Christine Longhurst
WINNIPEG, MB
Resources for worship planners and leaders
Vision
To provide access to biblically-based worship resources on the internet; to help equip and inspire those who plan and lead worship; to strengthen our congregations’ encounters with God.
Description
The re:Worship blog began as an experiment in the spring of 2011. After spending many years helping individual congregations across Canada strengthen their corporate worship, Christine became intrigued by the possibility of providing online worship resources (calls to worship, benedictions, prayers and litanies) to church pastors and worship leaders responsible for planning and leading weekly worship services.
Christine decided to work at a blog for six months and see what happened. Like in the Old Testament story of Gideon and his fleece (Judges 6:36-40), she asked God for a clear sign by summer’s end so that she would know whether or not this was what God wanted her to do.
On August 1 that year, the number of visitors to the blog reached 100,000 – something Christine never even dreamed possible. She accepted that as a sign from God that she should continue. In the two years since then, the number of views on the blog has passed 3 million and continues to grow. Visitors come from all over the world and from every denomination imaginable. On an average day, the blog receives between 3,000 and 6,000 views.
Scripture is at the heart of this ministry. In her work with congregations across Canada, Christine has noticed how easy it is for the reading and hearing of scripture to take a back seat in many worship services. “We call ourselves people of the Book,” she says, “but in reality so many of our churches use so little Scripture in worship.”
On the blog, scripture is always the starting point. Each call to worship, prayer, confession and benediction is inspired by a specific scripture text. As she observes: “I’ve found on a personal level that if I root my worship-leading in the words and the stories and the imagery of Scripture, then as a worship leader, I’m far more likely to be faithful to the God of Scripture.”
Bio
Christine Longhurst has spent most of her life involved in worship ministry. She served as Pastor of Worship at the River East M.B. Church for many years, and was Managing Editor of the Worship Together hymnal. She currently teaches worship music at Canadian Mennonite University, and continues to spend much of her time offering seminars and workshops to congregations across Canada.
Christine and her husband, John, live in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They have two adult children.
Visit the re:Worship blog (http://re-worship.blogspot.ca/) or contact Christine Longhurst directly.
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Contact
Christine Longhurst (204) 667-2903
Email: clonghurst@faithmatters.ca
re:Worship blog: http://re-worship.blogspot.ca/
Contemporary Psalms blog: http://contemporarypsalms.blogspot.ca/
FaithMatters website: http://faithmatters.ca/