Ashland EPC Worship

Sometimes when on vacation, I try to attend several worship services on a Sunday morning, partly to see what other churches are doing and what songs are being sung.  Several years ago my timing was a little off; I arrived at a particular church very late, and had to park fairly far from the church.  As I was hurrying through the parking lot, I passed by another person making their way to the church entrance, only not in so much of a hurry.  Noticing my fast pace, she tried to put me at ease by saying, “It’s ok; you haven’t missed the good part; they’re still singing.”  At that time, I found her statement a little humorous, but also surprising, considering the excellence of that church’s worship ensemble.  Since then, I have reflected on that incident quite often, and have wondered just how often the beginning of a worship service (whether contemporary, traditional or blended…) is considered just preliminary activity.

  During a recent choir rehearsal, we discussed the activities that comprise the beginning of a worship service, commonly known as the entrance or gathering: some of these elements being confession of sin, followed by assurance of pardon as given by our Lord, the Lord’s prayer, procession (on occasion,) singing praise to God, and reciting creedal statements (The Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed…)  It became clear in our discussion that these elements of worship have proven to be very significant to some of us throughout the years. Judy Saltzqueber told us about a commentary that she had written on The Lord’s Prayer; Rose Ford shared with us a confession that had been a part of her church experience; Pam Coursen thought of creative ways in which the choir could enhance the idea of God’s people gathering together.  Through this discussion, we discovered that the time during which God gathers together the people of Ashland is an occasion of significance before we enter another time of great blessing: hearing God’s Word.

The same week that Ashland was preparing to celebrate Pentecost, the worship team and choir discussed the scheduled chapter of “Worship is a Verb,” in which Nehemiah 8 and Acts 2 are described.  Coincidence???   The point that this chapter makes is that in both Nehemiah and Acts, powerful words are spoken to large groups of people, telling them of God’s action in redeeming his people.  When those of Nehemiah’s time heard (perhaps for the first time,) of how God had brought their ancestors from Egypt to Mt. Sinai, and how he had made them his beloved people and given them his law, those who heard grieved for their sins and repented. During the celebration of Pentecost, many people learned the meaning of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection through powerful words spoken by Peter.  Many repented; then sprung into action to spread the news throughout the Roman Empire.

Both of these events are characterized by God’s action in saving his people.  At the retelling of these events, many people reacted in repentance and worship.  Authentic worship is centered on our Lord as it was in these two events. This may lead us to wonder in what circumstances is worship not authentic. What may result? 

During Tuesday evening worship team and Wednesday evening choir rehearsals, we have been discussing worship related issues:  topics for the following Sunday worship service, music, (of course.)  We have also been reading through and discussing the book, “Worship is a Verb,” by Dr. Robert Webber.  It seems that in every week’s discussion so far, the topic of the chapter has tied in somehow with what would be occurring during the following Sunday’s worship service. 

            First of all, I want to thank all involved for taking extra time during rehearsal for these discussions. I am enjoying these discussions, and hope that you consider them a worthwhile addition to your already full schedules.

            In the book, “Worship is a Verb,” Dr. Webber outlines his eight principles of worship renewal: the first being “worship celebrates Jesus Christ.”  Our discussions have revealed the fact that our ideas of “celebration” differ greatly among one another.  For instance, Linda Buzard considers a quiet service at Ashland following weeks of fasting to have been a significant celebration of Christ. Darrell Proctor shared with us a similar experience following a time of fasting. Marilyn Ford remembers a quiet celebration among friends in a college dorm.  Megan Tahan mentioned a completely different kind of celebration during which she felt free to worship accompanied by a full band playing in full volume.

 I am hoping that this blog will serve as an opportunity to learn of more experiences of the celebration of our Lord and his saving work.  Please share with us.