Attractional vs. Missional part1

The Worship Leader

The responsibility of the worship leader is to first and foremost lead people into the presence of God through spiritual songs. Now this can be at first glance a daunting task, but if a worship leader views his/her task as being more of a spiritual guide who is taking the people of God on a journey into the heart of God by the leading of the Holy Spirit, then the burden lightens because the worship leader is not alone in this endeavor. It is the Holy Spirit’s task to draw people to the Father through the Son, in which worship leaders are invited to be apart of.

Some good questions to ask when choosing worship songs are: 1) What does the song say about God? 2) What does the song say about us? 3) What does the song say about how we relate to God/Gospel? In thinking a bit deeper on this, I’ve come up with a few guideposts to help worship leaders think through some of the components of the journey.

1) Entering into worship (an invitation)
2) Crying out for the Lord (“I/we need you Lord”)
3) Receiving the assurance of Jesus (forgiveness, redemption, salvation, etc.)
4) Encountering the presence of God (holiness, power, mercy, grace, love, etc.)
5) Surrender/Submission to God (“I/we bow down”)
6) Expressing love for God (“I/we love You Lord”)
7) Expressing thankfulness to God (“thank You Jesus”)

Also, because of the pervasiveness of individualism, it is wise to include at least one song that is corporate in nature (we, us). This is important for at least two reasons: 1) it addresses the stronghold of individualism and 2) it reinforces the reality of being part of the Body of Christ. There is a difference between singing corporately (as a group) and singing songs that help people to identify as the Body of Christ. When a person sings, “I love you Lord” this has a different feel than singing “we love you Lord.” The latter fosters a sense of community.

Having five of the seven categories in a worship set is ideal, but that may not always be possible. But, a good rule of thumb is to have at least three categories. There may be times where a worship leader may be led by the Spirit to highlight one category, but having five songs on just one category would be unbalanced. So, breaking up the worship set with songs from two other categories helps to balance out the focus. Remember, a worship set should never lose the journey theme, which happens when only one category is focused.

Please feel free to express your thoughts:

Are you starving Jesus?

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" (Phil 3:12-14).

Looking Towards the Future

Lately, I've been catching myself mourning sin more and more often. From day to day, I find that I am actively mourning not only my own sinfulness, but as I look upon the world that we live in I am repeatedly confronted with the pride, anger, bitterness, greed, envy and lust that seems to be ever present in the world. These principalities that are in direct conflict with God (Eph 6:12) are forces that cannot be avoided and must be reckoned with, but as the rest of this passage commands, we are to arm ourselves for battle with the divine everlasting armor of God. "Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God" (Eph 6:13-17 NIV).

Even in my interactions with others, the relational brokenness that is ever pervasive cannot be avoided. Whenever I begin new friendships, this brokenness glaringly reminds me of my own awkwardness and clumsiness and lack of social graces. The part of me that forgets how to walk and talk at the same time. But, once again I am comforted by Scripture that tells me that the Holy Spirit, who lives within me (Rom 5:5) is also continually cultivating His good and righteous fruit within me. "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Gal 5:22-23a NLT). It's when I forget to seek the strength and power of the Holy Spirit to help me overcome my own brokenness and the brokenness of others that I lose hope and walk around defeated and alone.

So, as this year comes to a close and we once again have before us the opportunity in the coming year to press more deeply into the passions that pulsate within us. Let us remember that through our enduring and intimate relationship with Jesus, we are empowered with what we need to persevere through the trails that lay before us as we pursue those God given yearnings within our hearts that call out to us and urge us to make an impact for the Kingdom of God. "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-disciple" (2 Tim 1:7) and that those who overcome are given "the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God" (Rev 2:7).