Worship Survey: Demeanor
Worship Survey / Discussion Sunday, April 19th, 2009How does the worship leader’s countenance affect other worshippers?
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Some people seem to have a gift for simply allowing their face to be a window to what’s going on in their heart. I believe these folks have a “leg up” on leading others toward authentic worship because of the way the Spirit somehow communicates with our spirits. The “fake it ’til you make it” approach can also sometimes help people connect as we worship together, but it then becomes about us (as worship leaders) getting a job done well instead of surrendering to the Spirit as a vessel to be used. Just my thoughts after a long day.
I think I have shared this with you before, Keith, but the best song leader I can remember seeing was Bill Lawrence at the Northwest Church in Seattle, WA. It was almost twenty years ago when I was there. We had the National Campus Ministries Seminar at the UW campus that year. I remember watching him lead singing more than listening to him. In fact, his singing was not remarkable at all. It was his manner that was so special. He might from time to time make eye contact with folks and start cracking up. Everybody seemed to carry him instead of the other way around, and the end purpose for everyone was to praise our Lord. It was wonderful. I think we sometimes get too bound up with the technical aspects of worship and forget the relational side of it. We may admonish our praise teams to hit all the right notes and say ‘Don’t forget to smile while your doning it.’ But the emphasis is still on the good notes and not the hearts. Maybe we should focus more on get our hearts right first and then try to sing well while we are doing that. I think the end result would be better all the way around.God bless, Timothy
Bill Lawrence is one of my favorite people. The words “genuine,” “kind” and “caring” always come to mind when I think of him. He and Davitra have touched so many lives. They stand out in the top ten people I most admire and want to grow up to be some day.
We read in scripture that we all have been given gifts for use in service to our God. For some that gift may be leading the flock as a Shepard and for others it may be as a teacher and yes even worship leading is a gift from our God. When someone has been given a gift from above and they allow His spirit to work through and in them, powerful and wonderful things can happen. I have been leading worship for a very long time and the most frequent question I am asked is “Why do you smile so big?”. The second most frequent question is “How did you get so good at leading worship?”. The answer to both of these questions is the same – God.
Worship comes from deep within. You can not fake it, you can not pretend. When you worship our God it shows on your face, in your voice and is evident in your demeanor. As a worship leader my goal every time I lead is to truly worship our God. Me – personally to worship. When I can truly worship our God when I am leading, when I allow the gifts that He has given me to be poured out in worship, those around me benefit from my worship as I do from theirs.
So yes – Demeanor does impact worship leading. Just like a cell phone ring can disrupt worship, demeanor of the worship leader can complement or distract from worship.
Amen, Darrel!