LEADERSHIP
THE WORSHIP PASTOR ' S PERFECT WEEK | Kristian Ponsford
How has 2021 started for you ? Did you make any new year resolutions or commitments ?
One that we keep hearing from worship leaders is the promise to be more efficient with time . To focus on what matters , to practice better time management , and to minimize unnecessary distractions . To plan and carry out the perfect week .
I ' ve led worship for more than twenty years , with half of those as a fulltime Worship Pastor . When I started , I had dreams of countless days strumming my acoustic guitar and prolific song writing , but somehow , I quickly became an endlessly-scheduling , chord-chart-yielding frustrated creative .
Is the perfect week possible for worship pastors ? And if so , what might it look like ?
MONDAYS ARE FOR ME " Secure your own mask first before helping others ." - British Airways
Over the years , I ' ve spent a good few hours on an airplane and regardless of the airline , the journey or the cabin crew ; I always hear the same instruction : “ Secure your mask first !”
This may feel counter-cultural to the worship leader ' s thinking as we are , of course , continually readjusting our attitudes and mindset to ensure the focus isn ' t on us . However , there is sound advice in those primary words from the cabin crew . Secure your mask first .
I know that as a leader , my thinking and attitude can quickly shape my team and my approach to " the job " can become contagious . I also know I am at my best when I am feeling recharged , energized and excited about my mission . My hunch is , you are not that different . I encourage you to practice some self-care . Start the week by checking your own heart and recharging your mindset .
I ' ve found that checking my heart isn ' t that complicated . It just involves spending time with Jesus . I ' m also not suggesting you should only do this once every seven days , but as an elongated time with Him as it ' s the best way to prepare for a great week . For me , it means I continue the week responding from a posture of acceptance and security and not from a place of striving . Alan Scott once told me , " When you know who you are and what you carry , nothing is impossible and nowhere is off limits !”
Another helpful pattern is to divert my attention from the week ahead and ensure I spend a few hours doing things that I know refill me . A coffee date with my wife , a walk on the beach , clothes shopping , flying my drone , or eating pizza ! Whatever it is that recharges you , be aware of it and schedule it .
TUESDAYS ARE FOR TEAM " If you want to build a ship , don ' t drum up people together to collect wood and don ' t assign them tasks and work , but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea ." – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
While reflecting on my time as a Worship Pastor , a friend once enquired if I had deliberately " placed more emphasis on the W and less on the P ." His question helped me understand that the role of a Worship Pastor involves leading people and not just excellent services ! I quickly realized that God had entrusted people into my care and it was part of my role to develop and lead them well ! All my time was being swallowed up in the " things " that go towards leading worship .
Here ' s the exciting dichotomy in those approaches , focusing on the ‘ practicals ’ rarely develops the team , but focusing on people pays dividends in engaged worship .
Worship is caught more often than it is taught and the truth is , your church congregation will very rarely " out worship " your team . I ' ve learned the easiest way to build an engaged church is to lead with an engaged team . The easiest way to grow an engaged team is to help them feel prepared and comfortable .
My secret sauce for bringing comfort to my team has been RehearsalMix . RehearsalMix is , without a doubt , one of the most timesaving technologies I ' ve ever implemented as a worship pastor . Before finding it , I would spend hours creating dedicated practice tracks and endless chord charts for my team .
Beyond the time-saving factor , it ’ s the confidence it brings to my musicians that makes it invaluable .
RehearsalMix affords any member of my team the ability to learn the part with precision . They can access the original recording in the needed key and focus on their instrument . Simply , they could learn by listening to their part elevated in the mix . Rehearse with that part removed from the mix and , of course , reference the original full track . Using RehearsalMix is so easy , too . It can be found on MultiTracks . com , integrated with Planning Center , or inside our iOS app , Chartbuilder . Inside of ChartBuilder , it ' s combined with customizable chord charts that actually match the original . That ' s now the one single place my team needs to go to feel fully prepared and assured .
If you want to see engagement in your congregation increase , invest in your people . On a Tuesday morning , open Chartbuilder , and thoughtfully plan your setlists . Search for fitting songs , try them , add them in any key , schedule your team , and then email them all from the same app !
The most significant benefit to me as a