As 2010 rolls into 2011, the online ministry of DevelopingWorship moves into its fourth year. It’s been a great ride so far, and I cannot wait for all that 2011 holds.
I’ve been giving lots of thought to five questions that I am going to try to ask myself on a weekly (and sometimes daily) basis as I go about leading the worship ministry at my church and in helping others to do the same. These questions are helpful to ask for the sake of your own heart and for clarifying why you do what you do. They’re not easy questions, that is, if you’re willing to open yourself fully to them.
Question #1 - Which do I spend more time thinking about - glorifying God, or impressing others? Look at where you’ve spent your ministry’s money in the last 90 days or so. How much of it was for “wow” factor (as if God can be impressed), and how much of it was spent in an earnest effort to see the name of Jesus communicated more clearly and worshipped more passionately?
Question #2 - Which do you focus more on - the musical offering you give, or WHO you are giving your offering to? At the end of the day, there is no guitar tone, no keyboard sound, no drum beat or vocal harmony that honors the Lord more than the other. So, when it comes to worship ministry, where is your focus, and where are you asking others to focus?
Question #3 - What should a worship team look like? - I’m not going to add anything to this, except that self-control and joy are both fruits of the Spirit, and they are a powerful combination in worship ministry.
Give it some thought.
#1. As I do not get paid to play I can’t really comment on this on. However I do have some thoughts on the “wow” factor. Larger churches feel the need to emulate a “production” worship experience. I don’t necessarily have an issue with that provided the focus is, as you say, on Jesus. I’m reminded of Paul’s writhing in Philippians 1:15.
#2. My desire to serve God through the musical gifts He has granted me are first and foremost given to Him. And then to the body of Christ in whatever position He has seen fit to put me in. But I do want to play with musicians who are able to play at the “conciencly competent” level. For more on this see #3.
#3. Musical worship should look refreshed, enjoyed and vibrant. And played by good, capable musicians. What person would want to sit through a sermon from a pastor who stumbled over his/her words, misquoted scripture and looked like they wanted to be any place other than where they were. I can’t count on two hand the number of worship band players I see with scowls on their faces-when they even look at the congregation-and stand there like Roman statues. Not good. But hey, what do I know….