articles

10 Tips for Christmas and New Year’s Planning

Unchurched people are very receptive to coming to church during this time. Plan for these important, but sometimes overlooked, elements of welcoming on Christmas Eve: Remind the congregation to greet old friends, who may be home for the holidays, AFTER they practice the “Rule of Three.” (The “Rule of Three”…

10 Tips to Achieve A Stunning Church Christmas Service

Sharefaith offers ideas for the best Christmas celebration you’ve ever had. If your church celebrates a Christmas service, you can make use of these 10 points to achieve the best Christmas celebration you have ever had. 1. Plan Well: Most churches have already started preparations and planning for their upcoming…

Streaming Christmas Services to Reach More Congregants

Dan Daley says streaming around holidays offers a multitude of benefits. Holidays are about more of everything. Everything, that is, except time. Some churches that have embraced streaming as a way to extend their reach are also realizing that more of it might just be the way to address some…

10 Ways To Be The Worst Worship Musician Ever

Jason Houtsma discourages bad worship habits. 10. Never stop playing. Not before the set starts. Not in between songs. Not when someone is talking. Not when someone is praying. Not even when the service is over and the sound guy has put the background music on. NOT EVER. Silence is…

The Matrix & Memorizing Worship Songs

Jed Smith advocates the Nashville number system. [editor’s note from Don Chapman: Jed uses the Nashville number system. When I memorize my worship music, I simply think of whether I’m playing a “1” chord or a “5” chord – basically the same thing!] “I’m trying to free your mind.”-Morpheus In…

10 Best In-Ears Practices For Worship Musicians

Dan Wilt lists the basics for in-ears use. It’s going to take time to get used to using IEMs, so decide now that, because you can’t go back, you’re going to keep getting better at using them. There are things to learn about how to wear them, how to keep…

Eight Things to Do When Team Leaders Leave to Start a New Church

Marc Brown offers ideas for what to do when a group of people from your congregation leave to begin a new work. As worship pastors, we spend ourselves working and asking God to build a team (a choir, an orchestra, a band) that will help our congregations hear, know and…

What is Excellence?

Hillsong’s Matt Hann says excellence is about growth and maturity. Excellence is not a set level of quality or perfectionism. It’s an ever-changing dynamic in both our personal journey and the collective journey of our teams. It’s about growth and maturity. Excellence should be a moving target of sorts. The…

Should We Dress For Church Like We’re Meeting With the President?

Steve Hafler debunks that old saying. I’ve often heard the argument that a person should dress for church like they’re meeting with the president. Perhaps you’ve heard a similar argument — that a pastor ought to wear a coat and tie on Sunday because NFL commentators still wear classy suits…

Can a Church Be Too Big to Fail?

The Washington Post weighs in: The designation “Too Big to Fail” usually makes us think of large banks, propped up by taxpayer funds during the 2008 financial crisis. But the central questions it raises—When do we have a responsibility to save an institution? And who should be on the hook…

Is the Internet Making Churches Obsolete?

Jim Denison compares Internet churches to the televised churches of the 70s. Have you heard of “Text Neck”? That’s the term therapists use for the effects of texting on our spines. They tell us that the average human head weighs 10 to 12 pounds. Tilting it down to look at…

Musicians, Song Arrangement, and When to Keep Your Finger Off the Fader

Chris Huff explains techniques for mixing worship music. Let’s be honest, musicians only play the music but we’re the ones who form it into something great. Their music pales in comparison to what we create. We are mixing gods! I so hope you were offended by that. I didn’t mean…

Designing Worship Spaces with Millennials in Mind

Barna conducted a multi-phase research program. Many churches today are explicitly constructed not to look and feel too much like a religious place. A stark contrast to the ancient cathedrals and churches of old—the very design of which was intended to help people experience the divine. How does this design…

Top 10 Worship Leading Tips

Tony Guerrero served as Music Director and Director of Creative Arts at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, CA. I spent some time considering what the main tips are that I not only recommend to people in classes I teach and articles I write, but that I also use in my…

The Problem With Our Critique of Modern Worship

Glenn Packiam attempts to dispel stereotypes: What are the repeated critiques you hear about modern worship? It is so noisy. And why is every bridge a monosyllabic chant? (eg. ‘whoa…oh oh…) It looks too much like a concert. The songs are so repetitive. It’s too much about ‘me’. I am sure there…

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