Author: brianmcmurtry

Posted on

New Single – “The Brightest Day”

For Believers, the brightest day of their life is when they come to faith. This song was a return for me to those first joyful days when I first took steps of faith. In the days of COVID-19, this was a fun project to complete with my son, Noah, who sat in on trumpet.

“The Brightest Day” is available for stream or purchase at:

Connect with Brian McMurtry:

Posted on

Awakening Liner Notes

Track 1: Awakening

This intro to the album to me symbolizes awakening things that have slumbered. Voices that have long since been silent now sing again to the Creator. Hands that have been stilled now play to the joy of an audience of One. For a long time, the Church has slumbered while missing the Spirit’s voice. The night is over, and it’s time to hear what He would say to us.

Track 2: Songs of Joy

Songs of Joy was the first piece written for this project in January 2017, but its message is relevant for today. The Church and our world are seeing some dark days with the COVID-19 crisis, but we can take comfort knowing that Jesus knows our suffering! Death has no sting because its power has been broken by the resurrection. Even in our darkest times, joy can reign triumphant.

Track 3: Anchor of My Soul

Jesus is faithful, no matter what we are facing! When the waves of life come crashing over us, it is easy to feel overwhelmed, but I am reminded from Hebrews that Jesus is our Anchor beyond the veil, ever-present, no matter what we are facing.

Track 4: Fix My Eyes on You

The Psalmist marveled that “deep calls to deep.” As I meditated on that passage, I was reminded how deeply the Holy Spirit wants to commune with us and impart His timely message to the Church. Are we willing to spend time in His presence, answering the call to deeper relationship? When we choose to soak in His presence, His purpose for our lives becomes clearer and clearer.

Track 5: I’m Following You, Lord

This song was one that I wrote in 2003 and filed away after recording a primitive multi-track consisting of an out-of-tune piano and vocal. I re-discovered it while working on this project. The piano is gone, but the vocal is still that 2003 original, and the arrangement is completely new. This song is a time machine fora lesson that I needed to revisit. It was written at a time of tremendous upheaval and change in my life. I knew what I needed to do, but fear was holding me back from His best purposes. This piece was my point of surrender to His plan. The good news is this: He DID work all things for good.

Track 6: Take Me To the Place

In the midst of a time in our country when Red and Blue divide us bitterly, the Spirit calls us to awaken and see God’s purposes for our nation. Jesus died for both Red and Blue. Reconcile men to God- don’t push them away over your political ideology! It’s the Holy Spirit’s role to guide us into all truth. After all, it’s much, much later than we think.

Track 7: Words of Life

This song came out of an early morning devotion time. In that season, I had been going through some health challenges for about 3 months and was seeking the Lord for specific direction. In the dark April morning, at the exact same moment that I was reading Job 37:1-2 (which speaks about hearing the Lord’s thunderous voice), an earsplitting thunderclap directly overhead nearly made me jump out of my skin! The quiet of the morning was instantly broken by a fierce rain storm and wind that bent the tree in my back yard. It was one of those pivotal moments where God definitely had my attention. Through the storms that we encounter, He still speaks the eternal Words of life.

Track 8: Sun of Righteousness

Life kicks us in the teeth sometimes. Loved ones disappoint us. Others put unrealistic expectations on us that no one can live up to. Over the years, Malachi 4:2 has encouraged me over and over. It is a promise that those who trust in the Lord will see Him rise with healing in His wings. My prayer is that you will find that Jesus restores your joy through whatever sorrow you are facing today.

Track 9: You Pursue Me

No matter how far we try to run away, there is a chase in which the Lord pursues us and attempts to woo us back with His persistent, never-ending love. For the believer who has learned the life-sustaining daily practice of His presence, in that intimate time, we are transformed by His presence.

Much love to my dad, who always referred to beautiful, cloudless days as “bluebird skies.”

Track 10: You Are My Rescue

It’s March 2020, and COVID-19 has unleashed its fury on our world. People are gripped by fear, but this pandemic won’t win. Jesus is victorious over it all. This song is a modern setting to Psalm 91 as a response to the pandemic. In Jesus, we have no fear because we can rest in the shadow of His wings. It’s the Word of God. He is our rescue. I don’t know what tomorrow brings, but I can rest in peace knowing that He is working His best for me.

Posted on

New Album – Awakening

Awakening is a call for Believers to break out of status-quo American Christianity and devote themselves to simple pursuit of God. Written and recorded in my home over the last 3 years, it’s a spiritual biography, documenting my own personal awakening.

Check out the liner notes for more information on the project.

Awakening is available on these online music streaming services:

Physical CDs can be purchased from my secure Shopify store.

Posted on

Get Off My Lawn!

Recently, I was involved in an online discussion about the state of worship music. Most of those in the conversation were worship leaders of my generation. They spoke of the glory days, of worship experiences gone by. A few lamented that modern worship has become overly polished and programmatic. Others complained about a younger microwave generation, who had no patience to wait on God. I am overstating a bit to make my point, but the conversation was somewhat reminiscent of the scene from Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino, where his lead character mutters to a group of young gangsters through gritted teeth, “Get off my lawn!”

Finally, one who I would consider a grandfather statesman of the group, a grizzled veteran who was a pioneer worship leader in the 70s and 80s, weighed in. He simply said, “I just want to hear the thunder of His voice in worship.” What he meant was that he didn’t really care what or how we sang, so long as we experienced the power of His presence. For me, that was the end of the conversation, and the beginning of a season of meditating on a theme that I feel is really important to the future of worship and of the Church.

It wasn’t too long ago, in the early 1990s, that my generation was a newly-minted crop of worship leaders. We left Bible College full of the Word and the Spirit, armed with new skills and an anointing that would impact the Church of that day. Not surprisingly, it was difficult for our spiritual fathers to accept us. These new worship songs weren’t like what the local church was used to singing. It was a bit uncomfortable for the seasoned saints during our “wet behind the ears” days. It was if they were saying to us, “get off my lawn!”

Sounds pretty familiar when we look at today, doesn’t it?

As I went through this season, I was led to read through the book of Malachi, the last book of the Old Testament. In the very last verse of the book, there is an interesting passage that foreshadows the ministry of John the Baptist:

“He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.

Luke’s gospel confirms this calling through the angel Gabriel’s message regarding the ministry of John the Baptist, that his ministry is not only to call people to repentance and baptism, but also to turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and children to their fathers.

When we look at the world today, we see multiple generations of people who have been abandoned either physically, emotionally, or spiritually by their fathers. The results are devastating. We see the ravage of fatherless homes not just in the inner cities anymore, but also in the ‘burbs.

In the Church, I would posit that there is a similar epidemic. There is a lack of true spiritual fathers who are willing to impart a spiritual legacy in the next generation of Kingdom servants. Generation gaps and cultural rifts occur, I believe, when we do not impart the things entrusted to us  on to others.

Fatherless churches can lead to worship wars in which sons and daughters struggle against figureheads, and figureheads alienate their sons and daughters by failing to impart a legacy. Note the intentional usage of the word “figureheads,” because there is a difference between being a figurehead and a father. Based on the entirety of Malachi 4:6, I’m not certain that God is likely to bless these types of dysfunctional relationships.

As one who has experienced the mantle of leadership in the Church, God has been challenging me fulfill the role of a spiritual father. Like Elijah, it is critical for the leaders of my generation- and not just ministers- to accept the father role in the family of God. If we carefully read the passage regarding John the Baptist’s ministry, it is noted that he will serve in “the spirit and power of Elijah…to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” We may not feel like Elijah or John the Baptist, but the principle applies.

Perhaps you’re in a situation where those younger than you aren’t teachable. It’s not just a malady of the Millennial generation- it’s always been the case that youth brings overconfident self-reliance. I would encourage you to continue to love as a father would, extending grace where you may not deem it to be deserved.

To those young readers who are in need of spiritual fathers (and mothers!), I encourage this: Be flexible and teachable. The older generation’s worship styles may seem “hokey” to you, but to many, it is something from which you can learn. Remember that your generation’s artistic expression is always subject to the message of the Cross. When we exalt “our worship expression” over that of others, it becomes something that God never intended. Realize too, that in a short amount of time, a generation younger than you will arise with their own worship songs and emphases, and it will be up to you to embrace them and entrust those things you have learned.

When Elijah was taken away by the Lord, his protege Elisha cried out, “My father! My father!” Elijah’s ministry was blessed doubly through Elisha because of his willingness to be a father to him, AND because Elisha chose to learn from his spiritual father.  May the fathers of our generation turn their hearts to their sons and daughters, and may the sons and daughters turn their hearts back to their fathers!

I would be remiss not to say that this post has been really challenging for me to write, because there are many implications for my own life. I hope that you will prayerfully embrace this biblical model of ministry whether you are a father, or son, or daughter. God’s lawn is a pretty amazing place where we are all invited; there’s no need to tell anyone to get off of it!

 

Posted on

God’s Not Nervous in the Service

We’ve all been there. It’s Sunday morning, and as we proceed through the worship service, there might be a typo on the projected lyrics on the wall. Perhaps there’s a botched transition between songs, or, heaven forbid, there are moments of “awkward” silence as we transition from one worship element to the next! A mentor once offered me some sage advice early in my worship leading career. He said, “God’s not nervous in the service, Brian. It’s us. We are the problem.” The context of our conversation was the common fear that we might offend the Holy Spirit or turn people off to the Gospel if we didn’t get everything just right in the execution of the worship service.

As I ponder the current state of worship, I have seen two extremes propagating in Christian corporate experience. These extremes are not bound to a denomination or congregation. In fact, I’ve seen both extremes in the same congregation, from one Sunday to the next!

First, I have been in many churches in the last few years where the production value was so slick, so programmed down to the very second, that I wondered to myself to what end are we doing this? Who are we trying to impress? Please note that I believe in excellence, planning, and removing opportunities for distraction, but I also have learned that ONE SECOND in the life-transforming presence of God is more effective than 60 minutes of highly-shined, technically-flawless production. If we are afraid that nonbelievers in our midst are going to walk out on us because the “show” wasn’t perfect, then perhaps we’ve missed the point.

On the other end of the spectrum, I have also worshiped in churches, often Spirit-filled or charismatic congregations, where a lack of preparation was masked by a spiritual veneer of utter dependence on the Holy Spirit to bless our failure to seek Him during the week’s preparation. It was as if the worship leader and worship team just assumed that they would pick up their instruments and microphones and that instant Pentecost would break out!

Of course, these are extreme examples. Experience dictates that we will experience varying levels of commitment to performance and/or spontaneity.

In the end, though, what does God require from a Biblical standpoint? I believe that Jesus distills worship down to its essentials in John 4:23-24 when conversing with the Samaritan woman:

“[T]rue worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” 

This is a very familiar passage, but I’d like to emphasize three points:

First, God is looking for worshipers. It doesn’t say that He’s looking for worship styles. The Samaritan woman tried to steer the conversation toward the equivalence of a “contemporary vs. traditional” worship style argument, mostly because Jesus had lain bare the secrets of her heart. Jesus sidesteps this empty religious argument by simply saying that the Father is just seeking worshipers- not worship styles.

Second, God desires to be worshiped in spirit. Yep, those spontaneous Charismatics have a piece of it right. Worship is to be energized and vibrant, inspired and inhabited by the Spirit (Gr. pneúma) of God, emanating from the depths of our own pneúma. When the people of God gather to worship in spirit, powerful things happen: the name of Jesus is glorified, the Church finds grace when they celebrate together at the communion table, hearts are prepared to receive the Word, and interestingly, the hearts of sinners are melted in the presence of the Lord. These are all the work of the Holy Spirit through us!

Third, God desires to be worshiped in truth. The Greek word for truth here is alētheia, which the contemporary reader of that time would understand to be “synonymous for ‘reality’ as the opposite of illusion.” There is no varnish, no slick veneer in true worship. It is authentic and sincere. True worship has no fantasy regarding imitation of the world’s standards of production and excellence. Let’s be honest- we may strive for excellence, but most local churches do not have the resources to compete with the production value that the world offers. By keeping things authentic, worshiping in alētheia keeps our hearts humble and in a position to receive from God.

The answer then, is that as worship leaders, instrumentalists and vocalists, pastors, and tech ministry members, recognize that it is incumbent upon us to prepare for the worship service. I believe that in each worship service, God has purposes that He wants to accomplish. There are broken hearts that He wants to comfort. There are sinners who need to be convicted. There are strongholds that need to be broken. There are believers longing to express gratitude to their God. There are hungry souls who need to be fed the Word. But most of all, He seeks worship in spirit AND truth.

My first pastor in the ministry, Ben Brumback, impressed upon me the importance of preparation time during the week. He would say, “if you don’t bother to listen to God during your planning time, He’s probably not going to speak to you if you come to the pulpit unprepared!” This saying always keeps me grounded in Spirit-led preparation. I ask the Lord to direct me during seasons of preparation, but equally, I am open to changes as the Spirit leads during the service.

Over the years, there were many times when I would spontaneously feel led to throw in an unplanned song, share a scripture, or utter a prayer that was not on the rundown sheet. I knew that the tech staff and musicians might feel a bit awkward for a moment, but those spontaneous moments where the Spirit of God takes us off the printed page are the sweetest, because I know in those moments that lives are about to be impacted by the grace of God! In those “awkward” moments, I am reminded that God’s not nervous in the service, because He has PURPOSE in the service! If my obedience to His leading results in one life being changed, then His purpose is being established in our midst, and our worship has been in spirit AND truth.

 

 

Posted on

What’s next?

One of my recurring prayers over the last few months has been to seek God’s understanding of what His purposes are in these days in congregational worship. One of the lasting worship leaders of our time, Kent Henry, espouses the assertion that a new generation of worship is born every 15 years or so. I can’t disagree. In my lifetime, there have been several distinct worship “movements,” or “seasons of worship”, with different emphases (both good and not so good) revealing a kernel of truth about God’s purposes.

In the midst of this prayer of mine, over the last few weeks, I have been consistently been drawn back to a passage in Isaiah 61. This passage has led me on a chase through the scriptures as I sought to understand its impact. Isaiah 61 starts with a very familiar Messianic passage that we understand was fulfilled by Christ. The end of the chapter, verses 10-11, are my focus. It is generally accepted by scholars that these two verses are Israel’s response to the promise of the Messiah:

I delight greatly in the Lord;
    my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
    and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
    and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
For as the soil makes the sprout come up
    and a garden causes seeds to grow,
so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness
    and praise spring up before all nations.

There is so much in this passage, but to summarize, we have the prophet Isaiah speaking for Zion, declaring delight and rejoicing for having been given hope of salvation, restoration, and right standing before the Lord, especially in a season of judgment. The last bit of the passage, though, is my focus.

The passage is apparent that God’s purpose is to cause “righteousness and praise spring up before (in the view of) all nations.” The words of this passage speak of something new coming to life. In this context, it is the renewal of right standing with God and new expressions of worship. True worship is always accompanied with a right heart. You can’t separate the two. True worship also makes an impact on those who do not believe- the nations. Israel’s mission was to be “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation,” representing God before the nations. This mission was extended to the church through the work of Christ.

As we enter the spring time of the year, we are beginning to see the tender shoots of flowers beginning to sprout up from the ground. Soon, little gardens will be planted in suburban back yards. It’s always amazing to me to see this miracle where there was no apparent life, but now there exists a young, new expression of God’s creation.

As the flowers of the field are of a cyclical nature, so are seasons of worship. I strongly believe that the current season of worship expression is wrapping up, having fulfilled God’s purposes for it. I won’t get into detail with this current paradigm, but one of the strengths of this season is that it has exposed the worship of God to the world, very much in keeping with God’s intent for His people. How many times have we seen one of these reality TV singing talent shows be blown away when an anointed musical servant makes a musical declaration of faith over the airwaves- and they have not been cast in a mocking light? It has been unprecedented, for certain.

With this in mind, my prayer is that a new sprout of worship will grow from the seeds of this passing generation, with a heart for God and for the nations. Adjoining my prayer is that the next generation of worship will be infused with a fresh sense of joy. I feel that this is essential to what comes next. Our days are filled with the world’s anxiety and dread. I believe that the church and the world are craving for songs and expressions of worship that inspire joy. My second prayer is that it will be indwelt with a deeper understanding of the presence of God. My consistent message in ministry always has been that the Lord can do more with one second in His presence than we can accomplish in our lifetime. When we pursue afresh the presence of the Lord, then truly, believers will be transformed, and unbelievers will be confronted with the living God!