Setlist 10-4-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of identity.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment at the bottom of this page or email me atjamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

This is Amazing Grace by Phil Wickham

Because He Lives

All the Poor and Powerless by All Sons & Daughters

Fever by Jameson McGregor

Wayward Ones by The Gladsome Light

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

This Is Amazing Grace: We sang this song to look over our shoulder at last week's songs.  Here's what we said about This Is Amazing Grace then: We sang this song to think about the radical grace of God, who is clothed in unlimited cosmic power, yet cares for humanity enough to endure suffering and to patiently coax us into a relationship with Godself.

Because He Lives:  We sang this song to proclaim our identity as resurrection people--people who are able to find significance day-to-day because we believe that the resurrection of Christ has fundamentally changed the story of human history, and that all of our stories (even the tragic ones) are being woven into a greater story that is decidedly un-tragic.

All the Poor and Powerless:  We sang this song to proclaim God's identity as a God who is present with the lowly, the powerless, the hopeless, the hurting, the self-loathing, the addicts, on and on.  This is a God who not only lowers Godself to interact with humanity, but the lowest parts of humanity.

Fever: This song acknowledges the tension between the identity that God has given us and the identity that we continually read back onto ourselves.  This song thinks of our various ways of reminding ourselves of how worthless we are as a fever--fevers are our body's way of trying to eradicate pathogens and to return order to our normal biological environment--and thinks of the grace of God as a pathogen that is not so easily eradicated.  The idea is that owning our identity as children of God, as people who are loved by God, does not come naturally, and even when we find ourselves giving verbal assent to this truth, it takes an act of God to truly believe it.

Wayward Ones: We sing this song every time we take communion to remind ourselves of a couple of things.  First, we are a broken people--though we are seeking to become more like Jesus, we often fail at this.  Second, Christ has given Himself for us despite our brokenness.  We take communion to remember the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf, even though we did not, and do not, deserve it.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 9-27-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of need.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment at the bottom of this page or email me atjamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Come Thou Fount

This is Amazing Grace by Phil Wickham

Lord, I Need You by Matt Maher

Shadow by Jameson McGregor

House of God Forever by Jon Foreman

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

Come Thou Fount: We sang this song to express our need for God to partner with us in life and in our acts of worship.  At ubc, we often talk about seeking to be formed in the way of Christ.  This choice of words centers our attention on God's action within us.  We don't get to pass through life without trying to do things (live like Christ, eat pizza, dance, throw dinner parties, worship, etc), but the things we do are worthwhile because of what is done in us by God.  

This Is Amazing Grace: We sang this song to think about the radical grace of God, who is clothed in unlimited cosmic power, yet cares for humanity enough to endure suffering and to patiently coax us into a relationship with Godself.

Lord, I Need You:  We sang this song to remind ourselves quite clearly that we need to turn to God when we think the least of ourselves.  The grace we sang about in the previous song means we don't have to be afraid that God is going to run out of patience with us.  Furthermore, we don't have to try to make ourselves look and less broken than we are in order for God to want to come to our aid.  The Christian life is the life of a work in progress.

Shadow: Sometimes in Christian circles, we talk about "dying to self."  I won't claim to fully understand this image, but I think it communicates the idea that, though the way we operate as humans is ultimately a selfish existence, Jesus calls us to focus our attention on God and other people.  This song is about the lingering impulse to keep our thinking turned in on ourselves that we have to kill in some way daily, and that we are are ultimately in need of God's help every day to make this happen.  I wanted to write a really long post explaining the ins and outs of every image in this song, but I think these few sentences are enough to provide the context for you to read the lyrics for yourself and see what the images say to you.  As always, feel free to email me with any questions or concerns about this new song.

House of God Forever:  We sang this song to take a look over our shoulder at last week's songs.  Here's what we said about House of God Forever then: We sang this song to proclaim that God does not simply pay attention to us or pursue us.  Instead, God draws us near--takes care of us.  At this point, we are a far cry from what we might expect of the Holy God we sang about in the first song.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 9-20-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of God's freedom.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment at the bottom of this page or email me atjamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Holy, Holy, Holy

Heart Won't Stop by John Mark McMillan

House of God Forever by Jon Foreman

Wild One by Jameson McGregor

Be Thou My Vision

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

Holy, Holy, Holy: We sang this song to begin our time together by establishing that God is beyond us--out of our reach.  We offer our attention and praise to God, though God has no "need" of this, and really is not obligated to listen to us.

Heart Won't Stop: We sang this song to think about the fact that God not only chooses to take notice of us, but continually pursues us, even when we have made our home in places we might assume God will not go.

House of God Forever:  We sang this song to proclaim that God does not simply pay attention to us or pursue us.  Instead, God draws us near--takes care of us.  At this point, we are a far cry from what we might expect of the Holy God we sang about in the first song.

Wild One:  We sang this song as a response to the tension presented between the first song and the second two:  God is not limited by who we expect God to be or by what makes sense to us.  God is holy and "removed," yes, but God is also present in the midst of what seems to be the farthest from holy, working to establish a relationship with creatures who[(m) i really never know which one] God could easily destroy and move on.  God is not hemmed in by red tape and policies in order to be holy--God is free.  And God uses this freedom in surprising ways, continually showing us just how little we understand about love.

Be Thou My Vision: We sang this song to look over our shoulder at last week's songs.  This is what we said about Be Thou My Vision then: We sang this song as a communal prayer that God would transform the way we see the world, and the way we live in it.  [I changed a line of this song over the summer--if you missed the explanation for that change, you can check out the setlist from that week here.]

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 9-13-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of transformation.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment at the bottom of this page or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Amazing Grace by Citizens & Saints

How Great Thou Art

Be Thou My Vision

Pain by Jameson McGregor

Fall Afresh by Jeremy Riddle

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

Amazing Grace: Perhaps the most surface-level take away from this song is that the Grace of God has saved us, and I think that is legitimate, but we sang Amazing Grace this week to think about the fact that this gift of Grace does not merely change our status of salvation, but knocks around in our lives and transforms us into people who are more like Jesus.  

How Great Thou Art: We sang this song to practice recognizing the works of God in history, and responding with praise.  This response is something we partner with the Holy Spirit to cultivate within ourselves--a transformation that we would do well to leave ourselves open to.  We can easily get to a place where we accept the wonders of God as simply the way things are, but this song calls us to maintain a sense of awe--to allow ourselves to be transformed into a people who carry a sensitivity to such wonders.  This might look like being the kind of people who are excited--and driven to worship--when the scientific community discovers another layer of complexity in the cosmos, knowing that science more often than not opens up doors to seeing just how much we don't know about the way things work.  It might also look like being the kind of people who, upon seeing someone do something we would consider awful, turn our minds to the dark places in ourselves and think about what God has done for us, and how much more God can do within us.  

Be Thou My Vision: We sang this song as a communal prayer that God would transform the way we see the world, and the way we live in it.  [I changed a line of this song over the summer--if you missed the explanation for that change, you can check out the setlist from that week here.]

Pain: This song is about the danger of keeping our pain locked up in ourselves.  I have two broad categories of pain in mind here.  On the one hand, this pain might be considered externally caused--the emotional effects of something that has happened.  On the other hand, the pain I'm talking about is self-inflicted--it's the guilt, the fear of being found out, that accompanies our own downfalls.  I can't speak for you, but I know that my tendency is to try and ignore things that hurt me (in an emotional sense), regardless of how serious they are, thinking I can move on unscathed this way.  The problem is, I've found that pain has a way of poisoning me to a certain extent--be it through leaving me with a dull anger that affects my general mood, or through sizzling like white noise, clouding my thoughts and social interactions.  My inclination is to carry my own weight, so to speak, but I'm ill-equipped for such a task.  Jesus talks about setting aside our heavy "yokes" and taking up His easy "yoke."  I'm pretty sure he's talking about setting aside a meticulous code of religious laws, and taking up the law of love, but I don't think it is inappropriate to apply the same image to our own anxieties and sources of pain.  I've been thinking about anxiety and emotional suffering a lot lately, and I've been asking a lot of questions.  One of these is why the pain of [insert source of emotional suffering] fades over time.  Why do things that wreck us emotionally have the potential to get better over time?  One answer might be this: the context changes: the world didn't end, life moved on, or something good came out of a bad situation.  I think this sort of change of context is what we are offered by God.  While God doesn't necessarily take our pain away, the Gospel extends to us the hope of a context-change that just might take some of the weight away in the present.  In God, we find the potential for the way we think about pain to be transformed.  This is a new one, so be sure to check out the lyrics and email me with any questions.

Fall Afresh: We sang this song to look over our shoulder at last week's songs.  Here's what we said about Fall Afresh then: We sang this song to voice our dependence on the Spirit for living life to the fullest and for taking our journey of faith seriously.  

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 9-6-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of dependence.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment at the bottom of this page or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Hope by Jameson McGregor

Your Love Is Strong by Jon Foreman

Fall Afresh by Jeremy Riddle

Feel by Jameson McGregor

Wayward Ones by The Gladsome Light

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

Hope: We sang this song for the first time last week, and I would encourage you to go back and read the entry I posted here to get a better idea of what this song is about.  In the context of this week's songs, Hope reminds us that God is present with us in the midst of darkness, and we can depend upon God to carve meaning into our darkest moments.

Your Love Is Strong:  We sang this song to proclaim that we can depend on the love of God to take care of us in the midst of life's struggles, great and small.

Fall Afresh: We sang this song to voice our dependence on the Spirit for living life to the fullest and for taking our journey of faith seriously.  

Feel: The first long paragraph is a jumble of thoughts I have in the background of this song, and the the second paragraph is more directly about the song itself:

There are times in the journey of faith where God seems to go "dark"--where we don't feel God.  This is chronicled in the Psalms, the prophets, on the lips of Jesus.  It's something I've experienced, and something many of my friends have experienced.  With this in mind, I'm going to go ahead and assume that it's a normal part of the rhythm of faith.  Yet, we don't really talk about it (I think we should).  This is understandable to an extent.  We can expect to get better at most things we do in life over time.  Practice makes perfect, so to speak.  So, when we don't "feel" God anymore, the first assumption is that we're doing faith wrong.  But what if faith isn't like this?  What if instead of getting more and more connected to God over time, our experience is more akin to a journey over mountainous terrain, complete with high points and low points, and more high points, and more low points? This is hard to take in when the low points are marked by feeling abandoned by God in some way, but what if the feeling of abandonment actually had nothing to do with God abandoning us?  When relating to God, we enter a relationship where we do not see or hear the Other, but we do, in a sense, feel God.  This label of "feeling" is imprecise, but we might think of it as some assurance of God's presence with us.  Anyway, when the feeling is taken away, it naturally feels like God has gone away, but this is not necessarily the case.  In general, "God never leaves us.  God is perfectly faithful to us," is a safe theological statement.  The story of Scripture shows us as much as God remains faithful to people who are not faithful to God.  God's relationship toward us is about what God has decided to do, not what we deserve.  So how is God present when we do not feel God?  My answer to this works for me, but I by no means expect you to buy into it. It's this: God is present through the community of faith.  As flawed as it is, the fact that the community of faith is identified as the Body of Christ communicates to me that it is, in one way or another, the presence of Christ in the world (Yeah, I know that some people wear the label of "Christian" and don't act like Jesus--I'm not extending this to all people who label themselves Christians at all times.   Instead, I'm suggesting that those who are being formed in the way of Christ have the potential to be agents of God's presence).  We generally accept this idea when thinking about caring for the poor or loving people as the "hands and feet" of Jesus, but I propose that the same is true as we relate to one another.  We are agents of presence to one another--whether we are aware of it or not.

So.  This song is a collection of language I've used in prayer when I go through a season of not being able to "feel" God.  The temptation in these times is to stop praying altogether--if for no other reason, because it's hard.  But it's not quite as hard when we allow ourselves to be honest; to let the content of the prayer be about why we don't want to pray.  I should stop here and clarify: I wrote this song after having experienced this feeling of disconnect quite a few times, thus I have grown to expect that these seasons are temporary.  If you are experiencing something like this for the first time, I realize that you may not share my inclination to continue to seek God in any way through it.  I'm not trying to tell you that you are wrong, but I am being honest about how things have gone for me.  For me, these dark times have been awful, hopeless, draining, confusing, on and on, and I never feel like the darkness serves a purpose in the moment.  But.  On the other side of these seasons, I look at them as times of growth.  I don't think I can quantify this growth, but I'm certain of it.  And, while I may not feel God personally in these times, I have benefited greatly from being around those who do.  In a way, I have found that the people in my community of faith can feel God for me.  Thus, in the context of this week's songs, we sang this to think about depending on God through the people of God.  As always, I haven't said everything I want to about this song, though I've said more than most people wanted to sit and read.  If you have questions/concerns, please email me.

Wayward Ones: We sing this song every time we take communion to remind ourselves of a couple of things.  First, we are a broken people--though we are seeking to become more like Jesus, we often fail at this.  Second, Christ has given Himself for us despite our brokenness.  We take communion to remember the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf, even though we did not, and do not, deserve it.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 8-30-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of grace.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment at the bottom of this page or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Heart Won't Stop by John Mark and Sarah McMillan

Amazing Grace by Citizens & Saints

Oceans (Where Feet May Fail) by Hillsong United

Hope by Jameson McGregor

All the Poor and Powerless by All Sons & Daughters 

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

Heart Won't Stop: We sang this song to begin our time together proclaiming the relentless love of God that breeds a grace that isn't contractual or begrudging, but is instead a passionate force that is born out of God's decision to be God-with-us. 

Amazing Grace: We sang this song to think about the fact that the grace of God does not simply extend forgiveness to us that we don't deserve, but is something that transforms us into people who are more like Jesus.

Oceans: We sang this song to think about God being with us as we navigate our lives, specifically the more chaotic territories of life. The grace of God is not something that merely affects us in the end, but in the midst of life.

Hope: I've been working on this song for the better part of a year.  For a long time, I only had the lines, "You lit a fire in the darkness the darkness did not overcome," (loosely pulled from John 1), and "You sang out Hope into the dead of night, and it echoed off the edge of time," (which I pulled from an Advent song I wrote called Light).  Sitting with this, I started to wonder what this "darkness" or "night" might be in the scope of this song.  I thought about what I would label dark points of my life, and the dark times I've walked through with friends.  

I thought about the alcoholics I know.  They tell me that their addiction is a life condition--it's not something they're going to "get over," so no matter how long they are sober, they will still self-identify as an alcoholic.  They can't go back, and life will never be quite the same. 

I thought about my dear friend who is hemmed in by both bipolar disorder and depression, knowing that if he runs out of medication, or if something about his biological environment changes, his world will quite quickly become a dark and untrustworthy place.  There was a time when he lived free of this diagnosis, but he can't go back to that time--his life will never be free of the potential of this darkness.  

I thought about the conversations I've had with friends--and with myself--on the other side of a major life change, where what was has an allure that is lacking in what is, and the weight of this loss is unbearably heavy.  We can't go back; life will never be the same.  

It was this collective sense of darkness, and the ubiquitous not being able to go back, that I had in mind when I wrote this song.  I wrote it for them.  I wrote for me.  I likely wrote it for you.  

Each verse of this song ends with me putting these words into the mouth of God: "I've called you mine."  After the third verse, this changes to, "I've called you mine, and you can't go back."  Of all the things, great and small, from which we can't go back, this is the most enduring.  The conditions of life find their resolve in death, but the condition of being a child of God can't be erased by something as temporal as death.  God chose to be God-with-us in the midst of the darkness, and no shade of darkness can change that.  This is grace. 

This is a piece of what this song means to me, but there is much more going on.  Reading the lyrics will be a start to understanding this song better, but if you want to talk about it at all, please send me an email.

All the Poor and Powerless:  We sang this song to look over our shoulder at last week's songs, which were gathered around the theme of singing.  This is what we said about All the Poor and Powerless last week: We sang this song to turn our attention to humans.  There are two refrains in this song that involve what humans cry out in worship to God.  One is "Alleluia" (familiar?) and the other is "He is God."  I'll admit: part of me recoils against taking something as complex as the worship of God and reducing it to such simple phrases, but I feel like what I said about the previous song fits here as well: Simple? Yes. Legitimate? Yes.  What else is there to say?  The most complex praises of a theologian or business person (or whoever) can probably all be reduced back to this one idea. 

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 8-23-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of singing (meta, I know).  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment at the bottom of this page or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

The Lark Ascending (Trying to Make You Sing) by David Crowder* Band

All Creatures of Our God and King by David Crowder* Band

All the Poor and Powerless by All Sons & Daughters 

Noise by Jameson McGregor

Death in His Grave by John Mark McMillan

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

The Lark Ascending (Trying to Make You Sing): This is a song about singing--not like in a "come on, sing along" kind of way, but its about what value singing might have, which was great for yesterday, since that's what the sermon was about.  If you haven't already, I'd encourage you to click the link in the previous section and read the lyrics to this song.  The first verse connects singing to being alive--it's something that we need, that pours out from whatever place deep within us that belief resides, that makes us feel alive.  We added the second verse for yesterday, the main idea of which was to say: in singing, we join a song that has echoed since the moment there was something rather than nothing--singing proclaims that we are alive, yes, but more than that, we are creatures joining in the song of Creation.

All Creatures of Our God and King: We sang this song to think more about the "melody of stars" from one of the last lines of the previous song.  It's easy for most of us to wrap our heads around the idea of people worshipping God, and it's perhaps not a huge stretch to think about animals worshipping God (because, you know, cartoons), but what about things that seem otherwise inanimate (stars, elements, etc)?  This kind of personification is rampant in the Psalms--especially Psalm 19, where we see the "The Heavens declare the Glory of God," line.  This is a singing without words, a singing that is woven into the fabric of existence that never ends.  This song chooses "Alleluia" as the content of this song, which means (some variation of) "Praise God." Simple? Yes. Legitimate? Yes.  What else is there to say?  The most complex praises of a supernova or tectonic plate can probably all be reduced back to this one idea.

All the Poor and Powerless:  We sang this song to turn our attention to humans.  There are two refrains in this song that involve what humans cry out in worship to God.  One is "Alleluia" (familiar?) and the other is "He is God."  I'll admit: part of me recoils against taking something as complex as the worship of God and reducing it to such simple phrases, but I feel like what I said about the previous song fits here as well: Simple? Yes. Legitimate? Yes.  What else is there to say?  The most complex praises of a theologian or business person (or whoever) can probably all be reduced back to this one idea. 

Noise:  We sang this song to think about the kind of song God is composing in creation.  One in which God stands as Lord over all of creation, yet wants to have a relationship with God's creatures so much that even when we make broken promises of ourselves, God makes new promises of us.  

Death in His Grave: We sang this song for two reasons.  First, we are in the habit of singing a song from the previous week's set every week after the sermon.  Second, Josh's sermon yesterday gave us the idea that singing roots ideas and stories deep within us.  Death In His Grave contains some of the most hopeful content of the story of Redemption, and is thus a perfect song to sing when we are most conscious that the words we sing are going to be etched deep within us.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 8-16-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of communion.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment at the bottom of this page or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Chariot by Page France

Death in His Grave by John Mark McMillan

Because He Lives

When Death Came Calling by Jameson McGregor

Wayward Ones by The Gladsome Light

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

Chariot: We sang this song to live in the idea that history is moving toward something extravagant, that can aptly be called a "happy ending." For our purposes today, we can identify this happy ending as the Resurrection, and it is as resurrection people that we gather to share communion.  

Death in His Grave: In 1 Corinthians 11, we are given the idea that one part of taking communion together is to "proclaim the Lord's death until He comes."  We sang this song to think about one part of the death of Christ--the death of Death, proclaiming that Jesus' death changed the way that death works for all of us.  The end goal of human life is no longer death, but resurrection.

Because He Lives: We sang this song to look over our shoulder at last week's songs.  This is what we said about Because He Lives last week: We sang this song to reflect on the way the gift of Jesus impacts our outlook on the future--in Christ, God gave us the gift of a hope that makes it worth getting out of bed each day.

When Death Came Calling:  This song puts grief in conversation with the hope of resurrection.  We often hear that when Jesus died, Death "lost its sting."  I have unfortunately heard this often used to try to discourage grieving people from acknowledging their pain.  This is unfortunate.  Death indeed lost its permanence, but anyone who has lost a loved one knows that the sting is very much still felt.  This song proposes that the Resurrection will redeem not simply the loss of life, but the grief experienced by those who live in the midst of a world where their loved ones die.

Wayward Ones: We sing this song every time we take communion to remind ourselves of a couple of things.  First, we are a broken people--though we are seeking to become more like Jesus, we often fail at this.  Second, Christ has given Himself for us despite our brokenness.  We take communion to remember the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf, even though we did not, and do not, deserve it.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 8-9-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of God as gift-giver.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment at the bottom of this page or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Just A Closer Walk With Thee

Because He Lives

Murdered Son by John Mark McMillan

To Be Alone With You by Sufjan Stevens

House of God Forever by Jon Foreman

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

Just A Closer Walk With Thee: We sang this song to reflect on the fact that the gift of Jesus that we receive in coming to know Him is not a singular occurrence, but is something we receive afresh day by day.

Because He Lives: We sang this song to reflect on the way the gift of Jesus impacts our outlook on the future--in Christ, God gave us the gift of a hope that makes it worth getting out of bed each day.

Murdered Son: We sang this song to reflect on the cost of the gift of Jesus. Identifying Jesus as "God's Murdered Son" feels fairly blunt, but isn't this precisely what happened?  Salvation was a gift given at God's own expense.  We can dialogue back and forth over whether or not God is capable on a philosophical level of giving up any part of Godself, but this is nonetheless the picture that we have in Jesus, and we cannot ignore it.

To Be Alone With You:  This song captures a sense of mutual self-giving in the relationship between a person and God.  It also highlights that salvation is not an impersonal act in which God does what needs to be done to carry out a cosmic transaction of justice, but is instead an action with the aim of repairing the relationship between the Creator and creation.

House of God Forever: While I was out of town last week, Abby Baker played music in my stead, and this is one of the songs she led.  This is normally the part of the blog where I reference whatever was said last week, but since that quote would look like a big blank space, let's think about this song as a declaration that God is the giver of every good and perfect gift that keeps us alive--that the gifts of God are the existential place where we dwell.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 7-26-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of dependence upon God.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment at the bottom of this page or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Heart Won't Stop by John Mark McMillan

Be Thou My Vision

Fall Afresh by Jeremy Riddle

All I Can Say by David Crowder* Band

Come Thou Fount

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

Heart Won't Stop: We sang this song for the first time last week during the offering.  On a pragmatic level, we sang this song again this week to build familiarity with it so it is more accessible in the future.  This song offers us language from Psalm 139 to bring to the forefront of our minds just how far the love of God will go to reach us.  Not even taking up residence in the deepest reaches of darkness can make God change God's mind about how radically God loves us.  In light of this week's thinking about dependence on God, we can say two things: (1) Whether we know it or not, we are dependent upon the love of God to hold us together at all times--especially when we try our best to turn ourselves against God. (2) God is dependable in God's consistent pursuit of us--we don't have to worry that we will at some point be bad enough to convince God that we aren't worth loving.  Even though there are things about us that make us seemingly unlovable in human terms, God has scandalously decided to be God for us; One who loves us. 

Be Thou My Vision: We sang this song to proclaim (and remind ourselves) that we are dependent upon God for our vision, wisdom, contentment, and hope.  These faculties are things that we rely on to make it through each day, and God offers them to us in abundance.  It is easy to try to generate all of these things on our own, through self-help practices, making plans, etc.--and we should no doubt spend time thinking about ways to live a purposeful and motivated life (!)--but we are ill-equipped to do these things alone.  [Note: A few months ago, it was brought to my attention that one line, "Thou my Great Father, and I Thy true son," can be a difficult/dissonant line for women to sing, since women do not typically self-identify as the son of anyone.  I was aware of this tension, but I did not have an alternative line to offer at the time.  In the months since, I have spoken to several women about the way they feel about this line, and have found that some (the majority of the group I informally polled) have no problem with singing "I Thy true son."  It is apparent, then, that changing this line is not the universal desire of women, but it is a concern nonetheless.  After giving this more thought, I chose to seek out an alternative line for the song, in hope that we could find words to sing together that we could all get behind.  After looking at that stanza intently, it seems like the point of those four lines is to convey the idea that God, the source of Wisdom, is present within us and can be our source of wisdom--that means the first two lines, "Be Thou my Wisdom and Thou my True Word//I ever with Thee and Thou with me Lord," and the final line, "Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one," are perhaps the most essential lines of this stanza.  "Thou my Great Father, and I Thy true son," while not pointless, does not contribute to the sense of this stanza as potently as the others.  In light of this, I chose to replace the third line with, "Thou my Great Father, Spirit, and Son."  This alternative line seems to preserve the integrity of the stanza as a whole, and focuses in on just what kind of God is indwelling us and imbuing us with wisdom.  I would love to elaborate on this further for anyone who is interested, and I would also love to talk to anyone who has concerns about this change.  Feel free to send me an email.]

Fall Afresh: We sang this song to proclaim that we are dependent upon the Spirit, and are ever in need of a reinvigorating of our awareness of the Spirit's presence within and among us.

All I Can Say:  I chose this song for the Offering song for a couple of reasons.  In keeping with the theme of dependence, this song embodies our need to take our concerns to God, and to be honest about our pain--even when that pain is in part because we feel that God has forgotten us or ignored us (This theme features prominently in the Psalms, after all, if you are looking or further permission from Scripture for this kind of candor in prayer).  The third verse reassures us that we can take our pain to God without fear that God will be angry at us for some lack of faith and give us the silent treatment.  Outside of our theme, I tend to think about All I Can Say whenever something tragic happens in the news (which seems to be at least weekly, if not daily, now)--people killing eachother, people finding ways to preserve their own faults by pointing fingers at others, people allowing their hatred of the "other" to be the wind in their sails.  Though this is perhaps a step removed from the direct language of the song, I think that it indeed carries a sense that we are upset about (insert upsetting thing), feel helpless, and don't know what to say.  Rather than attempting to fein some kind of apathy, this song lays out pain and discontent on the altar, knowing that God can take it.

Come Thou Fount: We sang this song to look over our shoulder at last week's songs.  This is what we said about Come Thou Fount last week: We sang this song for two main reasons: First, outside of our theme, it puts words into our mouths to call upon God to meet us in worship (God by no means conjured by us, but this is a way to express that we are open to meeting God and that we desire that God would teach us how to worship better).  The second reason, in light of our theme, was the final stanza:  Though we are prone to wander, the love of God does not abandon us.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 7-19-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of the relentless love of God.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Come Thou Fount

This Is Amazing Grace by Phil Wickham

Deliver Me by David Crowder* Band

Heart Won't Stop by John Mark McMillan

How Great Thou Art

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

Come Thou Fount: We sang this song for two main reasons: First, outside of our theme, it puts words into our mouths to call upon God to meet us in worship (God by no means conjured by us, but this is a way to express that we are open to meeting God and that we desire that God would teach us how to worship better).  The second reason, in light of our theme, was the final stanza:  Though we are prone to wander, the love of God does not abandon us.

This Is Amazing Grace: We sang this song to reflect on God's grace and mercy in what Jesus did for us.  Though God was by no means obligated to save us, Christ died for us.  This is a surprising love that goes against what one might consider fair or just.

Deliver Me: We sang this song to proclaim that this God who is love is able to deliver us from the depths of our depression, our anger, and the false versions of ourselves that we present to the world to feel accepted.  

Heart Won't Stop: This song uses language from Psalm 139 to talk about the fact that the love of God pursues us despite all of our failures, and all of our conditions.  One line, "I could lay my head in Sheol, I could make my bed at the bottom of the darkness deep, but there is not a place I could escape You," is pulled almost verbatim from Psalm 139, and it's profound: Sheol, while not necessarily the same as our concept of Hell, was the closest equivalent idea that they had in the Hebrew mind.  What kind of love is this, that continues to pursue even one who has not only laid down in hell, but "made a bed" in the deepest points of darkness?  It is nothing less than relentless.

How Great Thou Art:  We sang this song to look over our shoulder at last week's songs.  This is what we said about How Great Thou Art last week: This song traces the works of God that are evident through creation, the story of Jesus, and the hope of the resurrection, and declares God to be Great.  There is language sprinkled throughout this song--experiencing "awesome wonder" in observing the universe, scarcely being able to take in the sacrifice of Jesus, our hearts one day being filled with joy in the resurrection--that extends to us a chance to reflect upon God in terms that are anything but numb, and to reawaken within us an understanding of just how glorious God is.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 7-12-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of glory.  This word is kind of hard to pin down.  In the context of these songs, our theme of "glory" points to the aspects of our experience of God that we struggle to even begin to wrap our minds around, and that leave us confessing that God is greater than we can even hope for God to be.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

How Great Thou Art

Holy, Holy, Holy by Sufjan Stevens

Future/Past by John Mark McMillan

Noise by Jameson McGregor

You Were There by Jameson McGregor

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

How Great Thou Art: This song traces the works of God that are evident through creation, the story of Jesus, and the hope of the resurrection, and declares God to be Great.  There is language sprinkled throughout this song--experiencing "awesome wonder" in observing the universe, scarcely being able to take in the sacrifice of Jesus, our hearts one day being filled with joy in the resurrection--that extends to us a chance to reflect upon God in terms that are anything but numb, and to reawaken within us an understanding of just how glorious God is.

Holy, Holy, Holy: We last sang this song on Trinity Sunday as we thought about God's Otherness.    There are many different layers of what it means to say that God is Holy, but a sense that God is above and beyond our wildest dreams about who God might be is at the center of all of them.  This holiness points to the Glory of God.

Future/Past: The verses of this song offer overwhelming and beautiful pictures of the way that God relates to the cosmos.  God's holding the reigns on the sun and moon, covering the greatest geological structures of Earth in the breadth of God's wings, and holding the movement in intricacy of the constellations in God's mind--these are all images that communicate something intimidating, overwhelming, and (strangely) beautiful about who God is.  These images are contrasted with the line "In this fortunate turn of events, You asked me to be Your friend." I'll admit: this language comes off as trite.  But let's not miss the fact that it is nonetheless true: God entering into a relationship with humanity is about as unbalanced as possible, yet that is precisely what God has done.  This category-defying action is perhaps the most glorious image explored in this song.

Noise: This song carries a similar theme to the last song in that it highlights the distance between what it is to be human and what it is to be God.  Our words fail to capture an accurate description of what God does or what God is like, and our actions consistently fail to live up to "proper"conduct in dealing with God, yet God has promised to be God for us--God with us.  In Christ, God took on the depths of the human condition, and because of this, God understands our struggles. This is a miracle, and it is most certainly glorious.

You Were There: We sang this song to look over our shoulder at last weeks' songs.  Last week, we said this about You Were There: This song is an exercise in perspective:  God was there before there was anything evil, God is there despite our present anxiety, and God will be there after everything here is gone (Everything in the universe has a clock that's running out, but God does not).  While God is present in the midst of our pain, and understands our pain, God is more real than everything we experience in the world.  We can confidently fix our eyes on God in the midst of anxiety, having faith that God is unhindered by the things that overwhelm us.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 7-5-2015

This week, our songs were gathered around the theme of providence.  "Providence" can be a kind of ambiguous term, and you can probably find a variety of different takes on what it might mean.  When I say providence, I mean God's interweaving of the stories of our lives into a greater story--a story we believe by faith to be the best kind of story.  This means that God is drawing us toward Godself and, in a broad sense, taking care of us.   Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Wandering by Jameson McGregor

House of God Forever by Jon Foreman

Oceans by Hillsong United

You Were There by Jameson McGregor

Wayward Ones by The Gladsome Light

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme. 

Wandering: We humans are gifted at seeing something great (such as God) and attempting to use this great thing to our advantage--to harness its power.  When we try to do this to God, God slips our proverbial leash.  Instead of moving in the direction we want, God insists that we go the way God wants.  But God does not abandon us because of this--God is faithful to us, even when we try (and fail) to take control.  In the context of providence, we sang this song to reaffirm that we worship a God who does not cut ties when we try to be god-wranglers, but instead continues drawing us toward Godself.  God's providence is possible because God does not turn away from us.

House of God Forever: This song is built around Psalm 23, and uses the image of God as a Shepherd to talk about God's care for us--specifically that this means we don't have to be afraid in the face of danger.  This is not to say that if one is afraid, one does not have faith, but rather to say that God will not abandon us to fend for ourselves.  God has drawn near to us in Jesus, and God is still drawing us toward Godself.  

Oceans: We sang this song to think about the fact that, though much of what we face in life may seem chaotic or overwhelming, we can trust that God is not overwhelmed.  Because of this, we can trust that God is able to help us navigate the troubled waters of life.

You Were There: This song is an exercise in perspective:  God was there before there was anything evil, God is there despite our present anxiety, and God will be there after everything here is gone (Everything in the universe has a clock that's running out, but God does not).  While God is present in the midst of our pain, and understands our pain, God is more real than everything we experience in the world.  We can confidently fix our eyes on God in the midst of anxiety, having faith that God is unhindered by the things that overwhelm us.

Wayward Ones: We sing this song every time we take communion to remind ourselves of a couple of things.  First, we are a broken people--though we are seeking to become more like Jesus, we often fail at this.  Second, Christ has given Himself for us despite our brokenness.  We take communion to remember the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf, even though we did not, and do not, deserve it.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 6-28-2015

This week, Josh preached from Luke 13:22-30.  Our songs were gathered around the theme of the radical grace of God.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

All Creatures of Our God and King by David Crowder* Band

This is Amazing Grace by Phil Wickham

All the Poor and Powerless by All Sons & Daughters

Bonfire by Jameson McGregor

Future/Past by John Mark McMillan

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme.

All Creatures of our God and King: This song runs with the idea of the whole of creation praising God--the idea here is that, in creating the cosmos, God is Lord over all of it, and the very existence of stars, planets, and particles way too small to see, declare the glory of the God who made them all.  We sang this to begin our service thinking about the grandeur of God.

This is Amazing Grace: This song juxtaposes the grandeur of God with the sacrifice of Jesus--in Jesus, this Holy God chose to become human and to endure the worst that the human condition had to offer.  The Incarnation was an invitation for humanity (all of us) to know what the Creator is like, but also to know the Creator.  

All the Poor and Powerless: This song focuses on the significance of the invitation to know God for those who are socially disadvantaged, those who feel they have no hope, etc.  The hand that is extended in Jesus is for everyone--not just those who society lifts up as ideal citizens.

Bonfire: We sang this song to think about the day when God will make all things new, when the things that are broken inside all of us, and in the world around us, will be mended.  All of us are broken in different ways, and we have no ground upon which we may stand and call ourselves somehow better than any other person.  In the end, we will likely be surprised at just how many different kinds of formerly broken people God has drawn together.

Future/Past: We sang this song to look over our shoulder at last week's songs.  Last week, we said this about Future/Past: We sang this song to emphasize the fact that to be related to God through faith is to love and be loved by One whose perspective is much greater than our own.  This means that God is worthy of our trust and worship in the midst of suffering, and that we can be confident that God is weaving human history into something more beautiful than we can imagine.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 6-21-2015

This week, Josh preached from Matthew 13:24-30.  Our songs were gathered around the theme of evil (Or at least trying to make sense of evil in the world while having faith in God).  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Death In His Grave by John Mark McMillan

Future/Past by John Mark McMillan

It Is Well by Horatio Spafford

There Will Come A Light by Jameson McGregor

Lord, I Need You by Matt Maher

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme.

Death In His Grave: We sang this song to reflect once again on the fact that the death and resurrection of Jesus changed the course of human life--that the end goal of human existence is no longer death, but resurrection.  

Future/Past: We sang this song to emphasize the fact that to be related to God through faith is to love and be loved by One whose perspective is much greater than our own.  This means that God is worthy of our trust and worship in the midst of suffering, and that we can be confident that God is weaving human history into something more beautiful than we can imagine.

It Is Well:  This song offers a sense of perspective in the face of grief by claiming that regardless of what happens in the world around us, we can be unflinchingly joyful about the future.  Though this is true, I mentioned yesterday that this can come off as somewhat dismissive of the pain that we feel in the midst of evil, and that Jesus' response to the death of Lazarus in John 11 tells us that the fact that things are going to be ok does not mean that they are currently ok, and we do not have to pretend that they are.  With this in mind, when we sing about the future hope that we have in Christ, let us not do so looking past our present pain, but rather into it, saying, "This too is being redeemed by God."

There Will Come A Light: This is a song I wrote for the "Hope" week of Advent a couple of years ago.  Advent songs often explore the darkness of the world searching for the Light that comes at Christmas.  As a result, they can easily transcend the bounds of that short period of the Church calendar and serve as declarations of the hope we have now as we wait for the Kingdom of God to come fully.

Lord, I Need You: We sang this song to look over our shoulder at the songs we sang two weeks ago (I was on vacation last week).  This is what we said about it then: Though the death and resurrection of Christ have changed what is true about humanity--that we are no longer slaves to sin, destined for death, but rather creatures who are in the process of being made new, destined for resurrection--we are constantly tempted to live as though this were not true.  The Spirit is working within us to transform us into people who live like Christ.  We sang this song to remind ourselves of this, and to express our awareness of our dependence upon God.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 6-7-2015

This week, Josh preached from Matthew 20:1-16.  Our songs were gathered around the theme of redemption.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Chariot

This Is Amazing Grace

Lord, I Need You

Noise

Wayward Ones

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme.

Chariot: This song uses two images to talk about God.  The first is a chariot (a la swing low sweet chariot).  The second is a wrecking ball.  We can think of the wrecking ball as God's breaking into human history and breaking through the barriers of our brokenness, and we can think of the chariot as God's drawing us out of our sinfulness.  The refrain, "So we will become a happy ending" is an extremely simple phrasing of the result of these things, but it is no less true.  The "we" who will become a happy ending is more than just humanity--though humanity is certainly included.  It is, rather, the entire cosmos--God is working to redeem the whole of creation.  This "we" also includes God.  God is not making us new simply to abandon us, but to draw us near to Godself forever--a happy ending, indeed.

This Is Amazing Grace: The verses of this song explore a multitude of great things that God has done/is doing, while the chorus ultimately says, "This same God--who is above and beyond anything we could ever hope to be--has chosen to enter into our story as a human and experience extreme suffering (when even the slightest suffering would have been undeserved) so that we can be saved." Saved from what? Selfishness, pride, isolation, anger, fear, anxiety, nonexistence (death), on and on.  This is grace--amazing grace--because there is nothing about us that deserved this.  God did this freely because that's what God is like.

Lord, I Need You: Though the death and resurrection of Christ have changed what is true about humanity--that we are no longer slaves to sin, destined for death, but rather creatures who are in the process of being made new, destined for resurrection--we are constantly tempted to live as though this were not true.  The Spirit is working within us to transform us into people who live like Christ.  We sang this song to remind ourselves of this, and to express our awareness of our dependence upon God.

Noise: The gap between what it is to be God and what it is to be human has been called by some an un-crossable boundary.  Because of this, we can only attempt to say true things of God--our words always fall short of their mark.  One thing we can talk about with a bit more clarity is that God crosses this boundary to have a relationship with us.  In the Old Testament, God established several covenants (read: promises) with God's people--this binding relationship is something that God chose to initiate with humans.  The people of God time and again fell out of sync with the kind of lives they were supposed to live in relation to God, but God remained faithful and continually found new ways to be God with us.  This culminated in God becoming human in Jesus, breaking through that un-crossable boundary between God and humanity.  In doing this, God became ever-more intimately aware of what it is to be human--of what it is to suffer, and humanity became aware of what kind of life God would have us live, if God were human.

Wayward Ones: We sing this song every time we take communion to remind ourselves of several things.  First, we are a broken people--though we are seeking to become more like Jesus, we often fail at this.  Second, Christ has given Himself for us despite our brokenness.  We take communion to remember the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf, even though we did not, and do not, deserve it.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 5-31-2015

This week, Josh preached from Luke 12:13-21.  It was also Trinity Sunday, which is the day on the Church calendar that we make a point to acknowledge, contemplate, and appreciate the fact that God has been revealed to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit--Three, yet One.  Our songs were gathered with the Trinity in mind.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Holy, Holy, Holy

Just a Closer Walk With Thee

House of God Forever by Jon Foreman

Wild One by Jameson McGregor

Fall Afresh by Jeremy Riddle

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme.

Holy, Holy, Holy: This song presents the tension between God being glorious, such that there is no one else that stands on equal footing with God, and the fact that God is both One and Three.  This is most apparent at the end of the third stanza when "there is none beside Thee" and "God in Three persons, blessed Trinity" are placed side by side.  There are various ways to think about the word "holy," but perhaps one of the most straight forward, when speaking of God, is the idea that God is Wholly Other.  This means that what we can know about God is fundamentally limited--even though God created us in way that we can be in relationship with God.  The mystery of the Trinity is incoherent in terms of human reason, but it would be presumptuous to assume that we have the capacity to map out and comprehend One who is Wholly Other.

Just A Closer Walk With Thee:  We sang this song to focus on God the Son.  In Jesus, God crossed the boundary between being Wholly Other and experiencing existence as a human.  Though humans cannot hope to ascend to the heights of God and understand everything there is to know about God, God came to us and showed us who God is in a "language" that we can understand.  Aside from showing us what God is like, Jesus called us to be a particular kind of people--people of love.  With this in mind, we sang this not only to acknowledge Jesus as God, but to ask for help in being people who are more formed into His likeness.

House of God Forever: We sang this song to focus on God the Father.  Though God is Wholly Other, God cares for us.  Though there is much about God that we cannot understand, God fully understands us, and knows how to meet our needs.

Wild One: I shared a reading from N.T. Wright's For All God's Worth before we played this song, and I think his words sum up the place of this song better than I can articulate. You can read the selection here.

Fall Afresh: We sang this song to focus on God the Holy Spirit.  Though God is Wholly Other, God has come to dwell among us in the Holy Spirit, transforming us into something new, and connecting us to one another and to Godself.  We also sang this song to look over our shoulder at last weeks' songs.  This is what we said:  When we come to Pentecost each year, we are celebrating the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts, thanking God for blessing the Church with the Gift of God's continual presence.  We are also reminding ourselves that this Gift has been given to us as well.  In reminding ourselves of this, we are hoping for a renewed awareness of the Spirit's presence.  We shouldn't reduce Pentecost to a yearly refilling station for caring about the Spirit, but we also should not pretend that we live lives that are fully aware of the Spirit at all times.  Pentecost is a time to remember that we are a people who have been given a Gift, and to live into that reality.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 5-24-2015

This week, we were fortunate to have our friend Liz Andrasi preach to us from Acts 2:1-13.  Our songs were gathered around the theme of Pentecost.  Pentecost is when we remember the coming of the Holy Spirit to the Church in Acts 2.  Josh wrote about Pentecost in the newsletter this week, so be sure to check that out if you haven't yet.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Fall Afresh by Jeremy Riddle

All Creatures of Our God and King by David Crowder* Band

Holy Spirit by Jesus Culture

Oceans by Hillsong United

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme.

Fall Afresh: When we come to Pentecost each year, we are celebrating the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts, thanking God for blessing the Church with the Gift of God's continual presence.  We are also reminding ourselves that this Gift has been given to us as well.  In reminding ourselves of this, we are hoping for a renewed awareness of the Spirit's presence.  We shouldn't reduce Pentecost to a yearly refilling station for caring about the Spirit, but we also should not pretend that we live lives that are fully aware of the Spirit at all times.  Pentecost is a time to remember that we are a people who have been given a Gift, and to live into that reality.

All Creatures of Our God and King: Pentecost is significant for the Church, yes, but it is also significant for the whole of the cosmos.  When we think about the Holy Spirit, we should think of the Spirit of Life who mediates God's love to the things that God has made--people, plants, animals, subatomic particles, etc.  God is active and present in the farthest reaches of space, and is weaving a multitude of smaller stories into one great story.  

Holy Spirit: This song focuses more on the personal encounter of the Spirit.  I'd like to note a few unrelated things about this song.  First, it is not an accident that we gather together to sing this song.  The Spirit is certainly able to influence us when we are alone, but it seems like the Spirit is much more active among a community.  As Liz pointed out in her sermon, the focus of the Acts 2 narrative is what the Spirit does through people.  Second, I want to clarify that, while this song centers around expressing an openness to the Spirit, we should not fool ourselves into thinking that the Spirit needs our permission or invitation to move among us--as if we could conjure the Spirit.  Third,  I've had a few people tell me that they didn't like a few lines of this song, specifically "come flood this place and fill the atmosphere."  Let me confess: I don't like that line either.  It feels like a forced rhyme with "welcome here." I find it within myself to sing this song because I ultimately do want to express an openness to the Spirit, and to petition for a greater awareness of the Spirit's presence and power.

Oceans: We sang this song to look over our shoulder at the songs we sang last week.  Here's what we said then: Before Jesus' ascension, He promised the disciples that the Holy Spirit would come empower them to continue His work.  In His leaving, Jesus called His followers to stay the course.  We too are called to continue His work--and seeking to do this can be equal parts confusing and overwhelming.  Oceans uses the image of walking on water to illustrate at least two things: doing things that we are literally incapable of doing without God's aid, and entering into chaotic and unknown territory.  As we contemplate what it means for us to be Jesus in the world, we must not lose sight of the fact that we are neither able nor expected to do it alone.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 5-17-2015

This week, Josh preached from Acts 1: 15-26.  Our songs were gathered around the theme of the Ascension.  The Ascension is the moment when Jesus "was taken up" and "hidden by the clouds" in Acts 1.  Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Come Thou Fount

All the Poor and Powerless by All Sons and Daughters

Oceans by Hillsong United

Up On A Mountain by The Welcome Wagon

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme.

Come Thou Fount: We sang this song to think again about the work of Jesus in light of the Ascension and to begin anticipating the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost (next week). This song can be understood to be firmly planted between the Ascension and Pentecost--especially when we look at the stanzas out of order.  The second stanza talks about raising an "Eben-Ezer"--a throw-back to the time Samuel made a monument to signify God being with Israel in a battle against the Philistines (1 Sam 7:12)--to remember what God has done for us in Jesus.  The third stanza looks back on the work of Jesus as well in acknowledging the fact that we stand as debtors in light of what Jesus did for us [Note: We are not debtors in the sense that God has a cosmic ledger that shows us in the red--Jesus wiped that ledger clean.  We are debtors in that we know that Jesus did something for us that we can in no way repay, and our gratitude drives us to respond in love.] Ok. So. We look back before the Ascension in the second two stanzas.  In the first stanza, we look forward to the coming of a "Fount of Every Blessing" that can "tune our hearts" and teach us a song sung by "flaming tongues above." This fount that we call for is the Holy Spirit.  

All The Poor and Powerless: In the Ascension, we see that Jesus did not simply rise from the dead for a time, only to die again.  Instead, He stepped beyond the realm that we might call physical to be with the Father.  He didn't die--he left.  The power of the resurrection held true.  This means that the hope of the resurrection and the hope of the Kingdom movement that entered the world through the ministry of Jesus live on, even in the absence of Jesus walking among us.  This is means that the poor, the powerless, the lost, the lonely, thieves, cowards, and all those who society would quickly rid itself of if given the option, can find their Hope.

Oceans: Before Jesus' ascension, He promised the disciples that the Holy Spirit would come empower them to continue His work.  In His leaving, Jesus called His followers to stay the course.   We too are called to continue His work--and seeking to do this can be equal parts confusing and overwhelming.  Oceans uses the image of walking on water to illustrate at least two things: doing things that we are literally incapable of doing without God's aid, and entering into chaotic and unknown territory.  As we contemplate what it means for us to be Jesus in the world, we must not lose sight of the fact that we are neither able nor expected to do it alone.

Up On A Mountain: This song reminds us of the dread that Jesus had before the crucifixion (like any of us, he did not want to die), and that He was aware of what would ultimately become of the human race if he did not die.  Despite all of this, the third verse points out that the work of Jesus for us did not cease after the cross.  Though Jesus is no longer among us in flesh and blood, Jesus is still intimately concerned for the human race--He is praying on our behalf and is with us through the Spirit. Though Jesus ascended, He is not wholly gone--we are not alone.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM

Setlist 5-10-2015

This week, Josh preached from Acts 10:44-48.  Our songs were gathered around the theme of the love of God. Below, you’ll find the list of the songs and artists. Clicking the song titles will take you to the lyrics. Below the songs, there is an example of one way you might think of these songs in light of this week's theme. If you want to talk about any of these, feel free to comment or email me at jamie@ubcwaco.org.

Songs

Your Love is Strong by Jon Foreman

Wandering by Jameson McGregor

How He Loves by John Mark McMillan

The Sun Will Warm Your Heart by Sarah Dossey Keilers

Holy Spirit by Jesus Culture

Doxology

How They Fit In:

There are many ways to think about the significance of songs and the way they fit together–-this is simply one way you can look at these songs in light of this week’s theme.

Your Love Is Strong: This song uses the Lord's Prayer to explore the ways that God provides for us out of God's abundant love.  This is a love we can count on to carry us when everything else seems to fall away.

Wandering: This song explores the fact that God continues to want to be God for us even when we misunderstand our role in this relationship: we try to do things our own way--to manipulate God into giving us what we want--yet God remains faithful to us.  This is a love that we can count on to carry us even when we fall away.

How He Loves: I would encourage you to go watch this video to hear John Mark McMillan talk about this song. This is a love that we can count on to be our light when everything else seems like utter darkness.

The Sun Will Warm Your Heart: I've long known Sarah to be a great songwriter, so I asked her if she would be interested in sharing one of her songs with us during the Offering.  She agreed! I asked her if she would write a few sentences about what this song means to her. This is what she said: 

I adapted the words for this song from a William Cowper poem that I first read just a few months ago in the book Suffering and the Sovereignty of God. 

In darkness, sometimes the only light that can truly break through for me are those little spiritual nuggets of truth about God's character -- His omnipotence trumps my fear and lack of trust every time. So, during this time of some serious struggle and heartache in my life, I've found Cowper's simple and solid words to be encouraging and empowering - both upon first read, and now each time I get to sing them. 

Holy Spirit: We sang this song to take a look over our shoulder at last week's songs. I would encourage you go back and read what we said about it in that post, but it has a different significance in light of Josh's sermon this week (the podcast will be up on Thursday, so be sure to listen).  Because the Spirit dwells within us, we are given the chance to extend the love of God to those around us in creative and imaginative ways.  When we ask that God would make us more aware of the Spirit's presence, we are asking that God would help us express the love of the living God.

Doxology: We close our time together each week with this proclamation that God is worthy of praise from every inch of the cosmos. 

-JM