A Great New Online Resource Hub for Worship Leaders

Zac HicksWorship Resources2 Comments

Since its inception, the Gospel Coalition has served as a “third space” for folks of various denominational ties to come together to celebrate what we hold in common—the gospel.  However, it’s more than just another attempt at common-ground ecumenism, which has often ended up in such a watered down unity that it barely tastes anything like historic, orthodox Christianity.  No, it’s not that the non-essentials are unimportant. It’s that the full, robust gospel is of great, preeminent importance, and it is therefore worth our best attempts at prizing it in all our conversations about life, faith, and ministry.

In my opinion, the world wide web has been in sore need of more doxological reflection (reflection on worship) through a biblical, gospel-centered lens. I’ve always longed for a kind of “Gospel Coalition for worship” which devoted its energies to processing the Church’s worship through the theological grid of the good news.  In other words, I’ve been looking for an online third space devoted to the intersection of doxology and theology. 

I’m thankful that this day has arrived when I can introduce to you one of the answers to my prayers: Doxology & Theology.  It’s a coalition of worship leaders and thinkers from different Christian traditions (Baptists, Presbyterians, charismatics, independents/non-denoms, etc.) who all believe in the gospel’s preeminent role in governing and shaping Christian worship.  I’m excited to affiliate myself with this co-op and introduce it to my readership.

What is the Mission/Agenda?

The mission of Doxology & Theology is, simply, “We exist to promote gospel-centered worship by connecting and equipping worship leaders.”  It is a community promoted by worship leaders/pastors for worship leaders/pastors.  The burden of Doxology & Theology is to inject Christian worship with a heavy dose of scriptural reflection with the hopes of turning much of our worship away from the prioritization of pragmatics toward the prizing of the biblical framework for worship. 

The worship leaders with whom I’m connected through D&T share my concern for the state of modern worship, and we long to be helpful reformers from within rather than curmudgeons from without.  We share a passion that the more we apply the gospel to our lives as individuals and to our worship as the corporate body of Christ, the more we will see health, vitality, and missional thinking and living restored to our churches.

Who Are the Contributors?

Some of the pastors and worship leaders behind D&T include: 

Matt Boswell, Providence Church (Frisco, TX)
Mark Miller, Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church (Ft. Lauderdale, FL)
Michael Bleecker, The Village Church (Dallas, TX)
Matt Papa, Summit Church (Durham, NC)
Aaron Keyes, Grace Church (Atlanta, GA)
Bruce Benedict, Christ the King Presbyterian Church (Raleigh, NC) 
Zac Hicks, Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church (Denver, CO)
Aaron Ivey, Austin Stone Community Church (Austin, TX) 
Mike Cosper, Sojourn Community Church (Louisville, KY)
Stephen Miller, Journey Church (St. Louis, MO)
Andi Rozier, Harvest Bible Chapel (Chicago, IL)

It’s worth mentioning that Doxology & Theology has the support of folks like Bob Kauflin, Darrin Patrick, Tullian Tchividjian, and Matt Chandler. 

What will Doxology & Theology Be Doing?


Regularly posting articles on thinking about worship through a biblical lens.
 
I’d encourage you all to subscribe to the blog or regularly check it.  Following D&T on Twitter (@DoxAndTheo) is an easy way to stay connected, too.  Here’s a sampling:

Hosting annual conferences.  The first conference will be held on November 1-2, 2012, at Providence Church in Frisco, TX.  Their hope is to address topics such as worship’s connection to mission and justice, songwriting, and gospel-centeredness.  The roster of conference speakers includes folks like Bob Kauflin and Matt Papa.

Putting out a publication or two.  This is in the preliminary stages, and we’ll see if God grants it success, but the goal is to produce a worship leader-friendly book which demonstrates the art of processing worship through a biblical-theological lens…written by worship leaders for worship leaders.

Check it out and get connected!

2 Comments on “A Great New Online Resource Hub for Worship Leaders”

  1. Goodness, I feel like an e-stalker with all these comments, but I'm just genuinely interested in most things you post. Great blog!

    I'm so excited about this news. My dad was pretty involved in the earlier part of The Gospel Coalition and I'm so excited to see more coming from it! Can't wait to see how it grows.

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