Worship is one of the most important things that we do as a church, as well as one of the most misunderstood activities. In most churches it is a constant source of battles and a place where most pastors are afraid to make needed changes because of the "That's the way we've always done it" syndrome. Yet consider its traits:

* Worship is a time that we should come together to worship God and God alone. Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'" (Matthew 4: 10, NIV.)

* Worship is a time to show our love for God. "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." (Deuteronomy 6:5, NIV.)

* Worship is a time to depend on the Holy Spirit. "God is the spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." (John 4: 24, NIV.)

* Worship is a time where formal ritual is insufficient. "I hate, I despise your religious feasts; I cannot stand your assemblies. Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream," (Amos 6: 21-24, NIV.)

Whenever that may be, our customary worship should be a time when we "refill our tanks," so to speak, and prepare to go out into the world to minister for Christ.

Worship is also something that we as Christians should do 24/7. We should be continually worshipping God—thanking him for what he has done for us, and asking him what we can do for him.

Worship is a time when we should not be worrying about what the building looks like or whether the pulpit is centered properly. We should be taking time to make ourselves right with God and preparing to move through the rest of our lives. We should put aside all of our cares and concerns from the past week and focus on what is to come.

To accomplish all this in 21st century worship times, it is important to change your order of worship on a regular basis. Since anyone who has a TV or is out in the public today is used to change, we need to keep our worship services fresh. However, don't change for the sake of change. Instead, use it to create excitement in your service. It's important that your service has a flow to it that will allow for the most worshipful experience.

In many contemporary churches the worship service consists of music-offering-sermon-music and close. Even that simple order must have a flow or it will ruin any kind of meaningful experience for many of your congregation's members and visitors.

The following is a listing of the normal parts of the opening of a worship service. They are identified and clarified with a modern look at how to use them. These parts of worship are used in both traditional and contemporary services in a variety of ways. See what will work for your service. The names in italics are possible contemporary names for the different sections of your bulletin. Try to find ways to modernize your bulletin. You can even rename it, possibly to "worship folder."

Prelude - Gathering Music

The prelude is an important part of worship—probably the most important time since it brings people into the sanctuary and mentally prepares them for worship. The music can come from the organ, piano, a vocal group, an instrumental group, a drama group, or a CD.

You probably don't want total quiet in the sanctuary during the prelude. This is when the community begins to gather and it is important for them to communicate. Sometimes this is the only time your congregation members communicate with others in the community. This is a great time for the pastor(s) to get around and greet people, too. Please tell the musicians, singers and technical volunteers presenting the prelude that it's all right if the people talk. Remind worship volunteers and staff that they are not performing, they are setting the mood.

Call to worship

The call to worship brings people into the worship atmosphere. This can be sung, spoken, played or dramatized. The call to worship should be less than 30 seconds long and should be fairly bright and shining rather than drab and dreary. It should wake up the people and turn their thoughts toward what is to come. It's also important that the call to worship happen from a variety of places in the sanctuary and not the same place every Sunday, or you will begin digging a rut.

Welcome - A Time of Greeting

This should only happen after the entire congregation is in the sanctuary, seated and listening. "Passing the Peace" is a traditional greeting in many churches, but should only be used if the people understand its purpose. Educate your congregation on this custom. Teach them about greeting in general as well. Remember greeting each other doesn't mean just greeting your friends. Greet everyone around you and move as far as you can from your seat before the leaders call you back together again.

Use these ideas to think through the opening of each worship service. Plan thoroughly in order to give God glory and to allow your congregation to praise him well.

© 2006, Ken Johnson, President and CEO of The Ken Johnson Group, LLC. To contact Ken, or for permission to reprint this article, send an e-mail to: ken@thekenjohnsongroup.com.