Not every church worships in the same way. Some congregations have guitars and praise music, while others have an organ or piano. Some churches worship in a space that resembles an auditorium, while others sit in a circle of folding chairs. Some churches emphasize the sermon as the central part of the worship service, while others make Holy Communion central. We can worship in different ways, but worship is always about coming together to give thanks, to praise, to offer prayers, to dedicate ourselves to God.
I thought it might be interesting to look at some of the pieces of the worship service design that I have been following here in my time with you as pastor. It might be somewhat different than the pattern previous pastors have used. It is a bit different from what I have used in other congregations. There is a repeating pattern to what we do in worship that provides us with a sense of familiarity and rhythm. Repetition is a good thing, and a solid foundation is necessary to be creative.
I want to take a few of these “pastor ponderings” to look at what we have been doing on Sunday mornings and why.
We start with the Gathering. This is a transitional movement between what we were doing and what we are doing now in this particular moment. We come into the worship space and settle in. We might greet one another and carry on a conversation, but we know that we will be moving towards a shared experience with everyone else in the room. We gather here at a particular time with the hope and expectation that God will show up and be present as well.
The call to worship is an invitation to move into a time and frame of mind set aside to meet with God. We try out our voices in responsive reading, often using language from the Bible, to focus our awareness that we come to be in the presence of God, made known to us in Jesus Christ and through the power of the Holy Spirit. We are beginning to clear away distractions and open our hearts and minds to what will come.
Grace and peace,
Pastor Steve