In my rigid church upbringing, to raise your hands meant one thing…..you had ‘gone charismatic’. One church I attended briefly had a strictly no hands raised policy. In fact repeat offenders could expect an elder to sit next to them during worship. I am not joking, even though its funny to think about it now.

I remember the first time I felt compelled to raise my hands in worship. It was at the altar call song at a Franklin Graham crusade here in Perth. As I watched someone I had prayed for go forward to accept Jesus for the first time I was overcome with joy and had to express it. Wow.

The Gnostics amongst us would have us believe the body is somehow evil, while the spirit is good. That is patently untrue. Our body is given to us as a good thing by God…to use for good things. Let us not fall for that lie.

The picture below shows a Victorian farmer raising his hands in celebration after a dry spell.

It is a natural thing to do when we are joyful, excited or celebrating, a very human thing. Those emotions are all very human, and part of our worship to God.

Here is some scriptures to mess with the minds of those who are still struggling.

“So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands” (Psalm 63:4).

“To you, O LORD, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me, lest, if you be silent to me, I become like those who go down to the pit. Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy, when I cry to you for help, when I lift up my hands toward your most holy sanctuary” (Psalm 28:1).

“Every day I call upon you, O LORD; I spread out my hands to you” (Psalm 88:9).

“I will lift up my hands toward your commandments, which I love, and I will meditate on your statutes” (Psalm 119:48).

“Lift up your hands to the holy place and bless the LORD!” (Psalm 134:2).

“O LORD, I call upon you; hasten to me! Give ear to my voice when I call to you! Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!” (Psalm 141:1-2).

“I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land” (Psalm 143:6).

“Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands. Solomon had made a bronze platform five cubits long, five cubits wide, and three cubits high, and had set it in the court, and he stood on it. Then he knelt on his knees in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread out his hands toward heaven” (2 Chronicles 6:12-13).

“And at the evening sacrifice I rose from my fasting, with my garment and my cloak torn, and fell upon my knees and spread out my hands to the LORD my God” (Ezra 9:5).

“And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God, and all the people answered, ‘Amen, Amen,’ lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground” (Nehemiah 8:6).

“Let us lift up our hearts and hands to God in heaven” (Lamentations 3:41).

“I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling” (1 Timothy 2:8).

Here is the message I gave on Sunday.

A very interesting couple!

I used some material from Lifechurch.tv, but as you can hear, its my own message.

Listen

The wonder of a beautiful sunset. Different each day.

I was talking to my friend who is a graphic artist. He entered into his uni course full of enthusiasm for having a job creating wonderful art. My friend ended up in his first job arranging the car photos in an auto trader style advertisement. Week after week…..drudgery.

Is there any wonder that there is so much music, literature…art….in the world.

Our God is a wonderfully creative God. He has made us to be creative, to have that wonder of discovery, and creation…till the day we shuffle off. When we deny that, when we settle for the mundane, the boring. When we think we have nothing creative to offer, something in our soul dies.

What creative pursuit can I enter into today? Do I worry it wont be acceptable to others? If you saw my dancing, you would agree. But not every aspect of my life is as uncoordinated as that!

Some of the ways I amuse myself are cooking, video making, graphic design. None of those endeavors are going to win me any awards. But at my best I like to think some of God’s creativity is reflected in mine. I am sure the same is true of everyone.

How many sermons have I preached? I would say…. a lot.

I have spoken for over 20 years. Some of them have been doozies, some have caused me to fall asleep…or perhaps more accurately be dissapointed.

It still amazes me at times that people will actually come, and listen, to what I may have to say. But then, it is a spiritual discipline, and really, people are coming hoping that they will hear God’s voice, not mine. That is when preaching is at its best, when the preacher, the congregation and the Holy Spirit are having a beautiful dance together. If only in our hearts and minds….

It is great to hear someone come back from a conference having heard from God. But as a preacher who preaches week in week out, I know there is a far weightier discipline for the local church Pastor. He basically preaches to the same people, week in, week out. Not every message can be one where you ‘hit it out the park’. A conference speaker brings their best message, their best stories, their keenest insight.

Its why I am determined to ‘change it up’ every twelve months or so. I consider my preaching, and seek to bring a different dimension, a different method, a different insight. I don’t want to be bored, and I certainly don’t want the people to be bored. It is the most important message in the  world, and to be boring is a terrible injustice to God’s word.

At Inglewood Church we are doing a monthly series on marriage. So in order to challenge myself I spoke on a confronting marriage from the bible, Jezebel and Ahab. What a couple! The sort of couple who would bring many ‘awkward’ moments to any dinner party with friends. But it went well, and I was challenged personally. Surely that is when you know your preaching is the best, when you feel it yourself.

1. They have built their own platform

This morning I was listening to one of the speakers on the Hillsong Conference Stream live. The message was simply, nothing wrong with it, but as someone with theological training I have to admit part of me thought I could do better. But then God revealed something to me. They have taken risks in faith, they have shown courage, they have seen God bless their simple faith. Something I could take a lesson from. The platform they have is something they have because of their faith.

2. They have endured

Many ministries come and go. The Hillsong Conference has been going since 1986 and the Church longer. There have been moments of perceived scandal, and plenty of negative things written about them. But they have endured. Many Churches have grown and imploded in that time. Their growth has been steady and strong.

3. They speak from the High Places

I have never heard a negative word about another Pastor or Ministry come out of Brian Housons mouth. One of the most impactful sermons he has given was one on ‘speaking from the high places’. Despite the barrage of criticism that comes their way, they rarely respond, and rarely critique others. They exhibit grace and forgiveness.

4. They preach Jesus

Along with many criticisms they receive is one that they don’t preach the gospel. They do. They sing about Jesus, grace and the cross and they preach it. Thousands have become Christians because they preach Jesus. Something that challenges me.

5. They have changed

The Hillsong Church of today has grown and matured. Theirs is now a much more rounded and balanced faith. There is now a great emphasis on justice love and compassion.

Approximately 40% of adult Australians  are single.

We need to be careful in the Church community that we do not elevate marriage into some sort of sacred state that leaves singles in some sort of no mans land.

Jesus was single, Paul was likely single…and Paul was very clear that being single is a blessing from God.

There are seasons in life and I would encourage everyone to enjoy whatever season you are in. While this is true, it does not make being single when you want to be married necessarily easier. Seeing others happily preparing to get married can be really hard.

The worse thing someone can do though is to compromise, for the sake of the ‘now’. I don’t mean waiting for Miss or Mr Perfect. That will never happen. I look at some people and wish they would compromise a little, they might find themselves happier!

What I do mean though is saying yes to someone who does not share your spiritual beliefs and values. Or compromising your values for the sake of the relationship. To be clear…a Christian marrying a non-believer…or sleeping with someone before you get married. That compromise of your values will ultimately cause you pain, and are not God’s plan for joyful living.

Two verses which might help…’seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you’, and ‘ delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart’.

Great quote…

Music is hateful and intolerable to the devil. I truly believe, and do not mind saying, that there is no art like music, next to theology. It is the only art, next to theology, that can calm the agitations of the soul, which plainly shows that the devil, the source of anxiety and sadness, flees from the sound of music as he does from religious worship. That is why the scriptures are full of psalms and hymns, in which praise is given to God. That is why, when we gather round God’s throne in heaven, we shall sing his glory. Music is the perfect way to express our love and devotion to God. It is one of the most magnificent and delightful presents God has given us.
– Martin Luther