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Posts Categorized: Worship
August 15, 2023
“First Breakfast, then School, then Scooby Doo.” I tick off each item on my finger as I name them to my son, Westley. It had taken me a minute to shrink the schedule into just three items and to end them with the desired one, but after what seemed like an eternity—and was really about… Read more »
August 3, 2023
Worship tells a story that can cause discomfort In contemplating pastoral identity in a secular age, I found myself thinking about liturgy—the public ritual act of worship, one of the main parts of my role as a congregational pastor. What does liturgy mean in this frame—where so few people feel God’s presence in their lives?… Read more »
July 3, 2020
When words collide Bumping through the Lord’s Prayer by Ken Rummer In my pastoring days, I often invited the mourners at the graveside to join in praying the Lord’s Prayer. I suppose it was a vestige of Christendom culture, the assumption that most everyone there would know the prayer by heart, but in our rural… Read more »
May 4, 2020
Are you ready for hybrid online/in-person worship? The next phase your church needs to consider by Richard Hong Sunday morning has become a stressful time for so many pastors who never imagined that their job would involve being an AV tech. “Hallelujah!” is the cry when the internet connection stays up and Zoom properly connects to… Read more »
April 7, 2020
And the steeple bell rang A rural church’s Holy Week witness in a pandemic by Donna Frischknecht Jackson Frank, I really don’t think it’s a good idea to gather at the church. Yes, I know this is the holiest of weeks. You are correct. Easter is coming. Yes, I know you miss your church…. Read more »
August 3, 2018
Silence as praise The sound of no hands clapping by Ken Rummer When the music ended, nobody clapped. I was the guest violin soloist for a performance with the high school concert band in the next town. It was their winter concert, to a full house. We were playing music by John Williams,… Read more »
July 14, 2018
Church growth: Connect, not attract Understanding ‘why’ before ‘what’ by Richard Hong Too often we hear about something that is successful for another church and, when we look into it, our immediate thought is “that won’t work here.” We often reject what it is before understanding why it works. Why it works is about… Read more »
May 31, 2018
Praying in Mother’s Language Why It’s Important to Worship God in Multiple Languages by Samuel Son The gospel song, 나의 반석이신 하나님 (naui banseogisin hananim/Ascribe Greatness to Our God), sung in the closing worship service of the National Caucus of Korean Presbyterian Churches (NCKPC) annual meeting excavated my soul, loosening memory and longing of a… Read more »
April 17, 2018
Like a hired hand A Revised Common Lectionary resource for April 22 by Magdalena I. García ‘The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away — and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.’ – John 10:12 Read the… Read more »
February 14, 2018
Going backwards How church entryways have changed by Richard Hong In March 2016, our historic sanctuary was destroyed in a three-alarm fire. After five months of worshiping in “portable” locations, we returned to our gym, which we outfitted for use as a worship space until our sanctuary can be rebuilt. Last month we took… Read more »