Magnifies the Greatness of God
So many times we (and others) come to church with so much on our mind that there is no room for God. "What size does God appear to be when our mind is preoccupied with all the cares, worries, and concerns of life? Very small. But God is not small. He is great. Magnifying and cherishing His greatness is at the heart of biblical worship."
J.I. Packer writes,
"Today, vast stress is laid on the thought that God is personal, but this truth is so stated as to leave the impression that God is a person of the same sort as we are-weak, inadequate, ineffective, a little pathetic. But this is not the God of the Bible! Our personal life is a finite thing: it is limited in every direction, in space, in time, in knowledge, in power. But God is not so limited. He is eternal, infinite, and almighty. He has us in His hands; we never have Him in ours. Like us He is personal; but unlike us, He is great."
Our perspective of God changes all the time, depending on what we are focused on. It's like looking at the stars. Sometimes when you walk out at night you hardly notice them. They just look like little dots up on the skyline. One writer says they make the sky look like a back-lit canopy with holes punched in it. But when you look through a high-powered telescope, your entire perspective changes! You will see that they are actually massive balls of fire, millions of times larger than earth! Have the stars changed? Nope. Our vision has. Our job as worship leaders is to help people see God for who He is. Greatness personified.
In order to do that, we have to paint a specific (and accurate) picture of God. A puritan pastor wrote, "We must not allow ourselves to be satisfied with vague ideas of the love of Christ which present nothing of His glory to our minds." Vague ideas about God don't help anyone. "If our songs aren't specific about God's nature, character, and acts, we'll tend to associate worship with a style of music, a heightened emotional state, a type of architecture, a day of the week, a meeting, a reverent mood, a time of singing, or a sound. We'll think of all the things that accompany worship rather than the One we're worshiping. Worse, we'll create our own views of God, portraying Him as we like to think of Him." The problem here is that God has already told us who He is and what He is like. That is not something we get to decide.
So to magnify God's greatness we need to magnify His word, His nature, and His works.
"No matter what we do with lighting, video, sound, or drama, our purpose isn't coming up with the best video images, the hottest musical arrangements, or the most creative props. We want people to leave in awe that God would speak to us-encouraged by His promises, challenged by His commands, fearful of His warnings, and grateful for His blessings. We want them to see God's greatness in His word."
We could talk about the nature of God forever. The list of His amazing characteristics is endless! How can worship of God be boring? There is no limit to His holiness and glory, no end to His riches, wisdom, and righteousness. He holds everything together, He is the source of all goodness. How can we not love and praise Him!?
His works are astounding. The Psalms are full of praises about His works, our songs should be too! The greatest of His works has been sending Jesus to Calvary in our place. It is only through Jesus' blood that we can come near to God at all! "In the cross we find a perfect reconciling of God's blazing holiness, holy justice, incomprehensible wisdom, omnipotent power, and unfathomable love." There truly is no one like our God! That is the picture we need to paint when we are leading others in worship. That is why many of the most helpful books for worship leaders (such as yourselves) are not daily devotionals that bring God "down to our level," but deep theology books that stretch our understanding of who God is.
"Magnifying God's greatness begins with the proclamation of objective, biblical truths about God, but it ends with the expression of deep and holy affections toward God. We aren't simply reciting facts about God, like students reviewing their multiplication tables. God wants us to delight in Him. He is exalted when all our energies are directed to one end-being satisfied in who He is. 'The engagement of the heart in worship is the coming alive of feelings and emotions and affections of the heart,' John Piper writes. 'Where feelings for God are dead, worship is dead.'"
In other words, we need to have two components in our personal worship, and in the worship we lead others in. We need to have an intellectual knowledge and right understanding of God, and we need to have a strong emotional attachment to Him. Many times we lean one way or the other. We are either afraid people will think we are too emotional and so our worship becomes stiff and lifeless, or we want to show others how much we love God and our worship of Him gets lost in our emotional experience. God wants us to show emotions, but He wants our emotional response to come from a right knowledge of who He is and what He has done for us.
"Magnifying God's greatness, then, involves proclamation and passion. Our responsibility as worship leaders is to make sure that in both ways-biblical truth and strong affections-people have every opportunity to magnify and encounter our great and awesome God."
Enjoy the Journey
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
A Faithful Worship Leader
Worship has hit the big time. There are several worship projects in the top fifty Christian albums right now. Tomlin, Redman, Crowder, Hillsong, and others have become household names. They can influence the way we think about and the way we lead worship. "But the worship industry isn't the standard God has given us to determine our effectiveness. His Word is. And if we don't understand that distinction we could miss God's unique plan for our lives. We'll be tempted to surrender to discouragement. And we'll fail to see that God hasn't called us to be successful or popular-He's called us to be faithful.
Being faithful means that we allow God to define our ministry. We put His desires above our own and even above the desires of those in our congregation. Having a massive following does not mean that we are doing what we should be doing. The best worship leader I ever worked with, who I believe to be the best in the country, served at a church smaller than the one we are in right now. He never produced a CD, in fact we never (to my knowledge) did any songs he wrote! We need people in our lives to remind us that "leading worship on a best-selling worship project isn't a sure sign one way or the other that God is pleased with what we're doing. It just means a lot of people have bought our CD."
We need to choose who we emulate very carefully. Just because someone is popular doesn't mean that they are worth following, sometimes the opposite is true! We cannot judge our success by the number of people in our church either. "More people doesn't always mean we're pleasing God. It could just mean we're good at marketing." We will use the technology that we have to bring the message of Christ to people in our congregation, but the moment the technology becomes the message, we have lost the plot. Our goal is to "impress upon people the greatness of the Savior whose glory transcends our surroundings and technology."
Romans 12:8 says we should lead 'with zeal' (or diligence). "Leading people to praise God involves energy, intentionality, and thoughtfulness." We have to point everything to the glory of God, and when we do people will come away praising Him, not us, which is the whole point! "n order to do that we must faithfully paint a compelling, attractive, biblical picture of the Savior. God isn't hiding from us, waiting to see if we'll find the right combination to unlock His blessing. He is eager to work through us as we faithfully lead our church into a clearer understanding of His glory."
Another thing we have to remember is that being a faithful leader doesn't always get you commended, applauded or even appreciated. In fact, sometimes we will be criticized for doing what we believe is biblical because it takes people places they either haven't been or don't really want to go. We have to remember that being faithful to God means that we will be rewarded by God. Knowing that we are pleasing Him makes things so much easier (not easy, but easier). Our story, our journey as a church will be completely unique and we will do things that work here that wouldn't work other places. We are not trying to become 'just like' anyone else. "Our goal isn't success, popularity, or personal fulfillment. It's anticipating-by God's grace and for the glory of Jesus Christ-that we'll hear on that last day, 'Well done, good and faithful servant.'" I can't wait.
Enjoy the Journey
Worship has hit the big time. There are several worship projects in the top fifty Christian albums right now. Tomlin, Redman, Crowder, Hillsong, and others have become household names. They can influence the way we think about and the way we lead worship. "But the worship industry isn't the standard God has given us to determine our effectiveness. His Word is. And if we don't understand that distinction we could miss God's unique plan for our lives. We'll be tempted to surrender to discouragement. And we'll fail to see that God hasn't called us to be successful or popular-He's called us to be faithful.
Being faithful means that we allow God to define our ministry. We put His desires above our own and even above the desires of those in our congregation. Having a massive following does not mean that we are doing what we should be doing. The best worship leader I ever worked with, who I believe to be the best in the country, served at a church smaller than the one we are in right now. He never produced a CD, in fact we never (to my knowledge) did any songs he wrote! We need people in our lives to remind us that "leading worship on a best-selling worship project isn't a sure sign one way or the other that God is pleased with what we're doing. It just means a lot of people have bought our CD."
We need to choose who we emulate very carefully. Just because someone is popular doesn't mean that they are worth following, sometimes the opposite is true! We cannot judge our success by the number of people in our church either. "More people doesn't always mean we're pleasing God. It could just mean we're good at marketing." We will use the technology that we have to bring the message of Christ to people in our congregation, but the moment the technology becomes the message, we have lost the plot. Our goal is to "impress upon people the greatness of the Savior whose glory transcends our surroundings and technology."
Romans 12:8 says we should lead 'with zeal' (or diligence). "Leading people to praise God involves energy, intentionality, and thoughtfulness." We have to point everything to the glory of God, and when we do people will come away praising Him, not us, which is the whole point! "n order to do that we must faithfully paint a compelling, attractive, biblical picture of the Savior. God isn't hiding from us, waiting to see if we'll find the right combination to unlock His blessing. He is eager to work through us as we faithfully lead our church into a clearer understanding of His glory."
Another thing we have to remember is that being a faithful leader doesn't always get you commended, applauded or even appreciated. In fact, sometimes we will be criticized for doing what we believe is biblical because it takes people places they either haven't been or don't really want to go. We have to remember that being faithful to God means that we will be rewarded by God. Knowing that we are pleasing Him makes things so much easier (not easy, but easier). Our story, our journey as a church will be completely unique and we will do things that work here that wouldn't work other places. We are not trying to become 'just like' anyone else. "Our goal isn't success, popularity, or personal fulfillment. It's anticipating-by God's grace and for the glory of Jesus Christ-that we'll hear on that last day, 'Well done, good and faithful servant.'" I can't wait.
Enjoy the Journey
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
So What Does a Worship Leader Do?
As far as terminology goes, the term worship leader really hasn't been around that long. It only came into existence in the early 1970's. Sure there have been people leading singing and doing the things worship leaders do, but they've been called by other terms such as priest (in the Old Testament), music directors, song leaders, and many other titles. A worship leader is under a tremendous amount of pressure. Let's face it, many people pick a church based on whether or not they like the music. "Music in the church is important. But is it more important than solid biblical teaching that helps me grow in knowledge of God and obedience to His Word? In a word, no." I think that sometimes we make the worship leader more important than he/she really should be (and that's saying something considering I am one!).
There are a couple of reasons I think that. The main one is that people expect us to 'lead them into God's presence,' as if He isn't already here. It's like they think that since the music has started, God will show up. 'If you play it, He will come.' We are not 'musical high priests' who bring God near through our amazing abilities. Jesus is the only way to come into God's presence, and if He is in your life, God is always present.
The term worship leader can even be confusing. It can communicate (however unintentionally) that the only time we worship is when a musician is leading us, or that worship = singing. The truth is that anyone who encourages us to praise God is a worship leader. Yes worship can involve music, but it also involves listening to or preaching a sermon, giving, praying, and much more. Some aspects of the modern day worship leader's job are inferred in scripture, but we are by no means commanded to have one (this is getting dangerous huh?)!
"No matter how important we think the worship leader role is or isn't, every week those who lead congregational worship have significant opportunities to teach, train, and encourage God's people in praising Him rightly and living for His glory. In that sense worship leaders follow in the footsteps of Old Testament Levites who taught the Israelites what God required in worship and how they could faithfully follow Him."
So what is a worship leader and what do they do? Kauflin came up with a definition that is the basis for the remainder of the book, and I think it is a pretty good one. Check this out.
"A faithful worship leader magnifies the greatness of God in Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit by skillfully combining God's Word with music, thereby motivating the gathered church to proclaim the gospel, to cherish God's presence, and to live for God's glory."
Enjoy the Journey
As far as terminology goes, the term worship leader really hasn't been around that long. It only came into existence in the early 1970's. Sure there have been people leading singing and doing the things worship leaders do, but they've been called by other terms such as priest (in the Old Testament), music directors, song leaders, and many other titles. A worship leader is under a tremendous amount of pressure. Let's face it, many people pick a church based on whether or not they like the music. "Music in the church is important. But is it more important than solid biblical teaching that helps me grow in knowledge of God and obedience to His Word? In a word, no." I think that sometimes we make the worship leader more important than he/she really should be (and that's saying something considering I am one!).
There are a couple of reasons I think that. The main one is that people expect us to 'lead them into God's presence,' as if He isn't already here. It's like they think that since the music has started, God will show up. 'If you play it, He will come.' We are not 'musical high priests' who bring God near through our amazing abilities. Jesus is the only way to come into God's presence, and if He is in your life, God is always present.
The term worship leader can even be confusing. It can communicate (however unintentionally) that the only time we worship is when a musician is leading us, or that worship = singing. The truth is that anyone who encourages us to praise God is a worship leader. Yes worship can involve music, but it also involves listening to or preaching a sermon, giving, praying, and much more. Some aspects of the modern day worship leader's job are inferred in scripture, but we are by no means commanded to have one (this is getting dangerous huh?)!
"No matter how important we think the worship leader role is or isn't, every week those who lead congregational worship have significant opportunities to teach, train, and encourage God's people in praising Him rightly and living for His glory. In that sense worship leaders follow in the footsteps of Old Testament Levites who taught the Israelites what God required in worship and how they could faithfully follow Him."
So what is a worship leader and what do they do? Kauflin came up with a definition that is the basis for the remainder of the book, and I think it is a pretty good one. Check this out.
"A faithful worship leader magnifies the greatness of God in Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit by skillfully combining God's Word with music, thereby motivating the gathered church to proclaim the gospel, to cherish God's presence, and to live for God's glory."
Enjoy the Journey
Wednesday, December 08, 2010
My Life: What Do I Model?
When we start talking about the great worship leaders of the Bible, probably the first name we would mention would be David. I'm not sure we would even mention Paul's name. I mean after all just about the only singing he did was a hymn-sing that he lead in prison after getting a beating! So why even bring that up? Because Paul modeled how to be a worship leader with his life. He showed us how to live like a worship leader. "Leading worship starts with the way I live my life, not with what I do in public. It's inconceivable for us to see ourselves as worship leaders if we're not giving attention to what we do every day." You see it doesn't matter what we're doing. Glorifying Jesus should be our goal whether we are in our car or on the platform.
1 Timothy 4:12 says, "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in faith, in love, and in purity." We are supposed to be setting examples for people. Make no mistake about it, people are watching you, not only on Sunday but throughout the entire week. Too often as worship leaders we focus so much on how we act on Sunday and completely forget about the rest of the week!
But we have to set an example in our speech. "Every word we say has potential to either confirm our example of genuine worship or take away from it. If our words our foolish, sensual, or sinful during the week, it's hard for people to take us seriously when our mouths are suddenly filled with God's praise on Sunday morning." That doesn't mean that we can never joke around or talk about things that don't have anything to do with church or God. However scripture says that we will be held accountable for "every careless word" we say.
Worldly musicians can play well and live crazy lives and no one thinks twice about it. Worship leaders don't have that option. God wants us to set an example for people in the way we live our lives. We have to understand that it isn't what we sing or play that defines our worship, it is our lives. That being said, God doesn't expect us to live perfect lives. That has only been done once (by Jesus). But we should display a consistent lifestyle of godliness.
We have to set an example in the way we love. "God describes love as being 'patient,' 'kind,' humble, polite, thoughtful, forgiving, hopeful, and enduring. Are those your attitudes after a worship service where the mix was bad and the vocalists were out of tune? When members of the church criticize you, do you respond with blame-shifting and accusations, or do you respond with patience and humility?" God wants our words of love that we preach on Sunday morning to be backed up by our deeds.
Our faith should be an example to others. "Every Sunday morning I'm seeking to point people to God. My role isn't to direct people's eyes to me, but to the God in whom I trust. The primary way I do that is by making sure I'm looking to God myself." What is faith? Faith is confidence in things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen. If we are worried all the time and our lives don't show that we trust God, how do expect to lead others to do so?
We have to set an example for the believers in purity. "Purity is the quality of being undefiled, unmixed, and undiluted, free from evil or contamination. The first area this applies to is our motives. God calls us to guard against being 'led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.' Leading worship for financial gain or public recognition dishonors God. God wants our worship to be sincere, not hypocritical; willing, not forced; wholehearted, not distracted. In other words, pure." This idea applies to all areas of our lives. We worship a Savior who died to purify us from our sins, let's worship Him with pure hearts.
We need to understand that worshipping God is an eternal occupation. We won't stop worshipping God when we die here, and as we've said many times everything we do here is worship. "If we aren't exemplifying a genuine yearning to bring glory to God that touches every aspect of our existence, then we have no business leading worship on Sundays." We, like Paul, need to set an example of worship...with our lives.
Enjoy the Journey
When we start talking about the great worship leaders of the Bible, probably the first name we would mention would be David. I'm not sure we would even mention Paul's name. I mean after all just about the only singing he did was a hymn-sing that he lead in prison after getting a beating! So why even bring that up? Because Paul modeled how to be a worship leader with his life. He showed us how to live like a worship leader. "Leading worship starts with the way I live my life, not with what I do in public. It's inconceivable for us to see ourselves as worship leaders if we're not giving attention to what we do every day." You see it doesn't matter what we're doing. Glorifying Jesus should be our goal whether we are in our car or on the platform.
1 Timothy 4:12 says, "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in faith, in love, and in purity." We are supposed to be setting examples for people. Make no mistake about it, people are watching you, not only on Sunday but throughout the entire week. Too often as worship leaders we focus so much on how we act on Sunday and completely forget about the rest of the week!
But we have to set an example in our speech. "Every word we say has potential to either confirm our example of genuine worship or take away from it. If our words our foolish, sensual, or sinful during the week, it's hard for people to take us seriously when our mouths are suddenly filled with God's praise on Sunday morning." That doesn't mean that we can never joke around or talk about things that don't have anything to do with church or God. However scripture says that we will be held accountable for "every careless word" we say.
Worldly musicians can play well and live crazy lives and no one thinks twice about it. Worship leaders don't have that option. God wants us to set an example for people in the way we live our lives. We have to understand that it isn't what we sing or play that defines our worship, it is our lives. That being said, God doesn't expect us to live perfect lives. That has only been done once (by Jesus). But we should display a consistent lifestyle of godliness.
We have to set an example in the way we love. "God describes love as being 'patient,' 'kind,' humble, polite, thoughtful, forgiving, hopeful, and enduring. Are those your attitudes after a worship service where the mix was bad and the vocalists were out of tune? When members of the church criticize you, do you respond with blame-shifting and accusations, or do you respond with patience and humility?" God wants our words of love that we preach on Sunday morning to be backed up by our deeds.
Our faith should be an example to others. "Every Sunday morning I'm seeking to point people to God. My role isn't to direct people's eyes to me, but to the God in whom I trust. The primary way I do that is by making sure I'm looking to God myself." What is faith? Faith is confidence in things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen. If we are worried all the time and our lives don't show that we trust God, how do expect to lead others to do so?
We have to set an example for the believers in purity. "Purity is the quality of being undefiled, unmixed, and undiluted, free from evil or contamination. The first area this applies to is our motives. God calls us to guard against being 'led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.' Leading worship for financial gain or public recognition dishonors God. God wants our worship to be sincere, not hypocritical; willing, not forced; wholehearted, not distracted. In other words, pure." This idea applies to all areas of our lives. We worship a Savior who died to purify us from our sins, let's worship Him with pure hearts.
We need to understand that worshipping God is an eternal occupation. We won't stop worshipping God when we die here, and as we've said many times everything we do here is worship. "If we aren't exemplifying a genuine yearning to bring glory to God that touches every aspect of our existence, then we have no business leading worship on Sundays." We, like Paul, need to set an example of worship...with our lives.
Enjoy the Journey
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