Fifteen seconds into the service I thought, “There’s got to be a better way to do this.” The volunteer entrusted to welcome the congregation had already covered the Broncos and the weather. It went something like this: “Welcome to church. We’re glad you’re with us today, especially with the big game starting in about 45 minutes! And you braved the cold. Man, you’re the people who really wanna be here. We hope you’ll enjoy the service and, man, we hope God’ll do something cool…”
That memory is years old, and while I’m likely embellishing the exact words, the dissatisfaction I felt that day remains vivid. It struck me as trite, even irreverent, to begin a corporate gathering meant for worshipping the living God with such casual and shallow remarks. For some churches, this approach is intentional, designed to make non-churched individuals feel comfortable. At the other end of the spectrum, liturgical purists would have been appalled at such flippancy. While both perspectives are driven by a desire to create meaningful experiences…
This realization led me to research, where I discovered a wealth of historic Christian thought regarding how we begin a service and welcome the congregation.
First, I learned this liturgical moment has a name: the Call to Worship. Constance Cherry describes it as more than just a welcome; it’s a summons that frames what’s about to happen. Think of it like a train conductor’s call: “All aboard!” The train is departing; worship is commencing. In this moment, we’re not just individuals in a shared space—we’re the Body of Christ, gathered together to meet with the living God.
Second, I learned that this “call” originates from God. Our gathering is a response to His preceding invitation. If we truly believe we are God’s people, drawn together by the Spirit to meet with Him, then He is the one welcoming us. And while it’s important to greet one another warmly, we must not forget that we are not the hosts. God is the host, inviting us into His presence, just as He did with Israel in the tabernacle and the Temple.
If this is true, how should the moment sound? How can we open a service in a way that’s genuinely welcoming without being rigid or overly formal, while still framing worship thoughtfully? There are countless ways to do this well, and even a simple Google search can yield a plentiful examples.
some examples to try
Over the years, I’ve curated various Calls to Worship that attempt to balance contemporary language with theological faithfulness. Here are a few examples:
- “Good morning! It is good to be here, together, in God’s presence as His people. We trust that the Spirit has drawn us here as a body—the Body of Christ—to worship Him in spirit and truth. The psalmist said, ‘I was glad when they said to me, let us go to the house of the Lord.’ And so here we are, gathered in the house of the Lord because of His faithful mercy.”
- “Good morning! Welcome to ______, where our desire is to worship the God who is present to us in our singing, praying, proclaiming the gospel, and receiving communion together this morning. As we enter into worship, let us be reminded of Psalm 100 as a guide for entering His presence… Let’s sing this together.”
- “Welcome to the house of the Lord! Here at ______, we trust that the Spirit has gathered us just as we are to worship the Living God. As we worship this morning, we can trust that we are encountering Him, as we are being shaped into the image of Jesus and made into his people. Let’s sing this out together.”
These examples reflect a shift in focus.
The inverse is actually what’s happening. They provide context for the ways we express worship and culminate with a song or Scripture reading that anchors the gathering in its intended purpose: corporate worship.
This kind of adjustment may not yield immediate results or even be noticed at all by the majority of the congregation. But over time, it will shape the expectations of those entering the worship space. There is freedom in knowing that God is the host who desires to meet with us. He doesn’t need us to invoke His presence; He delights in our participation as we come to meet with Him and one another. Simply put, the Call to Worship is Good News—so good it deserves to be announced right away.
10KFAM exists to raise and release spiritual mothers and fathers who creatively shape the future of the church. The primary way we do this is through our Worship School, an 18-month discipleship program rich with community, coaching, and Master’s-accredited content (that doesn’t require any relocation!). Whether you’ve been leading worship for decades or are just starting out, we invite you to join the journey of learning to cultivate and give away what God’s placed in you. Click here learn more about the School.
next worship school begins MAY 5-9, 2025