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Inward looking, or Inside Out?
I just got off the phone with a friend, who is a passionate worship leader and yet at the same time has been struggling lately because she finds areas of what we call ‘worship’ so inward looking. She said "At my most cynical moments I have felt like I am just there to make church more comfortable for the members." She has started exploring other areas of ministry, particularly to do with God’s heart for justice. Its not that she lost her heart for worship, its just that her worship has led her out of the building...
Do you recognise that in your worship ministry? Do you sometimes share her frustrations? Does it have to be this way? Whilst we must never under-value the immense privileged and joy of helping people glorify God through our songs, and building up the believers Sunday by Sunday, is it true to say that often the worship team is the most inward looking of all departments in a church? I sometimes jokingly mis-quote the well known worship chorus as “it’s all about me...” - but how often is that too close to the truth?
The late hymn writer, Fred Pratt Green, wrote these words which challenge me and the worship I lead at a deep level every time I read them:
When the Church of Jesus
Shuts its outer door,
Lest the roar of traffic
Drown the voice of prayer:
May our prayers, Lord, make us
Ten times more aware
That the world we banish
Is our Christian care.
If our hearts are lifted
Where devotion soars
High above this hungry
Suffering world of ours:
Lest our hymns should drug us
To forget its needs,
Forge our Christian worship
Into Christian deeds.
Lest the gifts we offer,
Money, talents, time,
Serve to salve our conscience
To our secret shame:
Lord, reprove, inspire us
By the way you give;
Teach us, dying Saviour,
How true Christians live.
The Old Testament prophets, the apostles and Jesus himself all show a hard-wired link between our worship and the way we treat the world outside. We can’t choose whether we are ‘sung-worship Christians’ or ‘social-action Christians’; these are two sides of the same coin. God requires both our corporate, sung devotion, and our 24/7 lives-of-worship. As the Message paraphrases Hebrews 13:
“Let's take our place outside with Jesus, no longer pouring out the sacrificial blood of animals but pouring out sacrificial praises from our lips to God in Jesus' name... Share what you have with others. God takes particular pleasure in acts of worship - a different kind of "sacrifice" - that take place in kitchen and workplace and on the streets.”
Recently I’ve been trying to be intentional in my worship leading about including things like creative intercession for world situations as part of our sung worship times; using songs of the world church to help us connect with those who worship God in far-off lands and sometimes harsh situations; and connecting with people’s daily lives in sung worship by mentioning things like work, schools and home life as part of prayers or songs. Have you got ideas or experience of how we can involve ‘everyday life’ in our worship, rather than seeing Sunday praise as merely an escape from the realities of the week?
On the flip-side, we’ve also been trying to engage our music and worship team with our local community. Last night our choir and musicians were part of a village concert, organised by non-Christians in the village and with all proceeds going to an Alzheimers charity. Our guys set up the PA, helped with refreshments, performed in the concert, sang carols during the interval, and were generally a positive presence in this community event. This morning we hosted the local school at our church for a Christmas service; with the music and tech team serving the school with relevant music and visuals. We’ve worshipped God in our serving, and may have even led non-Christians in worship, if we believe what Jesus says in Matthew 5:
“let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
Does this stuff challenge you? Have you got stories of engaging your community through music and creativity? Do your services engage with the needs of this broken world, and equip people to take their worship into ‘everyday life’? Would you like to explore this further?
Worship Beyond is a day conference we’re involved in; an opportunity to explore all of these issues with others, including people like worship leader Geraldine Latty, DJ Steve Leach and cafechurch network director Cid Latty. In itself the conference will be a community-reaching event because a team will be going into a local school the week before, and putting on a concert with the school to close the Saturday. If you can make it to Wolverhapton, UK on 13th March 2010, please visit www.mwf.org.uk/worshipbeyond and join us!
We think that its possible these issues could be the most pressing questions for church worship in 2010; that if we can keep the best of our current worship models but push into these issues of worship and mission, justice, intercession, evangelism, community action... that maybe it could transform our churches, and more importantly change the world. As the song says;
“Let justice and praise become my embrace - to love you from the inside out.”
Sam Hargreaves
Co-leader of engageworship.org
Do you recognise that in your worship ministry? Do you sometimes share her frustrations? Does it have to be this way? Whilst we must never under-value the immense privileged and joy of helping people glorify God through our songs, and building up the believers Sunday by Sunday, is it true to say that often the worship team is the most inward looking of all departments in a church? I sometimes jokingly mis-quote the well known worship chorus as “it’s all about me...” - but how often is that too close to the truth?
The late hymn writer, Fred Pratt Green, wrote these words which challenge me and the worship I lead at a deep level every time I read them:
When the Church of Jesus
Shuts its outer door,
Lest the roar of traffic
Drown the voice of prayer:
May our prayers, Lord, make us
Ten times more aware
That the world we banish
Is our Christian care.
If our hearts are lifted
Where devotion soars
High above this hungry
Suffering world of ours:
Lest our hymns should drug us
To forget its needs,
Forge our Christian worship
Into Christian deeds.
Lest the gifts we offer,
Money, talents, time,
Serve to salve our conscience
To our secret shame:
Lord, reprove, inspire us
By the way you give;
Teach us, dying Saviour,
How true Christians live.
The Old Testament prophets, the apostles and Jesus himself all show a hard-wired link between our worship and the way we treat the world outside. We can’t choose whether we are ‘sung-worship Christians’ or ‘social-action Christians’; these are two sides of the same coin. God requires both our corporate, sung devotion, and our 24/7 lives-of-worship. As the Message paraphrases Hebrews 13:
“Let's take our place outside with Jesus, no longer pouring out the sacrificial blood of animals but pouring out sacrificial praises from our lips to God in Jesus' name... Share what you have with others. God takes particular pleasure in acts of worship - a different kind of "sacrifice" - that take place in kitchen and workplace and on the streets.”
Recently I’ve been trying to be intentional in my worship leading about including things like creative intercession for world situations as part of our sung worship times; using songs of the world church to help us connect with those who worship God in far-off lands and sometimes harsh situations; and connecting with people’s daily lives in sung worship by mentioning things like work, schools and home life as part of prayers or songs. Have you got ideas or experience of how we can involve ‘everyday life’ in our worship, rather than seeing Sunday praise as merely an escape from the realities of the week?
On the flip-side, we’ve also been trying to engage our music and worship team with our local community. Last night our choir and musicians were part of a village concert, organised by non-Christians in the village and with all proceeds going to an Alzheimers charity. Our guys set up the PA, helped with refreshments, performed in the concert, sang carols during the interval, and were generally a positive presence in this community event. This morning we hosted the local school at our church for a Christmas service; with the music and tech team serving the school with relevant music and visuals. We’ve worshipped God in our serving, and may have even led non-Christians in worship, if we believe what Jesus says in Matthew 5:
“let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
Does this stuff challenge you? Have you got stories of engaging your community through music and creativity? Do your services engage with the needs of this broken world, and equip people to take their worship into ‘everyday life’? Would you like to explore this further?
Worship Beyond is a day conference we’re involved in; an opportunity to explore all of these issues with others, including people like worship leader Geraldine Latty, DJ Steve Leach and cafechurch network director Cid Latty. In itself the conference will be a community-reaching event because a team will be going into a local school the week before, and putting on a concert with the school to close the Saturday. If you can make it to Wolverhapton, UK on 13th March 2010, please visit www.mwf.org.uk/worshipbeyond and join us!
We think that its possible these issues could be the most pressing questions for church worship in 2010; that if we can keep the best of our current worship models but push into these issues of worship and mission, justice, intercession, evangelism, community action... that maybe it could transform our churches, and more importantly change the world. As the song says;
“Let justice and praise become my embrace - to love you from the inside out.”
Sam Hargreaves
Co-leader of engageworship.org
Tags: evangelism, intercession, justice, mission, sending, work
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Seth Jeffery on -
The call to make a very real difference in the world is relevant to every one who calls themself a Christian.
This video was a huge reality-check for me and I can't wait to see the film they've made.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4NlyZqJhwk
Because we can talk and even sing about the fact that there is suffering in the world and say "Someone needs to do something", while the question still remains, Why aren't I doing something?
I've heard it said before enough times that if everyone who called themself a Christian took a step to help at least one other person break out of the cycle of poverty, we would end world poverty. I firmly believe that everyone who is a part of the 10% of the population of the world that controls 90% of the wealth -- that's all of us! -- needs to ask themself what they're doing to fight injustice and poverty.
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Permalink Reply by martyn burt on -
If we are only going to show our faith when we gather together with Christians on a Sunday or for a midweek fellowship group, what is the point? This is the challenge.
I think I recall John Wimber saying that when he first became a Christian he would go to a church, expecting to be fired up to go out with people and then come back together again to share what God has been doing. It didn't happen, and he was very dissolutioned with the 'church', so went off and set up Vineyard. (I may not have all the details correct, but you know what i mean).
I have even heard others say that if there is not over 50% of the activity as being 'out in the world' they would shut it down as being out of touch. Now that would shake up some of our activities!
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Permalink Reply by Toni Ertl on -
I'm not sure I completely agree with your view of worship, although I don't know your church background.
As you mentioned that song, not only is it not about me, but it's not about 'them' either. Worship in a corporate church sense is about God, and should come out of our response to Him as we worship in spirit and truth. If worship were about a time of being creatively musical in church so that we could just have a good sing song then I'd quite agree with you (and in some church settings it certainly has been) but IMO that's absolutely not where it should be.
Now as for getting out and doing musical stuff for the community, yup, I'm there with you. As for holding up other Christians suffering persecution, hardship and oppression, absolutely. I'd fully agree that our songs should reflect the reality of the walk we have, our struggles and high points, and that our lives outside the church meeting should be a reflection of our walk with God too, couldn't agree more. But in our corporate worship time with God I want it to be first and foremost about Him, and then to let Him bring out issues, situations and circumstances that He wants us to reflect on.
It's not about shutting out the world's needs, salving our consciences with nice words or barricading ourselves into the psuedo-christian ghetto, but it is about meeting with Father first and foremost. From that meeting place we can take a message of hope out into the world. This is where Israel failed disastrously in the OT - they thought it was all for them, to make them special, instead of realising they needed to take it out to the nations.
Or maybe I've misunderstood what you've meant, and we actually agree?
I think body worship is the most pressing issue for the church in the future: how each person can meet God for themselves, rather than just through the worship leader, and the transforming effect this can have on their life and ministry as they learn to move under the Spirit's inspiration in everyday life.
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Permalink Reply by Gav on -
challenging stuff sam
thanks for sharing.
i think tonis right that meeting with the Father is the priority. i would argue we can meet with the Father through justice and mercy to the poor aswell.
praying and intercession in worship is powerful tho, i agree and am challenged to include this in worship more.
as for music and service in the community thats incredibly important and something that ive been involved with for a while and want to do more of.
God bless,
gav.
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Permalink Reply by Sam Hargreaves on -
Thanks everyone for your input! Toni, I suspect we are pretty much in agreement! You are right to say worship is first and foremost about God. However, my experience is that what we often portray as being 'about God' is actually more about getting our immediate needs met - for 'an experience', a set of songs we like, a nice feeling. In Isaiah 58 we have an account of people doing all the right outward worship stuff, but their hearts, their lifestyles and their approach to the least meant that their apparently 'God centred worship' was actually a sham.
My concern is if our meetings are all 'me and God', with the assumption that people will then take that out into the world, we may find what people take out into the world is that same sense of 'its all about me and God', rather than having an encounter in Church with the God who cares deeply about the world, our jobs, our schools, our finances, people in far-flung countries... We should NEVER take the focus off God, but I wonder if we ought to sometimes take the focus off ourselves, and if worship teams can help equip people to worship 24/7?
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Permalink Reply by Julia Chantrell on -
I like the idea of taking the skills of the worship band out into that kind of context... wonder how we'd go about it? But the other way of looking at it is that [for me, at least], sung worship can be where the batteries get recharged. I'm not as heavily involved in the band as I was, largely because there are so many other things I'm doing on a Sunday morning - but I think I've got a reasonable balance between the music, the leading, the practical stuff for church and the work for outside / fringe... even if every now and then my family wonder who this strange woman is who floats in occasionally to cook dinner and then disappears agin.
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Permalink Reply by Sam Hargreaves on
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Fair point Julia. I fear in some situations its all about getting your batteries recharged without necessarily doing the outside looking stuff... but it doesn't sound like you have that problem!
In terms of how to go about getting the worship band out there, we've found its about finding out where musicians can serve in the community. Local schools? Old people's homes? Gatherings of local musicians? Choirs for older teenagers? We've done all these, but I suspect there are loads more around. As you say, worship bands are often pushed for time anyway, but even doing this stuff just a couple of times a year would help to have some 'outward' focus to a ministry team which can be all 'inward'. And we've found that when people hear you in their setting (eg secular venue, school, old people's home etc) they are more likely to come and hear you in yours (eg church).
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