Are you involved with the music of your church? Do you play an instrument, sing or lead worship?
Are people regularly becoming believers through the efforts of your church? Or are established believers connecting to God through your efforts?
Or are you entertaining a bunch of church people? Are you required to choose/play/sing certain songs to make certain people happy?
If you're merely entertaining a bunch of church people, why not merely entertain a bunch of non-church people and perhaps make more money while you're at it? Maybe you'd also get a chance to be a light in a dark world?
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About Me
- Don Chapman
- Arranger/composer Don Chapman is the creative energy behind several websites devoted to contemporary worship: HymnCharts, WorshipFlow, and WorshipIdeas.com. He's the editor of the weekly WorshipIdeas newsletter that is read by over 50,000 worship leaders across the world.
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8 comments:
The ageless question... do people come to church to be entertained or to be involved. Unfortunately, too many times they want to be entertained. The last 8 weeks I've been taking a class called "The History of Worship and Liturgy" one might think it would be boring, but it's anything but... ok, the class goes until 10:45 at night and after 10:15 it is a little much. But the key is this has been a struggle since the Middle Ages when the Priest started doing everything and the people weren't "allowed" to participate because they might spill the blood of Christ on the floor. Then comes Martin Luther and a score of other reformers who strive to put worship back in the hands of the people. Now almost 500 years later we're back to everything happening on the stage and the people watching. Though, now I think it's more the people wanting to watch rather than being forced to watch.
The instructors challenge to us as worship leaders is get worship back in the hands of the people. Get them involved.
Sorry I rambled so long, but this is a topic I feel very passionate about. I am a worship "director" in my church and play piano. I plan the services and I'm striving to find ways to get people back in volved instead of "watching a show." As the book by Robert Webber is titled: "Worship is a Verb"
Be blessed!
Tonight, at youth group, I'm positive the people that were joining in song with me and the rest of the band weren't just being entertained.
True worship blows my mind!
Just found your blog through LifeChurch.tv's swerve blog and figured I'd read and comment some.
Don,
This tendency and the tension it creates has been a part of the landscape of every church I have served. It is magnified in a church that offers two different styles of worship in the Sunday morning services. How in the world do we help people discern the difference between an adrenaline high and the work of the Holy Spirit? ... between what merely makes me feel good (or comfortable) and what helps me to experience the presence of God (which may make me scared)?
Don, hollymag and Caleb, it starts with worship leaders like you who are trying desperately to pay attention to issues deeper than those most easily seen or felt and therefore fussed about:
"I liked (didn't like) that new song."
"The pulpit isn't quite centered."
"I can't worship without the [name instrument of choice] playing."
"It's just not as good if ________ isn't playing / singing."
If we don't get it, the people we seek to lead never will. If we get it, some of the people we lead still won't. But some of our people will get it ... and some of them will get it even better than we do.
Peace.
I am a worship pastor for a multi-campus church. Our campus happens to be in Tulsa: The very mecca of all that is charismatic. (That was tounge in cheek) This tends to draw more people who are concerned with the work of the Holy Spirit in worship first and foremost.
A struggle for me the past two years is who do I cater to? To the mature believer? To the lost person? How in the world can worship be for the lost person? These are all questions I've been wrestling with. I feel like after the long wrestling match, I've come out with something that works well for us.
Our Senior Pastor is wired to reach out to the lost. This means that our worship experiences have a comfort vs. confrontation intentionality about them. It is the time that we encourage our believers to bring in their lost friends, neighbors, co-workers, and family. We present them with the truth of God's word but in a more comfortable environment.
My goal as a worship pastor is to choose songs that don't reak of Christianese, or of principles that a non-believer could never grasp. I intentionally pick songs that speak of salvation and what living life as a believer entails. Songs that talk about freedom and a real experience of God. Some of the artists I really love using are Leeland, Delirious, United, and several others.
Because we're running a live satellite feed at a pre-determined time, our worship time is 18 minutes. This is enough time for a believer to come away feeling like they want a little more. Too much longer and the non-believer may be completely uncomfortable standing and trying to sing songs they don't know to a God they don't know.
To a non-believer, we need to show them that there's a reason why were singing what we're singing. To the believer, we need to give them a opportunity to worship. I have no problem with entertaining non-believers. I have a real problem with boring them to death.
I'll stop rambling. I figured this might illicit a dialoge that we could further discuss! Thanks for the post. I'm enjoying this here blog!
I have recently had to take over the role of "worship leader" even though I think we have just been entertaining the masses. This has really come to haunt my prayertime as I am pleading with God to teach me how to lead others to Him in song. We have lost some of our congregation due to the need of our past leader to step off the platform. My heart breaks and I try to stuff my gift of *mercy* onto the back burner. My focus must remain true - to Christ and Him alone. We have had some good comments: "We didn't realize what was missing until last weeks music" and the such. My prayer is that the Holy Spirit is in control, that Christ is glorified and God is Who it's all about. Not me. And not *them*. God is good all the time - and that's good enough for me.
Luckily it seems that the Rector and myself are on the same page...or at least he likes what I do. I get a lot of compliments on what I select and I feel I must be doing something right when the choir is moved to tears as they sing.
Sometimes they clap at the end of the service... or put their thumbs up after I play something...it makes me laugh but it is nice to feel like I am reaching people.
Sometimes I wish I was making more money, but I like the people there and they appreciate what I am trying to do. There may be people technically better than I am, but people say they can hear my emotions in my music.
Its a labor of love to me and I am glad I have the opportunity to do it.
This post is a setup. It is an effective tool designed to stir up and while the comments are great there is a flawed fundamental assumption lost in all the dialogue. The post assumes that entertaining is lacking something. It was couched as "merely", which I can't help but think refers to mediocrity. I guarantee that if you plan to just 'merely' entertain anywhere the prospects of making money may be limited only by the size of the hat you place next to your guitar case. The other assumption is that money might motivate us to sing for the crowd who are all in the mood for a melody. I like the idea, but doesn't God ask us to be a light to our dark world regardless if we play a guitar or bring the granny at table 3 to tears with "you light up my life?"
Good question. Since November, I've written a number of songs which are Christian, but not necessarily suitable for worship (though suitable for other church venues such as concerts or special music). But I'm praying that God will show me what to do with the songs. Just playing in church seems like a great use of energy but little outreach. Christians have come to be comfortable and to be entertained. On the other hand, maybe I can go to a park or a nursing home with an outreach team and make a greater impact for the Kingdom. THe question is what is God calling me to do?
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