Well, the time has come. We’ve reached track six of my worship mixed tape! As the last installment in this series, it’s only fitting to cover one of my all time favorite worship songs, a song that I was introduced to at C4, and a song that has been an anthem for our church since the very beginning. That song is Came to My Rescue by Hillsong.
This song is the cry of my heart as it speaks to the heart of true submission to God, a desire to have God be glorified in all aspects of my life.
Of course I could tell you all about the song myself, but I felt it more fitting to bring in a guest on this one, someone who has been here since the beginning and knows the heart and drive behind this song firsthand. That guest is none other than our very own worship leader, Matt Wallenburg.
I know he’s not a “guest” to you, but he is a guest to the blog...so just roll with it.
The following was written by Matt back in October...2017... So I’ve been waiting a long time to post it. It’s full of heart, passion, and the Lord, so sit back and enjoy (Might I suggest clicking play and letting this song play as you read on?).
“The song Came to My Rescue was written by some of the musicians with Hillsong who had a desire to convey a simple heart of gratitude for what God has done. It stands out as one of my all-time favorites that I learned under my beloved mentor Sam Park before Matt Korniotes asked me to lead worship for C4 in early 2011.
Nearly my whole adult career has been in project management of some kind or another between engineering and the military, and at that time I knew that the beginning phase of this ministry was the same as the beginning phase of any project- it sets the foundation on which everything else is built going forward. Any future adjustment or correction to the foundation requires ripping down anything that has been built on top of the foundation.
Which is why during the first days I was praying hard about how God would establish this brand new worship ministry and make it what He wanted, not what I had a vision for or what I was comfortable with.
I have led worship since I was 14 and experienced so many different ways to lead. With a completely open-ended decision to make, I sought that the Lord would establish something new and fresh in me that was appropriate for the work He wanted to do at C4. I didn't want something that was right for the previous ministries I had served with, but a fresh outpouring that was tailored for the specific work that the LORD was wanting to do with our newborn fellowship.
The structure that God brought from that time of seeking Him is a story all on its own, but out of that time of prayer came a very clear vision that God wanted me to simply remind His kids of who He is and about what our response should be because of that.
Yes, I know that's a generic statement that describes how all worship should be, and every Christian knows it; at the same time, we get so caught up in trying to do what's right, trying to understand God, and the complexity of living for Him in a world that opposes Him, that our worship gets cloudy. Routine and religion set in as we try to figure things out, and the simplicity of being kids reaching up, out of our mess, for Daddy, becomes something we look down on. What God wanted for C4 had to be simple and so very clear, and it had to stay that way. We would start with singing songs that reminded us of who God is and what He has done, and then as the worship set progressed we would intentionally put ourselves in a position of humility before Him as a result of those truths we reminded ourselves of.
Came to My Rescue fits that vision so perfectly. The writers of this song had the same heart that I had when they wrote Came to My Rescue. Since it so appropriately describes our position in the Lord, it became our first anthem as a new fellowship, completely unifying Matt K and myself around the fundamental importance of that sort of powerful simplicity.
Here’s what the song says:
Falling on my knees in worship
Giving all I am to seek Your face
LORD all I am is Yours
My whole life I place in Your hands
God of mercy, humbled I bow down
In Your presence at Your throne
I called, You answered
And You came to my rescue and I
Want to be where You are
In my life be lifted high
In our world be lifted high
In our love be lifted high
Look at how intimate the language is. Nearly every line of the song mentions both me as the rescuee and God as the rescuer.
It can be hard to find worship songs where our response isn’t all about us and what WE say we can and will do. So much of our worship response is about the things we'll do for God, but this one is simply about us being and leaving the doing to our Savior. The only thing we’re called to do in this song is fall on our knees and place our lives in His hands. Through that He is glorified and lifted high in our lives.
THAT is salvation, folks!
Paul says in Galatians 3:3 (though really the whole book of Galatians addresses this point so wonderfully),
"Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?"
We are saved when we realize that there is no hope for us fixing ourselves and that we have a critical need that nobody but Jesus can fill. The best that we can ever do and the greatest thing that we can give to God is to simply exist in Him and lift up to Him our broken, messed up hearts. That is worship. That is our response to Him when we first allow Him to take His place as the Sovereign King of our reality, and it remains our only real response as we walk through our long journey of faith.
I never develop anything more to give to God as a Christian.
I never become anything better than a pitiful wretch incapable of anything good
I AM a pitiful wretch in whom the Spirit of God dwells.
I am confident that Came to My Rescue will always be an anthem for me personally and for C4 as a family no matter how long we follow the LORD because our position never changes. The only thing we can ever do is kneel and place our lives in His merciful, capable hands and accept the rescue that He has performed.”
Well, there you have it folks. Came to my Rescue, an anthem for our church, and an anthem for our hearts. I pray you’re blessed by this song as you listen to the words. Close your eyes, pray to God, and call out for Him to be lifted high in your life!
Well, I think I'm going to break from my current series, because God has placed something on my heart that is just too good not to share! Please read on; we'll continue my Mixed Tape next time!
As many of you know, a large group of men just returned from a weekend men's retreat. Now, I know that some of you may love going on retreats, while others could come up with a thousand reasons why you wouldn't want to go on a retreat. Regardless of your preconceived notions, a retreat is a great opportunity to get away from day-to-day life, get to know others better, and clear your head so you can hear more clearly from God. This retreat was no exception!
I went up on the mountain fully expecting to be encouraged by the Lord. I figured I would get to know some guys better, encourage them in their walks, and grow a little bit in my walk with the Lord. What actually happened up there was something completely unexpected. To be honest, I experienced God in a way that I have never experienced Him before... at least not that I can remember. God was vividly present up on that mountain, and His Spirit was moving greatly in the hearts of the men, myself included. I came back with pages of notes, way more than I can cram into a blog post, but I wanted to share with you three important lessons that God installed in my heart during this short time. Grab your coffee, and come along!
Lesson One: I am God's beloved child!
Over the course of the weekend, we heard multiple times about Joseph and the multi-colored tunic that his father made for him. This fine tunic signified Joseph's status as beloved child of his father (and of course that's one of the main reasons hisbrothers threw him into a pit and sold him into slavery). Just as Jacob made the tunic for Joseph, God has provided us with a prized "tunic" through the man, Jesus Christ. Did you catch that?! His sacrifice adorns us and allows us to come close to God -- His sacrifice is the tunic that tells us and everyone else that we are His beloved! When was the last time you thought of yourself in that way? As a beloved and coveted child of the Creator of all things, if we truly understand this part of God's heart, we can be unstoppable for Him. Once we fully own the truth, that we are God's beloved children, we will walk in courage, strength, and victory through all situations!
Lesson Two: I need to slow down and just spend time with God.
The first night of the retreat, I hiked around the camp looking for the perfect spot to watch the sunrise and study God's Word (cuz that's what you do at a retreat right?). I found a great spot that looked east over the valley, a perfect place to watch the sun pop up over the mountain tops. Clearly the camp directors knew this was a premium spot, because they conveniently set out rocking chairs looking over the valley. The next morning I got up early, grabbed my Bible, and headed for my spot. I sat down in that rocking chair, spread open my Bible and gazed at the words, ready for God to miraculously download wisdom into me.
The next moment, I was struck with a truth that I wasn't expecting. God said, "I don't need you to study right now, I just want you to be with Me." In that second, I realized that I was too focused on learning more about God, and not focused enough on simply KNOWING God.
MIND. BLOWN.
I closed my Bible and spent the next half hour praying, talking to God, singing to Him, and simply being WITH Him. It was incredible! After that sweet time of prayer, I moved to another area where I did open the Word, and God led me through a fantastic study about the call on my life! It turns out, this time spent in prayer and just focusing on God didn't hinder my study of His Word. It accelerated it! We need to remember that this walk with the Lord is not just about studying to learn more about God (granted we do need to study God's Word to draw closer to Him). This walk is about growing to KNOW God, and in order to do that, we must get in the habit of slowing down and simply being WITH Him!
Lesson Three: God's calling on my life is so much more than a formal ministry.
If I were to ask you to describe God's call on your life, many of you may have a hard time answering. You might be inclined to say it's to serve in children's ministry, maybe it's to help others, maybe you're not even sure. When thinking about God's "calling," most people default to some kind of formal ministry. Yet on this trip, God showed me very clearly that God's calling on my life is so much more than formal ministry. Joseph was a man who was thrown into a pit, sold into slavery, falsely accused, thrown into prison, and then... after all of that, he was given one of the highest positions of power in all of Egypt. Although we may say that God's calling was for Joseph to lead Egypt, I would submit to you that God's calling on Joseph's life was to honor Him every step of the way, and we see that so clearly in Joseph's story! God calls us to walk with Him, spend time with Him, and get to know Him. He calls us to be an example to everyone we encounter. He calls us to lead our families. He calls us to worship Him. He calls us to simply be His child. He calls us to all of this in the good times and the bad, in the times of prosperity and the days of famine. When it comes to God's calling, ministry is simply the by-product of following God's calling in every aspect of our lives. In fact, you'll find that if we try to run into formal ministry before following His call in the other areas of our lives, we will quickly become overwhelmed trying to dothe "works" of being a Christian.
There is so much more to share, but that's enough for now. This retreat was fantastic. I pray the next time an opportunity comes along to go on such a trip, that you take it! Go, even if it seems out of place for what you like to do. Break away from your day-to-day, and put some extra focus on the Lord. Remember, you are God's beloved child, spend time just hanging out with Him, and remember that His calling on your life is so much more than some formal ministry. Once you grasp a hold of these realities, you'll surge forward in your walk with God!
