Ever Wonder Why You Do What You Do in a Church Service?

This short post from Joe Thorn is very helpful for enriching your experience of Sunday worship.

This book from Joe Thorn is also very helpful.

Why Is It So Critical That We Sing Together?

Great meditation here from Mark Altrogge.

Pursuing Corporate Worship That is Meaningful

Although there are things that can be done to enhance corporate worship, there is a profound sense in which excellent worship cannot be attained merely by pursuing excellent worship. In the same way that, according to Jesus, you cannot find yourself until you lose yourself, so also you cannot find excellent corporate worship until you stop trying to find excellent corporate worship and pursue God himself. Despite the protestations, one sometimes wonders if we are beginning to worship worship rather than worship God. As a brother put it to me, it’s a bit like those who begin by admiring the sunset and soon begin to admire themselves admiring the sunset. This point is acknowledged in a praise chorus like “Let’s forget about ourselves, and magnify the Lord, and worship him.” The trouble is that after you have sung this repetitious chorus three of four times, you are no farther ahead. The way you forget about yourself is by focusing on God—not by singing about doing it, but by doing it.

D.A. Carson, Worship By The Book

Why We Sing

Michael Kelley:

This weekend, I like many of you, are going to church. And while I’m there, I anticipate doing a number of things, not the least of which is sing. I’m going to sing, by God’s grace, loudly. But it’s a bit strange when you think about it, right? A bunch of people gathered together to sing? Not something many others do in other settings. So here are 4 reasons to break out in song this weekend:

His four points:

1. Because we are commanded to.
2. Because I am a man.
3. Because you feel like it.
4. Because you don’t feel like it.

Read the rest.