Author: Jamie Brown

Worship leaders have a bad habit of saying things on the platform – to a large group of people – that they would never actually say in real life. I call these “give me a break” worship leader phrases.

If you said them to friends over dinner, they would look at you like you were an idiot. If you said them to someone riding in the car with you, they would assume you were trying to be funny.

But you (and when I say “you” I mean “we”) say them when you’re leading worship (because part of your brain has shut down apparently) and you expect the congregation to gleefully respond as if they were equally as brain-impaired.

Here are the top four give-me-a-break worship leader phrases that I’m aware of in existence.

1. Do you love Jesus today?
Seriously? Are you gauging my love for Jesus based on how long and loud I say “yeah!”? If I don’t say “yeah!” does that mean I don’t love Jesus? Would you ever say this to the dude changing the oil on your car? No. Well he might be in church today and you just made him whisper “give me a break” under his breath.

2. Are you glad to be in the house of the Lord?
There are several issues with this one: First, is “the house of the Lord” a term for “church” that most people understand? I don’t think so. Second, what if I’m not particularly “glad” to be in it? Maybe I’d rather be at home watching Football. Aren’t you just expecting everyone will happily respond “verily! Verily! Mine heart doth rejoice in this glorious morning of fellowship with my brethren!”? Give me a break. (Note: related phrases are “how we doing this morning?” and “are you ready to worship?”)

3. Come on!
This one is usually barked, and usually comes at the beginning of an upbeat song. Cue the drums, electric guitar riff, and worship leader offering some variation of “come on!” or “come on church!” or “do you love Jesus today? Come on!”

Imagine serving as the usher at a wedding. Instead of greeting a guest with a smile and a welcome and a word of greeting and an extended arm, you stand 20 feet away and yell “come on!” How will that make the guest feel? Welcomed or yelled at? Yelled at. When people get yelled (or barked at) they get defensive.

4. That’s some good singing, church!
I can proudly say I’ve never used this one. And I’ve not heard worship leaders use it an awful lot. But when I have heard worship leaders use it, I inevitably want to scream. Here’s the problem: people (hopefully) aren’t singing to you or for you. I know you’re just trying to encourage them, but this one just makes it seem like you’re a third grade music teacher congratulating your students on how they sang their state capitals song so well.  

I’m sure there are more that I’m forgetting. Please share them. My point isn’t to pick on worship leaders, since I often say things I wish I had phrased better! Rather, my point is to encourage us to not say things to the congregation that we wouldn’t say to friends in our living room, or that we wouldn’t want to have said to us if we were in the congregation. Be humble, be confident, and be yourself.

Sometimes worship leaders have to communicate something in a short amount of time. Maybe to the band, the sound guy, the congregation, or the pastor. It can be during a set of songs, or perhaps quickly in between services. Whatever the situation and whoever the person, here are (in my experience) some of the most common phrases, and how they can be poorly worded or more effectively worded.

Bad: I need more of myself
You’re talking to the sound engineer. You can’t hear your voice or your instrument. You want to hear more. So you ask for more. The problem is you come across demanding and like you have a huge ego.
Try: Could you please help me hear myself better in my monitor?

Bad: You played (sang) that the wrong way.
A worship team member makes a mistake. They don’t seem to notice. You need to help them notice. If you say it wrongly you could cause their defenses to shoot up in no time.
Try: Can we look at that (insert relevant section of song here) again? Here’s what I had in mind.

Bad: That won’t work.
Your pastor has an idea. You don’t think it’s a good idea. You want to tell him this. Remember: he’s your pastor. You need to humbly submit. If he’s open to receiving your feedback, you need to share it out of a heart of submission.
Try: So you’re thinking we (insert his idea here. Convince him you’ve heard him out). What would you think about (insert your idea here. He still gets the last word).

Bad: Shhhh!!!
I actually used this once on a backup singer on a men’s retreat. He was singing much too loud and I needed him to back up, so I got his attention and said “shhh!!!” Very bad idea. This is for two year olds, and that’s about where it stops.
Try: Non-verbal: Back up from the mic or use your hand to indicate to lower the volume. Verbal: Let’s (include yourself in it) blend a bit better.

Bad: Please rise.
What are we? Army cadets? No. You can use more normal English to get us to stand up.
Try: Let’s stand together or would you like to stand (I learned this from my British worship leader friends).

These are just a few that come to mind. Please free to share of other ways you can say things with a bit more grace but still get the same point across in a short amount of time.