From Engaging to Equipping: Creating Space for Spirit-Led Worship

“Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you… with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.” (Colossians 3:16)

Within our Family of Churches, we see a beautiful variety of worship expressions—some with choirs and hymnals, others with guitars and LED walls. These stylistic differences are not problems to solve but pictures of God’s creativity and grace in every congregation. And yet, no matter what our worship sounds like, we all face a deeper question:

Is our worship shaping disciples or simply pleasing attendees?

We humbly invite you to reflect on the difference between engaging and equipping worship, and how the Holy Spirit might be leading your church toward experiences that form God’s people, not just fill the room.

Worship That Draws… and Worship That Disciples

We praise God for worship gatherings that are welcoming, inviting, and emotionally compelling. They matter, especially for those exploring faith or re-engaging the church. The Scriptures are filled with moments where God's presence stirs awe and draws people in (see Acts 2 or Isaiah 6).

But we also recognize a subtle temptation. No matter the style, whether modern or traditional, we can begin designing worship experiences primarily around people’s preferences rather than God’s purposes.

It’s entirely possible to:

• Create a hymn-led service that becomes a performance of familiarity rather than a response of faith. (We’ve witnessed numerous occasions where people join in with great bravato on “How Great Thou Art” and mouthed the words of “Have Thine Own Way”)

• Lead a contemporary worship set that emotionally moves a crowd but never disciples the heart.

The Holy Spirit does not dwell more richly in one style over another. But He does invite us to move from performance to participation, from emotional moments to everyday maturity.

Engaging Worship: A Good Beginning

We’re not here to pit one approach against another. Engaging worship matters. It helps people:

• Feel welcomed into a spiritual family

• Understand the flow of worship

• Experience the goodness and nearness of God

• Step into rhythms of Scripture, prayer, and praise

Engaging worship is often:

• Clear in transitions and language

• Accessible to those who are new

• Emotionally resonant and thoughtfully planned

• Centered on songs and messages that speak to real life

And yet, engagement is not the end goal. It’s a doorway into something more.

Equipping Worship: The Deeper Invitation

Equipping worship helps people live out their faith beyond the gathering. It forms disciples who are spiritually resilient, biblically grounded, and missionally active.

Equipping worship:

• Models spiritual disciplines (confession, prayer, Scripture reading)

• Encourages congregational participation, not passive consumption

• Trains people how to live out truth, not just hear it

• Invites obedience and transformation, not just emotional inspiration

Whether your church sings “Come Thou Fount” or “Goodness of God,” the question remains:

Are we shaping people into Christlikeness or into consumers of spiritual content?

Creating Formational Moments in Any Style

No church gets this perfectly. But every church can take steps toward formational worship. Here are a few:

• Explain the “why” behind what we do in worship. (“Why do we raise hands? Why do we sing together?”)

• Call people to respond, not just reflect. (“How will you live this out this week?”)

• Pray formational prayers, not just transitional ones.

• Teach spiritual habits in real time. (Invite the congregation to practice silence, confession, intercession.)

• Involve the body, not just the platform. Use Scripture readings, testimonies, or shared prayer.

And above all, trust the Spirit to do the deep work that no setlist or sermon can.

A Word of Encouragement for Our Churches

As we walk forward together as a Family of Churches, let’s be reminded:

• The goal is not to be more entertaining.

• The goal is not to be more traditional.

• The goal is not to be more contemporary.

The goal is to be more faithful.

Worship that faithfully reveals Christ, responds to His Word, and equips His people for mission—that’s the kind of worship we long to see in every context where the Bride of Christ gathers.

So whether you’re planning a worship service, preaching a message, or simply participating on a Sunday morning, may we all ask:

Am I being formed into the likeness of Christ through this moment… or just watching it happen?

Create space together for the Holy Spirit to move us from engagement to equipping, from spectator to disciple, from Sunday songs to Monday faithfulness.

If you’d like to explore this conversation further with your worship team or leadership group, reach out to our association. We’d love to listen, learn, and pray alongside you as the Spirit leads.

We’re in this together.