The Pursuit of His Presence
Notes
Transcript
Explain shift in series over the next 8 weeks leading up to Pour Over nights
Describe Pour Over Nights and the inspiration behind them (feel like we have been prepping for the water from the edge..)
Explain the title - Pour Over
So for the next eight weeks I want to take you on a journey… A pursuit of His presence…
It is the pursuit of His presence that compels us, transforms us, motivates our prayer life, and inspires our praise..
Explain “presence” - not an etherial thing, but God Himself…
Over the course of this series, I will do my best to break down the why behind much of what we do at The Shed, and what I want us to experience together in these Pour Over Nights.
Explain prayer initiative already started: Sundays at 5:30p
There is a word in the scripture that describes pursuit and devotion…
That word is one that is often taken for granted in churches, paired with other things, and often misunderstood.
That word is Worship…
Worship is a deep concept that is hardly described by one meaning or word, but spans across language and testament consistently
Both the Greek and Hebrew words that are translated as worship are all verbs that indicate some type of activity…
In other words, Worship is not simply words, but action… Worship isn’t just something you can say or declare, but it is an action that must be taken…
In other words, it is not just praise… We have relegated worship to the song service, but the worship described in the Bible is so much deeper than praise… It is a different phenomena altogether…
If we are to pursue God, we must rightly understand worship…
Worship is described in scripture as two things: posture and service…
The Posture of Worship
The Posture of Worship
The posture of worship is often described as being bowed down or prostrate… It is a symbol of humility and reverence and awe…
When we are before the throne of God, we will be so overwhelmed with His majesty that we will be found prostrate in the posture of worship…
When Paul was on the road to Damascus, he was knocked off his Donkey and found himself prostrate on the ground and said, LORD LORD…
The posture of worship is the activity we participate in when we say we are having “praise and worship”… We are pairing our practice of praise with the posture of worship…
We are bowing ourselves down at the feet of Jesus, showing our humility and reverence for Him… That is the posture of worship…
The Pharisees were good at the posture of Worship… They were good at looking the part…
8 ‘This people honors Me with their lips,
But their heart is far away from Me.
13 Then the Lord said,
“Because this people draw near with their words
And honor Me with their lip service,
But they remove their hearts far from Me,
And their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote,
Their reverence… their worship… they have the posture of worship, but their hearts are far from me…
The Posture of Worship is not a show!
The Posture of Worship is not a show!
True worship is done because our affections for Him are true…
The arguments over stylistic preference, furniture choice, carpet color, music genres, all seem pointless and arbitrary when worship is the result of our affections toward him…
I think the reason we have so many church splits, and scandals, and criticisms is because we have formed a posture of worship that is concerned more with the show of worship rather than the root of our affections…
The church today has lost what it means to worship in Spirit and in Truth…
Their posture of worship has been reduced to a 15 minute song service that comes before a motivational speech they call a sermon…
I would rather have a dozen people who would get vulnerable with God in the sanctuary and love on Him and allow their worship to be the result of their Spirit’s affection toward Him, than a room full of people who sing a song because it sounds good…
We need honesty and vulnerability and humility and reverence… The style of music is of secondary importance to me… The skill of the musicians is of tertiary importance to me…
There is nothing more important when it comes to worship than our having genuine affections toward Him…
I have my own stylistic preferences like everyone else, but when it comes to my worship, it’s not my preferences that shape my affections for Him!
The Service of Worship
The Service of Worship
The second meaning that is held in the connotations of the words translated worship from the original language is this idea of service…
As one source puts it, “Worship, then, is the dramatic celebration of God in His supreme worth in such a manner that His “worthiness” becomes the norm and inspiration of human living.”
In other words, Worship is both Posture and service… It is celebration and living… It is Communal, but individual… it is both a ceremony and a lifestyle…
Worship is deeper than simply playing church… Worship demands a response… Worship is not worship without the posture leading to working…
If your lifestyle doesn’t put love on display, you haven’t been in worship…
If your lifestyle doesn’t reflect the Character of God in love for one anotherr and love for Him, you haven’t been in worship…
Worship goes far beyond celebration and reaches into the depths of your soul, eliciting a response in your life…
Service and Worship are often mentioned together because you cannot have one without the other…
9 and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.”
10 Then Jesus said to him, “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’ ”
5 “You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God…
Worship and Serve… If we think we can come into the building and have our worship stop when the music does, we misunderstand what worship really is…
Worship is a lifestyle!
Worship is adoration, but it is also devotion…
The pursuit of God is centered around our affection for Him…
Our love for Him compels our pursuit…
1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
This is worship in Spirit and Truth… Celebration and Devotion… Loving and living… It is POSTURE and SERVICE…
THIS IS THE PURSUIT OF HIS PRESENCE!
One thing I want to share with you is our Worship Culture statement here at The Shed…
Pass Out Shed Worship Culture Document
This is a description of the culture we are trying to build with this pursuit…
This is the direction we are headed with these Pour Over Nights…
The Shed Worship Culture
At The Shed, worship is not something we initiate—it’s our response to seeing Jesus rightly. Worship doesn’t begin with music; it begins with beholding Him. We lead not from performance but from posture—worshiping in spirit and in truth (John 4:23), grounded in the Word, led by the Spirit, and fueled by a life of devotion.
Be, Not Show
We don’t perform. We don’t strive for the spotlight. We lead by being—living lives of worship that reflect Christ. An authentic worship leader disappears into the glory of God. The best worship leaders don’t draw attention to themselves—they help people see Jesus.
Priests, Not Performers
Every worshiper is a priest (1 Peter 2:9), and every worship moment is ministry to God. Our goal is not a perfect setlist or a flawless service—it’s to honor the King with a pure heart. We take inspiration from Zach Neese’s How to Worship a King, remembering that worship is sacred, not supplemental. We are ministers before musicians.
Worship as Discipleship
We believe worship is formational. Songs shape theology (Col. 3:16). Repetition creates retention, and retention leads to transformation. Every song we sing is a sermon people will carry with them. So we are strategic, thoughtful, and biblically anchored in every lyric we lead.
The Secret Place Fuels the Stage
Worship on stage is not where worship begins—it’s where it overflows. The public expression of worship should be the result of deep, consistent, private devotion.
If you’re not spending time in God’s Word, in prayer, and in worship off the stage, you have no business leading people into His presence on the stage. We don’t fake it till we make it. We live it before we lead it.
Psalm 63:1 says, “O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You…” If that thirst isn’t real in you, your worship will be hollow.
We come to worship full, not empty. We don’t wait for the Sunday altar to get our oil—we bring our oil with us. We’ve been with Jesus during the week. We’ve sat with Him, worshiped Him in silence, meditated on His Word, and let it shape our hearts.
Spontaneous worship flows from Scripture, not just emotion. The deeper we go in the Word, the more we have to pour out when the Spirit prompts us. Without the secret place, we’re just singing songs. With it, we become vessels for God to move through.
Excellence without Ego
Excellence honors God—but performance culture has no place here. We pursue skill, planning, and intentional rehearsal—not for applause, but because He is worthy. Sunday morning is not a patch-up—it’s a pour-out. We come prayed-up, prepared, and present.
• Excellence is a pursuit, not a competition.
• The only church we compare ourselves to is the one God has called us to serve.
Rest, Reality, and Resilience
We protect our souls, embrace rhythms of rest, and resist the urge to hustle for worth. Rest isn’t a luxury—it’s survival; without rest our spirit suffers, and in turn everyone around us. We’re not building a team; we’re building the Kingdom. Obedience is the measure, not applause.
Rehearsal as Discipleship
Rehearsal isn’t just run-through—it’s training, discipleship, and culture formation. We work on skills and spirit. We practice spontaneous worship, vocal blend, scripture grounding, and spiritual conversations. We build the team while we build the music. Deliberate practice matters—but so does worshipping together off the stage.
Engaging the Room
We speak with clarity, not clutter. We avoid performance monologues and over-explaining. We invite people in, empathize with their realities, speak naturally, and lead with Scripture. We leave room for silence. We call people to respond—not to us, but to the living God.
We Lead to Disappear
Our job is not to be seen—but to help people see Jesus. When we pursue Him well, the spotlight fades and His presence becomes the focus. We don’t lead songs. We lead hearts. We’re not curating a show—we’re creating a place where heaven touches earth.
Discerning the Spirit in the Room
We are a Spirit-led worship culture. That means we follow, not force. We move when He moves—and we wait when He lingers.
Discerning the moving of the Holy Spirit is essential. We stay sensitive to what He’s doing in the room, not just what’s on the schedule. Sometimes the Spirit is working in hearts in a moment we’re tempted to rush past. Other times, we may feel like lingering, but He’s saying, “It’s time to move.” We submit our preferences to His presence.
Before you speak, pause and ask:
“Is this for me, or is this for the room?”
Then look for confirmation. God rarely speaks in isolation. If He’s saying something to you, He may also be speaking to others—especially your pastor. Be attentive to what the pastor is sensing and doing. Honor the spiritual authority in the house. Unity in the Spirit looks like mutual sensitivity, not spiritual freelancing.
We also stay in tune with one another as a worship team. Watch for signs of alignment or resistance. Leadership in the Spirit is not about control—it’s about obedience and discernment. When in doubt, wait on the Lord. He confirms what He wants to say.
The pursuit of God is not done out of a motivation for self help, or so that He will do something for us…
So often those that say they are pursuing God do so because they need something from Him…
For example, pursuing Him because you need healing… pursuing Him because you need deliverance… pursuing Him because you need His power to conquer sin… pursuing Him because you need a financial miracle… pursuing Him because you need peace in your mind… pursuing Him because you don’t want to go to Hell or because you want to go to heaven…
Here’s the reality, all of those things can come from a pursuit of God, but you don’t pursue His presence for the outcome… You pursue Him out of a love and affection for Him…
The pursuit of His presence doesn’t start with your need, it starts from your affection.
1 “I love You, O Lord, my strength.”
1 As the deer pants for the water brooks,
So my soul pants for You, O God.
1 O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly;
My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You,
2 My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the Lord;
My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.
25 Whom have I in heaven but You?
And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.
26 My flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
6 I stretch out my hands to You;
My soul longs for You, as a parched land.
Selah.
When asked what was the greatest commandment Jesus answered:
30 and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’
This is the root of all our motivations… This is the cornerstone of our belief system…
If your life is built on anything less, you will find yourself in a constant cycle of defeat and ruin because your motivation is anything other than affection for the Holy God of Heaven…
This is what it means to pursue God…
Altar Call: Ask God to rekindle your affection toward Him… Ask for a fresh fire and a fresh encounter with His love…
19 We love, because He first loved us.
