The Skillful Worship Leader

The worship ministry is vital to church growth and to the growth of each individual believer. For church planters finding a worship leader with a heart for worship is tough and a common complaint. Sometimes you end up in a position of having to make do with the default guy/girl who happens to play an instrument but doesn’t have a clue as to what a worship leader is and maybe you as a young pastor teacher aren’t sure how to express your views to them. Perhaps this lesson I gleaned from an Old Testament passage can be of help, it certainly became a platform that I used to teach aspiring young worship leaders in our congregation.

“Chenaniah, leader of the Levites, was instructor in charge of the music, because he was skillful…” I Chronicles 15:22 NKJV

Empowered By God

Not much is known about Chenaniah, but his name means “Yahweh empowers” And I think that in itself lends an important qualifier for any ministry. Too many people have built there ministries on their own charisma and personality and thus have no supernatural power. The worship ministry it is no exception, there are many great musicians creating “goose bumps” with no real work of the Spirit taking place. They do well at manipulating emotions, but little is done to encourage deep spiritual growth in worship which is one of many ‘nutrients’ the church of today is deficient in as it has it’s diet of flavorful and tantalizing treats.

Leadership

Chenaniah, leader of the Levites. To be a leader of the Levites means to rule over the levites. The word for leader in the Hebrew means prince or ruler. Is there evidence in the life of the prospective worship leader that he/she is indeed seen as a spiritually mature with a relationship as a son or daughter of the King of kings living a life befitting of a prince? By looking verse 16 and 17 we can assume Chenaniah was appointed by the leaders to be the worship leader so it would be safe to say he stood out from the rest in probable demonstration of ’spirit and in truth’ in addition to being skillful with music. A study of the Levites is worth undertaking if you want to find examples of how serious all aspects of serving the congregation is, even in the most insignificant areas. To be a good leader one must be an example of a good follower. Everyone from doorkeepers to janitors were appointed and commissioned for the work in and around the tabernacle. The word levite means to twine. Twine is a strong cord made up of many weaker stands, the more strands the stronger the cord. This twine joins together 2 separate pieces, the congregate and the Lord - it is a work of service. Too many immature worship leaders see themselves as the ‘twine’ as opposed to one who twines. They do their congregations a great disservice.

Skill in Ministry

Chenaniah… was instructor in charge of the music, because he was skillful. To define skill here is tricky because in looking at the Levites a lot of things made up skill. There is no doubt he was skillful in music in verse 27 he is called the music master, but much more than that he was placed in charge of that part of the ministry because he grew and achieved his leadership through growth as a servant. Young servants need to be proven faithful in the small tasks then “promoted” up. It is arguable that Chenaniah was never promoted from anything, however in ministry, not only do the leaders have to respect the servant, but also his peers respect him and those submitted to his service.

Appointed and Anointed

When we apply these things in practical terms we begin to see the relevancy. We understand the position itself. In verse 16 King David commanded the leaders of the Levites to appoint a worship team. In I Chronicles 25:6 we find the worship leaders are under the authority of the king. In the church today I assert this would be the pastor whether he is musically inclined or not. The worship leader must support and apply the vision of the church in application of the worship ministry not compete with it.

Many churches allow the worship leader to do whatever, but in scripture there is a presiding authority. Some worship leaders have trouble with this, usually because of creative pride. Professional worship leaders are a sad statement of how the church views worship today. In the case of Chenaniah, he was first empowered by Yahweh. God will anoint the person He desires for the position. As with the choosing of Saul to be king men look at the outward and often times, in our context the best “musically qualified” is selected, but throughout scripture the blessings come when place is given to the one God has equipped and empowered for the ministry. I have been in worship services when very skilled musicians dazzled my ears with beautiful medleys, but they lacked power, drew attention to blazing guitar solos and invoked emotional engagement at the expense of an encounter with God. I’ve listened to others that knew only a few cords very well and led people into rich and tearful worship, because the anointing of God was upon them.

After God has empowered the rest really falls into place. To be instructor in charge of the music has a lot to do with competency as a leader. People have to respect you as a worshiper before they will let you lead them into worship and you have to have a certain level of skill to accomplish the task. Chenaniah was skillful and that is important, no doubt. As a musician myself I am greatly distracted by the poor musicianship of some who call themselves musicians, so I agree that competency is important as a musician, however a true worship leader will seek out instruction and practice because he is aware of his shortcomings and wants to worship God with the best possible skill he can achieve. That doesn’t mean years of music theory, but it does mean being skillful enough to not be a distraction. If you only know 10 chords then know them well. Skill goes way beyond theory and education, it describes the ability to get the job done remembering always that it is going before the Lord and needs to be treated as such.

The Worship Team

The importance of being the instructor in charge of music has greater significance if you are leading a worship team. It is a necessity for all members to be a one mind, that means knowing what the worship ministry is and the seriousness of being a participant. Many are involved in worship because they like to sing or what to showcase their talent. The former is better than the latter, but it is the role of the worship leader to instruct and disciple the worship team into the ministry itself, the motives of the heart and most importantly to teach the vision of the church so that everyone has a vision of where they are going as a team. The ability to teach new songs, solve the personnel problems brought about by creative differences is another skill aspect to consider. The worship team I was leading, when I presented this study in it’s 5 hour form (over the course of 1 month) our worship was revolutionized. From that the input of he team members became very valid and insightful. The seriousness brought about from this study led to a quality standard for all participants and as a team we grew. Never did my leadership suffer from allowing the others to be involved in the production, in fact it strengthened my position and the struggles over creative differences became less and less because now we all of one mind.

Practical Application

There are several things that need to be mentioned that are, to anyone involved in the ministry already known, but I should not assume the obvious. Some things that create skill in the worship leader, as well as the team:

1. Personal Prayer
2. Personal Bible Study
3. Personal Practice

These elements are essential to the worship ministry. The differences in my worship leading before this study and after, is as night is to day. I went from leading the people in songs to leading them into worship. To be open to the Holy Spirits leading is vital. To lead in songs is accepted and is considered satisfactory, by most. However, when I opened up to the Spirits leading I have seen many amazing moves of the Spirit during the worship service. What a beautiful thing this worship ministry is when it is treated as such. The song lists I put together after seeking the Spirits guidance, were songs that did more than make people clap and sing, rather it led them into worship. It caused the people to open up to the Spirits work in their lives and thus lives are affected because the Holy Spirit knows what songs will minister and that validates the worship ministry.

Summary

I list the qualifications of a worship leader as this:

1.Empowered by God
2.Respected as a Worshipper
3.Appointed by the Pastor
4.Knowledge of the Ministry
5.Proactive in the Ministry
6.Skilled as a Musician

There are some who will either take issue with my content or at least have several questions about issues I did not cover or expound upon. I would encourage you to do as I did and pray, then seek the answer from scripture. Paul said to Timothy, “Study to show yourself approved.” Study requires diligence and prayer. The worship ministry is a valid, Biblical ministry and the fruits and rewards will reflect that fact. If you are serious about the ministry you will be serious about the role of the worship leader and you will seek to be skillful as unto the Lord.