Thanks for all the comments on the previous post, I wasn't trying to make a statement about the rights and wrongs of what I felt, just present a picture. In all honesty after only 5 hours sleep when I wrote that piece my mind was pretty blank at the time of writing.
I just want to touch on a few things that have been commented on and said:
Worship
I was talking to some friends back in the UK about worship, specifically sung worship. That 45 minute or 30 minute slot on a Sunday morning. Which I enjoy a lot. I like sing-a-longs, you'll catch me after a few beers singing "Hey Jude" with great gusto and there are many others who like a great sing a long and this is one of the appeals of Sunday morning sung worship. It seems to me that no matter how hard we try, how hard we say that worship is a life style, etc. etc. People still refer to Sunday morning sung worship as the worship service.
You then also have a group of committed people with jobs and lives who have to give up one evening a week, arrive early on a Sunday and practice for this 45 minute session. I've met a few worship guys who are getting disillusioned with this.
Increasingly people will move away from wanting to attend the worship service because their worship will be acts of service throughout the week. I see apathetic worship leaders and musicians and attendees who just can't see the validity of this type of worship. Personally I do see it's validity because I enjoy corporate singing and like the opportunity to be loud. I totally understand that if that doesn't float your boat you will find sung worship a little empty.
Invisibility
In large gatherings, and large churches anonymity and invisibility are key challenges. I know of someone who was part of a worship team in a very large northern church she had a break down and left town, no one noticed! People get lost in a crowd.
I have also observed that even sold out people in larger churches can be invisible. by that I mean you can attend a mid-week small group, help out with the children's work, have a few Christian couples around for dinner and wine at the weekends, attend on Sundays, help put the chairs out and still have a bag full of issues that no one ever notices.
I feel it is harder to hide in small communities you are confronted with your own character flaws and inadequacies in smaller more intimate communities. If you're lazy it will show, if your controlling it will show, if your grumpy it will show, if your rude it will show, if your spiritually in-disciplined it will show I believe it is a lot easier to hide these flaws in a large active church. This is a challenge, one that large active churches need to address, many do but it is always easier to hide in a large group.
Large gatherings can also appeal to nominalism.
Dreams
I have been reading a book on surrealism by a guy called Jose Perre he uses this great little line when speaking about gestures recovering there truth and talks of a world "in which action would be sister to the dream"
I love that. Action needs to be the sister of our dreams.
How do we turn our dreams into reality?
IN THE ARENA OF HUMAN LIFE THE HONORS AND REWARDS FALL TO THOSE WHO SHOW THEIR GOOD QUALITIES IN ACTION...I COUNT HIM BRAVER WHO OVERCOMES HIS DESIRES THAN HIM WHO CONQUERS HIS ENEMIES; FOR THE HARDEST VICTORY IS THE VICTORY OVER SELF." ARISTOTLE
Maybe we are the only ones stopping ourselves from walking into our dreams?
2 comments:
Great post, AGAIN! :)
Dreams...I thought about the blind man (in the book of John). I am sure his dream was to see. So, in a nutshell....Jesus cakes his eyes with mud and then sends him off to wash the mud off his eyes...so, what did he do? He went. ACTION! Had he not gone (ACTION) and done what Jesus said (OBEDIENCE)...his dream of being able to see would have never come to pass...and worse, God would have been robbed of the glory that is due him!
Re: Worship
I coordinate the Musical Worship for our church and I love it! I believe it's one of the things He designed me to do - serve the people in leading them in musical worship. Note I do say, "musical worship". True, it is a cause of ongoing frustration to me that the word has been so wedded to song. How small is our concept of "Our occupation with God himself, with the greatness of his being" if it can be constrained to half an hour or so on a Sunday?? That being said, I have no doubt as to the value of these times together. Brian, as always, you are very balanced in your view. As I said in my comments on your previous post, it can ALL be good so let's allow each other the grace to connect with Him in a range of ways, some of which may not be helpful to us individually.
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