August 08, 2006
Have Patience...
My friend Kathy attends church in northern Colorado where they too are experiencing the tug of war in worship service. “For awhile the leadership was trying to force the music [contemporary] on us, but now it’s settled down a little. Our new minister really cares for people, so he’s trying to find a balance.” The compromise reached in Kathy’s church is that one service is contemporary and the other traditional. “Once a month in our service [traditional], the youth minister preaches and the praise team performs, so we still feel pressure to change.” With a gentle laugh Kathy continued, “But, our old timers just sit there with their arms crossed and wait for it to get over with.” The apostle Paul says, “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” Eph 4:2-3 NIV
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3 comments:
It seems like Kathy's church is truly trying to compromise. We, too, had two services and it helped to divide the church. We now have one blended service ie. hymns and praise songs. Our praise team leader is not under 30, nor do we have loud instruments. She chooses praise songs with worshipful lyrics and our older members join in, too. My experience has been that you cannot have unity with two services. Be aware of Satan's ways.
Laura Nichols, Denver, CO
Laura,
Thanks for your insight and warning. Certainly tolerance doesn’t make for unity. Kudos to your praise team leader for finding a balance.
Laura;
----For a short time we had separate contemporary and traditional services, too. My recollection is that they also did more to divide than to unite.
----But I recently heard from someone in Loveland whose church is being tremendously successful with separate services. She told me that in the last few years they have had to plant new churches each year in order to fit into their facility.
----I think that all these examples illustrate the fact that each church is an individual fellowship. The forms and practices that fellolwship acquires should be a reflection of all those who make up that fellowship. I have always meant this aspect when referring to a church as "my church". The human characteristics of the fellowship should reflect everyone there because it is made of everyone there and belongs to everyone there.
----The role given to the church leaders, then, is to keep that fellowship growing in all of the aspects of the new life so that it ultimately reflects Jesus Christ. Since leaders have been given almost carte blanche control in our churches today, it becomes very important to determine whether they are giving their studies over to the Word of God in prayer and in the Spirit, or to books of men.
----It is so much easier to pick up a book written by Pastor Hugh G. Successful about all the wonders of what worked at his church, than it is to lay down yourself to the Word and the Spirit and discover what works at your church. So we have all of these failing efforts in cloning one man's big California church, because the leaders are forgetting to empty themselves to the Word and then read the hearts of the people in their fellowships.
----If a leader will accept only what is true to the Word, and give his attention to teaching that as it applies to the particular circumstances of his fellowship, then there will be unity, joy, peace, and righteousness in the church. And who knows if there will be blended services, separate services, or only traditional, or only contemporary services. Those things should come from what the people are made of, not the leaders.
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