Worship as Language

I'm not sure if you've noticed this, but churches are caught in the throes of a war over music and worship. Have been for close to 20 years I would say. At issue is the kind of music we will use when we worship together. You might think the issue is theological, but it mostly isn't. Sure some of the hymns are all but incomprehensible to modern people, but most of the hymns we can understand and most contain good theology. Sure some of the modern songs can be a little repetitive, but repetitive prayer is a classic form, and most of those songs get their words from the book of Psalms, so you can't very well call them shallow and modern. It's really a question of style, and nowhere is the temptation to become snobbish greater than with our art forms. So we have a world facing all kinds of problems, the Church is fast losing her good reputation and her reputation for relevance, and in the middle of this people are fighting over what songs we're going to sing and exactly how we will sing them. Blake Coffee of "Church Whisperer " has posted some very wise words on this subject. He likens church music to language. And the question is, will you always demand that everyone speak your language, or will you take the time to learn even a few words of someone else's mother tongue? He is calling the Church to task, doing so gently, and with eloquence. Don't miss this.

Imagine this: you feel inspired to adopt a few children. You’ve always wanted a larger family and your (and your spouse’s) heart is breaking for the children around the world who are in need of Godly parents. So, you adopt one Chinese child, one Russian child, and one child who is hearing impaired. For now, each of them only speaks their language (Chinese, Russian, and sign). It’s your first night all together at the dinner table. You, your spouse and your three new children are all seated, staring at one another over a pot roast lovingly prepared by you. Here is my question: what language(s) will you speak at the table? Maybe the more important question, the one more pertinent for the purposes of this post, is this: will you love these children enough to learn some words in their language(s), or will you coldly refuse to learn a single word in their language and just wait for them to learn yours? ... Read More