Worship Top 25 April 14, 2008
Posted by Steve in : The City, Inside Park, Urban Church, Powerful Passages, Methods & Strategies, The Cultural Conversation, Music That Moves, Culture and Faith , add a commentAs we sit each week at Park, and have worship times with Joseph Tenney and his team, I began to wonder what are the main worship songs that are played? So I did some research on the CCLI site and thought I would list out the top 25 played worship songs in churches around the U.S.
This list came from the latest results from CCLI which is the main Christian music copyright/licensing company for non-profit organizations around the world. They conduct two surveys per year, one in February and one in August. (Please note that this compilation does not contain many of the excellent old hymns which are sung a lot but are actaully public domain and not subject to royalties). However, it does contain “Shout to the Lord” which was recently sung on American Idol. This list is the latest data and is ranked from the most played to the least:
| 1 | How Great Is Our God | Tomlin, Chris \ Reeves, Jesse \ Cash, Ed | 4348399 |
| 2 | Blessed Be Your Name | Redman, Beth \ Redman, Matt | 3798438 |
| 3 | Here I Am To Worship | Hughes, Tim | 3266032 |
| 4 | Open The Eyes Of My Heart | Baloche, Paul | 2298355 |
| 5 | Shout To The Lord | Zschech, Darlene | 1406918 |
| 6 | Holy Is The Lord | Tomlin, Chris \ Giglio, Louie | 4158039 |
| 7 | You Are My King | Foote, Billy | 2456623 |
| 8 | Forever | Tomlin, Chris | 3148428 |
| 9 | Lord I Lift Your Name On High | Founds, Rick | 117947 |
| 10 | Come Now Is The Time To Worship | Doerksen, Brian | 2430948 |
| 11 | God Of Wonders | Byrd, Marc \ Hindalong, Steve | 3118757 |
| 12 | Everlasting God | Brown, Brenton \ Riley, Ken | 4556538 |
| 13 | You Are My All In All | Jernigan, Dennis | 825356 |
| 14 | We Fall Down | Tomlin, Chris | 2437367 |
| 15 | The Heart Of Worship | Redman, Matt | 2296522 |
| 16 | You’re Worthy Of My Praise | Ruis, David | 487976 |
| 17 | Breathe | Barnett, Marie | 1874117 |
| 18 | Trading My Sorrows | Evans, Darrell | 2574653 |
| 19 | Beautiful One | Hughes, Tim | 3915912 |
| 20 | In Christ Alone | Townend, Stuart \ Getty, Keith | 3350395 |
| 21 | I Give You My Heart | Morgan, Reuben | 1866132 |
| 22 | Days Of Elijah | Mark, Robin | 1537904 |
| 23 | Friend Of God | Gungor, Michael \ Houghton, Israel | 3991651 |
| 24 | Better Is One Day | Redman, Matt | 1097451 |
| 25 | Above All | LeBlanc, Lenny \ Baloche, Paul | 2672885 |
So what do you think of the list?
Idol: Shout to the Lord? Wow! April 12, 2008
Posted by Steve in : Breaking News, Powerful Passages, The Cultural Conversation, The Arts in the City, Music That Moves, Culture and Faith , 3commentsFor the millions that watched this week, the American Idol Gives Back show ended surprisingly with the globally popular worship song “Shout to the Lord” by Darlene Zschech.
I’m sure you’ve seen all the blog uproar over this issue. Evangelicals on a blog raised the roof with the producer’s decision to downplay its “Jesus” message by replacing the word “Jesus” with the word “Shepherd” in the first line, contending that the deletion of Jesus eliminated it from being a Christian song in its entirety. (The next night, they sang the song again — this time with the original wording.)I didn’t think too much of it when I first heard it, assuming that, as usual, the entertainment powers had cut it out — I was more surprised that Hillsong would allow it (they didn’t).
But I came across this excellent post by Josh Harris, that has several comments from entertainment insiders who are Christians and the impact this small song has on all the Hollywood types — -check it out. It changed my perspective on the matter, prompted me to pray for all those hard-working brothers and sisters in Hollywood and really challenged me about integrating my faith into the culture I am in.
Hey all you “culture and faith” folks out there, what do you think? Is this a step for Hollywood or a debacle for Christian songs? Please comment and let’s engage on this topic.
Easter Creativity - God is at Work! March 31, 2008
Posted by Steve in : The City, Sunday Services, Church, Powerful Passages, Methods & Strategies, Missional, The Cultural Conversation, The Arts in the City, DifferenceMakers, Culture and Faith, Entrepreneuring , 1 comment so farIt’s now a week after Easter and I am checking out the blogs and news to see how God used people this Easter weekend and what drew people in to hear the Word of God on Easter. Wow! There is lots of creativity out there and that affirms that God is working His plan with the churches here in the United States and new creative thinkers are bringing the Gospel to the folks. I love God’s verse on creativity in the church — in Luke 14:23 (NASB) it says:
23“And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled.
“COMPEL THEM TO COME IN” –
Here are my “Sweet Sixteen” creative teams who I found that did a lot of brainstorming, planning, hard work and execution with excellent creative ideas to COMPEL PEOPLE TO COME IN this Easter — To God be the Glory!:
1. The Elevation Church in Charlotte, North Carolina that is just over two years old celebrated as 4,800 people showed up for services for an excellent start to a series called “Breakout” and over 500 people gave their lives to Christ! Check it out here.
2. Oak Leaf Church, less than 19 months old, did a message on TATTOO and left their mark by giving tattoos live on stage for all three services. The point of the message was that external marks are meant to point to internal life change. The point isn’t the mark, it’s the story and the meaning. In the same way, external behavior modification is never enough…what makes us Christians are our changed hearts. They were praying for 1,000 people but had 1,350 with 60 people accepting Christ (read about it here)
3. Craig Groeschel and the folks at multi-site Lifechurch.tv Started a new series on Easter and handed out fortune cookies with a note inside of them inviting people to the series entitled “The Warrior.” They placed huge barrels of fortune cookies outside and asked people to give them to their friends. More than a grand total of 31,000 people attended all 13 LifeChurch.tv campuses this Easter weekend with 479 hands raised during altar calls.
4. Scott Hodge and his team from Orchard Church in Aurora, Illinois dropped Easter eggs from a helicopter. 20,000 eggs and thousands of people (see pictures here)
5. National Community Church in DC also celebrated with 20,000 eggs and a baptism service on Saturday (read about it here)
6. Gary Lamb and the folks at Revolution Church in Canton Georgia also dropped Easter eggs from a helicopter. I love this idea from all three of these churches! Check out the story and pictures.
7. Eric Bramlett and his team in Naperville IL at Community Christian in Naperville have a really funny video as they debuted their series called “Losing My Religion” which started Easter Weekend. Check it out HERE.
8. High Desert Church in CA continued their series called “The Most Spectacular Show on Earth” and had more than 6,000 attend and over 100 people come to Christ after battling spiritual warfare with everything going wrong on their sound systems at their various locations.
9. Travis Johnson and the crew at Life Point Church in Homestead FL held a Moonlight Easter Egg Hunt (7-9pm) and had 7,000+ people show up. How creative is that idea? A moonlight Easter Egg Hunt!? They had a great turnout on Sunday with many coming from the community who attended that Easter Egg hunt.
10. Cross Point Church in Nashville had an amazing Easter at their two campuses locally (read a great letter from someone who was greatly impacted here) and at their new church start-up in the Dominican Republic. A team of 20 from Cross Point spent their week working on the church building and while the building was far from being completed, the pastor led their first service in the new church on Easter Sunday. How cool is that?
11. Check out the things Granger Community Church had people hold in their hands during the service. HERE are the pics. Read about it here and here.
12. NewSpring Church saw 12,000 people attend their services and over 120 people receive Christ (read here) and held a great service in their Man Series called “Ultimate Fighter”
13. The team at Seacoast Church launched a new campus on Easter in one of the most crime-ridden areas of the country. HERE is the story.
14. Connexus had more than 1,300 at their two compuses with some moving stories.
15. Jordan Creek Church played the Upside Down Video.
16. A worship leader in Atlanta experienced what true worship is really all about (read this moving story here)
PS…BONUS COVERAGE I just found out that Saddleback Church opened two new sites on Easter and their San Clemente site celebrated its one year anniversary! The first service of Saddleback Corona gathered 490 attenders and 43 accepted Christ. That’s almost 10 % of those who attended! The first service at Saddleback Irvine gathered 1,826 attenders and 34 accepted Christ! The service at Saddleback San Clemente (open one year) gathered 1,550 attenders and 39 accepted Christ!
It’s Good Friday, But Sunday’s Comin! March 21, 2008
Posted by Steve in : The City, Church, Powerful Passages, DifferenceMakers, Culture and Faith , add a commentAs we sit and reflect on this Good Friday, the story of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion is one of betrayal, brutality, despair, and pain. Yet we know even before His death that redemption was promised to be coming soon. We know that the story does not end at the cross. We know what many did not realize – although it is Friday and despair ran rampant among his followers — that Sunday’s comin’ — Jesus rose from the dead, conquered death, and provided a pathway for us to have a relationship with God. This is my FAVORITE video on Good Friday (the preacher is S.M Lockridge, who also did “That’s My King“).
In two days, we will celebrate Easter, rejoicing in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and recognizing what enormous sacrifice Jesus made for each one of us so that we could spend enternity in relationship with the living God. Be reminded of this truth during Easter: God has worked, is working, and will work through all things, even now as we find ourselves awaiting his return. This is important — please comment if you have any questions I could help you with.
Piper on the Prosperity Gospel February 19, 2008
Posted by Steve in : Weblog, Chicago, Powerful Passages, The Cultural Conversation, Culture and Faith , add a commentI am a big John Piper fan and saw this video on YouTube where he displays a whole lot of energy about the prosperity gospel and its export from the US.
Whoa — go John go! (and everybody get out of his way!)
Tom Brady: The Search for Meaning February 3, 2008
Posted by Steve in : Games, Powerful Passages, The Cultural Conversation, Culture and Faith , add a comment
Tonight, more than 100 million people will watch the Super Bowl in the US, and most expect that the key player for the Patriots will be Tom Brady (a Michigan alum, I might add). Tom Brady, the 3-time Super Bowl champion quarterback of the New England Patriots was featured recently in a 60 Minutes interview with Steve Kroft on CBS. In that interview, even at the pinnacle of his success today, Tom Brady is wondering if this is all there is — click on the picture below to have a look at the video:
“Why do I have three Super Bowl rings, and still think there’s something greater out there for me? I mean, maybe a lot of people would say, ‘Hey man, this is what is.’ I reached my goal, my dream, my life. Me, I think, ‘God, it’s got to be more than this.’ I mean this isn’t, this can’t be what it’s all cracked up to be.”
Tom is searching for the hole in his life that can only be filled by Jesus. His story of searching (not gridiron success) is my story — after many years, I found that peace and contentment that he is looking for — in Jesus. Check Him out - wrestle with who He is and why He came, and I think you’ll reach the same place. It’s not a 5 minute decision — it is a process — but you have to be willing to explore the claims of Jesus Christ.
Reminder Time: God’s Continuing Faithfulness August 26, 2007
Posted by Steve in : The City, Chicago, Inside Park, Urban Church, Powerful Passages, Church Construction , add a commentWow! I am continually reminded that God has a plan for the redemption of Chicago and Park is going to be a part of that. As we have moved through this summer, there has been a lot of uncertainty about where we would have our offices come September and where we would hold our services. As the project manager for the new Crosby campus building among my responsibilities, I have been frustrated by the massive rise in the price for steel and copper (causing us to exceed our budget), construction delays, unforeseen expenditures (we have to replace the entire outside brick skin of the building), the rainy weather, the lack of progress on getting more parking at our new building, and the likelihood that we would not be able to get into our offices at the Crosby campus in September and that we would need to find short-term solution for our offices.
But there was no uncertainty or frustration in God’s eyes.
Having orchestrated the creation of the world, I am reminded that God can do ANYTHING He wants, 
and getting us office space for starters is no big deal. Through a great friend of the church, God provided space for us at minimal cost in the John Hancock Tower for 4-6 months. We moved out of Germania Thursday night after an 11 year run (in the 13-hour rain-and- massive-wind, hurricane-plagued ordeal that ended at 1:00 am) and now find ourselves getting settled into great office space in the midst of the bustling Michigan Avenue avenue with offices and stores. (Many thanks to two of our awesome staff, Emily Luikart and Meghan Kosar, who organized the move and made it go so well! — you are the best!)
As I have sat at home and whined to my wife about all my frustrations, I am reminded and can now see that God is moving in Chicago, and He will not be thwarted. He has all the tools of the world at His disposal and in this case, He chose to use someone from another great church to help us because He is going to use Park as he continues His plan of redemption here in Chicago. Each person in Chicago matters to God, and he will use churches like Park and Christians like Park people to reach those people.
This situation has caused me to look back and see God’s hand of faithfulness since the beginning of our church almost 20 years ago. Even without a building for 20 years, God has grown Park, transforming thousands of people with His Gospel and the elders, staff and leaders have continued to build a Biblical community where the Gospel of Jesus Christ transforms lives, renews the city and impacts the world.
As I read the Bible, I am reminded by the verses below about God’s unswerving faithfulness:
Deuteronomy 7:9 Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations,
Psalm 105:8 He remembers his covenant forever, the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations,
Isaiah 46:8-11 “Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors,
9 remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ 11 calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it.
As an exercise, look back on the last two years in your life. Where were you 2 years ago and what was your life like. Can you see God’s hand growing you and changing you? What Has God reminded you about lately?
2060 - The End? June 19, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Breaking News, Church, Powerful Passages , add a commentThis week, a letter from Sir Isaac Newton has gone on show in Jerusalem’s Hebrew University, where Newton uses the Bible’s Book of Daniel to calculate the date for the Apocalypse. He believed the Apocalypse would come in 2060 – exactly 1,260 years after the foundation of the Holy Roman Empire, according to the recently published letter.
The note reveals a deeply spiritual side to a man more usually regarded as a strict rationalist. Newton, known as the founder of modern physics, secured a royal exemption from ordination in the Church of England – something normally expected of academics in his day – so he would not have to follow its teachings.
But he confidently stated in the letter that the Bible proved the world would end in 2060, adding: “It may end later, but I see no reason for its ending sooner.” He got at least one other thing right – in another document, he interpreted biblical prophecies to mean that the Jews would return to the Holy Land before the world ended.
Newton, who died 280 years ago, wrote that the end of days would see “the ruin of the wicked nations, the end of weeping and of all troubles, the return of the Jews (from) captivity and their setting up a flourishing and everlasting Kingdom”. Yemima Ben-Menahem, one of the curators of the exhibition, said: “These documents show a scientist guided by religious fervour, by a desire to see God’s actions in the world.”
God Wins! May 4, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Church, Powerful Passages , add a commentIn our couples Bible study we are reading Revelation, and some times it is confusing, sometimes it doesn’t make sense, and sometimes it is a little scary! But Rick, one of the guys in the group, came across this devotion from Our Daily Bread. It reminds us of the ultimate truth — God Wins! With all our busy-ness, and all of the distractions that get in the way of us of pursuing Christ, we must remind ourselves that in the end, God is victorious and Jesus can be seen in his victorious light from Revelation 19:
11I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. 12His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. 13He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. 14The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. 15Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.”[a] He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
(Our Daily Bread) Walking through campus one day, a seminary professor came upon a custodian reading the Bible during lunch hour. The professor asked what he was reading. “Revelation,” the custodian said. “I’m sure you don’t understand what it means,” said the professor condescendingly. “Actually, I do,” he replied. “It means Jesus wins.”
In the face of life’s challenges, it’s important to remember that ultimately God always wins! And since His plans are always in the victory lane, it’s infinitely wiser to converge with His will rather than compete with it. (more…)
An Audience of One April 22, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Powerful Passages, Missional, The Cultural Conversation , 1 comment so far
As we continue our series at Park Community Church on Missional Living in the city, I was reminded in Jackson Crum’s message today that in everything I do and am, I only have an audience of one. Not to fear man, or others, I need to fear and worship the God of the Universe. We are all called to missional living for an audience of One. Now we know that to non-Christians, an audience of one may sound absurd. Even to modern day Christians, this is not something truly practiced or emphasized. Christ wants our undivided attention. He wants us to be captivated only to him. Maybe you wonder why we do we need to focus on an audience of one? (more…)
Resurrection Sunday: Not Much More We Can Add April 8, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Powerful Passages , add a commentAll of Christianity hinges on the resurrection of Jesus on Resurrection Sunday. That the perfect God wanted to have a relationship with each and everyone of us but could not look upon anyone with sin. So what did God do? 1 Cor 5:21 tells us that “God made “him who had no sin” to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” Through Jesus, we can enjoy eternity in the presence of the God of the universe. If you are looking for a cool church to learn more at your own speed, check out Park Community Church in Chicago.
Where are you? Do you believe it? Do some investigation — make your own inquiries but don’t just blow it off and go back to your daily existence.
Image Source: http://www.1bbb.org.uk/amicus/images/easter-empty-tomb.jpg
Old vs. New — Take a Look! April 7, 2007
Posted by Steve in : The City, Powerful Passages , add a commentAs we approach Easter tomorrow here in Chicago, it is worth taking a read of ISAIAH 53 in the Old Testament — This amazing passage from one of the Hebrew Prophets was written more than 700 years before the birth of Jesus, and contains writings that clearly identify and prophesy the coming life and mission of Jesus of Nazareth. This chapter is often cited by Jews and Gentiles as prophecy that must be fulfilled by the Messiah. Franz Delitzsch made an extraordinary but true comment about the 53rd chapter of Isaiah when he said that this chapter is “the most central, the deepest, and the loftiest thing that the Old Testament prophecy, outstripping itself, has ever achieved.”
If you have never done so, take ten minutes and investigate this Jesus. He is the Truth, Check out the claims of Jesus here.
No other person has arisen to lay claim to being a Messiah who would suffer for mankind. Isaiah 53 is found in the the Jewish Tanakh today, though it is generally left out of the weekly synagogue readings, as are many other texts of the Bible. When people read Isaiah 53 without knowing which part of the Bible it comes from, many often assume is from the New Testament. Though many modern rabbis describe the sufferings as (more…)
The Bible’s First Management Consultant December 5, 2006
Posted by Steve in : Weblog, Powerful Passages , add a comment
As we continue to expand God’s work in the city of Chicago through Park Community Church, we know we must grow our leadership core. But what does the Bible say about the leadership development process? What are the key steps we must do as leaders to gain the critical mass of leaders we will need to handle a church of 2,500 and a church-planting, church-partnering model?
In Exodus 18, we get a glimpse of the first management consultant in the Bible. The writer tells us of the visit of Jethro to his son-in-law Moses. We imagine the weary look on Moses’ face from handling all the cases of his people. Jethro observes that Moses has people in lines all day as he hears every single case involving his people. As a confidant to Moses and the Bible’s first management consultant, Jethro tells Moses to stop trying (more…)
Joseph: The High Cost of Righteousness November 28, 2006
Posted by Steve in : Powerful Passages, Missional , add a comment
From LeadershipJournal.net:
As the film “The Nativity Story” (see the trailer) arrives this Friday to theaters to great fanfare, John Ortberg has a great article this week looking at Joseph, and the high cost of righteousness in Joseph’s life. Typically Joseph is a bit player in the Christmas story, and is relegated to a supporting role during most of our Christian Christmas pageantry. However, Ortberg really gives us an insight into the cost of righteousness. I love this article and shared this with our leaders this week — it is a powerful reminder that there is a cost to following Christ.
Happy Thanksgiving! November 23, 2006
Posted by Steve in : Weblog, Chicago, Family, Powerful Passages , add a commentAs I sit around with friends and family, I extend my heartfelt wishes for a wonderful day for all of you with friends and family!
Today, as my father-in-law is making the turkey, I am reminded of the power of smell. I know all the Thanksgiving smells…..the turkey roasting in the over, the potatoes being mashed, the pecan pie as it warms in the oven. For us, thanksgiving is about traditions and being together as a family. Today, we have invited a couple of guys from our church to join us as we break bread together and reflect on all that we have to be thankful for. I am always sorry that we can’t have both sides of the family together but I know the Laveys are having a great get-together in Dallas.
Giving Thanks – My Quick Six (borrowed from Park!)
- I am thankful for a God who relentlessly pursued me through college and into my career, never far from me and always bringing people into my life to tell me about Jesus, especially my “prayer warrior” mom.
- I am thankful for my wife Sue, who is still a “hottie”, who loves Jesus, and who always lends an ear for my tales of adventure and woe.
- I am thankful for my family, who bring me untold joy each and every day as the kids grow and my wife blossoms as a home-school teacher.
- I am thankful for the opportunity to work and minister in this world-class city at a cool church like Park Community Church. I have done some cool things with my four companies before but this allows me to try and be significant for the Kingdom.
- I am thankful for the ability to have a city home, to do life right here in this fast-paced urban environment with all it has to offer, to expose my kids to all that is good and bad in a large global city called Chicago.
- I am thankful for our parents who have guided us well and helped us get to today – who have now turned into good friends and confidants.
