Lisa J. Camp

In our band rehearsal last night, we started discussing the book " The Air I Breathe " by Louie Giglio .  It's not a new book by any means, but I find it to be a classic dissertation on the fundamental understanding of what worship is and who worshippers are.  Square one for turning on the light bulb over the heads of people who might think music in church is for entertainment or just audience participation.  It means something... everything; and it needs to be understood.   We talked at length about the fact that every living person past, present or future, is a worshipper.  Everyone worships something or someone; and as Louis said it better than I could, "Every heart has an altar and every altar has a throne."  And while God, the Creator and Ruler of the universe, is seated on the throne of time and eternity, whether or not He is seated on the throne of your life is variable moment by moment.  I dentifying what or who is seated on the throne is a matter of f

Recently I had an afternoon off work on a Friday and thought I'd start the weekend with a quick pat-on-the-back reward from the coffeehouse on the way to other errands.  Being a rewards member, I had earned enough stars to indulge in my favorite... the Venti Chai Tea Latte with 3 extra pumps of Chai and half a pump of mocha.  (SO GOOD!)   It seemed like an average day with my normal order, but when I got to the pick up window the barista made a strange apology.  "There will be a word on your cup, but don't freak out.  It's ok."  I took my drink from her and curious examined my cup only to find in bold letters the word "Bride" written there.  I thought, "how exciting!  I didn't know I was getting married today!"  (My next thought was, "I didn't even know [my celebrity crush] is in town today." - but I digress. LOL)  My mind went on a little tangent just then thinking about all the things I'd be doing if I really wer

Much has been posted online and in social media of a young pastor who recently committed suicide after battling depression.  It's a tragic account of the weight that ministry can bear on a leader and the associated toll it can take on one's emotional, spiritual and even physical health.  And while suicide seems to be an outcome becoming more common in recent years, depression itself is not all that unusual in ministry or its ministers going back centuries and even millennia.  One of history's greatest preachers, Charles Spurgeon, battled depression often and spoke about it candidly.  He had learned to accept it as an expected part of ministry in a unique way.  Rather than finding life and the Lord's work to be hopeless or daunting, he viewed his bouts of depression as a hopeful thing - a season that would eventually change like Winter to Spring in due time.  His depression was something to be endured as it gave birth to a season of abundance or fruitfulness from the