December 23: Liturgy + Set List

• COME AND STAND AMAZED

  Reading: Isaiah 9:2-7

  Reading: John 1:9-14

• HARK THE HERALD ANGELS SING

• ANGELS WE HAVE HEARD ON HIGH

  Reading: Luke 1:26-38

• O COME, O COME EMMANUEL

  Message: Hebrews 1:1-4

• COME THOU LONG-EXPECTED JESUS/JESUS WHAT A FRIEND FOR SINNERS

  Reading: Luke 2:1-14

• SILENT NIGHT (SON OF GOD, SON OF MAN)

Silent night, holy night

Ages past, heavenly height

Before the fall salvation was planned Son of God is Son of Man

Christ our Rescue is here, Christ our Rescue is here

Silent night, holy night

God is near, not by might

God with us the Word made flesh

On His shoulders, all kingdoms will rest

Jesus, King of kings, Jesus, King of kings

Silent night, holy night

God from God, Light from Light

For our pardon, He lived and died

God and man now reconciled Christ,

Himself is our peace Christ, Himself is our peace

Silent night, holy night

All is calm, all is bright

Round yon virgin, mother, and child

Holy Infant so tender and mild

Sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace

Reading: Luke 2:15-21

• THE KING IS COMING PRELUDE

December 19: Liturgy + Set List

• ADVENT HYMN

  Call to Worship: Psalm 62:5-8

  Welcome to this fourth Sunday of Advent. We live in a country and culture that enables us to have almost anything and everything we desire delivered to our front door within 24 hours. But Advent is a season where we learn to wait. And as we sit between the advent of Christ’s first coming, and the advent of his second coming we wait with longing, expectation, and hope knowing that all of the promises of God are yes and amen in Jesus. So as we sing this morning, and as you hear from God’s word, I want to encourage you to sit in the inconvenience of waiting. To lean into the ache of longing and expectation of what is to come, as we hold onto hope.  Let’s sing together:

• COME THOU LONG-EXPECTED JESUS

• IS HE WORTHY

  Sermon: Matthew 2:13-23

  The life of faith is a life where we learn to hold tensions - that God is completely sovereign and completely good, and that sometimes our experiences make it seem that God is anything but sovereign and any but good. We want certainty, but God invites us to mystery. We can know and believe God for the things He has revealed, and we can trust Him for the things He has not. If you are wrestling with those tensions this morning, my prayer for you, and for me is that our posture would be that of the father who brings his demon-possessed son to Jesus. ‘I believe! Help my unbelief!’ Go to Jesus with the wrestle, and speak openly and honestly to Him. Would you stand, let’s sing about the mystery and the glory of God.

• COME BEHOLD THE WONDROUS MYSTERY

• HARK THE HERALD ANGELS SING

  Advent Candle Lighting: Isaiah 46:8-11

  BENEDICTION: Brothers and sisters, let us go as those carrying the Light of Christ into the darkness.  Let us live as those who know there is no one like our God - the One who declares the end from the beginning, the One who has spoken and is speaking through His Son.  The One who has purposed and will bring it to pass.

On Nerves + Anxiety

Anyone who says they don’t get a little nervous, or a bit anxious to lead worship is probably lying. There are so many things that regardless of our level of preparation are out of our control. There are so many things that have to work together at once in a corporate gathering.

So how do you deal with nerves if and when they begin to surface?

First things first, pray. Ask the Spirit who indwells you to lift your eyes to Christ. Many of our nerves as worship leaders come from our sense that it all hangs on me. We need the Spirit to remind us that the work is already finished in Christ, He is the One we lift up, He is the One we celebrate, He is the One who deserves all of the glory.

We need to remember. We need to remember that our life is hidden in Christ. We need to remember that we are serving our brothers and sisters, that our family loves us, and is for us as we serve. We need to remember that Christ’s ability to be honored and glorified is not dependent on our ability to perform or execute a flawless setlist.

We need to practice. The times I feel most anxious when leading are when I know I have not spent enough time with a song, or with something I feel the Spirit leading me to share. It can be easy to swing the pendulum to the opposite extreme by rehearsing to the point where we leave no space for spontaneity, but real preparation should be an act of worship. We should spend time engaging with song and Scripture throughout the week so that we can be freed up to lead and serve well because we have traveled the road, familiarize ourselves with the journey before our Sunday services.

We need to come dependent. Often when we feel insecure, anxious, or fearful we can be tempted to try and control. We rehearse and rehearse and rehearse, we map out every second of the service, we run transitions countless times, rather than release and empower others with responsibility and authority, we hoard in an effort to control and minimize risk. This is both exhausting, and it is also the antithesis of what the Apostle Paul reminds us - in our weakness we are strong (2 Cor 12:9-10). When we come dependent we acknowledge that preparation is important, but true power comes from the Holy Spirit working in and through us to point people to Christ.

If nerves or anxiety are a regular part of your experience of leading worship, I’d also encourage you to read Tim Keller’s short book, The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness. Seeing ourselves accurately off of the platform will help us see ourselves correctly on the platform.

December 12: Liturgy + Set List

• THE GLORIOUS IMPOSSIBLE

  Welcome to this third Sunday of Advent, the glorious impossible - that is really what the Church has been proclaiming for 2000 years - the glorious impossible reality that God saves sinners in and through Christ. So whether this is the first time that you have set foot in a church building, or you have been in Church longer than you can remember - this is the one story that we will continue to proclaim - the Glorious Impossible reality that is ours in Christ. We rehearse this story because we are slow to remember and quick to forget. Let’s respond to who God is and what He has done:

  Call To Worship: Psalm 145:10-13

• ANGELS WE HAVE HEARD ON HIGH

• ALL CREATURES OF OUR GOD AND KING

  Sermon: Matthew 2:1-12

  Is Jesus better? Is He enough? It is not lost on me that we have fellow citizens in Kentucky who this weekend are wrestling with some form of that question as a tornado has ripped through communities leaving death and destruction in its wake. And maybe you are not standing in the rubble of a home, but maybe you are standing in the rubble of a life and asking yourself - is Jesus better? Is Jesus enough? Brothers and sisters, let me tell you - Jesus is enough, and He is better than all things. Let’s treasure Him together, would you stand:

• MY JESUS I LOVE THEE

• O HOLY NIGHT (HEAR THE GOSPEL STORY)

  Advent Candle Lighting: Psalm 73;25-26

  BENEDICTION: Brothers and sisters, let us go as those carrying the Light of Christ into the darkness. Let our portion be Christ, and our every desire - in heaven and on earth - be for Him. In weakness, let Christ be the strength of our hearts forever.

With Expectation

It is easy for regularity to breed repetition.

And repetition to breed familiarity.

And familiarity to breed contempt… apathy… indifference.

But if we believe that God is living and active, He speaks to us through His Word, and He desires to meet with us, to confront us, comfort us, and conform us - there is no such thing as just another Sunday.

In your planning and preparation, in your rehearsals and communication, in your set up and serving, do you expect God to speak?

Do you expect Him to move?

Do you expect Him to do what only He can do?

As those leading and serving week in and week out, we have to fight against the ease with which we can go on autopilot - just plan another setlist, just schedule another team, just set up and sound check another time, just lead another service.

May your leadership, your team, and those you serve be marked with expectation and desperation for God to do what only He can do in, among, and through His people. Because there are no such things as just another Sunday. So come expectant.

December 5: Liturgy + Set List

• O COME LET US ADORE HIM

  Call to Worship: Psalm 24 - Responsive Reading

  LEADER:

  The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for He has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers. Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in His holy place?

  ALL:
  He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up His soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.
  He will receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation. Such is the generation of those who seek
  Him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob.

  LEADER:

  Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory?

  ALL:
  The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle!

  LEADER:

  Lift up your heads, O gates! And lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory?

  ALL:
  The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory!

• JOY TO THE WORLD (UNSPEAKABLE JOY)

• LIVING HOPE

  Sermon: Matthew 1:18-25

  God has always desired to be near His people. We see this in the Old Testament, how He dwells among His people in the Tabernacle and the Temple. We see this when Christ becomes incarnate as a human and God dwells with us - Emmanuel. And we see this now through the Holy Spirit, God does not only dwell among His people, or with His people, He dwells in His people. Christ in You, the hope of glory. The is the beauty of the Gospel that sinful people can be near a Holy God because of God’s provision of Himself. Let’s respond together…

• GOD WITH US

• HARK THE HERALD ANGELS SING

  Advent Candle Lighting: Psalm 16:5-11

  BENEDICTION: Brothers and sisters, let us go as those carrying the Light of Christ into the darkness. Let us live as those for whom the lines have fallen in pleasant places, indeed we have a beautiful inheritance in the Lord. Let our hearts be glad, and our beings rejoice, secure in Christ - the One in whose presence there is fullness of joy, and pleasures forevermore.

November 28: Liturgy + Set List

• THE KING IS COMING PRELUDE/COME THOU LONG EXPECTED JESUS

  Call to Worship: Psalm 130:5-8

This is the first Sunday of Advent. Advent means coming or arrival. We are people who live between two Advents. And in this season we remember the first coming of Christ - His first Advent as a baby. When He took on our flesh as a baby, lived a perfect life, died a death that we deserved, and was raised to life again. And we look forward with longing and expectation to the day of His second Advent - when He will return as King to rule and reign, to wipe every tear and set all things right. So as we sing songs expressing the longing and expectation for Christ first Advent this season, I want you to hold in your mind at the same time His second Advent. Let’s remember His coming, and look ahead to His return.

• KING OF KINGS

• O COME, O COME EMMANUEL

  Sermon: Matthew 1:1-17

  If you’re here this morning as a follower of Jesus, the genealogy we read in Matthew is not just a list of names - it is actually your genealogy. Because you have been adopted, grafted into the family of Jesus. Not because of your goodness, or righteousness, but because of the goodness of God. And this family of God is a family that is always, always, always moving toward fullness of joy and pleasures forevermore at the right hand of God. So, family of God, let’s respond join the family song:

• RAISE UP THE CROWN (ALL HAIL THE POWER)

• O COME ALL YE FAITHFUL

• Lighting the Advent Candle: Galatians 4:4-7

  Benediction:

  Brothers and sisters, let us go as those carrying the Light of Christ into the darkness. Living as those who have been redeemed from the law, no longer slaves, but as adopted as children, heirs of God in Christ.

Worship + Sabbath

Sunday has been called the ‘Day of Rest.’ If you hear that as someone who works, serves, or volunteers as a part of a Church staff, or ministry team, you probably laugh - because Sundays can often feel anything but restful for you and your family. But rest is an important rhythm to our lives as followers of Jesus. God created and rested, not because He needed the rest, but because He was modeling for those of us who cultivate His creation the way He invites us to live.

If you work on the Day of Rest, how do you, in fact, rest?

Learn about Sabbath from Scripture. Why was Jesus always breaking man-made rules about the Sabbath? What can we learn about the rhythms of worship and service that we find in the New Testament? Why did God create and model Sabbath? Why was the Sabbath celebration an integral part of the life of His people Israel? What should Sabbath look like for a follower of Jesus now? Sabbath and rest was God’s idea, let’s go to the source to learn and be formed in our understanding.

Read about Sabbath. We can easily assume rest means not doing anything - disconnecting from life and reality. The more I learn about rest and sabbath, the more I see how rest and Sabbath are about cultivating and participating in things that fuel me and give me life. Is binging Netflix truly life-giving to my soul? Probably not. There are many great books on the Sabbath available, some of my favorites have been: The Sabbath by Abraham Joshua Heschel, Subversive Sabbath by A.J. Swoboda, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer.

Find sustainable rhythms. We are not infinite, and we are not God. If we are to be in the work of ministry for the long haul, we must find sustainable rhythms by learning to live within the limits of our time, resources, family responsibilities, seasons, and stages of life. Learning to develop other leaders, delegate tasks, and being okay when things that speak more to my ego than the necessity of serving God’s people fall through the cracks are all things that have (and continue) to make space in my life for sustainable rhythms.

Serve from rest. Jesus says, ‘Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light (Matt 11:28-30)’. If we are to point to the One who gives us rest in our serving and our songs, we must be spending time resting in His presence.

I hope and pray that you are able to rest, and that your service to God’s people is life-giving more than it is soul-sucking.

November 21: Liturgy + Set List

• BEFORE THE THRONE

  CALL TO WORSHIP: To all who are weary and need rest

  To all who mourn and long for comfort

  To all who feel worthless and wonder if God cares

  To all who fail and desire strength

  To all who sin and need a Savior

  This church opens wide her doors with a welcome from Jesus Christ, the Ally of

  His enemies, the Defender of the guilty, the Justifier of the inexcusable, the

  Friend of sinners, welcome.

  [10th Presbyterian Call to Worship]

  We gather not as a collection of individuals, but as a people. The people of God standing before the throne of God, to pour out the praises of God. We stand here not because of anything we have done, but because of God’s grace alone.

• GRACE ALONE

• COME BEHOLD THE WONDROUS MYSTERY

  Sermon: 1 Corinthians 11:17-34

• THERE IS A REDEEMER

  COMMUNION

• DEATH WAS ARRESTED

  Benediction: Ephesians 3:20-21

Preparing For A New Sermon Series

Starting a new sermon series can feel like starting a new school year - excitement, anticipation, maybe some nerves as you find your feet. As worship leaders, we have the opportunity to come alongside pastors and leaders to shape the corporate gathering to clearly articulate the thrust of the sermon series.

One of the rhythms that have been most helpful for me is sitting down with the pastor, elders, teaching team - whoever is responsible for preparing the series and will be preaching the sermons - to walk through the entire series. Look at a 30,000-foot view of the sermon series - the number of weeks, what texts, themes, and main points for each particular Sunday. These conversations enable me to fit weekly setlists into a broader framework of the entire series. If you do not have regular meetings with your pastor and elders, here are a few questions I always when looking toward a new sermon series:

• What do you hope people walk away understanding about God, the Church, themselves, etc?

• Why is this the right time for this sermon series?

• What are the main themes you will be drawing out throughout our time?

• Are there additional resources you’re using in your preparation (books, articles, other sermon series) that you think would be helpful for me to spend time digesting?

• Are there things that you would like to see incorporated into the rhythm of our gathering during this series?

• Are there songs that you think would fit well for this series?

Whether or not you have a meeting with your pastor to talk through each sermon in a new series week by week, one of the most helpful practices I have found in my own preparation is spending time in the text that will be preached. If you are preaching through an entire book of the Bible, do not just take it week to week, read the book in its entirety - again and again. Be familiar with the storyline, the themes, the movement and arc of the story. Again, a broader framework will help you build from week to week in a way that will make the entire series feel connected. Read some commentaries, or study Bibles to understand a little bit more. the Bible Project’s overview videos on the books of the Bible, and certain themes and words I find very helpful in preparation as well.

• Similar to asking questions of the pastor, here are questions that I always ask myself as well:

• What songs will work well with these themes and texts?

• Where are the holes in our song inventory? What do we need to be saying in this series that is not currently a part of our master song list?

• What liturgical elements will help our people respond to the truths from God’s Word?

• How do I need to equip the team’s understanding of this series so they are able to lead people, not just songs?

If you are preparing for a new sermon series, you may find these posts helpful as well:

Creating a Song Inventory.

Worship Leader Checklist (free download).

Building a Set List.

Connecting Songs + Sermons.

November 7: Liturgy + Set List

• GREAT THINGS

CALL TO WORSHIP: To all who are weary and need rest

To all who mourn and long for comfort

To all who feel worthless and wonder if God cares

To all who fail and desire strength

To all who sin and need a Savior

This church opens wide her doors with a welcome from Jesus Christ, the Ally of

His enemies, the Defender of the guilty, the Justifier of the inexcusable, the

Friend of sinners, welcome.

[10th Presbyterian Call to Worship]

You opened your eyes to fresh grace and new mercies this morning. It is grace and mercy that you did not earn or deserve, you have not achieved or accomplished it. It is simply a gift from a good and gracious God. And it is from that posture of receiving that we respond in song and worship. Let’s sing together about the heart and character of our good God:

• PRAISE TO THE LORD, THE ALMIGHTY-GOOD GOOD FATHER

• BUILD MY LIFE

Sermon: Acts 6:1-7

We become what we behold.  So is it any wonder that both in the world and in the church are ravaged consumerism and the love of self?  Beholding self leads to being bent in on self.  But if you’re here this morning as a follower of Jesus, you are one who dwells in the upside down kingdom or God.  The kingdom where the last will be first and the first will be last, a kingdom where it is greater to serve than to be served.  I don’t know what the Holy Spirit may be doing in your heart right now about how he may be leading you to practically respond to the word preached, but what I do know is that we all need to train our hearts daily to behold Jesus, the one who took the form of a servant, the one who came to serve, the one who learned obedience.  And when we behold him, our lives open in worship and service.  Let’s behold him together in song.

• TURN YOUR EYES (SOVEREIGN GRACE)

• JESUS PAID IT ALL

Benediction: Ephesians 3:20-21

Navigating Advent & Christmas

Christmas is fast approaching. With more than 18 months of leading worship in what feels like completely uncharted territory, maybe just the mention of planning and preparing for Advent and Christmas makes you tired. Special services, rhythms, and seasons require a level of margin and energy that every person is struggling to rally at the moment.

Wherever you and your church are in the process of planning for the 2021 Advent Season, here are a few considerations that will hopefully enable to season to be meaningful for you as well as those you serve:

Plan ahead. Determine the songs that you will incorporate into your weekly worship service. Communicate early with your team, clarifying who is available and if there are additional rehearsals, services, or times of preparation that need to be scheduled. Consider the practical details like sound and tech set up, decor, any extra hands, and help you may need in ‘turning a space’ from one service to the next. I have often found the more prepared I am, the more flexible I can be. If we have learned anything during COVID it may be that we have to be prepared for things to be different than planned.

Make space to be and enjoy. So much of what we do serving on staff (whether in a full-time paid position or as a volunteer) is creating the space for the seasons to be meaningful for others. But we must also work to create margin and space for ourselves and our families to enjoy the Advent season. Planning ahead for church, as well as for family time will hopefully create space to avoid resentment and dread about or toward the Church for you, and those you love.

Take off the pressure. Christmas is important. Advent is important. It can be easy to feel like we only have one shot to ‘convince’ people who only darken the doors of a Church during specific seasons, but discipleship is the long game. We can put prideful pressure on ourselves to believe that people’s ability to connect with God and His Church is determined by our ability to execute a flawless gathering - but we are not the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit is not helped in His work by our excellence any more than He is hindered by our underwhelming ‘performance.’ So take the pressure off - this does not all hinge on you. None of us are that important, praise God!

Focus your team. Pace yourself with new Christmas songs, new versions, arrangements, and melodies. Remember, for your congregation as well as the team, these are songs we sing for four-six weeks out of the year, so for more than forty weeks, these songs are not in regular rotation. Rather than introducing all-new Christmas songs and melodies, introduce a few, and allow your worship team time to be familiar with new material long before it is added to the weekly schedule.

For a deeper look at the rhythms of Advent for your team, read my post Advent, Christmas & Corporate Worship here.