Friends

As we come to the end of this season of Covenant, we have an unusual Circuit Service on the morning of the 29th at Windsor.  Unusual because it is a Circuit Service in the morning and because it is a concert of Gospel Blues music. 

When the advertising from the band who are playing (“Sanctified”) first came across to us, I nearly queried the use of the word “Concert” because this is of course worship, and indeed it will be recognisably a morning service with prayers, readings, a sermon and congregational singing, it’s just that the congregational singing will be Gospel Blues and not our usual fare. 

Performance, or the hint of it, is a difficult topic in the Church and it has saddened me over the years when professional performers have shared their gifts in an act of offering and been seen as “performing” and therefore not worthy to be there.  It seems that we in the Church like it to be good, but not too good.  Which is ridiculous if you think about it.  Surely nothing we can offer is as good as the worship of the angels.  God knows and loves the spirit in which our gifts are made.  Other times, people have told me that they can tell if someone is worshipping or performing, but after decades of working in the performing arts with people of all ages and stages, I would challenge that.  In my experience, all artists present their work with a hope that it will be able to inform, educate, challenge or entertain, and that it will move people and yes, be judged as good.  But the idea that people who are professional performers do it from a spirit of “Look at me everyone” is just not true.  Indeed, professional performers are among the most insecure people I have ever met.

More than that though, I would challenge it because it comes from a position of “those people up there offering worship” and it being offered to the congregation – an audience whose job is to judge if it is good enough.  But of course, we all know really that it’s not about us at all.  It’s about God and worship is offered by the whole congregation, the whole of the time.  Sometimes that worship is led by worship leader, reader, musician and preacher, but it is our response in singing, thinking and focusing on God that makes it worship.  I am looking forward to being a part of the truth of that in all the worship that is led across the Thames Valley Circuit in the coming year as we too join with Miriam and David in singing and dancing, as well as praying and thinking, in response to the joy of our relationship with God.

God bless,

Vicci