articles

Mark Powers offers a planning framework: How can worship leaders enable others to fall deeply in love with God? Here are eight principles that can enable a vertical vortex of Spirit and Truth: 1. Gather God’s family. Whatever your worship tradition or style, liturgical or free, we must allow our…

Debbie Holloway says churches outnumber Starbucks 25-1: If I ever want Starbucks, I know one will always be close. There’s one in my grocery store. There’s one a few intersections away from my apartment. There are four within two square miles of my parents’ house! If anything in this country…

Robert Schuller’s grandson talks about the lasting parts of his family’s ministry. When Bobby Schuller’s grandfather, Robert Schuller, founded Garden Grove Community Church in Southern California in 1955, he immediately attracted attention. The church met in a drive-in theater, and the novelty of it generated both local and national news…

Mimi Bullock shares ideas for providing kids with unique ways to worship the Lord. Easter is on its way — are you ready for an influx of children? Share the joy and hope of Easter by providing kids with unique ways to worship the Lord. Prepare ahead of time and…

Ron Edmondson’s thoughts on leadership, church and culture. I was talking with a church recently that had explosive growth, but things have slowed. They wanted to know why they were not growing any longer. Honestly, I don’t know. There are probably different reasons for every church that stops growing. But,…

MercyMe lead singer Bart Millard almost quit the band, but instead reinvented the group’s style. If you grew up listening to Christian rock music, chances are a few songs from the band MercyMe have a spot on your most-played list. The Texas-born group features lead singer/songwriter Bart Millard and band…

Download a free chord chart, lyrics, lead sheet, vocal demo and instrumental track for Hillsong’s “O Praise The Name (Anástasis.)” Read more about the song.

Matthew Starner suggests a balanced approach to worship planning: Hymns have played a role in worship since the earliest days of the church, and especially since the Reformation. Martin Luther helped to bring hymns to greater prominence when he encouraged the congregation to actually participate. In the time before the…

Josh Ferris wonders what we communicate by putting a comparatively large amount of resources into a single day: It’s the stuff of church staffer dreams. The parking lot is jammed, teams of coffee-amped volunteers are bustling, the band is running through that great new song, and very soon, crowds of…

He is risen! He is risen indeed! Easter is coming. It’s one of the most popular times in the year for guests to attend your church. It’s also the biggest celebration in the church calendar. So how will your church welcome visitors and celebrate Christ’s resurrection? We’ve got plenty of…

Joe Carter says it makes more sense to look at long-term trends: In a recent interview in which she announced she had joined the Episcopal Church, Rachel Held Evans said, Just about every denomination in the American church— including many evangelical denominations — is seeing a decline in numbers, so…

Looking for a new worship job? Marc Brown’s tips will be a big help: What are the skills and qualities that a worship pastor should have? The most obvious answer may be musical talent. After all, you can’t lead or teach people to be excellent in something unless you, yourself…

Jeremy Armstrong sees God working through a combination of choirs and ministries: Two years ago I received a call from another worship pastor asking if I would consider joining his and a couple other choirs in the area for a Christmas Presentation. His choir was very small and the others…

Kevin Cook says church members passively observe as the church leaders put on their worship service. One of the biggest issues with church culture today is congregational participation. Church members walk through the doors, find a seat, sit back, and passively observe as the church leaders put on their worship…

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