Let the People Sing

It is astounding how so many worship teams miss the mark on letting the church sing. Too many worship teams are not aware that they are too concerned with their arrangements, presentation, and of course the wanting the move God.  These things are good; however, it’s important to always incorporate the church in worship in a way that they can also be heard. 

When I speak about singing, I’m talking about breaking the arrangement of the song to give an opportunity for the congregation to hear themselves as they sing to God. It is encouraging when the people who are singing hear the rest of the congregation sing.


I have heard two responses regarding this: those who go to church and walk out with the feeling that the worship team did a great job and those who say "I sang my heart out at church, like in the middle of rushing waters, it was awesome!," not a sing along like a spectator to the venue called church.

It brings the following…

It brings a feeling of unity. When the people hear themselves sing, they feel that they belong. God will do the supernatural in uniting the disconnected people to the rest of the church as they sing to HIM as one.

It brings a voice of unity. As the church sings as one voice, they declare the attributes of God together, and if the individual decides not to sing he will surely hear who God is to the church.

Thirdly, it brings a heavenly touch to the worship. When the church sings it gives them an atmosphere of heaven in their worship time.

Instructions... Find a place in the song where (the Spirit will indicate what part of the song) the church should sing or repeat without the whole band. Tell the band to be always ready for this opportunity to happen when the worship leader will encourage them to sing with the church. It is encouraging, (especially to the new-comers) when even the band is singing along with the singer and the rest of the congregation; all are singing as one.

Let’s sing as church in worship, not as spectators at a concert…

Concert or Encounter

I have great zeal for excellence when it comes to worship presentations.  Having the latest media, sound and lighting, along with the choir and the musicians, can enhance the worship experience.  However, things don’t always run perfectly and church budgets are limited; we can only continue to move forward. I have learned through the years that people who come hungry for God are not concerned with whether the worship has a concert feel or not. They are there to seek an encounter with God.

If you decide that getting the latest and greatest equipment for your worship presentation, it will turn out to be a tough order to follow. You will most likely fail and end up frustrated because technology changes fast. The people you may seek advice from or read about usually change products quickly to better things because this is something they can afford. Most of the people that have suggestions or thoughts about such things are usually from other churches or have been to too many concerts; they are expecting the same experience when they visit the church where you worship. At the very least, they want to hear that as a worship team you are advancing to meet with concert standards.

Let the following help you have some peace of mind...

1^st  your worship is intended to provide the people an encounter with God. God can use your media, video, sound and lighting as an instrument through which your worship reaches them, however, God can also do his work without it.


True Story
My wife and I went on vacation to Rochester NY to see my family. That Sunday we went to visit the church where my cousin is the music minister. We had an awesome worship time in the house of God. Later that evening, we met with him and his wife for some coffee to catch up. His first question to me that night was, "How was the sound for worship?” He was about to apologize for its quality and I stopped him and said it was all great! I made it clear to him that I hadn’t come for a concert but a worship experience that would lead me to encounter God. I added that if they ever started charging at the door of the church then I would expect a concert-quality performance. I ended by encouraging him to continue to do his best and reminded him that in spite of the lack of resources for worship and the people in our churches, God always comes through.  

2^nd  be content with what you have.  God will always provide and bless you in the more if you appreciate and become a good steward of the things He has given you.  Sometimes my media team perseverates on the need for an upgrade, suggesting that we should have what is used at youth camp meetings. I remind them that we have come a long way from using overhead projectors to now having overhanging projectors on our ceiling. Little by little progress and upgrades takes place, but that should not be the focus.

I remember there was an event in our church where many ministers attended. I overheard a certain worship minster speaking to his senior pastor about the media; pointing at the screens he said, "That’s what we need in our church." At that time, their media consisted of an overhead projector and transparencies which still did the job; this tool communicated the message effectively. If you work with what you have, you will see God do what you cannot!

3^rd  every church is different. Running this race of wants and have-nots is a never ending race and a frustrating one at that. There will always be a church that has more expensive, more elaborate, better stuff than your church. When others come and want to influence you to better things and they don't know your budget, you say it’s working for you and your budget now and thank them for their opinion. Take pride in your equipment instead of creating a conflict with your pastor for more money to enhance it. When you do this it will help you appreciate the tools God has put before you.

Be careful not to fall into the concert track. Lead your church into an experience with God which needs no smokes or lighting because they come hungry for it.

Choose an Encounter with God over a concert with the worship and production team! 

Present B4 Presenting

Many worship teams have a hard time teaching a new song to their congregation.  It seems like they need to repeat the song more than once on that given Sunday or add it to the list again the next worship service.  This can become an obstacle that breaks the flow of worship in any service.  

So how can we get to the heart of a new song during its presentation without breaking the flow of worship; I have two suggestions…

1.  Use your offering time to present a new song.  Since giving is the focus and not learning the new song, the congregation is not preoccupied with following along, yet they hear and internalize the new song.   Meanwhile, focus on the chorus and encourage the congregation to sing along. Pull back on the instruments so they can hear themselves singing the new song you are presenting together.

2.  This one is my favorite; Collaborate with your sound team to play the song or songs that you want to present as background music as people are walking into the service. Follow up by playing it after the worship service as people are being dismissed and are fellowshipping. Find creative ways to introduce new songs you are about to present in any venue or activity where the congregation can be exposed to them.

Testimony

As I was coming down the altar after a Sunday service, I overheard three men from our Spanish service in a debate about whether the song 'Mi Pan Mi Luz" by Marcos Witt had been sung before in our worship service.  As I got closer one of the brothers pulled me into the circle to make his point and asked me in front of the other two, "Haven't we sung 'Mi Pan Mi Luz' before in church?" I responded, "No brother, it’s the first time we sing it."  He didn’t realize that we had been playing the song before and after the service.

You may still have to overcome some hurdles when teaching the church a new song, but at least it won’t be as if it were the first time they have heard it.    

Present B4 Presenting

Slow Down

Today many worship leaders take lightly what to present for their Sunday worship service. They chose on impulse what touches and moves them.  If a song is a hit in many churches, it is put on their Sunday song list. 

In this ramped up race to be known as a cutting edge worship team, we tend to forget what the church really needs to hear.  Songs can be great, cool or awesome, but do they meet the needs of the church you are leading?  I have no doubt that new and old songs can be inspiring and meet the needs of the church, however I want to encourage those who lead worship to slow down.

If you're the person that chooses the songs for your Sunday worship follow these three basic steps to help you be more effective in leading people to God and see life-changing results.

Slow Down and..

1. Seek God for Guidance: Since it is His church, I think we all agree, He knows best what the church needs to hear and how it should be lead.

2. Know your Church:  Every church is different and goes through its own issues and spiritual necessities. For example, you may have a church with many new-born Christians who are dealing with letting go of some things in their lives; in your list of songs you may want to include "Trading My Sorrows". This song will help them get through, even though it may be an old song for others.

3. Work with your Pastor: Collaborate with your Pastor to close the message of the day with the right song; this will bring a spiritual unity and agreement for the church to embrace the message.  When ministers come together, God always does his best work among His church.  Peter and John did not go their own way or speak a different message in Acts 3.  They were united and in agreement on how they were going to address the people to whom they ministered. Therefore, you as a minister work with your Pastor to see God work in a supernatural way in your church.

Slow Down