Purpose Driven?

Something I've been meaning to blog about for awhile. I went with some people from my church to a free Purpose Driven conference down in Round Rock a few weeks ago. It wasn't actually lead by the great Rick Warren, just some of his lackeys. Some of the things said were good...for instance:
+Growing a church means growing/developing spiritual habits
+Small groups help people feel like a real part of the church family
+Establishing a required membership class for new church members
+Every Believer is a minister
These and other thougths are all good stuff. However the section taught titled "Matching Your Music To Your Target" had some really gross over-generalizations in it that could get people in a lot of trouble if actually carried out. I'll share with you the points they made, and include my own remarks...
-Preview all of your music. Ask: is it doctrinally sound? is it understandable to the unchurched? what is the purpose of this song? how does it make me feel? [questions I would add: does it vertically engage God? does it stretch/challenge my view of God/the world? is it singable by the congregation? is it Biblical...more important than being doctrinal; and my feelings aren't really that important, only God's glory in worship.]
-Keep the tempo up! [God forbid someone express an emotion other than sheer elation in worship. Authentic worship is going to have ups and downs...highs and lows...mountain tops and valleys. God also forbid there be actual silence in a service. Its hard to read passages like Psalm 51 at a quick pace with a smile on.]
-Avoid singing songs in a minor key. Dead churches don't praise the Lord, and minor key music sounds dead to most seekers! [see comment on previous point. Happy, happy, joy, joy! I'm pretty sure the people who taught this couldn't even explain what a minor key is.]
-Edit archaic terms from your songs. [in other words, "people are stupid, don't try and teach them anything too hard." I'm not sure where you draw the line here on what is archaic? How much truth of Scripture would we miss if we dismissed it as too hard to understand?]
-Find the right balance in the amount of your music. [duh]
-Kill the choir or learn to use it in a contemporary way. [Wow, this just screams, "if I don't understand it, it can't be right." Last I checked, the choir were people too.]
-Use a worship team rather than a single worship leader. [Better yet, use a team of lead worshipers.]
-Replace the organ with a band. [Again, "if I don't understand it, it can't be right/worth anything." Instruments will always cycle in their use in the church. Don't replace the organ, fit it into the band. Use a Leslie cab with tremelo. No instrument is more fitting for somber, reflective meditation...but since that's not a fast tempo we wouldn't do that.]
-Encourage your musicians to rearrange old songs and to write new songs. [this takes skill...and shouldn't be taken lightly. Serious attention needs to be given to poetry, theology, and singability]
-Choose your music for the heart, not for the art. [If you start with choosing music that glorifies God, you can't go wrong. then question its relevancy to your context.]

These suggestions could get someone in a lot of trouble if they just waltzed in after a conference and started doing them. This format is unashamedly meant for a seeker-focused church/service. They won't work for every church.
CF