I was pretty excited when our brick shipment for The Living Room expansion arrived yesterday. Here they are:   Why do I like these bricks so much?

• They'll add color, variety, and pop to our exterior.
• It means construction is progressing.
• They are but tools we'll use to invite people into a living relationship with Jesus Christ.

In honor of last night’s NCAA title game between Clemson and Alabama, here’s a list of my Top Five College Football helmet designs. The list is completely subjective. And, as you’ll see, thoroughly dominated by nostalgia. And, sorry, no designs with player numbers or tiger paws. 5. New Mexico Lobos. OK, New Mexico has never been and probably will never be any good at football. But I love the name “lobos.” And I also love the snarling replica on the helmets they wear. Perhaps one day the agression will transfer from headgear to playing field. 4. USC Trojans. This is actually an overall UNIFORM award. The cardinal and gold have always been among the coolest combinations in college football. Plus, in the early days — think Mike Garrett and O.J. Simpson (when he was known for football) in the 1960s — the helmet was plain. No little Trojan on the side. I think that helmet was actually better. But in any event, given the way the colors work together and as a salute to all those Heismans and National Championships, USC comes in at #4. 3. The Air Force Falcons. Great design. Conveys shock and awe. It’s so good, in fact, that I believe the San Diego Chargers copied it. 2. Texas Tech Red Raiders. Cut me some slack here. What letter does “Talbot” begin with? “T”, of course. So when I first saw this design as a little boy and realized how the two “Ts” intersected and interlocked, I was hooked. The black and red isn’t half bad, either. In fact, I was so enamored as a 6 year old that Texas Tech ALMOST became my favorite team . . . 1. SMU Mustangs. Almost for Texas Tech because no one could ever top my beloved SMU team or its dynamic design. I’m not sure which came first — SMU or Ford — put I can’t think of a logo that has more horsepower than this one. Here’s the current helmet: Back in 2007, they had a different color scheme that I think worked even better . . . but the team went 0-12 that year and that was that. And the one closest to my heart was the red helmet with the running white mustang that the team wore in the early 1970s . . . when I was at the age that all my heroes and helmets were larger than life.    

Yesterday's message at Good Shepherd . . . started with a brief version of the oldie-but-good "I Will Enter His Gates"; gave the bottom line away VERY EARLY; included a mid-sermon open mike time; concluded with a video testimony; led to an invitation for the congregation actually to move up to the front in a closing act of worship.   So here it is -- a sermon that was less a sermon than an orchestrated movement with this bottom line:  Thank God for his what.  Praise God for his who. ----------------------------------------------------- Preceded by oldie “I Will Enter His Gates” from Ps 100 Oh that’s an oldie but goodie, isn’t it? But did you know that that much-loved little chorus from the 90s comes directly from Psalm 100? You just sang the bible! (Always by far the easiest way to memorize Scripture.) So let’s read the entirety of Psalm 100 out loud and together: You know, between that 90s chorus of Enter His Gates and the more robust Shout To The Lord and all the times our Jewish ancestors have used it in the temple and the synagogues, Psalm 100 is probably the most chanted/sung/recited psalm in all of history. It’s not as well known as #23, of course – The Lord is my Shepherd – but in terms of being used as we are using it today – as an act of collective worship & prayer when the people of God gather together – of all the of 150 Psalms, I’m pretty sure this one is at the top of the charts. The most downloaded song of them all! And I love what it has to say and to show about this thing we do when we gather. I also love how it is going to shape our time in this place today, especially how it combines singing and prayer; worship & reverence. Because Psalm 100 makes me think of the guy in the Old West who walked into a saloon and saw a dog sitting at a table playing poker with three men. The visitor was kind of astounded and so he asked, “Can he play?” And one of the other bystanders answered, “Yeah, but he’s not very good . . . whenever he gets a good hand, he wags his tail.” That’s Psalm 100. Full of people who know that in God they have been dealt a good hand. And people who sorta can’t help themselves but to offer up some kind of celebration in response. And of all the elements piled into this brief little Psalm, the one I love most is one we sang earlier: I will enter his gates with thanksgiving in my heart; I will enter his courts with praise. Because that one line opens up an entirely new world in terms of how we define ourselves. And here it is. And yes, I am telling you the thing I’m going to tell you much earlier than usual. That’s because we’re going to spend the rest of the time living in to it: Thank God for his WHAT and praise God for his WHO. Say that with me: See, when it says “enter his gates with thanksgiving,” you need a picture of what the ancient Jerusalem temple looked like (AV schematic, I hope!). In the design of that temple, the gates were a bit periphery. They were close but not totally intimate. You enter THOSE gates, you begin to approach the throne of God with thanks. It’s almost preliminary to the real intimacy, the real connection with God that will come later. And when we think about being thankful, Lord knows the last thing I want to be is trite. I don’t want to preach to you about having an “attitude of gratitude.” And yet . . . and yet . . . Lord, have mercy. Do you know the flip side? Do you realize all that we take for granted? Good God. It’s why I love the journal of Matthew Henry, an 18th century preacher, from the day after he was robbed:   “Let me be thankful first, because I was never robbed before; second, because although they took my purse, they did not take my life; third, let me be thankful that although they took my all, it was not much; and fourth, because it was I who was robbed and not I who robbed.” Oh you’ve got that. Some of you know that except for the BUT GOD in your life, you’d be dead. Or incarcerated. Or still in rehab. Or under a bridge somewhere. Or in such deep despair that when the alarm went off this morning, you’d have pulled the covers back over your head, just hoping you could fall back to sleep and not wake up. But that’s not what happened; that’s not what you did; that’s not who you are anymore. Why not? BUT GOD. So listen: if you are silent about those thanks, if you take the favor of God for granted, then the WORLD and its blasé, “whatever” mentality DEFINES YOU!! And you don’t want that! How about instead you live and worship and pray in a way that the Lord and his goodness and favor do the defining and not the world and its “whatever”? Because you know what I’m grateful for? IT’S NOT INEVITABLE. Huh? Yeah! It’s not inevitable. Everybody tells you that if you have teens they’re gonna rebel against you and walk away from Jesus at least for a little bit. Guess what? We lived through it twice and it didn’t happen either time! Both still in a living relationship with Jesus Christ. How? BUT GOD. How could I not publicly thank him for that? I believe it because I’ve lived it.  Thank God for his WHAT and praise God for his WHO. How about you? OPEN MIKE TIME, letting them know I’ve got more to say. But there’s more. Look at that next part of 100:4: enter his courts with praise. Remember the diagram? Courts are inner. Closer to the holy of holies. The implication being more connected to the heartbeat of God. So his gates – outside, periphery – with thanks. OK, good, great. But his courts – inner, closer – with praise. The difference? Remember the bottom line:  Thank God for his WHAT and praise God for his WHO.     Meaning: his character, his essence, his being. Oh there’s a world of difference there and it’s why I believe praise brings you closer to the heart of a living relationship with Jesus Christ: because it comes regardless of the level of blessing in your life. You thank God for his WHAT but you praise God for his WHO even when the what is absent!!! Even when there are no blessings, even when doubt and fear and lack surround you, you still tell him how great and awesome and perfect and loving and holy he is. Whew! That’s faith!   Because please notice this super important pattern in Psalm 100. Verses 1 & 2: Shout & Worship Followed by verse 3: Know. Huh. So what you do with your voice and even with your body (as we’ll see) has to be connected with how you think with your mind. And in case you miss the pattern the first time, the songwriter puts it in a second time in v. 4 – Enter (singing) and v. 5 – For he is good. Your joyful singing is based on your truthful knowing. What you do with your feelings is ALWAYS connected to how you believe in your mind. It is a masterful repetition and it has everything to do with the REFRAIN. Because know this: while God loves people who are Hindu (AV) when they worship a sacred cow, he is not pleased. He may admire their sincerity, he will love them eternally, but he doesn’t feel pleasure. And he wants that Hindu – or Buddhist or Muslim or astrologer for that matter – to know who is really on the throne: not karma, not the stars, not the cow, but Jesus and Jesus alone. The  Thank God for his WHAT and praise God for his WHO. is based on the supreme unveiling of God in Jesus and when you know him, savor him, appreciate him, praise him for his WHO – his love AND judgment, his kindness AND severity, his way to heaven AND his power to send to hell, his position as the lowly born AND the resurrected king – whew! You realize how much he deserves it. Listen: that’s why it’s a prayer, an experience that defines you. Because it pre-empts the world’s attempts to do so. The world wants to define you by your possessions or lack thereof. Praising prayer defines you because you ARE THE POSSESSION! Look at 100:3b! We are his, the sheep of his pasture! The best thing about you is that you are owned! To be owned is good news! And that only happens when you put your mind to work pondering what you heart already feels while it’s singing. hank God for his WHAT and praise God for his WHO.   And praise . . . praise is so . . . bodily. The actual word for “worship” in the ancient language is to fall prostrate. That’s why we lift hands here at GS (and why I’d like more of you to do so!). I know some of you think when you see it: “Oh Lord, that’s just one step before the snakes come out! I knew it as soon as I saw those drums and those jeans!” Nope. Lifting a hand means two things: 1) I agree with what’s being said or sung (can do it during a message) and 2) I am yielded to the Spirit who has authority in this room. That’s it. Agreement and yieldedness. Just one of many ways your body responds to God in a knowing way a Thank God for his WHAT and praise God for his WHO. way.   And the most mature thing about praise is, like I said, that it is regardless of circumstances. Like that guy who kept coming to church, Sunday after Sunday, even after he lost first his vision and then his hearing. And finally someone asked him why he continued to go. “Because,” he cried out, “I want everyone to know whose side I’m on!” Yep, that’s prayer, that’s worship that defines him. REF Or it’s like what happened in the life of someone here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUA7tIdam8E     Closing praise set in which people are invited to come and sing in front of platform and receive Spirit power . . . .  

Would you like to know the best thing about this past week in my life as a pastor? How many of the people of Good Shepherd told me they were using the PrayFast Prayer Guide.  That list includes . . .

• A mom and her 19 year old daughter who used the guide, together, at night, just before falling asleep;
• A woman who sent me this message:  "I MUST tell you that I am REALLY enjoying the Prayfast guide!! I have been starting my day with scripture and prayer for some time now but this is different. I LOVE the way it's teaching me to pray deeper than I have before. I can feel such a strong connection with God, for that I am grateful."
• A guy, new to this idea of faith and newer to the idea of daily prayer, who finds the format both understandable and useful.
• A couple who are veterans of the Christian faith who nevertheless are finding a fresh filling of the Holy Spirit through the familiar practice of time away and alone with God.
• A staffer using the material as family devotions.

Some more good news?  We have 200 new hard copies that will be available on Sunday morning.  That's in addition to the downloadable version available at www.gsumc.org. So what's ahead for this Sunday? We're going to see from Psalm 100 how to pray prayers that define us.  That's pretty important -- because did you know that the world is trying to define you?  Either through its blasé, "whatever" attitude or by tallying up your possessions.  The world defines you by what you have.  As we'll see, Psalm 100 has a quite different approach. Last thing -- for the people of Good Shepherd.  We're in a nice run where there are no more seats at 10 a.m.  We've used not only the VIP seats (better name than "overflow," right?) and then putting folding chairs in the lobby.  You know where you can find a seat?  8:30.  A small migration on your part will make way for us to have multiplication in the numbers of people who are being invited into a living relationship with Jesus Christ. So:  Sunday. 8:30.  10.  11:30.

If you're going to do a series unlike any other, why not include a night unlike any other?   That's right.  Our first ever Night Of Worship at Good Shepherd. As a culmination of PrayFast, the Worship Arts team will be hosting a Night of Worship on January 29th. There will be extended times of music and singing along with other powerful worship moments. The event will start at 7pm in the Worship Center. We won't have special care for the kids, but all are welcome in the Worship Center. Just think . . . for one night . . . no worries about "finishing" one service so the "next" service can come in . . . just an extended to time to sing, to listen, to pray, to be.