The Pure Worship Podcast

The Worship Evangelism Paradox

I remember years ago I stumbled upon the idea of Worship/Evangelism, and it rocked my world. I had always thought of these two things as two completely opposite ideas. Worship music was something only relevant to believers, while evangelism was something aimed at unbelievers that would be rendered ineffective if it included musical worship. But then I started seeing this idea challenged right before my very eyes. I’d be leading worship with my old band, Sonicflood, and people would come up to us afterward with testimonies of how they had given their hearts to Christ during our worship “concert” or how they had been powerfully drawn into our outdoor worship nights as an unbeliever. It was like the very thing I thought would turn them away—lame worship music—was touching these pre-saved people in ways few things could. As they ventured into an environment where Jesus was being lifted up, he was actually accomplishing exactly what his Word says in John 12:32, and drawing all people to himself. Listen to today's podcast to see how you can get involved! And stay tuned to the very end for a special clip of North Central University's touching brand new NCU Worship Live single "Breath of Heaven (It Is Well)."

Going Public with the Secret Place

It's super common. Despite what people might think, many of us find it difficult to remember to engage with God on the daily. We only think of doing this AFTER the moment has passed. “Oh, shoot, I should have asked God about that!!!” But we’ve got to stop leaving God in the secret place and start thinking differently—we’ve got to start realizing that God wants to help us get through all kinds of different moments in our lives—from big to medium to small decisions. He has answers and tactics that are uber practical—things that are meant to make our lives and our struggles much easier to manage. Yet, we still believe we’re all alone, when all God is wanting us to do is ASK HIM. He is soooooo ready to help us, whether it’s knowing what to say in that important meeting, remembering that thing the boss told you as you were passing in the hallway, knowing how to respond to an angry friend or coworker, or simply recounting that one missing item on your grocery list. GOD IS A RIDICULOUS RESOURCE JUST WAITING TO BE TAPPED. But, we've got to get him out of the secret place and into our everyday lives! Let's talk.

Reverse Godology

Have you ever noticed that God seems to do things backwards? I mean, every time you think you have this Christianity thing figured out, you end up feeling like you’re flipped upside down. And then, just when you get yourself turned right, you suddenly realize you’re swimming upstream while everyone else seems to be going downstream. Well, this is exactly what we’re going to cover in today’s podcast. It can be easy to get super confused when the world is constantly screaming bad, and God is whispering good, and when God is calling things sweet when the world is calling them bitter. It can even go as far as the world labeling the very things God labels good, as evil! Crazy, right? We call this Reverse Godology; a condition by which the devil has upended truth so successfully, that God’s ways actually appear strangely opposite to the “truth” we have come to believe. Come along for the ride, and we'll figure out how to get it all turned God-side up again.

Reigniting Your Heart for Musical Worship

If you aren't singing in your time alone with God, you need to be. And we want to help you navigate this by giving you some practical strategies for breathing life into your musical worship time. We know everyone out there isn’t a “singer." But you’ve got to know that there’s a HUGE difference between being a singer and a worshiper. I know lots of non-singers who are incredible worshipers, and sadly I know many amazing singers who aren’t very passionate worshipers. Imagine, never utilizing the other half of what your vocals cords were designed to do? Why would God give us a voice to sing (and command it in the Word) if he didn’t want us to use it? REMEMBER: worship isn’t so much about the music. It’s about relationship. But music was certainly created by God as a tool to help us engage with Him. And of course, in order to become a true worshiper, you don’t need to sing in tune or with beautiful inflections. You only need to make a JOYFUL NOISE. So let's do this!

Un-numbing Your Love for God's Word

On today’s podcast, Josh and I are asking you to join us on a journey to the person of the Word, to a total recalibration of our understanding of the purpose of the Bible so that whenever we read it, we’re actually hearing it as a letter written straight to our heart from our very best friend. Every word, every story, as if God himself were sitting right there talking to you…personally. Because that's exactly what's happening—if you will let it! One thing for sure! As believers, we must cultivate an appetite for the Word of God. Period. Thing is, a lot of folks still think of God’s Word as a book with lots of rules and regulations, do’s and don’ts in it. But the Bible is a PERSON. John 1 reminds us that Jesus is the Word made flesh. The Word of God come to life. So listen in as we give you some new ideas for keeping the Bible real and fresh in your everyday time alone with God, whether for the first time or for the 100th time!

Jumpstarting Your Prayer Life

Prayer can be an awkward topic, almost like talking about money, because we may not want to ask for help when we need it. Because of this, we can easily go through life not knowing what we don’t know—unaware of the many ways other people improve their time with God through prayer. Some folks imagine prayer as a boring experience where we list all of our needs to God or lift up all the hurting people in our lives. And of course, requests are a part of our prayer time with God. But what if there is more to it? What if prayer is simply a name we give to an activity that involves simply hanging out with God, talking to him about life—you know, much like the conversations we might have with a friend at a coffee shop? So, what does your prayer life look like? Is it regular or random? Is it relational or impersonal? This is what we want to discuss—and above all else, we want to share some of the strategies that have helped us take our prayer lives from mundane to meaningful, all so you can get your prayer life up and running again!

Your Time to Revive

Do you ever get tired of hearing the word revival thrown around like it's some kind of 3-day special gathering? Do you long for God to move in a way that isn't manufactured by man and that has his supernatural fingerprints all over it? Unfortunately, we've grown a little jaded toward the hope that God is capable of touching us so deeply that we could be ripped out of our zombie-like state. And still, there is a lingering hope that endures—just daring us to believe it’s possible for complacency, mediocrity, and ungodliness to be shattered while joy and peace and purpose become our true eternal reality. In today's podcast, Josh and I challenge each one of us to learn to be a part of the solution, where we open our mouths to declare God's goodness to those around us. Even so, we cannot declare that which we do not cherish! The Apostle Paul declared in 1 Corinthians 1:21, “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.” Who knew God wanted to use your "foolish preaching," as directed by the Holy Spirit, to bring about real revival to those around you. Tune in to learn more!

Time to Revive

Isn’t it crazy how paralyzed we become when someone mentions the idea of sharing the Gospel? It’s like there’s nothing we fear more than opening our mouths to talk to a friend, a neighbor, or a stranger about the One we love so much. Trust me, I get it. There have been many times I’ve done just about anything I could to avoid talking to someone about Jesus—even when I knew the Holy Spirit was leading me. On today's podcast, I switch things up and interview Josh about the incredible ministry he is now partnered with that has completely revolutionized his approach to sharing his faith in Christ with others. We demystify things a bit and also share some easy to follow ideas for getting the conversation started with unbelievers. Whether you're looking to increase your courage in sharing your faith or you're interested in supporting Josh and Megan Edwards in prayer or financially, you're going to be blown away by the inspiring stories we share!

Invitation to Intimacy

Life can be eternally complicated, and we're always looking for direction when it comes to the main purpose of life. Chances are, you’re a lot like me. You don’t want to arrive on the last day of your life only to find you’ve missed the main point! To find you’ve missed the ONE THING—or to find you’ve abandoned your FIRST LOVE. The Bible helps us keep from being distracted by things that don’t matter—even when the whole world seems to be chasing after those things. The good news? Once you realize that God made worship for you and that he made you for worship, accepting his invitation to intimacy no longer seems like a burden. And it becomes a blessing. It’s like you can finally stop wishing you were close with God and start being close with God. How will you respond?

Face to Face

Can you imagine? Looking GOD right in the eye—drawing so close to him that you can actually see the brilliant details in his supernatural pupils? Terrifying, right? I mean, we struggle to look each other in the eye at times—but God? THE God of the universe? That seems eternally intimidating! Then again, what if we did? What if we ventured so close to our Lord and Savior that there was nothing between us and him? So close that we were completely exposed. Completely bare—right there before him, in his presence? What if he saw everything, and nothing was hidden—what if we willingly invited him to see every part of us—everything he already sees. It would be scary, and there could be consequences, but it would be beautiful. In the end. Because there would be mercy. Grace. Love. Tenderness. Forgiveness. And 100% complete healing. Learn how to step out into face to face relationship with God on today's podcast.