Why is there a pink candle in the Advent wreath? Jonathan Powers shares why we have the pink candle and what it means.
In our culture, sometimes our time is the most valuable commodity we have. Emily Vermilya shares about how offering our time through waiting on God is worth every moment.
Every church has its own unique liturgy and rhythm. Emily Barlow shares wisdom about how changing the rhythm for a season can draw out the meaning that we may be missing out of habitual blindness.
As the saying goes, “The only thing constant is change.” Adam Kurihara shares wisdom on leading churches successfully through transitions.
When we invite children to come forward, our worship forms a window into heaven; we embrace children the way our Lord embraced them. And, on top of that, it gives us an easy opportunity to teach the stories of Scripture in this age of increasing biblical illiteracy.
While there is great value in offering ministries that are geared toward reaching and discipling people with age-appropriate tactics, the importance of intergenerational worship cannot be understated. The corporate worship gathering of the church should be the place where we collectively gather and respond to the invitation of God—to encounter His revelation.
We use all manner of criteria to judge churches: Does the preacher “feed” me? Is the music rockin’? Can I “feel the Spirit”? Some might be good criteria; others (most) are pathologically self-centered. But one criterion is often omitted, and yet has good dominical authority: Do the children participate?
Coming to Sunday worship means entering a different “time zone” – one marked by the ancient rhythms of the church calendar. So, what are the rules, the guiding forces behind the strange world that is liturgical time? Patrick Bourckel offers a few points about the nature of entering into the Church’s calendar.
The benediction is not some throwaway verbiage to get people out the door; it is nothing less than the heart and soul of who we are and whose we are.
There are many ways we can speak the language of prayer in our gathered worship. I believe that all of these methods of prayer in worship have value, but I’d like to highlight a specific form of prayer – the collect – as a model and method for how we can pray together.
I have encountered many incredible, genuine and faithful worship leaders over the nearly 20 years I’ve been leading worship. I want to celebrate them and the way God has raised up a generation of Spirit-led worshipers.
Every Sunday morning, after a hymn of praise and praying a Collect together, the churches I serve have a “moment of silence before God.” I conclude the silence with an extemporaneous prayer, usually inviting God to encounter us during our worship service.
