WORSHIP LEADERS
THE FOUR PARTS OF A POWERFUL WORSHIP SET | Jon Nicol
What comes to mind when you read these three words ?
Powerful ... worship ... set . Maybe it ' s words like awe , wonder , transcendence . Or maybe descriptive phrases like all hands are raised , a movement of the Spirit , falling to our knees , unashamed adoration . Or maybe adjectives like engaged , expressive , anointed .
Every church has a different definition of a powerful worship set ranging from ( here are some broad stereotypes )… people falling over ( Pentecostal church ) to people going under ( Baptist church ). People excited about coming in ( attractional church ) to people excited about going out ( missionary church ). People spontaneously singing ( charismatic church ) to people semi-audibly singing ( Presbyterian Church ). People speaking in a different language ( AofG ) to people speaking an ancient language ( Latin Mass ). People singing with a killer band on stage ( Modern Non-Denominational ) to people singing with no band on stage ( Church of Christ ). People gazing up in transcendent wonder ( Vineyard Church ) to people gazing down at their shoes ( Minnesota Lutherans ).
Joking and stereotypes aside , let ' s move beyond the styles , modes , diverse theologies , and whatever variety of " the feels " is valued by different churches , and instead let ' s look at how we get there .
• You ' re a full-time ' professional ' worship pastor or a former team member who was ' voluntold ' to lead the worship ministry .
Here are the four parts to a powerful worship service : Planning Preparation People Presence
Let ' s talk about each one .
PLANNING
Planning a powerful worship set in your setting probably means getting the right elements in the right order . Those elements might include ...
• songs
• scriptures
• segues
• spoken word
• silence
• sacraments
You may only have one or two of these elements in your worship set , or you might incorporate all of them .
I ' m not here to tell you which ones to use and what order to put them in . But let me encourage you to do one thing :
Now , nothing we plan can " make " that happen . But we can map a route in and through different worship elements to help us focus on the wonder of a transcendent and holy God , as well as the nearness of his affectionate love .
Not every set can span the entire spectrum from transcendence to imminence . If you only have space in your set for two songs and a short scripture , you won ' t be able to . And that ' s OK .
The goal is to be intentional about the path you want to lead with those few elements . Think about what will create an environment that encourages people to worship some aspect of God ' s vast fullness .
While I ' d love to teach more on planning your worship sets , that ' s not for this article . But let me say this before we move on . Planning worship is a craft . It ' s something you can grow in and improve at .
One way to grow is to spend time studying your and other church ' s worship sets . And not just the powerful ones , but the passable ones ( that were just so-so ) and the pathetic services that tanked . There ' s so much you can learn just from observing . And reach out to me ( jon @ worshipteamcoach . com ) if you want to a deeper dive into the craft of planning exceptional Sunday sets .
Creating and leading a powerful worship set requires the same four critical pieces whether ...
• You ' re planning an ancient liturgy or a playing new song you wrote this week .
• You ' ve got an awesome band or an a cappella choir ( which can also be awesome ).
Plan an intentional journey .
Whether the average church attendee can articulate this or not , they want to experience both the Otherness of God — transcendence — and God ' s nearness — imminence .
PREPARATION
Your well-planned worship set now needs to be brought from paper ( or PCO ) to the platform . And that happens with preparation . There are three big components of preparation .