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On Good Friday, as congregations meditate on the betrayal, suffering, and death of Jesus, some liturgies call the Church to identify with those who judged, persecuted, mocked, and killed our Lord. This is a sobering reality, and appropriate. But, like many stories in the Bible, there are multiple implications within this narrative.
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Jorge Navarro found Christ amid the difficult life he had chosen to follow. Drugs of all kinds were his daily bread, until one day everything changed. The force that had fueled his down-slide was the same force that fueled his desire to passionately serve the one who called him.
So now, here is your dilemma – you are leading a congregation that worships pretty well, but they don’t know much about the Christian Year. Outside of Advent, Christmas, Lent, Good Friday, and Easter, there’s isn’t much else about it. And what’s more, they don’t seem to miss it, or feel they ought to change things. And some of them are a bit suspicious of the whole idea. And besides, you don’t trust your knowledge about it all either, and you have no idea where to begin.
Worshiping according to the Christian Year is not merely another fad to follow, or some ancient practice to match. It’s a pattern of worship which at its heart has three major themes that will greatly enhance the life of any congregation.
How rich is the congregation who observes the Christian Year carefully!
Undoubtedly, as you work with the concept the Christian Year, you will encounter questions and will desire more information. Here are suggestions that offer some help.
Wise worship planners and leaders will draw on the power of visuals also.
When a congregation and its leaders are considering the observance of the Christian Year, there is another question that immediately presents itself.
How do you get started if your congregation and your staff knows little about the Christian Year? Some of you are undoubtedly in congregations that are quite familiar with it. But many others are not and don’t know quite where to begin.
Obviously, this work of getting started on the Christian Year in your worship life is not going to be something you will tackle by yourself as a worship leader. You’ll need others to join you in learning and studying, in teaching and introducing, and in evaluating the progress your congregation makes.
We discover easily that visual communication is often most effective. So if we are going to teach the Christian Year to our congregation, some diagram or picture of the Christian Year is needed, or at least some helpful metaphor that will portray it’s dynamic.
In November 2014 Calvin College senior Chantelle Yazzie traveled to Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Reservation, Carlton, MN, to participate in the third annual “Would Jesus Eat Frybread?” conference.
One way to keep sermons fresh is to ditch the deductive form, in which preachers begin with their main point and then work to prove it.
