Most worship leaders have a rehearsal plan.
- Rhythm section tight? Check.
- New song developed? Check.
- Band tight with the click? Check.
- Transitions smoothed over with a keyboard pad? Check.
- Prayer as a team? Check.
Week in and week out, we have our routines. And routines are great as long as they don’t dull our senses to what is happening.
But more and more these routines are shaped by our modern culture.
I want to make a statement today that we need to rediscover something in our modern worship teams.
We need to uncover a rehearsal topic that can be forgotten in the fast paced, production oriented, rock and roll style worship service.
Rehearse What?
What am I talking about? Rehearsing the Gospel story. Each and every week this should be a part of our rhythm. First, as a worship team, and second, as a church.
As much you practice songs and music, are you giving precedence to the influence the Gospel should have on shaping our lives, giving context to our story, and sending us out with our proper identity?
Simply put: Is your worship team a Gospel-saturated worship team?
You see, the Gospel isn’t just “good news” for those far from Christ. The Gospel is our everyday “good news”.
It’s the best news of our days and yet I fear many young musicians (and young Christians for that matter) are growing up in Christ without a solid teaching on how the Gospel shapes our lives, not just our conversion.
It’s a different experience when the guitar you hold in your hand is a tool for telling the Gospel, not just creating epic sounds.
It’s a different experience when the voice you’ve been given is a vehicle for singing the Gospel, rather than just entertaining people.
It’s a different experience when your worship team members see their lives in the context of this great story.
How to Rehearse the Gospel as a Worship Team
What are some ways you could make this practical for your team? Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Put together a weekly reading plan and read through a book together (Mike Cosper’s “Rhythms of Grace” is a great place to start.
- Read through the Gospels together and talk about it on the weekends.
- Ask discussion questions like: what about the Gospel is most influencing your worship today? What attribute of God are you most grateful for today?
- Talk about the theology behind the songs you sing.
- Make the Gospel a part of your constantly communicated vision.
- Challenge your team to search for worship songs that articulate the Gospel.
Remember: the Gospel isn’t just for unbelievers or for sermons. It’s central to our lives and needs to be central on our worship teams.
Question: What would it look like if you rehearsed the Gospel with your worship team? How would you add to this list? You can leave a comment by clicking here.
[ois skin=”Beyond Sunday 2″]
Well said, David! My church has been focusing on this very topic recently, looking at our Sunday morning gatherings. I was actually going to recommend “Rhythms of Grace” in this comment ’til I saw it was already a part of your post! 🙂
Worship deals with the whole being of a man(your spirit,soul and body) for a positivity change to occur and an affection positively also to occur.
A True Worship is like a sweet smelling perfume that take over whole place,making the Atmosphere good and pleasing for the FATHER which is GOD to do His work.
Excellent article! This past Sunday, our team ministered a song, The Blood of Jesus by Myron Butler, that really focused our hearts on the Gospel message. We talked about Hebrews 9 and 10 at rehearsal, where Paul really drives home that message of sacrifice, reconciliation and complete freedom through Christ. We connected with the scriptures and the song in such an awesome way. You’ve touched on the best tool to ignite our worship. Thanks for sharing your heart and wisdom.