineyard, located in Beautiful British Columbia, Canada

Check out the ‘about’ section on my blog and you will find more context on the primary purpose of this sojourn.

Speaking of sojourn, two great friends of mine are in this ‘learning experience’ with me, these are great people, check out their ramblings when you get a chance. Connie plays in a local band called “She Says Electric” … check out their new worship CD called “Worship Loud.  James “Yomps” Blackmon is a ‘character’ ….. he just loves life … just check out his blog and you will see what I mean.