Worship Leader Q & A

One stop on our recent South African holiday was Grahamstown. I went to university here (Rhodes University) and attended a fantastic church while doing so called 'Hie People'. I wanted to share this part of my life with wife: take her around, show her the sights etc. There were some university friends still involved with the church and living in Grahamstown so it was also a great opportunity to catch up with them. A few emails later and I had been invited to have a chat with the worship leaders of the church, give a prophetic worship seminar/workshop and possibly play in the band on Sunday! Fantastic!

The worship leaders chat is what I'm blogging about here. It was great to see so many on the leadership of the worship side of things, and really exciting to learn some co-lead together and that there was also a choir! Also great to see those who've been doing it for a while creating space and helping those who are very new to worship leading grow in their gifting.

I started off by giving my testimony (of sorts). It was basically the journey of how I became/came to be a worship leader and all the ins and outs of my journey until present day. I mentioned a few of the lessons I had learnt along the way (the good and the bad). Then itopened up to a question and answer session. Some brilliant questions were asked and I want to share some of them, and the answers I gave, with you here.

Q: What is the one main stand-out point/thing you wish you had been told or taught by a mentor, rather than having to learn things through trial and error, when it comes to being a worship leader?

A: I wish someone had told me that worship leading is less about the music and a lot more about the people we have the priviledge to lead: both the band and the congregation. Yes musicla arrangement and technical excellence is part of it - but not the whole of it. We need to care for the people we lead: nurture them, grow them, teach them, pastor them. We need to realise they are not a keyboard-playing-robot (or whatever) but real people in need of God just like us. Love your team for who they are, not for their talents or gifts. God is more interested in your character and theirs than your talents.

Q: How do I go about finding or discovering what my 'personal sound' is or the 'sound' of my church?

A: (I had talked about being authentic and not simply copying another church's sound off the latest CD, but discovering your own unique sound as a band and as a worship leader)

Try experimenting with differetn instruments you wouldn't normally use. Or arrange the instrumentation of the song in a different way. I would also encourage you to identify songs that resonate strongly with your spirit. Those songs that knock-your-socks-off and make you go 'Wow!'. After you have identified some of these, they will start to give you a picture of where your hearts is, whct your sound is. Lead worship with songs that have had a big impact with you personally. Hopefully these things will help you discover your 'personal sound'.

Q: How do you go about writing a song? What comes first for you: a melody, a phrase, a chord progression? Is there a special formula I can use to help me?

A: There is no specific answer to these questions. The creative process is a personal one, and we are all different so creativity is expressed differently through each of us. There is no one 'formula' that will work for everyone. For me, inspiration comes and goes. I can go for many months, even years without writing a song. You mentioned starting with a melody or phrase or chord progression. I have written various songs that have started out in different ways. Sometimes a melody starts it off, other times it is the words or even an unusual chord I discovered on the guitar. Write all your ideas/words/phrases down and keep them - even if the song in the end is no good. At a later date these fragments could help a lot! Also seek honest criticism of your songs, both musically, lyrically and theologically.

If you have any questions about worship leading or any answers, advice or tips to add to those already given, please feel free to leave a comment in the comments section below.