3. Small Group Worship

Over the past several years, there has been a lot of conversation about how congregations should worship. We have added names to styles, such as traditional, contemporary, emergent, relaxed, and blended. We have experimented with times of day and days of week. We have debated the use of video screens, power point presentations, and what music we ought to be singing.
For the most part, though, these conversations seem out of context for the half of the Pony Express District congregations that average fewer than 30 in worship. Is there a place in all of this for something that might be called small group worship? How should we preach differently, sing differently, and pray differently when the group is small enough that the passing of the peace means passing it to everyone present?
Those questions made me wonder about Jesus and the disciples. What was their style of worship when they were together? We really don’t read a lot about those daily or weekly gatherings while out on the road. We do know that they weren’t using either organs or video screens, they didn’t have printed bulletins, and they didn’t have pews in which to sit.
It seems to have been more informal. They prayed when they needed to pray, and Jesus taught whenever he had something to teach. The concern about style was so low that no one even thought to explain it to us.
So, what should our 20-something or less worship services look like? We might expect them to be less formal and structured. Folks might be sitting in a circle rather than in rows. Prayer time might flow from person to person rather than being led by a single person or read in unison. Preaching might feel more like teaching or discussion rather than a formal presentation.
We could expect that the sharing could be more personal and in-depth. The experience would unfold as it went along rather than being planned well in advance. Each person would have a greater responsibility for contributing to the worship rather than attending as an observer of the preacher. The Sacrament of Holy Communion would have greater relevance as the small group supped together.
As I think about this, I can visualize some great strengths of intentionally worshipping as a small group. Truthfully, when I name the most meaningful worship experiences in my life, many of them occurred in a small group setting, such as at camp, a youth group meeting, or seasonal special service. If done well, small group worship has the potential to be more relational, more personal and focused, more participatory, and more relevant.
Unfortunately, many of our smaller congregations are still worshipping as if they were larger. In many cases, we have 10 to 40 people seated in sanctuaries that are designed for 100 to 200 people. Those who are present separate themselves as if they don’t want to hear their neighbor singing, and they sit as far away from the leader as the sanctuary will allow. They use formal styles that are intended to be used with large crowds. If Jesus were to walk in on one of these services, he would certainly not recognize it as worship.
It is time for one or more of our congregations to try something new. It is time for worship to regain its sense of integrity, timeliness, and relevance for those who participate. It is time for all of us to go to worship thinking about what we will offer rather than wondering whether the preacher will have anything to say. It is time to find a way to downsize the space in which we worship so that it is designed to be no more than twice the size of what would be needed to seat our expected crowd. (You may have heard the rule that if a sanctuary is more than 85% full, it is already full. I would contend that if a sanctuary is less than 25% full, it is already empty. Any space that is too full or too empty will lead to a smaller crowd in the future.)
I would like to hear from others about this. Is anyone already designing small group worship in an intentional way? What other ideas do you have that would be helpful? What can we do to add passion to the worship gatherings of our smaller congregations? Post a comment.