Scott Clark

But I know there is more for the worship ministry at Journey Church. I swear if I could just have both the discipline to pray constantly for the voice of God to reveal our next 10 steps and/or like 5 minutes to talk with God face to face I’d be set!!

A night of worship, my blog, the new worship blog, weekly practices and sets, youth worship, worship retreat. Am I missing anything? But this can’t be all. What lies around the corner for us.

Yes, in the future, a new building will bring some excitement new challenges and surely some new faces to the worship team. Oh yeah and some perspective (of how serious God is about us needing to step up). But a building does not make worship better.

What is next for us?
How can we better honor God with our gifts?
How can we better equip the church with worship materials? A dvd? Video devotions? Worship classes?

Again, I have to get back to my first love, SO BADLY. Its funny that I realized tonight my main focus HAS to be on the first two commandments!! Love the lord my God, and love my neighbor (the sheep are included in the neighbor catagory).

Everything we do both now and in the future will be revealed and thrusted forward by just loving God.

I have been concerned with presenting God to people so that they will worship Him, and trying different ways to coerce people to worship God. BUT my focus should be on loving God first so that I am worshiping Him in everything, and then provoking a sincere love for God in the hearts of our people. That will drive our worship into the heavenlies.

My new Motto
“No success without leadership, no leadership without relationship”

As a worship pastor, success is based on me, and everyone I am able to influence, worshiping God 24/7. I cannot do that if I am not mature enough to lead, and I cannot lead if I have not spent enough time with people to earn their trust. That goes for the church, the worship team, Pastor Michael, my fellow leaders.

I am excited. God takes our horizon and just keeps pushing it away as we move towards it… There is no limit to what we can accomplish at Journey and all the ways that we can find to praise God in our lifetimes. But let’s be obedient first, then add. Right?

I’ve sat in churches before that are the perfect illustration of consumerism at work. I have been a consumer.

I’ve sat in churches that were the love of Christ, yet I slipped through the cracks. I hated them all… stupid hugs.

I’ve sat in churches that cared more about their freakin’ organ than the salvation of the youth generation. I watched.

I’ve been the worship pastor of an awesome church called Journey Church that is called to reach the city, be the hands and feet of Christ, bleed with the bleeding, cry with the crying, stand in the gap and declare joy over broken lives, but I consumed, watched, feared, misunderstood.

The last one is a bit melodramatic, but still true. It has taken me a while to understand that we are finally, as a church and as leadership, beginning to see church in full context. To keep it simple, we are
1. loving
2. accountable
3. the whole church, not just leadership, is starting to walk in our calling/giftings (even if we don’t fully understand what they are). Not to mention some leaders (myself included) are starting to walk with confidence in what God has called them to.
4. in love with the word of God
5. not backing down from fights and faith challenges
6. etc., etc.

My point is that I’ve sat years in church and did not see the full picture of what church is. Besides Journey Church being the first church that is healthy, well rounded, and proud of it; serving, discipling, teaching, worshiping, evangelising, etc.

Now I say that with the exclusion of non-saved and relatively new Christians (however, even new Christians can greet and show people the love that they’ve just found).

How long has it been since you got up for church and put on your pants with purpose? With passion? With expectancy to see God use YOU to reach someone at church?

It’s your mission field, and a very focused one at that. You can learn as you teach (maybe not literally teach, but teach by what you do). Our church is a mission field. Go to church with ulterior motives. Go ready to learn and worship, but go ready to pour out and give. So this Sunday get on board cuz we’re going on a trip!!!

I’ve been talking with Pastor about going on a mission trip to Jamaica hopefully sometime soon. Amidst ALL of the things God has been putting in my heart for Him and His people, I really want to experience other countries and cultures. Specifically, cultures and people that are TRULY suffering, fighting to live, and fighting to practice their faith. I realize that I am quite naive about what I am wanting, but honestly, if God told me that I could go anywhere and not die (this would be my first mission trip, I’d like to come back) I would go to stinking China or Iraq, seriously. My heart WANTS to suffer physically, to see hardship firsthand, I think I would still go if I was going to get beat up. It goes back to perspective. I need it. Mainly because the truth is that it is harder to live for Christ than to die for Christ. The latter is more or less someone else’s choice, the first is dependent on our discipline and commitment. I want to go serve someone who only knows servanthood. I want to lay hands on and encourage a lonely minister in a third world country. I want them to lay hands on and encourage me, because I need to learn that I am a missionary in my country, and I suck at it most of the time.

Have you considered ever going on a mission trip? Maybe you need to see the same things I need to see for the strengthening of your faith?

Let’s stinking DO IT!! I feel retarded because I am still on the fence of doing what I know God is calling me to do. I am willing, but still learning to just do whatever it takes to MAKE it happen. I will go on a mission trip soon, before June, God will provide the money, the place, the annointing, and please God the safety (the others are a given, but nowhere in the bible does it promise we will always be safe).

Do what God is calling you to do!! I am not a favorite, God is not calling me alone to do new things for His kingdom. Listen to Him, it will change your life. Do it now!!