Comments on: How Do You Manage Membership on a Worship Team?

By: cavman

cavman — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 03:34:20 +0000

Tried the “firing” one year. Some people got the concept, but a few didn’t. They felt a neurotic need to continue for the good of the church even though they really weren’t enjoying it.
It’s a great idea, but the gospel has to be appropriated, not just preached, for it to work well. Some people accept it intellectually, but the coin really hasn’t dropped in their experience. And that hinders the whole ministry.

By: Nathan Irby

Nathan Irby — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 18:01:21 +0000

First I would like to say Wow! on the idea of “firing” people of the worship team. I really never saw it like that. I can say from a recent experience where I was kicked off a worship team. I felt betrayed by my own brother in Christ, I was very angry at the church. But I never thought it would happen to me. I’m majoring in Worship Leading at a bible college. But maybe God wanted me to serve differently at that church. Maybe I wasn’t supposed to play at the church. I played almost every sunday, I was starting to get sick of playing….I should have step down when I started feeling that way…..

By: Joel Keck

Joel Keck — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 19:47:39 +0000

I really like this approach to how things are done. I sometimes feel that the worship band members have a tendency to hold themselves up higher than the rest of the congregation or others merely because they are on stage leading or being a part what goes on. Maybe it is just me being too critical, but it is also a result of me seeing the same people on stage and the same people doing the special songs. I have also had numerous conversations with people who were new to the worship band but that they were not enjoying it because certain members of the group would not allow for changes or for others opinions. I may be too critical of this because I have been witness to how it can be without a process like this. I do like what he has to say though.

By: jon

jon — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 16:49:09 +0000

I appreciate Gary’s appoint above..though the team understands “firing” to be a humorous way of introducing the opportunity to take a break. Any such “management tool” should be much lower on the priority list than a regular and exuberant gratefulness for their service and example. They also understand my affection and respect for all of them and my desire that they would continue serving on the team. Hopefully, this yearly commitment idea can be communicated in a way that honors their service and guards their faith rather than downgrading the value of servant musicians giving their gifts for the good of the church and the glory of the Lord.

By: Jenny Hejka

Jenny Hejka — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 16:17:38 +0000

Wow! This is something that i wish i would have read prior to this. I have been involved in ministry at my home church and while it was not necessarily music ministry, it did deal with managing a team. I like the thoughts on having people take time to reevaluate their purpose on the team and decide if that is the place where they should still be serving. I guess when most people think about serving, they see it more as an obligation. I like what you said about serving being a privilege. We need to remember that as we serve and as we manage. Thank you.

By: Emily Davis

Emily Davis — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 03:17:16 +0000

I like the idea of having everyone take time to think and pray about their involvement. I think that it can be easy to forget who you are praising when you are on the stage. I used to be a part of one of the worship teams at my school when I realized that I had become to focused on me and my involvement in worship rather than worshiping with those who were around me. I then decided to take some time off of being in the worship team and have spent that time in other ministries. I could have continued to have been on the worship team and would have continued to praise God but I believe that God called me to focus on other areas instead.

By: Nate Heavilin

Nate Heavilin — Sat, 08 Dec 2007 21:49:47 +0000

I think “firing” is a great idea. I know in my youth group’s worship ministry, if not for graduating and moving off to college, I have not doubt I’d still be leading this Sunday. It’s so easy to get burned out, week after week.. And it’s so easy to assume that you’re the only one who can, and that if you step down, you’re not opening a door, but you’re letting everyone else down. I think we all need that reality check, we’re not the only ones. Thanks dude.

By: Peter Park

Peter Park — Sat, 08 Dec 2007 04:54:05 +0000

With the major changes we are going through our worship team, one of our worship leaders may choose to go to another ministry in this next year. We have an abundance of worship leaders right now, so it may be a good time to transition to that.

By: glenn

glenn — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 18:42:00 +0000

i appreciated this article and the questions posed by it. for me though, its not always how you manage a team, its just how well you work with people and how well the specific people in your tea m work with you and each other. So at some point in my opinion its almost out of our hands as worship leaders (to some degree you can help be an organizer, but at some point if people dont work well together you cant control it) to make sure that we do the best we can without becoming dictatorial.
-glenn

By: Kai

Kai — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 18:15:26 +0000

I wonder if - as worship leaders - our goal is for musicians in the band to be servants before they are musicians, you plan a service project one night that everybody can participate in instead of practice? I can’t think of a better way to encourage a servant-first attitude than to go out and actually serve.