Sojourn worship leader Rebecca Dennison tipped me off to this blog post from Stuff Christians Like, entitled, “Letting Anyone Play Music.”  It’s a funny story about a church goer who decides the music at his church needs him and his tambourine to help lead everyone in songs of worship, to the surprise of the music minister and everyone else in the congregation that day.  Below, guest blogger and worship leader Lorie King discusses the topic of where a music minister draws the line on letting people join the team:

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It’s a touchy thing, leading a worship ministry in the Church. On the one hand, you’ve got the people you WANT to be on your team, because of their amazing musical abilities. Provided they also have a growing faith and increasingly obedient walk with the Lord, a rock-solid commitment to the Church, and the desire and availability to serve sacrificially, this doesn’t present many issues.

On the other hand, you’ve got people who want to be on your team. Sometimes they even have a growing faith and increasingly obedient walk with the Lord, a rock-solid commitment to the Church, and the desire and availability to serve sacrificially. Sometimes they have amazing musical abilities. Sometimes, they don’t.

We’ve all seen the American Idol auditions at the beginning of each new season. You know, those extremely uncomfortable moments of “entertainment” when someone who has just sworn to Ryan Seacrest and a viewing audience of millions that they have the vocal chops of [insert name of the best singer you’ve ever heard], presents themselves before Simon, Randy and Paula and…let’s it rip. And the judges recommend that it R.I.P.

Then we see the tears, hear the consternation, and behold the confusion. Because, according to the would-be contestant, everyone else this person has ever known has told them they are a great singer. And we, the viewers, look at each other in amazement, wondering who these apparently ear-less people could possibly be, other than their mother.

It’s a common misconception that people in the Church, the body of Christ, should all be nice to each other. If someone wants to sing a solo but can’t carry a tune in a bucket, be nice. Don’t hurt their feelings. I humbly propose that there is a better way to love each other than by being nice.

Proverbs tells us that “an honest answer is like a kiss on the lips” (Prov. 24:26) and that kings “value a man who speaks the truth” (Prov. 16:13). Scripture is very clear that in our God there is no falsehood. And 1 Corinthians tell us that love “rejoices with the truth”.  

Perhaps honesty IS the best policy. If we are to love our brothers and sisters well, we must speak the truth because of—-and in—-love. This is not an invitation to merely tell someone what we really think, but to lovingly, gently and humbly help them think through their desire to serve the Church in this particular way.

Rather than trying to be “nice”, or rolling our eyes and trying to figure out how to avoid talking to this brother or sister about joining the worship team or singing a solo, maybe we could take the time to hear that person’s heart for ministry, speak the truth to them in love, and provide helpful counsel as to how they can use or develop their gifts for the benefit of the kingdom of God.

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Thanks to Lorie for that insightful commentary.  Be sure to check out parts one and two of her audio interview on integrating hymns into contemporary worship services.  And thanks to Rebecca for providing the link to Stuff Christians Like.  I will bring you an audio interview with Rebecca very soon here on sojournmusic.com.

And now, remember that tomorrow, April 26 at 3 pm, Sojourn will present a free songwriting seminar at The 930 in Louisville featuring Neil and Kate Robins of Dirt Poor Robins.  If you’re local or will be in Louisville tomorrow, I hope to see you there.

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