Category: Music

A one hour worship service from scratch

Worship leaders from time to time may be called upon to plan a worship service start to finish, as I was this time last year. Here’s how I chose to give shape to an hour of worship with a group of student ministry leaders. This is one of many possible ways to go, but I did find that the sense of structure and movement helped us to feel like we had gotten somewhere by the end. Here is a version of the run sheet I used for myself.

Intro: Explanation of A.C.T.S. acronym

  • What it stands for: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication
  • Why it’s important: keeps us focused on God….keeps us balanced in prayer life (not just “Me, me, me”)
  • It will frame our worship time together
  • We’ll weave between Scripture and Song and Prayer, standing and sitting, together and alone

Adoration

Confession

  • Prayer: (seated) Confession of Sin
    • Moment of Silence for individual confession
    • Confession from Book of Common Prayer
    • Assurance of Pardon from 1 John (read in unison)
  • Song: (standing or seated) (optional) I Love the Lord

Thanksgiving

  • Song: How Great Thou Art
  • Scripture: (seated) Lectio Divinia with Colossians 3:15-17
    • Explain Lectio Divina (Powerpoint slide with all four steps, one after the other)
    • NOTE: Four volunteer readers needed

Supplication

  • Prayer: (remain seated) How can we be praying for each other?  For our community?
  • (standing) Teach song: Today
  • Scripture: Joshua 24:14-15 with intro (give its context)
  • Song: Today

Conclusion: close in prayer

In the very near future I’m leading this same group in an hour of worship. I’m thinking through selecting songs, Scriptures, and prayers that follow the basic outline of salvation history: Creation, Fall, Redemption, Consummation. I’ll post the outline of that service on a future Worship Leading Wednesday.

“Bringing our Pain to God” (Michael Card)

We’re afraid of other people’s pain. Like Job’s friends, we’re afraid when we don’t have answers. Job doesn’t get any answers for his sufferings, but he gets God.

–Michael Card, from this great article on Biblical lament in worship.

He’s got an album called The Hidden Face of God, which you can hear at Grooveshark for free (or click on the album image to the left). It kicks off with a great Gospel-flavored track called, “Come Lift Up Your Sorrows.”

“I Don’t Understand,” by Doran Stambaugh (song in response to the Aurora, Colarado shooting)

Doran Stambaugh, formerly of the Chicagoland band w a t e r w o r k s , has written a song, “I Don’t Understand,” as a response to the mass shooting at the Dark Knight screening a week and a half ago. This is a good lament.

One-Stop Site for Worship Planning


In January I had the privilege of taking two college students with me to join with a gathering of worship leaders from many backgrounds at the Calvin Symposium on Worship. I’m still making use of the things I learned while there.

The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship has a fantastic Website. It’s a good place to spend some time, and on this Worship Leading Wednesday at WotW, I heartily recommend it. One of their resources that I’ve found most helpful as a worship planner is their “Plan Worship” space. Here you can, in their words:

The CICW also provide links to help in the crafting of music, prayers, and art for worship services.

Birthmark

This post is technically not “Words on the Word,” so I’d imagine that’s an indicator that, even early on, this blog may go in different directions than I originally intended. The initial focus will stay the same: to offer reflections on what I’m learning as a student of the Bible, ministry, life, etc. But as I’m working on vocabulary in the Septuagint of Micah this evening, I’m really enjoying a new record by a group called Birthmark. It’s actually just one guy, Nate Kinsella, who used to be in a band I once tried really hard to like, Joan of Arc.

Birthmark (Nate Kinsella’s solo project) is much smoother than Joan of Arc’s music. It’s electronic and creative, melodic and intriguing.  The layering of strings, synths, vibraphone, and guitars keep the music interesting, and the vocals are… in tune!  (Not that Joan of Arc ever made that a priority, but it’s nice all the same.)  Nate’s quite a good singer in fact.

His brother Mike Kinsella is Owen, one of my all-time favorite musical artists, though I’m not a huge fan of Owen’s sometimes potty mouth, which was completely absent on his first album.

Read more about Birthmark here, and stream the full new album here.