So “why Catalyst,” you ask?
Posted by Rod Hamilton
There are plenty of things I could have called this blog, and some would be quite clever. But I have found over the last 7-8 years that if I could categorize “worship” as anything other than worship, I would call it a catalyst for change. Worshiping God is serious stuff, and to do so demands a lot from us in our lives. It demands a life truly set apart. It demands daily walking with our God. It demands a level of forgiveness that the world cannot understand. It demands a sincere level of humility that doesn’t take credit for any of the good things that we do, but bears the burden of accountability for our words and deeds.
One definition of the word “catalyst” is: a person or thing that precipitates an event or change. Speaking from life experience, aside from the initial giving of myself to Christ, nothing else precipitated change in my life like the act of worship has and continues to do. In fact, through the Worship Ministry at Valley View, I have seen many lives changed by the simple act of a person’s giving his/her time and talent back to the One Who gave it in the first place. This is the stuff that precipitates radical change.
I encourage you to check in from time to time at this blog and see what’s going on at Valley View. I also encourage you to visit our church if you aren’t currently plugged in somewhere else. If you are a Valley View person and know that God has gifted you in worship, I encourage you to get involved in the worship ministry and I challenge you to view your involvement not as a new activity, but as a link to God in a way that will change your life.
Posted by Rod Hamilton on Feb 18, 2010
A couple of years ago I had it in mind to write devotionals for the songs we sing on Sunday mornings at Valley View. Finally, after much procrastination, I have begun writing each week for the songs that are on our playlist for that week. I’ll post them here as well. My hope is that some of this writing will enhance our thoughts and understanding about the songs we sing, and by doing so, enhance our desire to participate in corporate worship as we sing these songs. So, without further delay, here is the devotional for Sunday, February 21, 2010.
No Other Name – “No other name that’s higher…”
Acts 4:12 “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
When we sing about the name of Jesus, we are uttering the name above all names (Phil 2:9), the only name that can bring salvation, and in the eternal scheme of things, the only name that offers hope. This name, Jesus, is the hope of the nations (Matt. 12:21), the name to which every knee will bow and tongue confess (Phil. 2:10-11) and the name of the One Who will judge the living and the dead. (1 Tim. 4:1)
Counting on God – “I’m in a fight not physical, I’m in a war but not with this world…”
Ephesians 6:12 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
We, of our own strength, are completely incapable to stand against the enemy. We must count on God! He is a refuge, a strong tower that we can run to and be safe. (Ps. 18:10)
“And the miracle of Christ in me is the mystery that sets me free”
This should be the testimony of everyone all the time. The transforming power of the Holy Spirit in our lives is not only something to sing about, it is the very mark of a believer and the greatest evidence of God’s power to the witnessing unbeliever. This transformation is truly a miracle and a mystery.
Jesus Messiah – “He became sin Who knew no sin that we might be called His righteousness.”
This song is its own devotional. What could possibly be added for emphasis here? Read about the “ministry of reconciliation” in 2 Corinthians 5:11-21
From John MacArthur: “He (God) treated Him (Jesus) as though He had committed every sin ever committed by every person who would ever believe, though, in fact, He committed none of them. Hanging on the cross He was holy, harmless, undefiled. Hanging on the cross He was a spotless Lamb. He was never for a split second a sinner. He is Holy God on the cross. But God is treating Him – I’ll put it more practically – as if He lived my life. God punished Jesus for my sin, turns right around and treats me as if I lived His life. That’s the great doctrine of substitution, and on that doctrine turned the whole reformation of the church. That is the heart of the Gospel. And what you get is complete forgiveness, covered by the righteousness of Jesus Christ. When He looks at the cross He sees you, when He looks at you He sees Christ.”
Fountain of Life – “There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel’s veins, and sinners caught beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.”
John 4:14 (CEV) “But no one who drinks the water I give will ever be thirsty again. The water I give is like a flowing fountain that gives eternal life.”
This great promise from Jesus is something that we, the redeemed, can trust forever. Christ provides us with life-giving water (Rev. 21:6), and in a spiritual sense, once we have tasted of it, we will never thirst again.
“Guilty I fall, forgiven I rise…”
Acts 3:18 “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord…”
As we fall to our knees in earnest repentance the God of all mercy showers us with grace and forgiveness. When we rise from that position of humility we can know that we have been forgiven of all our sin (1 John 1:9) and have been purified.
Our Great God – “Eternal God, unchanging mysterious and unknown”
1 Timothy 1:17 “Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Romans 11:33 “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!”
Isn’t it good to know that God never changes? We should each find comfort and stability in that thought. Because He never changes we know that our adoption by Him is permanent and that the gift of salvation He has given us is irrevocable. (Rom. 11:29) Though His ways and His thoughts are higher than ours (Is. 55:9) and we can never know what God knows, He has given us the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2:16) through the Holy Spirit so that we are able to understand spiritual things, and thereby understand what God has freely given us. (Eph. 2:8)
“Lord, we are weak and frail, helpless in the storm”
Mark 4:39-41 “He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
The disciples were absolutely terrified in the midst of the storm that was wreaking havoc on their boat on the Sea of Galilee. Their terror came from a lack of faith, but their shouts to the Savior came as prayer. Jesus answered their cries and calmed the storm.
“Our cold and ruthless enemy his pleasure is our harm. Rise up, oh Lord, and he will flee before our Sovereign God.”
Psalm 68:1 “May God arise, may his enemies be scattered; may his foes flee before him.”
Before Christ we were literally enemies of God. (James 4:4) Since we have been reconciled to God through faith in Christ, we are now friends of God. (James 2:23) What better friend to have with you in battle than the One Who is already victorious over our enemy? When we do battle we do not do battle as the world does, we actually have divine power to demolish strongholds. (2 Cor. 10:4) This does not mean that we go looking for a fight with the devil, but the Lord will rebuke our enemy when the battle rages. (Jude 1:9)
We know that when we fight, we fight from victory and not for victory. The battle is the Lord’s and there’s no defeat!
Posted by Rod Hamilton on Apr 04, 2009
About a year or so ago, a friend gave me (maybe loaned me, I forget) a book called “Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire” by Pastor Jim Cymbala of The Brooklyn Tabernacle.
In short, this is an amazing book. It’s a quick read, just like I like them, and never does a page turn without a profound thought or statement about the Church, the Body of Christ or about how we’re lacking in the area of prayer and spiritual expectations.
If you get a chance, give this book a read; it will definitely be time well spent.
Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire
Posted by Rod Hamilton on Feb 19, 2009
In these days of economic turmoil, it seems that even the best news about our near future is tainted with trepidation. But what you can love about researchers is that, given a little time and funding, they can turn that frown upside down, statistically speaking.
And now, the good news about the worldwide economic downturn - fewer shark attacks. Maybe that doesn’t offer much comfort to those of us who live inland, but there’s hope never the less. Check it out:
Shark attacks are on the decline due to the current economic downturn, a biologist speculated today.
In 2008, attacks worldwide dipped to their lowest level in five years, a sign that Americans may be forgoing vacation trips to the beach, said ichthyologist George Burgess of the University of Florida.
“I can’t help but think that contributing to that reduction may have been the reticence of some people to take holidays and go to the beach for economic reasons,” Burgess said. “We noticed similar declines during the recession that followed the events of 2001, despite the fact that human populations continued to rise.”
Shark attacks basically correlate with the number of people in the water. The more people go to the beach, the more they are in sharks home, the offshore waters, and the more attacks on humans.” Read the article.
Ok, ok, so if you really take a statistical look at it, it’s because we have less money and therefore less ability to get to the beach that the attacks are fewer. There’s no telling if the attacks per capita went down or not. But I see another silver lining yet in all of this: plan yourselves a vacation getaway to Paducah and blame it on the shark attacks in the oceanic areas. You’ll sound practical, save lots of money and maybe even a limb or two!
Posted by Rod Hamilton on Feb 18, 2009
Ralph Waldo Emerson said “whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist.”
When, as a wild eyed college sophomore, I first heard this quote, it meant something entirely different to me then than it does today. To me then, to be a nonconformist meant to avoid letting “the man” keep me down. I would do things my own way, any way I pleased, because after all, that was the rock and roll mantra of my youth.
But, as I look at life now, nonconformity is both a highly encouraged blessing and a lightly regarded curse. The Apostle Paul wrote (under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, of course) that we should not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our minds. In that sense, to be a nonconformist is utterly vital to being an effective Christian. In 2 Corinthians, as Paul warned the believers in the church at Corinth to not not be yoked together with unbelievers, he used scripture from Isaiah and Ezekiel to support his position.
So to be a Christian man is to be a nonconformist, right? Well maybe, but ultimately, no. To be a believer in Jesus Christ is to strive for conformity - to desire a Christ-mindedness and to offer ourselves as a “living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.” Without conforming to God’s desire - His very biblical picture of Himself in the person of Jesus Christ, we have no hope for a great life in Christ. Does that mean that we won’t go to heaven? No, not if we truly have received Christ as our Lord and Savior, but it does mean that the man who resists the things of God will forfeit many of the blessings of God.
So what is it truly to be a man? Whoso would be a man must be a conforming nonconformist.
Posted by Rod Hamilton on Feb 12, 2009
John 15:5-6
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.”
The weak branches became very evident through the ice storm of a couple of weeks ago, and again yesterday, after the heavy winds. The sides of our streets are littered with branches of trees that simply could not bear the weight of the ice and snow that gathered on them, hence they twisted and snapped off from the tree. Some of these branches fell because they weren’t yet developed enough to withstand such a storm, and some fell because they were old and dead, no longer vibrant and strong like they once were. I even heard on the radio that many of the trees that were damaged so badly were so bad off because they never belonged in this environment in the first place. They were better suited for areas where such storms don’t happen, but yet these trees were planted here because of their aesthetic beauty and how they would affect the appearance of the homes, business and places around which they were planted.
Oddly, as things do so often when doing work with my hands outdoors, it occurred to me that these branches are very much like Christians in many ways. If we detach ourselves from Christ, we are weakened beyond repair and even small storms can destroy us. Outside of Christ we become useless brush piles that are of little to no use and serve as more of an eyesore than anything else. But for those who “remain in Christ,” they will be strong and ready to stand in whatever season and whatever storm may come.
1 Corinthians 16:13
“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.”
Posted by Rod Hamilton on Jan 24, 2009
We’ve heard the promise of change now for months, and in the first week of Barak Obama’s presidency we have seen some change already. I’m sure that I’ll see lots of change, much of it for the good, and likely, much of it for the worse. But the first big change is, well, for the worse.
Earlier this week President Obama reversed the ban on giving federal money to international groups that perform abortions. This ban has gone back and forth through a few presidents, but when this becomes one of the very first issues addressed by a new president, you just have to wonder what sort of change we’re in for. There’s a lot at stake over these next four years and Americans, even Christian ones, need to take notice of what’s going on.
If you can’t be offended over the fact our country is funding abortions anywhere, at least be offended over the fact that even as the president said “The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act...” during his inaugural address, the first act of this presidency is to send American taxpayer dollars overseas to fund what many Americans find revolting.
You can see that change is coming when you read through the transcripts, after the moment over the historical inauguration is over, of the president’s inaugural address and read phrases like we will “restore science to its rightful place.” It’s debatable what that place is, but I have a pretty good idea it won’t be good for the unborn.
Now more than ever we need to pray for our leaders, and I would say, particularly for President Obama, and our country. Father not my will, but Thy will be done.
Obama reverses Bush abortion funds policy