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Heart of Worship
A song plays through my head, “I’m going back to the heart of worship, and it’s all about You. It’s all about You, Jesus.” It seems every year as summer comes to a close, I find myself thinking about our worship life at MGLC.

We live in a rapidly growing community with a strong staff and dynamic ministries. Each week, it encourages me to see familiar faces, and I thank God for sending new faces and families our way--people new to the community who are seeking out a church home.
Yet weekly attendance has declined the last five years. Some people choose not to worship weekly or not at all. I wonder what draws people to worship and why others aren’t equally drawn. We can speculate why this might be. Maybe some are weary of waiting for a new building. Some may be taxed with a time deficit: a full schedule with children engaged in activities, demanding work hours and travel plans. Perhaps we haven’t been reaching out to members we haven’t seen in a while or inviting friends, neighbors, and co-workers to worship.

Worship has been at the heart of our Council’s priorities along with small group ministry. Our staff and worship committee are working hard to make worship creative and engaging: from music to liturgy to sermons to prayers and to our hospitality. There are always ways to improve our worship and we are open to suggestions.

At the same time, worship really isn’t entertainment that is designed to wow and impress us. It is not a church activity or event. Nor is it a means of packaging Jesus as a product to be consumed or a time that is measured by experience or how it makes us feel.

Just what is the heart of worship? Who’s responsible for our worship experience? What does scripture have to say?

Scripture teaches us that worship is the work of God’s people. In the phrasing of many psalms, we come to offer our thanks and praise to the Lord for all that He has done for us. Worship is centered on praising God for what He has done for us in Jesus Christ. When we worship, we focus on God by singing, praying, listening, receiving the sacrament of Holy Communion, celebrating the sacrament of Holy Baptism, and sharing our life together in Christ in fellowship. The fact is God has called all of us to worship the Lord our God, and we are all commissioned to welcome and share the life we live together in Christ our Lord.

I encourage you to reach out to the new faces that visit; people who are looking for fellowship, a place to worship God and grow in faith. Talk with them after worship and invite them to coffee after worship. Find out their interests and bring them to a parish life event or one of our many ministries.

If you haven’t seen a member of our church worshipping for a while, why not reach out and give them call. Find out how they are doing. Ask how the church might help them if they are facing a difficult situation.

My challenge and prayer is that each of us will commit ourselves to worship and make it a year-round commitment. While you’re at it, why not bring a friend along.

See you in church,

Pastor Durk Peterson

 

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