If you just read the comments on my last Together for the Gospel post, you might be tempted to think that things went flawlessly. Not the case. Practically every time I lead I learn something new about what I’m doing, even though I’ve been leading worship for over 30 years now. I pray that I’m always learning something. Here are some of the things I learned, put into practice, or remembered this year. You can experience and express strong emotions for God while singing hymns. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard someone say that hymns are dry, academic, lyrically dense, and inappropriate for “passionate worship.” That may be true in some …
Tag Archives | Preparing For Sunday
These messages relate directly to selecting music and planning for weekly congregational worship.
Worship Songs for the Persecuted Church
I received this question from a Worship Matters reader: We’re having a missions conference in our church in Northern Ireland towards the end of November. The theme is the persecuted church. Have you any songs or sources you could recommend on this theme? I am keen to find songs that allow us to pray for and stand with our brothers and sisters and allow us to fulfill the command of Hebrews 13:3 ‘Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body.’ Here are a few that came to mind: A Mighty Fortress is Our God – “let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also, the body …
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Sin and Sunday Morning
Joel Osteen was interviewed by Byron Pitts on 60 Minutes this past Sunday. I didn’t see the program but was able to watch it at CBS News Online. I recognize that the media can distort what someone actually says. But taken at face value, the interview was concerning. Here’s one portion from the transcript: “You said ‘I like to see myself as a life coach, a motivator to help them experience the life of God that God has for them. People don’t like to be beat down and told ‘You’ve done wrong.’ What do you mean?” Pitts asks. “Well, I think that most people already know what they’re doing wrong. And for me to get in here and just beat ‘em …
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Should We Use Secular Songs on Sundays?
Matt sent in this question: I recently came across a message board where folks were discussing secular songs that could be done to make “seekers” feel more comfortable at church. Some folks mentioned that they had been to church’s where song such as: “She Will be Loved” by Maroon 5, “Your Body is a Wonderland” by John Mayer (that Sunday’s service was about sexuality), lots of U2, etc. I’m really interested to hear your thoughts about doing songs like these. Should we seek to evangelize during our times of worshiping God through singing corporately? There are three ways I want to respond to Matt’s question. First, the idea that we should make …