We are made to be worshippers

As the great theologian Bob Dylan sang, “You're gonna have to serve somebody.” In his book “Unceasing Worship,” Harold Best writes: We begin with one fundamental fact about worship: at this very moment, and for as long as the world endures, everybody inhabiting it is bowing down and serving something or someone – an artifact, a person, an institution, an idea, a spirit, or God through Christ. Everyone is being shaped thereby and is growing up toward some measure of fullness, whether of righteousness or of evil…Worship is the continuous outpouring of all that I am, all that I do and all that I can ever become in light of a chosen or choosing god.

Christian worship is an outpouring response to God through Christ. One of the many facets of worship is our singing songs to/about God. The text of the songs facilitates our responding to God; whether crying out for help, or thanking Him for His goodness, there are many ways that singing and reflecting on texts help us to respond appropriately to God’s movement in our lives. We are especially picky about the textual content of a song around here. If a song gets stuck in your head all week, it may as well be one with a truthful and edifying text.

Although it is just a small part of a worshipping lifestyle the Christian is called to, this ministry celebrates the use of music and art in responding to God.

At Bethany, the Worship and Arts ministry serves the church body through…

Choir: Under the direction on Richard Compton the Adult choir meets from September to May and sings in the 9am service as well as both services during Advent and Easter. Choir meets Wednesday from 7-8:30pm. The rehearsal will begin with a devotional time, and then we’ll rehearse for a bulk of the evening, and end with a time of prayer. The choir rehearsals prepare us musically, but will also facilitate as a faith community for those whose serving in the ministry makes it difficult to attend a separate faith community.

Small Ensemble: Several times during the year there will be opportunities for small ensemble singing. If anyone from the choir is interested, feel free to speak with Matt and form a group and begin rehearsing!

Vocal teams: The vocal teams used in both services are made up of choir singers who demonstrate proficiency, as well as wish to serve in a greater leadership role. In the coming year, vocal team members will be encouraged to participate more in the service, with prayer, scripture reading, and devotional readings.

Worship Band: Without the band, everyone would find out what a crummy lead guitar player Matt is. The band supplies the musical backdrop that carries the text. We are always looking to increase the number of gifted musicians in our rotations.

Children’s Choir: Our children’s choirs (age 4-grade 6) will begin in January on Wednesday evenings from 5:45-6:40pm in the B building. Under the direction of Tia Coates, the children’s choirs participate in Sunday morning services, holiday events, and a children’s musical drama in the spring. CherubSingers (age 4-kindergarten) meet in B201 and cover basics of rhythm and tone. The Kingsingers (grades 1-5) meet in rooms B203 and 204 and cover a more advanced level of musical skills, as well as participate in worship leading with the Sunday morning worship service.

Art

We are always looking for locally-developed backgrounds for song slides, etc. But currently, there are limited roles for artists at Bethany. We would like to see that change. Whether it’s creating space for art to be displayed, or finding a way of engaging the local community through art education or workshops, if you have ideas to help develop this area of ministry, please contact us.
  

Video/Media Creation

There are many opportunities to serve in this area. If you have experience working with video recording and editing equipment, we welcome your help! Our videos are almost exclusively “in-house” and so we are always welcoming help from passionate folks who know the tools of the trade. If you are interested in helping with video creation/editing, please contact Dan Phillips or Matt Vlahovich.

Technical Support

You can see most of these folks every Sunday in the back of the worship center, bringing up lights, turning on microphones, and advancing the media for sermons and singing. These folks are a critical part of what happens Sunday morning. If you have experience with sound, lighting, or computers, we would love for you to join the family! The commitment would be Thursday nights for tech rehearsals, and then an hour before services on Sunday. Also, there are a variety of tech needs, mostly computer-related, during the morning that often, our tech volunteers cannot address. If you know computers and are good at troubleshooting, or have a desire to learn and help with sound/lighting/media, please contact our Technical Director Brad Cady 480.831.5005.