Introduction

Throughout the history of the church worship has been closely linked to revival and renewal. From Martin Luther during the Reformation, to John and Charles Wesley in the 18th century, to Calvary Chapel and the Jesus Movement in the seventies, worship has been both the seed and the fruit of church growth and renewal. 

The Vineyard is no different. It was birthed in the worship times of a small home fellowship, and as it grew it led to outpouring of new worship songs that have spread all over the world. The aim of this book is to help God's church recapture the simplicity and intimacy of the songs and approach to worship that characterized the early years of the Vineyard Movement. 

Regardless whether you're a worship leader in a home fellowship, a would-be songwriter trying to compose worship songs, a musician playing on a worship team in a church, or simply someone in love with Jesus who loves to worship, this book has something for you. 

How the book is organized

The book is organized into chapters that cover the following topics:

Chapter 1 identifies worship as being the act of freely giving our love to God. Our aim when we worship is to give God the honor He is due; the benefit we receive in exchange is greater intimacy with Him. 

Chapter 2 provides practical tips on how to worship when you're at church, in a home fellowship, or alone. 

Chapter 3 examines the topic of leading worship and includes explanation of how to prepare a worship set and how to effectively lead people into God's presence. 

Chapter 4 explores the craft of songwriting. Selected songs from the period when the Vineyard Movement was born, together with some additional songs written by myself and my wife Ingrid, are used to illustrate various aspects of how to write good worship songs. 

Chapter 5 describes the character of heart from which early Vineyard worship emerged. The chapter also includes practical suggestions for worship leaders who want to reclaim what is missing in much of today's worship. 

The book concludes with Simple Kingdom Songs, a section that highlights ten of our own worship songs. These songs are referenced by number within the text and are used to illustrate various aspects of the craft of writing worship songs. You can listen to the songs on our SoundCloud page (https://soundcloud.com/simple-kingdom-worship) and there are leadsheets with chords available on our website (https://www.buildplant.org). 

Acknowledgements 

Much of the content in this book has evolved through long discussions I've had with Ingrid. So while I did the actual writing, her fingerprints are present throughout this book. Several wonderful worship songs written by her are also included in the final section of the book. 

My thanks also to our friend Bonnie Lewis who reviewed the manuscript with a magnifying glass to catch numerous typos that had somehow found their way into my fingers as I typed the chapters on my computer. 

Finally my thanks to Martin Buehlmann, Leader Emeritus of the Vineyard Movement in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and Dave Pedersen, National Director of the Association of Vineyard Churches in South Africa, both of whom have lent their encouragement towards the conception and execution of this book and its predecessor in this series titled Simple Kingdom: Home Fellowships. 

BuildPlant.org

This book can be freely downloaded in PDF format and/or read online in its entirety at buildplant.org where you can also find other titles in our Simple Kingdom series. Copies of this book in print form may also be requested by emailing us at info@buildplant.org. 

Cheers,

Mitch Tulloch

Winnipeg, Canada

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