LOOP COMMUNITY
WORSHIP THROUGH THE YEARS WITH TIM HUGHES | Matt McCoy
Songwriter , artist , and worship leader Tim Hughes joined Loop Community Founder Matt McCoy to talk about how he has seen worship change over the last 20 years , advice for worship leaders and more .
[ Matt McCoy ] How have you seen worship change over 20 years ? When you think back to when you first started leading how have you seen it change from then until now ?
[ Tim Hughes ] When I started leading , there was a real awakening of worship in church . There was a massive impact around intimacy in worship , around simple choruses , that created a sense of connecting with God . Moving from just singing theology , which is also important , but actually having worship as an encounter . There was a sense of awakening and all new songs and movements gathering and delighting in worship . Now what we ’ ve seen is people really investing in the gift of creativity in music . The quality of songs now is incredible . Churches are placing a high value on worship music . The resources and trainings available now are amazing . I think that ’ s made a massive difference to so many churches in empowering them and encouraging them .
My one critique or challenge , would be with the upscaling of the quality , that could become more of an emphasis than the heart . As I look back , some of the quality wouldn ’ t hold its own now , but there was something so beautiful and raw that really engaged people . My fear is that it ’ s become almost too professional . Worship always has to be raw and heartfelt . It ’ s about human frailty encountering the infinite divine Creator . That should be an emotional , beautiful , mysterious , and sacred thing . If all we ’ re focusing on is the set , sound and production , we can miss some of those things . I would like to see how we can engage the excellence with the risk and freedom and rawness of worship .
[ Matt ] If you were sitting down now with a young worship leader who ’ s like 16 years old and just getting started , someone that wants to do this with their life , what would you say ?
[ Tim ] A worship leader needs to be a worshipper . The danger of learning all of your skills from YouTube and watching what other artists do and you imitate , you could probably get away with leading worship well at a church . But if you really want to lead people into life changing encounters with the Spirit of God , you need to be a worshipper . The more time you carve out on your own for God , wrestling with Him , loving Him , connecting and conversing with Him , when you step out to lead you won ’ t be just delivering songs in great sets , you ’ ll be someone who can usher in the Spirit of God . Worship is a spiritual activity . A lot of what we are seeing in our churches is good solid worship , but what I believe the church needs is Spirit led worship .
If you want to be really effective in a Kingdom way , it ’ s not purely going to happen by you learning music skills , it ’ s going to be you allowing Christ into the depths of your heart and learning what it means to be a worshipper . Click
HERE to watch the full conversation between Tim Hughes and Matt !