The Heart of Worship

This Sunday, we will be singing “The Heart of Worship” written by Matt Redman. Many of you probably know the story behind the song, but if you don’t, I have it included below. Like Redman’s church, it’s so easy for churches to get into worshipping their worship. Whether it’s a style, a preference, a feeling, or whatever, we come describing worship as “good” or “bad” based upon what we experience.

When we are trying to plan worship services here at North Side, we’ve gotten into the discussion lately: “Who are we trying to reach in worship?” Are we trying to create a worship service for believers, or are we trying to create something comfortable for seekers? But here’s another thought that has been my passion lately: what if we created the order of service, not for the delight of the believer or the seeker, what if the worship service was designed for the delight of God? What if “good” worship was qualified on what He got out of it rather than us?

Here’s the song info:

The song dates back to the late 1990s, born from a period of apathy within Matt’s home church, Soul Survivor, in Watford, England. Despite the country’s overall contribution to the current worship revival, Redman’s congregation was struggling to find meaning in its musical outpouring at the time.

“There was a dynamic missing, so the pastor did a pretty brave thing,” he recalls. “He decided to get rid of the sound system and band for a season, and we gathered together with just our voices. His point was that we’d lost our way in worship, and the way to get back to the heart would be to strip everything away.”

Reminding his church family to be producers in worship, not just consumers, the pastor, Mike Pilavachi, asked, “When you come through the doors on a Sunday, what are you bringing as your offering to God?”

Matt says the question initially led to some embarrassing silence, but eventually people broke into a cappella songs and heartfelt prayers, encountering God in a fresh way.

“Before long, we reintroduced the musicians and sound system, as we’d gained a new perspective that worship is all about Jesus, and He commands a response in the depths of our souls no matter what the circumstance and setting. ‘The Heart of Worship’ simply describes what occurred.”

When the music fades, all is stripped away, and I simply come / Longing just to bring something that’s of worth that will bless your heart… / I’m coming back to the heart of worship, and it’s all about You, Jesus

Redman remembers writing the song quickly in his bedroom soon after the church’s journey together, with no grand intentions, by any means, for it to become an international anthem. He viewed the words simply as his personal, subjective response to what he was learning about worship.