7 Ways To Make Church About Joy And Not Obligation

With Labor Day behind us, churches are now diving into their busy fall schedules. Mine is no different, as evidenced by the lengthy to-do list I have in front of me this morning. It makes me miss the easiness of church life in the summer. 

Summer in most churches just feels different, doesn't it? Sunday school classes, youth groups, and committees might take a break from their regular meetings. Worship continues, but it tends to be less formal, less stressed, and less performance-oriented. When the people do gather, it is often in creative or alternative ways that are more about fellowship, community, and mission.  

Most of all, though, what is different about summertime church is the lessened sense of obligation. When the weather is warm, we relax that feeling that we are supposed to be there. Perhaps it has to do with school being out, or people traveling, or a general feeling that summer is a time to let go of the busyness of life and all its obligation.

Whatever the reasons, when we gather as God's people in the summer, it is because we want to and because we find joy in being together, not because we feel we should. It might seem counter-intuitive, but perhaps it's time we cultivate this feeling of year round. Here are several ways we can begin this shift:

1) Multiple Worship Offerings. Instead of offering one or two services on Sunday that people feel obligated to attend, offer several smaller services at various times and locations throughout the week. Encourage people to find the service that brings them joy and makes them want to attend. 

2) Festival Worship -  Instead of expecting all of your folks to make it to a single weekly service (which isn't going to happen in this era), have a big worship event once a month or once a quarter where Sacraments can be served and the whole congregation can worship as one. Develop them around special themes of the liturgical calendar, or big community events. Its kind of like extending the idea of big Christmas and Easter services to 5 or 6 times a year.

3) "Get Out Of Worship Free Cards." Give people permission not to attend worship at all, but to become involved in other activities inside or outside the church that connect them to God. Encourage them to attend worship if and when they want to be there.

4) Connect Worship Directly To Acts of Service or Recreation. Have worship only after engaging in the hands-on mission of the church - whether it's serving at a soup kitchen, visiting a nursing home, attending a political rally, or hosting a community soccer game. In other words, take seriously the words of Amos 5 about not holding "solemn assemblies" without practicing the faith in the world.

5) Join Other Congregations for Worship - Especially ones of different racial, theological, or economic status. Use worship as a time to build bridges, not isolate.

6) Change Your Metrics - Even as we admit that weekly worship attendance is not a reality for many church members, we continue to use weekly worship attendance as our number one measure of success. Perhaps it is more accurate of a church's vitality to measure how many folks attend worship in a month, or who participate in any way in the church. Or perhaps the new age means we don't measure success with numbers at all.

7) Practice Joy and Sabbath - Perhaps this is the most important practice for church leaders who want to deemphasize the sense of obligation and reemphasize participation based on joy. Model it in it in your own life. If it seems like the leader is operating from duty or obligation with little joy, or if they are burned out from lack of rest, this attitude rubs off on how the whole church operates.

Which of these options for shifting from obligation to joy appeals to you? Which has the most practical possibility in your church? What other alternatives to obligation-driven worship might you suggest?