For us, the answer would be sometimes, as we fall just short of all of the time.

I guess it would be just about always if I knew the topic of the lesson far enough in advance (ie. before Friday). That's one of the challenges. Our praise team rehearses on Thursday evenings, so I have to be prepared by then whether I have a lesson topic or not.

I think one of the benefits is that the heart is more ready to receive a specific message if the soil has been plowed with that topic for a few minutes before the lesson is presented. There's just something deeper that goes on when everything ties together.

Themes are great ideas. Our congregation does what we call "special theme sundays" once a month. We use whatever holiday or important date of each month as a theme and we emphasize inviting visitors for that special sunday. It does work. We choose simple songs, a very pracitical sermon and we are very aware of ending on time especially since our visitors are told of our meeting times. Our special theme for this month is coming up and we are calling it "New beginnings". We highlight members from our congregation that are starting new jobs, retiring, beggining college, starting a new ministry, weddings, births...you name it. We use alot of video for this. Since we are a bilingual congregation this really helps to make our english speaking members and spanish speaking members aware of each other as individuals. Of course, Acappella songs are great to use for these themes! If any one is curious about more info on this, please let me know! we can help out with ideas.

I like what you've described here, Carlos. I'd love to hear some of the other themes you've done similar to this "New Beginnings" theme.

We never really have thematic services at my congregation. Occassionally, certain song leaders will put forth the effort to tie in the songs to the sermon topic, which is actually something I do like. Song/Sermon tie-ins do help me focus on the lesson and I feel like I take more away from the overall service. I am not really a fan personally of overtly thematic stuff, but that's just me.

Such a good point, Shane. Perhaps in another poll we can ask people how far in advance they normally prepare worship? I was happy when I was 4 to 6 weeks ahead in my planning. I know some preachers who plan their entire YEAR in sermons, and others who wait until Saturday night :)

Although we aren't trying to make our service into a special program of presentation, (since worship is about pleasing God), a theme can be very effective in "preparing the soil" for God to work in our hearts. Your point is spot on. Plus, anything to help us "focus" our thoughts and attention is a step in the right direction, versus a scattered approach.

Carlos, it sounds like you have a great approach for outreach with themes. I am especially impressed with your bi-lingual approach.

Jonathan, I always feel a connection when the song before the message ties in really well, or the song of encouragement. Do you care to elaborate why you aren't impressed with overtly thematic services? Thanks for your insights!

Keith,

Your wording of "Although we aren't trying to make our service into a special program of presentation, (since worship is about pleasing God)" made me blink.

I think you are limiting the church and what it is meant to be. The church is meant to be living, breathing and alive- just as the word of God. If we are Christ on earth, than what takes place on Sunday morning pleases God- as long as we are true to being who God is and being Christ. Quite possibly, we're so pushed into thinking that what we do must always be "pleasing to God" through song, prayer, preaching, giving, whatever- that we've gotten it wrong.

Maybe- just maybe we're suppose to please God by being a community of believers- not just on Sunday morning, but who experience things together, that share life together, that eat at each others tables, that pray for each other, that believe in prayer, that stand for justice, that bring hope to the world, and that shines light upon this dark world so much- that the world wants us around so bad, beacuse we make things beautiful, we make things peaceful, we make things humble, and we make things merciful- just as our MODEL & SAVIOR the Messiah did and does through us, His church.

Our "service" on Sunday morning, is more than just worship- it's only a piece of our worship. Personally, I don't think we should take about our "services" as much as we do how our congregations and God's People are changing the lives.

Maybe all of us "worship ministers" need to take a more active involvement in the lives of the church outside of Sunday morning FIRST and then focus on what is happening on Sunday morning SECOND.

Could we experiment with flipping around our job description a little? What would happen if worship ministers were edifying and encouraging the church MORE during the week and A LITTLE LESS on Sunday morning? What would happen?


(just a little soapbox of mine- haha)

Andrew,

You raise some interesting questions. Many of our shortcomings arise from the concept that Sunday morning is the exclusive segment of our worship lives. Yes, worship is so much more than the limitations of 5 acts and a narrow time frame.

I wasn't very clear in my point. I was attempting to question the idea of making all the songs and the worship plan about what pleases US - similar to the comment about how so many songs are about "us" and not God.

I tried to post this once, so it may show up twice. Our worship leader will always ask me the topic or theme of my sermon and will create a worship environment to enhance that theme. Several times a year we will not have a sermon and just spend the morning in worship and communion. We give much emphasis in our weekly assembly to communion and to prayer, so the "sermon" is not always the highlight of the morning.

Greg,

I don't know how many times I have wondered what the first century church's worship was like, and specifically, what role the "sermon" played? Was preaching more of an evangelistic tool? How much teaching was tied directly to their worship practices?

It is great that your worship leader works closely with you to plan a cohesive, meaningful service.

Keith,

We have recently taken a large look at our worship services. We have done some questioning and meditating. The question came to us, "When we worship God, why are so many of the songs directed to us instead of God?" While there is nothign wrong with singing many of those songs, why not use our Sunday morning assemblies to focus on God and this power, awe, and praise then use our Sunday evening gatherings for the songs of Christian fellowship and mutual encouragement.

It seems to bring use into a greater focus when we are united in focusing on God for one service and each other for the next services. The deep meaning and respect flows throughout each services for its intended purpose.

Just a thought...

By the way, saw some interesting, older Acappella videos on You Tube.

Christopher,

Good on you!

I wish more churches would take a thorough and serious look at "how they do worship." I'm impressed that you included meditating.

Why are so many songs directed to us and not God? Good question. I guess we can get overbalanced in the edification aspect of "speaking to one another," and "teaching and admonishing each other in Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs."

Sounds like a great idea to have different "kinds" of services, serving different purposes. Do your people comment favorably about this method?

Themes are powerful. They create an experience about something, hopefully making it memorable enough in our over-sensed society so that it impacts our lives.

We don't use themes enough, we may theme small sections of the service, but as we've gone more "organic" in our assemblies, we see more "where the congregation is" mentality in our planning and not as much "where the congregation needs to be or what they need to get."

I am pulled, because I think there is a place for both- not sure how, but I think there is a place for both.

It is true, I seem to remember some "themed services" I have experienced, even more than others. . .

We do this all the time at my church. Well, there are maybe a few Sundays in the year where we have a guests speaker and I don't know what he's going to talk about, or where the themed music just doesn't seem to flow. But pretty much, it's all the time.

There are definite ups and downs to this. But I find the benefits usually outway the detriments. On the plus side, you really emerse the people in the theme. Different people learn different ways... some connect through music. Some connect through spoken word. Some connect through video. Some connect through drama. Some connect through visual metaphor and ambience. Every week, I try to have our song slides contain background that help emphasize either the lyrics or the mood of a song. Likewise, I chose particular images for prayer slides to help set mood or help visual people focus. However, I go even further on Sundays when the preacher gives me ample lead time with the message theme. I have in the past found, or created, specific slide sets (title slides, point slides, song backgrounds) that focus entirely around the theme or a metaphor for the theme. Prayers that I pray in service I try to keep theme-based. The idea is to emerse everybody in the theme for the complete hour. Since you only have an our, it is very important if you want them to remember it. And it's even more important since some people don't learn as well through spoken word.

There are downsides too. First, it can really eat up preparation time to find theme-based material. There are a lot of good themed slide sets out there (Midnight Oil Productions has some great ones), but sometimes you run across a theme that no one's done before. In that case, you have to have time to create the media materials yourself (or have your team do it). If you have a preacher who likes doing long-running themes, it can be difficult to come up with "new" material each week. You may only have two ideas for slide sets, but your theme lasts 6 weeks. I often run into this problem coming up with music. The preacher likes to do themes by month. This month we are doing "Serving your fellow man." However, there really aren't but a handful of songs that specifically talk about serving each other. There's a lot of loving each other, and serving God, and some of Jesus serving us, but not much on us serving other people. I think I came up with about 10 hymns out of our book. Well, I need to come up with 4 weeks of music... like 36 songs. In our second service, we also use contemporary songs (though there aren't many of those with that particular theme either), but its just traditional music in the first service. So do I repeat songs a lot? I have been mixing in general praise songs, and placing the theme songs at strategic locations; but in my opinion that "waters down" the emersiveness of the theme (although our services do still get the point across, and inspire people).

The other thing about maintaining theme throughout the whole service is that it's difficult to get everyone else on board with that. I try hard to carefully plan music and media selections, and the preacher stays very focused, but we're not the only ones "leading" the service. It's very difficult to get prayer leaders and communion leaders to stay on-theme with their thoughts. Maybe it's because they don't invest a lot of time and work in the theme beforehand, or because they are typically older-school people in my congregation, but they tend to just say what they want, even when I tell them ahead of time I want something theme-based. Some people just don't seem to get what we're trying to plan. But that's okay too, and works out well. It just makes it that much harder to really make everything center around the theme.

Jonathan,

That experience is common. It requires so much more effort to plan a well-prepared, themed service than a general one. Yes, it can take a lot of time. And yes, a "series" running for weeks presents even a greater challenge.

One of the greatest challenges we have faced has been in getting EVERY participant on board with the theme and flow. It is so easy for everyone to go their own direction, resulting in a disjointed service that does not flow and seems to sputter in multiple directions.

But when it all comes together - it can be an amazing experience! If we grow in our appreciation of God, and if we are transformed from having been in His presence, then worship becomes the vital aspect of our existence.

I would recommend reading The Way I Was Made: Words and Music for an Unusual Life by Chris Tomlin.

He gives some good insight into our lives being Christocentric in our songs, our words, even our secular vocations. It really gave me some insight into what we're doing when we do come together for a short little time.

Also, I would recommend Organic Church: Growing Faith Where Life Happens by Neil Cole.

That will also provide some thinking about Jesus' ministry and ministries our churches are trying to "tackle." May make you think twice about what you're doing at your job- if you're a full time minister.