10 PRACTICAL TIPS ON WORSHIP LEADING

1. CONNECT WITH PEOPLE BEFORE & AFTER

THE SERVICE
I believe one of the most important parts of a service for a worship leader is before and
after the meeting. This is where we make connections with people and build
relationship with our congregations. If you can build relationship off the stage, you
will have it with the congregation when you’re on the stage.

2. START STRONG, BE BOLD

The first 30 seconds of a worship set lays a foundation and sets the tone for the
rest of the meeting. If you start timid and are unsure of yourself, the rest of the set will
most probably represent that. As soon as you set your foot on that stage, ‘step into it’
and be bold.

3. PLAY & SING WITH CONVICTION

Sing and play the song as if you wrote it. If you have to study the lyrics, do so. The Bible
says that God is looking for worshipers who worship Him in spirit and in truth. There
has got to be truth and conviction behind what we are singing about.

4. ONLY SPEAK IF YOU’VE GOT SOMETHING TO

SAY
If you feel from God you have something to encourage the church in, great! But you
have to be careful that you aren’t filling spaces that God should be filling just because
you think you need to say something.
 5. SPEAK CONFIDENTLY & CLEARLY
Following on from my previous point, when you do say something, make sure you speak
confidently and clearly. Be sensitive to the moment but at the same time don’t hold back
or be timid. Say it!

6. BE MINDFUL OF HOW MUCH YOU CLOSE YOUR

EYES
The heart behind this is about staying engaged with where the congregation is at. The
stage isn’t the place for our own personal worship time. The stage is about us leading
others in worship while connecting to God ourselves. We need to stay aware of where
the meeting and people are at.

7. LEAD PEOPLE BUT DON’T OVER DO IT

Be mindful of how many times you say phrases like “lift your hands” and “Sing this out”.
You can start to sound like a broken record if you keep repeating yourself. People will
disengage if they feel as though the worship is being pushed or forced upon them.

8. HAVE STAGE PRESENCE

Now this is going to be different for everyone, but we've all got to have some level of
stage presence. Passion is contagious and we can’t expect our congregations to ‘get
into it’ if we aren’t into it ourselves. Lead by example.

9. DON’T BE SO SERIOUS - SMILE

Worship is something to be enjoyed and worship is a celebration of the character &
goodness of God. It is meant to be liberating. Our expression should show this. Relax,
enjoy yourself and smile.
 10. EMBRACE FEEDBACK
It doesn’t matter how much experience you have, there’s always room for
improvement. Listen and watch yourself back and ask your pastors and leaders for
feedback. Embrace it, even that which you might not agree with. The teachable person
will always go the furthest.

Preparing to Lead the Worship

Fundamentally, your offering of praise & worship to God must be given your best
efforts at all times. Offering the best starts from your focus and your preparation.
God is your focus, not man. Let God be the focus of your desire for giving your best,
not impressing people.

1. Ask The Holy Spirit:

Leading praise and worship is a spiritual assignment, and to successfully executive
or complete any spiritual assignment, you cannot do without your no.1 spiritual guide
and helper, the Holy Spirit. Before you start putting any songs together, ask the Holy
Spirit to help you with the right songs. He knows the mind of God, as well as the
hearts and circumstances of the people that will be present at the meeting. He is the
one that can truly help everyone to focus on Jesus Christ during the praise/worship,
and also minister to people’s needs. Ask for more inspiration, revelation and
understanding. You would do well to pray in tongues also, for as long as you want,
because that will help also.

2. Build & Rehearse Your List:

After praying, start building your song list by singing them out and writing down the
list of songs that come to your mind. Don’t just rush through listing the songs.
Sing each song as it comes and reflect on the lyrics and flow of each song, and let
the flow of that song connect with next. This can happen easily if you allow each
song minister to you as you sing it. Somehow, by the help of the Holy Spirit, you’ll be
able to connect the flow of the songs, from one to another.
If you’re looking to lead praise worship for about 30 mins using contemporary songs,
you will likely have a list of 5-10 songs, and If it’s using traditional songs or a blend of
contemporary and traditional songs you will likely have 15-25 songs, because
traditional songs are more of short choruses with or without verses, and the different
traditional songs usually flow smoothly from one to another.

3. Rehearse With Musicians:

First, you need to rehearse with your keyboardist/pianist alone. Work with him to put
a few things in order where needed, like keys, songs transitions, arrangement,
etc.
Second, create a time to rehearse with other back-up singers, the keyboardist,
drummer, bassist, etc. This way you can get the best key(s) for you and the back-up
singers, for each song. This a regular for a functioning worship team.
For a very young worship leader who’s inexperienced, you can try asking for the
inputs of a ‘more experienced, humble and anointed worship leader’. His/her
advice might help reaffirm something the Holy Spirit has laid on your heart or help
open your eyes to more ways you can what you are struggling with.

4. Bible Reference:

Find scriptures which will strengthen your spirit and help achieve the focus of the
worship session you’re preparing to lead. They help you gain more insight into
what you’re preparing to do. You will gain new revelation if you take time to meditate
on them.
Try to find scriptures that relate to every song you have listed, if you can. When
leading the praise and worship session, the Holy Spirit can remind you of the
inspirations you have received from these scriptures and you can use them to
exhort, inspire and guide the congregation into a more focus worship experience.

5. Spend Time In Prayers:

Pray, pray, pray!!! Pray without ceasing. You need to engage the help of the Holy
Spirit. Practice makes things easy, but not perfect. With prayer you engage the help
of the Holy Spirit to put in order all that you can’t and even make better the things
you have prepared.
Pray not just for yourself, but also for everyone else involved; backup singers,
instrumentalists, sound and technical crew, multimedia crew and the congregation.
Pray against distractions and pray for unity of purpose among your worship team,
sound crew and multimedia crew, because you’re all leading the congregation
together. Faults with singing arrangements, sound or multimedia screens can
distract members of the congregation and you don’t want that, so pray.
I’ve seen many worship leaders who rehearse well but don’t pray well enough, so
they end up putting up a good charismatic performance but fail to minister life. So it’s
more of an entertaining session instead of a life-giving encounter with the Holy Spirit.
So pray!!!
Pray in understanding and pray in tongues, as the Holy Spirit gives you utterance.
Pray for long periods and/or short periods at different times.

6. Meditation Time:

At this time, you’re done with your rehearsals and probably a day to your ministration
or hours to it. Just sing and meditate on your songs and the scriptures you have. Let
them minister to you over and again. Let your spirit be united with everything.
One of the things I do most times if I have the tracks on my laptop, I play them
through time and again all through the night and in the morning before leaving home
for the church service.
One of the things I also do especially for Sunday morning services, when it’s about
an hour to the time, I avoid all distractions, chit-chat, random discussions, etc. Find a
solemn place, pray in tongues while reading through the scriptures I have prepared
with. I want to be fully focused till I step on the altar to lead. I believe this will work for
you also if you give it a go.

7. Last Minute Checks: (sa dili pa magsugod, be early)

Part of the things you need to do in the last few hours/minutes.

  Ensure the songs are queue on the computer and ensure the lyrics are
correct.
 Sound check with everyone that’s going to lead with you; backup singers and
instrumentalists. Get the right sound output – texture, volume, balance.
Ensure the musical instruments don’t drown the voices. Right balance.
 Ensure the microphones and speakers are working properly. You needn’t
strain your ears before you can hear yourselves on the stage monitors. You
need to hear it load and clear.
 Everyone in the worship team should pray together, singers and
instrumentalists.
If you still have some moments of free time before the service or event starts, use it
to stay calm, meditating on scriptures you have prepared with and/or speaking in
tongues.

Band Dynamics
1. Practice your music
Know your parts inside and out before group rehearsals. That way the band can actually focus on the
finer details or the big picture together and have more fun in the process. If you don’t understand a
section of a song, talk about it and make sure to smooth out the kinks sooner rather than later. You
don’t want those doubts to linger until it’s too late to ask or you get on stage and the nerves kick in.

2. Know your role in the band

If you don’t know your role, talk about it. Are you a support musician? Are you a band leader? Do
you have a say in the creation and selection of the material? Or are you supposed to just learn your
parts from a chart and do what you’re instructed to do? Once you know this, you’ll be able to make
sure that you’re not stepping on any toes, and you’ll also feel more free within your defined role.

3. Help out
Whether it’s carrying equipment or promoting the band, always help when it’s needed. Depending
on your forte and interests outside of music, find a way to contribute to the management of the
band. Maybe you’re a good driver and can get the band to gigs, or you love to design and can make
the T-shirts and posters. Maybe you have a big social network, and naturally will be the promoter. Or
maybe you host the rehearsals. What ever your part is, make sure you share the legwork, because
it’s way too much for one person.

4. Place equal value on each musician

Even if someone is not the lead musician, they are of essential value – everyone contributes to the
band’s unique sound. Each instrument has its own details and complexities on which to focus, and
each individual deserves respect. Every member should be included in band discussions and
practices, and everyone should feel welcome to weigh in with suggestions when appropriate. This
gives ownership and builds commitment.

5. Be on time
The band members depend on each other to make “it” happen, so be respectful of each other’s
time. Don’t be the one to hold everyone up when people are already making sacrifices to make time
for the band between their jobs, families and possibly other musical projects. if you’re too flaky, you
might just lose your seat in the group.

6. Practice in advance
Schedule rehearsals and gigs in advance. If a show is booked and you’ve committed to it, don’t miss
it unless it’s a true emergency. It reflects badly on the whole band if they have to cancel or cannot
produce what’s expected. Also, give a heads up if you’re going out of town so that your bandmates
know when to book practices and shows, or have ample time to get a sub for you if needed.

8. Discuss style
Details make a band unique and stand out. This includes fashion! It’s embarrassing to witness a band
where everyone is dressed up except for that one person who rolled out of bed and looks downright
slovenly. If you’re going for the “I don’t care” or “grungy” look, that’s fine – just be on the same page
as everyone else. Prepare and discuss it in advance – maybe you want matching outfits, or you just
want to be casual, or maybe dressy. These details matter. Your shows are a presentation of your art,
sound and appearance all together. Paying attention to all of these aspects shows that you care
about your presentation and your audience.

9. Work on your stage presence

Being a musician usually means that you’re also a performer. This requires stage presence. Enjoy it,
and give a little love to the audience. This can be as simple as smiling, or thanking the audience for
coming, or even creating choreography. Just make sure that you and your bandmates work together
to always give good energy to the audience. This will increase your fan loyalty and it will also
enhance the music.

10. Be transparent
I’m talking about money. If you’re performing together as a band, there is money involved. The
group as a whole should be open about it. Ideally, the group should decide together what to do with
the funds. It could be small enough that you all go out for dinner together, or you pay a member
back for the time they bought gas. If it’s large you can divide it up, or put into a band fund, or
towards your next album, etc. Also, unless someone has signed up to be a sponsor for the band,
always pay them back if they fronted the group.

11. Speak up
When things that matter are bothering you, it’s important to voice your concerns as soon as
possible. Certain things will blow over, but if you have any nagging thoughts that continue to bring
you down, that means it’s time to talk about it – no matter how small of an issue it seems. Nothing is
too small to talk about if it feels important to you. For big issues, like who owns royalties, and what
to do if a member quits, it’s a good idea to create a band agreement to straighten out any kinks that
might need clarification early on. Don’t be afraid to be the one to suggest that these conversations
be had.

12. Reflect
Be willing to learn from mistakes. After a rehearsal or performance, talk about what worked and
what didn’t. Be open to feedback and chime in with your thoughts. Music (and life for that matter) is
an endless learning process.

13. Have fun!

You probably chose music because you love it. Don’t lose sight of that passion, and be glad that you
have bandmates to share it with. It’s an honorable role to be an entertainer, so spread the love and
have fun with it!