It’s been a fantastic 6 weeks - the most nations we’ve ever had the privilege of visiting in such a short period of time. Starting off in the Ukraine with Passion, we went on to Sweden, Uganda, France and back to the UK (and managed a quick USA visit in between!) Then the tour with Hillsong London kicked in, and we had the joy of visiting Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Italy, Switzerland and Holland. On a natural level, just seeing so many places and meeting so many different people in such a short period of time has been inspiring. We’ve been in some beautiful and buzzing cities. But looking beyond that, it’s been exhilarating to look through the ‘kingdom of God’ lens and get a tiny little view of what is going on in this world. God is orchestrating far more than any of us are really aware of, that’s for sure!
Every single event was an encouragement to the soul: a joy to see people gathering together so passionately and purposefully for the worship of Christ. It’s hard to single any of the events out, but the 4 or 5000 folk who showed up in the Czech Republic (on the night of an important national football match!) took us all by surprise. I’ve never been to there before, and walked away so fired up that the anthem of Jesus is being sung out loud and strong in that nation. But as I said, I can’t single it out because every new place was truly a highlight. Every city had it’s own distinctives; Kampala taught us all how to dance, Budapest showed us how to express joy when you’re not allowed to (dancing/jumping was banned that night, as there were a few thousand of us standing on the roof of a shopping mall complex!). Yet in the midst of enjoying and celebrating these various distinctives, one thing was clear to see: we are one choir, one voice, one people…. with an amazing God.
Thanks to all who came to these events - they would have been a little boring without you!
Approached from any angle, our God is glorious, majestic, loving and holy. You can search as long as you like but You will find no gaps in His greatness or goodness. He is steadfast, constant and perfect.
When we study a person for a while, before long we will find some kind of ‘chink’ in their armour – some kind of inconsistency perhaps. For although we may each have admirable qualities, none of us are as steadfast, faithful or unflawed as we would hope to be. God, however, is different. He tells us He is holy, and it is the whole truth and nothing but the truth. He tells us He is love, and everywhere you look you will find His love. He tells us He is faithful, and as we investigate we discover that He is absolutely true to His word. He is the perfect and unfailing King of glory. He is the incomparable God of holiness – set apart to be worshipped and adored. Constantly He shines with splendour. Moment after moment He radiates grace, peace and love. There is no lapse in His character or inconsistency in His nature. Our God is everything he says He is… for now and all eternity.
It’s been a while since I’ve left some thoughts on this blog… but after a fantastic trip to California it would be impossible not to. The Passion regional gathering hit Los Angeles last weekend and over 4000 students gathered at the Nokia Theatre there. As always it was a powerful time, but what struck me the most is that Passion’s heartbeat for the nations (which has always been in the mix) is being turned up more and more. During the weekend together we sowed into 4 of the forthcoming world tour stops with prayer and other resources - Seoul, Tokyo, Jakarta and Vancouver - and there were representatives there from each city. At the same time, the Do Something Now campaign saw those gathered at the conference bringing many 2260 towels and 10,500 pairs and socks to be distributed to shelters caring for the homeless in LA. Plus enough money was given to be able to build 18 wells in Africa. So in other words it was not “just another conference”…
On the Saturday I taught a new song, ‘God of our Yesterdays’. It reminds us that we worship the God of yesterday, today and forever - and that He is the God of our yesterdays, the God us here today, and the God of all our tomorrows. I don’t know about you, but I find that a really re-assuring thought.
Also during the weekend Chris Tomlin led us in a great new song written by the Belfast-based band ‘Bluetree’. Titled ‘God of this city’ it’s a song of worshipful faith that will find it’s way out to many, many cities of this world. No doubt it’ll be an important piece of each night on the Passion World tour which will hit around 20 cities later this year.
(see www.268generation.com). Both these new songs, by the way, are on the new Passion live album (also titled ‘God of this city’) which is released on Feb 5th.
So the good news is… He is God of your yesterdays, your present and your future. He is God of where you live. He is GOD…
Late Saturday night we were on an open-air stage in beautiful weather, surrounded by beautiful scenic mountains - and the sun slowly going down. What a fantastic environment to lead worship. My band and I were at the Big Boss Festival - my very first time in Switzerland. I’ve grown up impressed by their watches and their chocalate (!) - and it was a delight to connect with this crowd of young people and worship God together.
I love leading worship outside. There are so many clues right there before us as to the wonders of the One we are approaching. Switzerland was an amazing example - the fresh air, the summer sun, the beautiful blue sky - and finally the sun setting and the night sky appearing. All of these aid me greatly in what I’m on that stage to do - point people towards the glory of God. As the Psalmist said “There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard” (Psalm 19). Creation speaks a universal language - one that trandsends people groups, history and cultures - and brings a message straight to our hearts. As we sang ‘How great is our God’ that night we had some of the reasons for believing that right there before our very eyes.
Worshipping God indoors is great, for sure. But sometimes those bland ceiling tiles aren’t going to help you out much as a worship leader. There’s a time to drag everyone outside and worship Jesus under the night sky. Go for it!
Matt
Wow - simply an amazing time. We had the privilege of leading worship in Seoul, Hong Kong, Manila and Tokyo - and everywhere we went we met with a lots of young people throwing themselves into the worship of Jesus. We were so encouraged that many of the songs had made their way over to these places ahead of us - and humbled that we got to lead these little songs on Asian soil. It only goes to confirm what we know to be true - that there is a new song rising up in this generation. It’s a song of passion and purpose, reverence and joy. It’s the song of the free, the cry of the redeemed. It has no borders - it flows freely in the north, the south, the east and the west. It is the eternal anthem of praise for the God of heaven. What a privilege to see a little glimpse of it here and now on the earth. Yet there’s so much more to come…
I’m nearly at the end of the tour with Chris Tomlin and Louie Giglio. It’s been a great journey. I love hanging out with the fantastic team we have - and getting to see a bit more of the good old US of A. But more than anything it’s so great to see what happens time after time when people are exposed to the truth of God and given space to respond in worship. Every evening we’ve been lifting high in praise the God who never lets go. The One who is holding it all together even when our lives seems to be falling apart. We’ve had so many reports back of how God has been faithful even in the harshest circumstances of life. And how these people have made that all-important choice to keep worshipping him amidst these times. People who have lost their children in war. People who have seen their marriages break apart in cruel ways. And many more stories beside. And yet they all have one thing in common - they’ve found their way onto the pathway of praise. Not only is that the most God-honouring place to be found in such a time - it’s also the safest and wisest. Thanks so much to everyone who has sent us these encouraging stories along the way.
So, now a quick thought for songwriters. Not from me, but something I came across from Bono of U2. Speaking on songwriting he said “You can have 1000 ideas, but unless you capture an emotion, it’s an essay.” What a great thought. It can be so easy to generate ideas for songs - and put some kind of theme together. But if it’s merely a cerebral exercise it may only take us so far. Truth-based songs will always resonate to some degree, but taking it further, if that truth is delivered with passion, purpose and emotion it will be even more compelling. When writing a worship song we’re not just trying to give people some information. We’re trying to convey the awe-inspiring wonders of Jesus, and describing how our hearts, minds and souls respond when faced with these things. Just take a look at the Psalms - these songs are full of passion and emotion - poured out in the most full-on adoration, intercession and praise you’ll ever come across. They are built on truth, and oozing with emotion. So there you go - a tiny little thought on songwriting, courtesy of Bono.
Hi everyone, and once again a massive thanks for all these inspiring comments. The tour with Chris and Louie has been going great, and on many of the nights we’ve been singing the song ‘Shine’ from my new album. The song came into being as a response to the verse in Phillipians 2 - which says that in this generation we, as the church, ’shine like stars in the universe’. If you know anything about stars, that’s a pretty amazing thought. Seeing them from such unfathomable distances away, we can be unaware of just how outrageous these stars are. Take the Sun as an example. They says it’s about 27 million degrees fahrenheit in its unfathmomably hot core. And burning up about 5 or 6 million tonnes of it’s own mass every second. Or, check out the star Sirius. This one is about twice the mass and diameter of the sun, and 23 times as luminous. So when the bible tells us ‘we shine like stars’ in this generation, that’s some pretty intense stuff. What I love most about this verse though is how affirming it is. It doesn’t say ‘go and try your best and if you’re an expert at Christianity one day you might even shine’. No, it says ‘you DO shine’ - we already shine - even on our bad days. That’s good news for the lady who’s showing up at the office every day wondering if her being there really makes a difference. Or the guy at college living on campus and losing confidence in his ability to shine because of how full-on environment it is. It’s so easy to lose our confidence in this area - and this verse is so helpful and encouraging. I’ll end with an old line from Charles Spurgeon, which sums it all up for me: “Never lose heart in the power of the gospel”.
Thanks for the comments people have been posting up - it’s good to be able to encourage each other on this journey… so thanks! I’m writing this having just finished our first night of the ‘How Great is our God’ tour, in Phoenix, AZ. I’m excited to be travelling around again with my great friends Chris Tomlin and Louie Giglio - and hope we can really make an impact on our short stops in these US cities. There is such a good team dynamic between the three of us, and though of course it’s Chris’ tour, he is an inspiring team-player. He has a great way of being open-handed and hearted with the stuff he’s entrusted with - which may be one reason why God keeps trusting him with more! So on these nights we’ll be leading quite a few moments in the evening together… and I think we’re going to have some great evenings of worship.
Tonight, between ‘Blessed Be You Name’ and ‘You Never Let Go’ I shared some thoughts from Psalm 9:10 - which says to God, “Those who know Your name trust You”. It’s a profound thought that can change our lives if we get hold of it. The Psalmist isn’t saying anyone who remembers what God is called will trust Him - but by saying ‘knows Your name’ he’s talking about hearts that know the nature and character of God - the very essence of who God is, if you like. So he’s saying ‘God, those who really know what You’re like will put their trust in You’. That is so true. When we get to grips with just how powerful, loving, strong, kind and wise He is, we will find ourselves trusting our lives to God. He’s the One who holds all thing together, including our lives. He’s the God who has never been outwitted, outsmarted or out-manoevured. He has never lost control of a situation. He’s the God of love, mercy and kindness. The Father who never lets go. When the truths of who He is sink in - right to the very depths of our souls - we will begin to trust God even in the most confusing or desperate times of life.
Well, the first day of ‘07 felt like an appropriate time to put a little post up on the blog. We’re starting the year in an exciting way - here in downtown Atlanta, USA, with over 23,000 college students. This ‘Passion ‘07′ conference got off to a great start tonight and it really is a privilege to be here amongst these guys. Charlie Hall and Chris Tomlin both led worship tonight and it was inspiring stuff… songs of salvation that helped us remember and respond to the rescuing grace of God.
I’m also delighted that the two guys who produced my album are hanging out with us here this week. Their names are Josiah Bell and Robert Marvin - and they work under the production name of ‘Double Dutch’. Back in April a good friend of mine recommended I meet with these guys - and only a few weeks later they were over in the UK starting work on my album. They’re young guys (21 and 28) with a lot of experience already - but more than anything they have big hearts of worship. I love that - to find people who have all the expertise and imagination - and yet all the time using their gifts as an offering of worship. They had never produced a worship record before, but had long histories of being in local worship team etc - so I just loved plugging them in to what we do and having them stretch us musically.
One of the things I learned from along the way was their passion to get things right. If a sound or a song arrangement or a mix didn’t feel right somehow, they were determined to keep working on it until it felt more complete. From hearing lots of the stuff they’ve produced, and then then watching these guys at work, it strikes me that excellence is often the fruit of endurance.
There are definitely more important values in worship than excellence (for example, integrity). But it’s a value I’ve sometimes let slip too far down the order of things… and am keen to learn from their dligence and attention to detail as we enter this New Year.
Have a great 2007. How about we all encourage each other to take our creativity up a level this year? For the glory of God…
Matt
So the album releases States-side on 26th December. It seems like a fitting time of year for it to come out - for Christmas itself is a story of Beautiful News. It’s hope being born into a world of despair. It’s the Light shining in the darkness. It’s the Savior of all coming to His broken world. The beautiful news is this: Emmanuel, God with us.
I hope you enjoy the new songs. Click on the e-card banner on my website homepage to check out samples of all the songs, and for a bit more info on the album. We had a blast recording them - and brought a production duo called ‘Double Dutch’ over to the UK. We got to work in a brilliant country house studio, just 20 mins from my home (in a lovely ‘English gardens’ setting - all you Americans out there would love it!). Then we also spent a few days in London, recording at Abbey Road studios. Of course the history of that place is amazing… so that was a nice privilege. I’m just grateful to God for how it all came together.
Of course, more than anything, the album is about ’songs’. My motivation to record a new album is to resource out some of the newer songs we’ve been writing, and I hope they’re helpful as a way into worship. I’ll leave you to decide…!
More soon - and thanks for all the encouraging comments. It’s cool to see folk logging on from all over the place (Abu Dhabi, Austrailia, Phillipines, India, Netherlands, USA etc…) Have a meaningful and happy Christmas, celebrating the beautiful news of the God who came down to save.
Matt