{"id":10464,"date":"2024-03-28T09:00:04","date_gmt":"2024-03-28T14:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/?p=10464"},"modified":"2024-03-28T08:31:01","modified_gmt":"2024-03-28T13:31:01","slug":"things-ive-learned-while-leading-worship-in-a-local-church","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/2024\/03\/28\/things-ive-learned-while-leading-worship-in-a-local-church\/","title":{"rendered":"Things I\u2019ve Learned While Leading Worship in a Local Church"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n\t
Having been a worship leader in a local church for several years, I have come to learn several things
\nabout myself and my role as a worship leader. The following points are largely practical (and perhaps
\nself-evident to some). But I hope that somewhere in these thoughts there will be a kernel of
\nencouragement, if not exhortation, for you.<\/div>\n

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\n
\n\t
1. Having failures doesn\u2019t make me a failure.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
No matter how hard we try; no matter how well we prepare; no matter how much we want to
\nbe flawless\u2026sometimes we make mistakes in our worship leading. It may be something as
\nsimple as playing a wrong note or a wrong chord; singing the wrong lyric; or singing out of tune.
\nIf you\u2019ve never had one of these experiences, you probably haven\u2019t been a worship leader for
\nvery long. Most of us know all too well what it feels like to fail to some degree on a platform.
\nBut having failures doesn\u2019t make me a failure. It is only an indication that I am an imperfect
\nhuman being in need of grace. \u201cTo err is human; to forgive, divine.\u201d These well-known words,
\nfirst written in a poem by Alexander Pope in the early 18th century, should be words of hope as
\nwell as words of exhortation to the worship leader. We lead in our weakness. We don\u2019t always
\nget it right. Grace is abundantly afforded to us, and we should be generous with it as well. That
\nis to say, when someone else has a failure on the platform, that doesn\u2019t mean they are a failure
\neither.<\/div>\n
\nOccasionally someone in our worship music ministry will hit the wrong note, sing the wrong
\nwords, or get lost in a chart. Often, they will come around after the service and apologetically
\nacknowledge their mistake. I don\u2019t know how many times I\u2019ve said, \u201cDon\u2019t worry about it.
\nThere\u2019s a lot of grace in the room.\u201d<\/div>\n

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\n
\n\t
2. My ministry is not to be measured by any one service\u2026bad or good.<\/div>\n
\nIndeed, we have likely all had those worship-leading experiences when it seemed like everything
\nwent wrong. Conversely, though seemingly few and far between, we also may have had
\nworship-leading experiences in which it seemed everything worked perfectly, and we came away
\nwith the sense that God had truly blessed our best efforts.<\/div>\n
\nBut we shouldn\u2019t be tempted to measure ourselves solely by either of these stand-alone
\nexperiences. The truth is, from a performance perspective, we\u2019re probably not as \u201cbad\u201d as our
\nworst Sunday, nor as \u201cgood\u201d as our best. The most appropriate measure of ministry is not
\nperformance, but faithfulness. We should view our ministry in terms of a long, sustained arc of
\nbeing faithful to that which God has called us to do.<\/div>\n
\n\u201cWhat makes authentic disciples is not visions, ecstasies, biblical mastery of chapter and verse,
\nor spectacular success in the ministry, but a capacity for faithfulness.\u201d
\n\u2015 Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n

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\n
\n\t
3. I can lead us through mistakes\u2026even train wrecks.<\/div>\n
\nSince the reality is that we all do make mistakes from time to time, I need to have a level of
\nconfidence that I can lead us through mistakes\u2026even train wrecks.<\/div>\n
\nThe vast majority of the mistakes that happen during a worship leading, though painfully
\napparent to the worship leaders and others on a platform, are by and large unnoticed by the
\ncongregation\u2026unless we point it out to them with our body language. If someone sings or plays
\na wrong note, most likely no one will notice. But they will notice someone making a face in
\nresponse to it, or giggling, or giving the \u201coffender\u201d a stare. So, we have always encouraged our
\nmusicians and singers to not react to something they hear that is \u201coff.\u201d I\u2019ve even said something
\nlike, \u201cIf you make a mistake, act like you meant to do it and keep going.\u201d Likely, no one will even
\nnotice. (By the way, a jazz musician friend once told me, \u201cThere are no wrong notes; it\u2019s just that
\nsome sound better than others.\u201d)<\/div>\n
\nUnfortunately, occasionally something happens that simply can\u2019t be ignored. A guitar string
\nbreaks; a keyboard stand collapses; an instrumentalist is playing in the wrong key; or something
\nhas gone so musically wrong that we just have to stop. We call that \u201ca train wreck.\u201d<\/div>\n
\nEven then\u2026by God\u2019s grace, I can lead us. When something so egregious happens that it can\u2019t be
\nignored, it\u2019s best just to stop; acknowledge it (perhaps with a bit of mild humor); make whatever
\nadjustment is necessary; and move on in confidence. Don\u2019t panic. Stay calm. It will be ok.<\/div>\n
\nRemember, there\u2019s a lot of grace in the room.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\n
\n\t
4. It is important to be musically proficient.<\/div>\n
\nWe all have gifts from the Lord. There are spiritual gifts given as the Spirit wills, and there are
\nnatural talents that can be nurtured and developed. We know that every good and perfect gift
\ncomes from the Lord (James 1:17).<\/div>\n
\nWhen it comes to leading worship in music, there must be a level of musical proficiency. Poor
\nmusicianship can most certainly be a distraction. Sadly, sometimes we try to play or sing
\nsomething for which we are not fully prepared. Perhaps you\u2019ve been in a service in which
\nsomeone stands nervously strumming a guitar and saying something like, \u201cY\u2019all pray for us as we
\ntry to sing this song. We haven\u2019t had much time to practice this week.\u201d I find myself wondering,
\n\u201cPerhaps you might just wait until you\u2019ve had the opportunity to practice.\u201d<\/div>\n
\nThough we\u2019re not perfect, we should always desire to offer our best to the Lord in worship; to be
\nprepared; to be well-rehearsed; to be proficient with our playing and singing; and to have our
\ninstruments in tune. Failure to give attention to these things may hamper your ability to
\neffectively lead in worship.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n

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\n
\n\t
5. I must lead within my gifts. I cannot be someone I am not.<\/div>\n
\nRelated to the importance of being musically proficient is the awareness that I must lead within
\nmy gifts. I cannot be someone I am not.<\/div>\n
\nI remember hearing Don Moen say something like, \u201cI always wanted to be Ron Kenoly, but I had
\nto realize that I won\u2019t ever be Ron Kenoly; I\u2019m Don Moen.\u201d<\/div>\n
\nWorship leaders face a dilemma at times when there is a press to incorporate a \u201cpopular\u201d song
\nthat is not in that person\u2019s \u201cwheelhouse\u201d to sing or to play as people are accustomed to hearing
\nit. As contemporary worship music has, in many ways, become more and more sophisticated, I
\nhave to face the reality that there are some things that I am simply not gifted to be able to do.
\nAnd if I try to do something that I am not gifted to do, it could be musically disastrous\u2026and
\ndistracting.<\/div>\n
\nAn example of this would be when the well-known version of a song is in a key that is out of my
\nvocal range. But when I lower the key to a place where I can sing it, the song loses all the energy.
\nAnother example would be a well-known song that is very dependent upon some musical
\nelement that I am incapable of playing. If I can\u2019t reproduce that musical element in a live setting,
\nI have to discern whether or not the song \u201cworks\u201d without it. (I can hear some readers yelling,
\n\u201cJust play the track!\u201d Another discussion for another time.)<\/div>\n
\nUltimately, even as I want to continue to grow as a musician, I know what I can do and what I
\ncan\u2019t. As I\u2019m leading worship, I should be comfortable and confident within my gifts, giving me
\nthe freedom to lead without the temptation to feel I\u2019m trying to be someone I\u2019m not.
\nRoger Breland, founder of TRUTH, used to say, \u201cWhen God created you, He created you special.
\nWhen he created you, He didn\u2019t have anyone else in mind.\u201d<\/div>\n
\nMy encouragement to you is to embrace what God has created you to be; and to lead within the
\ngifts He has given you. And in so doing, you will bring Him glory.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n

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\n
\n\t\t\"\"\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\n
\n\t

Dr. Wes Tuttle is an accomplished worship leader, musician, and songwriter. Dr. Tuttle\u2019s songs have been recorded by influential worship leaders like Don Moen, Paul Wilbur, Bob Fitts, John Chisum, Aline Barros, Robin Mark, Juanita Bynum and Judy Jacobs. Wes is an ordained minister and holds an A.A. in Music and a B.A. in Religion from Emmanuel College.\u00a0 He holds an M.A. in Counseling from Liberty University and a M.A.R. with a concentration in Cross-cultural studies from Liberty Theological Seminary. He received his Doctor of Ministry degree from Liberty Theological Seminary.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"excerpt","protected":false},"author":35,"featured_media":10465,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","filesize_raw":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,1325],"tags":[1533,1031,1313,1457,1357,570,1485],"class_list":{"0":"post-10464","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-discipleship-ministries","8":"category-worship","9":"tag-1533","10":"tag-discipleship-ministries","11":"tag-dr-wes-tuttle","12":"tag-q1","13":"tag-wes-tuttle","14":"tag-worship","15":"tag-worship-ministry","16":"entry"},"title_es":"","content_es":"","author_name":"Wes Tuttle","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2024\/03\/Contract-Q124.png","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4T9u2-2IM","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10464","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/35"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10464"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10464\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10465"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10464"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10464"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10464"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}