We sang this fantastic new song by Chris Quilala of Jesus Culture last Sunday morning. I can’t get it off of my mind. When the oceans rage I don’t have to be afraid, because I know that you love me, and your love never fails

Nothing can separate
Even if I ran away
Your love never fails

I know I still make mistakes, but
You have new mercy for me everyday
Your love never fails

You stay the same through the ages
Your love never changes
There may be pain in the night
But joy comes in the morning
And when the oceans rage
I don’t have to be afraid
Because I know that you love me
And your love never fails

The wind is strong and the water’s deep, but
I’m not alone here in these open seas
Cause your love never fails

The chasm was far too wide
I never thought I’d reach the other side
But your love never fails

You make all things, work together for my good

This is an article my Dad (Garth Hunt) wrote in ANiC’s ‘First Friday of the Month Call to Prayer’ for June about giving thanks in the storm. I hope it speaks to you as it did me.

Giving Thanks in the Storm

I must begin this month’s meditation by asking for your indulgence as my writing has been profoundly influenced by the events surrounding Rhonda Glenn’s illness and subsequent going to be with the Lord. Quite frankly, prior to the day of Rhonda’s funeral, I had no idea what to share in the June Call to Prayer. The people of St. George’s, Burlington, have been through a month like no other we have ever experienced, as we have walked with the Glenn family through these painfully dark and emotionally draining days. It was difficult to focus on anything else for more than a few minutes. Some of you will have walked through seasons like these in your own parish life – you will understand what I am describing.

At the funeral reception held at Crossroads last Saturday afternoon, I was sharing these thoughts with a dear friend, whose wisdom and discernment I trust, and he suggested that I share with you all the provisions that the Lord has made in preparing us for these events; all the things that we are deeply grateful for in the midst of the storm; everything that has amply demonstrated that our Lord is alive and not asleep in the back of the boat. We have lots of unanswered questions, but there are many things that we can share of God’s amazing provision for us. He is indeed our Jehovah Jireh. So that’s what I will do. Subjective? Yes. But hopefully, this meditation will carry the essence of our experience of God’s faithfulness and be an encouragement for you as well.

As we look back over the past months, it is very evident that Rhonda’s illness did not catch the Lord by surprise. He had been putting a team of people in place at St. George’s that would enable our rector, Ray David, to be at his dear wife’s side throughout the entire ordeal. God had recently provided an experienced and able pastoral assistant, the Reverend Ken Bombay, to oversee the ongoing ministry aided by three honourary assistants. Shortly before Rhonda took ill, a new administrator, Gillian Fernie, had been chosen and she has been a tremendous support to the Glenns and the rest of the staff. Our new website, www.stgeorgesonline.com was launched literally the day after Rhonda was admitted to hospital and has been an amazing communication tool in the hands of the Lord, allowing us to share Ray David’s thoughts through this time, and providing us opportunity to pray together in the online “prayer room“. No, our God was not surprised, and we are so grateful to Him for setting in place the people and tools that we have needed to continue our ministry.

We give thanks to the Lord for the provision of Christ-like ANiC leaders who demonstrated deeply compassionate care for Ray David, Rhonda and their young son, Matthew, throughout this horrific month. Bishop Charlie Masters has been such a powerful channel of God’s love, ministering with the Glenns in the hospital room, sometimes until the wee hours of the morning. In his sermon at the funeral, he offered opportunity for any present to make a first-time commitment to Jesus or a recommitment to any who felt that they had strayed away from the Lord. This was just as Rhonda would have wanted it, and there has already been wonderful fruit. The care demonstrated by Archbishop Bob Duncan in coming up from Pittsburgh to celebrate communion at the funeral was another example of Episcopal oversight at its most gracious.

Ray David and Rhonda were deeply touched by the astonishing outpouring of love and prayers from people like you through the sending of emails, text messages, Facebook posts, comments on our church website, flowers and letters. There were literally 1000′s of expressions of compassion and prayer from all around the world. The Glenns, and indeed all of us at St. George’s, were profoundly moved by the Body of Christ in action. We are so grateful to the Lord for intercessors like you.

As a parish, we are so especially grateful to the Lord for our Rector – a man of deep passion, selfless vulnerability, and incredible courage. Ray David’s poignant daily blog posts allowed us to walk with them through the darkness of those days and to pray with the most up-to-date details available. But he did not stop with just an update – there were scriptures shared and challenges offered to strengthen us in our fear and weakness. RD, as we fondly call him, addressed the 800+ who gathered for the funeral service at Queensway Cathedral in Toronto. Through his tears and with breaking voice he exhorted us by saying, “Don’t you dare use Rhonda’s dying as an excuse to back away from Jesus. In our worst hour, when everything else was stripped away, we found that Jesus is enough”. Sunday morning, the day after the funeral, he posted on his Facebook page, “Ray David Glenn and Matthew are going to figure out how to do this”. By the grace of God, yes, they will. Please continue to pray for them in the working through of their profound pain and grief.

For several months now, Ray David has been closing his comments with a quote from a passage of scripture that has come to mean a great deal to him. Let me close these personal reflections on “giving thanks in the storm” with these words from II Thessalonians that are such an encouragement to us as we seek to serve Jesus going forward with renewed vigour and passion. May they be written on our hearts in order to carry us through, no matter what we are currently facing. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. I Thess. 5: 16-19 ESV

Garth V. Hunt

prayeranglicannetworkca

Tuesday night I wrote this new song, ‘Breathe on me’. As with most of the best songs I’ve written, I wrote it in the stark of  night, while sitting on my bed in the pitch dark worshiping. I had been praying, asking God to breathe out His Spirit in power this Pentecost just like He did for the early church, when this song just came out of me. I did a quick acoustic recording of it yesterday. I hope the Spirit blesses you through it.

Breathe, O breath of God, baptize my heart
Breathe on these dry bones, bring them life
Spirit make your home deep within
Lead me to the truth, lead this life

Spirit breathe on me
Won’t You breathe on me
Spirit breathe on me
Won’t You breathe on me

Come O Rushing Wind, and fill our hearts
Come with tongues of Fire, ignite our hearts

God is the source and preserver of all life. In the beginning He breathed life into our lungs and every breath since has been a miraculous gift from His mouth. In Him we find life and find it abundantly. This Pentecost let’s ask God to breathe His life anew into our hearts and to ignite a passion for His name. Let’s expect to see His glory made manifest with a mighty rushing wind and tongues of fire. Lord pour out Your Spirit on Your children I pray. Amen.

Pentecost
“When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.” Acts 2:1-4

The Valley of Dry Bones
The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the LORD and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. And he led me around among them, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry. And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord GOD, you know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live.  And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the LORD.”

So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. And I looked, and behold, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them. But there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army. Ezekiel 37:1-10

This is a fantastic song from Bethel Church in California that the Lord has used this week to speak to my heart. I hope it speaks to you as well.
O God, nothing is impossible for you!

Healer
You hold my every moment
You calm my raging seas
You walk with me through fire
And heal all my disease

I trust in You
I trust in You

I believe You’re my Healer
I believe You are all I need
I believe You’re my Portion
I believe You’re more than enough for me
Jesus You’re all I need

Nothing is impossible for You
Nothing is impossible
Nothing is impossible for You
You hold my world in Your hands

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.”
Matthew 22:37-38

“In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.”
Ephesians 1:11-12

In the mid 17th century, our church forefathers gathered and compiled a document that was meant to encompass the core doctrines and beliefs of the Christian faith. This document, called the Westminister Catechism, was one of the most important and influential documents to come out of the Reformation. One of the Catechism’s most powerful statements is this – “The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.”

We as humans spend our lives looking for meaning and purpose to our existence. So many of us bounce from one thing to the next looking for something to bring fulfillment to our empty lives. Our church forefathers grappled with this longing and came to this realization: We were made to worship the God of the universe. And not only that, we were made to enjoy Him forever and He us. In Ephesians 1 it says that we were chosen in order that we “might be for the praise of His glory.” God chose us before the beginning of time to take part in the worship of his Glory. What a thing to consider! We were made by Him and for Him – to love Him and to be loved by Him. The end (or purpose) of our lives is to love Him, enjoy Him, and glorify Him with our bodies, souls, minds, and strength. What an amazing and awe-inspiring truth!

It says in the scriptures that all creation joins in worship of the Father (Psalm 19, 96, 98). In fact it says in Romans (8: 19) that creation waits in eager expectation for us to move into our true calling. Us choosing to worship joins us into this eternal song. We become who we were made to be before the foundation of the earth. Don McMinn writes, “Our entire being is fashioned as an instrument of praise. Just as a master violin maker designs an instrument to produce maximum aesthetic results, so God tailor-made our bodies, souls and spirits to work together in consonance to produce pleasing expressions of praise and worship.”

Let’s look at the words of Jesus. When asked what was the greatest commandment, Jesus replied “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind’. This is the first and greatest commandment.” (Matthew 22:37-38) What God wants from us is love, and a love that encompasses our entire heart, fills our soul, and consumes our mind. Everything else flows from that love. We were made to be adoring worshipers of God. Not because God needed someone to tell Him how great He is, but because He wanted someone to share in the beauty of his love and glory.

So I would encourage us (and myself) as people chosen to live lives of worship to start becoming who we were made to be. Start thinking of your life as worship. Start living and speaking and breathing to glorify God and join in with creation’s song of praise to the Almighty and Everlasting God who is forever glorified. Amen.

In the coming weeks we will look more at what worship is, what it looks like, and where it comes from. I have added “Amazing Love”, a new song that we sang on Sunday to the music library. Have a great week everybody! Cheers.

NEW SONG – “Starlight“
I have been preoccupied recently with psalm 8, “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?” The whole idea of the Great and Holy God humbling himself to even be mindful of us let alone laying down his life for us is staggering. In the light of the brightness of His Glory, His grace becomes more and more extraordinary. It was out of these reflections that this song was birthed. I hope it blesses you.

“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.”
John 4:23

Hi everyone. Welcome to Spirit-Truth Worship. My name is Bryan Hunt and I am the Worship Pastor at St. George’s Lowville (ANIC). I have put together this little blog to explore what it means for us as Christians to be worshipers of Jesus: the Author and Perfecter of our faith, the King Eternal, and the Bright Morning Star. The name of the blog (Spirit-Truth) was inspired by John 4 where Jesus tells the Samaritan woman that “the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth.” In no way am I saying that I have the corner on what this true spirit and truth worship is, but as followers and lovers of Jesus it is something that we should explore and move in. We were made for worship and as we move deeper into this true life worship we become more and more who God destined us to be before the foundations of the earth.

I will update the blog weekly with new articles, music, and features. Thanks so much for checking this out and check back often for new updates.
Cheers.