Music and worship share symbolic modes of thought and communication. They treat matters which are non-verbal and invisible, and they invoke questions of meaning and value. On a more practical and obvious level, music operates in worship as praise, prayer, evangelistic tool, and storytelling vehicle. Music in worship can also be understood in terms that combine theology, aesthetics, and practical applications. Chapter Six looks directly at our understanding of church music as a vocation.
Chapter Seven focuses on the individual worshiper.
Psychologists and sociologists offer some practical guidance for those of us who plan worship. The individual worshiper is also in community with other worshipers, and this community is a necessary part of Christian living and worshiping. Chapter Eight looks at music in worship through the lens of Christian community. Many church musicians in the former feel the pressure of the success of their colleagues in the latter. Traditionals and post-traditionals understand God in different ways, and those different understandings define their worship practices.