Worship Pastors, how do you measure your work in relation to the church’s worship? We live in a society obsessed with utility. One of the stumbling blocks to giving and receiving Gospel is a prevailing attitude of “What’s the use?” The dominance of utilitarianism has certainly not been exorcized from the church and [...]
Archive for the ‘Spiritual formation through singing’ category
Unuseful
February 13, 2012Winning Worship
January 31, 2012This is not an article about worship on Superbowl Sunday. To the contrary I want to invite you to a much larger view of worship not only on this coming Sunday but every Sunday, and ask you to consider the victorious tone that surely should characterize, or at the very least, underscore every service [...]
Trusting God’s Revelation in Worship
January 16, 2012In the introduction to his book, Simply Jesus, N.T. Wright is talking about “Jesus’s way of running the world….” which he states is through his followers. Then he says, “The heart of their life is Spirit-led worship, through which they are constituted and energized as ‘the body of Christ.” When I think of half-empty [...]
Do You Suffer from Worship Fatigue?
January 10, 2012Do you ever get tired of worship? Those who serve in worship leadership roles have good reason to be tired given the workload that comes with weekly worship preparation, not to mention the mental and emotional strain of a kind of forced creativity for which we strive week in and week out. But [...]
Where to Find “New” for Worship
January 4, 2012What shall we include in worship? We are often looking for something new. The question of what to include in worship can plague evangelical worship leadership whose churches worship in the free church tradition. As proud as we are of our independence from any ecclesial hierarchy, the question can be haunting when it comes time to [...]
November 28, 2011
‘Tis the season..game on! Advent has begun, Christmas is coming quickly.children’s programs, hanging of green services, Living Christmas Trees, Christmas Eve services, musical productions, etc., etc. Here we go. Although I realize we have all been working on Christmas for some time already, I want to request your attention for a moment here [...]
Hymn of Grateful Praise
November 24, 2011An often-overlooked Thanksgiving hymn is For the Beauty of the Earth. Perhaps it is passed over because the 19th Century text does not actually contain the word, “Thanks” in it anywhere. Perhaps it is because the straightforward hymn is more closely associated with a standard Sunday morning hymn of praise. Regardless, it is a song lyric that strikes me today [...]
Those Who Know It Best
November 11, 2011I know this Christian stuff really well. I have been at it practically my whole life. I was coming to church nine months before I was born. Many of the people who read these weekly ramblings are the same way. You have been singing, listening to preaching, partaking in ordinances, trying to witness your faith to [...]
Worship Leader Roundtable Reflections
November 2, 2011Each Fall for the past eleven years I have conducted roundtables for worship pastors/music ministers across our great state. I have come to look forward with great anticipation to these gatherings of fellow musician – ministers for many reasons. The fellowship is always encouraging, and every year it seems I see some new faces [...]
Leading with Heart and Voice
October 26, 2011The longer I serve in my role working with worship pastors across our state the more aware I have become of leaders who struggle with vocal problems. I can sympathize with these folks having had a bout or two during my own career with my voice. I don’t pretend to be a therapist, though I [...]
