A Full Life - Part 2

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD. 

Check out this week's Bible passage: John 10:10

Last week we looked at the word thief in John 10:10. We started to talk about what it means that he steals, kills, and destroys. I want to continue that discussion this week.

Be sure to click here to watch this week's video

Look at where you posted John 10:10 last week and keep working to memorize the passage. Come ready to talk about how Satan specifically is trying to harm us and those around us on Thursday evening.

A Full Life

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD. 

Check out this week's Bible passage: John 10:10

 













This week I would like to do a couple things through our blog.  I would like to use the passage above as a month-long study for two reasons:

1. I would like for us to memorize it together, as a ministry; and
2. I would like to show the power of looking at just a few words of scripture and meditating on them. 

Both of these are great disciplines. 

Check out this week's video by CLICKING HERE.

Be sure to post the John 10:10 passage somewhere and begin memorizing it. Each week we will study one piece of it.

Thankful Leadership

 This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

Check out this week's Bible passage: Matthew 26: 20-29

This week my attention was drawn to Thanksgiving and the meal that we are preparing to share with those that we love. That led me to think about Jesus’ last meal on earth as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew (since I just finished it in my reading plan).

Be sure you watch this week’s video and read the scripture passage above.

Meditate on the last supper this week. Consider that all of the disciples were at different places of leadership in their spiritual journey. What did the last supper mean to them?  Other than creating a lasting sacrament, what was Jesus teaching them about leadership? Who are we learning leadership from? Who are we giving away our leadership?

I will be looking forward to talking to you this week about what you saw. I also want to share the Lord’s Supper with you. Whether you are scheduled to play this week or not, please feel free to come for the devotion and the Lord’s Supper. 

Remember that this week we are practicing WEDNESDAY evening starting at 6:30PM.

Friendship vs. Fellowship

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

Check out this week's Bible passage: Acts 2:42–47

Biblical fellowship is so important.  There are many ways that we can connect with other Christians: ministry, community events, friendships, football games…. I could go on. But Biblical community when it comes to fellowship is unique according to the New Testament.

Watch this week’s video by CLICKING HERE and be sure you read the scripture above.

Come this Thursday evening ready to talk about what it means to grow and connect in real Biblical fellowship.

How do we do that at ORBC?

Is this an area where you should take a next step?

Leaders All Begin as Disciples

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

Check out this week's Bible Passage: Luke 10:1–17

It is the goal of our ministry to help each of you become the greatest leader that you can be. I think this is a goal steeped in the origin of the church and within the first disciples.

Be sure to watch this week's video by CLICKING HERE and read the Bible passage above.  This Thursday I would like to share a path that has the potential to move you forward in your faith as well as your leadership. Please be sure to be at practice before 6:30pm.

Thunderous Praise

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

²³ 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. ²⁴ God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4: 23-24 (NIV)

Many times our praise and worship can be connected to situations or emotions that we have. We feel we can only lead when we are in the zone or when we are gelling well with the people that we are assigned to lead with.

Take the time to check out this week's video blog by CLICKING HERE and be sure to read the scripture above.

Listen to the song, “Praise You in the Storm” , think and pray about what it means to lead and offer an offering of praise in the midst of a storm. Then this Thursday we will learn together how in the middle of our trials and hurt God can bring about the greatest praise from us and the people we lead.

Giving Thanks

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

Check out this week's Bible Passages: 2 Thessalonians 1:3-4a & Psalm 136 (A Psalm of Thanksgiving) 

I find myself pausing this week to offer thanks for what God has just done this past Sunday. We saw a large reminder, through the ordinance of baptism, of why we do what we do. Your efforts, your treasure, and your time were invested through the worship ministry to bring about the life change we saw. I just want to say thanks and well done to every one if you that had a part in this past weekend!

CLICK HERE to watch this week’s video blog and take some time this week to reflect on what happened. What things did you witness and see that brought about thankfulness in your heart? 

Read 1 Thessalonians and Psalm 136 and let the heart of thankfulness written there lead your heart into thanksgiving this week. Come ready to share where you saw God at work this past week and how it impacted you and those around you.

See you Thursday!

One Characteristic of Excellence

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

 

“Who here qualifies for the job of overseeing…?  A person the Master can depend on to feed the workers on time each day.   Matthew 24:45 (The Message)

When we talk about being a part of a team and valuing excellence there are many different character traits that a person needs. One that should be desired by us all is that others see us as dependable.

CLICK HERE to watch this week’s video and read the scripture above. 

Think about what is involved in building a reputation where others know that you are dependable and that you can be counted on within the team.

Looking forward to seeing you all and hearing your thoughts when we meet on Thursday!

Not To Us

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

Not to us, Lord, not to us

but to your name be the glory,

because of your love and faithfulness. (Psalm 115:1 NIV)

I awoke last Saturday morning ready to spend some morning time with the Lord. I had a renewed vision of how awesome a privilege it is to know Jesus and have a relationship with Him. I opened to Psalm 115 and was reminded of why it is such a privilege. It’s clear why Chris Tomlin would pick this Psalm for his song, “Not to Us”.

Watch this week's video by CLICKING HERE, read and even memorize this Psalm this week, you may even want to listen to Tomlin’s song again, and please meditate on what an honor it is to bring glory to His name, when we lack any intrinsic glory of our own.

Risk Taking

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

Check out this week's Bible Passage: Matthew 25:14-30

Typically when we think of the church we do not think of "risk takers". Check out this week's Bible passage to get Jesus’ perspective on taking risks.

CLICK HERE to check out this week's video blog.

Last week was a great week to reach out with the Shorebird’s Event. I think it was a risk and I think it was cool that it was run for the most part by volunteers!

This week, come to worship practice thinking about how this parable applies to your ministry, to you personally, and how it might even apply to an area of life that you have never thought of giving to God.

Seeking...

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

Check out this week's Bible Passage: Psalm 105:4

 

As a seeker-sensitive church we often think of the concept of seekers as someone who is un-churched or "lost".  This can be a very narrow concept of just who a seeker can be.


CLICK HERE to check out this week's video blog and come prepared on Thursday evening to let me know what you're doing to seek God's face.

I am looking forward to hearing how God is moving among you. I am hoping and praying that we may encourage one another with our unique approach to seeking Him with a whole heart!

The Purpose of Our Worship

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

Check out this week's Bible Passage: Psalm 40:1–3

This week I was thinking about how God uses all of our different backgrounds in the worship arts area. I was looking for a good verse that speaks to this and landed on the passage listed above in Psalms.

As you prepare for this week’s devotion first check out this week's VIDEO BLOG

Think about how God has used your artistic or technical background specifically to help you in the area of corporate and personal worship. In addition, think about how that same background has helped you to lead others into a personal encounter with God.

Looking forward to discussing this with you all on Thursday night!

Sharpening Your Axe

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

Check out this week's Bible Passage: Ecclesiastes 10:10

No matter where you serve in the Worship/Arts Ministry, you have a specific and important skill that you bring to the table. While many times hard work is needed, greater and growing skills help us to be more effective according to Ecc. 10:10. If we ever arrive at a place where are skills do not need sharpening one of two things has happened: we have become arrogant or we are dead.

This week check out the VIDEO BLOG and read the passage above, thinking about what you need to do to sharpen your skills in your area of ministry. What can you do to help others sharpen theirs? Do you have a plan for sharpening yours? How is it going?

Come ready for a discussion and don’t forget about this week’s worship conference! This week’s conference will be an important part of how God will sharpen you within this worship ministry.

Looking forward to hanging out with you Thursday, Friday and Saturday night!

Encouragement

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.  

Read this week's Bible Passages: Proverbs 15:22 & Ephesians 4:14-16

Throughout my life I have had certain people who have encouraged me and had great impact on my spiritual journey. As I thought about them this week, I was reminded of the two scripture passages linked above that guided the wisdom they used to pierce my heart to be more like Jesus.

Please read this week's Bible passages in preparation for this week’s devotion on Thursday evening and watch this week's video blog by CLICKING HERE.

See you all Thursday night!

Relationships, Relationships, Relationships…

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.  

Read this week's Bible passage: Luke 10:38-42

Over the last few week’s we have looked at our core values as a worship ministry (God Honoring Living, Risk Taking, Culturally Relevant, Creativity, Excellence). I hope that you have had the opportunity to reflect on these values and that you understand that what we do is all about PEOPLE.

People’s lives being changed happens through relationships. Tasks, objectives, values, and the arts are all pathways to a relationship. This week check out the video blog and read the passage above and come ready to talk about the core of why we do what we do.

See you all on Thursday!

Excellence

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.

Read this week's Bible passage: Colossians 3:23

Excellence can drive someone to greater heights or it can drive them toward impossible goals. What defines the difference? One is inspiring and the other can be debilitating.

Check out this week's video blog from Susan Lynch, a veteran leader with more than 15 years of experience, to prepare for Thursday's devotion.  Consider the definition of excellence she mentions, "Doing the best you can with what you have".

I know that God will lead us into a great discussion around this core value. See you Thursday night!

Celebrating Creativity in Worship

This post was written by Doug DeWitt

Check out this week's Bible passage: Psalm 150:1-6 

This week's core value is creativity.  Throughout the Psalms, King David very clearly lays out the desire and need for creativity and the arts in the worship experience.

Take a look at the video blog for this week and consider how creativity is and should be woven into everything we do in our worship ministry work.

There are a variety of other Psalms that emphasize creativity in the worship experience. What are some of your favorites?

Have a great week and we'll see you creating great new experiences at ORBC!

Seeker Sensitive vs. Seeker Driven

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.  
 
Check out this week's Bible passages:

I Corinthians 9:19-23

Romans 12:1-2

Read the two passages above and you may notice a tension between the two. The tension you may pick up on deals with the difference between being seeker sensitive vs. seeker driven.

Check out this week's video

This week as we prepare to meet together, think of two different styles of worship and bring examples with you: traditional and contemporary. What makes either relevant or irrelevant to our culture? Can you take contemporary worship too far?

Taking Risks

This post was written by Larry Davis, a pastor at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, MD.  

To Read This Week's Bible Passage :: CLICK HERE 

Risk taking takes two very important components, as far as our worship ministry is concerned: Faith and Empowerment of Volunteers. 

Check out this week’s Video Blog  Based on last week’s reaction I thought through my location carefully and would love your thoughts and feedback.

Be sure to read this week's Bible passage: Luke 10:1-24 (linked above) and see what you can learn from the passage as you see how Jesus empowered His disciples. Also, take a look at what excited His disciples vs. what excited Jesus about the experience.

I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts and wisdom this Thursday night for practice!