By Laura BennettThursday 31 Mar 2022UNDISTRACTEDFaithReading Time: 3 minutes
Over the last few years, many of us have reconsidered what our lives are anchored around, and how we order our days. Some have completely redesigned lifestyles and made sweeping changes to even the most basic of routines.
In all the rearranging though, how many of us have addressed our spiritual anchor points and considered where they may need a reset?
Brooke Ligertwood is the head of Hillsong Worship, writing and producing Grammy Award-winning songs that are sung around the world, and has also enjoyed a successful mainstream music career under her maiden name Brooke Fraser.
With her new album Seven, Brooke has penned her first solo worship album, and offered the church a collection of songs that prompt reflection and invite us to address where our spiritual focus may have strayed.
“I think there’s some things that we as a whole global church became attached to that weren’t important,” – Brooke Ligertwood
Brooke told the UNDISTRACTED podcast, pre-pandemic “I think there’s some things that we as a whole global church became attached to that weren’t important”.
“That [issue is] not a thing particular to our generation – every generation throughout all of history in scripture has to pay their own price and decide on their own obedience. I think we’re in that moment for our generation,” she said.
“Rather than despair, I think that’s exciting. We get to choose who we’re going to be as the people of God, and to be a surrendered people.”
Written over the course of a month that Brooke set aside to get inspired again “after a year of being locked in Zooms”, Seven came to her quickly even though she “began that month feeling like I had nothing. I felt pretty depleted,” she said.
Taken from the book of Revelation in the Bible and inspired by the imagery of Jesus standing in the middle of the seven lampstands – representing the seven churches – Brooke said the album’s “called Seven because of the letters to the seven churches John was instructed to write down”.
“I feel like these are the songs that the Lord’s asked me to write down and send to the church, and to joyfully remind us all that Jesus hasn’t left us or abandoned us or forsaken us,” she said.
“He is not apathetic, He’s standing right here in the middle of His church.”
Although Seven is an album written outside Brooke’s commitments with Hillsong Church, and was released before news of Hillsong’s lead pastor Brian Houston’s resignation, its sentiments are significant and timely given the unsettling nature of those events for many in the church’s international congregation.
Speaking about what attracts the anointing of God on a song or artist, Brooke said, “I wish the answer was that God anoints only what is pure, and what is authentic, because that’s what I would like”.
“But the craziest thing is, and we see all through scripture as well, that God actually anoints people who aren’t always doing the right thing,” she said.
“Also, the scripture says the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable [Romans 11:29].
“We as Christians, and the people of God, will continue to be shaken as long as we put our faith in people, because people are fallible, and God’s gifts are without repentance.
“The scary thing is, is that if I stand up and lead worship on stage tonight, I will probably sound the same whether, in private, I’m living in integrity, or not.
“The responsibility is on each of us to walk before the Lord with integrity [and] accountability as far as it’s within our ability to do so.”
Source: Supplied
Seven is a roadmap for repentance, course-correction and intimacy with God, assisting Christians – both in and outside of Hillsong – with the spiritual reset they may need.
Brooke Ligertwood’s new album Seven is out now.
Listen to the full episode of UNDISTRACTED with guest Brooke Ligertwood in the player above and wherever you get your podcasts.