A worship leader is not someone who puts up a performance to make a congregation worship. Instead, he leads by example. A worship leader must be a worshipper who sincerely worships God. It is, therefore, vital for worship leaders to dwell in the presence of God and take considerable time off every day to worship God privately. Such leaders lead God’s people in worship without switching into performance mode. The worship that flows out of him in public is nothing more than an extension of the worship that rose from him during the entire week.
If a worship leader feels that he is out of sync with the congregation or if the worship session does not progress the way he intended, the leader must hand over the service to his associate who might be better prepared for that moment. Why try too hard to bring in “revive” a non-responsive congregation through in-between preaching?
If you are leading an English language service, stick to English songs. Why? First, some people travel long distances to your church because you advertised your service as an “English” service. Do not bring in songs in other languages or dialects. Second, not everyone understands the local language or other popular languages in your country. Even when you include the meaning of the songs on your song sheet or slide, it is poor consolation for participants who do not know the language.
If you are trying to cater to the needs of participants who do not understand the language of the service, consider starting a separate worship service to cater to the needs of that group.
Avoid the following and other worn out clichés:
Remember that you are not teaching a kindergarten class. The worshippers who join you may be much more intelligent, godly and mature than you.
Mourn with those who mourn. One of the greatest mistakes that Pentecostals and Charismatics commit is to forsake the best of the Christian tradition of the past nineteen centuries. One such “baby” that we throw out with the “bath water” is a rich heritage of Christian teachings about suffering and sorrows. Most Pentecostals have not heard of the Christian classic The Dark Night of the Soul, written by St. John of the Cross. And the result? We are at a complete loss when sorrow and failure hit us hard. All that we know is to rejoice and to celebrate. We know how to laugh with those who laugh, but we have forgotten the Saviour’s command to mourn with those who mourn.
Sunday after Sunday, Pentecostal worship leaders make fools of themselves by asking their congregations, “How many of you are happy today?”—as if the Lord loved only the happy ones, as if worship is only for the happy people. Our services can cater only to happy people. The sad ones are either trampled upon or are forced to act as if they were delighted!
Include hymns: The Western world has a rich tradition of hymns. There are also new songs and choruses. Hymns are not the sole preserve of the Anglican, Methodist or Presbyterian churches. Pentecostals, too, can benefit from these time-tested, edifying masterpieces. There are modern hymns—written in the twenty-first century. Everyone can sing hymns. Hymns are more eminently “singable” than many new songs that can be sung only by the most talented of singers. It’s a pity that most Pentecostal churches give a wide berth to hymns. Worship leaders should integrate old-time and new hymns into their exuberant, charismatic services.
Tempo and mood: While selecting and arranging songs, give attention to the beat and mood of songs. All should not be fast ones. Not all must be slow ones. Just like a preacher varies his tempo and tone during a sermon, the “praise-and-worship” session must integrate slow, fast, medium-paced songs. Moods of songs vary, too; there are songs of celebration, meditation, introspection, devotion, etc.
Do not introduce new songs into the worship schedule. The time for worship is not the time to learn new songs. You can introduce new songs as a solo or special rendering. But the worship session is for corporate singing. Worshippers will feel estranged if they are unable to join in the singing.
Avoid repetition. Do not repeat songs. Repeating a song more than once is unforgivable! Running out of songs – because you selected too few songs for the time allotted – will result in unnecessary repetition of songs and unnecessary “preaching” in between singing.
In many Charismatic worship sessions, we hear a lot of mindless repetition of songs and choruses. Not only is it an act of disobedience to the Lord Jesus’ command concerning prayer,1 it is also an imitation of pagan chanting designed to numb the mind. It does not stop with mere imitation of pagan chanting. Hundreds of neo-charismatic churches inadvertently welcomed deceiving spirits into their midst. Their aberrant behaviour, which is indeed abhorrent, became normative globally among the so-called “new apostolic” churches in the early 1990s. The manifestations of these deceiving spirits – uncontrolled laughter, barking, drunkenness, the exercise of invisible power, transfer of power, slaying, etc. – are identical to the highly sought-after “spiritual experiences” among followers of Oriental religions. Could the awakening of the “coiled serpent” at the base of the human spine be any different from the manifestation of the “spirit of python” that Paul cast out in Philippi?2 It is difficult to ignore the similarities.
Always keep a “Plan B” ready—just in case something goes wrong. That includes a second worship leader who can step in and take over at any time, and a set of songs for unscheduled altar calls.
Do not preach during the time of singing. Some people have the habit of introducing each song with a mini-sermon.
Avoid Christian jargon: There might be newcomers in your service. Explain, if necessary, in a few words, the meanings of difficult words in songs.
Avoid sheep-bashing. Do not find fault with the congregation if it fails to respond to your invitations to worship freely. The problem might be with your style of leading!
Do not make the congregation stand for the entire worship session. Not all can stand at a stretch for 45 minutes or an hour. Incorporate such items as the public reading of scripture, a testimony or a hymn during which the congregation may sit.
Avoid all militant and triumphalist attitudes: Most Pentecostals and charismatics consider worship as “warfare.” Instead of focusing on God and His love, they focus on the enemy. And so, they keep “fighting” through worship! In such services, you may hear several expressions related to warfare. “Let us conquer the land”; “The enemy is under my feet”; “Victory through the blood,” etc.
Although the Bible uses figurative speech related to warfare, we must avoid such usages in our public services. These are highly misleading phrases. Newcomers may be misled into thinking we are referring to ordinary battles or an armed rebellion!
It is also worthwhile to remember that our salvation is not yet perfected. We are “saved”; but we are yet to be saved from the coming wrath of God. God has defeated the devil at Calvary. God has ushered in a new age through Jesus Christ. Yet, as long as we are on planet Earth, we will shed tears and experience sickness and pain. Worship leaders often forget this reality and talk as if Christians will not have any more pain, sickness, poverty or defeat.
A word about “tongue-speaking:” Corporate “tongue-speaking” or loud collective prayer in unknown languages, as enabled by the Spirit, is encouraged in Pentecostal and charismatic congregations. Often, it is regarded as a measure of one’s spirituality. A mature congregation that is friendly to newcomers will understand and obey scriptural instructions in 1 Corinthians 14 for the public exercise of the gift of tongues. There may be times when someone, under the power of the Holy Spirit, might speak in “tongues” loudly. But even such brethren can train themselves to obey scriptural guidelines. We can never be too spiritual to ignore the Bible’s injunctions.
Be led by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit can take over a service and upset our neat plans. Often, the Holy Spirit does this through the operation of spiritual gifts such as prophecy, a “speech” in an unknown tongue followed by its interpretation, or through the ministry of the Word.3 He can choose to lead people into special seasons of repentance, renewal, and intercession. Yet, a mature congregation will obey Scriptural guidelines in 1 Corinthians 14 to maintain a sense of order. The Holy Spirit does not violate the self-control of an individual.
Finally, the worship leader’s office is not a shop window for displaying one’s talents. A good leader turns the people’s attention to God. The leader may be forgotten after a good worship session. But worshippers will cherish the moments they spent in the presence of God.
A lot of what is repeated are words directed towards God in prayer. “And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.” Matthew 6:7↩︎
The spirit that was present in the Philippian soothsayer was the spirit of python, says the Greek New Testament, as is rendered in the Young’s literal translation. “And it came to pass in our going on to prayer, a certain maid, having a spirit of Python, did meet us …” – Acts 16:16↩︎
A detailed discussion on the operation of the charismatic gifts is beyond the scope of this work.↩︎
Philip Eapen, an environmental scientist by training, devoted his life to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ ever since he realized that the world needs Jesus Christ more than anyone or anything else. Apart from sharing the good news of Jesus Christ, Philip teaches Christians in order to equip them for service. He is supported by donations from readers. Philip is married to Dr. Jessimol and they are blessed with three sons and a daughter.
Date: May 8, 2023
