HOME CHURCH OR CHURCH HOME (PART 5)

Church “Task” One

Worship* – Praise the Lord

CONFESSION

Unlike the author of Blue Like Jazz, Donald Miller, who says, “I don’t connect with God by singing to Him,” I actually believe that I do. However, like most surveyed Christian men, I don’t like to be noticed doing it. Google, “why men don’t like to sing in church,” and you’ll get a multitude of articles providing various stereotypical reasons untalented men like me don’t like to sing or express emotion in public. That’s why many of us just don’t “like church.”

However, during long, lonely cross-country drives or while I pulled guard duty at 0230 in the Army, I softly sang songs to my Savior and honestly felt closer to Him in those moments than I have even when reading Scripture. But put me in a small group and ask me to sing along with those who actually can and the only connection I feel to God is embarrassment over my lack of ability.

From my research, I would say I’m not an anomaly so if you are a man and do not feel as I do, consider yourself the fortunate minority. For the rest, consider this:

DISCUSSION

According to Thom Rainer’s study (https://thomrainer.com/2016/10/seven-key-reasons-people-choose-church/), 3 out of every 4 “church” visitors consider “worship style” (praise) to be their number one reason for sticking with a “church,” whether that’s a dedicated facility or a person’s home. But should “praise” be an important task of the “church” and something we ought to consider when choosing between different “church homes” or “home churches?”

Did you know that the most often repeated command in the Bible is some variation of “praise the Lord?” There are actually 8 different Hebrew words for praise ranging from “Hallelujah” to “zamar” (praise with music) to “tehillah” (praise with song) or even “yadah” (praise with lifted hands). 4 Greek words denote praise, “epainos” (laud); “doxa” (glory); “eulogeo” (speak well of); and “arête” (excellence). Over 180 times the word “praise” appears and over 250 times in some other variation (bless, give thanks, etc).

Since it is the most repeated command in the Bible, it makes sense that we ought to obey it. And if the Church exists to keep the Body of Christ healthy by “teaching us to obey everything Jesus has commanded” (Mt 28.19) then it also makes sense that our “church home” or “home church” would assist us in obeying this command.

PRAISE IN THE HOME CHURCH

“The institutional church tends toward viewing its members as an ‘audience’ and the worship experience as a ‘show.’ It is better… to view God as the audience and all the people equally accountable for the ‘performance’ of worshipping God in Spirit and in truth,” House Church Central.

Home churches are usually a small gathering of families (or individuals) around 5-15 (with variations of course) and they meet, obviously, in homes. Musical instruments are therefore limited, sound systems likely not required, and the participants may or may not be “good” singers. In my experience, if the small “church” has “musically-inclined” individuals, then they will likely lead the others in some form of praise and worship.

If you are a person who cannot sing well, like me, then it is very uncomfortable to sing aloud in front of a small group of people. And if you are a visitor or newcomer to this group, then it is even more awkward since you likely do not know them very well making the situation even more incommodious.

PRAISE IN THE CHURCH HOME

“My fear is that in the contemporary worship movement we have too often trained people to seek a caffeine jolt of emotional bliss,” Matt Merker (https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/reviews/singing-congregation-contemporary-worship/).

One constant I see among “church” attenders is that they will complain about the music. Either the music is “too traditional” consisting of hymns and organs or “too much of a production” as we sing Hillsong alongside drums and electric guitars. Despite our complaints, most of us expect some form of “praise” to exist and we want it to be just as good the concerts professionals perform (more on that in a later topic).

But one thing is almost always true about “Church Homes”—everyone doesn’t have to sing.

Statistics vary but some believe that in a traditional church service less than half the parishioners actually sing. When there’s 1000 or even just 50 present, only half singing is barely noticeable (especially if the performers are using a sound system). However, half of a home church—5 to 20 people—is uncomfortably noticeable.

CHURCH HOME OR HOME CHURCH?

“In [worship] it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart,” John Bunyan.

“He is my God, and I will praise Him, my father’s God, and I will sing about His greatness…. Let us praise God for His glorious grace, for the free gift He gave us in His dear Son (Ex 15.2; Eph 1.6).

If I’m not obeying God’s most often repeated command while I am alone, then I shouldn’t be using “praise” as an evaluator for determining what makes a “good church.” It’s hypocritical for me to judge others for doing collectively what I fail to do alone! However, if I obey His command to praise and see its value in a “church” setting, then for me, singing in a small group is much harder than joining in the chorus of dozens or hundreds. Singing in a group of hundreds is like watching a football game in person or attending a live concert of my favorite band. My heart joins along with my words when alone or feeling “anonymous” in a crowd of like-minded worshippers. But when I’m in a small group my heart is far from my forced utterances.

For me, the “church home,” where my voice and emotion dissipates in the flood of others’ euphonic melodies, is a better place to worship God through praise than a home church where my cacophony drowns the harmony of other’s worship. But maybe that’s just me. How about you?

*NOTE: Worship is not praise. However, rather than go into the true meaning of worship here, I opted instead to discuss praise. Whereas the practice of worship should be identical for those in a home church or church home, the same is not true of praise or the next topic. If you’d like to read more about “worship,” please check out the first part of this series “Worship Through” https://mikewarren4gzus.wordpress.com/2014/04/15/worship-through-1-of-4/ or here: https://mikewarren4gzus.wordpress.com/2015/05/21/breaking-bad-beliefs-debunking-christian-half-truths-13/.