Have you ever been in a great worship service and the worship leader and team seemed to disappear and your complete focus turned to worshiping Jesus?
Strong worship leaders know that worship is never about them, it’s about putting our gaze and attention on Jesus. Here are some keys to leading people toward Jesus in worship.
1.Worship Jesus in private
The secret of Jesus’ public success was His time spent in the secret place. In fact, Jesus said that He only spoke what the Father revealed to Him. Spending private time with Jesus in prayer, Bible reading and worship is the main key to having a strong sense of His presence with you in your public worship time.
2.Live your life totally surrendered to God
True worship is surrendering your life to God. Paul said it this way…
I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him. ~ Romans 12:1 NLT
God is looking for people who are willing to lay down their own dreams and desires and follow Him completely. God will use you in ways beyond what you can even dream about if you willing lay down your life for Him.
3.Know the music so well that you rarely have to think about it
Leading worship at a strong level includes many activities that go on at the same time. There is singing, remembering lyrics, playing an instrument, remembering the chord structure and form, leading the band, engaging the congregation and the list goes on.
The more you have the music memorized, the more time you have to focus on the two most important things: Worshiping Jesus and leading your congregation to worship Jesus.
4.Rehearse the team so well that the music is second nature
As the leader of the worship team, you need to spend enough time in rehearsal for them to feel so comfortable with the music that they can also worship. Having a whole team on stage totally focused on worshiping Jesus is a very powerful key to becoming invisible in worship.
When people see the whole team totally engaged that encourages them to do the same. And paradoxically that leads them to focusing on Jesus and not the worship team.
5. Lead your congregation from just singing songs to worshiping Jesus
The first part of the worship service is often moving people from singing about the Lord to singing directly to Him. To do that successfully, you often need to pick songs that are upbeat, and easy to sing. From there you move people along to singing strong worship songs that are sung directly to the Lord. It is so important to pick songs that don’t just sing about Jesus but songs that move your heart to directly worship God.
6.Make sure your body language matches what you are singing
Your body language speaks stronger than your words. If your singing about the joy of knowing the Lord and your face speaks the opposite, people will get the message that you don’t believe what you are singing. When people sense and see your sincerity in worship that will lead them to focus more on worshiping Jesus themselves.
7. Purposely lead people to Jesus
My goal on Sunday mornings is to lead people to focusing on the Lord. I use the song choice, song list progression, musical keys and musical transitions with that one purpose: leading people to worship Jesus. That’s my main purpose as a leader and follower of Jesus: lead people to Jesus. Jesus is the one who saves them, heals them, gives them peace, gives them direction and brings joy into their lives. It’s all about Jesus.
Question: What other ways have you found to point people to Jesus while leading?
One of the keys to having an excellent rehearsal is preparing great worship charts. I have found that worship bands frequently go into rehearsals with haphazard charts. No one has taken the time to really think through all the details of the songs. Next level leaders are prepared and a big part of that preparation is working on excellent charts.
There are two main forms of charts: a) the fully notated SAT chart, b) the words and chords only. I prefer the full written out chart because it gives you more details. But whatever charts you use, ask yourself these 7 questions to make sure the charts are clear and well-thought through.
1. What is the best tempo for this song? Have you notated it somewhere? Who counts off the song? Are you using a click track or metronome to quickly dial into the correct tempo? I am currently using the ‘Playback’ app with in-ears from Multitracks. The track automatically counts in the next song.
2. What is the best key? Have you taken the time to make sure that this is the best key for the leader, congregation and band? Does this key flow well with the songs before and after it? Is this key too high or low for the congregation to sing with all their hearts? Have you double-checked all the chords? Here is a recent blog I did on ‘Finding The Right Key For Leading Worship Songs’
3. What do you want the vocals to sing? When do you want the leader singing alone and when do the other singers sing? When does the song go into 2 or 3 part harmony? What singers are singing this week? What is the best way to utilize their strengths? Have you sung through all the parts and learnt them so you can help the singers sing their correct harmonies? Are all the words correct?
4. Is this the best musical form for this song? How do you want the introduction to go? How do you want to end the song? What is the best musical form for this song? How many times do you repeat each section? Do you have a reprise ready in case the song ‘takes off’? What is the recording you are basing this arrangement on?
5. What is the main musical feel? Is this a guitar or keyboard driven song? What is the drum groove? What rhythms do you want the bass player to play? What is the acoustic guitar, electric guitar and keyboard grooves? When does the band pause? It is a good practice to notate this on the chart.
6. What instruments do you want or need for this arrangement? When do players sit out in this song? When does the full band come in? What synth, guitar or other instrumental sounds do you need? Is there a drum only section?
7. What are the key instrumental lead lines? Are the lead lines played by keys, guitar or both? Are they notated to help you remember? Have you asked the players to learn their parts before your rehearsal?
To do music at an excellent level, the leader or musical director needs to think through all the details. Confidence and excellence comes with preparation.
Question: What can you add to this list? What is working in your rehearsals? What charts do you use?
This blog is part of my vision to train over 1,000,000 worship leaders around the world. If you would like to support this vision you can help by giving any amount via PayPal.
Facebook response: Blake Paul ~ Great post Mark. Obviously having played for you I realize the truth of what you say. Preparation is key. However, I wonder if this is also a question of goals for the worship team? Yes, we all want to lead worship that is inspiring, creative and full of the Holy Spirit.
I am wondering if we are missing a key ingredient in today’s worship music, that being improvisation and collaboration of musicians within the band which can allow for a greater expression of creativity. However, I hear many bands and teams would rather just play the song by exactly as the recording.
I agree we need to be prepared, but at what point do we allow our bands to collaborate, and encourage improvisation? I guess the real question then is, how does one do the preparation that you write about, and at the same time allow opportunity for our teams to put their imprint on the music rather than just play the song like it sounds like on the CD? Especially as it relates to creating great charts etc…
FB Reply: Mark Cole ~ Great question, Blake. But the answer is harder to nail down. It really depends on the quality and creativity of your musicians and leader, the amount of time that you have to rehearse and what your ultimate goal is.
When I do original tunes of mine for the first time, I really listen to how the band and singers respond and what ideas they come up with. Then I’ll usually go home and rewrite the charts to reflect what worked and didn’t work.
I’m all for creativity with your musicians..but that is much easier if you have a set band of strong musicians that don’t rotate much… and if you have the time to really work the songs in rehearsal… If you’re just training musicians and the creativity level is still developing, then copying recording can be much more productive..
Notice.. in my article.. I didn’t talk about copying the recording.. Often times I will listen to multiple versions of a song and incorporate a number of different ideas (including my own) into the final chart that I write. I hope this answer helps.
FB comment: Gary Sharpe ~ I couldn’t agree more on having great charts. I actually think it cuts rehearsal time in half. If you can combine great charts with pre-practice (personal practice before rehearsal), you are 80% of the way there.
It’s one thing to have a great voice. It is quite another to possess the skills it takes to make your worship leader want to schedule you as often as possible. Here are some solid tips on how to improve.
1. Master the three vital elements of singing
The three most important features of your voice are pitch (your ability to sing on key), tone (the actual sound of your voice – think of the difference in sound between an opera singer and a country singer), and breath control. Great breath control will really help your pitch and tone.
Listen to recordings of modern worship singers and emulate their vocals. Listen to yourself as you sing. Record yourself. Listen to your worship leader and the other singers. Try to blend by matching their tone.
Note idiosyncrasies (such as: My worship leader likes to ad lib a little the second time through the chorus). Pay attention!
Also listen closely to the melody. Make sure you end each word at the same time as the worship leader. Make sure your rhythm is the same as his or hers. Make sure you are singing the melody or harmony the same way as the other singers.
3. Follow instructions.
If your worship leader asked you to not sing the first time through the verse, don’t sing! Know when to sing on-mic and when to sing off-mic. Only sing on-mic when your part is needed.
If your worship leader tells you not to sing a certain harmony or note because it sounds bad, don’t sing it!
Watch carefully for cues and memorize the arrangement. When the worship leader goes into the chorus from the bridge, don’t come in halfway through that first sentence! It sounds must sharper when you come in at the beginning of a phrase. Otherwise you sound like a novice singer who isn’t paying attention.
4. Don’t drown out the worship leader’s vocals.
They’re called background vocals for a reason: stay in the background! Your job is to support the worship leader, not to draw away from the melody with either excessive volume or stylization.
Keep it simple. We don’t need Mariah Carey, we need you. A simplified version of you.
5. Learn to sing harmony properly
Learn harmony by singing ALL the parts on all your favorite worship songs along with the recording. Generally there is ONE correct alto part and ONE correct tenor part. The harmony always follows the shape of the melody, usually in parallel thirds and fourths. Don’t get too crazy. Keep it clean.
6. Listen to the recordings your worship leader sent out
Learn your part and the other parts. When you show up for practice, the worship leader shouldn’t have to teach you your part. Come prepared!
7. Learn to worship as you sing
Smile, worship, move, develop great stage presence. Be a worshipper on and off the stage.
Don’t get offended when someone gives you tips to improve your voice. We’re all on a journey of improving our musical craft. Keep growing! Stay humble! Work hard; the Lamb is worthy.
This blog is part of my vision to train over 100,000 worship leaders around the world. If you would like to support this vision you can help by giving any amount through this PayPal account.
This blog is part of my vision to train over 100,000 worship leaders around the world. If you would like to support this vision you can help by giving any amount through this PayPal account.
Anna and I would like to give an update on our new adventure of serving at Love City Church. It has been such a privilege to assist our kids, Ryan & Stephanie Iverson, in their young thriving church.
A few Sundays ago we got see to see two more young marrieds water baptized and last Sunday was their largest attendance (up 30%) since we started to help. I consider it a break-through service.. the presence of the Lord was quite tangible.
Anna has been very busy teaching the greeters and ushers (First Impressions). She loves growing and managing the different teams that are under her direction. Here’s a shot of her teaching the First Impressions team.
One our other goals has been to engage with the 55+ crowd.. It was our privilege to have our first connect group in our home.
I have been busy in a number of areas. I have been able to work with the sound, media and worship areas and help them grow to the next level. I have also been teaching weekly worship theory classes to help the youth and adult worship bands understand the basics of worship and music.
We are so thankful for the generosity of so many in helping us raise the necessary support we have needed. As we continue on this new adventure, our goal is to raise a minimum of $4000 per month for at least the next year.
Would you consider supporting us in prayer and with a monthly or a one-time gift? Your prayers and support are greatly appreciated.
Or you can make out a check to: ‘Love City Church Fellowship’ with the designation: ‘Cole Ministry Support’. The mailing address is: Love City Office, 160 Suncrest Way SE, Calgary, Alberta T2X 1W4
A few weeks ago, my grandfather passed away. As I watching his memorial online, I was reminded of the faithfulness of God for those who have chosen to build their lives on Him. And what that meant for the generations that came after him.
Since it’s Mother’s Day, I want to honour my grandmother, Margaret Preston. I want to honor her decision to say ‘yes to Jesus’ and how that has impacted my life. I will share a little bit of her story and how her and my grandfather’s stories intertwined. I want to share how it has impacted me and impacted the generations to come.
My Grandmother was only 15 years old when she married Gordon Cole. They had four beautiful children together. My Dad is the oldest of those four. When my Dad was 12 years old and Grandma was 30 years old. He, my Dad’s father, went to work and never came home that day. He was tragically killed in an accident.
My Grandma was sharing how at the time she didn’t know that he had passed away. She was just told that ‘your husband has been in an accident, you need to go the hospital.’ Grandma drove herself to the hospital (she’s a strong independent woman). She said, ‘I didn’t want anyone else to give me a ride, I just wanted to drive myself.’
So she drove herself to the hospital thinking, ‘I’m just going the hospital to visit my husband who had been in an accident, get him better and bring him home.’ Because that is what she had been told. That was all she knew at that point.
She arrived at the hospital and asked the front desk lady for the room number so she could visit her husband. The lady answered, ‘I’m so sorry, you can’t see him, the Coroner has already taken him away.’
Grandma said her world began to crash as she recognized that he was gone. Up that point, she had no idea that he had passed. Now here she was, a young widow with four small children to raise. She had no idea how to move forward.
She drove back home all by herself. Grandma said, she wouldn’t have traded that moment in the car for anything else. As she drove to see her children, she turned on the radio. The song on the radio was an old hymn.
‘When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like deep billows roll. Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, ‘It is well, it is well with my soul’
It Is Well With My Soul
Grandma said she just let the song wash over her. In that moment, the waves were crashing. The storm was so real for her. She had just lost her husband and had four young children to raise on her own.
She said, ‘Stephanie, at that moment, I needed that time alone in the car by myself, to really establish that I really was going to choose to trust in Jesus. That I was going to make Him my everything. That I was going to continue to build my life on Him.’ She made that decision even though the circumstances around her were raging, even though the storm was raging.
‘Stephanie’, she said, ‘I needed that time to just settle in my heart, that when I walked in that door to face my children, to tell them that their father was no longer here. That I needed to know that I trusted in the Lord and I was going to choose to trust in Him. That I was going teach my children to trust in Him as well.’
Meanwhile, around the same time, there was a man named Ron Preston. He was pastoring a small church in Fort Langley with his wife and two small children.
Things began to go terribly wrong for him and his wife left him with their two small kids. She wanted nothing more to do with him or the children. Here he was, a young pastor with two small kids. His marriage had fallen apart. The storms of life were really real for him too.
He had to step away from ministry because of what his wife had chosen to do. My grandma said that at one point he held his head in his hands and said, ‘Lord, there must be more for me than this. There must be more for me than this!’
Here we have two people, who very well could have walked away. Who very well could have said, ‘This is just too hard. I can’t do this. This is more than I anticipated. This is not the life I had signed up for.’ They could have very well parted ways with God.
But, they both made the decision in those really hard moments. ‘Jesus, I’m locking eyes with you. You are my everything. I’m fixing my eyes on you. I’m choosing to trust You. I’m choosing to build my life on You. Not only for me, but for the generations to come.’
They knew Jesus was their only lifeline in that moment.
A couple of years later, the Lord brought them together. Two hurting and broken people who really needed each other at that moment. They combined these two families into one.
Here is their wedding picture, there’s my dad there (far left), and these are the six kids. They became one family.
Ron and Margaret Preston Wedding Day
My grandma said that before they got married, her and Grandpa said, ‘Our number one commitment is to serve the Lord and to make sure that these six kids know Jesus and are raised in His House. That they love Him and build their lives on Him too.’ That was their commitment.
They spent 54 years together before Grandpa passed. That commitment held true through the good times and the bad. Even in their relationship together, they had some highs and lows. Still, they committed to build their lives on Him.
The next picture I want to show you is one of the times when most of us were together. This was before many of the great-grandchildren were born.
Margaret and Ron’s Anniversary
Their commitment to say ‘Yes to Jesus’, not only saved them in that moment, when they really needed it. But it also impacted generations to come. All six kids and their spouses are serving the Lord and are part of God’s House in the places God has planted them. All fourteen of us grandchildren are serving the Lord with our spouses and our part of God’s house. All eighteen great-grandchildren are in God’s house, learning about Jesus, giving their lives to Him.
All because these two people, Grandma and Grampa Preston, said yes to Jesus when the storms were raging and the wind was blowing. The waves were crashing and life was really real. They decided in that moment that their firm foundation was going to be built on Christ and Christ alone.
That’s my prayer and desire for all of us in this place today!
This is the closing story from my daughter, Stephanie Iverson’s, Mother’s Day Message at Love City Church on May 8, 2022. The entire message is on Youtube below.
Anna and I recently moved back to Calgary to assist our son-in-law and daughter, Ryan and Stephanie Iverson, in their growing church.
After 40+ years of helping churches and ministries all over the globe and seeing hundreds of thousands of people come to know the Lord; we are taking a step of faith and are excited and privileged to turn our energies to working with the great team at Love City Church.
Ryan and Stephanie have pioneered a healthy growing church of 200 people and our goal is to assist them to disciple people, train musicians and leaders, develop teams and see more people come to know Jesus.
As I was praying about how Anna and I would support ourselves as we began to serve at Love City Church, God told me to raise our own support.
So, as we embark on this new adventure, our goal is to raise a minimum of $4000 per month for at least the next year.
Would you prayerfully consider supporting us monthly or with a one-time gift?
Or you can make out a check to: ‘Love City Church Fellowship’ with the designation: ‘Cole Ministry Support’. The mailing address is: Love City Office, 160 Suncrest Way SE, Calgary, Alberta T2X 1W4
Have you ever wondered why God desires for His people to sing? What role should singing play in the life of a Christian? What is it about worshiping through song that is so important to God? You may not know it, but God has already answered these questions in the Bible.
Seven Biblical Reasons Why Singing Matters
The seven reasons below answer these questions and unpack more important truth about singing in the life of an individual Christian and the church.
1. When you sing, you obey.
Singing isn’t an option in Scripture. It’s a command:
‘Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (Colossians 3:16)
And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart… (Ephesians 5:18-19)
God’s people are more than just invited to sing; we are commanded to sing. When we sing, we’re doing what God asks of us!
2. When you sing, you dig deep roots in the Word.
Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly…singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs… (Colossians 3:16)
The Apostle Paul lays out this exhortation to let God’s Word dwell in us richly, and then, he tells us how to live out that command. The first, of course, is teaching. But the second, is singing!
Singing is one of the two chief ways in which God’s Word dwells in us richly.
And, as we observed in the last point, singing is a command. But this command comes with a promise: As we sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs together, we are promised that the Word of Christ will dwell in us richly, which is what we should crave as believers!
Our singing is more than a warm-up for the sermon or a filler in the service. Colossians 3:16 is clearly laying out for us that: Singing stands alongside of preaching as one of the two great ways that God has ordained for his Word to dwell richly in each one of us!
C.J. Mahaney calls church singing “Take Home Theology” because the best songs we sing together serve as a 3-minute, easily memorizable, deeply biblical summary of important truths from Scripture. Take for example, “In Christ Alone.” There, in an easily memorizable form, you’ve got a thorough theology of the cross of Jesus Christ with clear and practical applications that you can use for your life this week!
3. When you sing, you build up others.
First, you build up fellow believers when you sing:
Note specifically here in Ephesians 5:19 that it says: “Addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs…”
We see the same thing in Colossians 3:13-16: the exhortation to sing comes on the heels of bearing with one another (v. 13a), forgiving one another (v. 13b), putting on love (v. 14), being at peace as one united body of Christ (v. 15), and teaching God’s Word to one another (v. 16).
When we do what the Bible says and sing together as a church family, we are hearing confessions of faith all around! We are hearing hundreds join with us and sing, “In Christ alone, my hope is found!” We are hearing hundreds of testimonies of faith all around us!
Also know that as you sing, you’re helping unbelievers. In Psalm 105:1-2, the Lord is calling the Israelites to be a light unto the nations, and to do this He tells them: “Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; tell of all His wondrous works!”
Think of the impact on someone who doesn’t know Christ to hear those hundreds of testimonies, those hundreds of confessions of faith as we sing together! This is why Pastor Tim Keller says in his book Worship by the Book: “Good corporate worship will naturally be evangelistic”.
4. When you sing, you make war.
Chances are you didn’t connect singing and warfare together, but it’s a theme visible in Scripture. In Colossians 3, Paul is challenging the Colossians to literally put sin to death in their lives, to kill sin. So all the commands to love and peace and forgiveness and teaching and singing are attitudes and habits of the believer that will kill sin!
We see the same thing in Ephesians 5, the command to address one another in song comes right on the heels of “[make] the best use of the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:16).
And the more you think about this, it makes total sense: What posture must be more hated by the evil one than the posture of a believer who is singing? I can’t think of many stances you can take that identifies you with Christ and against Satan more than eyes, heart, mind, and voice lifted to heaven in song!
It’s very hard to lie, be greedy or to look at something inappropriate when, you’re “singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart” (Ephesians 5:19). Simply, a heart that’s doing that will not easily give in to temptation.
A singing heart is a heart at war with the work of the evil one and the power of sin.
5. When you sing, you are spiritually strengthened for trial.
Often times, we think only of singing when we’re happy and times are good, but singing bringing strength for trial comes out in Acts 16. Paul and Silas are unjustly imprisoned for the sake of the Gospel, and what do they do while they’re in prison? Sing! (Acts 16:25)
And this truth is confirmed in the lives of persecuted believers throughout history. Hear the words of one pastor recently imprisoned for his faith: ‘When we were in prison we sang almost every day because Christ was alive in us…they put chains on our hands and feet. They chained us to add to our grief. Yet we discovered that chains are splendid musical instruments! When we clanged them together in rhythm, we could sing, ‘This is the day (clink, clank), this is the day (clink, clank), which the Lord has made (clink, clank), which the Lord has made (clink, clank). (persecutionblog.com)
Our persecuted brothers are showing us the truth we see in Acts 16 with Paul and Silas. Singing strengthens you and helps you persevere in the face of trial. If it can strengthen them in the face of these trials, what can it do for you?
Even in suffering, sing!
6. When you sing, you walk a God-designed pathway to joy.
Here is a sample of what the Psalms say about singing:
Psalms 5:11: “Let all who take refuge in You rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread Your protection over them, that those who love Your name may exult in You.”
Psalms 9:2: “I will be glad and exult in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.”
Psalms 51:14: “Deliver me from blood guiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of Your righteousness.”
Psalms 59:16: “I will sing of Your strength; I will sing aloud of Your steadfast love in the morning. For You have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress.”
Psalms 63:7: “For You have been my help, and in the shadow of Your wings I will sing for joy.”
If you still don’t believe me, here’s a clincher from James 5:13: “Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.”
As you study Scripture on this point, you’ll notice that sometimes singing gives birth to joy and sometimes joy gives birth to singing. But persistently in Scripture, joy, and singing are bound together. You can’t study one of those two biblical themes without encountering the other.
If you struggle for joy…sing! If you are joyful…sing! In God’s perfect design and understanding of the human condition, He has bound joy and singing together for his people.
The first six reasons get summed up with this:
7. When you sing, you glorify God.
True obedience, deep roots in the Word, building up others, making war against Satan and sin, persevering, finding joy in God: All these things bring glory to God, which is each person’s chief goal and purpose.
Colossians 3 and Ephesians 5 bring this out simply but powerfully, telling us to sing “to God” and “to the Lord” because he is the object of our praise. Ephesians 5:19 says, “singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart.” It is to Him and about Him that we sing!
Singing has such a unique way of bringing your heart, soul, mind, and strength together to focus entirely and completely on God. In an age of distraction, singing grabs the attention of all our senses and focuses us on God.
In Revelation 7:9-10, the Apostle John describes a glimpse of eternity with a great multitude of people from every tribe, peoples, and languages singing before the Lamb, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”
Eternity awaits.
On that day, will you be one of the great multitude that no one can number, singing the song of the Lamb, singing His praises? I hope you’ll be there, singing the song of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Tom Olson (@tommyo) is the Campus Pastor at The Orchard Evangelical Free Church (@theorchardefc) in Barrington, Illinois. This article originated here.
Every athlete must train to win. Nobody can sit on the couch eating Cheetos for months and hope to compete.
The best athletes are intensely disciplined. They follow strict diet and exercise regiments to beat their body into peak physical condition, so when the game is on the line, they are ready.
We know this is true for our physical condition, but there’s a disconnect with how we think about our spiritual condition.
The sad reality is that many Christians are unfit because they are undisciplined.
Nobody drifts into discipline. Just as the undisciplined body becomes sluggish and fat, the undisciplined spirit becomes weak.
This is why Paul coaches Timothy: “train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come” (1 Tim 4:7-8).
This verse is the cornerstone of the spiritual disciplines because it spells out their purpose—training for godliness.
What Are The Spiritual Disciplines?
There is no consensus list of spiritual disciplines. The Bible does not include a set list. So different authors list different disciplines—some more biblical than others.
I believe twelve primary spiritual activities were practiced by Jesus and prescribed for all believers in the Bible: study, prayer, fasting, confession, worship, fellowship, rest, celebration, service, generosity, chastity, and disciple-making.
1. Study
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16)
Of all the disciplines, none may be more important than the study of God’s Word.
Only through the instruction of the Bible can we understand the ways and the will of God. The theology and practice of every spiritual discipline is rooted in Scripture. Without the study of God’s Word, we cannot hope to grow spiritually.
Jesus knew Scripture better than anyone. As a boy, He amazed the teachers in the Jerusalem temple with His understanding (Luke 2:46-47). He quoted Scripture from memory when tempted in the wilderness (Luke 4:1-13). And He regularly quoted it in His teaching (e.g., Matthew 5:21; Mark 10:5-9). He even began His ministry with a public reading from the book of Isaiah (Luke 4:16-21). Jesus embodies the Word (John 1:14).
Today the discipline of study may have many forms:
We can read the Bible in a physical book, on a digital device, or by listening to an audio Bible.
We can listen to the Bible taught in our church on Sunday mornings, or online any time.
We can also meditate. But we must make a crucial distinction here because meditation can be misunderstood. Eastern meditation focuses on emptying the mind; Christian meditation focuses on filling the mind with God’s Word. For example, Psalm 119:97 says, “Oh how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day.”
2. Prayer
“Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).
Prayer is how we talk to God. When we pray, God listens.
Jesus taught many things about prayer. He warned against the prayers of hypocrites who make a show of their prayer, and taught us to pray humbly (Matt 6:5-6). God is like a good father who delights in giving good gifts to his asking children (Luke 11:9-13). We should persevere in prayer until the Lord answers (Luke 18:1-8), but we must have faith for our prayers to be effective (Matt 21:22).
Jesus also modeled prayer for us in His actions. He frequently sought to get away from the crowds to pray in solitude and silence (Matt 14:23; Luke 5:16, 6:12, Mark 1:35).
Today, like Jesus, we should withdraw regularly for time alone with God in prayer. And whenever we gather with fellow believers, we should pray for one another.
3. Fasting
Their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. (Philippians 3:19).
Fasting is abstaining from eating food for spiritual reasons. It is a focused time of spiritual dependence on God to sustain you, almost always accompanied by prayer.
But in our self-indulgent culture lacking in self-control, fasting may be the most neglected discipline today.
Jesus fasted (Matt 4:2-4), and He expected that his followers would fast (Matt 6:16-18).
When asked why His disciples were not fasting, Jesus said that they would not fast as long as He was with them, but “The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.” (Luke 5:35).
Those days are today as we await Christ’s return.
Since there is no direct command exactly how to fast in Scripture, we are free to fast as the Holy Spirit leads us. However, the normal practice in the Bible is abstaining from all food.
Fasting gives greater power and emphasis to our prayers and confessions as we depend on God.
Fasting is feasting on God, hungering for Him alone.
4. Confession
Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy (Proverbs 28:13).
Confession is an admission of sin followed by repentance.
Confession can be either private (between you and God), personal (between you and a trusted believer), or public (between you and everyone).
But while we are more open to private confession, many are terrified at the thought of personal or public confession.
Of all the spiritual disciplines, confession is the only one that Jesus did not practice. Since Jesus never sinned, He had no need to confess (Heb 4:15). However, Jesus is a critical part of confession, because without His atoning death and resurrection on the cross, we would not be able to receive God’s forgiveness.
Because of Jesus, the Bible says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9).
Today, private confession is taught in most churches, but we rarely hear personal and public confession instructed.
While confessing our sins to God is of utmost importance, we may want to find a trusted believer to confess to for both support and accountability.
5. Worship
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name; bring an offering and come before Him! Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness (1 Chronicles 16:29).
In many churches, we have made the word worship synonymous with singing, but it is much more than that.
The English word worship comes from the Saxon word weorthscype that evolved into worthship. So when we speak of worshipping God, we mean responding according to His worthiness.
The discipline of worship is a focused response to God’s infinite worth.
Jesus is both the object and the example of our worship. When Satan tempted Jesus to worship him, Christ replied, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve’” (Matt 4:10).
But we are also right to follow the example of the disciples who, upon seeing the resurrected Jesus, “worshiped Him” (Matt 28:17).
In His humanity, Jesus is our example of how to worship. In His divinity, He is the object of our worship (Phil 2:6).
Whether gathered together at church or alone in our rooms, when we think about the greatness of God, we cannot help but worship Him.
6. Fellowship
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. (Acts 2:42)
We tend to think of fellowship as a social activity, but it’s more than just small talk.
Fellowship is about being united as a body of believers, encouraging one another to follow Jesus.
Jesus lived in constant fellowship with the Father, and also with His disciples. But Jesus knew that fellowship would be challenging.
Before he was arrested and crucified, Jesus prayed for all believers “that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in Me, and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You have sent Me” (John 17:21).
But fellowship doesn’t happen by accident. So the writer of Hebrews says, “let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another” (10:24-25). Regular gatherings for fellowship require discipline.
Together the embers of a fire glow red-hot. But scattered, they soon grow cold. That is why the discipline of fellowship is so important.
We all need brothers and sisters united in Christ to strengthen our faith.
7. Rest
Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28).
Today, the spiritual discipline of rest requires more discipline than ever.
Modern technology has made us always accessible. We are rarely disconnected from the internet, and can binge on endless entertainment options.
We suffer from busyness, yet most spiritual discipline books do not include rest.
God instituted the discipline of rest in the creation of the world. He created everything in six days, and rested on the seventh (Gen 2:3). So God instituted the Sabbath, a weekly day of rest (Lev 23:3).
The Bible warns against overworking and not sleeping because sleep is a gift from God (Ps 127:2). He created us to need rest. Plus, the act of sleeping requires trust that God will protect us while we are unconscious (Psalm 4:8).
But rest is not God’s desire for us in every moment. We must maintain a balance of when to work and when to rest (Prov 10:5). God only commanded us to rest one day a week. The other six days we were made for hard work. So Proverbs warns against laziness (6:9-11).
Jesus continued to observe the Sabbath, although He challenged cultural legalism. He went to the synagogue on the Sabbath to worship and teach (Mark 6:2, Luke 4:6).
When He was accused of working on the Sabbath when He healed people, Jesus responded, “is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to destroy it?” (Luke 6:9). Healing and helping people is not breaking the Sabbath.
Rest is a spiritual discipline that we ought to practice at least one day a week. We were designed to work hard and rest well. Therefore, while Christians should work harder than anyone six days a week, we must discipline ourselves to get a healthy amount of sleep and to set a weekly day to rest.
8. Celebration
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice (Philippians 4:4).
In celebration, we rejoice in God’s many blessings and remember His faithfulness.
While too much celebrating could become excessive, no celebration is also bad. Ecclesiastes 5:18-19 says that it is “good and fitting” to eat and drink and enjoy the fruit of our labor and the money and possessions that God has given us, because “this is the gift of God.”
Balance is required: “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven… a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance” (Eccl 3:1, 4).
Jesus modeled celebration for us. His first miracle was turning water into wine at a wedding, endorsing the celebration and allowing the party to continue (John 2:9-11).
Jesus was also accused of being a glutton and drunkard because He ate and drank with tax collectors and sinners (Matt 11:19). It’s hard to believe that these were not joyous meals because people seemed to enjoy being in Christ’s company.
The key thing to remember in celebration is: “whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor 10:31). Celebration can erode into gluttony, drunkenness, and a worship of sensual pleasures when it is separated from the purpose of bringing glory to God.
This fine line may be the reason celebration has been so misunderstood by many Christians.
Today, while we must guard against gluttony and drunkenness, we are right to celebrate weddings, baptisms, holidays, birthdays, promotions, raises, anniversaries, and other family and community gatherings.
But what makes participation in all of these celebrations a spiritual discipline is remembering that we are rejoicing in God’s good gifts.
9. Service
Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ (Colossians 3:23-24).
The discipline of service is a direct assault on our pride. Service requires humility. We humble ourselves before God, and take on the posture of a servant, putting God and others ahead of ourselves.
There is no greater example of a servant than Jesus. He taught that the greatest people are those who serve (Matt 23:11), that the last will be first (Mark 9:35), and that even He “came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).
Jesus modeled the humility and posture of a servant by washing His disciple’s feet and saying, “I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you” (John 13:15).
God gives every believer different gifts for the purpose of serving one another. (1 Pet 4:10).
So we can practice the discipline of service in a myriad of ways, using whatever abilities God has given us.
10. Generosity
It is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35).
Generosity is about more than just giving. It’s changing the way you think about and manage your resources.
Proverbs says, “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want,” (11:24). Ecclesiastes warns against the love of money because it will never satisfy (Eccl 5:10). But the reason we should be generous is that nothing we own really belongs to us.
Everything we have belongs to God (Ps 24:1). We are just managing God’s resources.
Jesus taught about money and possessions a lot. He warned, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” (Luke 12:15). Instead, we should store our treasures in heaven, because our hearts follow our treasure (Matt 6:19-21). If we are not careful, the cares of the world and riches will creep into our lives and keep us from God. So Jesus asks, “what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?” (Matt 16:26). Put simply, “You cannot serve God and money” (Matt 6:24).
The problem is not the riches; it’s our attitude towards money. We need to learn to be content no matter how much money we have (1 Tim 6:6). So Paul teaches the rich to “be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share” (1 Tim 6:17-18). Plus, giving must be done with the right attitude, because “God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor 9:7).
While most Americans today spend more than they make, those who practice generosity must discipline themselves to live with less. This frees more of our time, money, and possessions to be given back to God.
Chastity is a discipline because all of our natural inclinations draw us towards sexual immorality. We must be disciplined to flee it and pursue pure thoughts and actions.
Chastity does not mean celibacy, although celibacy is a calling for some. It means freely enjoying God’s good gift of sex within the bounds of marriage, as God created it to be (1 Cor 7:1-5). But unless we are married, chastity requires abstinence (Acts 15:20).
The Bible’s teaching on chastity can be summed up in the seventh commandment: “You shall not commit adultery” (Exod 20:14). But Jesus takes the commandment a step further.
He says, “But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matt 5:28). So not only does chastity include not committing the physical act of adultery, but it is also about resisting the underlying root of lust.
“If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away,” Jesus continues. “For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell” (Matt 5:29). While I doubt Jesus was asking those listening to literally excavate their eyeballs, he intended this point to be strong. It is better to be blind than to burn.
For most of us then, the discipline of chastity means following Job’s example: “I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman” (Job 31:1 NIV). We must discipline our eyes not to lust after anyone who is not our spouse.
And if we are ever in a compromising situation, we should follow Joseph’s example when Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce him. Genesis 39:12 says, “she caught him by his garment, saying, ‘Lie with me.’ But he left his garment in her hand and fled.”
Through the spiritual discipline of chastity, we follow Paul’s command to put our sexual immorality and evil desires to death (Col 3:5).
And when we feel like the temptation is too strong to fight, we must remember the Bible’s promise: “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will also provide the way of escape” (1 Cor 10:13).
The discipline of chastity is a lifelong battle of fleeing temptation, pursuing purity, and trusting God to provide the way.
12. Disciple-Making
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19).
Disciple-making is a spiritual discipline because it does not happen by accident.
To make disciples, as the Bible commands, we must actively seek out opportunities to share the gospel (Mark 16:15), baptize new believers, and teach them how to obey everything that Jesus commanded (Matt 28:19-20).
If our goal is to become more like Christ, then we ought to participate in His mission. Jesus said that He came “to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). When Jesus recruited the disciples, He said, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matt 4:19). And after His death and resurrection, He commissioned us to “make disciples of all nations” (Matt 28:19).
Disciple-making is a cornerstone of the church. In Acts 5:42, we read, “every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus.” Sharing the gospel and teaching others how to follow Jesus was a daily discipline.
All Christians should practice disciple-making. Sadly, many leave it to just the hired professionals.
Most of us don’t make disciples because we don’t discipline ourselves to do it.
Brandon has been on a ten-year journey to become the best preacher he can possibly be. During this time, he has worked in churches of all sizes, from a church plant to some of the largest and fastest growing churches in the United States. Brandon writes his thoughts and ideas from his journey at ProPreacher.com.
The Master Worship Leader called three novices with various gifts, passions and capabilities to lead worship in three churches with distinct characteristics and needs.
To the first novice worship leader the Master gave a worship band that included five stellar players on rhythm guitar, lead guitar, bass, drums and keyboard.
To the second novice worship leader the Master gave an aging rockabilly guitarist and a high school cajon player.
And to the third novice worship leader the Master gave a long-retired kindergarten teacher who played hymns as long as they weren’t in sharps.
So the Master worship leader entrusted the three novices to fulfill their unique worship callings in equally unique and sometimes challenging church settings.
The first novice realized his church wouldn’t be able to begin more services or plant additional churches until new players were trained. So he encouraged his original band members to give lessons to younger players so they’d be available for new plants and as substitute players throughout the year. He also began a school of the arts to cultivate younger players so his church could share some of those players with several smaller churches in their community.
The second novice quickly realized rockabilly didn’t fit the worship voice of his congregation so he used some of his worship budget to invest in more nuanced worship guitar lessons for his rockabilly guitarist and one of his rockabilly band associates. And since the high school cajon player would graduate in a year, he was asked to train a younger middle schooler to serve as his replacement upon graduation.
The third novice coasted, surfed ministry placement sites, went to conferences with his resume in hand and waited for the Master to call him to a more favorable position.
The Master worship leader checked in with the three novices to see how they were responding to His unique call in their unique settings.
The novice with five players showed the Master how he had doubled the number of players originally entrusted to him. So the Master worship leader commended him: “Good work! It’s obvious you are not just a musician but also a leader of worship and worshipers. You are a worthy ministry servant that can be trusted with more.”
The novice with two players showed the Master how he had invested in the skills of existing players and trained younger players for the future. So the Master worship leader celebrated with him: “Great job! It’s obvious you aren’t doing this alone and value the calling and gifts of others. You are a model of servant leadership ready for additional responsibilities.”
The novice with one player said, “Master, I know you have high worship standards and are not pleased with poor musicianship. And since no other players here at my church can live up to those expectations, I have been doing it all myself. I’ve been waiting for you to call me to another church with more skilled players who appreciate my musical prowess.”
The Master worship leader was angry and disappointed at this response so he asked the third novice two final questions: “If you knew I was after high worship standards, then why haven’t you been trying to achieve them where I called you with what I gave you? And if you haven’t been giving your best to this place where I called you now and have been saving it for where you hope I will call you next, then why would I want to?”
This article about the master worship leader originally appeared here.
David Manner: Dr. David W. Manner serves as the Associate Executive Director for Kansas-Nebraska Convention of Southern Baptists with responsibilities in the areas of Worship, Leadership and Administration.
