Photo by Yoav Aziz on Unsplash
Center reminders— they need relationships that remind them they’ re part of the body of Christ, not just a cog in the Sunday-morning machine.
A small group creates space for exactly that.
Food and fellowship remind us we’ re family before we’ re“ staff” or“ volunteers.”
Bible study and prayer anchor us in truth when ministry feels like a blur of logistics.
Shared life helps us see each other not just as worship teammates, but as brothers and sisters.
When your worship team members grow deeper in Christ through community, they bring that depth to the platform. Their worship leadership becomes more than just skillful music— it becomes an overflow of hearts grounded in God’ s Word.
THE OBJECTION WE ALL RAISE“ Yeah, but my schedule …” I know. I wrestle with it too. Adding a weekly or bi-weekly small group on top of everything else can feel like asking the quarterback to play defense, too. Something’ s going to give.
But here’ s the truth: our schedules will always be full. There will always be sports seasons, school concerts, rehearsals, late-night video edits, and that extra Sunday morning when someone requests a hymn medley last minute. If we wait for the perfect time to join a group, it’ ll never happen.
And if we don’ t prioritize spiritual community, something far more important than our schedules will give— our souls.
SMALL GROUPS ARE A NECESSITY, NOT A LUXURY We often treat small groups like the optional add-on for“ extra-spiritual” Christians. The reality? They’ re a necessity.
Jesus himself modeled this. He ministered to the crowds, but He discipled a smaller circle of twelve. And even within that, He had three He drew especially close. If the Son of God saw the need for a small group, how much more do we need one?
For us as leaders, it’ s not just about personal growth— it’ s about modeling to our teams that discipleship doesn’ t happen in isolation. It happens in circles, not rows.
THE RIPPLE EFFECT OF COMMUNITY When leaders and team members plug into small groups, the ripple effect is huge. Here’ s what happens: Spiritual growth deepens. People move from surface-level faith to grounded discipleship.
Relational trust grows. When your bass player shares prayer requests in group, it changes the way your team prays for him at rehearsal.
Ministry gets healthier. Leaders stop carrying the weight alone, and burnout decreases.
Worship becomes authentic. When a team is being discipled together in community, it shows up in their leadership. They’ re not just singing words— they’ re living them.
A PRACTICAL CHALLENGE If you’ re not in a small group, let me challenge you: make it a priority this season. Find one at your church. If you’ re leading a worship team, consider how you might help your team members get connected, too. Better yet, join a group with them— not as“ the leader,” but as a fellow Christ-follower hungry for community.
It won’ t always be convenient. Some weeks you’ ll drag yourself there tired. Some weeks the calendar will scream at you to skip. But I promise: over time, the payoff of spiritual health, relational depth, and a more vibrant team will far outweigh the cost of another evening out.
FINAL WORD Worship leaders, don’ t try to carry the weight of ministry alone. Your team needs you to lead from a place of health, and you need people
who will remind you that your identity isn’ t just“ worship leader”— it’ s disciple, brother, sister, friend.
Small groups aren’ t one more thing to add to the plate. They’ re the plate itself— what holds everything else together.
So let’ s stop treating community as optional. Let’ s embrace it as essential.
Matt Miller Worship leader and coach from Cincinnati. When I’ m not wrestling with Planning Center or adding“ just one more thing” to the calendar, you’ ll find me with my wife Kara and our 6-year-old daughter Melody— who somehow has a busier social life than I do. WorshipTeamCoach. com WorshipWorkshop. com
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