Rick Cole of Capital Christian believes that the door cannot stay closed forever, and feels that by offering different services based on music preference is an opportunity for the entire congregation to unite (Garza). Contemporary worship music began with the Jesus movement of the early 1970's and the rise of charismatic churches, and although it paralleled the growth in contemporary Christian rock and pop music, it remained separate until a few years ago (Levy). It now has become a mix of Christian pop, rock and praise choruses, and a blending of styles that has opened up contemporary worship music to a wider variety of instruments and sounds, such as the Christian bands Sonicflood and Delirious (Levy).

According to John Styll, president of the Gospel Music Association, roughly half of the top twenty Christian and gospel albums sold in 2003 were modern praise and worship music (Levy). Says Styll, "People want to connect to God in a way that is culturally powerful to them. For some people, choirs and organ music are not the stuff of their ordinary life. It doesn't make God personal to them," thus praise songs are increasingly moving from recording studios to church worship services (Levy). Not only does modern praise and worship music have a better beat and rhythm but it is getting better since there are more songs with more substance to choose from, which in turn is leading young people to form praise and worship bands (Levy).

Christian music is the fastest-growing segment of the music industry, with sales that double the sales of Latin music, classical, jazz and New Age combined (Eveld). For Christian bands, such as Unified Front, prayer is essential in all aspects of their lives, including practice as well as...

It is clear that Christians today are carving out their own paths, with each age group and each ethnic group embracing music to which they can relate. Although the music has changed, the message is still the same. Whether the group is rap, gospel, pop, R&B, punk rock, traditional, or new jack swing, the message is about loving and praising Jesus Christ. Regardless of the genre, Christian music lyrics offer hope and inspiration, acceptance and comfort, which is why so many top-chart songs are finding their way into church worship services of all denominations, including Baptist, Methodist, Episcopal, and Lutheran.
Works Cited

Eveld, Edward M. "Rock 'n' soul: People across U.S. flocking to Christian music." Knight

Ridder/Tribune News Service. November 14, 2001. Retrieved May 25, 2006 from HighBeam Research Library.

Fitzhugh-Craig, Michelle. "Christian Music Sings Sweetly to Young Souls Fans Multiply As Diversity, Quality Grows." Oakland Tribune. May 05, 2006. Retrieved May 25, 2006 from HighBeam Research Library.

Garza, Jennifer. "The heart of worship: Traditional hymns to today's praise music: Churches are changing their tune to suit different tastes." The Sacramento Bee. February 11, 2006.

Retrieved May 25, 2006 from HighBeam Research Library.

Green, Amy. "Christian Music Thriving." AP Online (Associated Press). January 25, 2002.

Retrieved May 25, 2006 from HighBeam Research Library.

Levy, Abe. "Modern worship music blending contemporary and rock styles." The Wichita Eagle

Wichita, Kansas). July 23, 2003. Retrieved May 25, 2006 from HighBeam…