Self-Assesment for Corporate Worship

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“To worship is to experience Reality, to touch Life. It is to know, to feel, to experience the resurrected Christ in the midst of the gathered community. It is a breaking into the Shekinah (the glory and radiance of the God who is immediately present) or better yet worship is being invaded by holiness of God.”  ~Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline
  

Self-Assessment for Corporate Worship

...because God's presence calls us to worship
and worship brings us before the throne of God[1]

These questions are designed to help you identify the way you think about corporate worship
(i.e. what happens and where is God in worship?)
  

  •   Do I usually think of worship as a noun or a verb (i.e. is worship something we ‘go to’ or something we do)? 
  • Do I consider myself a spectator or a participant in worship (do I watch others ‘lead’ worship, or am I actively part of it)? 
  •  Do I prepare for worship throughout the week (reading Scripture, praying deeply, listening for God’s voice throughout the week)?
  • Do I think of worship for me, or for GOD (Father, Son, Holy Spirit)--do I think about worship as happening before the Throneof God? 
  •  When music is played, am I listening to it or do I picture that music being played for God? 
  •  When I sing, am I actually singing to God (or am I just singing along with people beside me)?  
  • When I leave worship, am I usually thinking ‘that was good/that was boring‘ or am I thinking ‘God is good!’? (in other words, do you leave thinking about your reaction to the service or do you leave thinking about God who calls us to service?)
  • Do I expect to encounter God in worship? 
  •  Do I want to encounter the holiness of God? 
  •  When I worship, am I aware of God:
o   enthroned in heaven above –Holy and exalted (the Father) ?
o   and also with us –leading/teaching and interceding on our behalf (the Son) ?
o   and also within us –filling/empowering, uniting, sending (the Spirit) ?


[1] Based on the throne image in Isaiah 6. note: worship should happen every day, with each breath, but these questions focus on gathered, corporate worship

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