Can I tell you a secret?
You have to make sure you don’t tell this to anyone, because if this spreads, we just might see a revolution in local church worship leaders around the world.
And who would want that to happen? Shhhhh!
I want to talk about an aspect of worship leading that sounds like common sense, but we lose over time.
The more time you spend organizing, planning, and “pulling off” worship services, the easier it is to forget what makes worship powerful in the first place. We’re returning to the roots today.
Leading or Beholding?
Let’s start with a question.
When you lead worship, are you more focused on leading people or beholding God?
No need to get nervous. There’s no wrong answer. Simply evaluate your personal worship leading. Are you more mindful of you and your leadership or God and His glory?
(Matter of fact, you could get a comment started right now with your answer.)
There’s an interesting irony that the more you are focused on leading, the less effective your leadership really is. But the more you focus on beholding God, the more powerful it is.
Why is this?
Because people connect with worshipers. They don’t just want to be told what to do. They want to run with you into the presence of God.
Of course, this isn’t always the case. There are worship leaders who are great at beholding God but lack the talent and leadership to engage a room in that experience. I’m not excluding one at the expense of the other.
Worship leading is a balancing act – Behold God. Lead your band. Engage people.
So what am I talking about?
What Great Worship Leaders Do
The best worship leaders aren’t song-driven, but Spirit-driven. They step into a room and notice that God is there. They are struck with awe. They are filled with desire for His presence.
They awaken the room with their passion. They go before the people and call them to behold The Majesty of Heaven, the King of Glory.
They know that worship isn’t about perfect execution. It can be raw, no holds barred, lay-it-all-on-the-line worship. They are often overcome by the presence of God and are moved to tears.
The essense of their stage presence is that they are desperate for God. They know that what will satisfy the Church isn’t just a moving performance but a moving closer to the Almighty.
They know that since Jesus is alive, anything is possible. Public worship is simply an extension of their private devotion behind closed doors. They look beyond sunday, preparing their hearts on Monday morning, worshiping Jesus.
How To Apply This
Applying this should be twofold:
1. Know your Audience (Preparation) – Your preparation should include knowing your audience, preparing your band, crafting a setlist, and taking care of details. Ask, what do these people need to connect with Jesus? Who am I leading for? What songs, Scriptures, graphics, lighting, and creativity will serve them best?
2. Know your God (Performance) – Let me just free you up. On Sunday morning you’re probably used to getting stressed out about all these details. Let me challenge you to worry about that earlier. Get ahead of the game. The better you prepare during the week the more effective your weekends will be.
Weekend worship is game time. Focus exclusively on beholding God. I’ve found it’s better to be more preoccupied with my audience during the preparation stage than the performance stage. When it comes to leading worship, the more I can be preoccupied with Jesus, the better worship leader I am because I’m serving people with what they need – Jesus.
So, worship leaders, I want to hear from you.
Are you more focused on leading or beholding God? Then, what would it take for you to be more preoccupied with the glory of God when you lead worship?
I’ll be leaving a comment as well with my answer.
[ois skin=”Beyond Sunday 2″]
Love the article…an excellent resource and gift to the Body of Christ. My challenge is balancing these two areas when the unspoken expectation is on the flawless execution and presentation. The anointing is not diminished and flows freely however, presentation seems to have the edge.
Craig, I try to focus on “flawless execution/presentation” prior to the performance. When it’s game time, I need to focus my energies on beholding Jesus. I’ve found that helps me lead worship better. I totally understand this tension.
tnx veri much
Powerful word! Putting in “park” right here and waiting on the Lord to help me make it personal. I tend to get distracted when the instrumentation is not in sync.
Definitely. A tight band is super important. But obsession with it can keep you from the purpose of leading worship, don’t you think?
Most churches don’t have teams with the talent, time or experience to just let it go like that. What would you suggest for leaders who are having to train their volunteer musicians?
Donald, I’m not proposing sloppy musicianship or lack of practice. I’m simply saying that when it’s time to lead worship, focus all your energies – as a team – on the glory of God. Something special happens with that simple shift in thinking.
I never thought that you were, “proposing sloppy musicianship or lack of practice.” I do, however, wonder if you have a suggestion for the majority of worship teams in which those circumstances are a reality?
So many take the idea of focusing on God as an excuse for not trying to improve. What ended up happening was worse than if we just played a CD instead of instruments. Maybe it’s better to drop the band and just go acoustic and vocal, but then how do you tell the volunteer worship band that they are fired? I have struggled with this proposition as a band member and as a leader.
My suggestion would be – like you said – keep things very simple. Worship doesn’t demand a full band to be effective. At the same time, I would continue to pour energy into training your volunteer musicians. Cast vision to them that you want them to stay involved, but quality needs to be increased. Gauge if they are interested in growing. Another option in the interim would be to use something like FLY: http://www.flyworship.com/WD160AWP/WD160Awp.exe/CONNECT/Flyworship
i really appreciate this article David! that’s what i kept on failing. Its because whenever i get tense or nervous, i’m getting distracted and conscious. as a result, my team will get distracted as well. the mission i need to do became a performance instead of leading people to worship. thank you so much! i hope there’s more inspiring lesson you will email on us. GOD BLESS!
What people can see right through is where your ministry’s member’s hearts are. I have found that after every musician is familiar with the song selections; meaning they’ve practiced and played them comfortably…it’s best to run a quick rehearsal, pray to sound as one, call on the Holy Spirit, let go and let God. To become what you’re singing/playing, projects amazing energy. Musicians know the little mistakes but people feel your passion. You can practice simple Christian songs all day but, if you need humbling, you’ll be humbled for making it bigger than it is for all the wrong reasons. Awesome God moments come from not trying to be perfect, just true to your mission
It’s definitely my tendency to focus on leading people, because I want them to experience what they need. This is true. They really need me to let go (answer to second question) and leave the decision with them. I’ll best serve them by example. This isn’t always easy!
Well said. It’s easy to get obsessed with how people respond during worship. I think they’ll respond more when we’re more obsessed with Jesus.
Thanks David for this post. It seems like there are some things I’ll never tire of being reminded of…the radicality of grace, the power of forgiveness, the strength of humility, and the need to fall again and again into the arms of God
Travis, your comment could be turned into a song 🙂 So good.
The pendulum of technical vs. spiritual is a tough one to navigate. When I started pastoring our team they were very focused on the technical. The pendulum had to swing toward the spiritual (heart) for a while and now I am sensing that it’s time for the pendulum to swing more toward the technical again. I have decided as a worship pastor that we will always shoot for excellence and flawless-ness, but I do not want to go through one more worship service without experiencing God’s amazing presence and glory for myself too! The amazing result is that it has taken me to a whole new level as a congregational leader and also been refreshing to my soul to encounter God WITH the congregation. Loving it! Thanks for the post and being honest about the tension.
Amanda, I really resonate with this. It’s a highlight of my week to encounter God with my church. Have you tried some creative ways to emphasize the spiritual (heart) with your team?
As I think of when I was merely a babe worshipper, it was but natural for me to focus more on leading the congregation. I can’t say I didn’t yearn for God’s presence, but simply because I was just new for an overwhelming task. When one leads worship, he is bombarded with many concerns from the clothes he wears, his singing style, facial expressions and other which are actually just side tracts of the basic threesome. For many years of God-given worship leading opportunities, I learned that an undivided connection with One whom sincere worship is due, will automatically flow first to myself , to my team and then, to the congregation. I still get nervous from time to time, but when I focus on the Lord and begin to enjoy His presence, His Spirit will soon instruct me to the very will of the Father. And in that moment, I believe in my heart that OBEDIENCE is the key to the best worship leading. God Bless.
Love this, Nelly! I think you’ve described young worship leaders really well. And those of us who are seasoned! Nerves can take over be paralyzing 🙂
Hi Dave!!
Thanks so much, I’m loving this. I’m still a baby in worship leading and I’m really learning a lot from your posts. I identify with what Nelly is saying, I’ve realized that it’s quite natural for me to focus on everything else, leading the congregation, how they respond,how I sound and all that, and forget who I am doing this for. True worship comes out of a relationship with God. My Pastor always says “you cannot take someone in worship somewhere you have never been”. So I’m working on maintaining a balance, focus more on God while not compromising on the quality the music.
God bless you Dave and keep up the good work.
Thanks Lesley! Remember: people aren’t coming to hear your excellent music. They’re coming to meet with God. Make that easy for them.
Great piece here David. Part of which was brought home to me a few months ago when visiting friends at our church from 15 years ago.
After the service I felt I just wanted to carry on worshipping a bit, as if the conversation hasn’t finished??? So I went up to the front and asked a friend if I could borrow his guitar while they were packing other stuff away. I worshipped with a couple of songs, facing the stage, while he and his son sang along while they wound cables etc. Towards the end of the second song I turned around and was blown away to see 6-8 strangers sitting/standing behind me worshipping along.
It’s almost as if my worshipping showed them that it was safe to worship.
The main feature I look in a worship leader or musician is that they are a worshiper. Musical and practical skills can be taught but I can’t teach someone to worship just encourage by example.
One other thing I would add is that when I lead I don’t feel I should fully enter into worship but keep one foot on the ground. I see my job as leading them to the doors to the throne room but if I rush in as well do I leave them behind? Instead I stand in the doorway ushering as many as will ahead.
Great story, Brendon. Inspiring. I mostly agree with you – you can’t completely lose yourself in worship to the point where people can’t follow you. But I’ve also found the best way to engage people is to truly worship and not just “cheer-lead” them. Does that make sense?