BuildPlant Blog

I imagine that even angels can get frustrated trying to learn some worship songs... This morning Ingrid was listening to an old Vineyard worship CD titled " Holy And Anointed One " and was trying to memorize the words of the songs. One song in particular was giving her difficulty. The song is called "Redeemer" and the words go like this: Redeemer, Mighty One King of kings above all the earth Father of light, Healer of lives Lord God Most High And yet You call me loved one You even call me chosen You cherish me, calling me friend (repeat) Messiah, Holy One Name above all other names Song of Songs, Word of Life Lord God Most High And yet You call me loved one You even call me chosen You cherish me, calling me friend (repeat) Ingrid said to me, "The chorus is great, it's powerful. But I can never remember the verses, the words don't seem to follow one another. I think the best worship songs are ones that are easy to remember, like "Blessed Be The Name Of The Lord." The words of that song are simple but express truth, and the use of repetition emphasizes this. The music is also very powerful." I replied that I thought she was absolutely correct, and that the weakness with the song "Redeemer" is that the verses are a kind of "word salad" meaning that there's no logical reason behind the order of the words. Redeemer, King, Father, Healer, Lord Messiah, Holy One, Song of Songs, Word of Life — all true of course, but there's no simple pattern to help one remember the order of the words. As I mention in Chapter 4: Writing Worship Songs of my book Simple Kingdom: Worship , I've sometimes been guilty myself of using the "word salad" appoach when writing worship songs. For example the following song, which a dear friend of ours once told us was her "most favorite worship song ever," has words that are so hard to memorize that I can't even get them straight myself when I try to sing it: Because You Are Beautiful © 2016 by Mitch Tulloch (listen on SoundCloud ) Because you are beautiful, I will seek your face. Because you are wonderful, I will stand in awe. Because you are marvelous, I will lift my hands. Because you are glorious, I will praise your name. I'm not saying that "Redeemer" is a bad song. It's actually a good song. But it's not that easy to learn. And as Carol Wimber reminded us in her book "The Way It Was," her husband John especially loved musicians who could write simple worship songs that were easy to sing and play, songs that even novice guitarists could use when they led worship times in home fellowships. So if you are a worshipper and an aspiring songwriter, try laying down your talents and ambitions at the feet of the Lord and write worship songs that anyone can learn, songs one can sing while washing the car, preparing meals, walking the dog or cutting the grass. Hear what I'm sayin'? Cheers, Mitch (Image: Angel playing the lute by Rosso Fiorentino, 1495 – 1540)

A few years ago an old friend of Ingrid’s who lives in BC had a word from the Lord for us. The word was Psalm 92:13-15 and in the Jerusalem Bible it reads like this: Planted in the house of Yahweh, they will flourish in the courts of our God, still bearing fruit in old age, still remaining fresh and green, to proclaim that Yahweh is righteous, my rock in whom no fault is to be found! The important part — the part that struck us with prophetic forcefulness — was this: still bearing fruit in old age This encouraged us tremendously because at the time we were feeling our age. And even though the desire to serve the Lord was still there, the energy just wasn’t there anymore. We were growing old. For over four decades Ingrid and I have been building and planting God’s kingdom. We’ve started home fellowships and house churches, helped establish church plants, trained and led ministry teams, led Bible Studies, delivered food hampers to the poor and and done all kinds of other kingdom stuff. But we’ve reached a point in our lives — I’m in my 70s now — where there are some things that we just can’t do anymore. Like starting another home fellowship. We see the need for one, a place where we can invite those we’ve been trying to draw into the kingdom. But the reality is we can’t do it anymore. We’re just too old. In earlier times our midweek homegroup meetings often ran until midnight as we counselled and ministered to people. Now however we head to bed around 9 pm so we can get enough sleep to function the following day. But if we’re too old now to start something — and if you start something then you’re also going to have to lead it, right? Because otherwise it’ll fall apart. So then, if you’re too old to start and lead something, what can you still do? My friend Martin, who is in a similar season of life, says what we can do is to resource those leading the front end of the battle. And that’s exactly what Ingrid and I have been trying to do with our BuildPlant.org website: to provided resources, based on our decades of experience, for those who are young and bold (and maybe crazy) enough to want to build and plant fellowships, equip and lead ministry teams, train worship leaders and songwriters, and so on. But there’s also something else you can do for God’s kingdom when you’re old like we are. And that’s to pray. And guess what? Jesus even tells us what we should be praying for. Because the problem is that there are few who are willing to commit the time, energy and money— and deal with all the attendant difficulties and problems and frustrations and disappointments and pushback and flak — involved in building and planting fellowships, equipping and leading ministry teams, training worship leaders and songwriters, and such kinds of stuff. So then, considering this situation what should we as old leaders who can no longer lead be praying for? The answer lies in what Jesus said as recorded in Luke 10:2: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” In chapter 2 of our book Simple Kingdom: Discipleship I explain what Jesus is actually saying in this verse. Here's an excerpt: There's a double note of urgency in what Jesus said here. First, he says pray earnestly—earnestly! The underlying Greek word used here expresses the idea of begging for something that is very much needed, as in "Please, sir!" And the Greek verb translated above as "send out" isn't the same as the word used earlier in Luke 9:2 where Jesus "sent out" the Twelve. Luke 10:2 instead uses a word found elsewhere in the Gospels when referring to driving out demons. So what Jesus is actually saying here is something like this: “There aren't enough of my followers who know what it really means to be a disciple. So I beg you, please pray earnestly that God will push more Christians out of their comfort zones, out of the pews and into the streets, so they can gather more people into my Father's kingdom.” Because the meat is in the street, as Wimber used to say. And the time is short, too. But we'll talk about that later. So to conclude then, I may be too old to start and lead another home fellowship or organize evening equipping workshops. But I can still try to create resources like the ones you find on this website to help others do the heavy lifting in building and planting. And I can also pray what Jesus says we should all be praying. And I’m going to pray this. Earnestly. Cheers, Mitch (Image: L'homme à la houe (Man With a Hoe) by Jean-François Millet, ca. 1860, J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles)

The other day Ingrid and I were reading together some passages in the Gospel of Luke and we ended up focusing on the parable of the Prodigal Son. This is often used by preachers to show how ready God is to forgive sinners who repent. But the real point of the story comes at the end when Jesus describes the reaction of the older son to his father’s celebrating his younger brother’s return: “Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.’ But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’“ (Luke 15:11-32) Ingrid offers the following comments on this: “I’ve heard this parable told again and again in church, and it’s always the same: about the Heavenly Father’s love for us. But the point Jesus is trying to make here to his audience — the Pharisees — is the behavior of the older brother. The older brother never went out looking for his brother to try and bring him back. He didn’t have a heart of compassion. And when his brother returned, he was jealous that his father had made a feast to celebrate his return.” Ingrid really nails it here. Jesus came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10). And if that’s what Jesus did, then that’s what we’re supposed to do if we’re really followers of Jesus. Because being a follower of Jesus simply means doing what Jesus did. And that’s what our book Simple Kingdom: Discipleship is all about. Give it a read if you haven’t done so yet, it’s free to read online and is also available as a free PDF download . Cheers, Mitch and Ingrid (Image: Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, The Return of the Prodigal Son, c.1660, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, Ireland)

Happy Easter everyone!  Love in Christ, Mitch and Ingrid (The image of Christ is from our visit to the Catacombs in Rome many years ago.)

The kingdom of God was the central theme of Jesus' teaching during his time among us. Matthew reports that Jesus "went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people" (Matthew 4:23). Mark says Jesus announced that "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel" (Mark 1:15). The gospel of the kingdom is Good News because it means God has come in Jesus to reign and rule, and to reclaim what is rightfully his. At present we see God's kingdom coming intermittently, according to the Father's will, as people are saved, healed and delivered from Satan's dominion over them. John tells us however that the day will come when "the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever" (Revelations 11:15). Until then, our assignment as followers of Jesus is to keep sowing into his heavenly kingdom (Luke 8:4-15). We do this by sharing our testimony, by praying for the sick and demonized, and by helping the poor and oppressed. We also do this by strengthening the church — God's people — which Paul describes as "the pillar and foundation of the truth" (1 Timothy 3:15). That is our aim here with BuildPlant.org and we encourage you to sow together with us into God's kingdom by telling others about the books and songs that are freely available on our website. Our books include: Simple Kingdom: Home Fellowships , which demonstrates how small home fellowships are the place where church really happens — where people get saved, healed, encouraged, equipped and discipled. SImple Kingdom: Worship , which highlights the value of simple, intimate worship and includes detailed instruction on how to write worship songs and how to lead worship in home fellowships. Simple Kingdom: Discipleship , which explains that following Jesus means not only doing what Jesus did — gathering people into God's kingdom — but also doing it how Jesus did it — by healing the sick, casting out demons, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. We ask you to help us advance God's kingdom by sharing links to our free books and worship songs with others who belong to your church or home fellowship, with any church leaders you may know personally, and with any of your family and friends you think may benefit. You can use the icons at the bottom of each page of our website to easily share a link to that page either on social media or via email. Thank you! — Mitch and Ingrid

I've broken up the online version of our book Simple Kingdom: Discipleship into separate pages for each chapter. That way you can use the book's table of contents to jump directly to the particular chapter you want to read instead of scrolling, scrolling, scrolling until you find it. Much easier to read now instead of having the entire book on a single page. I'll also do this with our other two Simple Kingdom books when I have some time. --Mitch

Is your house built upon a rock or has it been built on sand? In the Gospel of Matthew Jesus tells the following parable: "Everyone who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it." (Matthew 7:24-27 ESV) What we often miss when we read this parable is that the storms of life can affect all of us. Both those who follow Christ and those who follow the spirit of this present age are subject to sudden and unexpected happenings that can shake the stability of our earthly existence. The difference though is that when your life is grounded on following Jesus, the storms of life may shake your existence but it won't all come crashing down like it does for so many people around you. Look at all the precious promises our heavenly Father has given us as his children: The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all. (Psalm 34:19 NIV) The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand. (Psalm 37:23-24 NIV) Ingrid likes these promises which from Psalm 91:14-16. The translation here is from the Jerusalem Bible: I rescue all who cling to me, I protect whoever knows my name, I answer everyone who invokes me, I am with them when they are in trouble; I bring them safety and honour. I give them life, long and full, and show them how I can save.’ And then there's this one, which is one of my own favorites: When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. (Isaiah 43:2 NIV) Ingrid also adds the following words taken from an old hymn which perfectly sums everything up: On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand, All other ground is sinking sand. Both Ingrid and I can testify that God is faithful, that he always does what he promises in Scripture. So if you know God, you can always trust him completely. And if you don't know God yet, you can still meet Him through his son Jesus. Read my testimony to find out how you too can enter into a personal relationship with the living God. Blessings in Christ, ---Mitch