“That band was so good, you wouldn’t know they were there!”
A strange compliment to receive, no doubt, but one that I immediately understood and deeply appreciated. Leading music for worship is unlike any other kind of music performance*. I like to joke that we need to be good enough not to become a distraction, but not so good that we become a distraction - just play really, really average! Whether it’s an organist preparing the liturgy, hymns and offering music, or a guitarist/singer leading the congregation in song, church musicians need to strike that careful balance between leading with excellence and just showing off. Throughout the years in church music ministry, I’ve picked up a few strategies towards achieving that goal.
1. It starts with your heart. A church musician really needs to get a grasp on their role in worship. Not only are we called to lead people in song, but those songs and hymns are to be directed to God rather than any of us gathered in the room. That’s an incredibly different dynamic from performing with a bar band. This job requires humility, respect, reverence, and most of all, honesty. And while there’s no doubt that all performers appreciate compliments for their hard work, we also need that voice reminding us that the credit doesn’t matter. The true measure of ‘success’ is not found in how many people appreciated the postlude on the organ or the drum fills, but whether or not we helped people raise their voices in song.
2. Practice, practice, practice. This may be so obvious it goes without saying, but musicians need to be well-prepared. This goes back to that quote I opened with. If our goal is to provide the background for people’s singing, then we certainly don’t want to train-wreck the song by fumbling around. I’ve observed a glaring difference of expectations when it comes to the skill of traditional and contemporary worship musicians. Imagine a church where Joe Smith says to the pastor, “I would really love to play the organ for worship! I’ve only really learned to play Chopsticks and Bach’s Minuet in G, but I really feel it’s my calling to serve in this way.” And the pastor replies, “Great! You’ll find the hymnal on the organ. Can’t wait to sing “This is Feast” on Sunday!”. Nope. Wouldn’t happen. But I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen guitarists, who know about 12 chords, put up in front of a group and asked to lead. There’s a lot of responsibility that comes with leading songs, and we musicians need to be as prepared as we can be, which leads to the next point.
3. Embrace your role. It’s a really amazing thing to be playing a song and hear the sounds of hundreds of voices joining along. As musicians, we are really privileged to use our God-given artistic abilities while we worship and to be able to help others do the same. Psalm 33:3 says, “Sing to Him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy.” Play excellent, but always in service to those gathered to worship, and always for Him alone.
Or, as Bach would say at the end of every piece he composed: Soli Dei Gloria - to God alone be the glory!
*The word “performance” can have a bad connotation in worship as some people equate the word with a musician “performing” to bring attention to themselves or putting on a show. However, I use the word in it’s most benign way, which is to describe the act of playing rehearsed music in front of a group of people.
*The word “performance” can have a bad connotation in worship as some people equate the word with a musician “performing” to bring attention to themselves or putting on a show. However, I use the word in it’s most benign way, which is to describe the act of playing rehearsed music in front of a group of people.
