Distinctive Worship: How A New Generation Connects With God

You don’t have to spend very long doing youth work these days to realise that there are certain phrases that teenagers find hard. The main three are Sorry, Thank You and I Love You. When you realise that these phrases form a sizeable chunk of our worship vocabulary, you can see the challenge that lies before us in engaging this generation in worship. This generation of young people operate in a barely recognisable culture to that of 15 years ago, and this is an attempt to deconstruct some of that subliminal framework as it applies to worship. It analyses the changing attitudes and trends in youth culture and details the implications for how we facilitate worship for young people. It also lays out a belief that worship can be a culture-shaper for young people, kick-starting the community and intimacy so lacking in much of youth culture. Issues covered attitudes to leadership, reverence, imagery, interaction, community, silence, attention span, narcissism, romance and many more. Each discussion flows into practical application, with key principles for practice. The book also includes 85 ideas and suggestions for worship based on the principles outlined; from liturgy to graffiti, from emailing God to writing future headlines.

Andy Flannagan was a doctor before joining Youth For Christ. Now their national songwriter and worship leader, he also trains others. Andy regularly leads worship at Greenbelt and other festivals. He has released two albums; his songs have been on TV and radio. He also works with Tearfund.