Passionate Worship

I have enjoyed two very different worship experiences recently. On Christmas morning just over one hundred people of all ages came to celebrate Christ's birth. I was surprised at the numbers, although I realized our Jammie Challenge brought out many families with kids and young people. They did show up in their pyjamas and it was fun! Our music director, Doug, was at his best responding to carol requests and while there was a brief message the emphasis was on the joy of Christian community.

This morning was another delightful surprise. January can be a bleak month for attendance but on a beautiful morning well over two hundred people were on hand. Today the choir sang and Loaves and Fishes led a couple of contemporary hymns. A big gang of children headed out for Sunday School. So it was much more of a "regular" service yet there was a similar joy, community,and a sense of God's presence, at least from my perspective.

It happened that today I began a series on Vital Congregations by speaking about Passionate Worship. Both of the experiences I describe fit the bill, even though attendance was very different. In my message I affirmed the value of gathering to offer our praise to God, even though there are many options these days. I was so impressed by the commitment of our multi-generational tribe and thankful for the privilege of leadership with this congregation. It tempting to look at some denominations which focus on ministry to a younger demographic and want to be like them, but I feel it is a gift that we experience worship across four generations.
Any thoughts or observations?