The largest weekly paper in our town is the San Diego Reader. Each Thursday, on page 18 to be exact, they have a column called "Sheeps and Goats" where they give a review of a local church service from the previous Sunday. This past weekend, their religion columnist came to Kaleo's service. It's a weird thing to have your worship reviewed - to have a rating system with stars applied to the music, band, sermon, aesthetics and general friendliness of the community. I didn't know he was there, and I don't think it would've made a difference if I had, since I use a pretty set liturgy. But I am thankful that this particular columnist, Matthew Lickona, reported what he saw and heard and left it to the reader to determine their opinion. In just two newspaper columns, he captured the heart of our service: lyrics, prayer, and more importantly...the Gospel message that was prominently heralded throughout our pastor's sermon, which was actually Peter's sermon, since we were in Acts 2. Here was Mr. Lickona's synopsis of the music:

The band featured piano, tambourine, and violin playing behind frequently shambling melodies, resulting in a modern, alt-country sound. That, contrasted with the archaic syntax of the song lyrics - themselves appearing over an artful, weathered-wood background - produced a downright funksome effect: new-school aesthetics, old-school religiocity. "O to grace how great a debtor / Daily I'm constrained to be / Let that grace now like a fetter / Bind my wandering heart to Thee." Grace was one theme of the service; the Holy Spirit was another, and it showed up in the sung Psalm: "Take not thy Holy Spirit from me; restore unto me the joy of thy salvation" (Psalm 51). The song leader then led the congregation in confession: "Merciful God, our sins are too heavy to carry, to real to hide, and far too deep to undo. Forgive what our lips are afraid to name and our hearts can no longer bear...Set us free from a past we can't change, and grant us grace to grow more and more in your likeness and image." 

Shambling melodies? Alt-country? Funksome effect? Not sure if these are good, bad, or even accurate descriptors, but I'll take it. It could've been a lot worse, I guess. But he did get the the sermon, and I was pleasantly surprised that he seemed to capture the heart of it in just a few paragraphs. David preached for about an hour, and Mr. Lickona grabbed the central theme and printed it, so I thank God for that. My prayer is that the believers present would grab it and run with it, as well as those who happen to read it in San Diego, too. If you're interested in reading the whole review, you can check it out here. Have a great weekend; may God bless your Sunday services my fellow artisans of God.