Gerhardt: O Lord, I Sing with Lips and Heart

On Gerhardt's hymns in English.

Ich singe dir mit Herz und Mund, sing mit bei Bibel-TV

Ich singe dir
mit Herz und Mund
Herr meines Herzen Lust

ich sing und mach auf Erden
kund was mir von dir bewusst

Ich weiß dass du
der Brunn der Grad
und ewge Quelle bist

daraus uns allen
früh und spat
viel Heil und Gutes fließt

Was sind wir doch
Was haben wir
auf dieser ganzen Erd

das uns o Vater nicht von dir
allein gegeben werd

Was hat das schöne Himmelszelt
hoch über uns gesetzt

Wer ist es der uns unser Feld
mit Tau und Regen netzt

Wer wärmet uns
in Kält und Frost
Wer schützt uns vor dem Wind

Wer macht es dass
ma Öl und Most
zu seinen Zeiten findt

Wer gibt uns Leben und Geblüt
Wer lädt mit seiner Hand

den güldnen werten
edlen Fried
in unserem Vaterland

Ach Herr mein Gott
das kommt von dir
du du musst alles tun

du hältst die Wach
an unserer Tür
und lässt uns sicher ruhn

Du nährest uns von Jahr zu Jahr
bleibst immer fromm und treu

und stehst uns wenn wir in Gefahr
geraten treulich bei

Du füllst des
Lebens Mangel aus
mit dem was ewig steht

und führst uns in
des Himmels Haus
wenn uns die Erd entgeht

Wohlauf mein Herze
sing und spring
und habe guten Mut

Dein Gott der
Ursprung aller Ding
ist selbst und bleibt dein Gut

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"O Lord, I Sing With Lips and Heart"
by Paul Gerhardt, 1607-1676

1. O Lord, I sing with lips and heart,
Joy of my soul, to Thee;
To earth Thy knowledge I impart
As it is known to me.

2. Thou art the Fount of grace, I know,
And Spring so full and free
Whence saving health and goodness flow
Each day so bounteously.

3. For what have all that live and move
Through this wide world below
That does not from Thy bounteous love,
O heavenly Father, flow?

4. Who built the lofty firmament?
Who spread the expanse of blue?
By whom are to our pastures sent
Refreshing rain and dew?

5. Who warmeth us in cold and frost?
Who shields us from the wind?
Who orders it that fruit and grain
We in their season find?

6. Who is it life and health bestows?
Who keeps us with His hand
In golden peace, wards off war's woes
From our dear native land?

7. O Lord, of this and all our store
Thou art the Author blest;
Thou keepest watch before our door
While we securely rest.

8. Thou feedest us from year to year
And constant dost abide;
With ready help in time of fear
Thou standest at our side.

9. Our deepest need dost Thou supply
And all that lasts for aye;
Thou leadest to our home on high,
When hence we pass away.

Hymn #569
The Lutheran Hymnal
Text: Ps. 92: 1
Author: Paul Gerhardt
Translated by: John Kelly, 1867, alt.
Titled: Ich singe dir mit Herz und Mund
Tune: Ich singe dir
1st Published in: "Harmonischer Liederschatz"
Town: Frankfurt, 1738

Ed Stetzer, WELS Church and Change Keynote Speaker, Southern Babtist Convention Speaker

Save $140 per ticket and spare yourself the embarrassment of being seen with WELS Schwaermer.
Watch Stetzer in the privacy of your home.
Actual quote: "Coming to the SBC every year makes me feel young and thin."


Let's go over the dates again:

1. Stetzer twittered his date with WELS Church and Change July, 2008.
   
2. Stetzer blogged about Lutherans, putting them down, August, 2008, bragging about his dates with Missouri and WELS. Do they kiss on the first date?
   
3. Stetzer put the Church and Change date on his calendar - November, 2009.
   
4. The WELS COP discussed this Church and Change invite.
   
5. I blogged about this, and Church and Change began denying and lying. Such brave leaders!
   
6. On their website, Church and Change did not even admit to having a conference in 2009, certainly not one with Stetzer speaking. Such honesty! Such candor!
   
7. Now Church and Change admits to a conference, but not to the Stetzer invite! Transparency? Thy name is not Church and Change.
   
   Conference 09
   Nov 5th - 7th
   Wyndham Milwaukee Airport Hotel and Convention Center
   
   C&C events are a great place to network with people who have similar ministries, situations and problems. Come, learn and benefit from everyone's experience!
   
   
   More information is coming soon!
   

Ah, but there is a pre-history to all this.

VP Don Patterson took a group to the Exponential Conference, where Ed Stetzer was one of the featured speakers.

Ski went went another group of WELS leaders to Drive 08, to hear Babtist Andy Stanley.

Oh, what a tangled web we weave,
When using Babtists to deceive.

Google "Church and Change" and This Article Poops Up

The triangles going up to the fish's mouth represent offering money
devoured by Church and Change buddies
(free vicars for Patterson, grant for Doebler, etc).
The triangles leaving the fish's rear end
symbolize Church and Change pooping on the synod
at every opportunity, fouling the water.
Center For Church Growth
P.O. Box 691006
Houston, Texas 77269-1006
1-281-894-4391
4growth@4churchgrowth.com


Six Secrets for Introducing Successful Change in Your Church:



Six Secrets for Introducing Successful Change in Your Church: Part 2: ©
by Charles Arn
Church Growth Magazine 14 (July-September, 1999): 3-4.

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"People, by nature, tend to resist change. Consequently, how you introduce a new idea in your church will greatly affect whether it is eventually adopted. Do not assume that the idea will be naturally accepted on its obvious merits. It will not. In fact, you are much safer (and more likely to be correct) in assuming that the idea will be resisted. People are allergic to change."


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People, by nature, tend to resist change. Consequently, how you introduce a new idea in your church will greatly affect whether it is eventually adopted. Do not assume that the idea will be naturally accepted on its obvious merits. It will not. In fact, you are much safer (and more likely to be correct) in assuming that the idea will be resisted. People are allergic to change.
In a national study on churches' responsiveness to change, Paul Mundey, director of the Andrew Center (Elgin, IL), asked ministers the question: What is the most difficult change you have attempted to make in the church?

"Overwhelmingly," he reports, "respondents listed something connected with the worship or the Sunday morning schedule as the most difficult, including:


-the addition of a worship service, especially a contemporary one;

-a change in time for the existing worship service;

-a change in time for Sunday School;

-an attempt to introduce more contemporary elements into an existing worship service:"1
Here are six guidelines for successfully introducing change which will be helpful anytime a new idea is presented in your church and others must be convinced.

1. Introduce the idea as a way to reach an agreed upon goal. One of the best reasons for a church to spend time developing and adopting a mission statement is when it is time for change. If there has been previous thought, discussion, and prayer put into a mission statement, and if the congregation has adopted this statement of purpose, then subsequent change ideas are more likely to be supported if they are "positioned" as a step toward that previously agreed upon goal. In a bulletin insert several years ago, a congregation included a "Question-Answer" insert prior to launching a new worship service. The first question read:

Question: Why are two worship service options being studied?

Answer. Our Mission Statement states that we intend for ministry to be offered with a "diversity of options." This means any options offered take into consideration the needs of our church family and those of our community. Both experience and research indicate that a seeker-sensitive worship would allow us to have a significant impact on local people not now a part of our church fellowship, nor of any other church fellowship..."

2. Introduce the idea as an addition, not a replacement. Most people resist change not for fear of discovering the future, but for fear of discarding the past. If you were to present a new idea of a new worship service, for example, members should be assured that the present service will not be changed. The goal is to offer more options so that more people have the opportunity to be a part of the Body of Christ. You will have much more freedom to initiate a new service, and try new approaches, if those who attend the present service - and enjoy it - are not asked to give up "their service" as a result.

3. Introduce the idea as a short-term experiment, not a long-term commitment. Members who question whether the change is an appropriate or wise move for the church will be more open to accepting a "trial period" in which the new idea is implemented and then evaluated. Agree on a date when the new idea will be reviewed. At that time, collectively evaluate whether or not it is accomplishing its goals. If the "experiment" is, in fact, a successful step in the pursuit of the church's mission, it will be far easier at that time to obtain permission for a longer-term commitment. If it is not accomplishing its goals, it is to everyone's advantage to re-evaluate.

Another benefit of an initial "short-term" view toward the new idea is that we, as humans, are more tolerant of change if it is seen as a temporary condition. Then often we discover that the change is not as distasteful as we had feared and, in fact, is often more desirable than the past.

"Respondent after respondent," reports Mundey, "shared that the strategy of a 'trial period' had made it much easier to introduce change. People knew that the change was not permanent and that there would be opportunity to evaluate what had been done. That greatly increases the openness of a congregation to experimentation. This strategy also helps those seeking the change because they don't have their necks stuck out so far! If the experiment doesn't work, no one has lost great dignity or reputation because of it"2

4. Encourage enhancements to create ownership. Good goals are my goals; bad goals are your goals. If a member feels like the new idea is something in which he/she has a personal identity, that member will be more likely to support the idea and work for its success. Goal ownership comes through helping to formulate or refine the goal. Ask others for their suggestions on how the new idea can be most effective. In all likelihood their ideas will enhance the result as well as broaden goal ownership.

5. Sow seeds of creative discontent. Here is a principle of change that applies to all of life, including the church: "Voluntary change only occurs when there is sufficient discontent with the status quo." For many, the primary comfort of the church is its predictability. Things seem to be the same today as they have been for years. And it is that very stability which causes them to resist change in the church. "The solution," says Malphurs, "is to help those people and their churches discover that everything is not all right"3 In generating support for your new idea, seek to whet members' appetite for the greater ministry God desires and the more people he wants to reach through the church. Point out that to simply continue the present course will not, in all likelihood, realize such a dream.

There is a difference between destructive discontent and constructive discontent. Destructive discontent is a desire to leave the present for a more appealing past. Constructive discontent is a desire to leave the present for a more appealing future.

6. Start with the leaders. "A wise leader," observes Doug Murren, "will subscribe to a basic 3-step process in presenting new directions to the church: 1) explain the idea to the core group, 2) collaborate with the committed workers, and 3) share with the entire congregation,"4

As you begin to integrate these six principles of change into your methodology, you will find that many more of your proposals will be met with positive response, and your church will move forward in creative and effective new ways.

FOOTNOTES:

1Paul Mundey, Change and the Established Congregation. Elgin, IL: The Andrew Center, 1994; P. 33.

2 Mundey. Ibid. P. 36

3 Aubrey Malphurs. Pouring New Wine Into Old Wineskins. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1993, p. 80.

3 Doug Murren. "The Process of Change" in WORSHIP LEADER, Nashville: CCM Communications, Sept/Oct, 1995; P. 30.




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1 Charles Arn is president of Church Growth, Inc. in Monrovia, California. His latest book is How to Start a New Service (Baker Books, 1997).




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Center for Church Growth
P. O. Box 691006
Houston TX 77269-1006
(281) 894-4391


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Center for Church Growth © 1999
Send comments and suggestions to: webmaster@4churchgrowth.com
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***

GJ - This is the blueprint followed by Church and Change, as well as their servants, The Love Shack's Perish Assistants. The Perish Assistants kill off Lutheran doctrine and worship by promoting contemporary services, and they charge big money for it, too. The Church Shrinkers also like to promote feminist causes, women ushers, to be followed by women lectors, to be followed by women teaching men and usurping authority.

WELS was the first Lutheran sect to turn the Creeds into feminist screeds. There were high fives at The Love Shack when that happened.