Comments on: worship manipulation?

By: Roundups from Around the Web: Thoughts on Church « Coffee Klatch

Roundups from Around the Web: Thoughts on Church « Coffee Klatch — Mon, 05 May 2008 06:16:29 +0000

[...] thought this blog was a very interesting blog about worship. As someone who was once involved in leading worship in [...]

By: Ashliegh

Ashliegh — Mon, 05 May 2008 06:01:19 +0000

hmm…this was a popular one.
what if we just threw out the cookie cutters and gave genuine worship as unique as the body we belong to is?

By: Kim

Kim — Thu, 01 May 2008 17:58:47 +0000

Wow! Am I ever glad I found your blog! Lots of thought-provoking stuff here.

By: steve

steve — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 21:58:22 +0000

you can never please everyone. i think a large portion of this is the fact that few people tend to worship in their own private time. then they expect the church to supply all their spiritual needs; really, they should be getting what they need in their own prayer closet.

By: MOM

MOM — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 22:54:07 +0000

I really agree with the comments of Willow and Toby. I do believe that a variety of worship should occur because each of us will respond to a different type. We will know the “sort” of worship that reaches us – we will feel God…

By: kathyescobar

kathyescobar — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 14:23:55 +0000

we are in a bit of the same dilemma, experimenting with a wide variety of ways to worship because for some, just singing songs just doesn’t cut it and honestly, some of the words don’t really feel that true in different ways because of the shifts some are making. i know we can’t accomodate everyone but i have noticed how much “assumption” language we can tend to make related to worship and when people are undergoing huge shifts in theology & connection to God, we need to be careful and at the same time not water down worship/praise/thanksgiving for who God is. but at the same time understanding not everyone is feeling happy/clappy when it comes to their relationship with God at the moment. it is a beautifully tricky dance. one thing we have done is wean everyone from only music…

By: ellen stevens

ellen stevens — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 20:37:19 +0000

emily, thanks for the perspective. one of the amazing aspects of God that I love and cherish, is the gift of individuality. not only does he create us uniquely designed, but our worship and response to him is also unique and individualistic. what a generous God…

thanks for sharing your thoughts.

By: Emily

Emily — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 19:36:21 +0000

OK, for me it would help for the worship leader(s) to talk about what’s going-on during the worship time to set people’s expectations. I feel manipulated when a worship leader asks for/tries to get a particular emotional response to a song… I think it would be better for someone to just be honest with the congregation and tell them, “Hey, we’re going to worship through music now. Everyone is going to have a different kind of experience, some will feel emotional, some will feel unemotional. Some of you will experience God in different ways than others. Don’t feel like you have to have the same response as the person next to you. Just open your heart for wherever God is leading you and what the Spirit is saying. Wherever that takes you is ok.” If someone SAYS something like that and lets their music playing follow along with that, then I don’t see how anyone can think they’re being manipulative. I think manipulation is when a certain emotional response is expected, and if you give the congregation complete freedom from expectation, then there can be no manipulation.

By: Tobias

Tobias — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 19:07:45 +0000

This issue goes well beyond previous worship issues (at church services). Years ago the tension arose around the various styles of music, lights or no, and before that was electric guitar or the god-inspired acoustic. And this issue is much deeper, and central to the core of worship.
I think the real issue here is, “What is worship?”
If woship is just music and a show at church-time, then we’re in trouble. But if it involves every aspect of our lives, all the time, then we’re doing it right. Aren’t we to love God with ALL our heart, soul, mind and strength and others as ourselves? This seems to involve every aspect of our being.
So what we do when we gather together, should it reflect who we are the rest of the time?

By: jimmy paravane

jimmy paravane — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 15:30:06 +0000

OK, I’m firmly in the camp of skeptics but, it sounds like you answered yer own question: “truly introduce people to the originator of all things creative”. (grin)