In early January, I came across a blog post entitled, “The Issue of Age in Modern Worship” by Manuel Luz, creative arts pastor at Oak Hills Church in Folsom, Calif. The piece offers insight into what may be a growing trend of churches replacing older worship leaders and musicians with younger, more hip-looking performers. In a nutshell, some churches are becoming brand-oriented in an effort to reach a specific demographic. They are tailoring their services to have certain look and feel in order to appeal to a younger demographic --- the next generation. As some of these churches become more “event-driven,” the “faces” of the event (the pastors, worship leaders, musicians etc) need to change to fit the brand. Those that don’t fit the brand are let go, or asked to “retire.”
It's an interesting, volatile and painful subject that's sure to become more prevalent as a growing number of baby boomers reach retirement age and leaders are replaced with Gen X'ers and millenials.
It’s a topic that is sure to provoke conversations, debate and division about church staff...
While Luz's blog focuses mainly on worship leaders and musicians, I would contend that the subject of “age in modern worship” also has huge implications on the tech team. Just like musical styles change with the generations, so do mixing styles, lighting designs, as well as camera, directing and editing techniques. For example, I've found myself having to shut my eyes during certain worship services because the lighting and video were “too much.” It could be my age (I'll be 51 this year), but technology that's distracting and inappropriate to me, may be exactly what it takes to attract and keep the attention of a millennial.
It's a topic that is sure to provoke conversations, debate and division about church staff and volunteers having a servant's heart versus being territorial, about being submissive versus operating out of a sense of entitlement, and about the difficult decisions required of visionary leaders whose goal is to reach the lost versus those conforming to the world for less-than-God-honoring reasons.
What do you think?
