Episode 15 - Our Fantasy Sunday Morning Service

Some unrealistic expectations we might have for our Sunday morning services include:

• Off the charts preaching!! People are flocking to the front, weeping in repentance, falling in commitment, and even the Holy Spirit pauses his work to hear the oratorical gems falling from the pulpit!
  
• Arena show music! Lights, fog machines, amps, sound... just like Catalyst Conference music - every Sunday?
• The Friendliest church in town! People are abuzz with fellowship and relational connections.
• Hundreds of visitors every Sunday! Three visitors to every member! It would be a visitor-thon every Sunday!
• Burgeoning offerings! The deacons would frolic and dance to the altar with overflowing offering plates!

Would this not be the most awesome service to have week after week?! Okay, so maybe not every Sunday morning can be that way, but there actually are expectations that are in your control to meet week after week. Those expectations follow below the picture of our amazing fantasy worship service...

The foundation of all that we do in preparation for each Sunday morning worship service has got to be prayer. Is it prayer only? No. But it is prayer and... It must begin and end with prayer. We can do nothing spiritually effective without prayer and the empowerment and personal work of the Holy Spirit in us and through us.

With prayer as a foundational given, here are three expectations we can control:

1. That the leadership loves and encourages people. This actually starts before Sunday morning, when we connect with and pray for the people in our church family.
   
2. The message for the morning has been well-prepared. This is something we can control from week to week. The issue simply is: will we?
   
3. The pastors can be worshipers, and can lead by example. We can control that we come as worshipers.
   

We unpack these three expectations in the podcast, but these are three we can control EVERY Sunday morning, and help to make our time with our 20, 50, or 100 people a true time of worship!

Here is that video that humorously depicts the perfect 21st century, very cool, worship service!