Worship leaders must continually stay fresh in our work. one great way is to read books on worship. I’ve compiled a two-part list of some of the best books for you to read. Many consider the first ten books to be the best place to start. only one title per author made this list; you may find additional books by that author in the remaining list coming soon.
I encourage you to take some time each week or each day to broaden your understanding of worship. It will give great results in your ministry. Worship Matters by Bob Kauflin is a great place to start.
You are reading: Best books on worship
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(alphabetical order)
ancient-future worship: proclaiming and enacting god’s narrative, robert e. webber
God has a story. Worship does God’s story.
There is a worship crisis today. the problem goes beyond questions of style: it is a crisis of content and form. worship in today’s churches is too often dead and dry, or busy and self-absorbed. Robert Webber attributes these problems to a loss of vision of God and of God’s narrative in past, present, and future history. While examining the worship practices of Old Testament Israel and the early church, Webber uncovers ancient principles and practices that can reinvigorate our worship today and in the future.
The final volume in Webber’s acclaimed Future Ancient series, Future Ancient Worship is the culmination of a lifetime of study and reflection on Christian worship. here is an urgent call to recapture vigorous, transformative, god-glorifying worship through the enactment and proclamation of god’s glorious history. the way to the future, webber argues, leads through the past.
committing to god: a biblical theology of worship. david peterson
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Worship is of immense concern in the church and ironically the source of controversy and dispute. Can we get behind the question of what style of worship we should engage in to understand the bedrock foundation for God’s people-honoring him as he desires? Is the dissatisfaction with worship voiced by so many perhaps a result of our having wandered from biblical teaching on the subject? Through careful exegesis in both Old and New Testaments, David Peterson unveils the total life-orientation of worship that is found in Scripture. Rather than determining for ourselves how we should worship, we, his people, are called to engage with God on the terms he proposes and in the way he alone makes possible. This book calls for a radical rethinking of the meaning and practice of worship, especially by those responsible for leading congregations. Here is the starting place for recovering the richness of biblical worship.
the heart of the artist: a character building guide for you and your ministry team. rory noland
The church can be so enthusiastic about the product an artist or musician produces that issues of character and commitment are often overlooked. this book meets those concerns head-on. Looking at the particular gifts and challenges that artists bring to the spiritual life, Noland uses his experiences of discipling artists to explore themes such as service versus stardom, teamwork versus solitary Christianity, and excellence versus perfectionism. This is the only book written especially to help artists and those who work with artists take seriously God’s call to character growth in their Christian lives.
to know you more: cultivate the heart of the worship leader. andy park
Andy Park writes, “I’ve learned through the years that becoming a worship leader involves far more than developing a set of skills-it’s all about developing a life in God.” Here’s your opportunity to sit at the feet of one who has for twenty-five years led contemporary worship services in the United States and Canada. In Park’s book you’ll get an inside look at how this worship leader has learned to follow the leading of the Spirit as he brings others into God’s presence. And you’ll find practical advice, experienced counsel and inspiring ideas on a variety of issues like songwriting, pulling together a team, staying humble, planning the flow of worship, what to do in times of dryness, working with the pastor and much more! Above all, Park will help you discover what it means for you as a worship leader to be first and foremost a worshiper.
the purpose of man: designed to worship. a. w. tozer
a.w. Tozer earned a legendary reputation as a prophetic voice and remains a best-selling author half a century after his death. A preacher at heart, he found his greatest joy in practicing the presence of God. worship was his focus and his passion. his sermons were such a strong statement of what he discovered during private prayer and worship of the triune god that he had both the ability and the anointing of the spirit to move his listeners to wrestle with what god was saying to them. church. His writings carry the same message with the same result to a new generation of worshipers. the purpose of man is the perfect introduction to tozer. Crafted from messages he called his best teaching, this book will also delight those who are already familiar with, moved by, and changed by his other classics. what tozer offers on the topic of worship here at the purpose of man will challenge him to reconsider his life’s priorities while also providing a cup of living water for his soul.
Relentless Worship: Biblical Perspectives on Worship and the Arts. best harold
We are not created to worship. Nor are we created for worship. We are created worshiping. Too often Christians have only thought of worship in terms of particular musical styles or liturgical formats. But a proper view of worship is far larger than what takes place in churches on Sunday mornings. Worship is not limited to specific times, places or activities. God is by his very nature continuously outpouring himself. Because we are created in his image, we too are continually pouring ourselves in various directions, whether toward God or toward false gods. All of us, Christian or not, are always worshiping, whether or not that worship is directed toward God. We are unceasing worshipers. The fruition of a lifetime of study, reflection and experience, this volume sets forth Harold M. Best’s understanding of worship and the arts. Widely respected as one of the foremost thinkers and practitioners in his field, Best explores the full scope of worship as continuous outpouring in all settings and contexts. With careful exposition and eloquent analysis, Best casts a holistic vision for worship that transcends narrow discussions of musical style or congregational preference. On this broader canvas, Best addresses popular misunderstandings about the use of music and offers correctives toward a more biblically consistent practice of artistic action. Incisive, biblical, profound and comprehensive, Best’s landmark volume is one by which all other statements on worship and the arts will be measured.
the architect of worship: a model for designing culturally relevant and biblically faithful services. constance cherry
There are many books available on the topic of worship today, but few provide a comprehensive, practical method for worship design. Constance M. Cherry, a worship professor and practitioner, provides worship leaders with credible blueprint plans for successfully designing worship services that foster meaningful conversation with God and the gathered community. Readers will learn how to create services that are faithful to Scripture, historically conscious, relevant to God, Christ-centered, and engaging for worshipers of all ages in the twenty-first century. The book sets forth basic principles concerning worship design and demonstrates how these principles are conducive to virtually any style of worship practiced today in a myriad of Christian communities. It will also work well as a guide for worship-planning teams in local churches and provide insight for worship students, pastors, and church leaders involved in congregational worship.
worship leaders, we’re not rock stars, stephen miller
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why do you lead worship? often the motives are mixed. You find yourself wanting to point people to Jesus but also feeling the desire to be noticed and praised, to be the center of attention. Stephen Miller is the worship pastor of a large church of young, energetic Christians. he and his band record albums and lead worship at conferences across the country. he knows the temptation to put on a show, to pursue fame, to seek the applause of others. and he has learned not to want anything to do with it.
In this book, Miller exhorts his fellow worship leaders to make Jesus the center of all their efforts. he teaches how to do this with scripture, teaching, prayer, story, and song. In general, Miller’s calling for worship leaders is to lead worship, wholeheartedly and wholeheartedly exalting God, rather than make a show of it. worship leaders, we are not rock stars he will encourage and challenge worship leaders by clarifying their purpose and identity, and in doing so he will bless those he leads.
worship matters: leading others to find the greatness of god. bob kauflin
nothing is more essential than knowing how to worship the god who created us. This book focuses readers on the essentials of worship that honors God, combining biblical foundations with practical applications in a way that works in the real world. The author, a pastor and noted songwriter, deftly instructs pastors, musicians, and church leaders to root their corporate worship in unchanging biblical principles, not divisive cultural trends. Bob Kauflin covers a variety of topics such as the devastating effects of worshiping the wrong things, how to base our worship on God’s self-revelation rather than our assumptions, the fuel of worship, the worshiping community, and the ways we the worship of eternity should affect our earthly worship.
the worship pastor: a call to ministry for worship leaders and teams. zac hicks
Modern worship leaders are restless. They have inherited a model of leadership that equates leading worship with being a rock star. But leading worship is more than a performance, it’s about shaping souls and making disciples. Every worship leader is really a pastor. The Worship Pastor is a practical and biblical introduction to this essential pastoral role. Filled with engaging, illustrative stories it is organized to address questions of theory and practice, striving to balance conversational accessibility with informed instruction. It is meant to be read by pastors, worship leaders, worship teams, and anyone else interested in deepening their understanding and experience of worship.
what books would you recommend?
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