jskogerboe.com :: one thing

I have this dream sometimes. It’s usually back in the last church I served as worship leader.  People are gathered in their seats and ready to start a service.  I am supposed to be leading the service, but I have no Team.  I haven’t planned anything.  It’s quiet.  Someone coughs a little.  Awkward.  Oh yeah… [...]

Deliver me, O Lord, from pride.  Deliver me, Lord, from idolatry.  Deliver me from the worship of the music we use to worship.  Even without my drums or my voice, You are enough.  If You take away the platform, You are still good.  If it’s You and me in a closet, I am more than [...]

There’s this paradox.  It’s a pendulum swinging.  It’s a tug of war.  The truth about God. God is Holy. God is Love.  God is Righteous. God is Merciful.  God is to be feared. God is to be adored. You might be a church-goer.  Or not.  You might believe in God loosely, or you might embrace [...]

Christian hair has taken on new meaning. What follows is an honest, amused ramble through a minefield of questions I have about the current state of worship leading and those who lead worship in our contemporary Christian churches in America.  For full disclosure:  I am one. I actually grew up using the term “Christian hair” [...]

On Sunday, January 10, 2010, I spoke at Living Hope Church in St. Michael-Albertville, MN. This is the story of David, the King of Israel, dancing with joy before the Lord as the Ark of the Covenant is being brought back into Jerusalem.  A story about God’s unchanging character, the power of His presence, and [...]

Sunday morning December 20, 2009 was an epic day at Living Hope.  Sara Renner and the Elements joined us for our Christmas Celebration.  And it was a party.  But it was also fascinating to watch as a ministry leader.  This was powerful, and I don’t want to miss the take-aways for us in ministry. Sara is [...]

Our worship ministry team at Living Hope Church is AWESOME. Now, don’t misread my enthusiasm for pride.  We’re not the most gifted musicians, and we are certainly not mighty in number or prolific as songwriters, influencing the global Church for Jesus.  There are better sounding teams, bigger teams, better-known teams.  But you’d be hard pressed [...]

Levi is five.  He and two of his brothers just took part in a music concert at our church.  There were tons of people there.  Mom was prepping him for the big night – trying to prepare the boys for what might happen.  Laughing.  Clapping.  Some cheering.  All possible.  We just want to teach our [...]

  When I worked as Minister of Celebration (Worship and Arts Ministries) for 10 years at Emmaus Lutheran Church in Bloomington, MN (just up the road from the Mall of America), I had the privilege of serving alongside a genius Children’s Music Director.  Let me repeat… GENIUS. Vergene Downs and I are great friends, and I [...]

It’s a mystery.  How do I get to do this? I don’t deserve to love my work this deeply.  It’s a God-gift that keeps rewrapping itself.  I love leading Living Hope Church’s staff and arts teams.  I love designing the “look and feel” of a local church.  I eat up music-making, arranging, drumming, rehearsals…  But what [...]