roundup 12 - Church of God

Called by God to Worship
Each morning, a different worship leader takes to the platform to lead us into God’s presence
By Tori Allen
NAC is pleased to welcome three
outstanding men from across
the country who have demonstrated
exceptional talent as worship
leaders. This year, Rod Dallas, Leo Flores,
and Aaron Ferry will each lead worship
at the 10:30 am services, Monday through
Wednesday, during convention.
Though he wasn’t born into a
Church of God family, Rod Dallas
explains that his friend introduced him
to the movement at age ten. After high
school, Rod attended Warner University,
and has been a worship leader for
three churches. At NAC, Rod hopes to
“create an atmosphere where people
feel free to just worship our Lord in
a time of community.” Rod will lead
worship on Monday morning.
Leo Flores has spent the majority of
his life using his gifts to glorify God.
Like his father, Leo is no stranger to
ministry in the Church of God. As a
pastor’s son, he grew up playing drums
in churches where his father ministered,
but Leo says that he didn’t truly feel his
calling until he was well into his teens:
“When I was seventeen, I attended a
conference where I felt the Lord calling
me into worship. I didn’t know what
it meant, but I knew that I had to use
everything I had already learned and
everything that I was going to learn for
God’s glory.” Leo attended Mid-America
Christian University, where he met
Megan, his wife and talented singer.
Today he serves at Centerville Christian
Fellowship in Centerville, Ohio. Leo
will lead worship on Tuesday morning.
Worship leadership is second nature
to Aaron, the pastor of worship arts for
Towne Boulevard Church of God in
Middletown, Ohio. The Warner University
alum says he celebrates his Church
of God heritage but looks forward to
“greater days ahead,” referring to Haggai
2:9. It is with this same spirit that
Aaron comes to NAC, where he hopes
his leadership makes a lasting impact:
“It doesn’t matter if people remember
the songs that were sung; it only matters
that they had a fresh encounter
with Jesus.” Aaron will lead worship on
Wednesday morning.
Shaped to Reflect the Image
of God
Conference on spiritual formation focuses on empowering
the inner life and relationship with God By Tori Allen
Are you struggling with relationships
in your area of ministry?
Have you ever wondered why?
Transformation Team member Sam
Bruce will lead “Spiritual Formation:
Empowering Your Inner Life and Relationship
to God,” on Monday, June 25,
to discuss this very topic. In a recent
interview, Bruce explained that issues
preventing strong relationships can be
traced back to what he refers to as an
“inner life.”
“Your inner life is who you are at
your core being, which then determines
what you do in your relationships with
other people both inside and outside
of your ministry.” So how do we alter
our identities to create more effective
vessels for ministry? Simple: we must
undergo spiritual formation, or in
10 NACroundup • Sunday Issue, June 24, 2012
other words, shape ourselves to reflect
the image of God through “the word,
prayer, and worship.”
Philippians 4:8 (niv) says, “Finally,
brothers and sisters, whatever is true,
whatever is noble, whatever is right,
whatever is pure, whatever is lovely,
whatever is admirable—if anything is
excellent or praiseworthy—think about
such things.”
This is the charge of the Christian:
to live humbly in accordance to Christ’s
teachings. When this message is forgotten,
people are at risk of becoming what
Bruce refers to as “holiness preachers,”
or those who teach doctrines but don’t
apply the instruction to their own
lives. This type of behavior implies
that Christianity is a social club rather
than a lifestyle. In order to combat this
understanding of Christianity, “Spiritual
Formation: Empowering Your
Inner Life and Relationship to God”
will assist in the development of constructive
patterns of empowerment to
the inner life. Bruce states: “Together,
we will understand the principles of
becoming true people of God, not just
in name only.”
If you’re looking to empower your
relationship with God and others, don’t
wait any longer! Come to the Fine Arts
building, room 240 on Monday, June
25, from 8:30 to 10:00 am. Bruce’s book
Spiritual Formation: Forming Your Relationship
with God…Transforming Your
Relationship with People will be available
for purchase, and attendees will
each receive copies of his PowerPoint
presentation.