Worship Band Builder Podcast

Get Connected to God - Tips for Daily Devotion / Episode 26

August 18, 2020 Eric Michael Roberts Episode 26
Worship Band Builder Podcast
Get Connected to God - Tips for Daily Devotion / Episode 26
Show Notes Transcript

Join us on the LIVE Bible study every week on the Facebook Page and YouTube Channel
https://www.facebook.com/worshipbandbuilder/
http://www.youtube.com/worshipbandbuilder

Let's get started: 

Can we only connect with God or worship God in church?  

What does your worship look like right now during shutdowns, quarantine, covid19? 

What Barries Get in the Way of Worship/Connecting with God?  

  • Style  
  • Time  
  • Awkward sining at home on computer  
  • Just feeling disconnected  

What if you can’t connect with God in your church for some reason?   Style / Songs / Distractions / Online services 

If you are not connecting with God during the worship service / other ways and times you could connect with God  

Ways you can Worship / Connect with God This Week 

  • Take a walk in the woods  
  • Play and sing a song  
  • Play worship songs in your car (find songs that do speak to you, make a playlist) 
  • Reading your Bible in quite time  
  • Writing in your journal  
  • Learn an instrument so you can play and express worship in devotion time 


Donate to the WTK Ministry
http://www.worshiptheking.com/partner  

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Speaker 1:

Hello, and welcome to this episode of the worship band builder podcast, where we are working with you to lay the foundation for skillful worship. I am Eric Roberts. This is my cohost Emily Roberts, who has a knack for starting the tape over. What can I say? I don't even send naturally in that case, I don't even know where we're at. In the episode, we started over a couple of times. So now you're behind the scenes. You, our friends behind the scenes. We started over so many times. I don't even know where we're at in the episode, but I do know that on Thursday, we're going to be having a live Bible study Bible study. Can't wait right here with a special guest. Maybe. Now, if there's not a special guest, then big flat tire for the whole thing.

Speaker 2:

Oh no, it will still be good. But we're hoping that our friend Maddie Nolan will come

Speaker 1:

Madigan. You, you let the special guest out of the bag right now. Okay? Maddie Nolan, Maddie Nolan, everybody. And you can go listen to her. We might as well link her songs. She's got a country single out.

Speaker 2:

She is a country singer songwriter, but she also leads worship at our church, loves Jesus. She is a sweet girl and I am excited to have her, if she,

Speaker 1:

Yeah. And I, you know, she does, she have a really good voice. And I think she does voiceovers and stuff like that to sing singing voiceovers, not like Disney voiceovers. We should ask her about that. Oh, I didn't realize she made this passing comment. I was in the studio doing voiceovers and I thought, Oh, that sounds fun. I should do that. Um, but then other, no, I can't do that. You gotta, you gotta have a really good, like good voice that everybody wants to listen to, to do voiceovers. And I'm not, that'd be tough. I like your voice. Oh, thank you. Thank you. So today's episode is, are you connecting with God?

Speaker 2:

And this is a personal responsibility. If you don't know this yet, it is not your pastor's job to connect you to God. Um, this is something that we all have to, um, actively pursue.

Speaker 1:

Yeah. So my first question for you, Emily today on our podcast notes, are, can we only connect with God or worship God in church?

Speaker 2:

No, you can't. And you shouldn't, you shouldn't only connect with God at church. And when I say connect with God, I mean, hear from him, recognize his character, his presence in your life. Okay. Those are things that should be happening every day, really all day. Not that any of us can perfectly do that, but that's the goal.

Speaker 1:

Okay. So I made up another question, uh, after we stopped the tape last time, do you think the in society, there is a kind of a notion or an idea that if we were want to worship God, then we should, then we go to church. Then we go into the church. Do you think that that exists?

Speaker 2:

Well, I'm sure that there are people who think, if you want to find God, that is where you go and it's a good place to start. Right. Um, I don't think there's anything wrong with thinking that, um, you can find God at church and it's a good place to go if you're looking for him, but it's not the only place to find God.

Speaker 1:

So I don't, I don't want to be funny about this, but when you said that I was kind of, so if you don't know God, and you're like, where do I find God? I think people do think that, and they'd go to church and it's like, new people come in. They're like, I just was lost. I just didn't know what to do. I'm going through problems. So they go to the church, they're looking for God. But then this is sounds, this is gonna sound so goofy. But like, once you find God, then you can like put them in your pocket, you know? And then you take them home with you, take them to the store with you. Like I get that because there is that thing. It's society, especially when you talk to nonbelievers, they're like, you know, I don't know. I'm going to try to find God. And they just, they think they just wander into a church and you see it in movies too. People are like wandering around. They're playing this sad music and they wander into the church and sit down and they try to find God in the church. But once you become a believer, it's like, you can take God everywhere. We know that's not true. It's really true believers. We know that God, you know, Holy spirit lives in us Christ in our heart. It's not, the church becomes more important to us, but less important. It's not that we have to go into this building to worship. So I'm kind of bringing that out to be funny. Like you stick, stick out in your pocket or you have him like there where he's with you. He's not going to go in your pocket in your pocket. That's not there.

Speaker 2:

Wait, I'm not theologically sound. He says, yes. Um, however, he will willingly go with you. And the longer that we follow him, we realized that we should really be going with him wherever he leads.

Speaker 1:

Ah, see, now she's getting very theological. I was just thinking this funny picture about going into church and finding God and putting them in your pocket and taking them to the grocery with you.

Speaker 2:

You had like, um, bail or daggone or one of those old Testament gods. You probably go to put them in your pocket and taking him with you. I think, uh, Rachel did that, but you know, Jacob and Rachel and Leah and they, and they were exiting dad's property. And she, she just said some of the gods with her, put them in the saddlebags and brought them

Speaker 1:

Very interesting. Maybe you should talk about that in the Bible study. All right. So what, what does worship look like right now? So the shutdowns quarantine, COVID-19, it really looks a lot different. And we're to talk about what barriers get in the way and what if we can't connect with God, or if we're trying to insure it and ways we can worship this week, we're going to get to those things. But right now worship looks a lot different. I'm assuming for some people than it did, you know, six months ago where we were all just going to church, for example, in California, right now there's a church that's fighting just to meet. I mean, they're basically being sued by the government of California and they're fighting back saying we want to meet. So they're meeting thinking, they're going to get arrested in America. So, and some of us are just at home on our computer. So this whole thing about worship, it looks so much different. When we think of worship back in the day, when I say in the day, like the eighties or nineties or two thousands, or even like six months ago, we just go in, we get our coffee, we sit down, we hear the songs. We try to worship like, Oh, I like this song. I don't, whatever. Now it's like, some of you are on your computer. Some are, you were just thinking I'm going to be arrested. Wow. So what is it

Speaker 2:

That what you said about California breaks? My heart absolutely breaks my heart, but it is not the first time that people have experienced this. In fact, uh, my son is in the second grade and we are studying the early stages of American history and the pilgrims that we all celebrated as kindergartners, you know, and put on the, put on the little Pilgrim and Indian costumes and that kind of stuff. Um, they were hiding to meet in England and they did get arrested many times before they made their way over here. So it is in our heritage.

Speaker 1:

So it's different now than it was five years ago or one year ago, but it's sort of similar to how it's been all along. So I kinda, I kind of hate this version of what we're getting ready to talk about, what barriers get in the way of worship and you see what is getting in the way. And then we're going to talk about how we can kind of get those things out of the way, but I've got them on the list here. And as I think about this as, as, as a global church, as I think of this as what worship really is, and then what I'm about to say sounds kind of weird, but style is getting in the way,

Speaker 2:

And this was getting in the way before COVID, this has nothing to do with COVID, but, but everybody has their own taste in music. And some of the songs that are played on Sunday morning, maybe they're just not connecting with you. Maybe that's not your jam, so to speak. So what do we do about that?

Speaker 1:

I don't know. We have on here time awkward. Uh, what does time mean? Stare styles get in the way time gets in the way. Well, maybe just not having enough time to go to church or not making time. And then, uh, maybe awkwardness, you mentioned earlier sitting in front of your computer singing. So if you're, if you're singing at home, if you're at home with your family playing the sermon on TV, and then your kids are like getting a pop tart and then you're like, you're like, they've seen Austin God. And you're like, Oh God, you're like raising your hands.

Speaker 2:

Awesome guys. Yeah. This was recorded in 1980.

Speaker 1:

If some people still sing that song by the way, uh, probably, uh, if you sing, our God is an awesome, God, leave a comment.

Speaker 2:

I would not blame you. It is still a good song.

Speaker 1:

And, uh, just, or if you're just feeling disconnected that could get in the way where you don't feel, maybe you feel like, um, you're guilty. You feel guilty from sin or you feel just in a funk. Like you just feel like, ah, I don't, I'm mad, I'm depressed. And that's getting in the way of you connecting with God. This isn't necessarily about worship styles, but it's just, those things do get in the way. Uh, I go to a church if they play some weird songs or if they, if the music is really bothering me as some musical way, I might just be like, this is not, I'm not connecting with God. I'm distracted. Okay. So what if you can't connect with God and church for some reason, because of style distractions, online services, we're going to talk, let's talk about some positive things, because all those things get in the way, all those things get in the way. And I think we're going to let's break through those and like, just, we're going to give you like five or six things that we do personally, that I do. She does not, not worship band builder, not worship the King, but what I have done in the past years and what she has done. We're just talk about those and put those into practice. Try some, if you're feeling disconnected, because I know right now with COVID and with the online services and with the, you know, the scariness of going to church and everybody's wearing masks and it's feeling very disconnected. And I mean, I'm I'm, I was doing pretty good. Now I'm wondering how much longer I'm going to just have a good attitude. Okay. So that's just being honest. Like I'm just like getting to the point where it's like, humanity is bothering me, just all of us humans acting like this. Okay. So let's talk about it ways I can worship. And I may have to do a few of these this week. Maybe, maybe even today, a number one, mine would be my number one way would be take a walk in the woods in the woods, not just take a walk, taking a walk is okay, but a walk in the woods.

Speaker 2:

Yes. A walk in the woods helps you to see the artistry of God more clearly, um, and to feel the peace and serenity of a quiet place. And I do think that that helps us, um, remember his presence in our life, more strongly than just taking a walk in the neighborhood, but taking a walk in the neighborhood can help. If you have time to get to the park or someplace where you can hike a walk around the neighborhood, just breathing some fresh air, just being outside of your house is good too.

Speaker 1:

Yeah. Sunshine also to two things. One detail is I'm going to get this hair. This little one little hair is getting on the microphone. I just want to get it off there. That is definitely a married. So I can do that. Don't, don't do that to other women's hair if you're not married to them. Uh, and also, and second of all, if you are a woman and you're going to go take a walk in the woods, please, you know, tell your husband where you're going. This is just, you know, decent decency and also take mace or pepper spray or a firearm for that matter, whatever you feel safe with. Because I did not like Emily walking alone in the woods. I like to walk alone in the woods because I'm six foot five and I'm giant. And people are mostly scared of me, but I don't suggest that you go walking in the woods, disclaimer, by yourself as a woman, just, you know, you know, take your dog with you. I see a lot of girls walking in the woods with dogs. That's good. A big dog. Alright. Big mean dot. Yes. This is a, this is a worship podcast, but it's also a very practical podcast. It's become very practical, uh, play and sing a song. I mean, that's, that's one of my big things, but it's not like, I don't want to say that first. I still think walking the woods is the, the final, okay. Take a walk in the woods with a guitar and sing a song by a Creek. I mean, that's like, okay, so this is what I do. Like I used to go to sugar Creek reserve. We don't have that here. And I would just walk down way down in there where the Creek was, you get near the water, you can't hear anything else. And then I would just play my guitar or something, just being outside, playing and singing. Uh, and then you said, play worship song in your car. That's what she does. She'll like crank up all the music and she gets in this trance, you know, like, no, she can't see what's going on.

Speaker 2:

No, I watch where I'm driving. Thank you. But I probably look like an idiot to anybody who is passing by me because I do dance and sing and drive.

Speaker 1:

Yeah. Also this was her advice and I like it. I already do this, but she said, find songs that speak to you. So, you know, maybe your church is singing songs that you think are weird. Maybe it could be true. It could be true. There's a lot of weird songs out there. Right?

Speaker 2:

Well, I don't like to use the word weird. What I would say is that, um, you're not going to relate to every song that your worship leader picks out. Those songs, speak to him, or at least they are the songs that he feels comfortable playing and singing. Uh, but that doesn't mean that, that is the message that you need to hear. Um, somebody in your congregation is relating to that and they need to hear that. And they are being blessed by that. But if that person isn't you this week, you should have your own playlist that does speak to you.

Speaker 1:

Yeah. And go up to your worship leader or like put a note in there and say like that song number three, titled XYZ was weird. Amen. Amen. I don't know. Amen. Amen. That was weird. Amen. Some of the songs, I mean, realistically I said that to be, that is, well, I stand by my statement. Some of these songs that they're singing now are weird or that we've always sung. It's not like an old guy, but Hey, sometimes you sing the song. Like the weirdest song that I think, and this is totally side side bar worship leader, dork talk. But the Matt Redmond, I think it's a Matt Redmond. Sloppy wet kiss song. No, I think that's David crap. David Crowder. Okay. Whoever wrote that, I forget who it was, but I dismissed that song out of my head. So I'm not even sure this whole thing about this sloppy wet kiss. I'm like, maybe that song's cool for like an acoustic version of the coffee shop or the like that's so artistic, but like to sing that with your congregation weird. So send me notes and tell me you're weird for saying that song's weird, whatever. Um, but you know what I mean? I don't think I ever led that song. No, I just have a filter. And when I hear stuff like that, I'm like, Nope, that's not gonna happen. Um, that's not going to happen and I'm not going to sing that. And then, so reading your Bible in quiet time, that's, that's pretty, pretty huge. There's three more basic ones here that we'll get to reading your Bible to Psalms. Just read them over and over again. The Proverbs I'm reading the Proverbs right now. I started reading the Psalms and I don't know what happened. I jumped over to Proverbs. I probably should jump back to the Psalms.

Speaker 2:

That's up to you and the Lord, I guess it's your private devotional time

Speaker 1:

And writing in your journal, writing a new journal. So Emily's been writing this gratitude journal for, I don't know how long now.

Speaker 2:

Yes. Um, I don't know, two or three years, maybe I'm up into, well over 3000 things that I have written down that I am grateful for. And I would love to talk about that in more detail at some point. But what I w what I will say is that it can really affect your mood. If you take a moment to write down the things that make you grateful, you will find yourself smiling while you're writing. And if you're ever down, you go back and you read some of those, and man, it just warms your heart. It just can change your whole mood to do that. It's really a very worthwhile practice. I can't say enough. Good about doing that. Um, he says, write in your journal. A lot of times, what I will do is write my prayers. Like they are a letter to the Lord because I find that I can't follow a train of thought without putting it on a piece of paper. I didn't say that. So, so, you know, if I want to have a conversation with the Lord, if I want to tell him what is going on in my life, it just helps me to write it on paper. And you may find that helpful to you.

Speaker 1:

Yeah. And you can sneak in, read other people's gratitude journals when they're not there and see how many things they were thankful for about you or just, it really helps. I I've, I've snuck in, read her some, uh, well, she leaves it right there on the table. So it's not like a big snake. It's not like a big snake, but it's, uh, it's good. Cause I read it. I'm like you doing that now. It's not all the time. I just, I find it and I read it. It's good. It's good stuff. Uh, and then, uh, so this is all, all of this is keyed towards. Yeah. I mean, we get we right now, especially there's a ton of depression. People are isolated and all of this stuff we're talking about will help take a walk right in your journal. Um, do all these things. We said, listen to positive, uplifting music, turn off the news channel. Don't listen to any of those, you know, just, just focus, keep your eyes on the Lord, keep your eyes on Jesus. And I have had to do that because I got a little crazy with the political, uh, news. And she'll, she knows like settle down and I'm like, I get all crazy. So it's much better. Not like we're trying to stick our head in the sand and not be a part of the world. But right now we have to, no matter what, as Christians keep our focus, keep our worship directed towards Christ. And the final one that obviously learn an instrument it's obvious. So you can express your worship. So, you know, I played the guitar, the piano, I play these instruments and that's part of my expression. I said, my love language is music. That's how I speak to God. And if you want to do that, you can do that at worship band builder, worship the King. We have digital passes for you, individuals. And we also have full church passes. So if you're a pastor worship leader and you want to get more people on your team, you have the church bundles where you can, everybody in your community can do this. It's really key. Not only training that is intentional over a long time to build teams, but that people just need an outlet right now. And they have a lot of free time right now. It's kind of at home. All of our products, uh, products or programs are online. So you could do this. You don't have to be in there. So if you're considering learning an instrument, start with guitar or piano or just whatever you feel, you might be a bass player. We have lessons for all of those at worship, the king.com and drums. And you can be a drummer, which I played drums on Sunday. And I got the, the GoPro cam and I'm really excited. I'm going to edit tomorrow and probably put those up there, just me on the drums and shaking my head and acting off. It's funny. I'm going to put that on there. Okay. So watch that, um, watch that tomorrow. She's like, what is wrong with him? I think she's going to try to stop the tape now, go rewind back and take out all my funny stuff.

Speaker 2:

No, no I wouldn't dream of it.

Speaker 1:

Okay. Well let's do it. Let's leave it there and make sure you come to the Facebook page to do the Bible study where she leads it and won't be making all those goofy comments during the entire

Speaker 2:

Will be there though. So if you like the goofy stuff, don't worry. He'll be there.

Speaker 1:

Don't worry. I will be there. We'll see it Thursday. God bless you guys.[inaudible].