The Idea first came to me when I heard you speak some months ago. I was traveling and happened to be in your town that evening. I always enjoy hearing musicians speak because of the artistry with which they view their world and God's beauty.
Though I've met many of your associates, I've never personally spoken with or met you and that is one reason The Idea seemed to resonate with me. As I listened to you that evening, I discerned that, more than being merely a worship leader, you are a worshiping leader ...someone who will worship before, during, after, or in the absence of The Music. This is, sadly, somewhat rare, especially among those we know of as Worship Leaders.
Go to most churches in North America and ask to meet the Worship Leader, and you'll almost always be introduced to a musician. You will not always be introduced to a worshipper. Sometimes, those we call 'the worship team', are merely musicians. Rare is the gifted musician who will worship in the desert when stripped of The Music, but I suspect that you are such a leader.
The Idea came to me as you spoke that evening. I was recently at a church where the speaker had everyone stand...and roar. A sustained, hell-trembling shout of warriors declaring victory. At first, I joined in, but then I listened. It was... beautiful... musical...
ever-filling and overflowing. I heard in the shout, tones, harmonies, intervals (fourths and fifths mostly) and, just beyond discernability, The Voice. I've listened to that moment online several times since then and each time, I hear the music and the voice...speaking, challenging, comforting...inhabiting. God lives in that roar.
As a recovering musician and worship leader, I have gone through the desert (5 years where God utterly stripped me of The Music) and now, as I sometimes serve as armor bearer for young worship leaders, I often encourage them to lead in worship...congregational, community worship...without using music at all. For me, the discovery was that The Music is a multi-splendored gateway into unspeakable wonders of God's very nature and presence. So beautiful is the gateway, that I had spent years in awe of the gate and never fully walking through into The Presence.
One of the beautiful distinctives of your particular house is that you have a core community who, rather than gathering regularly to worship and be fed, instead feast in The Presence and worship continually...gathering as well-fed worshipers to celebrate rather than confining worship to a music box and expecting a pastor to feed them once or twice a week.
(Although...it would be interesting to see the dynamic if they were to gather and discover that there will be no music this week...or, even better...just banjo and tuba background with scripture verses projected on the screen. If I can't worship with bad music or no music, how do I expect to be a worshipping warrior in the heat of battle? But I digress.)
Anyway...As I stood there listening to The Voice, singing and speaking in the roar of His saints, I had The Idea.
As a creative, artisitic type, I sometimes struggle with important disciplines. I've only been walking with Jesus for 40 years, so I'm still new at this. Very often, God speaks...communicating with me across the spectrum of understanding, from emotion to intellect to inspiration to laughter to comfort and kick-in-the-butt motivation. But I've not always exercised the proper discipline of stewarding his communication in my life.
So, The Idea was for me to begin writing down what I'm hearing and then make myself accountable in some way for refining what He is saying to me. The Idea...is that I will, from time to time, send you in written form, the stuff I'm learning in The Presence.
That's it. Sort of my way of being accountable...knowing that someone, somewhere is expecting something from me. I don't expect you to respond or, frankly, even to read what I send. I may post some of it online, blog it, etc., but I will not reveal to anyone that it is you to whom I am being accountable.
And now...May your Father, who continually desires to inhabit the deepest details of your life, bless you, inspire you, fill you without ceasing, show you, tell you, sing to you, paint for you, reason with you, adore you and empower you to be more like you than you've ever been before.
Jesus is here. All is well.
I Am Daniel
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