I have a confession to make. I like corporate worship – a group of believers gathering to sing praises to the Lord. I love the tempos, the emotions, the praise, the tears, the smiles, the hugs, the quiet, the clapping – I love it all. But. I get hung up on the song lyrics. I can sing of His Love forever – but I can’t sing that song forever. If a group of 50-200+ believers enter a room – which has hopefully been prayed over throughout the week and that morning – do they really need to start off with begging the Holy Spirit to Come into this Place? Isn’t He already there in the hearts of those who carry him daily? Sigh.

So – when I started the CD on my Computer Tower with my Headphones– I was a bit saddened by the request of the Spirit to fill the place. I listened to the CD one time through – the songs are encouraging, the music is “nice”, I could see it being incorporated into our worship sessions. I attend a Vineyard Church and we already sing Jeremy Riddle’s songs –so I was familiar with one on the CD.

BUT THEN,

I wanted to listen to the songs outside of the hustle and bustle of the home – so I loaded up my iPod Nano and headed to the beach. I sat on a dune drift of sand watching the waves. I passed people – all types of people – on the way to my perch. The sad. Lonely. In Love. Publicly displaying that love. Building Fires. Friendships. Dogs. So many people. And the song played –

Awaken, my soul, come awake. To hunger to seek – to thirst. Awaken, first love, come awake. Spirit of the living God come fall afresh on me. Come awaken me from my sleep. Blow through the caverns of my soul for me, to overflow. To overflow. Spirit Come and Fill This Place. Let your Glory now invade. Spirit come and fill this place. Let your Glory now invade . . . . Spirit of the living God come fall afresh on me. Come wake me from my sleep. Blow through the caverns of my soul for thee to overflow.

And I was in a different place. I wasn’t in the room of worship with my fellow believers. I was out. In the World. I wasn’t asking the Holy Spirit to “Come fill this place.” I was asking – quietly, politely, with urgency – the Spirit to awaken – My Soul. the Place In Me. Asking His Glory to shine through me. In the World. Where I sat. His overflowing – to give out to these people. I listened to the whole CD, then walked back into my truck.

Listening to Jeremy Riddle’s
music – outside of the 4 walls of institutionalized American culture directed “Worship” services – allowed me to see his heart.

I think he must be a surfer. Or have a love of water.

The next morning – I got up at 6ish – dipped the canoe into the lake, taped my iPod Nano on my life jacket and started my 5 mile round trip paddle cruise. The music had enough tempo to help me keep my paddling strong.

Nothing can tear us From. The grip of his mighty love. We only glimpse his vast affection, heard whispers of his heart and passion, his glory now – is love is deep his love is wide and it covers us, his love is fierce, his love is strong and its furious. His love is sweet his love is wide and it wakens hearts tonight.

This CD will be my morning paddle music for quite some time. Each song, building on the next. Each word – Encouragement to seek His Face – Oh. Ya just have to listen to it – but my request – try to listen – to the whole thing – outside. Preferably by water.

My Repentance – I will forever swap the Place sung in the praise songs at church – with My Heart, and not Those Walls. Are you feeling distant from His Presence today? Psalms 22:1-5 – He inhabits the Praise of His People.

My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not; And in the night season, and am not silent. But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.

Our fathers trusted in thee: They trusted, and thou didst deliver them. They cried unto thee, and were delivered: They trusted in thee, and were not confounded.

Comment on This Post – Answer the Questions – Where is your favorite place to meet with God? What type of music draws you to the throne? Or, just a note –

PRESS RELEASE:

Vineyard Worship artist and worship leader Jeremy Riddle has announced the release of his new studio album entitled, Furious. The album is set for release on September 20 via NewDay Distribution.

Riddle began production on the album nearly a year ago with Dove Award winning producer Ed Cash (Chris Tomlin, Matthew West, David Crowder Band) at the helm. Cash’s contribution forms the backbone of the album which also features production from Bobby Hartry, a long time Riddle collaborator. The project follows Prepare The Way: Live, an album recorded in front of a live audience in Corpus Christi, Tex., earlier this year from Vineyard.

Riddle describes Furious saying, “It’s hard to come up with words that depict the magnitude of Christ’s love – the depth and width of it. Furious doesn’t work outside of the context of love; we tend to translate the word as angry, but I see it as a super-powerful force; stronger, deeper, broader than our vocabulary can fully describe.”

Four years on the road as a touring worship leader eventually took its toll on Jeremy, so in January 2011, the former jr. high youth pastor came on staff as worship community pastor at Bethel Church in Redding, Calif. Working under pastors Brian and Jenn Johnson, Jeremy facilitates a worship community of over 200 people within the church.

“My wife (Katie) and I have always had a heart to serve the local church and never wanted to do the full-time travel thing for very long, so it felt like a good time to transition into something different,” Jeremy says. “I’ve developed such an appreciation for the fruit that has been sowed from my life – personally and artistically – by being part of a local community.”

Consequently, several of the tracks on Furious are also featured on Be Lifted High, the most recent album from Bethel Church.

“These songs are a reflection of being part of something bigger than just me,” Jeremy says. “Through some significant growth in understanding and living out humility from a very independent place, I’ve shifted into a place where I can’t even claim this record is completely inspired by me. There are so many elements of the album that could never have flowed from me had I not been connected to people walking out life with me.”

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