As this goes live, it’s 1 January 2010 for most of the world.

And this is the last post on Shaping The Space.

The first post was on 1 January 2009. You can see it in its entirety here, but I’m going to repost part of it below because I think it’s a good way to wrap up the year of space shaping that has now ended.

Why am I shutting this down?

It’s purely a consolidation thing. For the past 5 months, virtually all posts on this blog have also been on at least one other, and that’s the one I’m going to keep.

And to say I’m shutting down is a little strong…it’s all going to be here, collecting Cyrillic spam comments (though French seems to have become the current vogue spam language), and searchable for all who care about my Hillsong album review.

So, to continue following my space shaping adventures, come find me:

http://www.davidgoodwin.com – my home page, and definitely still a work in progress
http://words.davidgoodwin.com – I started telling my story on various blogs late in 2009. I’m consolidating all of that, and probably more.
http://music.davidgoodwin.com – a new page where you can listen to (and download, if you’re mad) some of my music from over the years
http://blog.davidgoodwin.com – the blog that will be continuing…you’ll need to update your RSS feed, or you can subscribe via email, but you can be sure all the inanity you’ve come to know and love will still be going on over there.

Thanks for being part of these space shaping adventures during 2009. Love you all!

One of my favourite ever lyrics from one of my favourite ever singers. It’s one of my favourite ever songs really: Kevin Max “Shaping Space”, which obviously has inspired the name of this blog. I was really saddened when Kevin’s solo career just didn’t happen (well, not in the way it deserved to), and to read about all the personal turmoil he endured ‘back in the day’. But I love that God uses the most fallible of humans for his greatest works, as so often they (we) are the most malleable. Just look at all the stuff-ups that Abraham, David and Solomon did, just for starters! Yet it’s their steadfast faith we remember – not the failings of their human frailty. God’s grace is absolutely amazing! And it gives me great great comfort.

And they said we wouldn’t last
And they said the years would break our backs
So here we are again my friend
To mystify their narrow plans
You and I were meant to be
Much more than they could see
You and I are made to stay
As they waste away

We are shaping the space
And harvesting places
We’re the princes of the universe
We are living together
In the here-everafter
In the temple of the evening Son
We’re the princes of the universe

It’s a prophecy of long ago
It’s a blueprint for the journey home
And we’re writing as we stumble on
Making history to build upon

You and I were meant to be
Much more than they could see
You and I are made to stay
As they waste away

We are shaping the space
And harvesting places
We’re the princes of the universe
We are living together
In the here-everafter
In the temple of the evening Son
We’re the princes of the universe

And the raven in the towerclock
Spins poetry and devil talk,

And the woman by the endless well
She’s drawing water from the mouth of hell
“And these are the days”, she says…

Come and join in with Sunday Setlists over at FredMcKinnon.com, and see how churches around the world have been worshiping this week..

In a week when hardly anybody in their right minds will be blogging or reading them (I know this says a lot about me…) this is my last Sunday Setlists post.

On this blog.

In the next few days, I’ll be finalising some changes to my online-ness, one part of which will be the shutting down of Shaping The Space. So stay tuned for that.

Wait, no-one’s reading this…so…um…anyway…

We had a “review of 2009″ type message today, and a bit of preparing for 2010. A big part of that, in the early part of the year, will be the release of our album, which I mastered on Wednesday. Feels like a decade ago now, with Christmas in between and all that goes along with it, but it’s ready for replication and will be released in February. iTunes, etc will follow later.

Sunday AM Music

1. You Deserve (Hillsong, 2008)
2. Desert Song (Hillsong, 2008)
3. It’s Your Love (Hillsong, 2009)
4. He Is Lord (Hillsong, 2008)
…then for the tithes & offerings…
5. Give Thanks (198something)
…before the preaching
6. I Walk By Faith (C3, 1990)
…and then to close the service with the altar call…
6. Give Thanks, but then morphing in a spontaneous song, all of which went for around an hour. A wonderful time of Holy Spirit soaking.

In what is often a difficult week – mid-summer, straight after Christmas – we had most of our people there, and ready to worship & seek today. Margaret led that time of intimacy with God through music beautifully, as she always does. And the spontaneous song (yes, I recorded some as I was in the congregation…no, I’m not posting it here…it was to help the team remember how it went) was truly a blessing.

And with summer, we don’t have evening services until February 2010 either.  Just so ya know.

Note for Facebook readers : remember if I post a video or song, you’ll need to actually click through to my blog to see or listen. You know you want to.

A friend of mine, of indeterminate faith, recently said one of the best pamphlets he’d ever seen was from Jews for Jesus.  It was simply titled : “Jews for Jesus : What??”

This comes from another of their pamphlets.  And because it mentions my favourite non-holiday, I thought I’d share it.

What shall we do?

What shall we celebrate?

Hanukkah, Christmas, … Festivus ?

If I choose Christmas I can go with the flow.  With Hanukkah I get more presents. And with Festivus…for Seinfeld fans…there’s an airing of grievances and feats of strength.

Religion and ritual.  What do they have to do with reality?

Amidst the dreydls, the candles, the wreaths, the ribbons and whatever other traditions you may hold…there’s a feeling that there’s got to be something more.

Holiday traditions fill us with a nostalgic longing for a reality that many of us have never experienced.  A hunger and thirst that can’t be satisfied with latkes or eggnog or anything we can see or taste or touch with our physical senses.

That’s because our souls really long to be right with the One who created us.

The best gift of the season can only come from God…and the dilemma is whether you are willing to receive it.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should be perish but have everlasting life.”

John 3:16

It’s not a matter of whose holiday or what culture to celebrate…but whether or not you open your heart to that Jewish baby that God sent so that people of all cultures and backgrounds could know God and experience His forgiveness and peace.

For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called : Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince Of Peace.”

Isaiah 9:6

HT: Jews for Jesus

Posted via web from Preposterousness

Come and join in with Sunday Setlists over at FredMckinnon.com, and see how churches around the world have been worshiping this week..

I’m keeping this uber-short this week. Because no-one should be reading set-lists in the week before Christmas anyway

It was our all weekend Christmas/Hanukkah celebration from Friday to Sunday, with Bob Mendelsohn from Jews for Jesus offering powerful messages about Christ in Hanukkah and also Messiah-mas. Love that name.

Following is two lists from Sunday, as usual, except I’ve abbreviated the song credits because I’m a bit time strapped. Our AM service was a “normal” service, while PM was our Christmas celebration. In effect, this meant a 12 hour day for much of the team. Tis done, twas fun. Glad it’s over for another year. Actually, this is my last Christmas with Awesome Church…at least for several years, probably longer. Feels kinda weird.

Also, for anyone who is reading…I’m changing some of my online presence over the next week or so. More to come later, but anyone who subscribes to this blog will be affected, just so ya know.

Sunday AM Music

1. No Reason To Hide (Hillsong, 2009)
2. For Who You Are (Hillsong, 2006)
3. His Glory Appears (Hillsong, 2009)
4. To Meet You Here (Awesome Church, 2009)
…then following tithes, offerings, news…
5. Happy Day (Tim Hughes, 2006)
…and then to close the service with the altar call…
6. His Glory Appears

Sunday PM Music – Christmas Party

1. Let God Arise (Tomlin, 2006)
2. This Is Our God (Hillsong, 2008)
*introduction to the Christmas/Messiahmas party*
3. I’m Walking In Authority (Donnie McClurkin, 2009) – our KidPower sang while the CrossMovement junior dance team danced. Completely gorgeous.
4. The Light Of The World (Jews for Jesus, 1982) – considering our completely non-kosher team, this came off surprisingly yiddish, and certainly got the crowd dancing. The kids in particular loved it.
5. Away In A Manger – calypso style
6. Angels (Hillsong, 2003)
7. Six White Boomers (Rolf Harris, 196something) – a quintessential Aussie Christmas song. For da kids, ya know.
8. Aussie Jingle Bells (Colin Buchanan, 199something) – as above, but you all know the tune. Look up the lyrics…you might understand them.
9. O Holy Night – surprisingly for us, not radically rearranged, just with a gentle swing
10. Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer – because even though it’s hot here at Christmas, the kids love this too – even with the My Sharona style drums & bass we do…
11. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town – kinda like the Jackson 5 version, but ours goes for.ev.ah. while Santa arrives and distributes lollies to all and sundry.
12. We Wish You A Merry Christmas – the end.

See you next week, and Happy Christmas!

Note for Facebook readers : remember if I post a video or song, you’ll need to actually click through to my blog to see or listen. You know you want to.

Posted via web from Preposterousness

Wayne Westcott speaking at a Christian Business dinner challenged those present that true balance in life demanded a focus on more than the physical. He commended the Portland YMCA for recognizing that.

“If our priorities are spirit, mind and body, let’s not be afraid of the message of Jesus Christ. If we’re going to call it a YMCA, then let’s not be ashamed to use the word ‘Christian.‘” he said. Eugene Wallace, chair of the organising committee, said “the YMCA owes its existence to divine guidance. It has been led by God, inspired by God and sustained by God,” he said.

A number of other YMCAs nationally are pursuing a similar focus on Christ. About 150 people from YMCAs across the nation gathered in a Colorado meeting in October to discuss promoting such change from within. Bob Hall, president and chief executive officer of the YMCA of Columbia-Willamette, echoed Wallace’s call for a fresh vision of God’s historic role in the worldwide movement. “We must not ignore or forget this wonderful spiritual legacy,” said Hall. “It’s the foundation of our organization—it’s in its DNA,” he said.

Source: Christian News Northwest via Australian Prayer Network

Posted via web from Preposterousness

Come and join in with Sunday Setlists over at FredMckinnon.com, and see how churches around the world have been worshiping this week..

As anyone in worship leadership knows, December is a busy month. For Awesome Church this year, this has mainly been for non-Christmas reasons – the completion of sessions for our album. We are also “doing Christmas”, but in conjunction with Jews for Jesus we’re having a Christian Hanukkah celebration next weekend. So one of the songs we’re doing has a very Jewish feel, which is weird for our rock-band oriented team.

But all good fun, and all next week.

For this morning’s service, our young adults pastor Sebastian Ferla preached a great message on rivers of God’s presence, drawing on a huge number of scripture references, mainly from Acts and Genesis, and linked the four rivers in the Garden of Eden.

Sunday AM

Music

1. Send My Sins Away (Murgida / Awesome Church)
2. For Your Name (Morgan, Gillies, Houston / Hillsong)
3. All For Love (Fieldes / Hillsong)
4. Shout Unto God (Houston / Hillsong)
…then following tithes, offerings, news…
5. It’s Your Love (Fieldes / Hillsong)
…and then to close the service with the altar call, healing prayers, soaking time…
6. In Your Presence (DeShazo)

Rachel was our worship leader this morning. And now that she’s finished high school and is in that limbo period waiting to find out what university course she has got into, she’s putting a lot of time into studying worship and music’s part in worship. I love seeing our youth raised up and taking initiative like this! She also did a great job this morning, despite some technical issues before our pre-service practice. She got the team prayed up and excited about bringing the church into God’s presence through music this morning. And she did. Though I will say, with the radical rearrangement of the first song (which will also be the first track on our album, I think) a lot of people were in “stop and stare” mode*. That’s fine though, they got over that and started praising & worshipping without worrying about everything going on around them pretty quickly.

This afternoon, after a marathon 16 hours in the studio yesterday and just a few hours sleep last night…I caught a few more hours sleep, though I’m still well behind and feeling it. It will now be a busy few weeks wrapping up post-production of our album ready for release at our Vision Sunday service at the beginning of February.

*And, in case your interested, the final song we recorded sounds a little bit like this this. Just a bit. Seriously. I like arranging and producing church music a little left of centre some of the time.

Note for Facebook readers : remember if I post a video or song, you’ll need to actually click through to my blog to see or listen. You know you want to.

Our LifeGroupOnline is studying Brennan Manning’s The Raggamuffin Gospel.

You’d likely know that if you follow the blogs of most of the other members of the group, but this is the first time that I’ve blogged about it.

This paragraph hit me…

Each of us pays a heavy price for our fear of falling flat on our faces.

It assures the progressive narrowing of our personalities and prevents exploration and experimentation.

As we get older we do only the things we do well.  There is no growth in Christ Jesus without some difficulty and fumbling. If we are going to keep on growing, we must keep on risking failure throughout our lives.

I can definitely see the tendency to play it safe in me, despite what I may want to believe.  I need to be kept accountable in not playing life safely.

Do you allow yourself to risk failure?

Posted via web from Preposterousness

Do you think this is actually about religion, or culture?

I think it’s fascinating that a country known for not taking a stand on anything at all has taken this stand… 

Swiss voters have voted overwhelmingly to impose a constitutional ban on minarets, barring construction of further mosque towers in a vote that put Switzerland at the forefront of a European backlash against a growing Muslim population.

Muslim groups in Switzerland and abroad condemned the vote as biased and anti-Islamic. Business groups said the decision hurt Switzerland’s international standing and could damage relations with Muslim nations.  Omar Al-Rawi, an integration representative for Islam said his reaction was one of ”grief and deep disappointment”.  

The initiative was approved 57.5 to 42.5 per cent. Muslims comprise about 6 per cent of Switzerland’s 7.5 million people. Many are refugees from the Yugoslav wars of the 1990s and about one in 10 actively practises their religion.  The country’s four existing minarets will not be affected by the ban as they do not traditionally broadcast the call to prayer outside their own buildings. The sponsors of the initiative provoked complaints from human-rights group by claiming that the growing Muslim population was straining the country “because Muslims don’t just practise religion”.

“The minaret is a sign of political power and demand, comparable with whole-body covering by the burqa, tolerance of forced marriage and genital mutilation of girls,” the sponsors said. They said Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan compared mosques to Islam’s military barracks and called “the minarets our bayonets”. Anxieties about growing Muslim minorities have rippled across Europe in recent years, leading to legal changes in some countries. There have been French moves to ban the full-length body covering known as the burqa.  

Some German states have introduced bans on headscarves for Muslim women teaching in public schools. Mosques and minaret construction projects in Sweden, France, Italy, Austria, Greece, Germany and Slovenia have been met by protests. But the Swiss ban on minarets, sponsored by the country’s largest political party, was one of the most extreme reactions. Mohammed Shafiq, the chief executive of the Ramadhan Foundation, a British youth organisation said he was concerned the decision could have reverberations in other European countries.  

Amnesty International said the vote violated freedom of religion and would probably be overturned by the Swiss supreme court or the European Court of Human Rights. The seven-member Cabinet that heads the Swiss government had spoken out strongly against the initiative but the government said it accepted the vote and would impose an immediate ban on minaret construction. It said that “Muslims in Switzerland are able to practice their religion alone or in community with others, and live according to their beliefs just as before”.  

“The sponsors of the ban have influenced a change in the relations with Muslims in a negative way,” said Taner Hatipoglu, president of the Federation of Islamic Organisations in Zurich. “Muslims indeed will not feel safe any more.”  Geneva’s main mosque was vandalised on Thursday when someone threw a pot of pink paint at the entrance.  Earlier this month, a vehicle with a loudspeaker drove through the area imitating the call to prayer, and vandals damaged a mosaic when they threw cobblestones at the building.

Source: Compiled by APN from various media reports

Posted via web from Preposterousness

Come and join in with Sunday Setlists over at FredMckinnon.com, and see how churches around the world have been worshiping this week..

December. Already. Wow.

Our Head Pastor Gary Costello is currently in Fiji as the main guest preacher at the Christian Mission Fellowship Youth Conference. I’m looking forward to hearing about his experiences when he gets back in a couple of weeks. This morning, Pastor Peter Abood preached an awesome message this morning on abiding in Jesus. Full of great wisdom.

Sunday AM

Music

1. Your Name High (Houston / Hillsong)
2. Happy Day (Hughes, Cantelon)
3. Rain Down (Seeley / Planetshakers)
4. This Is Our God (Morgan / Hillsong)
…then following tithes, offerings, news…
5. Happy Day
…and then to close the service with the altar call, healing prayers, soaking time…
6. This Is Our God (though – as normal – it was as much singing in the Spirit as it was singing in English)

Dante led us this morning and after a few “cumulative annoyances”, overcame the obstacles and led the team in a powerful time of prayer before the service, re-preparing us to lead the worship, and we certainly brought the people to the throne room of Christ this morning. A definite continuation of the season of soaking in the Holy Spirit that we’ve been in for coming on two months now.

This evening, following a yummy dinner at the beach on this most perfect of days, Diane and I went to the see the I Heart Revolution film, “We’re All In This Together”. It profoundly affected me; I cried for a significant portion of the running time. God spoke to me through the vision, the sounds, and reconfirmed a lot of things that have been formulating for days, weeks, months, years…

One thing is certain : inaction is not an option.

Note for Facebook readers : remember if I post a video or song, you’ll need to actually click through to my blog to see or listen. You know you want to.