Many Evangelicals are reacting against a mind/heart disconnect in worship, reaching for an experience of worship that transcends the merely intellectual. They desire to know God deeply by experiencing His presence as they worship. This desire has led to a subtle yet pervasive paradigm-shift in the philosophy and practice of worship. While worship was once understood as an enactment of praise, it is now viewed as a real, metaphysical “encounter” with God. It is seen as an experience of His divine presence.
The desire for experience as a kind of knowledge has driven this shift, and is a result of many changes associated with postmodernism. One critical feature of postmodernism is the exaltation of experience as an equally authoritative way of knowing. It suggests that we acquire knowledge through our experiences, and that these experiences convincingly illustrate reality for us in a manner that nothing else can. The result is the “postmodern worshiper,” who desires to know God by experiencing Him, and worship is seen as the prime venue in which He is encountered. In this perspective, we no longer simply sing or talk about God, but we actually “meet” with Him.
While there are real benefits to this shift in worship, there can be serious drawbacks as well. Experiencing Worship & Worshiping Experience lays out the foundation for this shift, and then seeks to uncover both the positive and negative aspects of the change. It also lays out a third option, the “experience-open” approach, a middle road that seeks a balance of “revealed truth” and experienced truth” in our pursuit of knowledge and in our approach to worship.
PREVIEW: Read an excerpt from the book »
Articles
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Misunderstanding God’s Presence
“Let’s just bring down that glory cloud!” We were listening to a worship band play at a local coffeehouse. The leader was urging the people to participate, trying to stir up their enthusiasm for worship. As a worship leader, I fully sympathize with his plea. However, I was little surprised by the language he employed.
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Growing People for Service
Have you ever wondered why we are not born as adults? Probably not, I would wager. Seriously, though, have you ever considered the fact that God could very easily birth us as grown-ups?
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“Professed” vs. “Practiced” Theology
Theology Undressed
It is a fascinating challenge to discover someone’s true theology. I have always found it an interesting undertaking to get beneath the labels that individuals apply to their theological positions in order to find out what they truly believe.
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What in the World is Corporate About Worship?
After the worship service one Sunday morning, a young man came up to me with a puzzled look on his face. He held in his hand our weekly bulletin, the piece of paper that details our values and beliefs, as he had a question for me about one in particular. “What is corporate worship?”
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Worship of the Heart
I have found that it is relatively easy to worship God with my voice, yet much more challenging to worship with my heart. It is not really difficult at all to sing a song or read out loud a Scripture passage with all those who are gathered together for worship. Other than the skill it takes to read and sing, the effort that is required to worship on this level is slight.
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