Two Common Misconceptions About Prophetic Worship

There are two very common misconceptions that REALLY hinder prophetic worship:

1. Prophetic worship is SPONTANEOUS

2. God is the AUDIENCE

While both of these statements are not terribly wrong, they still keep people in their seats - intimidated by the spontaneous aspect of the prophetic and daunted by the prospect that they have to “perform” for this imposing “audience.”

Prophetic utterances may very well be spontaneous…but that is not what determines the prophetic. A prophetic statement, song, dance, piece of any kind is prophetic because it has God’s voice and character inserted into it. That’s simple – He LOVES to interact with us, so we can be expectant of His voice and participation in our worship every time we minister to Him. If we think about the prophetic like this - it makes it more about Him than us.

Secondly, although we are ministering to Him, He is NOT THE AUDIENCE. In prophetic worship there is no audience – only communing hearts. We used to get frustrated by congregations coming into worship behaving like an audience and simply sitting or standing in place. I think we tried to adjust that thinking by saying that God is the audience…so everyone needs to participate. While corporate participation by every member is desirable, we cannot limit God to the position of audience – He has something to say in every service.

Followed to their logical conclusion, both of these statements shut down congregational participation in worship and limit the scope of the prophetic because people may not feel proficient at spontaneously doing anything and they may be threatened by the concept of “performing” for the Audience of ONE.

We just need to relax about these two issues and allow Him to speak…and He LOVES to speak through every willing vessel. The onus is on Him – not us. We don’t have to perform or produce anything – we simply need to abide in Him and allow Him to flow in, and through us.

Tips For Worship leaders

There is no exhaustive list of important tips for worship leaders. Here are 10 things I think are super important – use the comments section to add more – let’s see what we can come up with:

1. Be a worshiper – don’t just do worship – be a worshiper. You will never be able to lead people to places you never go yourself. If you routinely lead your own heart to God, you will find it easier to lead others. Stay connected to the Lord, and develop a healthy life of personal prayer and worship. Worship is our life – not just our Sunday job.

2. Pray – Prayer and worship go hand in hand. You need to get your direction from the Lord for every service. God has a plan for every time your congregation gathers – we need to lead the congregation to His plan – not ours. God's presence is our destination and His glory is our ultimate goal.

3. Maintain good relationships with all your team – this includes technical staff, pastors, dancers, singers and musicians. Work hard for unity. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice from your team, and don't be afraid of constructive criticism.

4. Respect your congregation and the traditions of your particular church. The Lord loves His Church above all things. We need to love those we are leading. Part of that means we honor the worship journey of the people and respect the things they hold dear. Be a servant within your Church. Encourage - don't drive the people.

5. Use songs that you love – you will always find certain songs and styles that suit you better than others. Learn how to identify those songs. Stay away from songs that you don’t connect with musically or songs that you simply don’t enjoy. You will do better at leading the people in songs that you personally love and songs that draw your heart to the Lord. Be aware of the keys you choose – how high and how low each song may go – transitions etc.

6. Song choice is important. You not only have to love the songs, but they need to be “singable” for congregations. One of the most common mistakes many worship leaders make is that they choose songs that the people don’t know – or don’t care to know. There are certain characteristics that make up a song that is "successful" for congregations – songs that gather them and take them on the worship journey. The songs themselves are not the worship or the destination - they are the tools that take us all to the presence of God. Identify the songs that accomplish this primary goal.

7. Practice – do a lot of listening to songs that God is currently using in the body of Christ. You don’t have to use songs just because they are the “latest and greatest” – use songs that will connect your people to the things God is saying. Make sure you practice songs well before you try them on your congregation. Strive for excellence.

8. Utilize the gifts God has given you – Each of the members of your team are gifts from the Lord. Understand their capabilities and make way for them to move out prophetically in song or on their instruments.

9. Be Flexible – always have more songs prepared then you need – you never know what the Lord will do, and where He will lead – you never know what direction He will draw the congregation to. It is super important to be familiar with His presence, and to be comfortable with the Word. Worship leaders need to be able to recognize God’s presence, and know what to do when they get there.

10. Allow the Holy Spirit to lead – He is the real Worship Leader. In many respects, we are simply doorkeepers of God’s presence. We need to keep our eyes on Him and allow Him to have His way among the people. We are those who listen, watch and wait on Him (Prov. 8:34). Keep your eyes on God, the Pastor, the congregation and the worship team – the Lord will use everyone to reveal His presence and carry His voice.

More tips for worship ministers: HERE

Tips For Worship Ministers - Part 1

Here are a few tips for all those involved in worship ministry (worship leaders, singers, musicians, dancers and other artists) - feel free to post your suggestions in the comments below - I would love to keep adding to the list:

•  Being called by God to be a minister of worship is the greatest privilege in the universe.

•  Be a worshiper – don’t just do worship. You can’t fake worship. God and the people see and hear your heart.

•  You will never go deeper in congregational worship than where you have been in your private worship.

•  Worship must be your life and breath.

•  Never forget that the music serves the worship and not the other way around. We all know this, but tend to slip into the big mistake of prioritizing music over the presence of God.

• It is easy to get caught up in the “nuts and bolts” of music rather than keeping the focus on the presence of God. Music is “safe” and so much easier than the unfamiliar world of the Divine and supernatural. We can master the musical aspects of worship through talent and practice. Excellence in the presence of God will cost you your life. Many are not so willing for such a journey.

•  Find out what is on God’s heart for every service. It is actually incorrect to think of God as the “audience” in worship – He is actively involved in worship as He draws us in to His presence, reveals His heart and glory, uses us to accomplish His will before the throne, changes us into his image…and so much more. He is not a passive spectator.

•  Authentic worship is prophetic worship in that it contains God’s voice.

•  Use the songs to “carry” the people to God, and God to the people. The music and songs are not the worship – they are our tools to get to God and hear His voice.

•  Lead yourself in worship – allow your own heart to go on the journey of worship every time you are in front of a congregation.

•  Be the greatest servant in your congregation – all ministry flows out of servanthood and not gifting.

•  Make sure that you are involved in more ministry and service (within your church community) off the platform than on it.

•  The greatest killer of authentic worship since the beginning of time is pride. Worship ministers must militate against this destroyer at all costs. Become a seeker of humility and give it the greatest value in your heart.

•  Prefer others over yourself – inwardly and outwardly. Look for ways to compliment others.

•  Run after holiness.

•  Make way for the people to connect with God and for God to break in on the people.

•  Cultivate a healthy prayer life. Bathe all you do in prayer.

•  Become a life-long student of the presence of God.   

•  Respect the presence of God – you are a doorkeeper of the presence.

•  Learn to linger in the presence of God.

•  Love, read and obey the Word of God. Find God in His Word – it is His Living Word.

•  Always be listening for God’s voice, and determine to obey Him when He speaks.

•  Become a person of joy. Remember joy is different from happiness. Happiness is based on our circumstances; joy is based on the truth.

•  Be a person of integrity in every area of your life.

•  Practice your music – don’t ever stop growing as a musician.

•  Do the simple things well – you can make beautiful music by playing simple things excellently.

•  Aim for excellence in everything you do. Excellence is different from perfection.

This is such a long list I am breaking it into two lists. Here are both sections: CLICK HERE.

There are not so many practical points covered here. 

I will make a list of more practical points some other time.

Write in the comments section below if you have further suggestions.