Sunday morning, 6/20 (Fathers' Day!)

Danny Lee is preaching this Sunday, Fathers' Day, on Luke 15 (yep, the whole chapter!), focusing partly on the point in Luke 15:10, "Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance."

Jesus Christ came to seek and save his sheep, and He knows them all by name. We rejoice in this truth, that not one of His sheep will be lost, and I can't think of a better theme for Fathers' Day Sunday than the love of God, displayed for us in sending His Son to save us.

So, we'll start off our singing with How Deep the Father's Love for Us, but played fast like we play it in college/youth group. By the way, I didn't mention that our college/youth band is playing with me in main service this week. I think the morning is going to be wicked awesome.

Second, we're doing a new song for main service, but that we've been playing for a year or so in college group. It's called Beautiful Jesus, and very appropriately (going with our theme from Luke 15) starts off with the line "Your love O God, displayed for us, as crimson covered over sinless hands."

Our last two songs will go as follows: we'll focus more closely on Christ's perfect sacrifice for our sin with Jesus Paid it All. Then, we'll sing Mighty to Save, as we remind ourselves of the confidence we can have in our Savior, that enables us to go and shine our lights in the world, and fulfill the great commission. I think this will be a joyful, energetic way to end our singing, and hopefully we will be focused on the infinite goodness of knowing our Savior.

See you Sunday morning!

Josh

For Sunday, 6/13:

Well, as I've been preparing for music this Sunday I have concurrently been reading through John Piper's Don't Waste Your Life, and thinking a great deal about boasting only in the cross of Jesus Christ. As Piper puts it in his book, "Life is wasted if we do not grasp the glory of the cross, cherish it for the treasure that it is, and cleave to it as the highest price of every pleasure and the deepest comfort in every pain." Piper is expounding upon Paul's words in Philippians 3:7,8, where he says, "But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of CHrist. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus m Lord [...]" We must see our giving glory to God, through our salvation in Jesus Christ, as the all-consuming passion of our lives. In this we find the reason for which we were created, and we find fullness of joy in living this way.

Therefore, the songs for this Sunday center around the cross of Christ, and his resurrection from the grave that brings us eternal life. We'll start the morning off with Happy Day by Tim Hughes, which we introduced for the first time two weeks ago. It's a song of celebration in what Christ has accomplished, and speaks both of Christ's death/resurrection, and our hope of His return, and being with Him in heaven.

Second, we'll sing of the joy that it is to know Jesus Christ as our Savior, and worship Him as Lord of our lives in Blessed Assurance, a good old hymn by Fanny Crosby.

Third, we'll sing Because of Your Love, as we continue to meditate on what Christ has done for us, and that He did it all out of his mercy and love.

We'll end our singing with a There is a Redeemer, that sort of encompasses all of the themes of the previous songs - joy in what Christ has accomplished for us on the cross, his glorious resurrection that has brought us eternal life, and the glorious return of Christ and hope of Heaven.