Thanks, Bob.

I've found myself pondering Psalm 43, and how it provides insights into worship music. The author pleads with God to "send out your light and your truth.... Let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling."

After receiving "sound doctrinal insight" (for lack of a better phrase), the author goes on to make joyful music. After God's light and truth have affected him.

He concludes not by speaking praise to God, but by speaking to his own spirit, encouraging it to turn to the Lord in faith. He's encouraging his heart of hearts to trust, to praise God, and not merely his tongue to speak words.

I ramble....

great thought provoking comments, Bob: thanks!

Teaching on worship: I agree this is vital, and often overlooked.

"Congregations need to be taught that being emotionally moved by music is not the same as being morally changed by the Spirit. That misunderstanding can occur both in both modern and traditional contexts."

Amen! Worship leaders (myself included) need to figure on that as well :-)

Can I ask a couple of practical questions?

How does one discern between whether the spirit is 'moving' in a worship environment, or whether people are simply being carried along by the music (or even the hypnotic cadence of an engaging preacher)? What kind of response should we be looking to elicit, and what kind of responses should we not hold much stock by?

I figure that repentance and regeneration are not things that always manifest themselves visibly, and I also know God doesn't finish working hearts when the service ends. I guess I'm just asking: what are the signs that we're doing it right?

Would be cool if you had the time to respond!

Beat Attitude said: What kind of response should we be looking to elicit? ... What are the signs that we're doing it right?

I think that as worship leaders, we should seek to elicit participation and a focus on the Word. I agree with Bob that education is a very important and often-overlooked need in our churches and that education can help our congregations fix their focus on the appropriate target.

As far as the signs that we are doing it right, I don't think those signs are apparent during the worship service. Attention to the lives and attitudes of the folks in the congregation will help us to see if we are, by God's grace, accomplishing anything. Listening to how our people define "worship" will also be an indication. If they equate the word "worship" with "music performance," we have a long way to go. If they talk about how they worshiped God when they mowed their lawn, fixed their car, or visited a dear friend, we may be encouraged that the education is taking place.

Beat Attitude,

Interesting name...great questions.

Obviously, only God himself knows exactly what is happening in each person's heart as we sing together. But with that understanding, I think leaders are still responsible to choose songs that engage people's minds as well as their emotions. Preferably, both. It helps me to read or think through the lyrics of the songs we'll be singing in a meeting. That doesn't negate using simple songs. It just means that they should be accompanied by songs that are more substantive. In my leading, I also seek to say things that direct people's minds to the truths we're singing. That might come in the form of a two minute introduction to a song, or a phrase I shout out in between two lines of a song. The goal is to direct people's attention to the realities we're proclaiming. I can also seek to vary the kind of music we sing, or the accompaniment.

As far as people's response in a meeting, I want to observe what they respond to. I know something right is happening when a group erupts in applause (or sings louder) as we reference Christ overcoming the grave or enduring God's wrath in our place. I'm not as confident if they only seem to respond when the volume or tempo of the music increases. Overall, I'm looking to see whether or not people seem "engaged." Do most people seem to be interacting with the truths they're singing, or simply being stimulated by musical sounds? Depending on the church you're in, that "engagement" will look different. In our church it's seen in a combination of raised hands, expressive faces, loud singing, and responsive bodies. In other churches, it might look different.

Most importantly, I want to look at the kind of fruit that the singing produces outside the meeting. Do people reference the music or the truth? Do they comment on songs because of the style or the content? Do they reference how the songs they're singing are encouraging trust in and obedience to God outside the meeting? Do they think of worship as what they do with their lives, and not just with their songs? If so, I can be reasonably sure that the Spirit is active as we sing.

Feel free to follow up with comments or questions.

Thanks for your post, Bob. I appreciate you and Greg Gilbert for sharing your thoughts and stirring thought-provoking conversation on music in the church. Your reminder of God's expansive glory is especially helpful in this discussion. You said: "God's glory is too great to be contained in one style..." This can certainly be seen within Western music, as various traditions and styles have added their unique voice to God's praise down through the ages. It is even more apparent, however, on the large stage of "every tribe and tongue and nation." Our God is at work taking the gospel to the ends of the earth as He invades cultures and conquers hearts. Just think of the musical variety ascending into the courts of heaven as His people praise Him around the world! No one style can contain His praise. Not even Western music as a whole is grand enough for God's design! All the earth is His and all the earth must learn to sing His praise.

Sing to the LORD,
For He has done excellent things;
This is known in all the earth.
Isaiah 12:5

Bob - thank you for your response to Beat Attitude's question. You've given me some food for thought.

Bob,

Thank you for the post. I think one of the greatest issues we face today with contemporary christian worship music goes deeper than some of the things you mentioned. While what you have said is entirely relevant and true, I suggest that there is a deeper, more profound, motivation behind many of the failures and challenges in our contemporary church culture.

The fact is this, there is a market for churches. If a visitor comes into our church, hears our music, listens to our sermons, and familiarizes themselves with our ministries...chances are, they'll be able to go down the street a few blocks and find a church that does all that we do, and more, and better...and probably have a high view of scripture and a relatively similar committment to the gospel.

I think the demands and promises of the market create a sense of corporate anxiety to win over the potential constiuents. If this isn't the cause of the failures in the christian music industry, it is no doubt fueling the ardent flames.

i completely agree that the christian music industry plays a role in this, but i think it may go further than that.

could we also say that, with the introduction of phonographs, 8 tracks, cassettes, CDs, and mp3s, the commercialization of music has led to a mass-culture that approaches music from a consumer/entertainment perspective, which has filtered into how modern church members view church music as well?

Luke,

I agree. That's one of the side effects of worship music being seen as "a product to promote."

Mandy,

Excellent point. Technology has significantly changed how we interact with and view music. For many, the CD, or now the MP3 download, has become the new hymnal. That's why it's so important for leaders in the church to be teaching their congregations how to use music for the glory of God.

Bob thanks for the comments. It reminds me that a true worship leader (and indeed worshipper) longs for his community of believers to grow in their intimacy with God.

I've been, and I've known, the worship leader who has become frustrated at a lack of response in the congregation. He wants exultation and get subdued singing. Arms folded, not raised to heaven. Eyes looking sidelong instead of being damp with tears. He wants people to kneel in prayer even when they're not asked. He looks for people to dance when they sing "lord I feel like dancing". Yet people will not be led there, they refuse to let go of their inhibitions in worship.

Lacklustre worship always springs from hearts that know God only a little, or have forgotten what little they know. It's impossible to change that using musical methods. It's also wrong to desire prescribed "correct" responses from your congregation if your motivation is anything other than seeing God revealed in people's hearts.

I guess there are no shortcuts to fostering a worship environment that genuinely reflects heavenly worship. Worship in heaven will be a response to the unveiled glory of God, and until we change our hearts and learn to pray powerful, church-changing prayers of faith, there are no musical shortcuts that will make those barriers fall down.

God's presence can't be manufactured, and we should be on our guard as worship leaders when we find ourselves trying to manifest his blessings without bringing the full honour to Him. God is amazing! Our best hope is to communicate that as best we can through our music, and to pray for a desire to see our brothers and sisters know God more.

The believers are all at different stages too: we have to respect that and feel God's heart on that matter. What patience He has!

I'm so thankful to God for the gift of music. He is a God of many many colours and sounds. We will never tire of his glory. What a God God is!