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Bringing Your Mind Into the Reality of God
We are finally wrapping up our SYNC series this coming Sunday at our Cross Point Nashville campus. However, this past week we talked about the method of discipline or worship. The message was pre-taped and shown via video, so I thought I would share a part of it on the blog.
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/1418445]
Here’s a few questions to think about. I would love for you to jump in and leave a comment after reading through them.
-Do you have a problem with a focus on “self”?
-Is there a particular environment where you feel you worship best?
-Is your heart expanding in love toward God and others?
*If you’re a video geek you can CLICK HERE to see Matt’s discussion on filming this video. He calls it magic hour, but I like to call it Matt Magic.
36 Comments:
Pete, this video is great! Both the content and the graphics, wow!
I really liked what you said about how your growth spiritually is stalled by focusing on self, I really related to this. And then, the part at the end about consciously bringing your mind to a place which focuses on God, and His reality. Inspiring and motivating, thank you!
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Birgit
7:03 am
I love waking up every morning to your inspirational messages. It’s been such a great way of starting my day! Thank you!
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Emily Rowe
7:24 am
Thank you for sharing this. I have been having a “self” problem here lately! I’ve struggled with my quiet time and sitting and listening to what God has for me. It’s like I have ADD and only when I’m trying to focus on God. Through your post, you have confirmed what I have been feeling in my Spirit.
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Annabelle@Christian Momma
7:33 am
This video is very good.
I do struggle with a focus on ’self’ at different seasons of my life, and in most of those seasons I am taking my eyes off of Christ (or not Abiding in Him) and turning the focus on myself. I worship best outside under the stars. Ever sense I was young, I felt an awesome connection to God just staring out into the vast space above me and thinking on him, and yes I feel my heart is expanding in love towards God and others.
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ncarnes
8:33 am
this has been a big struggle for me lately. with all the changes and stress, the loneliness of starting over in a new place, i find myself focusing more and more on me, poor me. which blinds me to anything else around me. i was driving the other day and passed by some rice paddies and it hit me how beautiful it is here and i was immediately convicted by how much i am missing out on – that focusing on me doesn’t make me any better. it’s focusing on God that creates a better, healthier me, which means a better, healthier wife and mom. and a much better witness for Him.
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monica @ transplanting me
9:00 am
Pete: i don’t know if this is worship-leader heresy, but i don’t often find my most fulfilling worship experiences on sunday mornings. it’s not a focus on self, but a focus on THEM. my heart is to, while worshipping, facilitate a worship moment for our congregation. i think of it in a similar fashion as serving communion. our elders pass the plate and cups around while the congregation is reflecting, repenting, and meditating, then the elders take their own bread & juice and we partake together.
since they are facilitating, i don’t think their experience is as “God-focused” as ours.
i don’t know if this is a right or wrong way to lead worship, but i know that when leading i’m keenly aware of those that i’m leading. yes, i model worship for them, but i model it knowing that i’m being observed and followed.
my purest moments of worship are when i’m not leading. call me a heretic, but that’s when i am most free to focus on God.
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mandythompson
9:25 am
Self: It is such a problem and I have been getting really sick of myself. I have been getting very intentional about refocusing, to the point of making some big life changes….and it’s about time. It’s exciting.
Environment: My best worship moments are in my car, espeically if I am driving through an area where the nature is beautiful (which I do almost everyday). I can worship along with music, or just worship in the silence. It’s my favorite time.
I would say the largest miracle of my life is an expanding heart. Praise God for that!
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melissa1970
9:29 am
pete,
breathing is worship.. it is taking Him in. and through Him exhaling… it is pouring out what is not ours to keep.. but is meant to be shared… given away with generousity of The King.
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Camey
9:38 am
I guess I should jump in….
The easiest environment for me to worship tends to be outdoors. While it’s not really about the environment for me, being in the middle of God’s creation just seems to help me connect.
Yes, I struggle with a focus on self. And yes it destroys the spirit of worship in my life!
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Pete Wilson
9:40 am
As John 4:23 says, Its time, as worshipers of God, to give him all we have. For when he is exalted, everything about me is decreased.
So many times we stand in the way of really stepping into the secret place of worship with God. Just abandon tradition and the “expected” ways of Praise & Worship and get lost in the holy of holies with the sole intention of blessing the Fathers heart.
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Heidi
10:14 am
I definitely struggle with a focus on self.
I am with you on the outdoors being the easiest environment to worship. When I’m surrounded by his amazing creation, it’s so easy to focus my thoughts on Him.
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Jenny in Nebraska
10:37 am
@mandythompson Wow, thanks for the honesty. I think you’re right on and I be they’re our a lot of worship leaders that struggle with this.
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Pete Wilson
10:39 am
Early in the morning after the hubby and kids have headed off to work. I love scrapbooking and one of the phrases that became popular a few years back was “its all about me”. During a time of fasting it hit me like a ton of bricks that saying that was so not true. Its not about me at all! Whar seemed like a simple catchy phrase didn’t seem so innocent anymore.
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Cyndi
10:42 am
Very cool Pete. Nice job, good word.
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Tyler
10:52 am
I struggle with self also. Not myself, but my idea of what I think should happen. I focus on my plan for serving God and sometimes I get so arrogant as to get frustrated when I want to do something I think is “godly” and it doesn’t work out. I forget that my ideas, plans, goals are not necessarily His and dare I say not necessarily the best:) Shelby
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Shelby
10:57 am
-Do you have a problem with a focus on “self”? Yes, it sounds to much like some new age scientology bull.
-Is there a particular environment where you feel you worship best? OUTSIDE
-Is your heart expanding in love toward God and others? Yes
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Jody
11:17 am
Oh @Shelby! Why did you have to go there? That’s a whole new level of self that I struggle with! Wow!
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Pete Wilson
11:38 am
I struggle with self in my relationship with Christ, and it shows in the form of anxiety in my life. I have been feeling anxious, frustrated, quick to anger, stressed, tired, and just washed out. When I started getting back into my church, I realized that I was focusing so much on my SELF and the small meaningless details in my day and I was losing focus on what is really important. So I didn’t catch my last email at work. So I haven’t gone grocery shopping this week and we are eating Ramon noodles – again! These are so much smaller in the great scheme of God, and when I’m focused on Him, those details get put in their place.
Thanks for the video. This is my first time on your blog, and it was just what I needed to see today.
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coffeegopher
12:11 pm
Thanks for asking this question. Most important. I happened to just write my version of this. For the sake of time, forgive me for providing the link:
http://sharingnotes.blogspot.com/2008/07/im-stuck.html
You rock dude!
Roxx
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ROXX
12:41 pm
Yea. I struggle with self and it stinks! My struggle with self is trying to live up to what I ‘believe’ others think I should be. OK. Does that even make sense? Lately it seems that I am more concerned with pleasing people than pleasing God. Which, ultimately, does NOT please Him. I hate that part of me.
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Heather
1:36 pm
Thanks for sharing – cool video.
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Kevin Davis
2:08 pm
I have found your website through Angie Smith’s blog. I am sad that I don’t live in Nashville. I want you to be my pastor. You have an amazing gift to reach others and I am glad I have found you. I have been struggling with finding a church that I fit into. I feel like our church just doesn’t fill my soul. I want to become a person that the Lord shines through. Am I being selfish to my family if they like our church? My problem with self is that I am struggling to become what the Lord wants me to be and what others expect of me. Sad huh?
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Stacey
2:40 pm
-Do you have a problem with a focus on “self”?
um. yes.
-Is there a particular environment where you feel you worship best?
im with mandy. not on the weekends while im helping to lead our church in worship. not all the time at least. there seems to be so many things that distract. i wish it werent so for me. so my honest answer…in the shower. no lie.
-Is your heart expanding in love toward God and others?
honestly. yes. it really is.
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tam
3:47 pm
Pete, I can tell you for sure if we move to Nashville, we’ll be members at your church. You teach with such purity and truth; two reasons I love the way my pastor teaches. Thank you for being so real.
And thank you for the example of a rose….its my middle name : )
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Kelli
4:11 pm
Pete – WOW – Once again, I wish I lived in Nashville….
I DO struggle with SELF. I hate that I do, but I do. It DOES destroy my spirit of worship, as well.
I’m with Mandy on this one. Mandy and I have actually been talking about this subject over at her place, and over email. It is a difficult juggling act to lead and worship at the same time. I do feel, however, that when I can ‘authentically lead people into the presence of God’, that I AM truly worshiping.
Thanks for asking Pete – and the video ROCKED – (of course)
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Kristie
4:38 pm
I worship anywhere and everywhere. I catch myself day dreaming but yet I am thinking on Him. No secret place. It is awesome to allow myself to do it unconsciously. I was raised to believe you could only worship Him on your knees or in church. So I rejoice to find my mind wandering thinking on Him while waiting to pick up the boys from practice!
Loved the vidoe. Left me with lots to think on.
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Kath
7:12 pm
Hip Hip hooray for Explosions In The Sky!
They’re a fantastic band.
I worship best when lights are low..all lights. I can’t worship when the lights are on, but I’d much prefer the lights to be as low as possible. And I like when worship is loud. I don’t mean loud music that would be categorized as clanking cymbals and electric guitar solos, but…just literally, loud music.
I worship well when the drummer is right on. When there is a rythmic accident, it disrupts me.
I know these might seem like petty things, and, maybe they are, but in some ways I am convinced we experience God in different ways, and I think that includes worship.
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Becca
8:34 pm
(oops- I meant to write that I can worship with lights on, but I’d prefer low lights)
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Becca
8:34 pm
God is been wrecking me on this man. Self gets in the way…it screams for the Glory…been trying to focus on Glorifying Him instead of looking for the Glory. Great job with the video.
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Brian Howe
8:36 pm
This is amazingly beautiful. And the message hits right to the heart. You guys make an awesome creative team!! This is incredibly moving.
I can’t tell you how often when I worship, I think I’m doing God a favor. Aren’t I holy, I’m thinking as I lift my spirit to God. Wow, is that arrogant or what?! In reality, when I worship God – he’s moving in my life and granting me the favor! Thanks, Pete, for the much needed reminder of the true definition of AUTHENTIC worship!
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Eve Annunziato
8:36 pm
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25865017/
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andy
8:36 pm
Pete, whenever I am in Nashville, I am swinging by Cross Point! Great message…
Self is a constant struggle for me… Living as I live (quite secluded when it comes to fellowship), I can find self rising up in so many ways and making the day-to-day a constant struggle. I am not able to worship freely so I worship in the spare moments throughout every day, where ever I can, whether it be over a cup of coffee in the morning before anyone else gets up, or as I look into my baby boy’s eyes when he is first waking up, or it is in the car on my way to work, or while talking with a stranger about the happiness that shines through me.
I need to worship always, some days it is the only way for me to make it through.
Sorry for the long post, you touched my heart. God bless.
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Sean
10:39 pm
Heh Pete – so good to see your blog and kind of feel that we are on the same page. Keep real – Pete Veysie. I am the visionary pastor of Ridgeway Ministries in South Africa. We are a non denom church seeking to be church – only different.
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peteveysie
4:45 am
Fantastic video, Pastor Pete.
I am a worship leader, and formerly lead singer of a rock band. We were technically a Christian band and we did ministry at every show but there was an element of “self” that had to go into the music and performance. I guess that’s what rock and roll is.
Now that I am solely a worship leader, it’s my full time job, I have a hard time sometimes separating what I used to do with what I do now. I get in my head and start thinking about what I look like, or what I should do that looks cool instead of just focusing on and worshiping God. I get better at it every time.
The crux of the matter is that, for all intents and purposes, rock’n'roll and worship music are vehemently opposed to each other at their core. Now, with the introduction of “rock worship”, it’s harder than ever to extract “self” from the worship equation. My brain is confused because I’ve trained it for years and years as to what rock’n'roll is and what it represents. All the while my soul cries out for something more…something deeper.
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Mark Thomas
10:29 am
Thanks for coming by. I do video stuff at my church, and I’m totally impressed with this. Beautiful production, and you delivered really well. Being aware of God’s presence in my life brings me to reverence more than anything. It’s a constant struggle for me though. I’ll be frequenting your blog. Loving what I see.
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Gary Durbin
10:10 pm
Pete, your sync videos are incredible. Thanks for sharing your creativity with all of us. I hold your church in high regard and love following your ministry.
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David
11:20 pm
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