Insights

Planning Your Spring Auditions

February 07, 2012, filed under Blog

"I have all the people I need on my worship team."

Have you ever heard someone say this before? Or worse . . . have you ever said it yourself?

It’s hard for me to find any Biblical evidence to support a statement that so clearly says, "Lord, we don’t want you to send any more talented people to our church. And if you do, then they won’t have a place to use their gifts."

Ridiculous right? I don’t know ANY worship leader who would actually SAY those words. But everytime I meet a worship leader lacking the passion to do the work of cooperating with God to grow his or her team . . . who would rather keep it the way it is because it’s easier to manage that way . . . I can’t help but wonder, "Do they realize this is effectively what they are saying?"

If you’ve been around Worship Leader Insights for any amount of time, you know I have HUGE passion to mobilize people in our church for ministry on our Worship Arts Team. Not because it gives me a big ego boost, but because I know that when they start serving on our team, all kinds of great spiritual steps follow.

That’s why I believe (and teach) a very simple, but profound principle of serving . . . Ministry is a Pathway to Discipleship.

It is impossible to know what it means to become like Christ until you know what it means to serve like Christ.

I have found time and again that the people serving on our Worship Arts Team are likely to make other significant spiritual steps too like joining a small group, developing spiritual habits, tithing, and so on.

Don’t get me wrong—serving alone doesn’t make these things happen magically. But if a person is not serving, then it’s impossible for them to fully develop their walk with God and experience His best.

So for you and I, if we are serious about not only the growth of our ministries, but also the overall spiritual health of our churches, we must do the work of invovling people in ministry. And it begins with us!

Remember - healthy things grow (my dad is a farmer so I know this well)! So decide today that you will not sit idly by to see if by chance some interested volunteer might pass your way. Decide to actively cooperate with God to diligently build your team. And here are 3 things to get you started:

#1 - Pray and ask God to give you a passion to grow your team. Simply stated . . . Our teams will grow to the extent that we passionately pray and work for their growth.

#2 - Ask, "What can I DO THIS WEEK to involve new people on our team?" Remember Proverbs 21:31 - "The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord." God has promised to bring the victory. . . we just have to do part and get the horse ready! Can you train a new volunteer on Sunday? Make phone calls? Put a flyer in your church program / bulletin? Email your team and ask them to invite their friends to join? Make a list of 10 ideas and get to work!

#3 - Plan a BIG DAY of auditions. At The Journey, we do two big auditions days every year. These auditions are responsible for the quick, steady and healthy growth of our Worship Arts Team . . . as well as the Worship Arts Team’s of hundreds of worship leaders all over the country who have adopted our auditions system and are seeing the same results we have had. Because of these auditions, their teams have . . .

 
• Doubled in volunteers in one day before (it doesn’t happen every time, but it happens more times than you might believe)
 
• Given volunteers a break BEFORE they burned out
 
• Created a CONSTANT flow of new volunteers into the team
 
• Established a healthy "Seasons" approach to their team that promotes not only growth, but overall health
 
• And much more!

A healthy and growing Worship Team doesn’t have to be a mystery. With a prayerful passion for growth, a bent toward action, and the right system, you can lead your team to involve more people in ministry and make a lasting difference.

Your partner in ministry,

 

TUESDAY MORNING INSIGHTS is Jason Hatley’s free weekly training resource specifically designed to provide you as a worship leader with proven principles, tips and practices to help you lead a healthy and thriving Worship Arts Team.