| WORSHIP | INTERCESSION | PROPHECY
Here Worship can be about many things, the selection of music and songs, the people on the worship team, the instruments, the character of the community, the worship leader, the pastor.
While all these things are important to a degree, what God looks for are people that will worship him in spirit and truth, which to me means an open heart. A heart that does not lift itself up, but lifts Jesus higher. A heart that says, “I don't have it, but I know Jesus does.”
At Lift Jesus Higher, we are continually learning that God is God and we are not. It is a humbling, wonderful place to be. As we discover how good God really is, He is love and He is light, as our relationship with God and with each other deepens, then our ability to believe, trust and obey increases accordingly. His ways are so much higher than our ways.
Our mission in worship is to lift Jesus higher, and as He is lifted up, He draws people to Himself. It is all about Jesus and Abba, Daddy and what His heart desires for us. It is much less about how good we do or don't sound, or how our day/week went.
As worship leader here, my ultimate worship experience will happen when evey heart is united in worship. It is an unfortunate thing when people view the worship team as the evening's entertainment and let the team do all the worship. Every heart in worship gets God excited and eager to be with us; if we really didn't want Him, then He wouldn't show up, but He does show up, every time and we are learning little by little to prepare the way of the Lord by getting out of the way, not thinking that we have to find a magic formula in order for God to show up. It's not “Open sesame," but “Open hearts.”
We use contemporary songs from various sources and we would invite you to come on a Thursday evening at 7:30 and check us out. We're not saints, but we are saints in the making; no, we're not perfect either, so if you come, please come with an open heart and then you will taste and see that the Lord is so good.
Blessings,
Peter Bruce
Here at Lift Jesus Higher, we want to have the “W.I.P. hand”! This means we want to be moving in the three frontline ministries of Worship, Intercession and Prophecy.
These ministries are front-line because they involve a direct and immediate encounter with the living God, and because they take the battle to the enemy.
WORSHIP engages the people of God in face-to-face encounter with their Lord and Savior. As we declare the greatness of God, we lose our self-centered focus and open ourselves to the awesome power and glory of the Lord! We lose our fear and timidity and begin to give testimony to the incredible might and surpassing love of Almighty God.
“To God, the blessed and only Ruler of all,
the King of kings and the Lord of lords,
who alone is immortal,
whose home is in inaccessible light,
whom no man has seen or is able to see,
to him be honor and everlasting power. Amen”
1 Timothy 6: 5-16
INTERCESSION unlocks the power of God to impact situations and bring them into alignment with His saving will. John Wesley declared: “The Lord does nothing on earth except in response to fervent, believing prayer.” Our prayer of intercession does not change God’s mind; it simply enters into agreement with Him about what He intends to do, and releases His power into the situations we are praying about.
PROPHECY is simply the articulation of God’s words in the words of men. The word “prophet” means literally “one who speaks for” another, in this case, God. The prophet is given access by revelation to the mind of God about a particular situation, and then he proclaims it forth before others.
Our desire is simply for the prophets to discern the will of God for our lives, and to speak it forth; then the intercessors pray and declare that will into life; finally our worshippers give praise and glory to God for His incomparable greatness in accomplishing His will in our lives.
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