Kevin Darby, October 2020
Covid 19 has completely shifted the way followers of Christ approach corporate worship. The immediate exchange of in-person fellowship to online media not only opened new possibilities but it also exposed how important and special our times together were! I know my heart felt its absence, and I found a renewed sense of appreciation for the beauty of the church gathering. So, how do we move forward in these precarious times so that we can foster greater connection to our Father and to one another?
I want to ask some questions to spark and hopefully encourage you to think and explore how Christ truly envisioned his church, his bride, to come together. I want you to think beyond tradition, not because tradition is wrong, but to allow your mind to be unencumbered by anything that could stifle the Holy Spirit’s call to love and devotion to Him and to each other. Sometimes it takes letting go of the old to rediscover the simpler precious way to be with other followers of christ as well as fold in those seeking him. I hope to encourage you to be creative, to listen to the Spirit, and to get excited about how we can come together to serve one another and praise our Father in heaven. Our God is BIG, let us not allow our 'ways of doing things’ to limit our God or our expressions of Love and Praise to Him.
In assessing our times together and in seeking to be led by the Spirit, I believe it helps to ask ‘why’ questions. The why gives us our motivation and requires us to engage our heart. In asking these questions, I am not saying any of these things are wrong or inferior ways to gather and worship the Father, but rather this process will help you question tradition in a healthy childlike way.
In regards to Sunday Church Gatherings - ask yourself why; what is the reason(s)?
Why do we have a church worship ‘service’? Why is it called a service?
Why do we meet on Sundays every week?
Why do we sing so many or so few songs on a given Sunday?
Why is there a sermon? Why is it 30-60 minutes?
Why is there a ‘talk’ before taking communion? Would it be ok to not have one? What could you do instead and why?
Why do we say a prayer before the bread and another one before the wine? Or say one prayer for both?
Why do we take up collection after taking the communion? Could we consider doing it at a different time? What would that look like?
Why do we sit in rows, looking into the backs of people in front of you and all looking up to a raised platform where a man speaks? Is it possible that over time that setting emphasizes man and de-emphasizes our God?
Why are so few people involved in creating a time of worship together? Why don’t we involve more artists & creatives?
Why would some be opposed to trying these things? Why is there fear in change?
Why can you have such a difficult time believing your church can evolve, grow?
Now that you’ve had some time to engage the heart by examining the ‘whys’, let’s also engage the mind!
What is the Spirit speaking to your mind in how He would like the church to connect with one another and in worshiping together?
I would like to use a metaphor to help us imagine our times of corporate worship. Think of it as the church’s ‘date night’ with God.
Imagine in your marriage that you had a custom of going out to dinner every Saturday night at McDonalds. Nothing wrong with that. Some of you may be thinking, “heck, I can’t imagine going out every week anywhere…”. Let’s say over time, you didn’t go out every week but maybe once a month and eventually very rarely. In fact, you live in the same house, eat some meals together, go to church together, do lots of things together, but does physical proximity alone give you a close relationship with your spouse? No. People can loose their love for one another over time if the relationship cease to be special; ceases to make you feel special, loved, or even close. Is the issue that you are going to fast food for dinner? Not really. Even if you went to a steakhouse every week it could end up the same. When you live by routine alone, it can suck the life out, drain the passion, darken the light in your eyes.
To build a strong marriage, one that’s close and fun and kind, full of love and life, it takes creative effort. Back to the date night example. Let’s say once a month you plan something special. By special I mean, different than the norm. A new place to eat, a picnic, a new activity; get creative, innovative. Plan something that takes your time, effort, and your heart; thinking about what she would like, what would make it special for her. How would she feel? Loved, thought of, special.
Now let’s use this as our worship metaphor. Doing the same routine every Sunday during worship can take the life out of it. I’ve had a conviction a long time that as a worship leader or worship producer, I can justify pouring into the planning and preparation of Sunday as much time, thought and passion as I possibly can. It’s worth it! Sunday, to me, comes down to being together with the body of Christ, the ecclesia, the called out, to share in the common faith, belief and convictions that Jesus gave up his life, sacrificed it as the only possible way God was able to restore our connection to Him. And that God raised Him to life, PROVING that He can deliver on the promise of eternal life for us through faith! And so we share in a meal, the Lord’s Supper, in order to communion with Him and each other, as we remember Jesus and what He did. Not to wallow in guilt or pain, but to be reminded of how incredibly loved we were, we are, and will be all the way to heaven! We need this weekly time because the struggles of the previous 6 days can ‘take it out of you’.
So we should devote time, money, creativity, passion and thoughtful, heart-filled planning into every Sunday! Get more people, creative, passionate people involved in creating a time that is powerful, inspiring, moving. A time that gives each of us many opportunities to express our gratitude and praise to our amazing God! Now THAT’s a Sunday worship! I’m not talking about a weekly production; God doesn’t want that. But He does want our hearts, effort, thought, passion, vulnerability and our genuine expressions of gratitude and praise.
Please don’t let your model of what church “should be like” come from your past; let it be what you and a bunch of spiritual, creative, brothers and sisters can imagine together. The Psalms do teach us to sing to God ‘a new song’. We need a lot of ‘new’ if we are to keep our worship times special, powerful, intimate and in God’s presence. After all, if God’s blessings are “new every morning”, surely we can give our hearts to expressing our thanks and praise in new ways, every week!
Please share your thoughts!
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