Dwayne has started writing a sequel/follow-up study to his award-winning book, Pure Praise.Pure Praise helps us purify our praise to God while we are on earth. This new study will teach us how to live in order to RECEIVE God’s praise in heaven.
Dwayne needs reading partners who will encourage and help him as he writes this new study. He had close to 100 reading partners as he wrote Pure Praise. As he finished each week’s worth of lessons, he would email them to his trusted partners who would then critique and offer feedback as they saw fit. This proved very helpful in holding him accountable and in motivating him to keep writing. It also improved the quality of the writing.
If you are interested in becoming a Reading Partner, please email us at info@nextlevelworship.com and simply tell us you want to be a reading partner for Dwayne’s new book. We’ll get you on the list to begin receiving his drafts. It’s that simple!
Announcing our most exciting companion resource to Pure Praise yet!
Author Dwayne Moore has just released a DVD of weekly introduction videos designed to motivate and inspire you and your group to stay faithful to each week’s devotional study in Pure Praise! The DVD includes intro videos for all 9 weeks of the study, plus a bonus Promotional Video to help you promote Pure Praise within your church or small group!
Al Lowry heads up a large worship leader training ministry at Saddleback Church in CA. His ministry is called GIG, or Guitarists Into God. He works with zillions of worship leaders. This is what he said about our Pure Praise Audio Devotions that he recently reviewed:
“I am probably the poster child target for your efforts as a ‘non-reader’ who loves audio learning. I really enjoy your very peaceful speaking style with music that is ‘barely there’, unlike some resources I’ve heard that sometimes contain distracting instrumental backing tracks. Besides the great content, I appreciate your delivery right down to the pauses for reflection and periods of just waiting on the Lord.” — In gratitude, Al Lowry
Here are a few quotes from the forum discussion during Week 1:
First off, I love where this study is going. It is really making me think about some things.
Wow -this is really good. I desire Him because He first desired me! He delights in us. There is nothing we can do or say that will ever change that.
The “Daily Surrender” portion was GRUELING for me today as I had to be honest about some of the rotten places in my heart.
I think I am getting more out of this study than I ever have in any other Bible study. Thanks everyone!!! And Thank God!!!
I thought I knew what worship is but apparently I have a lot to learn throughout the rest of this study. Today’s reading along with the past two days has already broadened my definition of worship. Read more…
Sorry I’ve not posted anything in the past few days. I’ve been hidden away in the hills of Tennessee going back through every week of the worship study. Group Publishing’s senior editor has requested that we get our final edits to her by this weekend. (Group is releasing our worship study, Praise More Powerful, under the new title, Pure Praise, this coming December, 2008.)
Thus, Elizabeth Jones (my literary agent’s editorial director) and I have been busy tweaking every word and phrase. God has blessed me with two of the best editors in the business! No doubt the Lord knew needed I all the help I could get! :)
We’ll try to get back to our 2 to 3 posts per week starting in the next couple weeks.
This is another extra resource for those going through the Pure Praise worship study.
Please utilize this list of Hebrew definitions for words used for praise in the Old Testament. There are several Hebrew words that are translated as “praise” in most English versions. We strongly encourage you to go deeper in studying these amazing word-pictures.
NOTE: We’ve taken this list of the most prominent words for praise from Jack Taylor’s book, The Hallelujah Factor (published by Broadman). Other resources you might consider include Strong’s Concordance and Vines Complete Expository Dictionary by W.E. Vine, Merrill F. Unger and William White, Jr. (published by Thomas Nelson)
Hebrew Words for Praise
Hallal: “to laud, boast, rave, to celebrate” — It is used approximately one hundred times in the Old Tes tament. Read more…
This is an extra resource for people going through the Pure Praise worship study.
For Week 9, Day 1
The prince of the power of the air is not the only source of our temptations. Our own fleshly nature and the world around us can also tempt us to go astray. (See Ephesians 2:2-3) I like Dr. Adrian Rogers’ summary of how we are to combat each of these tempting sources. He said that when we are tempted by the value system of this world we must have faith in God and His promises to us. 1 John 5:4 says, “This is the victory that overcomes the world – even our faith.” (NKJ) We must believe that what we cannot see is more beautiful and worthwhile than what is visible to us.
When we are tempted by our human nature (by desires for illicit sexual gratification for example), we must flee like Joseph did when he was propositioned by Potiphar’s wife. (See Genesis 39:12) It’s no wonder Paul told Timothy, “Flee youthful lusts…”! (2 Timothy 2:22a KJV) Read more…
Another extra resource for readers of the Pure Praise worship study:
For Week 7 Day 4 (regarding Colossians 3:16)
While we find Christian hymns in the church at a very early period, as one scholar admitted, “Our information regarding the hymnology of the early Christians is very limited.”1 Most agree, however, that the “psalms” Paul referred to are the original Psalms written by David and Asaph. Hymns, on the other hand, seem to be parts of Psalms or, perhaps, songs of praise based on the Psalms and other passages. It’s safe to conclude, then, that along the way people creatively constructed some new songs from original ones. Paul goes on to say we should also sing “spiritual songs,” which were songs that “express emotions”2 and “may contain a greater variety of matter, doctrinal, prophetical, historical.”3 With these songs it seems Paul was giving the church even more freedom to express themselves and create new songs of worship. I want us to also notice that Paul wasn’t advocating balance between the older and the newer songs. In fact, the Bible is quite out of balance in this regard—with far more references to singing new songs than to singing or playing the older styles and songs. The key condition for all of our songs is that they be Spirit-led (and Spirit-initiated!)
1Easton, Matthew George. “Entry for Hymn”. “Easton’s Bible Dictionary” 1853
2 Johnson, Barton W. “Commentary on Ephesians 5″. “People’s New Testament” 1891
3 Henry, Matthew. “Commentary on Ephesians 5″. “Matthew Henry Complete Commentary
on the Whole Bible” 1706
This is an extra resource for people going through the Pure Praise worship study.
For Week 3, Day 4:
In our anchor narrative here in 2 Chronicles, we find two of God’s revealing names: Elohim, translated “God” in our English Bible and Jehovah, which is written as “LORD” (in all caps) in the English versions. Interestingly, Jehoshaphat and Jahaziel used both these names for God an almost equal amount of times. That’s significant when we understand better what these two names mean. Elohim carries the idea that God is someone to be feared as well as someone who is powerful. Jehovah, on the other hand, means that God describes Himself as I am that I am. Jehovah is the great covenant name of God. The Bible calls this name the best one of all. (See Exodus 3:13-14) It describes His unchangeable relationship to His people.
This is an extra resource for people going through the Pure Praise worship study.
For Week 3, Day 5:
Beyond the four explained in the study, another benefit of knowing God is energy in serving the Lord. I will never forget as a teenager how tired I felt one Sunday afternoon. After an entire morning and afternoon of ministry activities, I was traveling to yet another engagement where they expected me (and rightfully so, I might add) to be my regular, energetic and happy self. Truth is, all I wanted to do was go home and chill. I simply couldn’t “perform” up to their expectations. My energy was gone. (So much for the “day of rest,” right?)
The first thing I did when I arrived at my destination was locate a quiet room. My intent was to hide away and take a brief “power nap.” Instead of allowing me to sleep though, God ran over and over in my mind the words of Isaiah 40:31: “Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint.” (NKJ) As I meditated on that awesome passage, something supernatural took place in me. I sensed my physical strength suddenly returning. I cannot explain it. I simply knew it was God keeping His promise.
No wonder Daniel wrote, “But the people who know their God will display strength and take action.” (Daniel 11:32b) It is not God’s will for us to “burn out.” In fact, God’s Word makes it clear: “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” (Galatians 6:9) Considering the many responsibilities we as worship leaders have, the only possible way we can “not become weary” is to have His Supernatural strength. That power is available to us if we’ll just take time to get to know Him better.
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