15-5

Planned and Spontaneous

Most churches lean one way or the other. Things are planned out months in advance or they aren't planned out at all. I've worked with churches that you had to submit a request to have coffee after service 6 weeks in advance and I've been at a church on Sunday morning and been asked to lead the songs 10 minutes before service started because the worship minister didn't show up! Planning and spontenaity both have their strengths, but the best case scenario is when they are used with a healthy tension. You see, there are things that planning offers that spontenaity cannot, and the opposite is also true.

Planning can never replace dependence on the Holy Spirit. I don't know how many times we have had a great plan for worship and something happens mid-week or even Sunday morning that changes everything! Continuing with a celebratory service when a tragedy has just occurred may not make sense, and the opposite is true as well.

Planning also doesn't mean that everything will go right. Just because we plan something doesn't mean that everyone will follow it, that the sound system won't blow up, or keep some other disaster from happening in the middle of the sevice! What we need to realize is that having plans is a good thing, but there is nothing sacred about them. They are mean to serve us, not to rule us.

Planning does help us to utilize our time effectively. We have an hour and fifteen minutes to convince people who are hurting, confused, and empty that Jesus is bigger than all or the problems that are going on in their lives and that He loves them and came to earth to save them, and that is hard to communicate without a plan! Planning also helps us to use different ways of expressing the gospel each week, whether through different musical styles, preaching, testimony, or a variety of other ways.

Spontenaity is hard for me. I like the plan. God likes to step in and change the plan, sometimes it seems like every week He does...or maybe that is the pastor :) This gives us the freedom to address the needs that need to be addressed right then and there, such as last week when we took time to pray for the Kamara family. Spontenaity may look like that, or it may be as simple as repeating a chorus so that we can dwell on the truth we just sang a little longer. Either way, we must be open to following the Spirit whereve He leads.

The biggest takeaway is this: The Holh Spirit often guides us in spontaneous ways. "Of course, the Spirit can also use us in powerful ways as we play notes we've practiced for hours during months of rehearsals. But isn't it helpful to be able to do both?"

Enjoy the Journey