I guess I thought all the other stuff you wrote and we were responding to had to do with why you felt that way.

I didn’t suggest that YOU wanted transparencies. Just asking where the line is of what we should or shouldn’t do if we have nothing to do with drawing people in, close, tight. I don’t know about you, but that’s the only reason I do all the things I do. To draw people in, close, tight, so their worship will be amplified. Creating an atmosphere that breaks down the walls around people so they are more open to God’s spirit and their worship becomes that much louder.

Did I twist anything? Was that too far away from that one statement?

I am not for transparencies, they are of the devil too. I think we should sing only from a hymnal and the only translation that should be used to read the word is the King James.

Not sure where you saw in my argument that I was against the means of expression in anyway. My only argument was against the statement “It is to draw people in. Once they are close, in, tight, then their worship is that much louder.”

Must I say it again, I liked the video. I got no problem with them playing that in my church either. Heck they could play Coldplay for all I care. I was only questioning that one statement.

Here is what I mean in clean and concise language so that nothing said here will get twisted.

Worship is our response to God. God can use whatever he wants to bring about it. Nothing we can do will either help or hinder that process. And if I may use scripture to provide some context;

Acts 17:25
25nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.

I think they may have misunderstood your post because the vibe of it seemed to lead one in the direction of Christian or Worship music. But regardless, I still have to disagree with some of what you said.

I think most of us here would agree that only God’s spirit ultimately brings people to that place of facedown worship. But it goes way too far, in my opinion, to say that nothing “we do has an outcome on our worship.” The fact is, God uses us to do that. Otherwise, why put any effort at all into how we present our worship. And where is the line of what we do and don’t do? Should we stop using video projectors and go back to transparencies? Or are projectors ok when we don’t use video backgrounds, because those are trying too much to be “attractional.”

I understand that a cool opener doesn’t “automatically” bring people into worship. NOTHING “automatically” brings people into worship. Let’s be honest…there’s been times where God’s presence is thick in a room for everybody but me, and I resist even Him drawing me into worship. But I would go so far as to say that a cool opener can draw many into worship. In our human state it creates an atmosphere that opens us up or allows us to focus more fully on Christ.

Keep it up man, you’re doing great work.

Be encouraged.

Can you imagine if there was a first time visitor that day? We’ll call him Dan. He’s 22, in college, and he was at Buckhead for the first time when they did that opener. He’s not a churchy guy, but maybe his girlfriend’s parents were in town and she asked him to go, so he tagged along (she told him he could wear jeans…that was the kicker). Now every time he hears that song on the radio, he thinks about what happened that morning, what he heard and how he felt.

It brought his guard down at church, and now it reminds him of the message every time he hears it.

Isn’t that hijacking culture and using it for God’s glory? Isn’t that worth a high five??!!