Beyond Sunday Worship

Worship Podcast

How to Practice Better – Worship Leading

In a previous post I talked about how important practice is. But not just practice…deliberate practice – practicing those things that will make you more effective at what you do.

When we think practicing we typically think of pianists and football players. But what about something like worship leading? How do we practice that? Yea, I could try to lead worship more often but what about those times when I’m by myself?

What are some deliberate things I can do to become a better worship leader?

1. Listen Deeply

If you are a worship leader you should be listening to other worship leaders. But you are not just a casual listener. You must become a listening nerd 🙂 This is not just background noise. Listen deeply. Analyze it. Write down what different worship leaders do: How they interact with a congregation, what songs they do, how they arrange, how they navigate spontaneous moments, how they interact with the band, etc.

2. Read

In a previous post I recommended my favorite books on worship leading. Go read. It’s important to not only learn the practicalities of worship leading but also expand your view of God. Shameless plug: also, reading blogs like this one will help you gain knowledge and stay focused. This is a fantastic resource as well.

3. Sing all the time

if you are a vocal worship leader, don’t save all your singing for rehearsal and Sunday morning. You need to exercise that muscle. I’ve heard it said that leading worship is one of the toughest things on your voice. You sing, shout, and talk, all while pushing hard. Seek to daily strengthen your voice by singing in the car, at home, & on airplanes (maybe not that one).

4. Look for places to lead

Don’t wait for pastors to come to you, asking to lead worship. Make it happen in ‘smaller places’. Grab your friends and worship. Strong Christians love to worship. So go do it. Often.

5. Practice continual prayer

How do you expect to hear God’s voice when your leading worship if you’re not listening in the everyday? Live a continual posture of, “God, what are you doing? How can I accomplish your purpose today?” You’ll be surprised what opportunities and divine appointments will arise because of this.

6. Practice loving people

If you don’t like people, worship leading will be frustrating for you. It’s all about people. It’s all about connecting. It’s all about a journey with others. This may seem abstract but it’s definitely something you can practice. Engage in conversation. Smile. Pray for others. Connect. You’ll see a huge difference on stage if you’re living this everyday.

7. Listen to your pastor

When your pastor preaches, listen to what he says. Write it down. Internalize the DNA of your church. Make it yours. Even if he’s not a musician and doesn’t know as much as you do, respect the vision God has given him and implement it with all you’ve got. Practice it.

Anything that I missed? Help me out. How can I practice as a worship leader?

3 Ways to Engage Non-Christians in a Worship Service

Do you ever feel a little weird leading worship when there are unbelievers in the room?

Imagine how they feel. It’s more than a little weird to step into a room of jubilant people singing weird songs, clapping their hands, maybe dancing, and maybe, just maybe waving the dreaded streamer. I remember the first time I raised my hand in worship (notice I said ‘hand’. Singular. Gotta start somewhere). It was a big deal for me. I also remember the first time I encountered a streamer waving dancing lady. No comment.

In a related post I talked about 8 ways to engage people in worship. But I want to narrow our focus today. How do we more skillfully engage non-christians in our worship services? If a healthy church is one that has a consistent influx of unbelievers, we need to learn how to connect them. And I don’t believe it involves watering down the Gospel.

I feel this tension every time I lead worship. I’m glad they’re there. They don’t know what’s going on. I desperately want them to experience the power of God.

Here are some ways to engage:

1. Play good music

It makes sense that as unbelievers step into church they aren’t thinking about how to flow in the Holy Spirit and which isle to dance in. They are watching people. They are watching you. They are listening to the music. They are reading the lyrics. Don’t allow sloppy music. Work hard on being good.

2. Sing easily understandable songs

When I’m picking my setlist, I ask the question “will unchurched Joe understand this?” I know I may personally like the song that talks about burning for God in an ocean of wind, but will that make any sense to an unbeliever? Probably not. Focus on songs that articulate the Gospel and aren’t too abstract.

3. Address them

It’s so important to acknowledge unbelievers and empathize with their situation. Bring them along with you. This involves speaking to them, being real, being likable. Don’t freak people out with your personality. Tell them it’s OK if they don’t sing and just stand or sit there. In the meanwhile, pray that the lyrics and presence of the Holy Spirit will reach them deeply.

What would you add to the list? How can we better engage non-Christians in our worship services?

Do You Disciple Your Worship Team?

What I love most about leading worship (I guess besides actually worshiping God) is making disciples. Each member of the worship team is someone called by God whom I have the privilege of pouring into.

I believe sometimes we can short circuit what God wants to do through our worship team because we give excuses. “I can’t afford to hire good musicians.” “I just don’t like asking him all the time.” “This schedule is just too busy for people.” “There’s too many services at this church!” Or we just get into ‘weekly maintenance mode’ and lose the big picture of what we are doing.

Let me ask you a couple questions. What culture are you creating with what you’ve got? Do you have a process within your worship team where individual growth is intentional? Are you creating enough margin in your schedule to dream dreams and seek God’s vision for your worship team?

I’d like to share our process with you in hopes that if you don’t have a discipleship strategy for your worship team, that you would start. Or if you do, keep doing it. I’m not saying this way is the only way. Just let it stir your imagination. And let me know if you come up with even better ideas.

When I’m thinking about worship team discipleship, I’m asking the question, “What can we do WEEKLY, MONTHLY, and ANNUALLY?”

WEEKLY

  • 15 minute band devotions on Sunday morning (study a good book and/or book of the Bible)
  • Pre service prayer (short, declarative prayers)
  • Rehearsals (rehearse songs & ‘flow’ moments)

MONTHLY

ANNUALLY

  • Refresh Night (a rehearsal night where we meet off-site and simply worship, cast vision, and hang out. We do this 3x/year.)
  • Attend a local conference

What is it that you are doing? What has been helpful for your worship team?

What is the Primary Purpose of Corporate Worship?

I’m curious to know what your thoughts are on corporate worship. What is the primary purpose of us gathering together to sing?

Do we gather primarily to sing and align our hearts with truth?

Do we gather primarily to experience the breakthrough power of the Holy Spirit?

Do we gather primarily to sing well performed worship songs?

Do we gather primarily because we like the worship leader?

Do we gather primarily to give our praise to God?

Do we gather primarily to receive blessings from God?

I’d love some comments here. Where do you stand when it comes to corporate worship?

The Pitfalls of "Professional" Worship Leaders

I’m somewhat leery of the term “professional” when it comes to leading worship. What makes someone professional?

I know I offer a lot of tips on this blog. How to flow in the spontaneous and some qualities of a great worship leader and even how to lead a great rehearsal. These are great things. But allow me to challenge you today:

Beware of becoming too professional.

The Bible says that “knowledge puffs up”. As worship leaders we don’t want to become so professional that we lose the simplicity of what we do.

As I prepare to lead worship for this weekend, I don’t just want to do it professionally. I want to approach my Daddy God like a child. I want to be lost in wide eyed wonder. I want my love for Jesus to compel me.

When you started leading worship, you probably didn’t sing that well. Maybe you were clumsy in your speaking. Maybe you started a song in the wrong key. Maybe you accidentally said ‘crap’ instead of ‘clap’ (who does that? 🙂 )

But I bet you were passionate to be in God’s presence.

Don’t approach God with anything less than wide-eyed wonder this weekend.

Question: How do you guard your child-like passion as a worship leader?