It can be said that worship, along with word and prayer, is the backbone of Christian life. That could be the reason why many churches in Korea, whatever denomination they may be, hold what is often called afternoon (or evening) "worship service" in addition to the regular Sunday morning services. The intent is to offer a different type of worship than the traditional services that are centered on the preaching word, and to focus more on worshipping through music and songs. This movement had already begun years ago in Korea and is currently flourishing through organizations such as All Nation's Praise and Worship Ministries, holding what is often called "open worship" or "praise and worship" service. These worship services employ various instruments to open the hearts of the modern church members and lead them in praise through Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) or other modern worship songs rather than traditional hymns. This movement has revitalized the church and helped increase the attendance of youth and young adults.
As the youth increasingly migrate to cities, rural churches are also losing their young members. Without the passionate youth, these churches are sadly but inevitably growing stagnant in faith, making it even more difficult for rural churches to express their faith in a variety of ways, such as praise and worship service. Therefore, as a pastor with a major in church music seeking to revitalize his own rural church and other small dependent churches in his area, the researcher will consider the history of Korea's modern praise and worship movement, observe and analyze the praise and worship program implemented in the researcher's own church, identify its weaknesses, then present suggestions for progressive revitalization in the future. Seeing how such worship program currently in effect in this rural church is bringing revival not only in this church, but also in other dependent churches in the area, the researcher finds joy in this worthwhile endeavor.
This thesis is organized in this way. First the current situation is observed, the ideal situation is posited, and some impediments that lie between them are identified along with initial questions and challenges are proposed. The second part defines the worship and praise movement and its history, along with its future direction and vision as a result of research. Open worship services and COM are also observed. In the third, the theoretical framework, the theological principle in the fourth chapter, and in the fifth, the researcher posits a theory for change. In the sixth part the researcher describes his own organization and implementation of this vision for worship service in his ministry site, and offers some solutions for future plans. The seventh portion reports of the evaluation of those who have attended these worship services, and the eighth and the last portion lays out the conclusion of this thesis plus a few suggestions for further study.
