Saturday, October 20, 2012

Priorities for the Worship Leader

As people who care about following God and serving others, and as artists who envision doing great things with the skills we've been given, we are probably inundated with "good things" to do. We rarely find ourselves dealing with boredom, but we are often frustrated and tired. We are tempted to try and do everything, and we find ourselves doing everything halfway, rather than a few exceptional things.

However, in some situations, this might be the best thing. For the Church Planter, and the Church Plant Worship Leader, there is an importance in consistency. There is an old sports metaphor, to "answer the bell," which means to get back up and back into the fray each time you are called. When you are a Church Planter, you aren't necessarily working in just one direction, and most of us would be bored out of our minds working in just one direction.

So we keep answering the bell. This is a given.

However, as Worship Leaders, we have to make priorities out of that which improves our craft. We must embrace that which improves us as musicians, but also that which improves us as worshippers. These are the two equally important priorities of a worship leader; we can't have one without the other, and we can't have one at the expense of the other.

All of this to say, you need to be able to do everything, but do the important things well, and have a list of "negotiables". These are things you want to do, can do, and plan to do, but are willing to give up if they interfere with your primary focus, or if you just don't have the energy to do them. As a worship and youth leader at my church, that list includes "child-centric" events, like little kid birthdays and children's events. This also includes para-church ministry opportunities, recording time, and songwriting.

Ultimately, figuring out your priorities will allow you to accomplish a lot more with a little less stress. At least, so I've heard.