Is there a point to it or not? In the charismatic traditions liturgy has very much been thrown out. Is this throwing out the baby with the bath water?
in Roy Godwin's book, Grace Outpouring, about the growth of Ffald y Brenin he says they use liturgy based prayer so that all can join in, from whatever background without feeling marginalized or ignorant.
They use liturgy to bring people into a comfortable safe place so they can then encounter what God wants to do with them, rather than having to try to work out what to do next; which was interesting after having some friend round who felt that friends of theirs were caught in some sort of religiosity through their use of liturgy and weren't meeting God for real because they didn't do free prayer.
Now in Ffald y Brenin their liturgical prayer has space for free prayer too, but I feel that especially as the liturgical prayer in Ffald y Brenin has the Bible verses printed with it, at least one does know that what one is praying is in the will of God. And I have found that He uses it to take me to some very deep places.
Having been brought up going to church only with the school, my only experience of church was a sung service with plenty of liturgy. I moved away from it when I became a Christian, but sometimes when I can think of nothing else (if I am struggling or have lost focus) it comes back to me. That familiar pattern is in my brain and God uses it to help me pray. I think it should pass the test - is it based in scripture? Also why am I using it? If it is just because I have nothing to say then maybe silence is better.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this, you have me thinking....
Thanks for that.
ReplyDeleteTerry Waite when he was a hostage in the middle east and in solitary confinement said he would've lost his faith without having the Book of Common prayer committed to memory.
Like I say sometimes I think we throw the baby out with the bath water.
Thanks again. Dx
This morning, our pastor's wife taught about Advent. She expressed the value of the set pattern that an Advent calendar brings to a people who have forgotten God's promises or who need to be reminded. Likewise, Israel was instructed to observe Holy days as a remembrance of God’s deliverance. Remembrance is important and liturgy is a designated time to remember.
ReplyDeleteBarbara, at the age of 6, began to share her bedroom with her elderly and frail grandmother, and continued to so for the next 16 years. While her parents didn’t attend church, her grandmother, who was German Lutheran and deaf, participated in Lutheran services regularly. She loved the liturgy because it allowed her to stay involved in the services. Being deaf, she would have been excluded from various parts of the service because she couldn’t hear; whereas the liturgical nature of the service allowed her to know where, at any given time, they were in the worship service. She was able to fully participate in the worship of her Savior.
Barbara “had to” accompany her grandmother to church at the Lutheran church and accepted the Lord at an early age, long before her parents did so. Today, Barbara has a deep appreciation for the liturgy, its consistency driving home the seriousness of God’s enduring desire to win our hearts. One of Barbara’s favorite books is Leviticus, a book that many have never read, much less studied or meditated upon. The liturgical nature of the book is an offence to many Christians and it’s often relegated to passé status as it represents the “Law” of what we often call the “Old Testament”. Yet one cannot understand the New Testament Jesus without understanding the Law of the First Testament which Jesus claimed to fulfill.
"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. Ma 5:17
God is not obligated to give us what we want, however He is obligated by His nature, to give us what we need. The great danger of finding a church that perfectly fits our opinion of what is right or good is that we will not be confronted with the uncomfortable correction that God knows is needed. Liturgy can be a safety net against unbalanced teaching. It can offend us and make us uncomfortable, but we must ask ourselves, “Why am I offended, is there a purpose? Is God trying to reach a hidden part of my heart? How is He speaking to me at this moment? What have I forgotten, that He would have me remember? Where in the Bible, can I meditate and learn more about the significance of this discipline?
Liturgy has a greater purpose beyond the walls of a church building. While we are immersed in the swirling activity of a world without a rudder; remembrance spurred by a liturgical discipline, becomes a safety line to the Rock of Ages – it keeps us pointed towards Him. The massive appeal of the multitude of distractions is no competition for the well trained confidence gained through liturgical discipline.
It may surprise us that we have our own liturgical practices that benefit us. I observe marriage, quiet time, prayer or listening for God, baptism, communion, sharing, taking notes, giving, encouraging, preaching, singing, worshiping, praising, drumming and something resembling dance. I intentionally practice these in gratitude and as a service to someone who saw in me something worth dieing for. I want to be reminded of that life-changing moment that I discovered such love and the enduring nature of it. I want also to be ready in the most trying of circumstances to unwaveringly proclaim the gospel that brings redemption and peace to God’s lost children.