Big day ahead.

Today, my soon-to-be 10 year old son Benjamin (”son of my strength”) and I fly to Vancouver, British Columbia for a week. While two of those days will be connecting with our Vineyard worship leaders in the west, the rest of the time will be play time.

For each of our children, on their 10th birthday, they fly with me somewhere in the world to mark their changing responsibility as they move from childhood into their pre-teen years.

Then, on their 13th birthday, we throw a huge party, with family and friends from all around, celebrating their movement from childhood into young womanhood or manhood. Significant ifts are given, along with blessings written, visual, spoken and prayed by family and friends.

Then, on their 16th birthday, the shindig is essentially going to be (next year for our oldest, Anna) a big high-five into their young adult years.

Psychologists tell us that if we don’t create rites of passage for our children through significant phases of their growing up years, they will create their own rites of passage – usually with their peers. I’ve seen many families do this – create rites of passage – and I see a security, confidence and maturity in their kids that is remarkable to me.

It all seems to be about identity.

Big day ahead. …For more than just my little guy.

P.S. The contemporary worship movement in the Church is moving away from its adolescence, I believe, through a rite of passage that calls it to own its identity, take some responsibility along with its newfound freedoms, and to honor its fathers and mothers in the historical church.

May the whining of the younger years cease, and the gift be maturely given into the 21st century community – of both the Church and the culture.

I was just hiking through the outback of New Brunswick with my kids and friends, Gary and Joy Best at their new Dominion Hill property. Beautiful vistas, tumbling up rock faces, and wrestling with your own endurance. Fantastic.

It’s where we’re hosting our Institute Of Contemporary & Emerging Worship Studies intensive this October, and I’m excited to see its potential.

Had a good morning today (albeit my mind was quite scattered), focusing on some of our creative youth initiatives going on in St. Stephen – though the classic post message exhaustion (and shades of depression) did hit on occasion.

It’s hard to have vision for things; feels like childbirth. On the other hand, too much childbirth at once… now that would be harder still. It’s kind of like… like… an uphill hike, desperate for everyone to climb with you, to see the view that you’re sure is awaiting you – and will bring shared joy.

Vertical Music just posted my article on Sacred Creativity. Would love feedback.

I’m doing some bible study writing for them as well – a great bunch of hearts there.

Sacred Creativity @__VERTICAL MUSIC__CHANGE YOUR DIRECTION__

Some of the emerging Church conversation, it seems, is like this picture a good friend sent me. We want to go places, but we keep coming back to many of the same ideas that have kept us through the ages – hold to the riches of the past, walk forward into your present and future, and return as needed.

And yet, we trust that we’ll make more progress than our little friend here.

As a favorite quote says, “The art of travel is not in seeing new places, but rather in seeing old places with new eyes.”

I just had a great chat with a friend on why we both, at times, light candles in our times of prayer and devotion.

Her reasons focused on the inner groanings of her heart, stirrings that resist words, yet somehow take shape when she lights a candle and offers a physical representation of her prayers. The candle lit, for a person or situation, reminds her to pray for them. How beautiful.

For me, this morning I lit what I call my “passion candle.” Feeling fairly overwhelmed by my varied responsibilities, I lit the candle to help me turn my heart over to God, focus my attention on His quiet presence in and with me, and to represent the flame of worship that burns in my soul. I then lit a three-tiered candle I have as well, and let it reflect in a mirror that sits behind it - 6 small flames, both actual and reflected, reminding me to quiet my heart and offer myself to God.

For me, lighting candles devotionally, without arcing back into superstition, is an act of creating a sacred space for God and I to meet. I’ve even travelled once or twice with candles to light them wherever I’m staying to create that same space of devotion.

It’s a focus thing.

Here’s an interesting article on candle-lighting in the Roman Catholic tradition:

Candles

At least until Tuesday. Promised my wife I’d step out of the Dan whirlwind, and into gentler breezes to help her recuperate.

These are the choices, challenging as they are, that last at least through this lifetime – and when we’re sitting at one or the others’ bedside in our latter years.

After 13 days away, intensive ministry and teaching, a long flight home, a darling wife down with a peanut allergy attack and now pneumonia, and 3 cherubs needing a papa, I’m going underground for a few days of sabbath.

See you on the other side of unconsiousness, friends.

Oh, the preliminary Institute Of Contemporary & Emerging Worship Studies info site is up.

I’ll be back up blogging regularly in a few days. It was hard from Europe to stay up with it.

Our time in the UK and Holland has just been fantastic. Pics to come.

The joy of working with the Vineyards, New Wine movement and other churches in the two nations has been a blast, and we were continually blown away by God’s deep work in our hearts, and the hearts of those coming to the What Is Worship? “worship worldview” events. In London, Chris Whitelock, the Vineyard Records UK Team, Brian Duane and Band, and Rick and Lulu Williams hosted us, and created a wonderful space for us all to meet with God.

The Lord seemed to be filling us all with great joy and laughter as we explored the reflections of His image in us during the event. Dan made a few cultural “word booboos” which only made the late night chats more, well, spunkier. Ministry times, as well as worship times, were just beautiful, and deep work was happening in many British (and Canadian) hearts.

We spent sweet times with Rick and Lulu Williams and the Riverside Vineyard gang in London, and they were incredibly gracious and good to us. Good friend Marc Pusch from Vineyard Music Canada joined us for the event, and brought great encouragement to us by just being present.

Peter then went on to Holland, and had excellent times of teaching in Johann Vink and the Wageningen Vineyard’s Life Sciences program. He’s not here to fill in the details, but suffice it to say that Pete went over bigtime with the Dutch students gathering. Dan lead a group of Vineyard UK worship “influencers” in a time of strategizing to build their regional worship development network.

We had a blast on the beautiful grounds of Nettle Hill Retreat Center in Antsy, Coventry UK. Sam Lane (Beautiful), Nigel Briggs (Hold On), Wendy O’Connell (Come, Now Is The Time) and Michael and Helen Frye (Be The Centre) were just a few of the great friends who were there as we sought God together, and wracked our hearts and minds to be faithful as equippers to other worship leaders.

What Is Worship? Holland was a blast. It was a joint partnership event between Vineyard Music Benelux and the New Wine movement of the Netherlands (New Wine is the renewal movement among the Anglicans sparked by John Wimber’s visits in the UK many moons ago). Our hosts here were Remco and Jane Hempenius, Johann Vink (pastor, Wageningen Vineyard) and Jan Bernard (national director, Vineyard Nederlands), and Bart Visser (New Wine Nederlands). The new What Is Worship? DVD has just been released by Vineyard Music, so these events were part of promoting the ideas on the new project.

It was difficult, as Anita had a severe stomach/torso attack again while I was away, and great friends Wilma Coates and Mary Ellen Fitch came to the rescue to help the kids. We think we know what has been going on during these attacks – we think that Anita has developed an allergy to peanuts. We’re hoping that this the culprit behind these horrible bouts so that we can move on with some understanding.

Sweet times of worship jointly led between myself and Jedi (and our killer band - 18 year old Raymon just nailing the bass groove) took us places we didn’t expect to go. Very powerful moments of passionate worship. Calvinism and a sense of religious duty is strong in the Netherlands, and the team here felt that the weekend’s “call to joy” was important to both unifying the church streams represented in the interdenominational event, and beginning to break a drought in the soul of the Church in the Nederlands. God is doing beautiful things here, in, among and through a beautiful people.

Dan also got to see a Caravaggio/Rembrandt exhibition in Amsterdam (two of my favorite painters, along with Vermeer) at the famous Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh museum. For those who know me well, it was like I had died and gone to heaven. So much beauty in the world to take in, in such a short time. Thanks, Remco and Jane (and Joel and Micah).

We will be teaching in two of the three Vineyard in the Nederlands this morning, Peter at the Wageningen Vineyard and Dan at the Utrecht Vineyard, and then heading home tomorrow morning.

It’s been a wonderful time with a wide expression of the Church in these two lands in Europe. Thanks for your prayers, and for being strength to us as family, community and friends.

We’re just sitting here at Nettle Hill during a break, setting up blogs for a few friends:

For example:

Graeme Campbell (he set his own up)
www.gcinscotland.blogspot.com

and

Nigel Hemming
www.nigelhemming.blogspot.com

and

Russ McLean
www.russmclean.blogspot.com

We’re heading to Nettle Hill tomorrow with a few worship leaders out of the Vineyard in the UK to process how fresh and living ways of encouraging, equipping and developing worship leaders can occur across the country.

My role is as a facilitator of discussion and to lead us toward goal of stewarding our influence well. This would be a gift, if we all understood our part to play in shaping a generation in its worship expression and leadership.

Eating alot of salad; feel better this trip than many before. Great time with Vineyard leaders, some of the Emergent/Vineyard leaders and other denominational participants this last run. God is attentive both to us, and our generation.

Sweet, highly rhythmic and primal worship moments were being touched in our last event, especially after our eucharist (communion) time on Saturday evening. These are happening everywhere I go. What a blast – it gets so deep with God I can almost taste His nearness. Joy and depth; all together.

Off for now. Much to prepare for tomorrow.

Our event here has been just incredible. Great explorations into the mysteries behind the world, behind the eyes, and behind worship. Pete and I have had a rich time tag-teaming, and many people have had God deeply minister to them, heal them and renew them.

Beauty is alive and well.

Getting ready to head tomorrow to London and to Holland to do What Is Worship? Events.

The fray of activity knowing that you’ll be away for two weeks is always… invigorating. Ask my lovely lady who holds down the fort.

Oh, and if you go to www.apple.com today, you’ll find some cute Mac vs. PC ads.