auditorium with others , some worshippers seek a very personal , intimate , and individual connection with God through sung worship . If we were going to plot these worshippers on my graph , they ’ d find themselves on the higher side of the vertical , green “ Y ” axis .
With this more VERTICAL & INDIVIDUAL emphasis , we may want to , in a sense , “ lose ourselves ”, allowing everything around us - including other people - to fade from our consciousness as we soak in our own “ vertical ” connection with God . This might be described as , “ Having my own Holy Spirit moment ” or , “ A time of personal intimacy .” These experiences can inspire us to live every moment of our week as worshippers of God .
On this northern side of the “ Y ” axis , song lyrics would usually refer to God / Jesus / The Holy Spirit in the second person “ You ”. In fact , some proponents of this emphasis will change song lyrics that use the singular third person “ He ” for God to the more personal “ You ”. Doing so can change the atmosphere and help turn individual hearts towards God in a more tangible way . So , for example , rather than singing “ He is exalted ” we would prefer to sing “ You are exalted .” They ’ d also tend to use the personal pronoun “ I ” so the songs are sung by each individual directly to God .
But at the southern end of the same “ Y ” axis there are those who see our sung worship as more of a “ horizontal ”, community-building activity . Yes , we sing to show the worth - or worship - God , but our songs are more likely to refer to God as “ He ” or use one of His names - Lord , Jesus , Father , God . And we ’ d prefer to sing “ we ” instead of “ I ” if we ever refer to ourselves at all .
While some songs might be prayers sung directly to God or Jesus , we also see value in singing songs that declare truth about God or encourage each other to follow Jesus with more intentionality and passion . The sense of the church - the body of Believers - gathered together in a communal , shared expression of God ’ s worth is highly valued . Our sung worship should reflect that value .
Furthermore , on the lower end of the “ Y ” axis , we would like to reinforce the belief that following Jesus is not supposed to be done solo . We need each other ! There might even be a sense that our sung worship should counteract the influence of the prevalent , consumeristic , individualistic “ I , me , mine !” of contemporary culture . We could sing “ We worship our Lord Jesus ” but would prefer not to sing “ I worship You , my precious Jesus .”
Some people on the VERTICAL & INDIVIDUAL side of the “ Y ” axis , might believe that those on the lower HORIZONTAL & COMMUNAL side are missing out on a deeper , personal relationship-enhancing exchange with God . Or perhaps that they don ’ t really “ get ” worship .
Conversely , the HORIZONTAL & COMMUNAL folk might accuse the VERTICAL & INDIVIDUALs
of singing too many “ Jesus is my boyfriend ” songs … although never to them directly ! Just in hushed tones to their HORIZONTAL & COMMUNAL allies .
But , in a spirit of love and mutual understanding , hopefully we can all respect these differences and abstain from such petty put-downs .
CONCLUSION Especially when I ’ m leading sung worship for an ecumenical gathering , I ’ m sure this graph helps me lead more effectively . With this green “ Y ” axis in mind , I ’ ll select songs that ( hopefully ) give us all a taste of top and bottom . Of , “ You ” and “ I ” as well as “ He ” and “ we ”. Vertical / individual and horizontal / communal .
The top and bottom ends of the “ Y ” axis need not be disparate . This doesn ’ t have to be an either / or . It can be a both / and , depending on your context . Read your room . Serve the congregation that God has allowed you to lead . Personally , I see value in both sides ! I hope you can too . I think you ’ ll find doing so helpful as you lead .
Grant Norsworthy founder of MoreThanMusicMentor . com
MoreThanMusicMentor . com
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