Worship Leader Lessons

Ever heard the saying "Good, Cheap, Fast - you can pick 2...."I've seen the sign in restaurants.  Makes me laugh, mostly because it's true.  And wow - does it ever apply to ministry.  Each decision you make when it comes to your ministry, and the people involved can, and should be run through that grid.  Good, Cheap, Fast - pick 2.Let's say that you really want to do that new song that just came out on Hillsong's latest album (you know - one of the two albums they realesed last week...) You can do it fast, and good - but…

Don't wait for Atlanta to tell you what songs you need to be doing.You know the stories - those (worship leaders) that anxiously await the latest CD from [insert name of artist here]. And they might be in Atlanta, or Nashville, or Australia . . . and immediately download the charts, get their guitarists a new pedal, and try to emulate the exact sound and feel of the entire disc. Problem is, they're forgetting to attention to whether or not those songs are singing the soundtrack of their church, their congregation. Remember - it's so easy to assume that everyone…

I haven't posted one of these in a while. You can get the rest of them here.Do you practice?When i graduated from Samford in '98, I could play my scales and arpeggios at 132 (that'll only mean something to a small few of you). Now, I can play them at about 120 - but I still find myself having to not only practice, but take time to learn new technique, new chords, new styles on the piano.Vocally it's the same drill. Are you showing up on Sunday mornings expecting to pop out the same notes you did last week -…

I haven't posted one of these up in a while. Christmas happened. When Christmas happens in a worship leader's life, everything else stops except for what you're doing with Christmas. Anyway . . . back to it.You CAN'T change people's hearts.This was a tough one to learn. Before coming to Oak Mountain, i worked at a small church in Newnan, GA. I was just remarking to a friend that church plants should be a required part of the resume of a church staff member - especially at large churches like Oak Mountain.I would really struggle with some folks and heart…

Learn how to arrange.No one knows your teams better than you do. If you don't know how to use notation software, I hear that Sibelius is very easy to learn and use. I use Finale - and the reason I don't switch is because I spent FAR too much time learning Finale, and all of its in's and out's. That's not to say that it doesn't have its challenges though :)Spend some time learning notation software, and arranging music the way you want your vocalists to sing it, and your instrumentalists to play it. Providing your musicians with clear consistent…

Take a day off.I'm currently sitting at home. It's 3:45 on a Sunday afternoon. I was at work this morning at 7 (a solid hour before my volunteers show up) and left at 1. I'll be back at 4:30 for children's choir and afternoon activities. Sunday is a work-day for me. Therefore, I take off on Fridays. It's crucial to take some time off during the week OTHER than Sunday. Worship leaders - if you're in a situation where you don't have a day off, start taking one this week. What does your schedule look like? Do you have a…

Do you exercise? Really. Do you take time during the day - MOST days of the week to exercise? I do. I HATE it, but I do. In fact, if I try to skip it, my wife insists that I do because I become grumpy and obsessed with the ridiculous. God's raised the bar with YOU to take care of those he brings into your fold, so you've got to be diligent in taking care of yourself. Don't let it slide. Spend some time exercising and getting outdoors during the day. It's EASY for us [musicians] to sit in our…

Simplified, accurate, quality technology makes all the difference.Regardless of your church budget, you can afford a streamlined technical process.Vocal monitors - They REALLY don't need to hear drums, guitars, reverb . . . train your vocalists, and have them rely on less as opposed to more. Vocalists that sing with me get my voice and piano in their monitors. But it trains them (whether they realize it or not) to listen to each other, and to the harmonic structure of the music for reference. It also creates better vocalists, because they're able to sing with less. This helps reduce stage…

Make it easy for people to get involved.Our choir meets every Wednesday night. But we're a tad different than other choirs. First off - we don't have lady who's only job is to sit at the front of the room and mark your name on a list when you do (or don't) show up. I'm constantly having conversations with people who don't come to choir because they have something one Wednesday night out of the month. Which is why i say "come when you can!" We try to make it easy for people to get involved. No auditions. Flexible rehearsal…

Taking time to learn - part 3As a creative, are you creating? Do you have time carved out to create?I subscribe to a certain email group - and I doubt any of them read this - but i'm always amazed at the number of requests that are posted that read something like this: "Does anyone have a chart for . . . "Worship leaders, in a full-time capacity, should not ONLY have the ability to create charts, but should also be carving out time in their schedules to be creating. Whether it be blogging, writing music, working out a new…