articles

Phil Bowdle offers a checklist: One of the most challenging things in service planning for pastors and communication leaders can be managing stage announcements. Without a system and strategy in place, you can quickly find yourself stuck in a rhythm of spending ten minutes on announcements at the end of…

Marty Nystrom looks for worship trends: CCLI (Christian Copyright Licensing International, Inc.) releases a semi-annual list of the top worship songs sung by churches throughout America. A similar list is also published in Europe, Australia, South Africa, and the other far-flung locales where CCLI works with churches to “encourage the…

Scott Swain offers advice for avoiding worship song fluff: I have rarely (alright, never) been asked to give input regarding the weekly “worship set.” However, having witnessed Christian worship in local churches, Christian camps, seminary chapels, and other venues over the past 43 years, I have come to the conclusion…

JD Greear says we need to develop the attitude of Christ, who used his position of leadership to wash feet, not to command respect. I recently spent some time with long-time pastor Steve Stroope, who’s been in the ministry now for forty years. We talked a lot about what he…

Jeremy Armstrong says it’s something every leader must learn to deal with: I don’t know of anyone who loves conflict, but it’s something every leader must learn to deal with. Your case may prove challenging because it sounds like you might be conflict averse—that you’d rather avoid problems than aggressively…

Matt Boswell is concerned that omitting older hymns in our gatherings silences the rich voices of church history. When I mention historic hymns, maybe you cringe as you recall a “worship war” in your local church. Maybe you’re eager to only sing the old hymns. Or maybe you wonder why…

Robb Redman helps worship leaders avoid ministry burnout: Not long ago I attended a workshop taught by a veteran contemporary worship leader, in his current position for twelve years. At one point he mentioned that several other worship leaders began their ministries at about the same time as he did.…

Musings on whether to quit or not to quit: I suppose every person in ministry is strongly tempted to quit from time to time. Not quit as in “send out a resume, start looking for a job” quit, but “walk out today” quit. I’ve got a pastor friend who fought…

Kevin Carr explains why he left corporate worship: Corporate worship, about two years ago I walked away from it. Praise music on Sundays, youth on Wednesdays—after years and years, I said goodbye to it all. I didn’t loose faith, nor did I sin my way into shame, I just burned…

Robert Gifford offers insights for knowing when it’s time to quit your church job: There is never a good time to leave. If things are going good, you feel as if you will be missing out if you leave. If things are going badly, you feel like you are just…

Matt Hann asks: do you care more about the task or do you care more about the individuals in your team? We’re called as pastors and leaders to care about our people, not just our outcomes. Here are a few thoughts I’ve found helpful in focusing on caring for people…

Dwayne Moore says worship teams need to minister: Our goal for church musicians and worship teams should be that they become ministers through music. It isn’t enough to be good musicians or great performers. Worship teams need to minister. Ministers through music have some excellent and unique characteristics. Imagine a…

Building and managing a team is simultaneously the most rewarding and challenging endeavor that a worship leader can undertake. Many leaders who are entrusted with overseeing volunteers find themselves navigating unfamiliar territory, balancing their concerns for the team’s well-being with the practicalities of directing and developing the ministry itself. With…

Brady Boyd lists traits consistent with good leadership: I want to be a leader who is easy to follow, so I’ve been paying attention lately to those who seem to model this really well. We should not have an unhealthy desire to please everyone, but we should make it as…

Rich Birch uses Blockbuster Video as a cautionary tale for leaders within the multisite church movement. Blockbuster video was amazing in its prime. Just 10 years ago, they had 9,000 locations and over 60,000 employees. [ref] It made renting a movie “simple and convenient” because they had so many locations.…