Whether it’s a church service, small group or conference,  every worship event starts somewhere and somehow.

Worship is a journey that begins with the end in mind… to be fully engaged with Jesus, and being ready to say “Yes” to Him in response. 

The question is, where and how do you begin strongly.

Here’s what I do know (or have experienced) about worship services in general.

• Not everyone has arrived on time. Some are getting kids settled in kids ministry. Others have simply had a difficult time that morning, and still others are simply dragging their feet. Because of this…
• Few people’s hearts and minds are primed, ready for worship. Some have been caught up in conversations with other people… and that’s good… but it may mean that they enter with the conversations echoing in their head. They may have had a tough week, or they have tricky issues they have to face in the week coming. They’re in lots of different places, and need to be united as one. That’s not a criticism. I’m no different most of the time! But knowing that helps us prepare for the start.
• The worship team is more ready than most people (I would hope!) They, for the most part, are ready to worship, and so the team needs to guard their own hearts and sometimes tongues as we lead people. 

With all that and more in mind, we need to gather people together as one to worship. That’s why a “Call to Worship” has been a part of church liturgy for a long time. Even if we have a freedom to plan, a “Call to Worship” will never go astray. Leaders must grab people’s attention and tell them with faith that God is present and wants to engage with them.

Psalms often give us great clues as to what to do. Psalm 100:4 is a classic, well known call. We are to enter God’s presence with praise and thanksgiving. Praise is a great starter, because it has the potential to lift people’s attention from the last conversation, the problem with kids, the heavy work week, or personal problems, and set our focus on God.

Whatever or whoever you praise, gets your attention. 

How do you do that? There’s a number of ways that will depend on your church culture and your own personality, so here’s some ideas.

• Begin with Scripture. Psalm 95:1, Psalm 122:1, Psalm 100:4  – you can read it straight from an accessible translation, paraphrase it… but keep it brief and punchy. This is not a time to preach, but focus attention.
• Start with a music introduction and simple invite people to worship. Speak over the music introduction so that you can easily segue into the song.  Usually an upbeat song will help.
• Ask people if they are ready to worship God (it will at least get their attention!). They will usually answer ‘yes’ but they are probably not. The statement itself will spark their imagination to be focused on worshipping God.
• Simply sing. Be upbeat, encouraging and smile! Some feel a simple short song – or part of a song – helps people engage. It may take a whole song verse for conversations to conclude, and people to realise the we’ve begun, but that’s OK. You can then do your brief call to worship. 
• Pray. Begin with a brief prayer of praise and thanksgiving. Speak a little faster than usual, and maybe a little more intense. Be bold and speak on behalf of people to God declaring and confessing something extraordinary of His character and what we want to do to worship Him. Acknowledge – indeed declare –  His presence amongst us and launch into worship. 

There’s other ways, I’m sure, to get people’s attention from their own earthly orbits, and into God’s orbit. Try mixing these ideas up.  The key is to get people’s attention, and then direct them to God (never yourself). Be encouraging. Be joyful. And be sure to genuinely worship God yourself. 

I’m keen to know what works for you so we can share it with others. Do you have a particular way you like to begin that you have found helpful? Share it with me at john@worshipcanvas.com.au