SURVIVING SUNDAY MORNING INNOVATIONS
Tampering with tradition is risky business. Can you change practices without having to change pulpits?
Cal LeMon
April 1, 1986
You have probably seen them, too: the blank stares, the nodding heads, the camouflaged yawns (tight lips for ten seconds followed by glassy eyes)—the signs of worship. Watching this litany of lethargy unfold all too often, have you ever asked yourself, Why do they keep coming back? I have. Let's admit it; worship can be boring. That's an offensive statement, isn't it? To label worship "boring" is close to tagging God with the same adjective. Our theology screams that God is the transcendent King, who makes his entrance with attention-getting claps of thunder or the cooing of a newborn from a stable. But he always gets our attention. You can't yawn at a burning bush. No, God isn't boring—but I've been. Learning Worship from a Master
About six years ago I decided not to be content to ho-hum my way through worship the rest of my life. Even though I'm a classical Pentecostal (yes, chandelier swinger, pew vaulter!), I saw as many bored Pentecostals as Presbyterians. No denomination, I discovered, had a corner on the yawn market. I wanted more than yawns on a Sunday morning. So when I have a spiritual dilemma, I preach a series of sermons on the subject (one of the perks of the job). I found a lot of worshipers in Scripture, but most were unbelievable because they seemed to worship so well—until I rediscovered the psalmist. Besides "Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name" (Ps. 103:1), I also found, "I remember . . . how I used to go with the multitude, leading the procession to the house of God, with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng. Why are you downcast, O my soul?" (Ps. 40:4, 5). Now there was a worshiper just like me! The psalmist evidenced all the agony and ecstasy ...
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