Every Sunday millions of Christians across the globe make there way into some form of a church building and are presented with the choice to worship “me” or God. We may not see it as such but that’s the truth. There’s no neon signs pointing “this way to worship of yourself” or “this way to worship Jesus”, but the choice will be made before service is over. Since most churches begin their services with worship through singing, that choice will be made first through the songs we sing. There are other choices throughout the service that will either point to a love for self or love for God, but since worship leading is my particular area of ministry I’m only going to expound on this area of choice.

So, if as worship leaders, we are the first to present this choice to worship self or God in any given service then what does that mean for us? First, it means we must think critically about what we put in the mouths of our congregation. Are we guilty of making liars of people by the words we make them sing? Not an easy question to answer, I know. And yes, people do have the choice not to sing a particular lyric or song if they don’t agree, but most don’t take that liberty and instead just simply sing along assuming that you’ve chosen theologically sound songs for them. Second, we must consciously pick and choose songs that exalt Christ instead of man. This may seem like an obvious, “no duh” point, but I’m afraid there’s been a subtle, progressive move towards worship of man in the disguise of “modern worship music” (even that label has become more of a genre label then an accurate description of a song’s intent). For instance, if a song is more about what I’m going to do or be for God then is it making much of me or making much of God? Songs that are filled with the words “I, me, I’m gonna, I want, I will…” might be a clue that we’re focusing more on ourselves in that particular song than on Christ. And this is when we cross over and begin to make liars out of people because not everyone is going to “do, be, make, give, become” the same thing for God. This is why I believe truly unifying worship comes through singing about God’s intrinsic qualities and Christ’s redeeming work on the cross. Even people who don’t fully understand these things will not be lying when singing them because the fact that God is faithful, just, sovereign, good, etc. is a truth that will always be true in ANY circumstance and even before people know it to be true. To sing about Christ’s power in conquering sin and death is just as true for the non-believer, new believer, the wanderer, and sanctified saint. I’m not saying there’s never a place for responsive-type worship songs. It’s good to respond to what God has done with a heart of surrender and obedience, and if a song leads to that response then wonderful! But, if we come home after church having sung more songs with the words “I, me, we, I want to, I’m gonna” than we have lyrics like “He is, God you are, Christ is, Jesus…” then who do we really worship?

The call of a worship leader is to serve the congregation by giving adequate opportunity to proclaim, declare, and delight in the truth of who God is and what Christ’s redemption means. Have we considered the weightiness of what we’re doing when we step in front of people to lead them in worship of our Creator, Savior, Redeemer, Author and Perfecter of our faith? We have no inherent right to do such a great task! No amount of musical skill, vocal prowess, or experience makes any of us qualified to enter into this most holy ministry. So, if you currently find yourself in such a position I encourage you to take a sobering step back and think of the privilege God has granted you. Take it seriously ~ don’t take yourself too seriously ~ but take the task seriously. Which way will you point people ~ to the worship of “me” or the worship of God?
Just food for thought. ~Niki