There are some challenges in worship ministry.... We want good musicians who can play skilfully, as it says inĀ  Psalms 33. We want people who know how to worship in spirit (or Spirit) and truth, as Jesus said in John chapter 4. We need people who can lead a group of people into the presence of God, in spite of the notion of some people that it is not the responsibility of the worship leader to get the congregation to worship. (Right, and it's not the responsibility of the evangelist to get people saved, or the healer to heal people, or the preacher to get people to learn from the message that is brought).

So there are three requirements of people who want to lead worship. But the fourth requirement is greater than them all. It's called anointing. This is the case for any area of Christian ministry. If you don't have an anointing from God your work is dead - the works of the flesh. Yes, that can apply to people leading worship too. Even if worship actually does take place under the leadership of the not-called-not-anointed worship leader, it is not to their credit.

Why would someone want to pursue a ministry they are not called to do? It probably wouldn't be as likely if the calling was to be a Pastor or an Evangelist. Apostle has a nice sound to it, although no one knows the difficulties which have to be overcome or endured to attain that lowly position except the apostles themselves. But worship leading in our American culture and throughout the western world is a position of high visibility. Worship leaders have fans like rock musicians do. It's cool. You could get rich and famous. You can draw glory. It's a very dangerous position to take on, actually. But the adoration, the affirmation, the thrill of the show is alluring.

Most of us will have been in a meeting where there is a lack of anointing on the worship time. The songs are good, the musicianship is great, the sound and technical considerations are all looked after, but somehow it just doesn't seem to 'take off' or 'go anywhere.' We're just singing songs. The absence of the sense of the presence of God (assuming that we are not in a place ourselves where we are immune to His presence} is a sure sign and all we need to know to realize that it's the wrong person in that prominent place up there. Often though there are other indicators that this is not the way it's supposed to be. If the musicians, especially the leader, use the vocabulary of the gig, something is wrong. Church is not a gig, the platform is not your stage, although I realize 'stage' is just a word, but combine it with all the other words that betray a mindset... "Show", "audience", "set", "gig" "band" are buzz words of club shows. They're not wrong. They're not sinful. But there is a need for a worship leader to deny the flesh, be humble, not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind. Instead of 'audience,' band and stage, let's go with congregation, team and platform.

Some people appear to be very miserable, despite being one of those people with the great privilege of leading worship before the throne of God. They don't play all through the worship time, which is fine. But when not playing they don't sing. In fact sometimes they stare off into space. Surely they are dreaming of being somewhere else better than this..They don't sing. If there is no interaction with the congregation how is the 'leader' leading?

For some the music is the goal. Playing music, making a good sound. Getting the harmonies in the right place and perfecting the arrangement. Setting the key at the perfect pitch for the leader to sing, regardless of whether it suits congregational singing or not. If the music sounds great then for some that is mission accomplished. I want to recommend making God the goal. Be as good as you can at music, get better over time, but have the heart of a worshiper first.