Are We Worshipping? III: My Difficulties

Having outlined the typical Adventist Sabbath worship service in part I of this series, I would like to respectfully offer the reasons why I find that form of worship unsatisfying. (Before I begin, however, I would like to note that, in my experience, these common deficiencies in Adventist worship are neither universal nor inevitable. For instance, many "contemporary" or liturgical Adventist services are exempt from these criticisms; I hope more Adventists find ways to overcome them. The purpose of this series is to call Adventists to a deeper sense of what "worship" is, and explain my reasons for preferring "high church" worship.)

Sporadic Vertical Orientation
Typical Adventist worship often seems to lack a vertical (heavenward) orientation. We sing, but many hymns are topical, and often not directed towards God. We remember an "Old Rugged Cross," or dream of the "Sweet By and By"; we sing about "Bringing in the Sheaves," and proudly proclaim "We Have This Hope." Sadly, in too many hymns, we are simply not speaking to God. We are speaking to ourselves, or to the world, often about ourselves. We mention God in the third person: "He will come." Yes, we are singing in His presence, but in our songs, are we communicating with Him? What is gathering for worship if not meeting Him, entering into a dialogue with Him?

And when we address Him (in prayer), are we actively praising Him, or simply relating our own needs? As I mentioned last time, the moments Adventists spend in prayer are primarily focused on asking God to do things for us. We begin worship with a prayer asking God to be with us as we worship (invocation); then we pray to ask Him to bless the offering we just presented (offertory); later, after sharing public prayer requests, we ask God to address the public and private prayer requests of the congregation (pastoral prayer); at the beginning of the sermon, we invite God to assist the pastor to proclaim God's word (prayer before a sermon); at the end of the service, we ask Him to give us a safe trip home and a good week (benediction).

Yes, we thank Him in our prayers. Yes, we often begin with words of praise: "We praise you, Heavenly Father...". But Adventist worship often lacks long and intentional periods of praising and blessing God. Many Adventist congregations simply do not stand with eyes lifted to heaven, pouring out the words: "We worship you Lord," "You are blessed forever," "You are holy." Adventist congregations rarely enter into these words and let them flow, so that they rise and rise and rise to God. After beginning with the words, "We praise you, Father. . .", pastors and elders must quickly proceed to name the appropriate prayer request for that point in the service. Even those church pastors and elders who spend a greater portion of their prayers issuing praise to God can hardly do so for more than more than a moment or two in the typical pattern of Adventist worship. There isn't..... the time. The entire prayer itself only lasts a minute or two or five at most. It is an event that punctuates the worship service, rather than being the experience itself. It must end soon to accommodate a collection plate, a children's story, and then special music, and eventually a sermon. Prayer is on the agenda, fitting somewhere in the schedule.

In the liturgy of heaven, "without ceasing they sing, ‘Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God the Almighty, who was and is and is to come.’" (Rev. 4:8). In the presence of God, all fall on their knees crying, "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour and power" (4:11). Can't we capture even a few more moments of this experience on earth when we gather for a thing we would like to call "worship"?