Thoughts on Worship

Psalm 150

Praise for God’s Surpassing Greatness


Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty firmament!
Praise him for his mighty deeds;
praise him according to his surpassing greatness!


Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
Praise him with tambourine and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!
Praise him with clanging cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!

Today was a long but exciting day. I began the day in worship -- I'm the preacher, so I had a role to play in it. We're doing a special six week emphasis on evangelism using Martha Grace Reese's Unbinding Your Heart (Chalice Press, 2008). This Sunday's emphasis is on prayer, for as Gay Reese notes, without a foundation in prayer, there is no possibility of true evangelism.

Then, this afternoon, our "organ task force" took a field trip to listen to/experience a relatively new pipe organ. Our congregation has had a long history of organ music, and while many churches have been abandoning the organ, I don't think we're moving in that direction -- especially after we called an exceptional organist to be our minister of music.

I must say the trip was not only a joy but enlightening. There seems to be this sense that the organ is passe, especially as an instrument of worship. But you know, when you have a good instrument that is played well, it adds a dimension that is indescribable. If you take in the text above -- Psalm 150 -- you have an invitation to worship using the entire spectrum of musical elements. Back then they didn't have pipe organs, but neither did they have electric guitars! If as many analysts are suggesting, that we're moving away from "contemporary" to something different -- "ancient-future" is one description, the organ may have a future. But, something I've learned is this -- if your going to have an organ -- get a good one and make sure that the person playing knows what their doing. The number of organists is diminishing -- not that many people are trying it out as an instrument of choice. Fewer people are receiving training in it.

But, my point in these reflections is to consider a broader understanding of worship and the role music plays in it. Whether the instrument is organ or guitar or no instrument at all, if we as the body of Christ are not lifted up and enabled to participate in worship then we're missing out. This Psalm makes it clear that worship is not a performance of professionals put on for the audience -- us. Instead, worship is a performance put by all of creation for an audience that is God.

Praise the LORD!


Comments

C Ryan said…
Amen to this! My favorite choirs are the "no try out" ones where everyone can participate. Its beautiful to see the range of voices and faces singing to the Lord.

-Chuck
roy said…
and a pipe organ requires significant upkeep. When I pastored in Albany, we had a great organ and for part of the time, wonderful organists. Our organ repair person spent 4-5 days in our building twice a year doing routine maintenance and upgrades. We spent a minimum of $10K a year on the organ and in one year about $55K. There is nothing like a good organist who can really play Vidor's Toccata on a massive organ... but whether they are worth the resources is another question, especially when there are fewer and fewer good organists who can and do demand premium salaries.

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