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5 Terrible Ideas That Will Make Your Worship Services Fake

4. When major news or world events weigh on people, some pastors choose to read their script rather than use a bit of empathy.

If you are preaching that well-crafted sermon each week, it is likely that your plans will be un-thwarted most of the time. However, that day will come when tragedy strikes your city or even the planet. If there is little empathy to acknowledge where people are at emotionally, then you are fake in worship. This may not mean throwing the sermon out, but it surely can be addressed in prayer or words of consolation and comfort. Our program is not to program people to worship. We plan a worship service, so we serve people’s need and call to express worship. We can assume good intentions, but again the message we send by ignoring where people are at can erase authenticity from the best-programmed service or sermon.

5. Hype and more hype does not make something exciting. It makes it fake and hyped!

That song from The LEGO Movie “Everything Is Awesome” reminds me of some who in worship try to hype every announcement, song or point in the sermon as the best that has ever been said, sung or preached. We can try to preempt people in the back by clapping big or saying “Amen” loudly to spur on the Spirit, but our manipulation is simply a choice to be fake. It seems like a better leadership strategy to humbly invite people to be excited rather than to pump things up at every opportunity. Bragging and exaggeration are not a spiritual gift! The message that hype sends is damaging to an authentic worship experience. We must be careful to not use our communication and marketing skills as a substitute for God’s move. The truth is that everything is not awesome. That sermon might be OK, and the events going on in your church worthy of attention. An invitation is always better than hype. Hype is always fake!

Let’s dialogue!

I hope these five ideas spur a good conversation. We all need to evaluate what we do and the message those actions send. Leadership is about seeing things not simply through our eyes, but the eyes of those we serve. Worship services that are FAKE can be avoided. Lose the hype, focus on people, cast a believable team, and yes EDM is not evil—just maybe if played in some of your church services!