Equipment Reviews by Stephen M. Newman Pastor of Worship and Arts August 25, 2002
The ministry of worship
and the ministry of music are two different things. They are the
same for the most part in presentation, but the outcome is what makes them
different. Worship and leading worship is a specific gift apart
from music. Music is only the tool to help facilitate worship.
I require of all our worship people to first be worshipers then musicians.
You may come back with "but the music will suffer"? I disagree.
I still feel that God requires those who lead to be gifted and called.
He will gift those He has called to this ministry. It is easy to
reason things out by using gifted musician to lead worship but the outcome
will not be everything that God would have, and you will see a difference
in your worship participation. People tend to see through performance
as compared to true worship. If your teams are not worshipers
they will stifle your corporate worship. You may still achieve worship
but it will not be the same. Pray that God will send you gifted worshipers.
He will be faithful if you will be patient and faithful to this standard.
Let me say also that we all have different level of need and standard.
If we all desire and set the standard to have a Maranatha! praise band
and vocals we may be in for a disappointing journey. As the worship
leader you have to set a reasonable level of musicianship that is in your
congregation. Each church will have a different level some
higher than others. Once you get your team together I encourage you
to strive to improve and grow as worshipers and musicians. Continue
to set goals that are attainable and leader your people to be the best
with the gifts God has given them.
Let's rap this up.
If you desire to have great worship in your churches then you will need
to have the right leadership in place. This is easier said than done
I know, but you will be better off in the long run for it. Don't
allow those who clearly have no gifts in the arts to be deceived into thinking
they do. Help them discover their true gifts and callings and lead
them in that direction. Part of my job is helping people discover
their gifts and callings and help place them in ministry. If we will
help train our people in the philosophy of serving where their gifts and
callings are, then we will have churches that are truly balanced in ministry.
We will have healthy churches and great ministries. We will have
great worship if our teams are filled with called and gifted worshipers
and leaders.
Question
Your article has been very helpful. It has answered a lot of my questions.I guess I tend to feel guilty saying no to someone who wants to join the praise team, but that really doesn't know how to sing. I don't want to discourage them. Howeve...more
Submitted by: Marissa Neal
helpful
This was a helpful article.But, how does one go about determining if someone is called to the ministry of worship if they tell you it is so? Fruit?I have seen God use people who were not called, and produce fruit by His work through them....more
Experiencing Worship, The Study
Used by churches all over the world to help teach worship, the Experiencing Worship study can help your worship team too.
Your team will learn why we worship and gain a better understanding of how to worship.
One user said..."Your 5 week study course has made a tremendous impact on my life in the study of worship... I would like to express my thanks for a well written study course that leads into a higher realm of praise and worship."
The Paul Langford Project
This is the debut album by EXW friend Paul Langford. Paul is a Chicago based singer, arranger, keyboardist, producer and conductor. Paul has a career that spans 14 years. Paul's work includes arranging for groups like GLAD, Voices of Liberty, VoiceTrek, The Chicago based "Caroling Party" and Day of Discovery Singers. His arranging has appeared on recordings side by side with greats like Gene Puerling and David Maddux, and he has sung with Don Shelton, Bonnie Herman and Bob Bowker, among others.
Used by churches all over the world to help teach worship, the Experiencing Worship study can help your worship team too.
Your team will learn why we worship and gain a better understanding of how to worship.
One user said..."Your 5 week study course has made a tremendous impact on my life in the study of worship... I would like to express my thanks for a well written study course that leads into a higher realm of praise and worship."
This is the debut album by EXW friend Paul Langford. Paul is a Chicago based singer, arranger, keyboardist, producer and conductor. Paul has a career that spans 14 years. Paul's work includes arranging for groups like GLAD, Voices of Liberty, VoiceTrek, The Chicago based "Caroling Party" and Day of Discovery Singers. His arranging has appeared on recordings side by side with greats like Gene Puerling and David Maddux, and he has sung with Don Shelton, Bonnie Herman and Bob Bowker, among others.