Tuesday, April 1, 2008

The Audience of Worship

Who is the intended audience of the "worship" segments of congregational meetings?

If the answer is the visitor or newcomer, those segments are designed (like everything else in such churches) to appeal to the next one in the door. That one must be prospected, projected and then specifically, strategically prepared for. It's a marketing thing, often a niche marketing thing. Is it a worship thing?

If the answer is the folk sitting in the congregation, those segments are designed, often reactionally, to maintain those returning through the door. The wants and wishes (sometimes expressed in grumbling) of those will guide, forestall or derail any attempt to change the status quo. It is a placating thing, but is it a worship thing?

If the answer (regardless of the considerations above) is people, the goal of those fronting those segments will be thrilling or at least satisfying their ticket-paying audience. The likelihood is that those leaders will be inordinately attended to (the astral effect) by both the audience and the church "promoters" who enlist them. It's only human nature, and the result is rock concerts and stage shows.

An innocent misstep a sincere worship leader can make is tugboating, but playing David to the congregation's Saul is not a NT paradigm. The folk in the seats are not faithless fakes who have no God inside and so have to be pushed from without, but are a living temple, a habitation of the Holy Ghost. The worship team doesn't have to "take them into the throne room," they're already there! The issue is their recognition and acknowledgement of God followed by an appropriate response, not getting them there.

With all of this in mind, who is the audience of worship? Well, it's none other than God himself, and God and no one else. When someone says, "worship was great!" he or she is utterly deluded if they had the worship team's performance in mind, but keenly insightful if they had the congregation's participation and God's presence in view. When worship is truly worship, the church acts as orchestra, the Spirit as the maestro, and God is the audience.