Missional

Sharing Our Songs!

3 comments Written on September 24th, 2009     
Filed under: Culture, Event Worship Resources, Liturgy, Local Church, Missional, Music, Resources for Worship, Songwriting, Theology
We’re working to develop and promote indigenous Covenant music – songs written in the Covenant church, that are an overflow of the missional life that we share. Through the Department of Christian Formation we are excited to start a pilot project of gathering and redistributing music written within our midst. Here’s how it works.

We’re looking for songs that can potentially become “theme songs” for various Covenant wide events. Each year we have a theme for our denominational events that flows out of our core values and theology. Send us any of your original songs that might support these themes. If your song is selected by the committee, it will be featured at the event, and a recording of the song will be distributed to all the participants so that they can take them back to their churches to the song can be sung in the local church.

Submit a song

The 2010 Midwinter the theme is “The Necessity of the New Birth.” Send us your original songs that flow out of that theme. We would love to hear them and pass the best songs on! Pass the word around! There’s a lot of “untapped” songwriting talent in the Covenant. We’re hoping this is a first step of many in helping to uncover some of that talent.

Rooting for you,

Andrew Thompson

of the Event Song Selection Committee

(A sub-committee of the Worship Commission)



Singing and Praying Justice

Post a Comment » Written on August 27th, 2009     
Filed under: Core Values, Culture, Dangerous Worship, Ethics, Formation, Leadership, Liturgy, Local Church, Missional, Music, Resources for Worship, Songwriting, Style of Worship, Uncategorized

A powerful reminder that the words we sing matter. As worship leaders we can either promote justice and a multidimensional view of God or myopic materialism – or often something somewhere in between. So much of it is in the words we sing.

http://www.urbanfaith.com/2009/08/singing-and-praying-justice.html

Thanks to Millie Lundgren for the link.

Rooting for you,

Andrew



Remembering Who Our Friends Are (Unsung Song Themes)

5 comments Written on June 16th, 2009     
Filed under: Bible, Church History, Core Values, Culture, Formation, Liturgy, Local Church, Missional, Music, Songwriting, Style of Worship, Uncategorized, Writing and blogging
Here’s a harder one. But it’s a question that’s been haunting me:

What are some of the important, but relatively distinctive, theological ideas that form the core of who we are as a Covenant church? And how, if at all, are those ideas expressed in song?

I’m not talking about the “we love God” stuff that ever Christian church wholeheartedly affirms – though I know we would affirm that too. Rather, what are the things that together make us distinctly “Covenant?” And are these ideas that express our character, flavor and approach ideas that we ever sing about? Are there songs that, even in part, express these ideas?

Let’s make a list. I’ll start with what I’ve got. You add your ideas to it.

Two rules:
1) Any song you list must be a song your church has actually sung within the last year. Don’t just raid the hymnal index.
2) If you feel you must disagree with someone’s post….please say so nicely.

The Idea:                                 A Song The Expresses That Idea:

Holistic Mission       -     We Are One in the Spirit, Let You Glory Fall, Christ Our Hope Is Here, Lord Give Us Eyes

Priesthood of all Believers    – ??…I’m drawing blanks…ideas??

Freedom in Christ    -     ??? Please, there’s got to be a song… right????

Evangelical but not exclusive      -

Biblical but not doctrinaire – “Ancient Words”

Congregational but not Independent -

Traditional but not Rigid -

I’m surprised by how hard this list is to fill.  Where are the songs that reflect our values? I’ll keep working on my list and developing this idea over the next few weeks. Will you help?

Rooting for you,
Andrew


Bringing my World to Christ

1 Comment » Written on March 16th, 2009     
Filed under: Missional, Order of Worship

Yesterday was Bringing my World to Christ Sunday– as encouraged by the ECC. We’re wondering if your church participated. If so, how did you incorporate BMWTC into weekend worship? What was the sum and substance of your participation?

Interesting. This morning Scot McKnight blogged about the future of evangelicalism. He notes 4 distinctives of evangelicalism, one of which is: the necessity of new birth. Evangelicals believe that Christian faith calls for a personal turning to God in Christ– an intention to follow– a decision to stay in faith rather than turn away from the faith of one’s baptism or heritage… His blog post is a response to Michael Spencer’s recent prediction that Evangelicalism is waning and, in fact, will soon be dead. It’s an interesting post, given that we in the ECC are, this year, focusing on our second affirmation: The Necessity of the New Birth.

Again: How does your church live out this affirmation in the forum of weekend worship– this past weekend or any other??



Shane Claiborne’s Connection Message

Post a Comment » Written on February 14th, 2009     
Filed under: Connection 09, Missional, Video

Shane Claiborne spoke to several hundred Covenant leaders at Connection 2009. The combined connection drew worship leaders, youth leaders and those interested in leading and serving ministries of compassion, mercy and justice. Our theme was “Undone.” Undone in ourselves, undone in the Church, undone in the world.

Here is Claiborne’s message:


Shane Claiborne Sermon from Covenant Communications on Vimeo.



Worship is Mission

Post a Comment » Written on January 20th, 2009     
Filed under: Articles, Leadership, Missional

by Craig A. Satterlee

My mandate was clear when they called me to be their pastor: “Help our church to grow.” Looking back, I was very naive. It honestly never occurred to me that the members of a congregation would, on the one hand, say they want to grow, and, on the other, resist the changes that would facilitate growth, such as welcoming people different from themselves and involving newer members in leadership. Many of the members seemed to do whatever they could to preserve the congregation’s self-identity as a “small church” and the ways they related to each other and made decisions as “a close-knit family.” I failed to recognize these behaviors as the natural-even expected-ways people protect their world of meaning and respond to change and the losses change brings.
Continue reading Worship is Mission


Register for CHIC 2009

Post a Comment » Written on November 13th, 2008     
Filed under: Events, Missional, News, Uncategorized
Tags:

CHICAGO, IL (November 11, 2008) – Early Bird registration for CHIC 2009 is now open. Read this full Cov News story for more details and info. Check out this promo video.



Forest Park in Dangerous Worship

Post a Comment » Written on November 4th, 2008     
Filed under: Dangerous Worship, Missional

MUSKEGON, MI (November 4, 2008) – A member of Forest Park Covenant Church is organizing a trip to bring free dental care to the Youth Haven Bible Camp in Beattyville, Kentucky.

Read the rest of this Cov News story.

Are you or your church involved in acts of worship outside the sanctuary? Reply to this post, and tell us what you’re up to.



Worship and Congregational Vocation

1 Comment » Written on September 23rd, 2008     
Filed under: Articles, Missional, Style of Worship
Tags: , ,

A newly posted article from the Alban Institute gets to the heart of a matter. If you believe weekend worship is linked to church growth and mission, has the power to attract or repel people and you dislike anything that smacks of customer service in worship, consider this thesis, given by Deborah Kapp:

Worship is one of the first experiences of a congregation that newcomers might have, and it therefore becomes an opportunity for the church to introduce itself to outsiders. When potential members or other visitors encounter a congregation in worship, they get a feel for who the congregation is, how adherents relate to one another, what some of the church programs are, and thus what it stands for. In repeated worship experiences, the contours of the congregation and its vocation become clearer and clearer.

Read the rest of Worship and Congregational Vocation. How do you feel about Deborah Kapp’s framework for this topic? How is it more or less helpful than others you’ve noticed? How do feel about discussions that wed worship with outcomes like church growth?



NPU Cyclists Complete Trek

Post a Comment » Written on August 20th, 2008     
Filed under: Dangerous Worship, Missional, News

QUINCY, MA (August 20, 2008) – On Sunday, six young adults parked their bikes with the front wheels standing in the Atlantic Ocean and then jumped in to the water to celebrate the completion of their cross-country journey. It had taken nearly three months to complete, and they had raised thousands of dollars for ministry.

Read the rest of this Cov News article.



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