Singing seems to be both attracting people and keeping people away from church these days. I have a number of problems with singing. Usually it requires me to suck up my testicles, put on a soft smiling face and sing soft love songs all in the name of worship. Nothing wrong with this (actually I'm telling lies here but can't be bothered explaining why today) if its your cup of tea but I know a lot of blokes who are put off by it all. The big problem is when we are told that if we don't get into it we aren't worshipping and somehow we stop God working and ruin it for everyone else! What a load of bollocks. We reduce worship to singing or a particular practice.
There is the alt worship crew....I like them but I heard one person say "why is it they can only worship in the dark"; the traditional hymn crew.....good enough if you can read the small print in the hymn books; the mystical crew....chant and act all Gregorian but manage to not take the vows in most cases; the emerging church crew....hang out in bars and cafes acting like Jesus is their wine waiter or barrister; and so on.
I guess they all have a place, and I personally like the emerging forms and mystical forms, but a lot of their proponents seem to say their way is best and the others are wrong. It's this part that gets me. Time for us to stop telling each other how to worship and start reflecting a bit more on why we are so interested in telling each other how to act to please God.......and for those who aren't into singing....God doesn't care at all!!!!
This entry was posted by Angry and Shallow, on
Wednesday, October 25, 2006.
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11:25 pm
I hope God doesn't mind bad singing... or I'm in big trouble!
I do like playing my guitar loud (I'm going deaf in my right ear to prove it) and I do like songs that speak truth. I feel a lot of songs that are sung in church do more for the people singing than they may do for God.
At the same time I struggle with some of the 'alternative' types of worship that pop up. Are they sometimes a little too trendy?
I guess, in the end, as long as your worship is genuine the form it takes is maybe not so important.
11:40 pm
Sorry Darryl, I am deeply offended, the thought of you sucking in your testicles has caused my mind's video images to freeze and then melt down, all I can do now is think of the pink elephants...
Someone said to me recently the sort of worship songs they respond to are not those from the hills (read hillsongs) but from the valleys, is this not where Jesus would be, i long for worship that reflects the kingdom values of the Jesus of the poor, and the reality of that comes home to me more from spending some time with the urban poor of Klong Toey, testacles or not...
12:33 pm
Barro mate you are of course right. True worship reflects the values of the Kingdom which include helping the poor, lonely, marginalised....basically all those who never get a chance to lead 'singing' in churches.
6:51 am
Great article, I was involved in a small startup church that eventually broke up over the argument of worship. It was truly a sickening affair.
All I know is that worship is a daily walk with the Lord. If it involves singing with candles or yodeling, if it brings you closer to the Lord - go for it.
It's amazing what a lightning rod worship can be. I read once about a pastor who didn't like the music his church played (or the style) but knew it worked with the congregation. He said that's what they have CD players for. So he listened to the music that worked for him in the car, but also worshiped on Sundays with his church.
10:26 am
thanks Stuart. Splits and division over worship of God. Isn't it amazing that we have the ability to be so pathetic and yet think we are being so significant! I agree it is sickening. I know this 'ability' is something we all have to recognise in our own lives and try to deal with.
10:58 am
I like to sing but that isn't worship. Worship is me taking the time to acknowledge God is God, and I am not, and responding to this realization with obedience. For me this happens far more often in the day to day life than with a band and words on a screen.
Glad you are out there bro, good word
rev
12:56 pm
excellent post. Worhsip should be about all of our lives - not just what we do in the holy rooms on certain days of the week. Mike Frost talk about the dualism that is so prevalent in the church - a hang over from the Christendom mode of being church - this is something we need to re-think, in fact re-do - orthopraxy and orthodoxy!
1:01 pm
I shuold have said a bit more about dualism - the idea that there are certyian things we do (such as singing) that are holy and are a part of worship, but other things, like going to work, helping a poor family get their home maintainance done, reading a book, rolling around on the floor with our children.
1:02 pm
are not...preview before posting!!!
2:06 pm
Keep speaking it out Greg. It needs to be said over and over. It also needs to be stated that money helps the singing worship industry. Nothing like mammon to change our theology and nothing like a marketing plan to sell us the latest worship CD to reinforce that mumbo jumbo theology!