Some interesting stuff from Jonny Baker's blog re worship

graham kendrick kicked off with a few thoughts. i jotted a few headlines from each speaker so some of graham's were

* when you look around when you are leading, not many people are singing. why?
* what began at the grassroots as a movement in worship is now more driven by the culture industries and that creates issues for worship in local contexts.
* the worship movement around modern worship songs has come from the 60s. a lot of what we see is still based on that and it has strengths and weaknesses. a weakness is that one personality fronts it.
* because the movement was recovering heart and feelings in worship, after a few decades have other things got lost?
* there is a tension between festivals (big experiences in worship) and how worship gets experienced in local churches. we have to understand these are different. worship leaders are the gatekeepers who should ensure this tension is handled.
* in song based worship we have lost the sense of story or journey through the whole of worship. need to recover it.
* 3.5 min pop song genre (where the modern worship song has its roots) has its weaknesses
* we have an issue around event dependence vs lifestyle
* psalms are a key to rediscover for a daily prayer and worship life
* tension between old and new. we are in danger of historical amnesia (i.e. we want the latest newest songs) at a time when culture is desperate for things with weight and roots.

mark earey, who i didn't really know, lectures at queens in birmingham in liturgy. his main critique was in response to the question 'where is jesus?' he suggested that the default for many is that jesus is encountered in singing in worship. so do we expect to meet jesus anywhere else? maybe that's our problem! he also raised questions about the use of technology in worship suggesting that the current cultural transition may have the depth of change about it that the shift to print did.

joel edwards, director of the evangelical alliance was excellent - i like him a lot. he brought a perspective from a pentecostal background. a few comments of his really stayed with me.

* worship has often been too cosy - a retreat from alienation rather than an engagement with pain.
* there is a new ecumenism where denominational ties and so on are not such a big deal.
* i thirst for something new. i am mostly bored. worship is narrow and predictible. is god vaguely bored too?