“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
The new year represents, for most people, a time to reset—a reset in priorities, objectives, and approaches to achieving goals. Now that 2024 is here, it's time to learn from the previous year and start making plans for our worship teams, but before we jump into building healthy teams, we need to discuss the importance of being a healthy leader. We would do wise to heed the counsel of G.K. Chesterton when he writes:
"The object of a New Year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul..." (1).
DO AS I SAY, NOT AS I DO?
A healthy worship team starts with a healthy leader who observes their soul's formation, ensuring their maxims match their actions. "Everyone is in a process of spiritual formation," says M. Robert Mullholand Jr. "We are being shaped into either the wholeness of the image of Christ or a horribly destructive caricature of that image—destructive not only to ourselves but also to others, for we inflict our brokenness upon them..." (2). Because of this, we, as worship leaders, should do our best to stay healthy.
While healthy leadership comes in various shades, one consistency shared by all is that leadership is more than talk. It's wisdom in action. Hypocrisy tends to be the number one killer in the currency of a leader's trust and momentum. Jesus spoke about hypocrisy in Matthew 23 when He gives a railing indictment (the entire chapter!) against those called to lead the people of God judging in the 'seat of Moses.'
Matthew 23:25,26
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean."
Notice that Jesus comments on how a leader's priorities can be backwards. The attention is focused on the cup and dish's presentation rather than its usefulness. Hypocrisy can hinder your worship team's spiritual growth if you do not put in the formational work needed.
In this month's blog post and the kick-off of the 2024 blog season, I'd like to write about healthy rhythms and systems that have sustained me as a leader leading teams. These are practices that I have found effective in my life. But first, a couple of definitions are needed. When I use the phrase healthy system, I'm referring to strategies that help create productivity and efficiency, all while keeping the humanity and relationship of each individual intact. When I use the term healthy rhythm, I speak about the personal inward and outward movements to keep and guard a holistically healthy soul.
That all said, let's begin.
4 Healthy Rhythms
OF A LEADER (PERSONAL)
The Healthy Rhythm of Rest, Creation, and Recreation
According to Jewish customs, the day begins and ends with sundown (Rest). Adam was created on the 6th day, and God rested from his works the next day. Rest should form our theology as a people created to be beings that Sabbath with the Lord. But we are also created beings put on the earth to produce (Creation). And finally, we are not just human doers but human beings, individuals who are blessed to enjoy the good world that the Lord has created for us (Recreation). When I have a circular rhythm of inactivity, productivity, and leisure, I'm healthier as an individual, and this spills over into my leadership.
The Healthy Rhythm of Being Under Authority
A person who has authority should be someone who is also under authority. In Matthew chapter 8, we read about a Roman Centurion who approached Jesus to heal his servant by speaking the word only. He says, "Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, "Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith." (Matthew 8:8-10; NIV).
It takes great faith to be one in and under authority simultaneously because you trust in whatever system you are under to carry the weight of rules and consequences, not necessarily your word. As worship leaders, we are used to coming up with worship plans and scheduling for services, but if we are not careful, this constant holding on to power can be destructive. Every leader needs to be able to submit their plans and hold them loosely, for if we don't, we can become like a steam roller running down anyone who doesn't line up with our agenda. Having a healthy rhythm of being under authority can help ground you in the realities and consequences of leadership and steer you to be sober-minded and watchful against the adversary (1 Peter 5:8).
The Healthy Rhythm of Being Inspired
I noticed an increase in inspiration as a worship leader when I intentionally took time throughout the year to be inspired. To say that all inspiration is simply spontaneous would be a misnomer. There are moments when the muse of inspiration hits me, but rarely is it a complete idea. They are more like movements with the notion that ebb and flow into different ideas. I have found success in channeling inspiration when I can intentionally schedule time away to bring all these movements together and workshop them. Perhaps this can work for you?
Another channel in which I find inspiration is to take time off from leading worship and participate as a congregant. I know this may not work for every church, but I highly encourage you to do so if possible. Not only will you get the unique perspective of what your worship team sounds like to the congregation, but you'll also be able to receive from others, which is so helpful to a leader's soul. If you can't take a break because there are no other worship leaders trained, consider reaching out to other trusted worship leaders in your community and see if they could lead on a particular Sunday to get a break. You might be surprised at what inspires you after those moments.
The Healthy Rhythm of Spiritual Advice
Being able to unpack life's situations and process with a trusted spiritual advisor is very helpful for the leaders soul. Having a spiritual advisor (or, for some people, a trained therapist) is one of the greatest tools to help manage teams. Why? Because every leader needs a space and a safe person to process reactions of the heart, and a leader will always carry their team in their heart. Being in a posture of heeding advice from trusted sources has helped me discern the future better. "The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, But a wise man is he who listens to counsel." (Proverbs 12:15). This verse has helped reassure me that wisdom does not always come from me 'knowing' what to do, but in 'whom' I listen to and how often. Taking spiritual advice is a step back in humility but worth taking before further action. The advice you receive could be three steps away from a more robust team instead of following your guidance and being one step away from tearing it all down.
Now, let's move on to healthy systems fit for a healthy leader.
3 Healthy Systems
OF A LEADER (STRATEGIC)
The Healthy System of Intentional Scheduling
Being able to plan and schedule ahead is vital in leadership. Regarding scheduling, I build my calendar around four pillars: weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly scheduling. Weekly scheduling is the most obvious as this pertains to everyday things I do (scheduling set lists, organizing PCO, helping with departmental projects, and communicating for the weekend services). Monthly Scheduling is where I schedule my appointments with team members for various reasons (i.e., pastoral, relational, or even musical) and plan out upcoming events/special services. Quarterly scheduling is where I map out the team roster and plan some development or relational connection with the entire worship department. A healthy rhythm of quarterly gatherings helps the department refocus and center on the vision I'm trying to accomplish. Lastly, I will map out no more than two significant objectives that I'd like to achieve over the year and make sure my quarterly, monthly, and, to some degree, weekly scheduling moves in this direction. Intentional scheduling helps keep me on track to hitting my goals efficiently.
The Healthy System of Connecting Relationally
A healthy worship leader will put in a system of connecting one-on-one with team members throughout the year. On Sundays, your team is not here to 'get the job done' only. If there is no desire to know the stories and hearts of your team members, then you have no business being in leadership. I have found that my soul becomes grounded and intertwined with my team members when I spend intentional time with them. My prayers are deeper, praying for specific needs, and my rejoicing with them comes from a pure place because I was with them in the battle. Sometimes, shepherds have a fuzzy recollection that they're still sheep pointing others towards the great 'Shepherd of our souls' (1 Peter 2:25). The approach to intentional connecting can be time-consuming, especially when you have a larger group, but isn't being 'known' why many of your team members joined in the first place? Music will always be a draw, but a higher value than playing music is playing music with people who care about you. People will be willing to give up their schedule to participate with a vision that includes being loved, valued, and known.
The Healthy System of Fearless Feedback
While personal evaluation can take different meanings, I define it here as a personal evaluation of the leader's management, objectives, and temperament as evaluated by their team. Now, hear me out - it is easy to be in the leadership seat and far removed from critique. While no leader likes it when their ideas aren't working, every team needs an outlet to voice this. An insecure leader will not try to ask the tricky question, 'Is this working for you and the team?' Instead of ignoring the topic, being proactive about regular feedback from my team helped me track what was working and correct what needed to be improved. Outside of regular input from various team members, I also send a yearly questionnaire that engages questions about community, communication, time management and productivity, team development, leadership, and even personal feedback. These answers have helped give me the data to track growth and the insight to pivot where needed. A healthy system of fearless feedback is necessary for a healthy leader.
These are a few of the rhythms and systems I have implemented to help give me a holistic approach to being a healthy leader. So, what about healthy systems and rhythms for worship teams? Come back to next month's blog post and see part two on this topic.
(1) https://parade.com/948122/marynliles/best-new-years-quotes/
(2) Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation, M. Robert Mulholland Jr.