WORSHIP LEADERS
SING TOGETHER TO BRING UNITY | Grant Norsworthy
A group of people that sings together tends to get along with each other .
The individuals within the group may be different from one another in many ways , but if they sing together , they will be more connected - more unified - than if they didn ’ t .
Before the days of television , close-knit families used to gather round a piano or record player to sing songs together . ( Some still do !) Sporting crowds will sing together - not only to show their support for their team , but to express and build their unity with each other and the team . Ironically , while Church choirs seem to be in decline , participation in community choirs is on the rise .
Every great concert will include at least a moment of crowd singalong . Their vocal participation in the musical performance not only shows their shared fandom of the artist on stage , it also builds their sense of commonality through a deeper , shared experience .
In the United Kingdom there ’ s a successful business called The Big Sing that markets themselves with the catch phrase : “ Using music to unite people of all ages , backgrounds and cultures .”
Big Sing has employees of a corporation sing songs together during paid hours . Why ? Among other reasons , singing together builds team unity which , in turn , increases productivity .
And of course , throughout our history , people of the Christian faith - even across our many different denominations , theological emphases , and stylistic preferences - have highly valued singing together .
Singing together is not a “ silver bullet ” of course . It does not instantly solve all issues of discord within a group of people . But it sure can help !
I ’ m hopeful - even reasonably confident - that you , the reader ( no matter what your particular denomination , age , nationality or preferred musical style ) can agree that we - The Christian Church - sings together :
• Firstly , as an expression of worship - to show the worth - of Almighty God .
• Secondly , we also believe that this act of singing worshipfully can soften us - open us individually and corporately - to deeper things of God .
• Thirdly ( and the focus of this article ) is that singing together can build unity - encouraging each other to follow Jesus with more fervor , passion , and intentionality and to operate together more effectively as one body .
These harmonious musical expressions - these shared experiences of one accord - can spill beyond the music into other areas of life and remain after the songs have faded . I believe that singing together can bring our Church family towards the “ oneness ” that Jesus prays for us as recorded in the Gospel of John : from God and loves the world !
Is The Church united ? Are we one ?
Personally , I feel very privileged to have had a wide and varied experience of different Christian flavors and styles throughout my lifetime . Not only have I lived in three different countries ( born and raised in Australia , seventeen years in the USA and now nearly five years in New Zealand ), travelled to forty-nine US states and twenty-five different countries ( almost always connecting on some level with the Christian Church and being involved in music in each of those places ), I have also spent multiple years as an active member of churches of quite different denominations . I was raised in ( rather traditional ) Baptist churches . I then “ rebelled ” to charismatic C3 , then Pentecostal Vineyard . There ’ s been some scattered experience of “ house ” churches . For our last seven-orso years in Nashville , my wife and I called a Presbyterian church our home . Now ( living in rural New Zealand ) my family and I are part of a small Community Church that happens to have Lutheran heritage .
To me , on a surface level , most of the differences between denominations are a bit like different flavors of ice cream . People prefer different flavors from each other . No problem ! We agree on the big , important stuff . We all like ice cream ! The things we differ on are mostly peripheral . One person might like caramel . Another might prefer strawberry !
My most recent articles for [ WM ] have been exploring the Pub Choir phenomenon . People gathering in pubs and theatres for an evening to learn and then sing a song together to make a YouTube video . Especially in my last article called Pub Choir vs Church : What are people saying ? I shared how valuable , affirming and unifying the experience of singing together can be for the Pub Choir members .
“ I in them and you in me — so that they may be brought to complete unity . Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me .” John 17:23 ( NIV )
Wow ! Did you get that ? Jesus prays that when we - His followers - are brought to complete unity , then the world will know that Jesus is
Me ? I like all the flavors ! As someone who - for many years now - has travelled widely and ministered from one church to another , I have had to be aware of - and sensitive to - those differences . At least , I have tried to be . I ’ m pretty close to equally comfortable no matter what style / denomination / flavor .
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