NORDIC & BALTIC School of Congregational Development 9/1-6/09 – Oslo, Norway “new communities of faith with new people”

“HEARTS STRANGELY WARMED, AGAIN” DYNAMIC WORSHIP - SYNERGY & INTEGRITY BETWEEN TRADITIONAL & CONTEMPORARY WORSHIP Rev. Kelvin Sauls

THE PRESENT & FUTURE? strategies/methodologies that got us here will not sustain us where we are, nor grow us to where we need to go

“I don't preach a social gospel; I preach the Gospel, period. The gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ is concerned for the whole person. When people were hungry, Jesus didn't say, "Now is that political or social?" He said, "I feed you." Because the good news to a hungry person is bread.” Archbishop Desmond Tutu South African Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

“To be Christian is to be global. Deeply incarnate in every soil where it is planted, the gospel of Jesus Christ knows of no boundaries. Its song sprouts strong & travels unto the very ends of the earth, declaring the marvels of God’s salvation” Jorge Lockward Director, Global Praise The General Board of Discipleship

Whether traditional or contemporary, the essentials of worship are: recognize, evangelize & mobilize.” Worship ought to help people recognize & re-cognize God; seek & surrender to God continuously; be energized & excited to make disciples of Jesus Christ for global holistic transformation.

BIBLICAL FRAMING John 4: 1-30 (CEV) 19The woman said, "Sir, I can see that you are a prophet. 20 My ancestors worshiped on this mountain, [b] but you Jews say Jerusalem is the only place to worship.“b 21Jesus said to her: Believe me, the time is coming when you won't worship the Father either on this mountain or in Jerusalem. 22You Samaritans don't really know the one you worship. But we Jews do know the God we worship, and by using us, God will save the world. 23But a time is coming, and it is already here! Even now the true worshipers are being led by the Spirit to worship the Father according to the truth. These are the ones the Father is seeking to worship him.

BIBLICAL FRAMING John 4: 1-30 (CEV) 25The woman said, "I know that the Messiah will come. He is the one we call Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us." 26"I am that one," Jesus told her, "and I am speaking to you now." Psalms 96:1-3 (NIV) O sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, bless God’s name; tell of God’s salvation from day to day. Declare God’s glory among the nations, God’s marvelous works among the peoples.

John Wesley’s Aldersgate Experience In 1738, in his 30’s, he attended an evening worship service in London which moved him deeply. "In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society located on Aldersgate Street, where one was reading Luther's preface to the Epistle to the Romans…

John Wesley’s Aldersgate Experience “…while the leader was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death”

Worship – whether traditional or contemporary - need not be a test of endurance. Worship plays can be a significant resource for tools of endurance, empowerment and enlightenment. We can overcome challenges prior, during and after our worship.

CHARACTERISTICS OF WORSHIP WITH INTEGRITY & AUTHENTICITY Worship ought to move people from loneliness to authentic community Worship ought to move people from hopelessness & brokenness to hope & healing

CHARACTERISTICS OF WORSHIP WITH INTEGRITY & AUTHENTICITY Worship ought to move people from self- centeredness to God-centeredness Worship ought to move our values from a mainstream ethic to a Jesus-ethic “Mainline or Methodist” – Rediscovering our Evangelistic Mission” – Scott Kisker

CHARACTERISTICS OF WORSHIP WITH INTEGRITY & AUTHENTICITY Worship ought to move people from cowardice to courage Worship ought to remind us of our identity & ability in God “Secrets of the Vine” – Bruce Wilkerson

CHARACTERISTICS OF WORSHIP WITH INTEGRITY & AUTHENTICITY Worship ought to help people respond to an alter in their lives that’s positive & an altar that’s transformative Worship ought to invite people into a disposition of individual & corporate thankfulness to God

CHARACTERISTICS OF WORSHIP WITH INTEGRITY & AUTHENTICITY Worship ought to facilitate forgiveness, faithfulness & fruitfulness Worship ought to be about the renewal of faith & the refreshing of spirituality

CHARACTERISTICS OF WORSHIP WITH INTEGRITY & AUTHENTICITY In its essence, our worship unto God invites us into a lifestyle where we don’t just come to Church, but be and become the Church of Jesus Christ – daily!

CHARACTERISTICS OF WORSHIP WITH INTEGRITY & AUTHENTICITY Worship is more about what happens before the processional & invocation, and after the benediction & recessional; more about what happens the other six days of the week, than what happens on Sunday. Everyday ought to be “Sonday”!!

CHARACTERISTICS OF WORSHIP WITH INTEGRITY & AUTHENTICITY The substance of worship is not its style, but God’s presence. The style of worship is not what makes us United Methodist. What makes us United Methodist is that our worship facilitates a connection with God that enable us to embrace and practice a spirituality that can facilitate personal holiness and social righteousness.

Embedded in a Wesleyan methodology of hymnody is a Wesleyan theology of worship: incarnational contextual practical transformational missional invitational

The audacity to imagine the otherwise is at the heart of Christian worship & faith. Such an audacity can fuel a renewed way of looking at one’s identity & spirituality; ability & activity; destiny & divinity. This can be the imagination & mobilization for a post-modern Methodist Revival that’s individual & experiential, holistic & global!

ABCD’s of WHERE to GO from WHERE you ARE ACKNOWLEGEMENT move beyond denial & engage in assessment; knowing where you’re going starts with knowing where you are appreciation, evaluation & elevation

ABCD’s of WHERE to GO from WHERE you ARE BOLDNESS ask the “why” questions; listen to & learn from answers; take risks to discern, design & determine the next level

ABCD’s of WHERE to GO from WHERE you ARE COLLABORATE organize & mobilize those inside & outside the church; connect your service of worship with your worship through service

ABCD’s of WHERE to GO from WHERE you ARE DETERMINATION practice patience, persistence & perseverance victory is given to those who aren’t just looking for quick fixes, but who are in this for the long haul

CALL TO WORSHIP Like Jesus, we have to go through Samaria; Like the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s Well, we must leave our buckets; For the John Wesley’s of today, we must become a people & places where hearts are strangely warmed!

SENDING FORTH Like Paul & Silas, allow courageous & contagious worship of God to free you from whatever is keeping you imprisoned & incarcerated from God’s purpose, power & possibility GROW! GLOW! GO!

BIBLIOGRAPHIC RESOURCES FOR ONGOING GROWTRH Barna, George. Growing True Disciples. WaterBrook Press, 2001 The Second Coming of the Church. World Publishing, 1998 Blackaby, Henry & Richard. Spiritual Leadership. Broadman & Holman, 2001 Easum, Bill. Leadership on the Other Side. Abingdon, 2000 Global Praise, The General Board of Global Ministry New World Outlook Mission Magazine. March/April, 2009 For Everyone Born: Global Songs For An Emerging Church, 2008 Charles Wesley at 300, 2007 Hybels, Bill. Courageous Leadership. Zondervan, 2002 Johnson, Spencer. \Who Moved My Cheese. G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1998 Knight III, Henry H. & F. Douglas Powe, Jr. Transforming Evangelism: The Wesleyan Way of Sharing Your Faith, 2006 Kotter, John Our Iceberg Is Melting: Changing & Succeeding Under Any Conditions, 2006

BIBLIOGRAPHIC RESOURCES FOR ONGOING GROWTRH Percy, Harold. Your Church Can Thrive, 2003 Ruffle, Douglas Roadmap to Renewal: Rediscovering the Church’s Mission, 2009 Stewart, Carlyle F. Reclaiming what was Lost, 2003 Kisker, Scott Mainline or Methodist? Rediscovery Our Evangelical Mission, 2008 Sweet, Leornard. AQUA Church, 1999 Teykl, Terry. The Presence Based Church, 2003 The United Methodist Publishing House The United Methodist Hymnal, 1989 With One Voice: Discovering Christ’s Song In Our Worship, 1989 Wilkinson, Bruce. Secrets of the Vine. Multnomah, Inc., 2001