In Planting, High-Energy Worship Is Essential
By Paul Nixon
As declining congregations shrink in worship attendance below thirty percent of their sanctuary capacity, the energy in the room often drops below the threshold of a winsome gathering. When new churches cannot fill their worship space past thirty percent capacity, they will likely suffer from low energy in their worship gatherings.
In addition to oversized buildings, other factors can negatively affect energy in worship:
- Lack of congregational participation in singing (perhaps due to hard-to-sing music choices)
- Over-scripted service orders with little improvisation or surprise.
- Lack of interactivity among participants.
- Absence of gentle and appropriate humor and playfulness (and laughter).
- Lack of unique elements in worship (occasional guest artists, different art forms such as dance, poetry, etc.)
- Weak hospitality and interaction among worshipers before the start of the service.
- Slow transitions and dead time between elements of worship
- No clear articulation of the service theme or focal life issue of the worship service
- Little expectation of a magical experience.
Energized worship does not need to be frenetic. Intentional silence, for example, can be highly energizing. Music tempo does not necessarily need to be fast, nor does the worship need to shift toward entertainment.
Many churches would benefit from engaging a worship design coach. It is challenging to grow worship attendance in a low-energy context because energized worship is a critical factor for vital ministry. Questions that a coach could pose would include:
- How can we reflect in worship the challenges experienced by people in the neighborhoods we seek to serve?
- How can we publicly celebrate with people (both in the church and in the neighborhood)?
- Have we made space for testimony of ordinary disciples, sharing their faith and experiences with the faith community?
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