21 Day Challenge

Posted on January 1, 2018 by Mark Cole

What challenges are on the horizon for this year? There are always a lot unknown factors to deal with but what can I do to best equip myself to be successful this year?

I am going to start this year with a 21 Day Challenge to reinforce my good habits and overcome some lazy habits that have made their way into my daily routine. I want to make sure my priorities are right, that God has first place, and my personal habits are on track. Here are my main goals to get this year started out right:

Overall Goal: To get my body, soul, and spirit in the best shape possible.

1. Read God’s Word daily: Do my regular reading thru the Bible in a year and also read through the Gospels in 21 days: Matthew to John: 4 chapters per day (to get to know Jesus better)

2. Pray daily: (spend a minimum of 3-10 minute prayer times on my knees: AM, Lunch, PM)

3. Worship daily: (Play piano and/or guitar and sing to God)

4. Memorize one Bible verse per week:

Jeremiah 29:11-13: “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.’”

Psalm 27:13-14: “I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.”

Hebrews 12:1-2: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders us and the sin that so easily entangles us. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. 

5. Read a great Christian book: The Apostle: The Life Of Paul

6. Minimize Social Media: Only use Facebook & Twitter for posting daily readings: (30 min/per day max.)

7. Fast TV one day per week and minimize TV exposure: (1 hour per day for 6 days).

8. Fast food one day per week: Full fast one day per week and follow the Daniel Plan the other 6 days per week (no rich foods).

  • Acceptable Foods: All fruits and vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts and seeds. tofu, herbs and spices and water.
  • Foods to avoid: All meats and animal products, all dairy products, all deep fried foods, all solid fats, wine, sweeteners, all leavened bread.

9. Don’t eat or snack after 8 PM: (my personal weakness)

10. Exercise daily: a minimum of 60 minutes per day/6 days per week (walk, run, gym, stretch, bike, squash, tennis, pickleball, snowshoe or ski)

11. Be positive in all my speech: “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.” Psalm 19:14

12. Write one new song per week: Sing to the Lord a new song, and His praise from the ends of the earth…  Isaiah 42:10

“Call on Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.”

Question: What can you do for the next 21 days to challenge yourself?

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Christmas Humour (Part 4)

Posted on December 23, 2017 by Mark Cole

 

 

 

 

 

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The Secret Of Going From Good To Great

Posted on November 9, 2017 by Mark Cole

Have you ever seen a musician or an athlete and wonder how they got that good? Each of us are born with different talents. But none of us becomes an expert at something overnight. That is where diligence and personal discipline separates people who are good and people who are great!

It wasn’t until I was in university that I really learned the secret to conquering difficult skills. It is a  secret that can be transferred into many areas of study. Here is the secret! Break down the difficult skill into daily bite size pieces. What part of that difficult skill or task can you learn today? Then daily, step by step, slowly add to your skill level until you conquer that skill.

Let me give you an example from my musical studies. I once had to learn an extremely difficult piece of piano music that was around eighty bars long. It was a way above my skill level. But I realized that I could learn the first two or three bars today if I just slowly broke them down and spent a couple of hours practising. I would learn the right hand for the first few bars and then I would learn the left hand for the same section. Then I would slowly put the hands together at 1/4 speed and slowly increase the speed until I had learned those few bars perfectly. (learning to play with a metronome is a crucial part of this step-by-step process)

Then over a matter of a few months, working on the music daily, I slowly learned more and more bars until I had mastered that piece of music. It was just a matter of slowly learning a bit more each day in a disciplined manner. I simply learned how to practise properly and diligently. I learned not to practise my mistakes but to slowly learn something bit by bit and daily add to that knowledge.

It’s a powerful principle! I have applied it to learning new sports. I have applied it to memorizing large portions of the Bible. And, I have applied it to orchestrating large musical scores with dozens of musical instruments. It works for so many areas of life.

Learn to break down the larger problem or challenge into bite size chunks. Learn to tackle that project daily and build on the success of the day before. It is amazing what difficult skills and projects that you can conquer if you slowly develop the skills and knowledge on a daily basis.

God has given us amazing minds and bodies. If we apply great discipline, diligence and wisdom, it is amazing what we can do! It is amazing what difficult skills we can master. And in doing so, we will go slowly go from good to great!

Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.
Jim Rohn

All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize.
The Apostle Paul

The discipline you learn and character you build from setting and achieving a goal can be more valuable than the achievement of the goal itself.
Bo Bennett ~ Tech Guru

We all naturally want to become successful… we also want to take shortcuts. And it’s easy to do so, but you can never take away the effort of hard work and discipline and sacrifice.
Apolo Ohno ~ Olympic Gold Medal Speed Skater

We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret or disappointment. The difference is discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tons!
Jim Rohn

Check out my new book: “Leading Worship ~ Notes from a Grand Adventure’. It is now available in Kindle or Soft Cover Editions.  This is a great gift for the musician or worshipper in your life.

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Worship Leader Stage Presence

Posted on October 24, 2017 by Mark Cole

by Katie Eckeberger…

You might think it odd that I’m addressing stage presence in a worship leading context, but all too often I see worship leaders struggling to maintain a leading presence for their congregations. It might be a confidence issue, or they worry about getting in the way of God and “humble” themselves too much, trying to become invisible. Unfortunately, this can actually become a distraction. Our congregations need us to fulfill our role with authority and confidence so they can worship effortlessly.

So how can we be confident, while still honoring God with humility? Here’s some things I have learned:

Eye Contact:

There are certainly moments when closed eyes are appropriate. But excessively closed eyes can create an invisible barrier between us and the congregation. A friend told me once, “Our worship can still be personal without being private.” That’s the key: communal worship is not a time for us to close off from the people we are leading. We are there to worship together! Incredible personal connections are made when we make eye contact – it engages people, helps them feel known and loved, and communicates a shared feeling. It helps us draw closer to God together.

Stance/Posture:

Have you ever been led in worship by a person who seems afraid or uncomfortable on the platform? It’s uncomfortable for everybody and can create tension in the air. Open yourself up to your congregation: stand up straight, facing front and sometimes tilting left or right to physically address every person in the room. This stance is engaging and conveys confidence. Don’t deny the authority God and your community have given you. In addition, people need to see our visual cues for where the song is going. Most people in our congregations are not musical and don’t feel things like musicians do. We need to guide them well with our body language.

Visual & Verbal Cues:

We may have heard songs like “Mighty to Save” a hundred times and could lead it in our sleep, but there will always (hopefully) be people in our congregations who are new and need some guidance. If we do a good job communicating where the song is going, we eliminate distraction and it’s easier for everyone to focus on worship. Giving some quick & simple cues can help people follow along and this builds trust between you and the congregation:

Visual: Use of hand gestures to signal when we invite them to sing, stepping back from the mic during instrumental breaks, emoting through our body language when appropriate, raising our hands or clapping to encourage others to do the same, etc.

Verbal: One option is “vocal lead-ins” – singing/saying the first couple words of the next phrase to let people know what to sing next. You can invite them to sing by saying things like, “Let’s sing that again.” or “Raise your voices with us.” Also, you can communicate what’s happening – “Will you stand and sing with us?” or “We invite you to sit and rest to soak in these words.” Develop some ideas ahead of time that feel appropriate for you and your congregation.

Personal Connections:

Don’t be afraid to talk, pray, or lead a meditation in-between songs when appropriate. Don’t be afraid to share why you chose a song and what it means to you. Don’t be afraid to be authentic on the platform. Our congregations want to worship deeply, but we may need to teach them. Find ways to help them experience songs in such a way that they don’t go home saying, “That was a cool song!” But they go home saying, “God spoke to me through that song.”

Feel It Out:

Be attentive to the congregation and their needs. If you sense in any moment that worship needs to go differently than your original game plan, don’t deny that feeling. Sometimes the congregation is so caught up in worship, that it would be a disservice to end a song early. Conversely, maybe you’ve totally lost them – communicate with your band to end a song earlier than planned. It’s sometimes good to leave people wanting! Prepare music as best you can during rehearsals, but be sensitive to the congregation throughout the set, figure out what their needs are, and be willing to improvise. Congregations can sense when we are connected to them, and this again builds trust and confidence in us.

I used to be a hesitant, eyes-shut, closed-off kind of worship leader, but was inspired by a dear friend to try leading in this way. Everything changed for the better. Once I began opening myself more to the congregation and addressing their needs (still with my deep desire to facilitate worship), I began to see God work in new ways. I received affirmation that people were connecting more, not with me, but with God. And that, after all is the goal.

Honor the authority you’ve been given, find the balance of confidence, communication, and humility, and lead well, friends.

I would love to hear feedback on this, and I encourage you to check out www.expressiveworship.net to dig deeper into some of these concepts and utilize their resources that have helped me so much. 

Katie Eckeberger

Katie Eckeberger is a worship leader and artist from Bloomington, IL by way of Nashville, TN. She is the Worship Director at Hope Church in Normal, IL and travels as one-half of acoustic/soul duo, My Anchor Holds, leading worship and performing around the country. Even though Katie has been leading worship for 12 years she says, “Worship is a practice, which means I’ll never have it all figured out… but I get better. If we keep giving ourselves to God and our congregations honestly and whole-heartedly, we’ll continue to grow and see God do some incredible things.

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10 Great Worship Team Questions

Posted on October 16, 2017 by Mark Cole

Are you a Worship Leader or Music Ministry leader? Asking your team the right questions really sets the right tone for your leadership. Asking the right questions will give you insight into any blind spots you might have. And asking the right questions will help your team and the people serving in it go to the next level. Here are 10 great questions to help you in your leadership.

1. How can I help you? The greatest leaders are really servants. If people sense that you are there to help them, they will buy into your leadership much faster.

2. What is the biggest challenge you have to being successful here? Our goal should be to help the people around us to be successful. Seeing life from their perspective really helps get past many barriers.

3. Do you understand what I’ve asked you to do? Or, what is your understanding of the vision of this music ministry? Clear communication and vision is so important. These are a great questions to get everyone on the same page.

4. What am I missing or what would you do differently if you were me? Leaders don’t always get it right. Getting advice is a key to leading with wisdom.

5. What do you see that I can’t see? In most organizations it is really difficult to clearly see all the moving pieces. Getting great feedback from other perspectives is huge.

6. How can I improve as your leader? We all need to be improving as leaders. Being humble enough to search for advice and then apply it, is real wisdom.

7. If we had authority to do anything – and money was no barrier – what would you like to see us do as a team/organization? We often have barriers in our mind that are imaginary and really hold us back. This kind of ‘blue sky’ thinking really helps breaks down those barriers.

8. Where do you see yourself someday and how can I assist you in getting there? Developing new leaders and helping your team members reach their God-given destiny is part of our job. We need to be teaching our people to be future leaders.

9. What are you currently learning which can help all of us? Learning from the full team will only help us all develop and learn faster.

10. How are you doing in your personal life and is there any way I can help you? Everyone has stuff that they are going through. We all need to love and support each other. This kind of personal interaction can help your team go to the next level.

Check out my new book.. “Leading Worship ~ Notes from a Grand Adventure’ available in Kindle or Soft Cover Editions.  This is a great gift for the musician or worshipper in your life.

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Four Behaviors of a Thriving Worship Ministry

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Mark Cole

Lessons From Churches from 50 and 5000.

By Mike O’Brien

Over the past 18 months, I have served fifty-plus churches as a worship team trainer and guest worship leader. I’ve noticed some interesting trends in worship ministries that are healthy, growing, and happy. This post has little to do with the quality of liturgy or congregational worship experience, but it’s more a peek under the administrative hood. It is not exhaustive, it’s just a list of markers I have noticed.

FOUR behaviors of thriving worship ministries:

1. THEY CONSISTENTLY (and uniformly) SCHEDULE THEIR VOLUNTEERS 

Most churches have multiple worship leaders. If you have three worship leaders and three different ways of administering bands, you will drive your volunteers crazy. There should be one system that everyone adheres to. If possible, try to implement the SAME system across the board for all volunteers so families can serve in multiple areas of the church without confusion.

  • Pick a System – There are several ways to let people know when they are serving at church. Planning Center Online is the king, however, you can also look at worshipteam.com and others. You might use a mix of online tools and simple PDF attachments to email. Your system should have a way to communicate seasonally (1-4 months at a time), weekly (hey, you’re on this week), and the day of service (hey, you’re on today). Provide schedules at least 1 month before the start of the schedule. (i.e. the January schedule is emailed November 30th etc…).
  • Do not avoid creating a system because one volunteer doesn’t use email or Facebook. Those people either need to yield to the agreed method or you can build a secondary system for them. Either way, there should be a system to reach everyone.
  • Once a healthy method for communication is in place, don’t constantly change your methodology. You will build trust with consistency, which is measured in years, not months.
  • Raise heck when your system is ignored or amended by well-meaning, creative people. Consistency breeds faithfulness (and more drummers).

2. THEY HAVE  SYSTEMS FOR SONGS

Every local church is marked by the songs they sing. In this day and age, the song is the most prominent means of gospel delivery and discipleship. There is a virtual sea of thousands of worship songs for the choosing. Instead of pulling from that potential sea, great worship leaders work from a pool of songs. New songs are added with care and intentionality and are not adopted via the affections of one particular worship leader. Your pool of songs can live on a Google Doc or similar online database. It should be editable and list active, potential, and retired songs.

Churches that sing the same songs over and over again have a more active engagement in worship than churches that have no congruent songs week-to-week. If worship leaders and musicians are bored to tears with songs that means the congregation is just getting to know them. Keep in mind many people only come to church once a month!

3. THEY HAVE COMPELLING + ORGANIZED ENVIRONMENTS  

Where is a sharpie? Are we seriously out of 9 Volts? My mic stand is holding on by a prayer.

The stage, backstage, and soundboard areas should be clean and labeled so a variety of workers can function with ease. Growing organizations are constantly inviting new people to “play” and there should be physical spaces that are hospitable to newbies. Your faithful volunteers too should have what they need to do what has been asked of them.

All areas (seen and unseen) should be stripped, cleaned and reorganized throughout the year. Old moldy cups of coffee and nests of cables communicate that you don’t care and you will repel some creative personalities.

The quality of the church drum set and vocal mics will tell me all I need to know about the value of worship in any given church. Great gear attracts great servant artists.

4. THEY SAY “THANK YOU” IN A VARIETY OF WAYS

In the heart of every volunteer (and staff member) is the question: “Does what I do matter?” Great leaders are consistently encouraging and rewarding those that are serving on their teams.  EVERYONE has a different language of love and you might need to ask your volunteers directly, “How can I say thank you?”. Here are the essential methods:

Public Praise (from the pulpit, from a Facebook post) FREE
A Written Note FREE
A Thoughtful Gift
A Gathering (quality time and/or fun)
A Specific Word of Encouragement FREE

Healthy volunteer cultures are immersed with recognition, thanks and encouragement.

The original post is here

My name is Mike O’Brien and I am passionate about teaching and mentoring through music. My calling is to use my experience as a producer, worship leader, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist to come alongside musicians, helping them more fully worship God with their instrument and lives. Find out more how I can help your worship leaders and teams HERE.

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How To Last In Ministry

Posted on June 28, 2017 by Mark Cole

By Pastor Rick Warren

Ministry is a marathon: it’s not how you start in ministry; it’s how you finish.

If you look at 2 Corinthians 4:1-18, Paul gives seven suggestions for finishing the race:

Remember God’s mercy (v. 1): God has given us our ministries. We don’t have to prove our worth through our ministry, and we don’t have to wallow in our mistakes. You don’t have to earn your place as a pastor or leader in the church.

Be truthful and honest in all you do (v. 2): Maintain your integrity because integrity produces power in your life, while guilt zaps your energy. You need to finish with your character intact. Your integrity includes how you handle the Word of God. Don’t distort it or make it confusing.

Be motivated to work for Jesus’ sake, not out of selfish desires (v. 5): We need a right motivation. A lot of guys start off as servants and end up celebrities. You need to learn to live your life for an audience of one, and that one is Jesus Christ.

Realize that Christians are only human (v. 7): We must accept our limitations, and the quickest way to burn out is to try to be Superman. Humility is being honest about your weaknesses.

Develop a true love for others (v. 15): Churches thrive, grow, and survive when love endures. You must love people or you won’t last in the ministry.

Allow time for inward rejuvenation (v. 16): I have a motto – Divert daily, withdraw weekly, and abandon annually. You need to take time for recharging. In the Air Force, they’ve mastered the art of mid-flight refueling. You can, too – you don’t have to land every time you need to refuel.

Stay focused on the important things, not distracted by momentary troubles (v. 17-18): Keep your eyes on the goal, not the problem. Only he who sees the invisible can accomplish the impossible. To be a winner in the marathon of ministerial service, Christians need to realize great people are just ordinary people with an extraordinary amount of determination. If we run from problems, we’ll never be able to become what God wants us to become.

The world needs you to last in ministry! God wired you and called you to the task, and you can do it in his power and under his grace.

The original post is here.

 

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Wise Advice For Everyday Life

Posted on April 12, 2017 by Mark Cole

Wise Advice For Everyday Life

  1. Have a firm handshake.
  2. Look people in the eye.
  3. Sing. Expressing yourself through music is therapeutic.
  4. Smile. A happy face brings joy.
  5. Respect and honour your parents.
  6. Learn to keep your friends secrets.
  7. Never give up on anybody. Miracles happen everyday.
  8. Always accept an outstretched hand.
  9. Be brave. Even if you’re not, pretend to be. No one can tell the difference.
  10. Be honest. The truth will set you free.
  11. Avoid sarcastic remarks.
  12. Choose your spouse carefully. This decision will have huge consequences in your life.
  13. Make it a habit to do nice things for people.
  14. Read through the whole Bible at least once in your life.
  15. Never deprive someone of hope; it might be all that they have.
  16. When playing games with children, be gentle with them.
  17. A good laugh is powerful medicine.
  18. Be romantic. Tell your spouse daily that you love them.
  19. Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.
  20. Loosen up. Relax. Ask yourself: will this problem really matter 10 years from now?
  21. Don’t allow the phone to interrupt important moments. It’s there for your convenience, not the caller’s.
  22. Be a good loser.
  23. Be a good winner.
  24. Learn the power of a great hug.
  25. Be modest. A lot was accomplished before you were born.
  26. Keep it simple.
  27. Don’t burn bridges. You’ll be surprised how many times you have to cross the same river.
  28. Don’t believe everything you are told! It’s wise to carefully consider the source.
  29. Be a generous giver.
  30. Be bold and courageous. Fear can hold you back from accomplishing many great things.
  31. Never waste an opportunity to tell someone you love them.
  32. Remember no one makes it alone. Have a grateful heart and be quick to acknowledge those who helped you.
  33. Take charge of your attitude. Don’t let someone else choose it for you.
  34. Visit friends and relatives when they are in hospital; you need only stay a few minutes.
  35. Begin each day with a quiet moment with God.
  36. Once in a while, take the scenic route.
  37. Send a lot of thank-you cards. Thankfulness is powerful.
  38. Answer the phone with enthusiasm and energy in your voice.
  39. Too much talk can lead to problems. Be sensible and learn when to keep silent.
  40. Show respect for everyone who works for a living, regardless of how trivial their job.
  41. It is not good to seek honors for yourself.
  42. Learn to forgive quickly and often.
  43. When you are in a funk, go back and remember all the good things that have happened to you.
  44. Always compliment the cook whether you’re a guest or at home.
  45. Remember that 80 per cent of the success in any job is based on your ability to deal with people.
  46. Don’t expect life to be fair.
  47. Love your children no matter what happens.
  48. Spend less than you earn.
  49. Learn to return anger with a soft answer.
  50. Hold your spouse’s hand when you go for a walk.
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Strong Congregational Singing: 12 Things To Avoid

Posted on March 18, 2017 by Mark Cole

I love it when congregations sing so loud that the soundman has trouble hearing the worship band over the people singing around him. Worship leaders – if the congregation is not singing, we are not doing what God has called us to do. Here are a few things that I’ve learned to avoid in order to encourage the congregation to sing.

1. Avoid doing frequent and long instrumental solos

The goal is to get the congregation to be involved. If you have too many solos and they are too long, it can cause the congregation to disengage and become spectators. It certain situations, a well placed solo or short 4-8 bar instrumental works well. But be careful not overuse them. I generally use them only as short transitions to the next section. I also find short song intros are generally the best (4-8 bars is ideal).

2. Avoid doing too many new songs

I love new songs and the band loves learning new songs. But, the congregation doesn’t get tired of songs as fast as we do. They haven’t put in hours of listening to and rehearsing the songs or playing the same songs in multiple services. They just hear it once on Sunday morning and maybe on Christian radio. A congregation can only learn so many songs. Be careful about how often you introduce new songs.

3. Avoid having too many songs in your worship rotation

There are hundreds of thousands of worship songs and hymns. I recently read that CCLI has around 300,000 worship songs in their catalogue. But, how many songs does your congregation really sing in a year? Probably only 40-50. Learn to edit your overall top songs list and repeat songs on a regular basis.

4. Avoid using songs that aren’t the best of the best

There are great songs and there are average songs. Learn to pick the best of the best. SongSelect has a ‘most popular’ list that really is the songs that congregations love to sing. Some worship leaders avoid ‘popular lists’ because they think that is unspiritual. But I believe the Holy Spirit is speaking to worship leaders all over the world and one of the results is a consistent list of top songs that most churches are using. Here is my list of top songs.

5. Avoid putting songs in too high or too low keys

Your average person does not have a huge singing range. The ‘Rule of D’ (top note is around a ‘D’ i.e. C-Eb) is a great guideline for choosing the best key to sing in. If you pitch songs in comfortable keys the congregation is more apt to sing-along.

6. Avoid using singers and band members who aren’t worshippers

When your congregation sees singers and band members who are fully engaged and worshiping the Lord with all their heart, it encourages them to do the same. Encourage your whole team to memorize their music. Teach them the attitudes of worship and the actions of worship: standing, singing, clapping, raising their hands, dancing, bowing down, playing instruments, shouting and giving. Teach them to be passionate worshipers on and off the stage. Teach them the importance of good stage presence and the power of smiling.

7. Avoid making the arrangement and rhythms too complicated

It’s easy to lose a congregation if the form and flow of the song isn’t musically obvious. Certain musical forms (i.e. intro, verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, double chorus, tag and end) really help congregations feel comfortable about where the song is going. Don’t create unnecessary complications to solid musical form.

Also be careful about using melodic rhythms that are too complicated. Congregations are learning to sing more complicated rhythms but be sensitive to where that musical and rhythmic line is.

8. Avoid ad libs that confuse congregations

I love ad libs that help congregations know what is happening next. But sometimes overuse or mis-timed ad libs can throw off your congregation. Really practice the use and timing of ad-libs so they help and don’t hinder congregational singing.

9. Avoid having the band playing all the time.

Learn when the band and individual instruments should play and not play. Learn to build a musical arrangement and where to have the band or an instrument sit out a section. Some of the most powerful singing is when the band doesn’t play at all. Creating musical layers gives more musical interest and space for congregational singing.

10. Avoid having miscues with lyrics

Put your best media operators on the computer running your lyrics. Double-check the order of your lyrics and the spelling. Have a full run-through with your lyric operator to double-check for mistakes. Slow and mis-timed or mis-spelled lyrics can really inhibit a congregation from singing with all their heart.

11. Avoid using only new songs

I love to learn and use all the great new songs that God is giving to the church. But I have learned that congregations still love to sing the best of the great hymns and older choruses. Learn to include some classics to help all the generations sing with all their heart.

12. Avoid worship leading without proper prayer and preparation

Time spent in private reading the Word, praying and worshiping, really is the secret to effective worship leading. Learn to develop a daily time with God and teach your worship team to do the same. God will honor you in public when you honor Him in the secret place. When the congregation senses God in the house, they will be more engaged.

Check out my new book.. “Leading Worship ~ Notes from a Grand Adventure’ available in Kindle or Soft Cover Editions.  This is a great gift for the musician or worshipper in your life.

This blog is part of my vision to train over 100,000 worship leaders around the world. If you would like to support this vision you can help by giving any amount through this PayPal account.

 

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The Real Saint Patrick

Posted on March 17, 2017 by Mark Cole

The real St. Patrick….

  • Wasn’t Irish,
  • Born a Roman citizen in Britain
  • Came from a wealthy aristocratic family
  • Father was deacon, grandfather a priest
  • Showed no interest in following Christ in early years
  • Kidnapped by Irish pagans at age 16
  • Served as a slave for 6 years caring for herds
  • Lived outdoors bearing the elements
  • Began to pray fervently and grow in his faith
  • God spoke to him that a ship was ready to return him
  • He fled and found a port 200 miles away
  • Returned home as a follower of Jesus
  • Patrick recounts that he had a vision a few years after returning home

“I saw a man coming, as it were from Ireland. His name was Victoricus, and he carried many letters, and he gave me one of them. I read the heading: “The Voice of the Irish”. As I began the letter, I imagined in that moment that I heard the voice of those very people who were near the wood of Foclut, which is beside the western sea—and they cried out, as with one voice: “We appeal to you, holy servant boy, to come and walk among us.”

  • Prepared himself and became a cleric
  • Was sent back to preach Christ to a hostile pagan Ireland
  • Saw thousands converted
  • Christian communities established

Saint Patrick returned to Ireland and, using the knowledge of Irish language and culture that he gained during his first captivity, brought Christianity and monasticism to Ireland in the form of more than 300 churches and over 100,000 Irish baptised.

Legend credits St. Patrick with teaching the Irish about the doctrine of the Holy Trinity by showing people the shamrock, a three-leafed plant, using it to illustrate the Christian teaching of three persons in one God.

  • Pastors ordained to care for them
  • Was persecuted, mocked and imprisoned at times
  • Historians credit him for saving western civilization
  • Re-established Christian thought in Barbarian Europe
  • Provided the transition from the classical age to medieval
  • Was a mighty apostle to a pagan Ireland
  • Died in obscurity

 

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