Between vacation and a quick trip to pickup a new (to me) vehicle, I was able to spend alot of time in conversation with my Father, who is the pastor of a pretty decent sized Baptist congregation. For years Dad and I didn't have things to talk about since he fished (I am terrified of anything aquatic) and enjoyed sports (I quit playing anything after I discovered that books don't hit you in the groin) and I pretty much chased the Rock and Roll dream the first 20 years of life. Over the last 5-6 years, we have had ministry to talk about. In the past, I was overly critical while I was sorting out my issues with faith, so I was often accused as being a Debbie Downer when it came to Sunday services.
Now--when we talk about how well services were executed, I come from the perspective of a qualified worship designer and leader. It makes for much better conversation. As we were sitting at the dinner table on Sunday, the conversation came to a new location and worship service my Dad's church is starting. Meredith, my mother and I had glowing reviews...because it really was great. I had a few things to bring up, and I think there were flashbacks to my grumpy past. I don't think I even really thought of what came out of my mouth next...
"These tiny things...the picky little stuff...the last 10% are what make a worship service truly great....."This was after thinking about little stuff that some folks would never realize is an issue, or recognize as a problem if asked. Things such as keys of songs,tempo, powerpoint backgrounds, the sacred vocabulary used by various speakers, temperature of a room.......the tiny little bitty stuff.
After taking a moment to think about what I just said Meredith jumped in with the same thought and answered..."the things that we don't see are what make a service."
If you want to design a truly great service, one that unfolds the story of Father, Son and Spirit,these things aren't the icing on the cake, but they are the crumb layer that really helps everything pop. They are subliminal, most likely not even recognized. This isn't an issue of catering to folks in worship...but realizing distractions and ways to make us concentrate more on attentiveness to God while we worship. It is thinking intentionally about everything.
I also want to put a line between performative excellence and doxological excellence. When we want an excellent performance, we design something slick because we think people want and expect it to be slick. Sunday after Sunday (or whenever your group meets) we have to "top" ourselves to provide a better, creative or more compelling worship experience (I hate that phrase...it makes it seem that worship is about us). The vehicle for excellence is what matters, not necessarily the execution.
When we are focused on doxological excellence, we realize all of the background work (including the technical stuff done live) should only be seen as failure when the congregation realizes we are there. It is about designing a service that tells the story of salvation, and the focus in on God Himself....and it isn't just our congregations, but the entire world caught up within sacred time. We worship together, one with the Church on earth and with the Church eternal.
So these little things that we fret about, especially when we don't think they are really that important, are the elements that make a really good service a truly great service. We want things to be perfect because we want everything to point towards God, not the intervention of man. Yes-we are vitally part of salvation (and humanity has a distinct role inside the story of God that has a place in the service), but worship isn't the time for us to "show off" or practice creativity for the sake of being creative. With all of our attention (even our unknown attention) directed towards God, we are better able to discern His presence among us as we worship. These tiny details are important, but must always be understood as important for the sake of the glory of God.
So consider this the introduction post for "The 10%". Over time I want to flesh out these tiny details better.
