Well, I thought I might make it back to the States without any health issues, but I thought wrong. I suspected last night that something was going on in my stomach, but hoped that God would keep it under control. For His own reasons, He didn’t. I’ll spare you the details, but it wasn’t pretty. I ended up giving a significantly shortened version of one of the sessions, and then took an hour nap. During that time God renewed my strength, and I was able to give the whole last session sitting down. I’m definitely on the mend.

I began the morning by sharing that I had an impression that God wanted to minister to those who were married and had families. I read from Psalm 128Psalm 128 [128:1]Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD, who walks in his ways! [2]You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you. [3]Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table. [4]Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the LORD. [5]The LORD bless you from Zion! May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life! [6]May you see your children's children! Peace be upon Israel!

, explaining how God blesses those who fear the Lord and delight in His commands - their family relationships reflect peace, joy, and fruitfulness. When I asked who was discouraged about their family due either to sin or difficult circumstances, almost 75% of the group stood. We had a precious time as God’s Spirit filled hearts with conviction, encouragement, and faith for the future.

I then continued the message What Do We Sing About? I began by finishing up the section on God’s worthiness. We can proclaim God’s worthiness by remembering his attributes, both general and specific, but also by expressing our love and longing for Him. We live in a fallen world and even as Christians, we continue to fight indwelling sin. For that reason we can experience times when we feel like God has forgotten us or is ignoring us. During those seasons, we magnify God’s worth by expressing our hunger for Him, our desire to know Him better, and commitment to trust Him. We can remind ourselves of how much we anticipate the day when He will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and there will be no more sin. The Psalms are filled with such expressions, and we spent time in Psalms 63Psalm 63 [63:1]O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. [2]So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. [3]Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. [4]So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands. [5]My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, [6]when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; [7]for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. [8]My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me. [9]But those who seek to destroy my life shall go down into the depths of the earth; [10]they shall be given over to the power of the sword; they shall be a portion for jackals. [11]But the king shall rejoice in God; all who swear by him shall exult, for the mouths of liars will be stopped.

and 42 to get a better idea of what it looks like.

I then went on to talk about praising God for His works. We spent much time in Psalm 111Psalm 111 [111:1] Praise the LORD! I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation. [2]Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who delight in them. [3]Full of splendor and majesty is his work, and his righteousness endures forever. [4]He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and merciful. [5]He provides food for those who fear him; he remembers his covenant forever. [6]He has shown his people the power of his works, in giving them the inheritance of the nations. [7]The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy; [8]they are established forever and ever, to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness. [9]He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever. Holy and awesome is his name! [10]The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!

and Psalm 103Psalm 103 [103:1]Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! [2]Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, [3]who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, [4]who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, [5]who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. [6]The LORD works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. [7]He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel. [8]The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. [9]He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. [10]He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. [11]For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; [12]as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. [13]As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. [14]For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. [15]As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; [16]for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more. [17]But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children's children, [18]to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments. [19]The LORD has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all. [20]Bless the LORD, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word! [21]Bless the LORD, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will! [22]Bless the LORD, all his works, in all places of his dominion. Bless the LORD, O my soul!

This text is from the ESV Bible. Visit www.esv.org to learn about the ESV.

, where David expounds on the wonderful works of God as provider, deliverer, ruler, healer, redeemer, and more. As we spent time feasting on what God has done, I was reminded again that worship is all about magnifying what God has done, not what we do.

My short session was on God’s greatst work, the work of redemption. In the last session, I spoke to those who lead congregational song, as well as songwriters (there were about 7-8 present.) That ended up being most of the people at the conference. I think it was a fruitful time, as I spoke personally about how any fruit from our time together is largely dependent on God working through their leadership in the days to come. I reminded them that no one is changed simply by listening to messages.

I addressed the areas of words, music, and leadership. I reminded them that we want to magnify the glory of God as we sing, not the glory of our music, so the words we sing are primary. I encouraged them to sing different kinds of songs, and to use variety in their instrumentation, even when they only have a drum. That woudl be the case for most of the churches represented here. It seems that musicians across the world all share the problem of over-playing. Finally, I talked about leading people to magnify the worth of God and the work of Jesus Christ. I discouraged them from practices that can become rote over time. One I’ve observed here is again pretty common. When the leader shouts, "Hallelujah!" the people respond immediately with a loud, "Hallelujah!" That can be effective at times, but when done repeatedly, it’s like pushing a "hallelujah button," that requires no involvement from the mind and heart - just voices. They seemed to respond to everything I was saying, and even laughed occasionally at my jokes. They don’t even do that very much in America…

Thank you for praying for me. It means more than you know. Tomorrow we finish up with two more sessions, where I’ll be teaching on How Do We Sing? I’m looking forward to see what new mercies God has in store.

PS Larry says hi.

3 Comments »

1. This is kind of funny. Talk about a small world. I’m an American married to an Indian and we live and have a ministry in Bharuch, Gujarat. Even funnier, I had no idea that you were here until my brother (a worship leader in NJ) wrote me an email this afternoon and said, check out this blog that I follow regularly. He’s in YOUR city.

   Gives new meaning to small world.

   I came to the SLC to meet you tonight but I found out you were sick when I spoke to Mr. Barria. Bummer. You’ll only be around in the morning and, as you may or may not know, tomorrow is a really nightmarish Hindu festival so I’ll be locked in my house til at least 2PM.

   Wish I could have met you, if only to have told you this small world story in person. May God bless you and heal you quickly.

   Comment by rebecca onkar — March 14, 2006 @ 10:10 am

2. Bob,

   Thank you so much for your ministry. I like your jokes.

   Some of them.

   That one about the lady in the bookstore was funny.

   Or maybe, that was an anecdote.

   Praying for you!!!!!!!!!!!!!

   Allan

   Comment by Allan Sherer — March 15, 2006 @ 8:14 am

3. Hey,
   I really enjoy your blog! Thanks for your honest heart and truthfulness, it is refreshing to hear someone be real. Its cool to read about real people who serve Jesus.

   Thanks,
   -Sean

   Comment by sean — July 6, 2006 @ 2:46 am

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