Category Archives: testimonies

Baptist Pastor Promotes Participatory Church

Posted on May 25, 2013 by

I “stumbled upon” a 1971 book by a Baptist pastor that describes a participatory style church service: “One winter morning I stopped for worship at a small East Tennessee rural church . . . The singing stopped and he (the … Continue reading →

Posted in Albert McClellan, attitude, East Tennessee, festival, mystery, praising God, pray for one another, prayer, praying, praying community, Quotations, Quotes, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Corps, shouting in church, simple church, testimonies, testimony, The Salvation Army, weeping | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Use Words! Talk About Religion! Testify!

Posted on April 4, 2013 by

Church is not carefully crafted and controlled ceremonies.  It is a symphony of spontaneous, heart-felt testimonies.  It’s not what we’ve planned, learned, and memorized; but what we have seen and heard! Unfortunately, the work of the living God in human … Continue reading →

Posted in If necessary use words, let the redeemed of the Lord say so, living out the Gospel, power, preach without words, preaching, preaching the Word, prompted by the Spirit, religion, religious ceremonies, religious information, religious talks, religious tradition, ritual, salvation, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Corps, Salvationists, shout it from the housetops, speaking out, Spirit-filled, Spirit-led, spiritual, spiritual awakening, spiritual church, spiritual flow, spiritual formation, story, testimonies, testimony, TN, What I tell you in secret | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

What Is “Effective Preaching?”

Posted on March 12, 2013 by

Information:  A message prepared and delivered by a mind, reaches a mind. Inspiration:  The testimony of a burning heart reaches a heart. God is looking for a burning heart; not for doctrinal charts. “I would rather teach one man to … Continue reading →

Posted in Charles Spurgeon, Come Join Our Army, Crest Books, doctrinal charts, early Salvation Army, exhortations, how to pray, how to preach, information, inspiration, inspirational, learning to pray, mind, prayer, preaching the Word, R.G. Moyles, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Corps, Salvationists, sermon series, testimonies, testimony, USA, William Booth | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Reader’s Digest Acknowledges Participatory Style Of First Century Christian Worship

Posted on February 2, 2013 by

Contemporary society is moving toward more participation in management and meetings.  This can be seen in business management styles, the Oprah Show, and even Facebook.  However, the contemporary church seems stuck on sermons — non-participatory, one-person, lectures. However, early Christian … Continue reading →

Posted in 1 Corinthians 14:26, After Jesus, aristocrats, church, church history, church meetings, church program, church roles, Corinth, edification, first century, First Century Church, freedmen, hymn, hymns, Music City, Nashville, participatory church, Paul of Tarsus, Quotations, quote, Quotes, Roman, Roman Empire, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Corps, Salvationists, simple church, slaves, speaking in tongues, Spirit-led, Spirit-prompted, spiritual awakening, spiritual innovation, spiritual interaction, surrender to God, testimonies, testimony, The Salvation Army, tongues, triumph of Christianity | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Church flows from the Spirit; it’s not produced by a program.

Posted on January 12, 2013 by

Church is God’s orchestra, playing His symphony, as each member focuses on, listens to, and obeys the Conductor — the living, resurrected Jesus Christ. Come and experience God’s orchestra playing in Nashville every Sunday morning at 10:45 as each member … Continue reading →

Posted in awe, awe inspiring, Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Christian values, Christianity, church, church meetings, church program, church programs, church roles, church services, church structure, live performance, live to please God, LP Field, music, Music City, musicals, Nashville tourist attractions, order of worship, organic church, praise and worship, Ryman Auditorium, Son-shine, spirit, Spirit-filled, Spirit-led, spiritual innovation, spiritual interaction, spiritual transformation, Tennessee Titans, testimonies, testimony, Titans' stadium, Uncategorized, unprogrammed church, What is church?, worship | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Cat In The Hat Shares The Rap On His Cap

Posted on January 8, 2013 by

Yo! Let’s go, We gotta show A better way to pray Than sittin’ in pews Hearin’ preacha views. We got da great news! Let everybody share A prayer or a care. Take da flag Out of da bag; Blood & … Continue reading →

Posted in alternative church, alternative lifestyle, belief, blood of Jesus, burning heart, celebration, change, change agent, Christ, Christ followers, Christian flag, Christian rap, Christian values, contagion, countercultural, creativity, culture, environment, evangelism, faith-based, filled with the Spirit, fire, fire of the Holy Spirit, flag, floods, free spirit, holiness, holy, improv, insight, inspiration, Jesus, Jesus Christ, joy, move of God, music, organic church, popular culture, prayer, praying, preaching, rapping, revival, sermons, spiritual, spiritual awakening, spiritual fire, spiritual formation, spiritual innovation, testimonies | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Tag Cloud For Spirit-Led (Rather Than Human Programmed) Church . . .

Posted on January 4, 2013 by

A tag cloud is a visual representation of the frequency of the use of words (tags) to find a website (sometimes called a word cloud or a weighted list in visual form).  What words would be in a tag cloud … Continue reading →

Posted in 2 Corinthians 14:26, action packed, Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Bible type revival, biblical, Christian organizations, church meetings, church program, church programs, church roles, church services, contagion, controversial, faith-based, Holy Spirit, house church, Jesus, Jesus Christ, participatory church, religious ceremonies, religious innovation, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Corps, Salvationists, simple church, Spirit-filled, Spirit-led, spiritual, spiritual innovation, supernatural, surrender to God, tag team, tags, testimonies, testimony, website | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Imitator or Radiator? (Awash In The World or Aflame For God?)

Posted on December 29, 2012 by

Are you a radiator spreading the presence and power of Christ to the people around you or an imitator following the influence of popular culture? Are you transforming your friends, neighbors, coworkers and community by godly influence or are you … Continue reading →

Posted in aflame, alternative lifestyle, apologists, awash, be transformed by the renewing of your mind, belief, belief system, biblical, burning heart, change agent, Christ followers, Christ-centered, Christian, comfort zone, complacency, contagion, contemplation, controversy, conversion, convert, corrupt culture, countercultural, current events, fire of the Holy Spirit, imitator, Jesus, Jesus Christ, meaning, media, media circus, ministry, mission field, missional, missionary, moral principles, morality, obedience, obedience is better than sacrifice, obeying orders, popular culture, radiator, sales, salesperson, spiritual transformation, spiritual warfare, testimonies, thermometer, thermostat, values | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Don’t Settle For Glee When You Can Have Worglee!

Posted on December 15, 2012 by

Don’t settle for Glee on TV, when you can have worglee in your daily life.  Worglee is anticipating and expecting good things to happen to you and to the people you love.  It’s the opposite of worry.  Although the process … Continue reading →

Posted in adventure, angst, anxiety, anxious thoughts, belief, belief system, blessings, bummer, celebration, celebrations, change, change management, choice, comfort, compassion, contemplation, creativity, decision-making, discomfort, disconnect, discouragement, doubts, encouragement, experiment, faith, freedom, guidance, habit, health, health care, insight, inspiration, joy, language, lifestyles, making decisions, message, misery, motivation, revelation, security, self-image, self-talk, stop worrying, television, testimonies, testimony, thoughts, TV, values, words | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

12/12/12 — 12 Out Of The Box Thoughts About Church

Posted on December 12, 2012 by

Here are 12 out-of-the-box thoughts about church on 12/12/12. 1)  Church is not God in a noose, but God on the loose! 2)  Church is not spectators sitting, but believers battling the forces of darkness! 3)  Church is not a … Continue reading →

Posted in agenda, Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Christian community, church meetings, church program, church programs, creeds, denominations, do church, early church, followers of Christ, freedom, furnace, gifts of the Spirit, God on the loose, godly sorrow, guide, hype, ice maker, idealism, improv, improvisation, inner coach, lecture, message, miracles, moral failure, move of God, movement, non-church, people of God, power, powerhouse, preaching, Protestant, repent, repentance, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Corps, Salvationists, seduction, sermon, sermons, service, shocking statements, sin, soul food, speaking out, spectators, Spirit-led, spiritual fire, spiritual training, spiritual transformation, spiritual warfare, still small voice, submission, supernatural, surrender, surrender to God, testimonies, testimony, The Salvation Army, theology, thoughts, tradition, two or more, Western religion | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment