Preparation

Sunday Spiral

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Some Sundays feel like heaven. Everyone shows up on time and is prepared, the set list is connected and cohesive, there are no technical issues, the congregation is present and engaged, we feel free as we lead and serve, and God seems nearer than usual. It is glorious, beautiful, soul-stirring.

Other Sundays feel like hell: the team is scattered and disjointed, you wonder if your body was possessed when you built the liturgy and set list, rehearsal is consumed with technical issues, the congregation is indifferent, you stumble over your words, can’t wait to walk off the platform, and wonder if God has somehow left the room. Commence the Sunday Spiral.

Leading worship is vulnerable, serious, and important. If we value this sacred responsibility, it can be easy for us to feel completely derailed when a morning falls apart. So how do we avoid a Monday morning resignation, and stop the Sunday spiral?

See that you are safe. Your identity, my identity is not in what we do. Therefore, even if I fail at a task, my identity, value, and worth is not in jeopardy.

Lay down what you are carrying. The good, the bad, the ugly - if you faithfully stewarded the moment, team, and people of God to the best of your Spirit-led abilities, then ask for the Spirit’s help to not internalize the shame or condemnation that the enemy wants to plant in your heart and mind.

Do some diagnostic work. Was this a one-off? Or are there consistent issues in the culture, preparation, and dynamics of a team or the morning that are beginning to emerge?

Take advantage of feedback loops. How can you help shepherd your team through that moment, and their own Sunday Spirals? Are there things that need to be worked through so that you can avoid that situation in the future?

Do not go it alone. If you are spiraling, articulate that to a trusted person - not necessarily so they can assure you that ‘I’m sure it wasn’t that bad,’ but so that you do not have to bear your burden alone. Ask them to listen, ask them to pray, and ask them to be present.

Lead again. Discipleship is the long game, and part of our discipleship and sanctification is being accomplished through our leading, serving, volunteering, and obedience to follow Jesus in our vocation and with our responsibilities as worship leaders, so lead again.

Planning Ahead

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When I started leading worship in youth group, songs lived in a giant folder. No planning center, and no digital chord charts to be seen - apart from the Word documents I would type myself. It would be normal to arrive at youth group, or Sunday evening Bible study and see other leaders flipping through a folder of chord charts asking, ‘What songs should we sing?’ And yet even with all the advantages of modern technology and resources that are accessible to worship leaders today, I’m surprised how many people still lead from a ‘folder,’ mentality. I often sense - particularly for those who lead as volunteers or are bi-vocationally - that this kind of execution is not a lack of care, thought, or intentionality, but of time.

I have led worship as a volunteer, while working multiple jobs, and on full-time staff. Here are four things I’ve learned that have helped me plan:

Batch work.

I find it easier to get ahead when I can work on one thing at a time. So I will often batch my work by focusing one day on building set lists for the month and scheduling teams. Focusing another day on learning new songs, building tracks, propresenter, and chord charts. Reading, prayer, and long-range planning on another day, etc. This helps me feel like I can do deep work by building rhythms that will help me week to week.

Communicate expectations.

Communication with the team is important. But the team also needs to know what to expect from me. Likewise, working effectively with your pastor requires intentional communication as well.

Determine what is most important.

The artistic sensibility means that I often am aware there is a gap between what I envision, and what I will be able to execute. Is this song as perfect in its transitions as we can make it? Likely not. But we also have four other songs this morning that require attention. This is an example of where I have determined - being able to communicate the larger idea of the liturgy is more important than the tiny details of song transitions that will likely go unrealized by the congregation. Give your time and energy to the things that are important to the Lord, to you, your team, your leaders, and your community - open your hands to the rest.

Recognize the season.

Having a baby? Upgrading your audio visuals? In school? Rebuilding a team? Developing new leaders? Every season we inhabit will shift and change our capacity. It is unfair, and unrealistic to expect that every season will be the same. Life moves in seasons and stages, so allow the seasons and stages to help shape what is most important, what is worth fighting for, and what can fall away.

What would you add?

Questions To Consider

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One of the things that our team has spoken about is the need for a deeper dive into our songs and services apart from a weekly service evaluation. And that would open up questions, and facilitate discussion for our whole team around the purpose and movement of our gatherings, apart from song choice, and how each of us can play a part in moving our services in the same direction.

One of the things that sparked these categories in my mind is Mike Cosper’s 10 Questions to Consider at the end of every year. I appreciated how he was able to open a view of the gathering wider than song choice and simply judge a service. The categories below are certainly not exhaustive, but will hopefully fuel deeper thought:

SONGS

  • What new songs are we singing, and how are people responding?

  • Which songs consistently have high responses (loud singing/participation, comments, humming in the bathroom)?

  • What holes are in our master song list (content)?

  • What are we singing too much (themes, songs, style)?

  • Is the liturgy balancing an awareness of the people, while continuing to lead toward a direction that more closely embodies our values and mission?

COMMUNICATION

  • Is it clear?

  • Are we equipping our verbal communicators to understand and navigate the movement, tone of the morning, and the moment while still being themselves?

  • Are the announcements leading people in worship, and moving them toward mission, not just giving them information?

  • What has been confusing?

  • Where have we dropped the ball (for the congregation, for the team, with visuals, with helping equip those on the platform knowing how to effectively communicate)?

FORMATION

  • What is missing?

  • What is stale?

  • Are the ordinances being thoughtfully navigated (within the service and by the communicator)

  • What has been surprising?

What would you add?

Here are some other similar resources you may find helpful:

Don’t Judge The Service.

Service Evaluation.

10 Questions to Consider.

Every Resurrection Sunday

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The Sunday following Holy Week can feel… well… anticlimactic. Likely you have invested more time, energy, creativity, and intention during Holy Week than almost any other time of the year. Does the Sunday following Easter just mean ‘business as usual’? My personal conviction is that there is no such thing as just another Sunday. That every Sunday as we gather with the people of God matters to our formation as the people of God, and matters as we declare God’s worth and value corporately. But I get it, you’re still recovering, and the excitement can sometimes feel deadened by the normalcy of life.

But the truth is, every week is a mini-resurrection Sunday.

That is why Christians gather on Sunday rather than Saturday. We are reenacting this day, orienting our lives around the day that Jesus rose from the grave. Every Sunday should stand as a marker in the week and in our life that Jesus is still alive, still ruling and reigning, and that He is worthy of our worship.

Remind your team, remind your people, and remind yourself that this Sunday is a mini-resurrection Sunday.

Good Friday

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The Gospel is good news.

Good news that God saves sinners. Good news is that on the darkest day, God shines forth as the one who is good, and does good.

When God made the world, he called it good.

When God made humanity he called man very good.

And then He rested, having completed His work.

When Jesus remade humanity, he said it is finished.

He gave up His spirit and rested. Rested in His completed work. Rested in the love and joy of the Father. This same rest is offered to all who trust in Christ’s completed work on this Good Friday. This day that by any standard would be called evil, wicked, and fruitless. But not for a Good God. Not for the One who works all things together for good, and glory.

No one is good but God alone. And today on this Good Friday, we can again celebrate His goodness.

Ten Yearly Questions

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As 2022 comes to a close, it can be helpful to remember, celebrate, and reevaluate. I don’t know about you, but there is something about the end of a year that draws me toward reflection and vision more than any other time of the year. But often I need parameters that help shape the questions I ask, the way I consider the previous year, and the things I hope, pray, and dream for the next. That is one of the reasons I found Mike Cosper’s Ten Yearly Questions he shared on the Doxology and Theology podcast so helpful:

1. Who is here?

2. Who needs to be here?

3. Who has been here before us?

4. Is it comprehensible?

5. Is it with the cost?

6. Is it true?

7. Who is the hero of the service?

8. Is it participatory?

9. Does it speak to rich and poor alike?

10. Does it prepare people for their encounter with death?

What questions are you asking as you remember, celebrate, and reevaluate?

Advent Beyond Nostalgia

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When we lived in England, it was a normal and expected part of the Advent and Christmas season to sing carols. Not just in corporate worship, but during a Carol service - where Christians and non-Christians alike would come and sing along to songs that felt more nostalgic than worshipful. But isn’t that the truth even for followers of Jesus who gather weekly with the people of God? We all are tempted by nostalgia more than wonder during the Advent season.

As you begin to think about and prepare for Advent, what would it take to spend time celebrating the season by helping people not just sing familiar carols, but meditate on the truth these songs declare about the wonder of the Gospel and the fact that God is with us?

If you are unfamiliar with the history, additional verses, or inspiration behind some of the carols that you will be leading, spend a little bit of time reading about these songs online. I often find that understanding the original context changes the way I experience and lead a song.

Work to connect songs and sermons. We lead people, not songs. So help the people understand why we are singing what we are singing, what it means, and how we are to respond.

Use the slides, projection, or printed material to help do some of the heavy lifting. I like to use the slides to help shepherd people. Rather than feeling the pressure to explain everything, how might you use what is already at your disposal to help lift the eyes of those your are leading toward the transcendent truths we celebrate together?

Christmas may be a popular time for non-Christians to attend church, but Christians need the Gospel just as much as anyone else. Let’s prepare the truths of Scripture beautifully to be sung, prayed, and remembered inviting the Holy Spirit to lead in our preparation as well as our leading. And ask the Holy Spirit to make alive cold dead hearts for the first time, and the hundredth time.

Finding Your Weekly Rhythms

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As worship leaders every week we must prepare the music, our hearts, and our teams to serve God’s people in corporate worship. Although these are things that I believe every worship leader should be prepared for each week regardless of their context, there are certain unique things that need to be addressed and prepare depending on the size of your team and church, where you serve, and whether you are full-time, part-time, a volunteer, or are responsible for other areas of ministry as well.

Ministry, like life, moves in seasons. There are times when you will be required to run hard for a season. But ministry, like life, is a marathon, not a sprint. So finding a healthy weekly rhythm that can be tweaked in a busy season, is better than no rhythm which has to constantly adapt in every season.

When it comes to finding a weekly rhythm, perhaps the first question we need to ask is, how much time do you need to budget to accomplish everything for which we are responsible in a weekly service?

Here are a few other questions to consider when establishing a weekly rhythm:

What are the things that only you can do?

What are the things you need to train someone else to do?

What things do you need to add to your weekly rhythm?

What things do you need to let go of for a season, or forever?

Life is chaotic, ministry is hectic. Finding a rhythm to your week will allow you to respond rather than react to every new challenge. Over the course of time, I believe that rhythms help us know how and what to prioritize, as well as find a life that is sustainable, strengthened, and balanced.

Weekly Preparation

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There are many things that are worth our time and preparation as worship leaders. The tasks are infinite, our time is not. When I consider my weekly preparation, I like to think of three categories: the music, the team, and the heart.

The music. Worship is more than a song, songs are an integral part of the work we do as worship leaders. The music needs to be prepared and practiced before we are able to lead our team or the congregation. I want to make sure that I have built my set list, communicated to my team, and set up our sound system, and ProPresenter as a regular part of my weekly preparation.

The team. Whether your team is a few people or many people, we must consider how to best serve the team in our preparation. Preparing the team also looks like knowing the team, and praying for them as we move toward service together.

The heart. We can prepare all of the external and obvious elements but if we have neglected to prepare our hearts, we do God’s people and ourselves a disservice. Has my time before the face of God been deeper, richer, and longer-lasting than my time on a platform or behind a microphone? What are you praying in anticipation for the gathering?

Several years ago I started using a checklist every time I led worship so that I empty my brain, and be consistent in my preparation. You can download that checklist for free here.

Uncomfortable For The Right Reasons

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For some, the life of the believer is a fragrance from life to life, and for others, it is the fragrance from death to death (2 Corinthians 2:16). The Gospel can be a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense (1 Peter 2:8). How do we reconcile this reality as we think about our corporate gatherings? Danny Franks says, “The Gospel is offensive. Nothing else should be.”

When I plan the liturgies I lead, I want people to be uncomfortable for the right reasons. I desire for the Holy Spirit to expose and confront our sin, lead us to Christ, and comfort us in our affliction. I pray that we continually die to ourselves, pick up the cross, and follow the One in whose image we are being conformed. Life in Christ is death to self, and this is uncomfortable. This is what it looks like to be uncomfortable for the right reasons. But too often in our churches, we make people uncomfortable for the wrong reasons…

Transitions. We are sloppy with our transitions, late lyric changes, and technology not being ready to go. Turning a chord chart page, changing a CAPO, being uncertain about what element in the gathering comes next.

Language. Using insider language like Christianese, or language that is only familiar to regular attenders. We need to be wise not just with the words we use, but the way we communicate.

Communication. We don’t help people know what to do, and when. We don’t spend enough time teaching, shepherding, and guiding people through the service. We have not learned the essential nature of rubrics.

Context. Do we know the people, their stories, and the history of where we are leading?

Community. There is a cognitive dissonance when our communities (both local and global) are in crisis and we ignore that reality in our corporate gatherings. We must speak with wisdom, discernment, and clarity that points people to the hope of the Gospel even in the midst of current events.

Let people be uncomfortable in the gathering, but only for the right reasons.

Getting Ready for Fall

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You have mercifully survived Summer. Whether you serve at a large church with many resources or a smaller church that has managed to eek out your weekly services, surviving the Summer is no small feat!

Fall seems to be a time when many people are settling into new rhythms and routines. This is often true when it comes to attendance and involvement within a local church context as well. So how do we leave Summer, and step intentionality into the Fall?

Reevaluate and reestablish rhythms. This is true for the team, as well as yourself. Making changes to a culture, the rhythms of rehearsal, preparation, or communication takes time, consistency, and discernment about when to shift, change, end, or begin something new. Making those adjustments can be softened if they are rolled into a season when people are already attempting to establish new habits and rhythms. In the same way, we may need to make changes to what and where we give our time. Has the way I have budgeted my time in the past going to be able to sustain me this Fall? Are there things that are going to require more time in this season than in the past?

Invite. Invite new people to participate. Invite the people who are already serving to be known, and engage others. Invite deeper investment.

Make plans with an open hand. COVID has taught us what the Scripture has always said - “The heart of man plans his ways, but the LORD establishes his steps (Proverbs 16:9).” We can and should make plans, we can and should pray and discern where God may be leading our team, but we must also be willing to release plans to the One who establishes our steps.

It is a gift to do this work. I have learned the more that I am able to identify life and ministry moving in seasons, the more I am able to be grateful for what is, hopeful for what could be, and see everything as a gift inviting me to be conformed to the image of Christ. I hope whatever Fall may look like, we may all learn to lead and serve with open hands, gratitude, and a servant’s heart.