Worship Leading Tricks – Pt. 1

The best way to grow in effective worship leading is to get as much experience as you can. You can’t rush it. Small groups, large groups, nursing homes, vacation bible schools, funerals, weddings, retreats, and Sunday mornings. Over the course of weeks and months and years, you’ll find yourself growing. And, hopefully, you’ll always be growing in your skill. If you ever think you’ve “arrived”, you’re mistaken. You’re probably in danger of a really embarrassing couple of services until you come to your senses.

But while growing in worship leading takes time, there are certain “tricks” that long-seasoned and very-beginning worship leaders alike can employ, regardless of how long or how briefly they’ve been doing it. This isn’t an exhaustive list, and these are listed in no order of importance.

The placebo mic
Let’s say you’ve just arrived in your job. You’ve inherited some singers whose voices are more suited for singing in the car – with no passengers – than singing in public. Asking them to step down from the team will start World War III. Talk to your sound engineer (if he’s trust worthy). Tell him you want that singer’s voice mixed solo. So lo you can’t hear it. Problem solved.

“Thank you so much”
Here are some things you might hear after a service: “That was just wonderful.” “That was my least favorite service in the history of time.” “I wish you would do more Bill Gaither songs.” “You remind me of a young Neil Diamond.” “I think you should do this song I heard on the radio.” “I couldn’t hear that singer standing next to you.” Your response? “Thank you so much.” Add on a brief conversation closer like “That’s very helpful” or “I’ll talk to my sound engineer” before closing with, you guessed it, “thank you so much”. Then repeat as needed until the person leaves.

Master your “I meant to do that” face
So you forget to do the last verse. You start off in the wrong key. Your string breaks and you have to switch guitars. You start to play your instrument but the pastor hasn’t finished talking. You sing the wrong words. You start a 4/4 song off in 3/4. Whatever your mistake is – unless it’s glaring – keep trucking. Act like you’ve got everything under control and you meant to do that, and 95% of the people won’t notice.

Less is more
I did a post on this a few months ago – but I’ll summarize it here. It’s better to leave people wanting more than to leave people begging you to stop. I’d rather end a set one song early than go one song too long. I have a hard time listening to my own advice on this one, but I try.

Don’t do too much new stuff
One new song: people will give it their best shot. Two new songs: people will try to muster enough energy to learn it, but won’t enjoy it. Three new songs: you’re pretty much on your own. Err on the side of choosing songs that the bulk of people will know. It will build capital and trust that you can then lean on and draw from when you teach something new.

You don’t have to say much
Don’t stress over what to say at the beginning, how to transition between songs, what to pray at the end, or what to say in between lines. There are really only two things you have to say: First, “let’s stand together and sing”, and second, “you can be seated”. If you’re comfortable saying more, and what you’re saying is helpful, then go ahead. But if you’re just not comfortable saying much, then don’t. Get them to stand, get them to sing, then get them to sit down.

More Easter Eggs of Wisdom

Yesterday I shared some observations and tips for leading worship on Easter. I have a few more.

Watch out for the ladies who wear hats. If a woman comes to church wearing a hat, she means business. She’s in no mood to joke around. The bigger the hat, the more feathers and lace it contains, and the more valuable it appears, the more seriously you should take her.

Watch out for the dudes who wear pink pants. Listen, I know it’s Easter, but no man should ever be seen in public, especially in church, wearing pink pants. Alert your ushers to this man as quickly as possible and have him ejected.

If you ever need a good laugh, watch this video. “Christ the Lord is Risen Today” with “That’s Amore”. The best song combination in the history of time. 

People who correct you when you say “happy Easter” with “no… happy Resurrection Day!” should also be ejected. Yes, Easter has been commercialized and associated with bunnies and chocolate and eggs and spring time, but it doesn’t mean that if I choose to still call it “Easter” that I’m not a Christian. I am. And I really like chocolate. But not pink pants.

When/if you say “Alleluia! Christ is Risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!” (or something similar) you might want to say it with some enthusiasm. Seriously, it’s Easter. This is amazing! Jesus Christ is alive! Then why do you sound like you’re reading me a bedtime story? Raise your voice a little bit. It’s OK.

Timpani make every song sound awesome. I don’t care what song you’re playing. Add a timpani roll and now it’s officially awesome.

Brass makes every song sound even more awesome. More so than timpani, throw a good brass quartet onto a song and now you’re talking. Jesus is not only alive but he’s coming back right here, right now, right on this chorus! (By the way, if the trumpet player aims correctly, he can take care of a few of those fancy Easter hats.)

Easter Sunday afternoon naps are statistically proven to be more satisfying than any other nap any other day out of the year. It’s true.

The Sunday after Easter is a good Sunday for the youth band to lead the music. You need a break. They hardly ever to get to play in the main services. Take a vacation and let them lead for you. Just make sure none of the guys wear pink pants.

Little Easter Eggs of Wisdom

In case you haven’t noticed, Easter is just around the corner. This is one busy week for worship leaders and church musicians with a lot of extra rehearsals, added stress, and raised expectations. Last year I wrote a post on keeping it all in perspective, so this year I thought I’d offer just a few random lessons I’ve learned over the years of leading worship on Easter. These are in no particular order of importance.

“Christ the Lord is Risen Today” is too high in D major. Most hymnals have this classic hymn in the key of D. That’s fine for the first two lines, but then towards the end you start hitting some high F#s. Too high, especially at a 7:00am sunrise service. Go with C major. It keeps the high note to an E, and the lower notes are still singable.

Make sure your overflow room is staffed and pretty. I’ll never forget walking past our overflow room one year and seeing a room full of nicely dressed people, sitting in a dark room, staring at a grainy video image, listening to a low quality audio feed, looking like they were at a funeral. Easter shouldn’t feel like a funeral (obviously). If you’re anticipating having an overflow room, make sure it’s bright and has flowers, has a great video and audio feed, and put some live singers in there to sing along with the music and encourage the people to do the same.

Don’t forget the food. I wrote a post a few months ago on how important it is to feed your team (literally). Easter Sunday is usually a long morning for the pastors, musicians, and volunteers. Make sure to get some coffee, juices, water, and food for people to snack on all morning long. It will keep morale up and keep people’s energy going strong.

Stick with familiar songs. On Christmas and Easter, people want to sing familiar songs. This can be tough because there are many more familiar Christmas carols than there are Easter hymns. Do throw in some newer songs, but I would caution you against trying anything brand new. Your congregation won’t mind singing familiar songs, and your visitors will appreciate your thoughtfulness.

Stay away from the cheese. It’s hard to find good art/graphics to use on your screen or in your bulletin. The internet abounds with images of bunnies, eggs, and cute sunrises. Unless it’s good quality and adds something – don’t use it.

Dress up. Guys, wear a tie. Ladies, wear something nice (and modest!). Unless you serve in a setting where wearing a tie or nice clothes would make you stand out, go ahead and dress up on Easter. It’s always better to be overdressed than underdressed, and this way you don’t run the risk of coming across as flippant.

Treat this like your super bowl. This is most likely going to be the best-attended Sunday for your church this year. Make sure your campus looks nice, your signs are clear and in place, your chairs are well placed, and you’re ready for visitors.

Remember where the power comes from. The gospel will change people’s lives, not your music. Make sure the good news of Jesus Christ – our risen Savior who conquered sin and death on the cross – is proclaimed with clarity and passion. Make it plain, make it clear, make it central, and make it the focus. 

A Room Full of Stories

I came across this powerful video made by, of all places, Chick-Fil-A. It’s a powerful reminder that every person who walks through the door of your church has a story. Many are experiencing great trials and heartbreak. Others are experiencing joy. No two people are the same.

When you look out over your congregation this weekend, ask God to give you a love for them. They all need to hear the good news of a Messiah who rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and then was lifted on a cross five days later for our sins. He lives again and he is our hope.

Spreading the Honor Around

As a worship leader, you are one of the most visible people at your church. The administrative assistant to children’s ministry might have been there longer, get paid less, and do more work, but because you get up on platform each week, you get more recognition, you get more thanks, and you get more credit than you deserve.

Your church might not have a very large staff at all. Most churches don’t. I happen to serve at church with 40+ full-time staff, and 15 or 20 more who are part-time, but this isn’t the norm. Regardless of how large the staff is at your church, the principle is the same: you get more attention than the other people who care about and work for the church just as much as you do.

You have to be really careful as a worship leader not to buy into the notion that your work is more important than the secretary’s, or the nursery worker’s, or the outreach coordinator’s, or the youth pastor’s. And if you’re smart, you’ll make a point of honoring those people in less visible positions than yours.

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 12 that we are one body with many members. That body stays healthy as long as the different parts don’t start thinking they’re more or less important than other parts of the body. In verse 25 we’re told that all the members of the body should “have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together“.

You are just one part of the body. You have a unique role – but you’re not any more important than any one else. You’re not the big kahuna. You’re one of the fish.

You probably know this (although we can always use a reminder). The point is that your fellow staff members, volunteers, or behind-the-scenes coworkers might not feel like you act like it. There’s a good chance you don’t. Think about it.

Because you are one of the most visible people at your church, you need to go out of your way to show honor to the people who are not as visible. Write a note, say thank you to the person who empties your trash can, tell the nursery worker what an amazing job they do and how grateful you are for them, and don’t expect any compliments in return.

Sure, we get a good dose of criticism because we’re up front. But we also get more than our fair share of compliments. Pass some of that around to your fellow body-members, and they’ll all operate just a bit more healthily because of it.