Prepare the Way of the Lord
For a follower of Christ, weekly life takes on a unique pattern. Yes, there are work responsibilities, school classes, family commitments, and social activities just as there are in the lives of millions of other Americans, but still there is something different for a Christian. While many people will speak of getting through Monday through Friday just to get to the weekend, a Christ-follower acknowledges that the week begins with the gathering for worship on Sunday. The weekly gathering for corporate worship is the launch pad which propels the Church into the world in its mission to be salt and light (Matthew 5). The worship of the Church is a gift and the culmination of the thanksgiving and adoration that has been building throughout the week in the lives of individual believers. Viewed from this perspective, you can understand the importance and value placed in the planning and implementation of a worship service in the local church.
“Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving” (Colossians 4:20).
In my own church setting, several factors will influence the direction of any given service. The message topic or Scripture reference, musical ensembles that may participate, seasons of the year, and ordinances that may be observed all have an effect in the planning of a service. Prayerful consideration of these elements, viewed through the ultimate priority of giving glory to God, is my starting place. Some people might advocate for a clean slate or blank page every week as they seek the Lord’s direction for a worship service. I have found however, that while God ordains the purpose of worship (His own glory), He can also provide the means. In short, the Holy Spirit’s influence and moving in a worship time is not hamstrung by orderly planning and preparation.
For example, sometimes we may determine months or weeks ahead when the Children’s Choir or a Student Ensemble is going to singing in service. We also realize that to offer the Lord our best, in both the condition of our hearts and our musical presentation, we need to have time to prepare the songs we sing. In practical terms, we pick and rehearse certain songs and anthems before the rest of the service is determined. What we have often found is that when a service date and a song finally are put together, that particular song becomes the perfect expression for that moment in the life of our congregation. This is not the result of our cleverness or ingenuity, but out of the providence of God working through His chosen vessels.
“Oh, sing to the Lord a new song! Sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, bless His name; Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day” (Psalm 96:1–2).
After prayer and picking the primary musical elements, the biggest consideration in my worship planning is the participation of the congregation. The worship of the church is to be the song of the people (Psalm 100) declaring their praises and thankfulness. In order to best facilitate the congregation in their singing we consider several factors. Musical key, melody lines, rhythms, sing-ability, styles and lyrics are all examined to determine a song’s suitability for worship. There are many beautiful songs with great messages that are not good corporate worship songs. They are either too complicated or pitched too high for the church to enter into singing as a whole. The placement of prayers and Scripture readings should also be done with thought towards the flow of worship from the people to the Lord. The worship leaders should be facilitating and magnifying the congregation towards, not distracting from, this conversation.
The final steps of planning involve the layout and distribution of the service elements. Websites such as Planning Center Online and Praisecharts are very helpful in this area. Once we have developed our arrangements of certain songs they are saved in our online library and can be easily reused for future services. In addition, technical teams and volunteer musicians have access to these files and are updated as changes are made in real time.
Leading worship is a high calling and involves great responsibility. It is wonderful to know that we have so many amazing musical and technical systems that can support us in the planning and leading of worship in our churches. While these are helpful, it is not a replacement for the child of God prayerfully considering the opportunities for worship expression in each local congregation. If this personal element wasn’t important, everything from the first note sung to every line of the sermon could be predetermined by the best experts available in the world. Even in the Roman Catholic Church the Missal and Graduale allow for variations of songs and sermon structure according to the celebrant. But no, God in His wisdom has called and equipped some of His children to lead the worship of His people. In light of God’s great condescension and blessing towards us, it is only fitting that we ourselves undergo a process of preparation as we plan and implement worship services in our churches.
