Last night in our student ministry, we did not have anyone available to lead worship for our student worship service.  This is not a good situation to be in.  I was glad that a friend of mine let me know about a great resource for just such situations.  It is LifeChurch.tv’s open resources.  I have been amazed at the heart of LifeChurch.tv.  They truly want to help out fellow believers around the world.  They have created many great tools that are free for churches who might not be able to get those resources if they were charged the normal value.  This open resource page of LifeChurch.tv has so many tools that you can use: messages (for kids, youth, and adults), small group studies, worship sets, and more.

As I was saying, last night we had no one to lead our group in musical worship.  We actually used one of the worship sets (which you can download as a .mov or .wmv file) and just played it on the screen.  It was like a live simulcast of a worship service.  The leaders made it seem as if our group was right there in the room with them.  Not to mention that the talent of these worship leaders is off the charts.

Next time you get in a bind and need a little help, check out LifeChurch.tv’s open resources that are available to churches around the globe… for free!

You gotta check out this funny video about musicians getting older.

I was driving back to the house today to enjoy some Subway lunch that I had picked up and was flipping through the radio stations when I came upon the classic rock station in town (yeah, baby).  Bon Jovi’ s “You Give Love A Bad Name” was blaring from my speakers.  It has been a while since I heard that little tune.  As I listened along, my mind began to hang on the chorus of that song…

Shot through the heart and you’re to blame
you give love a bad name.

It is times like this that I know that I am what the Bible calls a Christian because the Holy Spirit began speaking to me about how this chorus relates to God.  I know that Jon Bon Jovi had anything but God on his mind when he wrote/performed that song, but God was having a moment with me.

• 1 John 4:16 tells us that “God is love.”
• Acts 11:26 says that the followers of Jesus were first called ‘Christians’ in Antioch.  This term means “little Christ” or “like Christ”.

If God is love, and we are His representatives and supposed to look like Him, the question that arose in my mind is “are we giving LOVE a bad name?”  Whether we like it or not, a Christ-follower is the clearest picture of who God is on this earth at this time.  May it never be said of us that we are giving LOVE (our God) a bad name.

The other day, I got my first shipment here at my current church of the YLO media pack.  If you are in student ministry, you need to have this budgeted for.  You can find out more about this great resource of music, posters, dvds, bible studies, and even a couple of surprises every now and then by going to interlinc’s website.

The first cd that I decided to check out was Red’s “Innocence and Instinct”.  I am glad that I did.  This cd is one that is filled with some great rocking sounds and an even better message.  It’s been a long time since I’ve heard a true Christian rock band that really made me listen to the whole cd.  This one did easily.  If you are looking for something that will make you feel it down deep with some great riffs and lyrics, go and get this cd.  You won’t be disappointed.

Grade: A-