John 4:23-24, “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”
Worship is Our Highest Priority
We have, from the very outset of our ministry, made worship our highest priority, believing that it is God’s desire that we become, first, worshippers of God.” For this reason, we value both a vision of worship that touches every aspect of our personal lives, as well as the gathered worship experiences that energize us and empower us.
In order to create worship environments that open the heart to God’s love in a give-and-receive posture, certain values shape our approach to gathered worship. Here are just a few:
1. We value intimacy with God, believing that making ourselves vulnerable to God’s Spirit as He has made Himself vulnerable to us (Phil. 2:5-11) is vital to knowing God as He desires to be known.
2. We value accessibility in our worship environments, seeking to create an open path for every person, of every age and background, to meet with God.
3. We value integrity in our worship lifestyle, desiring for our lives to match the lyrics we sing – whether they be about caring for the poor, loving our neighbor, or joining God in His work.
4. We value cultural connection in our worship styles, appreciating that sounds and forms of music provide a “bridge for the heart” for different generations and people groups.
5. We value Kingdom expectation in our approach to worship leadership, believing that as we respond to God in song, His Spirit is with us to heal, deliver, and set us free – in the midst of worship.
6. We value spiritual gifts, creativity, diversity, healing, prophecy, caring for the poor, and other themes that all impact the way worship is uniquely expressed in our churches.
We don’t worship in order to gain his presence. This is important, He is worthy to be worshiped whether or not he visits us. But since God ‘dwells in the praises of his people’, so we should always come to worship prepared for an audience with the King. And we should expect the Spirit of God to work among us. He moves in different ways- sometimes for salvation, sometimes for deliverance , sometimes for sanctification or healing. God also visits us through His prophetic gifts.
You will notice we consider weekly communion, sharing the Lord’s Table, as connected to our worship. It is at His table we remember who He is, what He’s done, and what we are then commit to Him in response. We provide opportunities to be generous with our financial gifts when we receive communion becoming a living metaphor, the outward sign of the internal dedication of all we are, all we have, all we hope to become.