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The
Changing Face of Worship
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 | "I liked it on Youth Sunday when some of the young people played CDs and tapes of songs they especially liked. I thought one of the songs by Tori Amos was wonderful." |
| "I can’t believe the pastor let the teenagers play some of that music in worship. That song by Tori Amos was the limit for me. Why can’t we all agree on some of the great music by people like Charles Wesley and Fannie Crosby?" |
| "I listen to country music all the time in the car. Why can’t we have some music in church that’s similar?" |
| "I find so much meaning in some of the new music of Sandi Patti that we’ve been doing." |
| "We are so fortunate to have a good organ and such a skilled organist. I keep sitting in the sanctuary to listen to the postlude. She plays a lot of Bach, and those works lift my spirits and give me energy." |
That congregation, like many others, reflects tremendous diversity in what gives meaning to people. And those quotes just concern music, not other issues in worship, such as the use of drama or video instead of a sermon. It seems increasingly impossible to have "a" service which will appeal to all age groups and interests.
Some pastors understandably feel that they are trying to plan worship not for a single congregation but for multiple congregations. Most churches, however, only have one or two worship services available to meet the needs of many people. We are challenged to meet the needs not only of our diverse congregations but also of visitors whom we want to return and become members.
In many respects, worship is the central activity of the church. Worship services draw more in attendance than any other regular church activities, are the most common entry point for potential members, provide opportunity for our collective praise and thanksgiving, nurture the spiritual lives of those who come, and challenge people to be disciples in their daily lives.
In congregational studies, New Life Ministries and
Christian Community have asked over 250,000 active members of churches in North
America to indicate their agreement with this statement: "Worship services
at my church meet my needs and help improve my spiritual life." This chart
shows the North American average and also the response rate in declining and in
growing congregations.
While there are multiple causes for the growth or decline of a congregation, worship clearly is an important factor. The responses also change when looked at by age. Persons between the ages of 20 and 40 are over 10% less likely to feel that their needs are met by worship than persons over the age of 40. Surveys of visitors to worship show that 92% of those who return feel their needs were met; only 57% of those who do not return feel their needs were met.
Of course worship is continually changing. The organ was once thought to be "an instrument of the devil" but is now considered part of traditional worship. Churches around North America are making greater use of contemporary music, drama, and other strategies to help services be more appealing to younger people and to those outside the church. Changes in worship, however, are a source of controversy in many of our congregations with long-time members often uncomfortable with change. Changing worship alone will not make a church grow. If those changes are part of a broader hospitality and a desire to meet the needs of more people, then growth can happen.
Many congregations are helped by knowing the differences in perspective on worship between those who are 20 to 40 years of age and those who are over 40. Members of 34 Anabaptist congregations were asked to indicate whether or not the following features were important to them in a service of worship. Here are the percentages by age level of those who felt the following features were important:
|
20-40 Year Olds |
Over 40 |
Feature |
| 92% | 58% | It’s okay to dress casually or informally for worship services. |
| 95% | 42% | Have some music that is contemporary rather than traditional. |
| 83% | 51% | Have occasional drama instead of a sermon. |
| 84% | 61% | Have occasional drama in addition to the sermon. |
| 90% | 64% | Have the service no more than an hour in length. |
Those age differences may at first seem depressing, but there is another important statistic. In those same congregations, people were asked to indicate their agreement with this statement: "I would be happy to see our worship services be more contemporary if that would help reach new people and better serve all members." 97% of those 20–40 agreed with that statement, and 85% of those over 40 agreed. When the need for changes to meet the needs of others is positively interpreted to people, their willingness to accept change increases significantly. In their book Widening the Welcome of Your Church, Fred Bernhard and Steve Clapp suggest that our view of worship is transformed when we look at it through the lens of hospitality:
1. Share information with people in your congregation. Help them recognize that there are age level differences and that it is important to meet the needs of active members and of potential members. Most people are capable of looking beyond their own preferences when they realize it is truly important to others. You have permission to photocopy this report for use in your church.
2. Encourage the practice of hospitality in your church. It will transform how people see worship, visitors, and their lives. Encourage church-wide study of Widening the Welcome of Your Church and/or Hospitality: Life without Fear.
3. If your church is large enough, consider establishing an alternative worship service. That lets you have a service which is more contemporary or alternative in nature while still providing a more traditional option.
4. If you start a new worship service, be sure you involve a large enough number of people in the planning process. Most new services that fail do so because too few people were involved in planning and promoting the service. See the book How to Start a New Service by Charles Arn.
5. If your church is not large enough for an additional service or if you are theologically opposed to more than one service, then work at blending more contemporary or alternative elements into your service. Do it slowly and explain the reasons for changes.
6. Some people have been instructed that a particular approach to worship is the "right" one and may even feel that contemporary services are a "dumbing down" of worship. Help those persons to differentiate between true theological issues and style preferences. Help them recognize the diversity of worship in North America.
7. Remember that quality in worship is usually more important than style.
Widening the Welcome of Your Church and Hospitality: Life without Fear by Steve Clapp and Fred Bernhard both help individuals and congregations look at the church and at life from a perspective of hospitality. Widening the Welcome focuses more on the congregational level, while Hospitality: Life without Fear looks more closely at the spiritual dimensions of hospitality.
The First Thirty Seconds by S. Joan Hershey applies hospitality to the work of greeters and ushers.
How to Start a New Service by Charles Arn gives clear guidance for churches going in that direction.
The theme of hospitality is covered with considerable care in a module, Welcoming New People.
See other online resources on hospitality and on worship.
To order one of these resources, go to the online order form or contact New Life Ministries.
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This report is published by New Life Ministries, a nonprofit corporation, and is mailed without charge to clients and friends Our partner organization, Christian Community, provides much of the content for this publication. Persons receiving this publication may reproduce the contents in local church and regional judicatory bulletins and newsletters. Please request permission for other reproduction from:
New Life Ministries, 6404 S Calhoun St,
Fort Wayne, IN 46807
Phone: 1-800-774-3360 • E-mail:
NLMServiceCenter@aol.com
Internet: www.NewLifeMinistries-NLM.org
Other New Life Ministries Reports • Other Online Resources
The Changing Face of Worship • New Life Ministries Report • © 2000
2000-2008 New Life
Ministries (www.NewLifeMinistries-NLM.org).
All Rights Reserved.
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