There is a big difference between leading worship and leading people.
To lead worship, all you need is a musical skill set. To lead people requires so much more.
In this podcast I sit down with Rick Muchow. Rick was the Worship Pastor at Saddleback church for 25 years, working under the leadership of Pastor Rick Warren.
He had some fantastic insights to share as it relates to pastoring people in worship.
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As worship leaders, we love those times when the congregation is with us.
We ask them how they’re doing, and they respond. They sing the songs we chose. They are visibly expressing themselves to God.
Maybe they’re even chanting your name as you take the stage. Ahhh…worship leading bliss.
But what happens when people don’t worship – when the room feels frozen over?
Who are you noticing?
Disciple is an old-fashioned word but it might be the most important word as it relates to your leadership.
You see, the kingdom of God isn’t about you using your talent. It’s about many people using many talents.
If you have been given leadership, it is your role not just to do, but to equip. It’s your job to release, stir up, disrupt, call out, challenge, and awaken the dream in others.
If you’re a worship leader, you know the frustration of leading worship for people who aren’t with you.
Besides the noise of your band, you could hear a pin drop in the room – people aren’t singing, lifting their hands, or having a good time.
Most of the time, there is something we can do about it.
As worship leaders we need to be students of our congregation – choosing the songs, sounds, and experiences that encourage participation. That’s what this podcast is all about.
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There’s something that every worship leader loves.
Without an ounce of disagreement, we all crave of a well prepared band. Worship leaders lead better when the band is awesome.
But what does awesome look like? Well, it’s when musicians:
Wouldn’t it be beautiful if our team members were like this? There’s a couple routes we can take.
First, we could moan and complain that our worship team isn’t like Elevation Church – that we don’t have a lot of people, resources, or talent. Or, we could take baby steps towards creating the culture we want to see.
Have you ever asked this question?
Have you ever probed the depths of your own heart and wondered, “Is my worship acceptable to God…really?”
It’s scary to think that some worship is pleasing to God and some worship is detestable. To think that I could approach the throne of Grace, lift up my voice, and bare my soul – only to be rejected.
What kind of worship does God seek?
What if you could ask any question to a leader in the worship music industry with a passion for music ministry?
In today’s podcast, I chat with Craig Dunnagan. And that’s exactly what I did.
Craig is the VP of Music Publishing and Ministry Alliances at Integrity Music/David C. Cook. He’s also one of the co-founders of worshiptogether.com.
In our conversation we cover a lot of ground. From songwriting to the music industry to leading and loving people in the local church, Craig had some great ideas to share.
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There’s a tension we worship leaders face each and every week.
Sometimes it’s paralyzing. Stressful.
We want to worship God, but we also want to sound awesome.
We want to the church to sing, but we also want to do our favorite songs.
We want the glory of God, but we also want to progress in our creativity.
So often, its either one or the other.
I can’t tell you how excited I was to sit down with one of my songwriting and worship leading heroes, Martin Smith.
Not only has Martin’s music inspired me as a young worship leader, but he really inspired an entire generation through the music of Delirious.
There was a freedom, a fire, and an innocence about the music that called us to a deeper level.
With the Delirious chapter coming to an end, Martin has now released a solo project of music (with more to come later this year).
At the end of this post, I’ll let you know you can win a FREE copy.
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We’ve all been there.
Sunday is almost here and we’re not quite sure what to sing. What do we do? Throw it together.
When in doubt, just find some killer songs and sing them, right?
But what about being present? If you think about it, every service is unique. Never again will that exact group of people gather together at that exact place at that exact time.
It’s about presence – being present.
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