Exhortations : A Call to Maturity in Worship

by Douglas Wilson

At the beginning of each Lord's Day service at Christ Church, Moscow, Idaho, Pastor Douglas Wilson delivers an exhortation, or "call to worship." Clear, pointed, and direct, those calls have been as much appreciated as the sermons that follow them . . . and they are now available in print. Categorized by subject, the themes of these exhortations range from "Armies of the Living God" and "The Brethren," to "Reformation" and "Sin." With 153 separate calls, few subjects are missed, and even fewer words minced. Beautifully formatted, each chapter begins with a prayer of adoration and ends with a prayer of confession.

Genres: Theology, Cultural, Devotional, Ecclesiology

225 pages, Hardcover

First published June 23, 2000

About the author

I write in order to make the little voices in my head go away. Thus far it hasn't worked.

Reviews

[Jesus Salgado · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very impactful for me. It often feels like this is a how-to-do-list but the exhortation was convicting to me. If you are struggling with how you worship God on Sundays, this book is for you.

[Terri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Christians need to be reminded to lose the gym shorts and flip-flops on Sunday and dress to meet the Lord God Almighty. And sit still and listen.

Douglas Wilson exhorts us to worship God rightly with practical examples; simple ways but accomplished through doing battle with our sinful selves. How we sing, pray, listen and feast matter- a lot. Wilson exhorts by taking a log of an issue and whittling it down to one sharp, practical spear that goes right to the heart of the matter and leaves us better prepared for worship.

This is a great book to read during the week and it is a great book to hear from the pulpit on Sunday morning.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a modern day Valley of Vision, I simply love Doug Wilsons prayers or exhortations as the book is called. They are insightful, broad, and mature. I get sick of the silliness, and girlyman churches today where we are to be all feminized, Doug has an austere manner that appeals to me, a strong character that I like in a Pastor and these words convey that, I wish people I'm around prayed like this and more Pastor spoke like this from the pulpit, it what we need in today, and badly. This is one mans opinion, another one is get this and read it.

[Peter Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

A devotional type read that has various exhortations that Wilson delivered to his congregation. I like it because he touches on many different topics while avoiding being trite or sanctimonious. A good read for pastors in helping us to speak plainly to our people.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Preparing the mind for worship is something severely lacking in the modern American (Protestant Evangelical) church. Here, Wilson has compiled single-page calls to worship that help to prepare Christ's body for entering His presence.

[G Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a favorite of my regular companions... somewhat uneven... but more gems than not. I look forward or at least hope that there will be more volumes of this nature from Pastor Wilson. Good stuff!