Reckless Abandon Worship (RAW) Blueprint

Forsaking All Others For His Name’s Sake

“I’m coming back to the heart of worship
And it’s all about You,
It’s all about You, Jesus
I’m sorry, Lord, for the thing I’ve made it
When it’s all about You,
It’s all about You, Jesus”  ~Matt Redman lyrics

Overview:

The words reckless abandon and worship are not two words you would usually associate together. Reckless abandon is almost always used in negative sense—as a person who is foolish, irresponsible and does whatever it takes to complete a goal having no regards to the consequences. Worship on the other hand is seen by many in a narrow sense of what a church service is, the music we play Sunday morning, or even a genre of music. Reckless Abandon Worship or RAW, for short, is a ministry created to shed some light on what worship is all about, why it’s a lifestyle, and why the words, “reckless abandon” is appropriate in terms of how we worship God.  What if our worship was fearless? What if we could truly worship without worrying about what others think? What if worship was more than an event and instead a lifestyle we partake in each and every day of our lives? Here are the main objectives of this ministry:

• To illustrate and inform on how worship is a lifestyle
• Grasping how worship is an integral and essential part of the Christian life
• Strengthening and teaching Worship leaders the fundamentals of leading worship
• Building a community who shares their thoughts, views, and opinions on the different aspects of worship
• Introduce new Christian bands, music artists and  in the process reviewing them. Also to provide you with solid role models of worshippers of God.

The Slogan: “Forsaking All Others for His Name’s Sake”

This slogan goes hand in hand with the name of the ministry, Reckless Abandon Worship. To truly worship God is to put all of the distractions, worries, doubts, and cares of this world aside and focusing on nothing more than bringing glory and honor to His name. It’s not about how well we play our instruments, how good the music sounds to us, the adrenaline rush we experience, or how beautiful our singing voice is–God’s only interested in our heart. To put it simply–to worship God is to give Him ourselves completely. Open, broken, bruised, with our imperfections, failures–everything. It is only then that we can focus on what worship is all about–God and God alone.

What Features Will Be Included? 

The main feature of this ministry will be short blogs entries on different aspects of worship covering a vast variety of topics. We’ll discuss different forms of worship, practical ways to worship in your everyday life, examples of men and women who are worshippers of God, the meaning behind a song’s lyrics and what to take away from them, being joyful in difficult circumstances, and more. The other feature that is currently running is the RAW Reviews which is where we’ll review an album, song, or musical artist. Included will be music videos and photos that compliment the review.

Who Will Be Writing the Content?

As of January 2012, this ministry will be co-authored by Kyle Jackson (founder of SHOUT IT Ministries) and Brian Shooks. This is the first ministry that is indeed co-authored and certainly will not the last. Brian, though, will be the primary author and write most of the content, as he is the children’s worship leader for his church and has a vast amount of experience and wisdom leading worship. Kyle, on the other hand, will post blogs that are targeted on the essentials of worship as a lifestyle and writing a RAW Review from time to time.

How Often Will New Material Be Presented?

There will be new material on average of about once or twice a month. There is no set schedule of topics to be discussed, RAW Reviews to be covered, etc. New material will be added when God lays on our hearts a message He wants us to communicate back to you. As this ministry grows and matures there will be more features and material added. As for now, though, expect new material a few times a month at most.

Do I Have Any Input in this Ministry?

In the future you will be able to participate in forums discussing your thoughts on albums, music artists, songs, or worship concepts. For the time being, you’ll be limited to simply letting your thoughts known through writing comments on the site or by contacting one of us through e-mail. (see below)

Final Thoughts:

At the end of the day, our singular vision for this ministry is that you learn, practice, and become a worshiper of God that’s with an all out reckless abandon! You may not be musically gifted or have a great singing voice–but you’ll come to a greater understanding that God isn’t concerned so much with these things. It all comes down to your heart and being willingly to give everything back to Him. If you have questions, comments, or suggestions please feel free to contact Kyle at kylej317@gmail.com or Brian at bshooks23@hotmail.com.  Together let’s discover the heart of worship…where it’s all about Jesus!