Events—MSM worship symposium

Dr Low Wye Mun is a medical doctor who serves in the Worship & Music ministry of Holland Village Methodist Church. He plays acoustic & bass guitar and leads songs of praise in the Sunday services. / Photos courtesy of the Methodist School of Music

MSM Worship Symposium 2021

My cup runneth over

“WFH” (work from home) has become a buzzword, so when the Methodist School of Music (MSM) announced their 2021 Worship Symposium, I signed up immediately to WFH: Worship From Home. The theme “Flow: the ancient way to do contemporary worship” was intriguing, and the topics seemed to flow from the MSM Certificate of Christian Worship course I had attended last year.

Comprising plenary lectures with parallel panel discussions (online chats with experienced Christian worship leaders and thinkers), there were also skills training sessions. I chose the Worship Leader track while others opted for those for worship musicians, song writers, children’s worship or choir. Presented in English and Chinese, the sessions formed the basis of the threeday gathering of kindred hearts and spirits.

And Spirit there was—introducing the concept of FLOW and the ancient traditions undergirding our church worship, the sessions literally flowed into the notion of blended worship. From this arose issues that challenge us all in the “new normal” of presenting church worship services via online platforms.

What drew me into the WS2021 sessions each day were:

• the speakers and panel discussion servants who freely and generously shared their deep experience, theological foundations, helpful ideas and personal thoughts;

• worship services that “walked the talk” of flow, diversity and deep central focus on God;

• a Zoom format that enabled interactions where I “met” and was enriched by other participants sharing freely using the

“chat” function; and

• interaction with the MSM team who put WS2021 together— getting to know them by name, sending them messages, and feeling their humble (and immensely hardworking) efforts to bring about the symposium.

(Top to bottom) Panel 1 (English track) Panel 2 (Chinese track) Panel 3 (Chinese track)

First, how we worship in our churches today continues to evolve, especially in the area of music and communication styles. But just as it has been the challenge through the ages, the symposium showed me that ancient traditions underpin the spiritual core of our worship. Thus, we need to remain faithful to liturgical tradition (authenticity) while reaching out to new generations of worshippers (relevance). Churches approach this in different and innovative ways, but ultimately all converge on the central principle of placing God at the centre of our worship.

Second, the COVID-19 pandemic-induced shift to online worship services and outreach presents significant challenges that are common to churches of all sizes and available resources. Even while trying to bring the worship service from familiar sanctuary settings into the sacred worship space of private homes or wherever people might worship, wonderful opportunities have emerged. These include reaching those who might otherwise not be able to be present in a church, finding new ways to enable extemporaneous worship that is innovative, spontaneous and participative, and engaging younger generations of IT-savvy worshippers in the blending of the worship experience.

I signed up for WS2021 not really knowing what to expect. God smiled on me, blessing me so richly that I lifted my eyes heavenward and said: “Lord, my cup runneth over.”

“I was pleasantly surprised by the range of speakers and depth of their sessions. I learnt about the centrality of Jesus Christ in preparing for our role as worship leader, and grew in my confidence to pursue ‘blending’ or helping to make the ‘flow’ of the service a meaningful experience and encounter for the congregation we serve.”

—Anonymous, Wesley MC

“I learnt to lead with generous authority and hospitality. I need to increase my passion towards video production as I saw how good videos can impact us. We can also be creative with reading the Scriptures in worship and be intentional with silence and passivity. The Worship Symposium changed my negative perspective about doing worship on online platforms.”

—Jenny Han, Paya Lebar MC

“I was able to broaden my perspective of worship from this Symposium and was inspired to make my ministry work more culturally relevant, yet Christ-centered.”

—Fiona Yu, Central Baptist Church, Australia

Dr Lester Ruth

Duke Divinity

Dr Adam Perez

Duke Divinity

Julie Tai

Fuller Theological Seminary.

THE INVITED SPEAKERS FOR THE CHINESE TRACK

Dr Simon Ng

Alliance Bible Seminary and Malaysian Baptist Theological Seminary in Hong Kong

Yvette Lau

Founder of the Anabas Ministry in Hong Kong