The State of Worship Music Today

Zac HicksHistory of Worship and Church Music, Worship Theology & Thought3 Comments

Mike Cosper, Pastor of Worship at Sojourn Community Church in Louisville, KY, is interviewed briefly by Bob Kauflin on the state of worship music today.  Note what this pastor-theologian-musician is and is not focused on.  Cosper emphasizes theological content, and doesn’t even really mention style.  Right on.  More of our analyses need to look and sound like this.

Here’s a sampling:

The Psalms are a brilliant example of teaching people how to prepare for suffering…and I think, unfortunately, the contemporary worship scene has had a really hard time with that.  John Witvliet has this great quote about how we need to write songs that “prepare people for their encounter with death”…We need to be equipping people with language for trusting in God in the midst of suffering…There’s been, unfortunately, an atrophy of the church in that concept. 

 

3 Comments on “The State of Worship Music Today”

  1. So good. I completely agree. As a songwriter, this is something that I've seen hugely lacking. Unfortunately for songwriters, writing laments instantly means no Christian radio play. "Family friendly" for some reason instantly means "nothing dark, nothing depression, keep it happy, keep it up."

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