Okay. I like this whole chapter. It’s really hard to pick quotes when you like the whole chapter. I gotta remember this is for school so I can’t just copy and paste the whole thing and make it my blog post… not that I’d do that anyway!
Why do I like this whole chapter? Probably because I’ve seen it happen so many times!! This chapter explains different ways song services can go, for example:
– The landlubber service
– The aborted service
– The quit-while-your’re-ahead service
– The tunnel vision service
– The U-turn service
– The standard charismatic service
-The so-close-you-can-taste-it service
Go read the book if you want explanations 🙂
One thing that is on my heart, even while writing this, is that I don’t want this to turn into a way of observing and judging worship services and/or worship leaders. The only times I would want to find myself judging and labeling services would be maybe if I was the one leading them, so that I could see, WITH Holy Spirit, how I could do it better. We are not called to judge hearts, only God is. I’ve been in enough different cultures, even different western cultures, to know that there is no one perfect way to do worship. We can sometimes end up judging worship services based on our own experiences, closing ourselves off to jumping in the river just because the music or way its being done (or even type of people!) is different than what we’re used to! If we do this, we can very well end up observing on land while the whole rest of the group is actually legitimately in the river. Just because they are all in the river doesn’t mean that I automatically will be. It’s all about the heart. Just seek Jesus, and only Him. Not your favourite music. You can end up deep in the river in corporate worship even if everyone is horribly out of tune, and rhythmically in different places. Yes it’s true!! (of course I realise the need for skilled musicians, or I wouldn’t be doing music school 🙂 )
When we hit the river in worship, the river can actually appear to be a detour. The river is flowing one way, and our songlist is going another way. Worship leaders are sometimes faced with a very awkward decision. Sometimes they have to choose between the river and the next song on the list.
Going with the songlist is like staying in the boat; it’s safe, predictable, and dry. Going with the river is like walking on water; it’s unpredictable, potentially hazardous, and filled with uncertainty. And following the river can be very disruptive to service orders. Sometimes we pay a price to follow the river. Leaders often have to make split second decisions to either go with the river or go with their list.
Those who have walked with Jesus long enough have learned that it’s safer to be out on the water with Jesus than to be in the boat without Him. But walking on water looks more dangerous
// Bob Sorge // Following the River // p22
Can I just say, too, that sometimes following the river means staying with the songlist 🙂 Let’s not think that we need to leave the songlist in order to be in the river. That’s like saying we must manifest in order to encounter the Lord. It’s not about the manifestation. It’s about the Lord. It’s not about the going out of order from the songlist. It’s about the Holy Spirit. There is nothing wrong with leaving the songlist, there is nothing wrong with manifestation. I do both those things. But it is about WHO is initiating.
Exploring Presence Worship 
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