Worship leading is not just leading songs, choruses, or a song service. Someone fulfilling these roles is traditionally viewed as a worship leader. However, it would be more accurate to define someone in this role as a song leader or “music director.”
Excellence starts with godly self-esteem, which worship leaders need to instill in their team members by helping them to understand who they are in Christ. Excellence is not something we arrive at, but something we continually pursue; it is a state of “being” more than a state of “doing.”
Servanthood is a powerful leadership tool. This is because, in serving others, the worship leader becomes like Jesus and walks the path that led to his glorification through obedience. Worship leaders serve God first, then their church’s leadership, their worship team, and their congregation.
A key to building a united worship team is to have a clearly defined statement. This entry suggests ways to go about developing such a statement, including planning a retreat for this purpose. Start beforehand by asking the right questions of your pastor. Determine what goals the team will have in your church, and work to define team values.
Worship leaders should make a priority of developing management skills, and not excuse themselves from this on the basis of their being artists. Rather, they are prophet-musicians in the church, a position that carries tremendous leadership responsibility.
A philosophy of worship involves the way we approach worship and should include both a thorough analysis of and an explicit statement of our underlying presuppositions. Understanding our “worship worldview” (for example, the cultural background and formal training we bring to our task) will help us to understand why we worship the way we do. It is therefore important to articulate this worldview as clearly and precisely as possible (preferably in a written format). The examples given under the headings below are those of Vineyard churches. They can be used as is, or as a guide to creating one’s own philosophy of worship.
Effective worship leading requires much more than just nailing down its technical aspects. As important as or more important than technical skills are the worship leader’s relationship with God and with others, his or her spiritual walk, knowledge of Scripture, attitudes, lifestyle, self-discipline, and understanding of music.
A constant enemy of worship leaders is busyness, for it takes them away from the all-important time spent with God. Other aspects of personal preparation for worship leading include knowing the needs of the congregation one serves; beginning preparations for services early in the week, if not weeks ahead of time (by choosing sermon themes far in advance); and seeking input from others.