It’s been some time since I wrote for this publication, previously titled, ‘King Worship’. Much has happened since the last post back in June 2021, so this is something of an update, to unveil and explain a new name, and to give discerning readers a perfectly reasonable excuse to unsubscribe.

First, you’d be forgiven for completely forgetting what ‘King Worship’ was, why it existed, how you ended up subscribing, and, indeed, who this is writing right now. So, a quick recap.

A Quick Recap

My name is Graham Ormiston, married to Lucy, and with a young, fluffy addition, Archie (a lockdown pup). I don’t think he existed when I last posted - life is certainly a bit more colourful with him around.

I live in London and work at TBN UK, which is a Christian TV channel (not as bad as it sounds). My journey there has been, shall we say, eventful over the past few years. I’m sure we’ll get into that some other time. I attend Grace London, a church in Waterloo which bucks the trend of UK church growth (as in, it grows).

King Worship

‘King Worship’ was intended to be a blog and podcast with a simple, singular focus: to help others worship Jesus. I tagged it, ‘a call to worship’.

I firmly believe music is a gift from God. To me, a world without music would be like a world without laughter or warmth or flowers or colour or chocolate or skin. Painful, and gross. For me, music is worship, but that does not mean that all worship is music. I have (along with much of the evangelical church and possibly the world) conflated the two, but I have slowly been learning to decouple them a little. Music is a tool that can help us ease into God’s presence, but it can sometimes also get in the way.

However, while all this was a consideration, the real reason for a change in the name of this publication is that I wanted a broader scope and something of a new direction. I hope to continue writing about the worship of Christ (in all its variety) but I also want to explore myriad other subjects; longing, loneliness, desire, peace, suffering, work, leadership, serving, giving, birth, death, creativity, and living. To put it another way, I wanted a space to share the journey I am walking with Christ.

Introducing: The Northerner

*Tada* - the new name of this publication is ‘The Northerner’.

For those who know me personally, this might seem to be a title with obvious meaning. After all, I do hail from Bolton, a town in the North of England. So, it’s all about me, right?

Not so fast. While it is true I am a Northerner (though quite southern compared to my Aberdeen-born wife) my inspiration comes from CS Lewis, in particular the language he used to express a mingled experience of joy, longing, and hope. When he was young, Lewis described this feeling as ‘Northernness’1.

The sensation that CS Lewis called Northernness is that of longing, remembering, and yearning. It’s akin to a heartwarming memory, but paradoxically of something that you’ve never actually experienced. In The Weight of Glory, he writes that these sensations are:

…only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited.

Lewis suggested that we often simplify and suppress this sense by labelling it nostalgia, romanticism, adolescence, or even beauty. But that’s because we’re embarrassed by the feeling, that we don’t know how to express it, or quite what it means.

I’ve titled this publication ‘The Northerner’, because I am writing as one who feels, like CS Lewis, that they belong somewhere else, and indeed are being continuously called home. For me, the Northerner is an exile, living with just a memory or an idea of home, a far-off country. We are the Israelites in Egypt and Babylon. We are the citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven, reconciling the thistles and thorns of our life here on earth with the future promise of a New Heaven and a New Earth. That’s why I’ve written this new strapline for the publication (liberally borrowing from Lewis’ language):

The Northerner is for the exiles who long to return from desert lands to their home country in the endless twilight of Northern summer.

When I first read CS Lewis on this subject, I felt seen, as the kids might say. I have a keen sense of otherness that I experience in the world. Just ask Lucy, who has to regularly put up with me saying, ‘Wow, just look at the moon tonight’. She rolls her eyes especially hard when I stop to point at it. Justifiably - she can see the moon just as well as I can.

The Northerner is likely to have elements of me just pointing to the moon and saying, ‘Wow, would you look at that.’ But mostly it will aim to ask, though we’ve never been there, ‘Remember home?’

I hope you’ll continue to join me on this journey.

To The North!
Graham

With the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

2 Peter 3:8

At the risk of going all Christopher Nolan on you, for God, King David jumping around worshipping in his linen pants (2 Samuel 6:14) might as well have happened yesterday.

Churches blaring Shine Jesus Shine from car Klaxons during the Make Way marches of the 80s/90s basically happened a few minutes ago.

Conversely, perhaps the song Oceans by Hillsong feels to God like it lasts about 300 years… which sounds about right to me. Of course, I jest…

But why would God care about fashion or style? Our fickle attitudes change like the wind, but he’s constant, a solid rock. I gather flares are making a come back. Do you think God cares? He cares so much more about our hearts.

‘Cool’ Worship Music1

It’s interesting to me that we’ve appropriated the word ‘cool’ to represent fashionable, as though not caring is the mark we should all aspire to. (Admittedly, ‘cool’ probably isn’t a cool word to use anymore).

But if I’m being honest, I often have to check myself when I witness someone truly, wholeheartedly, embarrassingly worshipping along to a cheesy song. It’s not a far stretch from my initial gut reaction to this:

Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, and she despised him in her heart.

2 Samuel 6:16

Here’s one of the greatest examples of heartfelt worship in the whole bible, and David is being despised by his own wife. When she confronts him afterwards, scorning him for debasing himself, he responds with these words:

“It was before the Lord, who chose me above your father and above all his house, to appoint me as prince over Israel, the people of the Lord—and I will celebrate before the Lord. I will make myself yet more contemptible than this, and I will be abased in your eyes.”

2 Samuel 6:21-22

The only opinion that mattered to David was the Lord’s. He didn’t care that she thought less of him for it. It’s not for us to know (or judge) what’s going on in the hearts of other worshippers and Christian songwriters.

Who do we write worship songs for?

Jesus is the object of our worship, that much should be evident.

However, whenever I’ve written a song (particularly with church use in mind) I find myself considering the tastes of the congregation regarding the tune, the rhythm, the lyrics.

I’m not necessarily thinking, ‘Woah Jesus would love this chord progression’. Instead, I often find myself picturing particular people in my church and considering what might appeal to them, which inevitably colours the writing. I have to brush off the horrifying thought; am I writing worship songs for my fellow church-goers, rather than for God?

As someone who both loves to make contemporary music and to worship, the tension of writing/playing songs for God and for a church/congregation to get behind can be a little troubling. One step further is considering making worship music that is accessible by those outside of the weird church-music bubble. The congregation’s ‘taste’ for want of a better word, is likely to change over the seasons, somewhat influenced by what’s playing on Radio 1 (perhaps Radio 4 if you’re in C of E). On the one hand, Tozer said:

Worship is no longer worship when it reflects the culture around us more than the Christ within us.

A.W. Tozer

And let’s be honest, some of the more popular worship songs today are trying to ‘fit in’ with the contemporary culture, to reach the unsaved perhaps. But on the flip side, we’re told:

Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten strings! Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

Psalm 33:3

New songs. Playing skillfully. It seems clear that God loves creativity, and loves it when we explore the gifts that he’s given us (whether that’s playing ten-stringed instruments or just bellowing really loudly). And much of the time, new, fashionable, trendy music is being creative with what’s been done over the centuries before.

In modern Western music, we have 12 notes available to us, from which all our music is made (apart from the out of tune stuff perhaps). So you’d think that we’d have run out of ideas by now.

What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun.

Ecclesiastes 1:9

Imagine if God heard a worship song and thought, ‘Not another song using the chords of G, C and E minor! It’s been done already, guys! Nope, a capo won’t fix it either!’

I don’t believe that God cares much what our worship looks or sounds like. I reckon we could smack two rocks together and it would be pleasing worship to him if our hearts were in the right place when we did it.

Conclusion

All of this is to say: in everything you do, strive to please God, not people. Be yourself (as much as anyone can be) in your expression of your worship. Even if you’re a banner waver. Don’t judge the hearts of other worshippers.

And if you’re a songwriter, my encouragement is to write songs to God first and foremost; don’t water it down. God might anoint it to reach the wider culture whether you intended it or not.

Let’s all be courageous worshippers because it’s not about us.

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

2 Corinthians 12:9

Last week I published my first song under King Worship, which was a cover of the Housefires song, Build My Life.

You can have a listen via Soundcloud (lyrics are at the bottom of this page):

I chose this song for my first attempt because

• it’s a favourite at my church (read: overused)

• it has quite a simple chord and lyric structure which allowed for more flexibility in the arrangement.

I might write about the arranging/recording process later if anyone’s interested. In the meantime I’m hopefully going to record a completely new song I’ve written, as well as planning what song to cover next — send me any suggestions you might have.

🙌 Feedback so far

The feedback from my select group of beta listeners (aka friends and family) has been pretty much as good as I could have hoped, though I’m aware it won’t be to everyone’s tastes. You can let me know what you think in the comments… be nice. Here’s a few comments:

“A great sound”

— Dan

“It’s like T-Pain meets Pat Barrett”

— Another Dan

“It feels kind of 'London' to me… would suit a GuvnaB style rap”

— Cait

“This is extremely cool”

— Fi

“So many cool ideas happening at once”

— Pete

Thanks to everyone who took the time to listen. If you enjoyed it please do share it, and i’ll see you next time!

Graham

🎤 Build My Life lyrics

(Singalong-a-worship-song)

Verse

Worthy of every song we could ever sing
Worthy of all the praise we could ever bring
Worthy of every breath we could ever breathe
We live for You

Jesus the name above every other name
Jesus the only one who could ever save
Worthy of every breath we could ever breathe
We live for You

Chorus

Holy there is no one like You
There is none beside You
Open up my eyes in wonder and show me who You are
And fill me with Your heart
And lead me in Your love to those around me

Bridge

I will build my life upon Your love
It is a firm foundation
I will put my trust in You alone
And I will not be shaken

Build My Life was written by Brett Younker, Karl Martin, Kirby Kaple, Matt Redman, Pat Barrett. Arrangement and performance by Graham Ormiston/King Worship.

Being single-minded can be regarded both positively and negatively. On the one hand, being dedicated, resolute, steadfast; aren't half-bad qualities. But spin it the other way - stubborn, obsessed, inflexible, fanatical - and the magic-eye refocusses into something different altogether to see a fundamentalist or zealot. These characteristics are perhaps generally less well-received.

Many parents would seek to instil the former traits and iron out the latter in their children. There are obvious examples of role models who exhibit the stubborn, obsessive personalities, but to my mind many of these are lauded or even worshipped after they achieve success - characters like; Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos.

My conviction is that while the world tells us that stubborn one-sided fanatical obsession is generally a bad thing (unless it somehow makes you loads of money), the bible shows we should embrace single-mindedness, provided that the object of our obsession is Jesus.

Love God - completely

The most important commandment is this:

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

(Matthew 22:36 NIV)

All your heart, soul and mind. That sounds pretty full-on, maybe even a bit... obsessed? But this is the heart of what it means to worship God: to love him completely.

What gets in the way of a complete expression of love towards God? Doubt.

Be stable

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

(James 1:5-8 ESV)

James says that double-mindedness or doubting makes you unstable. When Jesus called Peter from the water, he walked on water too: until he began to doubt, and started to sink. Peter was more afraid of the wind than he was of Jesus.

Put your fear in the right place

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.

(Proverbs 9:10 ESV)

James says that we should ask for wisdom and not doubt God.

Proverbs says that wisdom begins with the fear of God.

While it may be possible to fear God and to doubt God at the same time, doubt might rather be a symptom of a lack of fearing God.

The opposite of fear of God is probably fear of man (worrying about what others think, making others happy). Rather than giving all the respect, fear and awe to the creator, we place it on the created being instead. It's an insult to God, and I do it ALL THE TIME.

Fear of people leads to hypocrisy, fickle faith, and insincere worship. It leads to Christians chasing after worldly acclaim for their expressions of love towards God. It gets us into all sorts of situations and prevents us from living our lives with God at the centre. Instead...

Be flinty (like Jesus)

Jesus (the exact representation of God's being) demonstrated single-mindedness throughout his time on Earth. Everything he did was perfectly in line with God's will. As Isaiah prophesied:

...therefore I have set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame.

(Isaiah 50:7 ESV)

Jesus ‘set his face like flint’ towards the cross. He wasn't moved by fear of those around him or the extraordinary suffering he was about to face, but instead, he was stubbornly, immovably, fanatically obsessed about doing the will of the Father, to save us.

Today, let’s follow that example of single-mindedness in your worship of God: fear him wholeheartedly, and don't allow the waves, wind or a cynical society to distract you away. I believe you'll be rewarded with purer faith, truer worship and the beginning of wisdom.

Zealot

noun A person who is fanatical and uncompromising in pursuit of their religious, political, or other ideals.