Jared Wilson has posted a blog titled “6 Questions Worship Service Planner Should Ask” on The Gospel Coalition website. He asks some very helpful things that should be regularly asked for those of use who plan a worship service on a regular basis. I think the most important question that should be asked that Jared has in his list is the 5 one: Does this element exalt God or man? So many times people take church to be for and about them instead of the one who created them. All of us are incredibly selfish people who will stop coming to a church when it stops fulfilling our wants and desires. Only when we have the vertical (God) component correctly in place can we start to get the horizontal (man/ourselves) component to work the way it is intended to work.

One other question I would add to this list is: What is the history of this element? Is it something that needs to be redefined for people or will everyone understand why it’s being included? One example I can think of is meditation, which might be difficult for someone who had recently become a Christian from a Hindu or Buddhist background. How would we explain that moment to them and would we need to help them understand why we’re doing that?