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Today I had the great privilege of leading worship at Emanuel UMC in Brunswick, GA. I’ll be leading there the next 2 weeks. They welcomed me with open arms and we had a great time rehearsing Thursday night and then service today.

1) America The Beautiful. Because.

2) The Lord Reigns (Hutto original): Key G. Also known as Psalm 93. The band picked this one up great and the congregation sang along heartily during the choruses which makes this a winner in my book!

3) Breathe (Barnett): Key G. Another good, simple song. This was for the prayer song today.

4) Trading My Sorrows (Evans): Key G. I haven’t done this one in years, but it was on their list of songs they were familiar with so I dove in head first. It went along perfectly with the message of the day.

5) Blessed Be Your Name (Redman): Key G. Great song. I don’t think I ever get tired of this one.

6) The Wondrous Cross (Tomlin Watts, etc.): Key D. Walkout song. Good tune.

I was recently reading a thread in a discussion forum about ministry and priorities. Someone posted something to the effect of:

Our priorities should be God. Family. Church.

I think that’s wonderful. I’ve heard it before. In fact, many, many times. I’ve heard it in staff meetings. I’ve heard it at leadership conferences and prayer retreats. I’ve seen it on forums. I’ve seen it on twitter.

It’s a great simple reminder that we can and should prioritize our lives. (more…)

Today Lydia and I had the privilege of leading worship for Rush Hour (the middles school service for St. Simons Community Church).

What an honor. What a great time. What a wonderful sound.

To hear about 75 middle schoolers singing lout to Jesus “Here I am to worship…here I am to bow down…here I am to say that You’re my God…”

I never get tired of hearing a group of people, especially young people, singing out their worship to God.

I brought back a lot of oldies for today’s set and had a great time leading them. It was just me on the guitar. I capo’d 5 on two of them for a little variety.

1) Here I Am To Worship (Hughes): Key C. I capo’d 5 and played in G. I know C might be a little low for the tenor screamers, but it works REALLY nicely for my range. AND the kids sang out beautifully on this one. I love this song.

***MESSAGE***

2) At The Cross (Butler): Key D. This is the old vineyard tune (not the Hillsong one). I remember singing this one back in the 90s and I loved it then. I pulled it out specifically because the theme of today’s service was The Cross. Worked great as a reflective song coming out of the message time.

3) When I Survey/The Wonderful Cross (Tomlin): Key C. Capo’d 5 and played in G again. This one works nicely in C or D, and Lydia brought the mad harmonies on this one. Another one that brings back memories of my youth pastor days.

4) I Give You My Heart (Morgan): Key G. Pretty standard acoustic arrangement. This is another oldie but goodie.

Join worshipers from all over the world sharing their worship “setlists” and experiences over at The Worship Community.

One of my “weaknesses” as a Worship Leader is recruiting. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not the person who wants to go out and get all up in people’s faces trying to persuade them to join the team.

That being said, there are ways to build a team without being a recruit nazi or without constantly feeling like you’re chasing people. Each one of these ways works and can be a great way to add members to your team!

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So you want to be a successful worship songwriter?

Here’s a pointer: Write deep stuff.

Not obscure. Not psychedelic. Not indecipherable. Not over spiritual. Just deep.

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