prophet series

this semester, journey, the college ministry i lead worship for, is entering into a series on the major prophets of the old testament (minor prophets to come next semester). i'm personally very excited for this series; the prophets are a set of completely understudied books of the Bible, and the passages that are studied frequently leave something to be desired of the remainder of the messages they have to communicate. it's going to be a fun ride!

leading worship for this series has already presented some challenges, given that i enjoy tying the music we sing to the message preached during a given week, but some of the passages we're going to be studying contain language and ideas not commonly stylized for musical purposes. however, one of the themes i have come to associate with studying the prophets is that of God's consistency; His unchanging, eternal nature. Too often it is thought that separation between old and new testament is necessary because God is somehow "different," as though he changed His mind about the whole thing half way through, but the pure and simple truth is that God has remained the same from eternity past and will continue to remain unchanged long after time is measured. so i settled on some songs that communicate God's everlasting quality as "theme song" for this semester. the lyrics of one of them are below, as is the url for the series...check it out!

Everlasting God
Glenn Packiam

One thing I know that I have found
Through all the troubles that surround
You are the Rock that never fails, You never fail.

One thing I know that I believe
Through every blessing I receive
You are the only one that stays, You always stay.

You never change, You’re still the same
You are the Everlasting God
You will remain after the day is gone and the things of earth have passed;
Everlasting God

go here: http://theprophetseries.com

...and please pray for this semester:
-that first of all things, the Spirit would lead the ministry and that God's will would be done.
-that those who attend would be deeply impacted by God's words and unalterably motivated to service for the kingdom of God.
-that those who lead would bathe each and every decision in prayer and follow the Lord's path for His people.
-that an eventual move to a new venue for the ministry will not only go smoothly, but also promote growth and healthy change.