Charlie Hall (SixSteps Records/Passion Artist) writes:
Of course we know, and have been hearing for a while now, worship is not just the songs we sing. It is a life laid down that says “burn me up God. Use my money, time, energy, skills, family, job, all I have. Help me make you a big deal and pull the attention on you.” Songs are one vehicle that helps a group of worshippers do this. These songs come along and they inspire, remind, and punctuate the life of a Jesus seeker. This being said, the goal of worship is not to just to sing songs.
The goal is Jesus, to peel back the beautiful curtain of “the song” and see the one the song is about. Music, songs, art, are vehicles to pull back the curtain. They reveal Him. When we gather around meeting with God, we can know He is there. But simply knowing He is there and treating Him as the centerpiece of the room is different. We should pull Him to the center of the room and let everyone look on Him and say the most beautiful things that can flow from our hearts.
That is how I approach leading. The songs are built to honor and convey things to him and about Him through art and creativity. As they are sung, people begin agreeing, “yes, God is like that. Look how wonderful He is.” Songs can be sung as songs but there are days when I am tired of the numbness of just singing. Familiarity to anything can create numbness. I want the songs to open up the windows and throw open the curtains to God. I want to pick songs that will engage my heart and leave room for new songs to come and be opened in that moment.
Read the rest at worshiptogether.com
Charlie nails it on the head here. For some reason, Christians fixate on the familiar. I see it all over the Christian sub-culture. If you flip on any Christian CCM radio station for a day, you will hear Matt Redman's "Blessed Be Your Name" about 8 times, sung by 8 different artists, with 8 "cool, new arrangements".
I love Charlie's perspective. Familiarity creates numbness to the message in a song you've sung a hundred times. But something new and fresh brings a song to life, or re-visiting a song that has been off the set-list for weeks or even years.
Be sure to click the link to read the rest! It's good stuff.
Hat Tip: Dan Wilt tipped me off to this article.
Of course we know, and have been hearing for a while now, worship is not just the songs we sing. It is a life laid down that says “burn me up God. Use my money, time, energy, skills, family, job, all I have. Help me make you a big deal and pull the attention on you.” Songs are one vehicle that helps a group of worshippers do this. These songs come along and they inspire, remind, and punctuate the life of a Jesus seeker. This being said, the goal of worship is not to just to sing songs.
The goal is Jesus, to peel back the beautiful curtain of “the song” and see the one the song is about. Music, songs, art, are vehicles to pull back the curtain. They reveal Him. When we gather around meeting with God, we can know He is there. But simply knowing He is there and treating Him as the centerpiece of the room is different. We should pull Him to the center of the room and let everyone look on Him and say the most beautiful things that can flow from our hearts.
That is how I approach leading. The songs are built to honor and convey things to him and about Him through art and creativity. As they are sung, people begin agreeing, “yes, God is like that. Look how wonderful He is.” Songs can be sung as songs but there are days when I am tired of the numbness of just singing. Familiarity to anything can create numbness. I want the songs to open up the windows and throw open the curtains to God. I want to pick songs that will engage my heart and leave room for new songs to come and be opened in that moment.
Read the rest at worshiptogether.com
Charlie nails it on the head here. For some reason, Christians fixate on the familiar. I see it all over the Christian sub-culture. If you flip on any Christian CCM radio station for a day, you will hear Matt Redman's "Blessed Be Your Name" about 8 times, sung by 8 different artists, with 8 "cool, new arrangements".
I love Charlie's perspective. Familiarity creates numbness to the message in a song you've sung a hundred times. But something new and fresh brings a song to life, or re-visiting a song that has been off the set-list for weeks or even years.
Be sure to click the link to read the rest! It's good stuff.
Hat Tip: Dan Wilt tipped me off to this article.
Labels: Wonder, Worship Leading
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