Category: Leading

Selah (Oh No. I Just Broke a String!)

1Here’s a story (and audio clip) about how I broke a string in front of 1,400 people while recording a live CD and used a joke I stole from a worship leader’s Facebook group to salvage what could have been a really awkward moment.

First, the background:

About a year ago I joined a Facebook group called “Liturgy Fellowship“. It’s a group where a bunch of worship leaders who lead in contexts where some sort of liturgical structure is employed and/or valued share ideas, ask questions, and stay in touch. I’m not terribly active in the group, but I do check in from time to time since I’m curious about what other worship leaders are up to and dealing with.

A few weeks ago, a worship leader in the group shared that he had broken a string and used a joke Reggie Kidd had shared that the word “Selah” in the Psalms actually meant “ah shucks, I broke another string”. Reggie Kidd commented that the joke actually came from Eugene Peterson in his book Answering God where he wonders if “Selah” was actually a cuss word David used when he broke a string.

I thought this was really funny. So I made a mental note to tuck this little joke away in case I ever needed it in the future.

So, finally, back to the live recording in front of 1,400 people when I broke a string used the joke.

Last weekend we devoted our worship services to an extended time of worship and celebration of God’s faithfulness and goodness to us, after a year of considerable upheaval and change for our church. We recorded a live album last year before leaving our campus of over 275 years, and this year we wanted to capture our congregation continuing to proclaim God’s faithfulness and the power of the Gospel. (This is why this blog has been so quiet for a while, by the way).

On Thursday, the first day of our rehearsals, I put new strings on my guitar. I used those strings during all-day rehearsals on Friday and Saturday, and a recording on Saturday evening. That’s a lot of play.

So, on Sunday morning before our big combined service with everyone in one room, I wondered whether I should put new strings on. Nah, I thought, I’ll be OK.

Not so much.

We opened with three songs. A call to worship, Matt Redman’s “How Great is Your Faithfulness”, and “Crown Him with Many Crowns”. During the last few measures of “Crown Him…” I felt the dreaded pop. This wasn’t good. We still had about 12 more songs to get through. Oh. No.

Thankfully, after “Crown Him”, our pastor, John Yates, was supposed to come up and welcome people, pray, and lead us the prayer for purity. I thought that if I moved at lightening speed, I could replace the E string in that time. I wish.

So I rushed over to my case. No strings. I rushed back to where I thought they could be. Not there. Asked one of the electric guitarists if he had any. He said no. I run back to my case. I find them. I get back to my guitar just as the prayer for purity is ending and my pastor is walking back to his seat.

Then I remember. The Facebook group. The Selah joke. I can’t quite remember how it’s supposed to go. But I use it. I try to tell it as well as I can. Please work. Help me Lord.

And it works. They laugh. So I ask John to come back up and “share something from his heart” for 2 minutes. He plays along. People laugh. And I change my string faster than I’ve ever changed a string in my entire life.

Then we keep on going and record 12 more songs.

So, thanks to my friends on the Facebook group for sharing that excellent joke. Thank you, Lord, for in your providence pointing me to that joke weeks before I’d need it because you knew I’d need it. And thanks to my congregation for laughing.

I will likely use this joke again. And you should too. It’s a good one.

Here’s how it sounded, from the last sentence or so of the prayer for purity, during which I was running around on stage like a mad man.

Making Adjustments For One Person

1Let’s say you’re leading worship and you’re about to wrap up a chorus, when you notice a guy who had been sitting on his hands for the whole song just start to stand up and put his hands in the air in worship. Is it OK to make an adjustment in your leading and extend the song just for that one person? Yes it is.

Why do you think you just happened to look out and see that guy about to stand up just at the same time you were about the stop the song? Do you think that when you prayed before the service that God would guide you that he actually heard you prayer? He’s answering it by directing your gaze to someone in the room who’s counting on your sensitive leadership.

It’s one thing to learn how to scan a room and read a large group. It’s another thing to look at individuals in your congregation, each of whom is dealing with a wide range of swirling emotions, pressures, physical ailments, fidgety kids and text messages all in the course of a 75 minute service. Your job isn’t just to aggregate all of these different people’s responses into one stream of input and then based on that one stream of input decide what the Holy Spirit is saying. Your job is also to have the presence of mind and sensitivity to adapt to individual promptings the Holy Spirit provides through directing you to look at a particular person.

I find myself, when leading worship, expecting the Holy Spirit to give me direction in powerful, thunderous, unmistakeable ways. But he doesn’t often do that. More often, his direction comes through a gentle whisper, an impression that I know came from elsewhere, or a very down-to-earth source like a dude just about to stand up when I’m about to stop, or communion taking too long so I can’t get loud when I planned to, or a missing slide so I have to skip a verse, or a comment from a parking volunteer about a song he really wishes we’d sing again.

Be on the lookout, the next time you lead, for ways God might be sending you signals through one person in the congregation, or one situation you can’t look past. If you catch these simple signals, the result just might be you making some adjustments that end up serving the whole congregation better.

Ten “Always Bad” Worship Leader Ideas

1Us worship leaders are the creative types who like to think outside the box, like to do things artistically, and like to have new ideas. Some of those ideas are good. Some of those ideas are terrible. Here are some “always bad” worship leader ideas.

1. Spur-of-the-moment modulations

2. On-the-fly worship sermonettes in-between songs

3. Eating 2 greasy pizza slices right before (belch…) leading worship

4. Attempting water-skiing or rock-wall climbing just a few hours before trying to play guitar. Good luck with those forearm muscles

5. Agreeing to sing at a wedding before specifying you don’t do John Tesh ballads. (First hand experience on this one)

6. Asking the groom at a wedding if he’s the Father of the Bride. (Again, first hand experience here)

7. Making fun of an old worship song that you think is terrible when it turns out that song is your Senior Pastor’s all-time favorite song because he used to sing it to his youngest daughter when she was a little. (You guessed it)

8. Pranking your drummer. He’ll get you back when you least expect it

9. Giving the projectionist a dirty look when they don’t advance the lyrics. The congregation is thinking the same thing as you, but when you make that mean face you look like a jerk

10. Purposefully playing too loud because “it’s good for people”. Wrong. Check your bravado at the door. And avoid the pizza

Keep Your Focus on the Congregation

1As a preacher’s kid and someone who’s been leading worship either as a volunteer or paid staff member since I was 12, I’ve had the opportunity to see the inner-workings of many church staffs, with all of the good, bad, and ugly stuff that goes on. It helps me understand why so many people who start off in ministry with eagerness and expectation end up dropping out confused and disillusioned.

Whether you volunteer or are paid on a church staff, you know what I’m talking about. On church staffs there are politics, power plays, and power blocs. There are certain people who are just plain difficult. There are emails that hit you from out of nowhere and leave you whiplashed. There are glaring areas of neglect that go on being neglected for years. There is mismanagement. There is competition. It’s enough to make you want to throw in the towel.

In order to stay sane, you have to stay focused on the congregation. You can’t let staff “stuff” distract you from your primary role of helping the congregation worship Jesus. You have to be able to put on blinders when necessary and not allow all-too-common church staff distractions to have a detrimental impact on your Sunday morning leading, and thus the congregation.

Living in D.C., you hear politicians use the phrase a lot that they “work for the people“, as in “the people” who elected them. I think worship leaders should have a similar creed. You work for the congregation.

And, let’s face it, your congregation doesn’t care what your title is, or who is upset with who, or what email got sent to what person, or what heated conversation took place, or who got the blame for breaking the copier machine. They really don’t care. They’re just hungry for something satisfying. And you can show them Jesus in all his goodness. Stay focused on feeding your congregation this Sunday, even if that means ignoring a lot of things swirling around you Monday – Friday.

What To Do When You’re New

1Your first year as a worship leader at a church is critical. How do you lay a solid foundation with your fellow staff members, your pastor, and your congregation? Here are four crucial tips for your first year:

1. Don’t change anything major. Not for a whole year. Do it the way they’ve always done it. This shows them that they can trust you. This shows you what you’ve gotten yourself into. This helps you get the lay of the land. Take it slow, learn a lot, ask a lot of questions, listen, sit in on meetings, and be quietly prioritizing what needs attention in your second year. The exception to this rule would be (a) if it’s something you absolutely can’t put off, or if (b) your pastor asks you to make a change. Although in the latter case, you would be smart to make sure he’s thought it through.

2. Be a “yes” man. Not in a negative/weak/pushover way, but in an eager to serve way. Be the guy who steps forward to attempt something challenging. Agree to serve on a committee you don’t care much about. Research something the pastor expresses an interest in. Do administrative work that no one else wants to do in your department. When you’re asked if you’ll do something, unless it impedes on your commitment to your family or your conscience, then say yes.

3. Get out of the staff bubble. Go to the potluck dinners and sit with members of the congregation that you don’t know. Lead worship for church retreats. Mingle after the service. Accept (and solicit) lunch invitations. Pursue Godly mentors from your congregation (your pastor will have some to recommend). Help out with Vacation Bible School and be willing to dress up like Noah. Immerse yourself in the life of your congregation. People will notice, and it will help them trust you. And it will help you develop a heart of love for the congregation God’s brought you to.

4. Be consistent. Just like you’re getting used to your new congregation, your congregation is getting used to their new worship leader. Don’t do anything crazy. Don’t alter your approach dramatically from week to week. Dress like they dress. Don’t talk too much. Be faithful, don’t be the source of any major angst, and remember that rapid change in a congregation is very often the most damaging kind of change. Slow and steady wins the race.