A humble and teachable heart sold out to God, and a love for the church are key requirements for any worship leader.
But without some skill in music, it’s difficult to lead worship in the church.
There has to be a balance, but for this post, we want to focus on the skill level of ourselves and those in our group.
Part of the role of the worship leader is to help develop the church to grow in ministry! Each of these ideas will help you as the leader equip others to grow in their own skill as leaders of worship.
Increase Expectation
Expectation always helps raise the level! When we put out a difficult song that is going to require some extra time in learning, it raises the expectation. When we assume our musicians can pull off a more difficult song, that can cause team members to spend more time in practice at home to bring it to reality. As we invite our team members to lead in prayer, learn a new aspect to the ministry, or talk about punctuality for rehearsals, skill will increase! Expect team members to grow and you’ll be surprised how they do.
Provide Resources
There are a number of great resources for helping your team grow in skill. PlanningCenterOnline.com is a great resource to adding songs, mp3 files, transposed keys, and scheduling for your team. WorshipArtistry.com is also a great place for musicians to grow in skill using tutorial videos and chord charts. Backingtracks and click tracks help musicians grow in the skill of timing, playing tightly together, and opens up doors for more instrumentation if needed. Some of these require a financial investment, but there are things you can do for free, too! When you see a video about worship leading, a great quote or another resource online, share it with your group and ask them to take a look.
Plan In Advance
Your advance planning as a leader will help musicians in your group have time to rehearse and learn new parts.
Instill Encouragement
Always continue to build a culture of encouragement within your group. Notice when your team members are growing musically or excelling on a part, solo or song. Celebrate as you see the team growing!
Generate Inspiration
Experiencing other great musicians lead worship – either live or through video – will help generate inspiration for your team. Create times for your group to do this together or individually.
Include Guests In Worship
I have found that when we pull a guest into joining us in leading worship, our team winds up doing even better than usual! There is a desire to be as great as we can be when someone new is present.
Model Growth In Skill
Model growth in skill level by making sure you take some time to learn some new stuff. Learn a new song or increase your skill in planning, arranging or other musical aspects to leadership. As you model learning new parts and new ways of leading music, others will catch on too!