Characteristics of a worship leader

Recently I shared with worship team members that we need to strengthen our leaders and strengthen our teams. After chatting about this we decided to spend a few weeks praying about leadership. The question we asked was, "Do we have our strongest, most gifted people leading our worship teams?" As a prayer aid, I crafted these five essential traits of an HMC worship leader. The teams have been perusing this for over a week so I thought I'd let the rest of the world in on it now to.

Here they are, in no particular order:

1. Living out the love of God

Worship leaders must love God above all else. This is evident by the fruit being produced—the fruit of the Spirit. They manifest love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. They are not grumpy and don’t think primarily about their own preferences. They are quick to forgive, not easily angered and they don’t speak negatively about others.

2. Commitment

Team leaders carry an extra load. They think about the songs and flow of the service before practice. They show up early to turn on the lights, photocopy songs, and prepare themselves and the team for practice. They are also able to commit to meeting monthly with the other worship team leaders to plan upcoming services, encourage the other leaders, and share new skills and ideas.

3. Team Leader

Worship leaders are team players. They care about their team members and the people in the congregation. They see themselves as leading one harmonious group of congregants and band members in adoration of our great God. They have a picture of how they would like the congregation to respond (with joy or reflection? With self-examination or seeing the needs of my neighbour?) They are sensitive to congregational needs and they feel responsible for addressing those needs. They hold themselves accountable when team members aren’t getting along and they are the first to encourage the team and the congregation. They never see the team and congregation separated—from an “us” and “them” paradigm. And they work hard to honour young and old as they work toward the accomplishment of the vision.

4. Musicality

Team leaders need to be musical. They need to be strong singers and know how bands function musically. The leader should be aware of song flow and band dynamics. They should have some basic musical training and know something about how different band instruments work together. If an instrument is out of tune, someone is singing off key, or a 4/4 timed song is being played in 6/8, the leader should know something is not quite right.

5. Openness

Worship leaders are naturally open. They are eager to invite new people to join their team. They are open to learning new songs and new talents (ie. speaking between songs, discovering an old hymn in a new skin…). They are open to leading people in hymns, choruses and everything in between. They are open to criticism and they are willing to listen and respond when congregants and team members have questions or concerns.

Your Meditation Has Been Chosen!

I receive a lot of "we've picked you" e-mails. For example, "you've been selected as a distinguished professional" or "congratulations, you have been chosen to receive a large sum of cash."

I know the tag lines so well that I don't give the subject a second look before it gets permanently filed in my junk box.

So, today, when a message landed in my inbox with the subject, "Your meditation has been chosen", I came very close to deleting it. I'm glad I didn't. Here is what it said:

"Dear Mr. Mills:

Your meditation based on Isaiah 41:9 has been chosen to be in the Sep-Oct 2011 issue of The Upper Room. If your meditation is deferred to a later issue, you will be notified.

Enclosed is a copy of an agreement required by copyright law. Please sign it and return it to us within 10 days so we can proceed with publishing your meditation."

I can't believe it. I've finally written something publishable.

I know it's only a small meditation for a daily devotional. And I know it won't be in print for a full year.

But it represents the accomplishment of a goal I set for myself at the beginning of the year--to get something published.

So, for those of you who are well acquainted with failure. Keep trying. One day you might surprise yourself and succeed.

Back to school

I'm excited. Tonight I head back to the classroom.

I've reduced my course load from the usual (2 courses per semester) to one. I lightened my teaching load so I could take on the interim lead role at HMC. I've had a lot of fun this summer but I'm eager to get back to having my mind stretched by some great students.

If only it didn't take me an hour and a half to get to school. At least I don't have to ride in a big yellow school bus.

Time on the bench

When I was young I loved play hockey. I wanted to stay on the ice forever, hoping that the puck would find my stick so I could bury it deep in the other team's net. I dreamed about those moments.

But skating and stick handling was only half the game. The other half was spent on the bench, re hydrating and cheering on my teammates. Here's the crazy thing: I never dreamed about sitting on the bench.

Then one day I became a pastor. I dreamed of expounding challenging texts in the pulpit and helping people follow Jesus. I never thought about the other side of effective ministry--time on the bench--the care of my own soul.

In the midst of the September rush, here's what I've realized: there is a direct correlation between disengagement (time on the bench) and quality engagement. When life and ministry demand greater engagement, it's time to get off the ice and spend some time on the bench. I've found that my productivity, creativity and insight is exponentially higher when I'm well rested.

The hard part is giving myself permission to disengage. Even when I think I'm letting others down by being temporarily unavailable, I'm likely not. My contribution isn't as important as others think it is. And if it is important, I'll be better equipped to tackle it once I'm back on the ice.

Besides, I'm no help to anyone when I feel like this.

Practice Resurrection

I turned the final page of my fourth Peterson book yesterday.

Practice Resurrection has been my favorite of the 5 volume series. It's a commentary on the book of Ephesians but it's really a wake up call for the 21st century North American church. I'm toying with the idea of making it required reading for every Ministry Council member in the year to come.

There's one part where Peterson unpacks a Martin Buber concept that sees people in three hyphenated relationships--I-It (not good), Us-Them (also not good), and I-You (good)

Here's a bit of what Peterson says about the "I-It" relationship:

"I-It turns persons into things so that I can control or use or dismiss or ignore them. It is the basic word that is particularly attractive in buying and selling, but it infiltrates every sector of life. When it infiltrates our congregation, the men and women with whom we worship and work become objectified... they gradually become functionalized. Under the pressure of "working for Jesus" or "carrying out the church's mission," we begin to treat our family members and fellow workers more like parts of a machine than parts of a body. We develop vocabulary that treats men and women and children more like problems to be fixed or as resources to be used than as participants in a holy mystery.... Love, the commanded relation, gives way to considerations of efficiency interpreted by abstractions--plans and programs, goals and visions, evangelism statistics and mission strategies."

If you can't envision what an "I-It" church looks like, my friend Scott sent me a link to a video that might be helpful.



This is not what Jesus had in mind when He breathed life into His church.

Retreat Week

It's retreat week around HMC.

Today was our all-day staff retreat. We spent the morning with all staff, including our administrators and custodian. We played a team-building game that involved piling everyone onto a ridiculously small tarp--then we tried folding it. Fun.

We talked about transition. We told a few lies (ever played 2 truths & a lie?). We talked about the fall pulpit series (families, get ready to sign up for the Feud!). We talked about our core values. And we ate.

In the afternoon our ministry staff stuck around to do the dishes and get honest with each other. We talked about the vision and whether we're all pulling in the same direction. And we drank a lot of coffee.

1 retreat down. 1 to go.

This weekend is our Ministry Council retreat. Friday night our ministry staff will share our thoughts on our organizational structure and where we're headed. On Saturday, our leadership council will make decisions that may affect the course of ministry for years to come.

My shoulders and neck feel a bit tense. I think my knees will be aching soon.

Moved by words on a page

We picked our little girl up from camp tonight. The bright pink cast made her easy to spot in the midst of so many children.

On the ride home she told us about a cool swamp walk that smelled worst than toilet water. She also shared stories of talent night and a counselor that made rules like "no farting on the tarp".

She even told of the morning she was moved to tears reading one of the letters Erika and I had pre-written and stuffed in her suitcase. When we asked who wrote the letter, mom or dad, we found out it was me.

If only a editor could be similarly moved by my submissions for publication.