will be selflessly delivered into the presence of God .
PEOPLE KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GOOD AND BAD MUSIC Modern church members are experts about what ’ s good and what ’ s bad in music . They hear and see great musical performances all the time on television , in the movies , and on YouTube , websites , and hopefully even in their own churches . Even though they might not be able to pinpoint what is out of order in a worship experience , they know that something ’ s not right and it ’ s making them comfortable . I contend that we should , at all times , be striving to provide the best possible worship experiences for our churches . And , yes , that means striving for excellence .
Not every worship team can start out with excellent players , singers , and sound / media techs all the way around the team . And it ’ s our obligation to help train people to serve in the way that they are authentically called to serve . It ’ s not about always being perfect . It ’ s about always trying to improve and , over time , contributing excellence to our congregational worship experience .
THE POWER OF MUSIC Worship music is incredibly powerful . It quickly pulls people together , synchronizing our corporate focus on the mercy , love , and greatness of God . Singing lyrics and melodies together in worship can bring life into perspective , revealing the truth of the greatness of God .
Sound ministries all around the world hold an extremely important role in communicating worship and the word of God . It ’ s crucial to the church experience . When we provide excellent sound and the worship team provides excellent music , it becomes very easy for a congregation to worship with all of their hearts . In any musical experience , the audience is drawn into the same mind set as the musicians . It ’ s no different in church . If the musicians and the technicians are giving their best and consistently getting better ,
When we ’ re all worshipping together and open to the Lord , He can touch and change our hearts in the unique way the He chooses for each of us .
the congregation is consistently more able to worship with abandon . Everybody is quickly on the same spiritual and emotional page , focused on our Creator and His greatness .
Music helps our lives in so many ways . It can help us build endurance , get through a task quicker , fight fatigue , and you can even take our minds off of pain and sickness to the extent that we forget we are in pain or sick . It ’ s a powerful thing .
GETTING IT RIGHT Every culture has some sort of organic music that lights up their souls . Most churches today provide a bit of a multicultural experience ; however , the church worship culture lights up when they worship God together with freeflowing adoration and reverence . It ’ s every bit as much our job in technical ministry as it is for musicians to support a distraction-free experience for the congregation .
And , in what forms do distractions occur ? I contend that major distractions come in the form of feedback , missed mic cues , a mix that sounds weak and unbalanced , a mix that ’ s way too loud , wrong notes , rushing the beat , dragging the beat , playing wrong chords , singing inaccurate melodies and harmonies that are out of tune , projecting bad vocal or instrumental tone , an attitude of arrogance , and the list goes on . Fortunately , these things are all within our ability to change . No matter your skill level , everyone can strive to give their best effort in the name of worshipping God . And everyone can get better .
AN ENCOURAGING WORD Church is a long game , so there ’ s time for everyone to get better at the tasks to which they ’ re called . As your worship ministry grows and actively seeks to do a better job each week , everyone ’ s skill level will increase . Before you know it , your ministry can be firing on all cylinders . Your team will not only improve in its ability to provide excellence for your
congregation , but you ’ ll also have increasingly stronger members who can help more efficiently and quickly train new team members .
It ’ s also extremely important that all members of the music / technical team continue to listen to the voice of God in their lives , consistently growing stronger in His word and in relationship with Him . At its core , music is emotion . It about love , passion , fear , honesty , and reverence . Excellence is about introducing new people to Jesus ; it ’ s about helping our congregation worship with a unity that calls attention to the greatness of God ; it ’ s about eliminating as many distractions as possible from the worship service ; and it ’ s about giving our very best offering to the Lord of Lords .
Bill Gibson Instructor at The Conservatory of Recording Arts and Sciences ( Gilbert , Arizona ), Berklee College of Music Online ( Boston , MA ), content creator for LinkedIn Learning , and author of more than fifty books and videos about live sound and studio recording . Most recent book releases : The Ultimate Live Sound Operator ’ s Handbook , 3rd Edition , and The First 50 Recording Techniques You Should Know to Track Music . BillGibsonMusic . com
BillGibsonCourses . com