BLOG // AL GORDON
THOUGHTS, MUSINGS & ALL THINGS RANDOM.
Congregation = Choir
03Mar08
Don Williams reminded me of this key value in our worship leading last week.
We were discussing the chief dangers facing worship today, particularily in the climate of excellent bands, well rehearsed songs and the temptation for worship to become (to reference Louie Giglio), a spectator sport in a spectator culture. Don reminded us that the congregation are the 'choir', that they are the ones owning, participating, 'doing' the worship. It's not a case of band/audience, but everyone should be involved, owning the times of worship.
We need to guard against losing this sense in our times of corporate worship. We put this into practice at church last night, but stripping the band down to an old honky tonk piano, acoustic guitar and two vocals, rammed in the middle of the room with the congregation packed around in a giant circle. It was an awesome time of worship, with everyone singing out, listening to each others voices and leading each other. It helped us keep the balance and challenged us to participate.
In our culture of better trained worship teams, slicker production and increasingly complicated songs, let's not leave the singing church behind and create the 'priesthood of the worship band'. The congregation are the choir: our job as worship leaders is to put a song on their lips and turn their hearts to Jesus.
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Amen to that Al!!! All singing for our audience of ONE!!!!
MaZ
03Mar08Good Stuff al! Really blessed me that blog. I'm coming to the worship central in 2 weeks time and i'm really looking forward to it! I can't wait to buy your first album, may god bless you this week :D God bless x
Tom Cross
03Mar08I think it's very easy to forget what we are doing as worship leaders, and that is to facilitate the congregation. What's the point of doing this great edgy music, if the congregation, or choir, can't join in. Love the perspective Al.
Jonathan
03Mar08al,
i totally disagree with this heresy. this sounds like some kind of hippy california theology. i'm reminded of the words from one of my favorite songs...
"you took the fall and thought of me above Al"
kidding. nice to see you made it home safely.
caleb
03Mar08Well, put! Thanks for all the insights out at Rock Harbor I was thankful to have such a great resource to bring my church's worship team to. Will you all be putting it on again next year?
On another note Al, when is your cd going to be released in the US?
Blake
Blake
05Mar08Spot on Al. And speaking as one of the small voices in the big choir at SPOS on Sunday night, it was a fab way to worship with the community and hope for more of the same... thanks for leading with such sensitivity to the spirit and the congregation.
ali
05Mar08I totally agree, I think some of the new songs being written are great in the terms of what they are saying "the words" but sometimes they are so complicated and have a pre-chorus, chorus, bridge, middle 8 and so on! Therefore when you are leading the worship with or without a band it's difficult to REALLY worship rather than thinking can I go back to the chorus from here? Also the congregation "the choir" get lost and you end up with a "train wreck". I love to keep it simple, use the same refrain or line of a song and just meditate on that! Good work! Love in Jesus, Wen-D
Wen-D
06Mar08Hi Al,
Thanks for the reminder! Sometimes it's so easy to get lost in the technicalities of getting everything right in song leading that we forget the congregation & focus on the band alone. Not realizing that it is not performance but worship - Something that we do corporately on a Sunday morning. That means the band and the congregation...
Keep the good stuff coming... God bless
Dorene
Fiji Islands
Dorene
07Mar08Great call...
SteveG
10Mar08That's a good way of putting it. I think it is also a reminder to not be afraid to take some time to teach people new songs - both to sing them and to help them discover where the lyrics are rooted.
Wulf
12Mar08