God does this amazing thing for those who follow him. He puts us together with other believers as a community of people who worship him. Every Sunday, we stand up and sing our praises to the glory of God. A few brave, gifted, and willing people get up and lead us into the presence of God. I believe it is in these gathering where we truly learn to worship. We discover that real worship is not about our likes, dislikes, or feelings but rather about bowing our lives before Jesus because of his grace for us.

Occasionally people walk out of these gatherings and complain to me and others about their experience. If this has ever been you, then let me remind you of a few things.

1. Our worship is led by volunteers. I appreciate the people who lead us in worship each week. I am grateful for their willingness to lift their voices and lead us without compensation. The whole Church community should be thankful for these brave people.
2. Our leaders are doing their best. Each week I share the song list for the coming Sunday with the worship team. Many of them listen to the songs on YouTube, and they practice instruments at home. The entire group shows up over an hour before worship each week to practice. They give of their best, so the rest of us can worship.
3. Some issues are beyond our control. We have experienced computers lock up, power failure, dead batteries, and a host of other problems. We try to do our best quality of work each week, but some things are beyond our control.
4. Other people might like what you hate. Personal preference in music is unlimited. Some like old songs, others do not. Some like piano music, others do not. It is difficult to make everyone happy. Instead, our church puts the focus on lyrics above all else. We chose a variety of music that we pray is a blessing to everyone.
5. The primary focus is on Jesus alone. Ultimately what we do each Sunday is an attempt to worship Christ. We do our best to point everyone to Jesus and then to get out of the way. Honestly, I do not care whether you are happy about worship; rather, my concern is that God is glorified.

Every week we gather to worship, and sometimes it is incredibly moving. Other times it is rough, and we do not feel as connected as we might like to be. This probably reveals more about me than about the Church of which I am a part.

Worship in a small community of believers is a unique experience. We are not exactly like a big Church on Sunday morning, but every week we gather in the name of Jesus just like they do. In both cases, I pray that God is glorified, the community becomes a family, and we grow in our faith together.