Spokane Friends Meeting

In summarizing discussions of the Meeting regarding enhancing our worship experience our Elders submitted this set of Queries to the Monthly Meeting.

• Do we encourage sufficient breadth and depth in our approaches to worship, including style, participants, order, and physical arrangement of the room?
• Do aspects of our worship help us to understand and appreciate a richer Quaker theology? Do we sing songs that speak particularly to our Quaker tradition?
• Do we prepare ourselves for worship prior to arriving at the Meeting House to allow the Spirit to work within us?
• Do we contribute to the atmosphere of worship? What helps us focus and become centered during open worship?
• Do we challenge ourselves to listen carefully to one another’s hearts, to be sensitive to both emotional and intellectual concerns of others, and to share our own perspectives with humility?
• Are we obedient to speak when moved by the Spirit? (“inwardly attuned, outwardly obedient”)
• Are we holding our own worship preferences lightly to make space for the experience and history of others? Do we encourage personal expressions of faith from all who feel led to speak?
• Are we willing to make space in our worship for those forms of worship that are meaningful to others? 
• Are we open to spontaneous Spirit-led change in the order of worship if that occurs?
• Do we show appropriate appreciation for special offerings of music, scripture, poetry, etc. as individual gifts of ministry?
• Do we show appreciation for the work of people who volunteer for the church? Are we willing to volunteer our own time and talents in support of others?