Greg Scheer - The Art of Worship: A Musicians Guide to Leading Modern Worship

THE ART Of WORSHIP

GREG SCHEER

2006 by Greg Scheer

Published by Baker Books
a division of Baker Publishing Group
P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
www.bakerbooks.com

E-book edition created 2011

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meansfor example, electronic, photocopy, recordingwithout the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

ISBN 978-1-58558-235-8

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.

Scripture is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com

The internet addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers in this book are accurate at the time of publication. They are provided only as a resource; Baker Publishing Group does not endorse them or vouch for their content or permanence.

This book is dedicated to Kirstin, Christine, Tony, Anila, Angela, Andrew, Lea, Beth, Andrea, Lois, Laura, Matt, Andy, Lucas, Alaina, Rachel, Charity, Sarah, Jodi, and Erin, who helped me develop this material in the classroom. This book wouldnt be what it is without you. And to Amy: I wouldnt be who I am without you.

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION
MY JOURNEY INTO WORSHIP (OR, CONFESSIONS OF A FAILED ROCK STAR)

I never wanted to be a music minister.

I scoffed at those who couldnt make it in the real world those who I felt were retreating from a Christian musicians true calling to be salt and light, opting instead for the safety offered inside the church walls. You have to understand that this was a time when Amy Grant was cutting-edge contemporary Christian music, and Our God Reigns was pushing the boundaries of modern worship. I was repulsed by the musical mediocrity that I saw in the Christian community and felt that I would make my mark like other Christians who were taking their music to the highways and bywaysU2, Bruce Cockburn, T Bone Burnett.

But God had different plans.

After growing up in an independent Pentecostal church, a Bible-belt oddity in the predominantly Roman Catholic Rhode Island, I spent my college years church hopping. I attended two Baptist churches, one Episcopal, and a variety of others. By the time I was a junior, my faith was wasting away. I was more inspired by the post-punk angst I heard in my favorite bandsJoe Jackson, Talking Heads, Elvis Costellothan I was by the churches I attended.

Worship music wasnt even on my radar. In fact, the first time I led worship, I dont know if I even would have called myself a Christian. I had long, nappy hair and wore jeans, pajama tops, and black boots, which made me very desirable for a particular youth minister who thought I would make a great trophy if I converted. He roped me into playing my guitar at a weekend retreat, and any honest account would call it a disaster. The only song I remember playing was Come, Let Us Worship and Bow Down; how could I have known that it was a worship ballad and not a Violent Femmes acoustic thrash?

The following year I studied in Salzburg, Austria. It was a turning point in my faith journey. Ironically, the Lord used my time in a post-Christian European culture to build my waning faith from the ground up. I came to realize that I had been using minor grievances with the American Christian subculture to avoid Jesus Christ and his claim on my life. I finally gave in to the hound of heaven. Faithful (and patient) Christian friends in Austria helped me grow in my new faith, and I returned to the United States committed to living my life for Christ.

By the time I got to grad school in Pittsburgh, I was concentrating more seriously on composing modern art music than I was on my rock and roll, but I still had no interest in using my musical skills in the church. However, I joined the choir at Bellefield Presbyterian Church, where I got my first vision for music ministry. I started to realize that worship music wasnt B-grade secular music; it was music that served a particular purposethe praise of God. I fell in love with many other aspects of music ministry as well: the community that forms within the church music groups, the creativity and variety of worship music through the ages, and the nurturing of young believers as they interact with other Christians.

I soon began to entertain thoughts of becoming involved in music ministry. At the same time, the current music minister began to entertain thoughts of concentrating more time on his counseling practice, and I was asked to take over. It seems odd that a former church-music-hater would be employed as a church-music-maker, but it is obvious now that this is the vocation the Lord had been preparing me for. Suddenly the circuitous route that I had followed made sense, with my composition background, experience in rock and jazz, and training in conducting all having application in music ministry. God surely moves in mysterious ways. The twelve years since Bellefield have been filled with music ministry: at Wildwood Presbyterian in Florida, Northwestern College in Iowa, and now Church of the Servant Christian Reformed Church and the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

About This Book

Two worlds collide in todays worship: the world of the classically trained organist, choir director, or music minister, and the world of the play-by-ear, chord-chart-reading pop musician. Although these worlds have much in common, they rarely meet and they have no common language. It is my contention that each of these musical worlds has strengths and weaknesses and much to learn from each other. Wouldnt it be wonderful if all musicians could read music and improvise and take part in our rich church music heritage at the same time as being energized by the new forms of popular, folk, and ethnic music that blow across our modern worship landscape?

Regardless of where you stand in the spectrum of historic and modern worship expressions, you must acknowledge the reality that many churches now employ some form of worship team (often called a praise team or praise band) in their services. If you are a traditional music minister, you will be involved in directing, overseeing, or collaborating with a worship team soon, if you arent already. This book will give you the tools to interact successfully with what may be an unfamiliar genre to you. If you are a contemporary music minister, this book will help you think more deeply about the theology of church song, the flow of liturgy, and aspects of music you may have previously only considered intuitively.

My goal is not to convince traditional church musicians to defect into the contemporary camp. In fact, Im not interested in entering into stylistic debate at all. I take the view that all musics are created equal, that everything is permissible for mebut not everything is beneficial (1 Cor. 6:12), and that we all have to work through issues of worship style with fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12). My hope is to enable church musicians of all kinds to better understand one of the dominant musical languages of modern worship, to be thoroughly equipped to lead that style, and to foster communication among the musicians of the church of Jesus Christ.