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"When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction..."
1 Corinthians 14:26
The Corinthian Church at the time of St. Paul was not known for its quiet and meditative services! On the contrary, they were more like the dealers on a Stock Exchange Trading Floor, everyone speaking at once! They expressed their love for God in ways that made it difficult for them to hear what God was saying. Paul chided them for their unruly behaviour and told them that there was plenty of time to express their feelings and worship, but it had to be done in an orderly manner. Everyone can contribute, but please take your turn!
The worship, week by week in our Churches today, generally falls at the other end of the spectrum. We are comfortable to follow a prescribed liturgy: it may be written down so that we can follow from a book, or it may be so familiar to us that we don't need a book: the pattern is held deep within our tradition; this prayer always follows that hymn, the sermon always comes here and will last so long..., we are safe and not challenged by what goes on. There is someone who leads at the front, whilst the congregation passively receives.
It is to this sort of congregation that Paul's words make a very different challenge:
"When you come together, don't just sit there; do something!"
Participating in worship is not just to promote fairness amongst the people, it is primarily to help everyone grow in grace: both the one who ministers and those who hear God's Word. We meet together week after week to participate in the Body of Christ and to grow as that body. We have to be always open to different ways that help us achieve that.
At the A.G.M. Philip started the church down the road of making changes in both the Family Service and the Morning Praise that follows a week later, on the second Sunday. These changes are designed to increase both participation within the service and a sense of ownership of the service. It will also allow the Worship Band to be present at the Family Service, with the youth oriented service becoming the Second Sunday @ 7.
The changes to the Morning Praise service may include getting different House Groups to take responsibility for the act of worship at the beginning of our time together. We also want to have an opportunity for individuals to testify to what the Lord has been doing in their lives. They should also be able to receive specific prayer ministry at the end of the meeting.
One important change will be giving a more in-depth teaching on specific topics that are relevant to our individual walk with God; we want to scratch where people itch! It is hoped that there will be a set of notes to take home at the end of the service. This will enable further study and / or discussion at the next House Group.
We would therefore like to hear from you about the sort of issues that concern you. Obviously, there needs to be time to do the necessary research, so it won't be possible to respond immediately to a specific request. Topics that will probably be discussed early on, will include basic Christian doctrine like "Why did Jesus have to die?" and "The work of the Holy Spirit."
It will be truly amazing if we manage to get the formula right first time, so it follows we will need to be patient with one another as we experiment with different things. We shall try to be sensitive to the needs of the Church and not be afraid to adapt what we do when we all come together, so that we shall end up with something that will help both younger and older members alike, to become mature people of God.
With love, Jim.
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