Set The Stage

“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” Colossians 3:23

To be successful in leadership, whether it’s a church service, business meeting, or concert, you must not allow the audience to dictate your performance or presentation. As a worship pastor, I spend a great deal of time in preparation, which includes prayer, planning and rehearsal. On Sundays, if I allow the energy and responsiveness of the congregation to dictate my level of energy, passion and focus, I’m actually worshiping the people instead of Jesus. Instead of leading them to worship Jesus, my presence is a distraction, and a new leader is needed.

This observation is not groundbreaking, and most people who are on stage regularly are faced with different sizes and energy levels of congregations/audiences learn to avoid “crowd worship”. To me, a mark of a great performer or leader is that he/she is unaffected by the size of the crowd. One band that comes to mind is The Avett Brothers. I first saw them at King’s Barcade in 2004, and hadn’t heard of them before that day. Two things astonished me: from the first note to the last, they played as if it were their last show. And, the show was filled with people there because it was “cool” in their scene, who talked through parts of this amazing performance. While most performers would be irritated or thrown off by a rude audience, the Avetts were unaffected. Any time I’ve seen them since, and from the reports of countless others who have seen them perform in hotel hallways, parking lots and at campgrounds, it’s always the same thing: they play each show as if it were their last.

Now, that we should lead worship in this way is worthy of a separate post. But today I have a different observation: While we work hard to present, lead, perform without being “brought down” by an indifferent crowd, the fact is a lively crowd can have a positive impact, and we should not shy away from that. Last Sunday I preached on worship at the Raleigh campus of Vintage21 Church. Four services in one day is tiring, especially when the four-month old had me start the day at 3:30 am and kept an afternoon nap just out of reach. As a result, the 6:00 service worried me, as I wanted to remain focused. The temptation was there to simply “get through it,” knowing rest was on the other side. Before the service I prayed that God would give me energy, focus, and would speak. Walking through the hall and praying, I was in a good place and ready to preach. However, when I walked into the main room, the band was singing and playing to God with all they had in them, and the congregation was following their lead. It was felt, and inspiring, and this put me in an even better place walking on stage.

My point is this: Worship leaders and bands not only honor God with their leadership, playing and singing, but can really set the stage well for the pastor coming up to preach. We play an important role for the oncoming pastor – if we bring the congregation down, distract them or bore them, that pastor has to fight all the more. If we paint a truthful picture of Jesus, and lead others to worship Him, the hearts of the congregation are receptive to the Word from the beginning. Keeping in mind that the role of the Holy Spirit is the key. Either we fight against what He desires to do that day, or we are instruments used to accomplish this.

What are your thoughts on this?