Bring Me Back

The following reading works well as a prayer to end a sermon or worship set on brokenness and repentance.

Father God, the one who pursued me…

I repent of my prayerlessness
My carelessness
My discouragement because of flesh
My pride when I need brokenness.
Too many times I have fallen back on my own devices
Seeking things, seeking answers, seeking acceptance
I cry out to circumstances
And the more I seek to do
The more a fall away from You.
I use words to manipulate
To compensate
To demonstrate my own righteousness
I trust my public spokeness
While You long for my private brokenness
Holy brokenness of pride
Where grace and mercy reside
Grace that pierced your hands and side.
Brokeness brings self-confidence to dust
That turns my doubting into trust.
Every hurt that I’ve been through
When I’ve wondered what to do
Brings me back to faith in you
I find in these days, in my fallen ways
That I’m so far away from what’s true
And now my cry is Lord bring me back to you.
Bring me back to my passion
A divine realization,
the days of pure joy in salvation
Bring me back to total trust in your grace
When all I seek is Your holy face.
My trust in self tends to misconstrue
So God bring me back to You.

Your Great Name: Worship Intro

Before there was anything there was a Name.
Before seas and land, before dust was formed into flesh
Before Babel’s broken tower, before the ark was set in place
Before there was anything
Before prophet, priest or king…
There was a Name.
No other name in history
could banish demons, calm the sea.
It echoes through eternity.
Chains are broken, souls set free
by His Great Name!
His Name birthed stars and pinned them in the sky.
His Name brought angels to Bethlehem
from the greatest and the least
To see the One True Name
And when we speak His Name all heavenly hosts revere.
It reaches past our weakness and our fragile, thin veneer.
It’s a Name above every name- spoken in each race and tongue.
There is power and blessing
Perfection and peace.
There’s  understanding!
Even when we feel pain,
there’s healing, faith and redemption,
at the mention of His name.
And it doesn’t matter the size of your burden,
the scale of your mountain,
the weariness of your journey…
In that Name there is hope and joy and rest
In his Name we are blessed.
His Name is listening for the echo of worshipers.
In the midst of this earthly mess
His Name redeems.
The all-sufficient king
The warrior of righteousness
Over every living thing…
And no matter how deep the hurt,
or the chains you have bound you for years,
We are free! All those things that drive us insane
are stepping stones to holiness with the power of that Name.
What is that name that changes us?
Who is the fourth person in the furnace
The One who closed the mouths of lions
Who crushed the head of the accuser
And exiled demons from the weak.
And opened muted mouths to speak.
What is that Name?
What is the greatest name we’ll ever say?
Who remains victorious to this day?
Who is this one greater than the grave?
Who lived and died to save?
Who conquered death and walked away
With scars of crimson stain
The one who bears the mark
Jesus is His Great NAME!

God in the Storm

He’s there.

When our hands are weary

He is our strength.

When fear overtakes us

He will give us courage.

When we experience a collision of circumstances

He will prove himself as all sufficient

When we are torn He mends.

When we are lost He finds.

When we are despairing

He encourages.

When we are silent

He speaks.

When we are wounded

He Heals.

When we are without a chance

It is then that He assumes His stance

When we tremble under the weight

He’s the master of our fate.

If only we would embrace all that He is today.

Every doubt and fear that disturbs our nights and consumes our days

Would crumble under His prodigious glory

Because He is exactly who He is:

The inconceivable, tumultuous, relentless God of the storm.

Paint on the Wall

There once was a church upon a hill,
where everything was fine until
the paint inside was getting old
and peeling in some spots, I’m told.
The pastor called a business meeting.
After the preliminary meeting,
The deacons cried, Come one! Come all!
What color should we paint each wall?
They gathered in the sanctuary,
each determined and contrary.
Sister Gail said, What do you think
about a very chartreuse pink?
Brother Dave said to the crowd,
Isn’t that a bit too loud?
I prefer a subtle blue.
It makes the walls look clean and new.
Six women rebuked, We wanted gold!
It seems much warmer. Blue’s too cold!
A man in the back began to bellow,
Yellow! Yellow! Yellow! Yellow!
The pastor said, I’m here more than all of you.
I agree with Dave. The walls should be blue.
From that point on, their voices grew stronger.
Each emotional plea became longer and longer.
Then a voice of strong and stern love
silenced the church as it spoke from above.
You wonder why you can’t hear My call
when your greatest struggle is paint on the wall.
Paint your church the pale color of skin,
for you let no other races come in.
Paint your church a wealthy green,
for you ignore starvation you’ve seen.
Paint it white and clean as uncallused feet,
for you refuse to share My joy in the street.
I agree that your walls could be painted blue,
for your hearts, so cold, are given to few.
You give many renditions of church as a game,
but you fail to give water in My holy name.
You pray using eloquent thees and thous,
and yet you forget about the heres and nows.
You struggle to be an earthly saint,
but My love must not be covered in paint.

© Matt Tullos

I never asked for that

I came to God with fashion sense
And clothes I bought at great expense
I knew the drill
All things down pat
God said, I never wanted that
I huddled with my life long friends.
Talk to strangers? That depends
I loved the show from where I sat
God said, I never wanted that.
I knew each song
I’ve heard them all
I’ve put his pictures on the wall
I cringed when someone’s song fell flat
God said, “I never wanted that.”
My i-pod has a thousand songs
Of worship stars before the throngs
On Sundays I step up to bat
God says I never wanted that.
He says, I want your heart to sing
and worship as me as rightful king
To come with sacrificial praise
To honor me in all your days
To drop your mask and foolish pride
for they’re not the reasons that I died
I conquered death to make you whole
Your LOVE has been my greatest goal
To vow your love and make it true.
Your love is what I want from you.