WE ARE WORSHIPERS FIRST AND MUSOS SECOND

O Come, let us sing to the Lord

and shout with joy to the rock of our salvation!

Let us come into God’s presence with thankgiving,

singing joyful songs of praise (Psalm 95:1-2)

Have you ever come rushing in to a service at the last minute and tried to worship the Lord? No doubt you found that it is very difficult to settle. We need to take time to prepare our hearts to receive what He has for us.

God Himself had a plan for salvation since before time began. It was not a last minute, spontaneous thought; it was carefully planned out. God’s word promises that if we commit our works to the Lord that our ‘plans will be established’. (Proverbs: 16:3)

Very early in the piece I discovered that being a worship leader is about preparation and total commitment to God first, then to the congregation. I also discovered that it takes hard work to lay a solid foundation for what will happen on Sunday morning. It begins early in the week and continues over the days leading up to Sunday. The groundwork: praying over the coming service and the appropriate song list that will lead the congregation into His presence; preparing song sheets; continuously praying for the team members; weekly night practise as a team; individual daily practise on instruments; daily vocal training exercises and liaising with technical staff are all a part of the worship leader’s commitment.

Keeping focused on God, living out of the spirit daily, praying and remaining humble, reminding ourselves that we are worshipers first and musicians second all help to keep us open to the move of the Holy Spirit.

For me, leading worship is one of the most responsible and rewarding roles in the church today.