Singing in Church - Who Really Cares?

For many, singing at church is nothing more than a commercial break that allows for a smooth transition between the more important episodes within the service. When it comes to worship through song who really cares right? Why bother? Would it really matter if we just dropped it from the service entirely? At least then we wouldn’t have to stand there being disinterested and disengaged for so long.

If these thoughts and feelings strike a chord with you, you’re not alone. For many of us, when it comes to congregational singing, we relate to the experience of making declarations of truth to likeable melodies, but have minimal to no experience of being ministered to by the Holy Spirit. Worship through song really has become a take it or leave it kind of activity. But what do the Scriptures have to say for it? Could it be possible that those who have this attitude toward singing in church are missing out? Is it time for a reformation in our thinking regarding congregational singing, and thus a renewal of its practice?

The Scriptures testify to worship being an all of life activity (Rom 12:1-2). Given that corporate worship through song is currently an aspect of our lives, because of its place in our church services, how should we engage in the activity, so as to make it another aspect of our lives that is also performed in worship to the Lord? Or perhaps it doesn’t warrant being part of our lives at all? Maybe we should finally scrap the dead practice and eradicate it from our church services?

I would like to challenge us to consider the opposite. The offering of praise we collectively bring to God through song, when gathered together as a community in Jesus’ name, should not merely be permitted as a valid place in our church services, but as an essential practice, respected and valued for the unique way it brings glory to God and maintains our spiritual vitality.

The devaluing of corporate worship through song is probably the result of many factors. In my opinion, two significant reasons for it being devalued are: firstly, our simplistic view of what word-based ministry is; and secondly, the informality of our services, due to us having made them seeker-sensitive to the informal culture in which we live.

With respect to our understanding of word-based ministry we are guilty of placing listening to the word of God preached and responding to the word of God in song, in opposition, as if the two are at enmity with each other. We fail to see that responding to God’s word in song is in and of itself a ministry of the word, in the sense that it helps consolidate the word of God preached and God’s truth more generally into our hearts, by providing us with an opportunity to respond with thoughtful reflection, word-shaped emotion, joyous praise and physical expression.

Regarding the informality of our services, it seems our zealous attempts to contextualise the gospel for the broader, largely informal culture have gone so far that we have now lost much of our reverence for God, and this spills over into our singing.  It is vitally important we take time to self-reflect on our current attitude and practice. We are in great danger of becoming mere hearers of the word instead of doers (Jas 1:22-24), puffed up with knowledge, having lost our heart of love (1 Cor 8:1).

Piper states in The Pleasures of God, ‘It is God’s supreme commitment to […] display the full range of his glory […], for the enjoyment of his […] people […]. This everlasting and ever-increasing joy of God’s people in [God] […] is the shining forth of God’s glory’ (pg. 339). How many people truly relate to the idea of attending church for the purpose of enjoying God? How many can testify to fully delighting in God through the hearing of the sermon alone? How many truly cherish the opportunity to experience God’s transforming, sustaining joy in worship through song?

Corporate worship can be a powerful forming experience for us, yet many of us walk in functional unbelief of this reality when it comes to practice. If our values and knowledge are formed by the social relationships and structures in which we find ourselves, then to be involved in a church where the majority of people place a low value upon corporate worship, is to be in an environment where the cultural norm will continue to reinforce that worship through song is not important, satisfying or transformative. This makes changing a culture’s attitude toward corporate worship difficult.

Congregational singing is performed in both the vertical and horizontal dimension. The vertical refers to our personal relationship with God, within which we sing to him and focus on enjoying him. The horizontal refers to our mutual edification of each other, as we sing God’s truth to one another, spurring one another on to love and good deeds. Both aspects are important and we should seek a balance between the two when it comes to song selection. Let us, however, for the purpose of this discussion, consider the vertical aspect in a little more detail. What is God’s intention for the vertical dimension of our corporate worship through song?

‘The climax of God’s happiness is the delight He takes in the echoes of His excellence in the praises of his people’ (J. Piper, Desiring  God, pg. 30). Isaiah 48:11 affirms this statement, ‘For my own sake, […] I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another’. God’s glory is his highest concern and it should be ours too. Corporate worship is one of the ways we can magnify God’s name above all else.

Our worship needs to be an expression of our delight in God (Ps 37:4). Burdened and begrudging obedience does not glorify the Lord, because it does not testify to his all satisfying goodness – it is not worship. Fortunately for the Christian, loving God through obedience can be a delight. God’s gift of faith overcomes our deadness toward him, awakening our affections for him so that our obedience to him is an outworking of our heart’s delight (1 John 5:3-4). ‘The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying him forever’ (J. Piper, Desiring God, pg. 369). The wonderful news is that God is to be enjoyed, and the greater that enjoyment, the greater His glorification. It is vital therefore, that we pursue a deepening satisfaction in the Lord in all aspects of our lives, including during our congregational singing.

What is necessarily required for our joy to soar? Surely, it is that we express it! Joy is incomplete until it is expressed in praise. Our delight in God is consummated in our expression of praise to him. We all relate to this truth in our experience. We have all been in circumstances where delight has been awakened in response to something we appreciate, but has failed to reach the heights for which it was destined, because it was not expressed or shared with another. The same is true for our joy in the Lord - our delight in God overflows in the greater joy of expressing it in praise. To not participate in worship is to rob ourselves of higher levels of satisfaction in God. ‘God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him’ (J. Piper, Desiring God, pg. 288). Let us therefore pursue deeper levels of satisfaction in the Lord in all aspects of our lives, including when we worship together in song!

You may be wondering if there is anything in particular that makes corporate worship through song so important? Jesus states, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them” (Matt 18:20). This refers to his resurrected presence (Matt 28:20). Although Jesus dwells in all believers by his Spirit (Eph 1:13), he is present in a unique manner when believers gather together. Believers therefore should make gathering together a high priority. But why must we sing together? Colossians 3:16 commands us to do so but why? The simple answer is that we are commanded to sing together because our singing is a ministry of the word. It is not simply a medium through which Scripture is proclaimed (although that is a good thing). Through song we have the opportunity to respond to God’s word, by taking it captive, meditating on it, making it our own, participating in it, and expressing it back to God in praise in our own words, all with the assistance of music, which helps engage our emotions. In this way the word ministers to us at the level of our affections, which facilitates greater transformation than when it is directed solely at the mind and will. In music we have a medium that can elevate words to a place where mere words could never go themselves. Singing is God’s gift to us.

We should seek therefore to take corporate worship seriously by participating in it regularly, actively, intentionally and reverently, with the anticipation of experiencing joy in God. We must be on guard against being passively present during corporate worship, and fight against any mentality that devalues it to the ranks of being a mere time filler.  We should seek to worship in song with an attitude that sees it as a unique opportunity to pursue and enjoy God. If a person is regularly untouched by their experience of corporate worship through song this does not suggest that it has no value, but rather that they are falling short of appreciating its value, which ultimately reflects a deeper problem in them. We must fight against complacency and apathy in congregational singing and fight for our delight. We need to engage in corporate worship with an expectancy that God will show up in our hearts, minds and experience.

Our value of singing in church must increase. Our delight in the Lord is at stake and so is His glory. We must work at being in community regularly for the purpose of worshiping together, and should seek to intentionally prepare our hearts and minds for it. We are commanded to love the Lord with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength, unceasingly (Mk 12:30). All of life is worship in the broader sense, and worship through song is a part of all of life. Surely our response to God’s word is of equal importance to hearing his word, for this is the purpose of God’s word – to transform us – to elicit a worshipful response from us, whatever circumstance we find ourselves in. The proclamation of God’s word, and our response to it, are not enemies of each other. They represent two sides of the same coin. In fact our active response to the word of God proclaimed is a continuation of the ministry of the word, because it assists the word in taking root in us. The goal of corporate worship through song is to make us more susceptible to being changed, and transformation into the image of Christ is our ultimate goal. To neglect corporate worship through song is to leave oneself thirstier, less healed, less edified, less happy, less effective, less safeguarded against the enemy’s schemes, less satisfied in Jesus.

In conclusion, God’s glory is his highest prerogative. The Lord has ordained that his glory be caught up in our delight of Him. Corporate worship through song is a fundamental way of magnifying God’s worth by delighting in him. It holds the greatest promise of joy, in that it provides the believer with an opportunity to express their joy in God, in the context of other believers, where Jesus is thus uniquely present, with the assistance of music, which moves our emotions, and helps engage our affections. Our value of worship, therefore, must increase so that our spiritual vitality continues to flourish, as we taste deeper levels of delight in God.

By Peter Crowther

Your Church Needs You

What's on my mind, you ask...

What's on my mind is 'Christians' who don't come to church.

Allow me to explain...

We're all busy - and sometimes things come up that prevent you from meeting with your brothers and sisters - that happens - as long as it's a rare occurrence - no foul.

I also get that sometimes - under fairly extraordinary circumstances - not being in church can be the only option for a few people. But this isn't what I'm talking about.

I'm talking about the idea that's crept into our thinking where a 
heap of people who call themselves Christians think that they don't need church and that church doesn't need them.

That's tragic.

We do need you. And you do need church.

The Bible is FULL of stuff about doing this Christian life together - and it knows nothing about doing it alone. Fact is we really need each other.

Your church needs you - because you have gifts - spiritual and regular. And the good news is that you get to share those gifts with your church. Plus, your brothers and sisters are blessed by your presence. Plus you are missed when you aren't there. Plus your pastors worry about you. Read that again - and I promise we spend A LOT of time worrying about you. Plus your friends worry about you. Do they always call? No, not always - and that upsets you. But then, you don't call them, either. So let's not get too picky. 

Also...You need your church. You need to hear the Word preached. You need to be encouraged. You need to remember 'whose you are'. You need to be reminded to bear the family resemblance - and you need feeding so that you can. You need to sing worship to Jesus and be inspired to LIVE worship to Jesus through the week.
There are a squillion reasons TO go to church if you're a Christian.
There are hardly any (aside from a handful of exceptional circumstances) for not going.

So go on... particularly if you've been a bit slack lately - quit making excuses and get back to church this weekend. Not out of guilt - but because you know that God wants the best for you - and He says, 'Do not give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing.' That's Hebrews 10:25 by the way.

Steve Wakeford, Associate Minister

Reflections- Article Preview from our Autumn MAC Magazine

REFLECTION AND PRAYER GATHERING- 2PM SUN 6 APRIL AT CHURCH

Recently I’ve been reflecting on the noise of life. 

It can take over our headspace, squeezing out other things.

What sparked this reflection was a sermon I heard in January at my brother’s church. The sermon was on James 1. It helped me think more clearly about an issue I have been tossing around for a while. 

From James 1:18 – 21, and 25:

The Father . . . ‘chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of all he created.  My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. . . . The man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it – he will be blessed in what he does.’  

                                                                                                                              

The preacher suggested that, since the passage is about the centrality of God’s word, and the response to it we need to make so that the ‘righteous life that God desires’ grows in us, it is to God and his word that we should be quick to listen, and be slow to speak with him about our concerns – the noise of our lives.

That noise is powerful. 

It is the accumulation of all that is on our mind and in our hearts.

We have probably all had the experience of listening to a great sermon – the word being taught – and suddenly finding that our attention has been pulled away by life’s noise. We may have had a good look at a Bible passage in our growth group, but the prayer time that follows may have little to do with praying the passage into our lives, and have barely any focus on God himself, and how we are developing in our relationship with him. How easy it is for the noise of our lives to take over our time with God.

Not that it is wrong to bring our concerns to God. Far from it. We are encouraged, if not commanded, to do so (Psalm 62:8, Phil 4:6). It underlines our dependency on God.

But if the noise of life is the focal point of our relationship with God, that relationship is out of balance and we will struggle to grow. It is a bit like the husband who adores his wife and takes her to a fabulous getaway, to spend some quality time together and to give them both, but her especially, a break from the demands of caring for their young children. But the children are her ‘noise’. They are all she talks about. They are on her mind the whole time. She can’t step beyond her role as a mother and throw herself into her role as wife and lover, even for a short time. Her relationship with her husband is the foundation of her family. But she is giving it - giving him – very little attention, even when the opportunity is provided. Yes, she is a caring mother, but the relationship with her husband will shrivel if she does not nurture it, however hard that may be for her while the children are little.

How can we get to a place where loving God, and caring about what he cares about, drives us at least as much as the concerns of our own lives, if not more so?

We know James wrote a letter about action, so doing is important. But the preacher I heard referred to a step James mentions that it is easy to skip over.

James says we must ‘humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you’.  

God has already saved us from remaining dead in our sins and given us ‘birth through the word of truth’. The word is already ‘planted’ in us.

So what, then, does it mean when James says we are to ‘accept’ it? The preacher said that it means to take it into ourselves, to sit under its authority, humbly, and without anger – rebellion, resistance, impatience. We need to ‘look intently into the perfect law’, to work it into our lives. This is similar to the Old Testament concept of meditation – being still in God’s presence, taking time pondering his word, chewing it over, wrestling with it, taking it on board.

If we are quiet before God and quick to listen, the Holy Spirit has more opportunity to grow within us the righteousness of Jesus - to grow in us his life, which was planted in us when we were given new birth (2 Peter 1: 3-4). Nurturing this life is not something we can do on our own. What we need to do is to make ourselves available for the Spirit to grow the word in us.          

If you’ve ever tried being still before God, letting the Holy Spirit remind you of things the word says, letting the things of God ‘gel’ within you, just spending time loving God, then you will know that it can be a time when the words of the two disciples who met the risen Jesus on the road to Emmaus, can be true for us. ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us . . . and opened the Scriptures to us? ’Luke 24:32.

You will also know that, despite our best efforts to spend quality time with God, with every intention of being quick to listen and slow to speak, the noise of our life can take over so very quickly.

It can be easier to be quiet before God in the company of others, even if we are communing with him privately, in our own hearts. Guided reflection can help us set aside our noise. It can help us stay focussed.

Some of us are getting together for Reflection and Prayer, for about an hour, in the church, on Sunday afternoon 6 April at 2pm. The focus of our reflection will be Easter. We are planning for it to be a gentle, non-threatening time. We will read God’s word, sing, there will be a time of guided reflection, and a time to be still before God on our own with a suggested focus.

Whether you are an old hand at this, or whether it is something new to you, everyone is welcome, from the young to the not-so-young. No RSVP needed. Just turn up.

We are looking forward to sharing with you as together we wait on God to do his work in us. As the joy of sharing in Jesus’ life grows within us, individually and as a community of God’s people, so we will grow in the freedom to delight in our relationship with God, and to be more keenly attuned to his agenda.

By keeping on looking ‘intently’ into the word of life, the mind-boggling benefits of being ‘in Jesus’ will become more real to us. James says we will ‘be blessed’ in what we do.

- Jenny Kennedy

READ THE FULL ARTICLE and more in the Autumn Church Magazine due out next weekend. 

Comments and discussion on this article are welcome and encouraged. 

Whose Job Is It To Welcome New People?

For someone new to walk into a church takes an immense amount of courage – it really does.  Not everyone is a massive extrovert who assumes people want to talk to them!  For most people it takes a lot of strength to just walk in the door of a new church.
 
Now, suppose you are new and you make it in the front door  – what do you see?

 Heaps of people looking at you, probably!   Which can be a little unnerving.
 
Then you sit down – and church might be pretty good.  Decent sermon, decent music - you feel like you might want to come back.  But that’s all going to depend on the next 5-10 minutes.

 The people who are already part of the church – this is where YOU come in.

Your job – ALL OF YOU – though not all at once (that would be too much) – all of you need to be on the look-out for new people.

Walk over – this is your turf – so you’re safe.  Walk over and say g’day.  Ask how they’re going.  What they thought of church?  Where they’re from?  Are they working, studying, or doing an arts degree (come on, that was funny).

 Then ask them to join your group of friends for dinner or wherever you’re going.
 
Now, they might say ‘No’ this week.  But they’ll say yes the week after – because they want to know if you were fair dinkum.
 
All churches have cliques – when I was a young bloke we had them (well, we just had one – it was a small church).  But cliques are a good thing – if we harness their power…
 
Have an open clique – and invite new people into it.  Think like a Christian on mission – how can you serve the people who come into you church – be over the top welcoming!

You might just be the link in the chain that keeps a brother or sister in a solid church so they are able to reach their full potential for their Lord.

 Blessings folks,

 Steve Wakeford, Associate Minister

Engage in Peoples Lives through Growth Groups

 












I had a great night at my growth group this week. 

It’s a group of men who are looking at the Bible together and who are engaged in each others lives in a way that men don’t normally get a chance to do. 

It’s been really heart-warming and encouraging to be a part of it – as one of the men said this week, “it’s a privilege to be part of it.” It’s a little glimpse of heaven.  There’s lots of talk and toing and froing, some great supper, some laughter, some deep discussion and a serious determination to not just skate over the surface of life. 

There has been the chance to input into each other’s lives and an expectation that God is going to do some real work among us. Already we’ve seen some answer to our prayers and we’re looking forward to meeting next week to see what God has done.  We’re becoming a band of brothers.

If you’re not in a group like this then you are missing out.

Ours is a new group and that might have something to do with it.  I think that sometimes groups can be together too long and they can get into an unhelpful rut where they just go through the motions. 

That’s not always the case with long term groups but it might be a good thing to ask the question of your group “Are we helping each other become disciple making disciples? Are we growing in love and obedience to Christ? Is there progress?”

Thanks to the men in my group for your involvement.


Bruce Dingwall
Senior Minister
 

40 Hours A Year

40 hours a year...

This is all the time that our Kids Space Team (10am Children’s Ministry) get to spend with the children in their groups over one year.

So imagine what can be accomplished if we were able to have an extra 48 hours with our Kids Spacers in the one year; we would be doubly blessed! Double the fun, double the relating, double the faith building, double the eating… you get the drift.

So rather than extending the hours of Kids Space, the Kids Space team have decided to have a weekend away for children in years 3-6 at school who come to Kids Space and Saturday Night Church.

It is important for this to be at the start of the year to ‘launch’ our year and establish relationships. Having the children come away with the Kids Space Leaders for a weekend will literally double our time spent together. The implications are huge: our Kids Space Leaders will get to know the children in their small groups, our children would get to know each other better, our Leaders will get be able to work alongside other Leaders, and we can all have a bit of a holiday together by the beach (of course we will need to find cooks as I am devoid of all giftedness in this area).

One of our core values in Children’s Ministry at Menai Anglican is to be a ‘community of friends’ and this is difficult when the children attend different schools, live in different suburbs and have only one hour a week together. A weekend away will make a huge difference in how we all relate to each other with shared experiences, funny stories and with a substantial amount of time in God’s word away from Facebook, computers and other screens.

The team of leaders are excited and all we need now are the children to join us February 28^th-March 2^nd at Austinmer Anglican Church. Mums can make the most of this quiet weekend as this is also the weekend away for the men at the Katoomba Men’s convention!

We are really looking forward to seeing what God has in store for us and your children over this weekend away.  

Mary Pickford - Children's Minister,  Yvette Maloney and the Kids Space team

A Church of Action - Not Just Words

 

Every year Anglicare's Emergency Relief programme provides financial and food assistance to an estimated 20,000 socially excluded families and individuals who struggle to get by on low income.

Now in its 10th year, Anglicare's Toys ‘n’ Tucker programme is a way in which communities can actively provide gifts of toys and food to be distributed to the families who come to the service for support. 

Nigel Beckman attends Menai Anglican Church.  He and his Growth Group became involved in the Scheme 5 years ago because they wanted to help those less fortunate at Christmas time. 

Nigel and his team have also discovered many other benefits from being involved in the scheme.  Nigel says, “It has been a wonderful out-reach opportunity and shown the local community that Menai Anglican is a church of action not just words”. The collection area covers Barden Ridge, Menai Road and over to the Woodlands Estate – so our church makes contact with approximately 2,200 homes.

In addition, it provides a great opportunity for absolutely anyone in the church community to get involved and serve God no matter their age, ability or which service they attend.

The scheme also provides Menai Anglican Church with a way to identify and help those in the local area who are themselves struggling.

This year, there were almost 180 people involved in the collection.  Between them, they collected over 300 boxes plus miscellaneous toys.  The best collection year so far for the church.

 

There is a lot of work involved in organizing the food drive.  Initially fliers are prepared and these are delivered by the congregation.  The actual collection takes place from Monday 4^th to Monday 11^th November. Because of the fliers many people are prepared with food by their door. It is heart warming when people have been shopping specifically for Anglicare and have a box or bag all ready. It also offers a great opportunity to hand over information brochures about Playtime groups at church and the Christmas service times.

One little girl donated her own tricycle because she wanted someone less fortunate than her to have a bike for Christmas.

All the donated items are boxed up at church and then Anglicare collect them and take the boxes to the Anglicare Mt. Druitt warehouse.  The items are then made into Christmas hampers and toy parcels for families in Sydney and Wollongong who would otherwise go without.

The Menai Anglican Church / Anglicare Food Drive is a wonderful example of how a small idea from a Growth Group can make a huge difference to the local community and beyond.  Thank you to everyone involved in this year’s scheme.  Please pray for Nigel and his group – may they be a guiding light to the rest of the church community.  Please also pray for the Anglicare teams – may they bring a little joy and support to those in need this Christmastime.