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Worship Planner for A Season to GROW
Week 5: Worship

Created by Amy Mark, interim assistant pastor, Berkeley Covenant Church in Berkeley, CA. Thanks Amy...

Note:  Worship is one of today’s “hot topics.”  Because worship, as our response to God, is formational, it is also experienced as extremely personal.  It is helpful (though not easy) to be deliberate about teaching congregations to honor the personal experiences of worship that have been formational in the lives of the individuals in the Body.  This is good congregational care, as well as a phenomenal way to broaden our view of who God is and how He engages with those people with whom we are called to “be one.”
 

Suggested Hymns and Songs

See the Worship Resource Directory for links and ordering information.

1. All Creatures of Our God and King. #147, African-American Heritage Hymnal
2. As the Deer. #2 Covenant Hymnal
3. Create in Me a Clean Heart. By Keith Green
   
4. Gather Us In. #511 Covenant Hymnal
5. God of All Light. By Matt Nightingale, Covenant worship leader
   
6. He Reigns. By David Greco, Covenant worship leader
   
7. Here I am to Worship. By Tim Hughes
   
8. Holy Holy Holy, Lord God Almighty. #113 Covenant Hymnal
9. Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence. #127 Covenant Hymnal
10. My Tribute. #111, African-American Heritage Hymnal
    
11. We Exalt Thee. #13 Covenant Hymnal
12. We Have Come into this House. #174, African-American Heritage Hymnal
    
13. We've Come to Worship You. #107, African-American Heritage Hymnal
14. Wonderful Maker. By Chris Tomlin

Other Great Worship Songs

1. Captivate Us. By Charlie Hall, Christy Nockels and Nathan Nockels
2. Lord I will Bow to You. By Pete Episcopo
   
3. You are My King. By Billy Foote
   

Ideas for Including Children

1. At one church I served, we had children decoupage candle holders so that they would have a physical reminder that God creates “sacred space” for us in worship.  Actually, our whole congregation participated in this activity, and loved it.
2. In another congregation, we are exploring how to teach children to worship with their bodies in dance.  This is something the African-American community has done brilliantly.
3. Any kind of tangible or kinesthetic means of responding to God is GOOD for children (it is good for adults, too, but we tend to be a little slower to embrace the possibilities… this is one of those places where, “a child shall lead them.”)

Suggested Prayers and Readings

From the Covenant Hymnal

1. The entire Psalter (#779-861)
2. # 864 “May the God of steadfastness…”
3. # 866 “This is the day that you have made, Lord…”
4. # 868 “Hear, O Israel…”
5. # 876 “Remember Jesus Christ…”
6. # 877 “You know that you were ransomed…”
7. # 878- 882; The Apostle’s Creed in various languages
8. # 898 “God, Companion of the lonely…”
9. # 899 “O Lord, I have heard of your renown…”
10. # 912 “Shepherd and Savior of Israel, Creator of the world…”
11. # 920 “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace…”
12. # 959 “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved…”
13. # 961 “O God of Abraham and Sarah…”

Sermon Illustrations and Ideas

1. The Psalms: In a little book called Answering God by Eugene Peterson, we are invited to examine the full breadth of conversation between humanity and God.  The premise of the Psalms is that there is nothing that is not appropriate to bring before God, because everything falls under the “jurisdiction” of God.  By the same token, there is nothing that we experience to which, or within which, God, all of who He is, has done, and will do, is not relevant.  The underlying principle is that God initiates every conversation, God has always spoken (or moved, or revealed himself) first, and our whole lives are in response to that first Word.  So, one way to use the Psalms to help us learn to worship, is to read them with the question in mind, “to what word, action, or revelation of God is the psalmist responding?”  As we bring this into our own lives, then, we begin to train ourselves to see our whole experience within the context of who God is, what he has done, and what he has said he will do.  The realities of suffering, pain, sorrow, injustice, and all the things wrong in the world, and within us, are visible in a different light when we see them in relation to the TRUTH of God’s self-revelation.
   
   
2. We are quite accomplished at worshipping God with our words and with our thoughts. We are adept at using music to convey the deeply spiritual experiences we have as we interact with God. At the beach one day, I was struck by the taste of salt in the breeze. It reminded me of the psalmist’s invitation, ‘O taste and see that the Lord is good.’ We are multi-sensory creatures, on purpose, by God’s design.  What might it mean to worship God, to respond to God, with all of our senses?  A useful book on this particular theme is Experiential Worship by Bob Rognlien.
   
   
3. Look at the seven “I AM” statements of Jesus in the book of John.  What do they mean (what is Jesus revealing about himself, about God)?  What kinds of response do these statements elicit?
   
   
4. Look at the five acts of sacrificial worship God ordains for the Israelites when He designed their worship experience.  If Jesus has, as he claims and as we claim to believe, fulfilled every sacrifice, how then shall we worship? How shall we respond to God in the light of this?
   
   
5. A recent conversation with a “seasoned” saint reminded me that everything we do that seeks to emulate or proclaim who God is should be considered an act of worship.  He is part of the “Sod Squad” at his church, a group of senior citizens who donate their time and energy to the maintenance of their church grounds.  He said, “When I go trim trees for my church, I do it as an act of service, in obedience to my God who has called me to serve others.  If God has said that obedience is linked with love, and love with service, then isn’t this act of loving service also an act of worship?”  This is an interesting way to broach the question, “What is worship?”