Worship: Beyond the Hymnbook: A Communication Specialist Looks at Worship

by Charles H. Kraft, Chuck Fromm (Foreword)

What is worship? Are the things we do in worship mere ritual, or do they have meaning? Why do we do these things, anyway?
Worship is one of our most important acts, and it serves several purposes. In worship, we honor the God who has done so much for us. We communicate to him that we are on his side. We educate our children, leading them into a deeper relationship with Jesus. And we communicate to Satan that we're on God's side, for worship is both an act of solidarity and an act of war.
But how best to communicate in worship? Traditional singing is often simply a transition to another part of the service, and for some worshippers, the songs' very familiarity can be deadening.
Into this context of familiarity comes contemporary worship with guitars and drums--as well as the new life found in new appreciation for a contemporary understanding of God. New music spawns renewal of our excitement, our appreciation of our relationship with Jesus, and our involvement in his program. We can no longer sit, heads down, as we read old thoughts in old hymnals. He is alive, and so are we.

"In Worship, Kraft calls us to a higher standard of worship, one which we as leaders in the church need to take note. Serving God's church for the past nineteen years in the worship leader role, I am no stranger to many of the issues he tackles head on, and whether you have been serving ninety years or today is your first day; read, wrestle with, and digest this book. It will surely serve you well as you serve God's people."
--Thomas Hale, Pastor for Worship, Arts & Technical Advancement, Pasadena Covenant Church, Pasadena, CA

"Worship is vintage Kraft! His penetrating analysis of worship drawing on cultural approaches and communication principles gives us a rich resource for going deeper in our relationship with God and what we do in church services. From issues in 'hijacking worship' to worship as relationship that is formal, informal, or deceitful, Chuck Kraft stimulates us to get beyond the hymnbook in his engaging, inimitable way."
--Roberta R. King, Associate Professor of Communication and Ethnomusicology, Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, CA

Charles H. Kraft is Professor Emeritus at Fuller Seminary after forty-one years as Professor of Intercultural Communication. He has taught anthropology, communication, contextualization, and spiritual warfare to missionaries and prospective missionaries, in addition to serving as a missionary in Nigeria. He holds degrees from Wheaton College (BA), Ashland Theological Seminary (BD), and Hartford Seminary Foundation (PhD) and is the author of thirty-two books and numerous articles in his fields of expertise.

128 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 19, 2015

About the author

Rev. Dr. Charles H. Kraft is an anthropologist and linguist whose work since the early 1980s has focused on inner healing and spiritual warfare. He is the Sun-Hee Kwak Professor of Anthropology and Intercultural Communication in the School of Intercultural Studies, Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California, teaching primarily in the school's spiritual dynamics concentration. He joined Fuller's faculty in 1969. In the 1950s he served as a Brethren missionary in northern Nigeria. He has been a professor of African languages at Michigan State University and UCLA, and taught anthropology part-time at Biola University. He holds a BA from Wheaton College, a BD from Ashland Theological Seminary, and a PhD from the Hartford Seminary Foundation.

-Wikipedia

Reviews

[Dusty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixed feelings. There are aspects of this book that made me re-think how I worship, and some parts that so accurately described my experience growing up in church that I ran around showing my family members the applicable two pages. However, it also runs a little over-analytical about worship for a lay person. I get the feeling this is more aimed at pastors and worship leaders. I found myself feeling like he was overthinking this, though again, perhaps I'm not the target audience. Probably wouldn't re-read.

[Brandon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kraft comes from a background that was not Pentecostal until later in life. His counseling ministry, experience, and perspectives in spiritual warfare bring a valuable understanding to the importance of God's people singing, praising, and worshiping with one's whole heart. He shares great insight on the critical importance of corporate worship, the purpose of community gathering, and he tackles the classic "hymns vs. praise songs" argument. Some content is redundant, but overall good. He states, "Many that love hymns need contemporary worship songs; many that love contemporary worship need hymns." I resonate with one of his points strongly, that when we gather as the body of Christ, we need to experience God's presence and wait on him first and foremost. In my early years learning to lead worship, I often would be reminded to be considerate of those in the congregation that knew hymns and tried to respect that. Sometimes I would get complaints about songs because they weren't hymns. I have always appreciated it when someone from an older generation is cheering me on in leading worship and not complaining about a guitar being on a stage. Thank you Dr. Kraft for the encouragement.