{"id":4453,"date":"2019-02-28T08:11:38","date_gmt":"2019-02-28T14:11:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nafwb.org\/?p=4453"},"modified":"2019-02-28T08:11:38","modified_gmt":"2019-02-28T14:11:38","slug":"four-keys-to-vibrant-worship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/four-keys-to-vibrant-worship\/","title":{"rendered":"Four Keys to Vibrant Worship"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Doug Little<\/strong><\/p>\n

In our desire for a genuine encounter with God in our\u00a0church services, we are apt\u00a0to search first for new methods,\u00a0tools, styles and formats.\u00a0If church has become dull, some blame\u00a0the familiar routines and grate against\u00a0traditions. Others view any change in\u00a0the traditional worship service as an assault on what to them is holy ground.\u00a0Nothing defines the identity of a local\u00a0church more than its style of worship.\u00a0Therefore, the issue of keeping worship\u00a0services vibrant touches one of the\u00a0most sensitive areas of feelings in any\u00a0church.<\/p>\n

My contention is, however, that vibrant\u00a0worship in the church is more\u00a0a matter of heart than art. Styles and\u00a0formats for worship may vary from\u00a0place to place, just as methods of\u00a0preaching and soul-winning do.<\/p>\n

But I have observed several essential\u00a0elements common to churches\u00a0whose worship services are Bible-based,\u00a0soul-stirring, Christ-exalting\u00a0and evangelistic.\u00a0 l call them the keys\u00a0to vibrant worship. They are true regardless\u00a0of the style of music, the format\u00a0of the service or the preferred expressions\u00a0of worship in any church.<\/p>\n

Key #1: Prayer <\/strong><\/p>\n

Years ago I learned that where\u00a0prayer focuses, power falls. Every instance\u00a0in scripture of the power of God\u00a0moving among His people gathered in\u00a0worship is precipitated by prayer.<\/p>\n

When Solomon prayed at the dedication\u00a0of the Temple, the fire of God\u00a0consumed the sacrifice and the glory\u00a0of God so filled the House that the\u00a0priests could not enter. When Elijah\u00a0prayed on Mt. Carmel, God proved\u00a0Himself to be the true God and revival\u00a0turned the people around.<\/p>\n

When the disciples prayed in response\u00a0to the threats of the authorities,\u00a0the house shook with the power\u00a0of God and they were filled with\u00a0boldness to win souls. When Peter\u00a0was imprisoned, the church prayed\u00a0and God sent an angel to deliver him.<\/p>\n

These and other examples from\u00a0God’s Word should convince us that\u00a0apart from prayer we will not experience\u00a0the power of God in our churches.\u00a0Prayerlessness is the strongest evidence\u00a0of a lack of dependence on\u00a0God. Churches who crave the moving\u00a0of the Holy Spirit in their midst will\u00a0make prayer the top priority in their\u00a0preparation for worship.<\/p>\n

Those who lead worship must\u00a0learn to discern the voice of the Holy\u00a0Spirit first in their prayer closet if they\u00a0hope to discern His leading on the\u00a0platform during a worship service.\u00a0Pastors must be men of prayer if\u00a0preaching is to be anointed.<\/p>\n

Musicians must bathe their selections\u00a0and preparation in prayer to such\u00a0an extent that their music is set ablaze\u00a0with love for God that will spread from\u00a0heart to heart during the service.<\/p>\n

Can laypeople not see the need to\u00a0intercede for their pastor? Like Aaron\u00a0and Hur who held up Moses’ arms so\u00a0that Israel would prevail in battle,\u00a0godly men and women in the pews\u00a0ought to pray daily for their pastors\u00a0and their church, lifting up a constant\u00a0cry to God to pour out His Spirit.<\/p>\n

Churches where lay people are\u00a0committed to that kind of intercession\u00a0are seeing unusual movings of\u00a0the Lord. Where prayer focuses,\u00a0power falls.<\/p>\n

Key #2: Praise<\/strong><\/p>\n

By definition, worship is the act of\u00a0giving honor and glory to someone of\u00a0worth. Christians gather to worship\u00a0God, to ascribe to Him the honor and\u00a0glory of which He alone is worthy. Except that in many churches the focus\u00a0of the worship service is man, not God.<\/p>\n

The value of many worship services\u00a0is measured by what those in\u00a0attendance get out of the service\u2014encouragement,\u00a0practical help, a\u00a0“blessing,” fellowship. Biblical worship\u00a0always focuses on what we give\u00a0to God, not what we get from Him.<\/p>\n

Praise is a key to vibrant worship.\u00a0I’m not referring to a type of music.\u00a0I’m speaking of the foundation upon\u00a0which everything in a worship service\u00a0is built: giving honor and glory to\u00a0God. The distinction can be very subtle,\u00a0for we cannot come before God\u00a0disconnected from our needs.<\/p>\n

When we truly give God the worship\u00a0He deserves, we will come\u00a0away with a great degree of fulfillment.\u00a0But when getting a blessing\u00a0from God becomes more important\u00a0than being a blessing to God, our\u00a0worship will be flesh-inspired rather\u00a0than Spirit-filled.<\/p>\n

Key #3: Participation<\/strong><\/p>\n

Worship services recorded in the\u00a0Bible present an inescapable mandate\u00a0that God’s people be participants\u00a0rather than observers in worship.\u00a0Our generation struggles with\u00a0“spectator-itis” in church.<\/p>\n

The rise of performance-oriented\u00a0special music, the decline of the\u00a0practice of verbal responses such as,\u00a0“Amen!” from the congregation, the\u00a0fear of the charismatic influence in.\u00a0expressiveness in worship, and the\u00a0shift of our culture away from dialogue\u00a0(due to the television habit)\u00a0have conditioned people to come to\u00a0church expecting to sit and watch\u00a0worship being done on the platform.\u00a0Nothing could be farther from the\u00a0biblical models.<\/p>\n

Pastors and churches who want\u00a0worship to be vibrant must teach and\u00a0train their people to be actively involved\u00a0in all that transpires during the\u00a0service. This, too, is a sensitive issue\u00a0that should be approached with\u00a0careful consideration of the cultural\u00a0needs and heritage. Change in an inappropriate\u00a0direction, or even an appropriate change pushed too quickly,\u00a0can cause great harm.<\/p>\n

Worship leaders who want their\u00a0congregations to participate actively\u00a0in church services consider carefully\u00a0styles of music, prayer, preaching,\u00a0giving and expression that have\u00a0touched hearts consistently in that\u00a0particular church. The preferences of\u00a0the congregation reveal the heart of\u00a0their expressions of worship.<\/p>\n

Wise leaders of established churches\u00a0protect the “heart language” of their\u00a0church, then supplement the services\u00a0with new expressions that will enhance,\u00a0rather than replace, what the\u00a0church has been accustomed to.<\/p>\n

If a radical change is desired, leaders\u00a0might do well to start a new, separate\u00a0worship service to incorporate\u00a0the new format. The traditional service\u00a0is then maintained without disrupting\u00a0the sense of security of the\u00a0established members.<\/p>\n

God seeks those who will worship\u00a0Him in spirit and in truth, and the\u00a0heart that responds to God’s call\u00a0longs to express its love for Him in\u00a0heart-felt ways. Vibrant worship\u00a0touches the heart, prompting an active\u00a0response from the worshiper.<\/p>\n

Churches that promote the active\u00a0participation of their people in worship\u00a0and provide means through\u00a0which members can express their\u00a0heart-felt love for God will experience\u00a0consistent outpouring of the\u00a0Holy Spirit on their services.<\/p>\n

Key #4 Planning <\/strong><\/p>\n

In the most explicit instruction given\u00a0in scripture regarding the conducting\u00a0of public worship, the apostle\u00a0Paul says that all things should be\u00a0done decently and in order (1\u00a0Corinthians 14:40).<\/p>\n

Planning the flow of a worship\u00a0service and making selections in advance\u00a0need not stifle the freedom of\u00a0the Holy Spirit to move as He wills\u00a0during a worship service. Planning\u00a0enables the service to direct worshipers\u00a0in a logical sequence of participation\u00a0that promotes receptivity to\u00a0the work of the Holy Spirit.<\/p>\n

There is, of course, the need to be\u00a0flexible. The Holy Spirit’s fire must not\u00a0be quenched in the midst of a service\u00a0so that the planned order will not be\u00a0disrupted. But as a rule, there is nothing\u00a0unspiritual about asking the\u00a0Lord’s guidance in planning the basics\u00a0of a worship service in advance.<\/p>\n

Planning promotes preparation.\u00a0Few things dampen a church service\u00a0quicker than ushers scrambling to\u00a0get in place or a singer struggling to\u00a0get through a song that hasn’t been\u00a0practiced. The manner in which a\u00a0worship service is conducted should\u00a0reflect our concern that the message\u00a0of the Gospel and the moving of the\u00a0Spirit not be hindered by unnecessary\u00a0distractions.<\/p>\n

Free Will Baptist churches need\u00a0not lose their moorings in their desire\u00a0to offer worship services that are relevant\u00a0to the needs of their local communities\u00a0and the changes of our culture. Each congregation must be true\u00a0to the scripture and then true to its\u00a0own heart. \u00a0If these four keys to vibrant\u00a0worship are used as a guide, any\u00a0church can use whatever style of worship that suits it and still experience\u00a0the power of God in their services.<\/p>\n

Article adapted from Contact\u00a0<\/em>magazine, March 1996.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Doug Little In our desire for a genuine encounter with God in our\u00a0church services, we are apt\u00a0to search first for new methods,\u00a0tools, styles and formats.\u00a0If church has become dull, some blame\u00a0the familiar routines and grate against\u00a0traditions. Others view any change in\u00a0the traditional worship service as an assault on what to them is holy ground.\u00a0Nothing defines the identity of a local\u00a0church more than its style of worship.\u00a0Therefore, the issue of keeping worship\u00a0services vibrant touches one of the\u00a0most sensitive areas of feelings in any\u00a0church. My contention is, however, that vibrant\u00a0worship in the church is more\u00a0a matter of heart than art. Styles and\u00a0formats for worship may vary from\u00a0place to place, just as methods of\u00a0preaching and soul-winning do. But I have observed several essential\u00a0elements common to churches\u00a0whose worship services are Bible-based,\u00a0soul-stirring, Christ-exalting\u00a0and evangelistic.\u00a0 l call them the keys\u00a0to vibrant worship. They are true regardless\u00a0of the style of music, the format\u00a0of the service or the preferred expressions\u00a0of worship in any church. Key #1: Prayer Years ago I learned that where\u00a0prayer focuses, power falls. Every instance\u00a0in scripture of the power of God\u00a0moving among His people gathered in\u00a0worship is precipitated by prayer. When Solomon prayed at the dedication\u00a0of the Temple, the fire of God\u00a0consumed the sacrifice […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4453","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pastors"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4453","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4453"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4453\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4456,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4453\/revisions\/4456"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}