Leading worship with compassion! Is exuberance really freedom?

I’ve heard comments from various worship leaders in churches and from some online channels about the outward display of exuberance and emotion during corporate worship, suggesting that the outward display shows what’s happening internally. Desiring this from those present in a church service, an emphasis on what can be seen, evidence if you will, is understandable to a point. Of course, if exuberance is present it positively impacts the gathering itself as far as experience goes. Whilst I understand the benefit for individuals to lose inhibitions before God and for full freedom in a worship service, life for many believers is not so straightforward. I also understand that sometimes worship is a sacrifice in the face of troubles and trials, but how we measure that and respond from the front as leaders is important, but it can be difficult to discern. 

This focus by many leaders on external evidence of engagement can come from a good place, but it can be the result of a shift of focus, from it being about and for Jesus, to the experience on offer, and without even realising it. I believe this constant expectation or demand even for exuberance from those we lead also overlooks one thing that Jesus is famous for…compassion! 

As a worship leader, full inward and external engagement in a gathering of believers is amazing if genuine, it’s powerful and usually leads to life changing moments as I have personally experienced. In the local church however, life is quite different, and with regular committed members arriving week in week out, with a mixture of maturity levels and levels of faith in the room, we can easily lose sight of what we are supposed to be doing. 

To expect or even demand exuberance from those you’re leading could be seen not only as shallow but inconsiderate at times, and highlights more perhaps about the leader’s insecurities than anything else. Knowing those you’re leading at a more personal level can be hugely helpful if at all possible. The more you understand about the people, the more sensitive you will be, and your heart for them will become evident in your leading.

Compassion! We need to have compassion for His people, the hurting, the grieving, the weary, the sick etc, those whose very presence in the room shows more sacrifice than others even without a single word from them being sung. FYI, meetings that include hurting people doing their best whilst perhaps lacking exuberance can also be powerful and lead to life changing moments as I have also experienced.

We cannot see the heart and so we must be careful how we judge. Church is the ekklesia, the people of God, and without love for those we lead, we’ve lost sight of all that Jesus is about. 

As worship leaders, or song leaders if you prefer, we have the opportunity to help those before us to overcome struggles, distractions or disengagement and to encourage and even show them how to draw near to their God with confidence. We can only do this if we reconnect with the people in the room and disconnect from the obsession with the experience. On a side note, singable songs in keys that people can manage with lyrics that focus more on Jesus than on us and our feelings are also all crucial ingredients, many people are not musical so let’s help them, but I digress. 

Is it possible we have lost sight of what we’re doing in preference to the latest style or song, in-ears, a click, insisting on intros, endings, and instrumentals to make someone in the band feel satisfied? Please don’t misunderstand me, technology used well is great, but many of these new arrivals have become distractions or filled our ears with noise, disconnected us from the room and certainly made it difficult to hear the still small voice of His Spirit in the moment. All of the above of course assumes it is a worship service and not a concert, that there is someone the people can identify as leading the worship and not just a group going from song to song with no intent in deviating from the setlist for fear of looking foolish or perhaps even unable to, because of the setup. 

So, what am I saying? I’m not saying we shouldn’t individually desire freedom in our worship, He is worthy of all that we can give Him and should be praised with exuberance as the King of kings. Yes, sometimes it is necessary to lovingly encourage the people to participate when there’s a sense of overwhelming sleepiness in the room. I’m not saying that using new technology and skilful musicianship isn’t a good thing either. I am however, just reminding us worship leaders and musicians and even hosts, pastors and elders that we need to reconnect with God’s people with the compassion of Jesus. I see that there is a need for us once again to become desperate for authentic ‘in Spirit and truth’ worship, including from the broken, the sick and the hurting among us, even if it lacks exuberance and offers little in experience to make us feel good about our effectiveness that day. It may mean we have to identify the things that create that disconnection and address them. If we lead out of the overflow of time spent with Jesus, we will have compassion, desire a greater connection with those we’re leading, and if we add to that faith in the work of the Holy Spirit instead of our own ability, we’ll see amazing things!

Let us do our best each week, but let the Holy Spirit do His work and begin to have faith in His ability instead of our own. If you’ve been compassionate, done your best, made room and not interrupted the Spirit and the outcome is that the worship was exuberant and free, excellent! If it’s seemingly quiet and feels empty, that’s ok too, He is still there working in our midst so just make room, trust Him and watch.

Perhaps it’s time for the in-ears to come out for a time in favour of reconnecting our ears and voices with those of the congregation, and allowing our united heartfelt worship to rise up before the throne of grace! He is ready to speak, but are we willing or even able to listen and respond?

There is a lot to say around this topic, but sticking with the main thought only (and leaving many angles out entirely), I simply highlight the existence of a shift in our focus, and a need to simply check ourselves, our motives and our methods so that we serve those we lead with the skill and compassion that is required, which in turn leads to a more impactful and genuine expression of worship wherever we lead.

by Steven Dawe | for more information about Steve Click Here