Why Worship Auditions Fail (And How To Fix Them)
Worship Auditions. Just the mention of this topic causes me to flinch a bit. Most leaders I know need a deeper worship team bench, but dread the “live tryout” vibe that feels like a bad episode of American Idol. You block off a Sunday afternoon, sit through hours of back-to-back auditions, and by the end, maybe […]
The Worship Leader the Church Actually Needs
Each intensive, they trickle in one by one—guitar cases in hand, eyes bright with expectation, ready for hours of jam sessions and song-sharing. But within the first hour or two, they realize this is a different kind of worship school. One that cares less about how well they can play like a rockstar, and more […]
Why 'Worship Leader' Isn’t in Ephesians 4 (And Why That Matters)
Several years ago, during a moment of sudden insight, a college friend of mine argued that “worship leader” wasn’t a legitimate role in the church since it doesn’t appear in Ephesians 4. Normally, these kinds of ministry debates don’t catch my attention, but this time I was intrigued. Was it possible that the Apostle Paul […]
Holy Week has begun. It may not “feel” different from any other week – aside from the frenetic work to prepare for Easter Sunday – but it is indeed Holy because it was Jesus who lived through these events. Most of us will know that Holy Week begins on Palm Sunday and culminates with Easter […]
Rediscovering the ‘Call to Worship’: A Better Way to Begin ServiceS
Fifteen seconds into the service I thought, “There’s got to be a better way to do this.” The volunteer entrusted to welcome the congregation had already covered the Broncos and the weather. It went something like this: “Welcome to church. We’re glad you’re with us today, especially with the big game starting in about 45 minutes! […]
Much of the world teaches us that if we’re to succeed, we have to be on the lookout for our chance to shine or get ahead. See an opportunity? Hurry up and grab it! See an opening? Better jump in before someone else does! Quite frankly, it’s exhausting. Don’t you feel that? If you think about […]
Practical Tips for Spontaneous Worship (Part 2)
The last post discussed how you can better prepare yourself to facilitate spontaneous moments in worship. But leading a team in spontaneity is a whole different animal that requires a different set of skills and practices. So, what do you do if you feel comfortable leading spontaneous moments, but it’s foreign to your team? Here’s […]
Practical Tips for Spontaneous Worship (Part 1)
How can I prepare for unplanned moments in worship? I grew up in wildly Pentecostal and Charismatic environments. “Flowing” in and out of songs was normal for me – any moment anything could happen. But I’ve learned that wasn’t – and definitely isn’t – the case for most people. Many worship leaders are hungry to […]
In the age of Amazon, it’s difficult to know what books are worth reading and which aren’t. A simple search for books with “worship” in the title will produce everything from daily devotionals to scholarly monographs to “how to” handbooks. No one is an authority on all “worship books,” but I’ve read my fair share […]