10 Practical Ways to Grow Your Worship Team
(That Almost Anyone Can Do... but most people don't)
There’s a common misconception about worship teams of large churches.
It’s this…
Large churches have all the people they need, for all the things they want to do, all the time.
Ha! If only that were true.
And another misconception.
Small churches can’t have great worship, because they don’t have all the people they need for all the things they want to do… ever!
I’ve been to some smaller churches with amazing music, so clearly this isn’t true.
But… have you ever noticed yourself saying, or even thinking something like;
“Oh yeah, I’d love to do what (insert name) large church does, but we can’t, we don’t have the people”... Or “If only we had the team, we’d do so much more…”
It’s easy to start the comparison game, isn’t it?
The funny thing is though, Cass and I have been in both environments. The mega and the micro church. And the reality is the same in both. Both sorts of churches have limited team members, and limited numbers of willing people for what they are seeking to do.
In a large church you have more services and more output required. Although the overall numbers may be greater, the rosters are larger too. Where as smaller congregations may have a smaller pools to draw from, they also often require fewer people each weekend.
No matter where you find yourself, as a leader or pastor, you can have the kind of worship team that brings heaven to earth, that worships wholeheartedly and who helps the church see the beauty of God. But, you will have to do the hard work to attract, grow, and build a team. It doesn’t just “happen” for anyone no matter the size of the church.
So the real question is, how? How do you do it?
Generally speaking, it happens by submitting to the Lord’s leading and guidance, and putting in some real effort, determination and love. The goal is to gather a group of worshippers passionately contributing toward the common good of the community.
The worst thing you could do, (okay maybe not the worst, but pretty bad), would be to settle. To look at the team you currently have and decide that this is as good as it gets. That doesn’t sound like loving God with everything we’ve got like the word encourages us to, does it?
No matter the size or make-up of your team, right now, large or small, please don’t let it limit the future. Trust God for more. Look past right now and begin to think about new ways you can continue to grow and develop the team in your care.
With the right steps and some God given imagination, you will be able to see what the team could look like in the future and start putting the steps in place to make that a reality.
SIDE NOTE: Realistic expectations are going to be important right now. We’ve found in all our church planting and building days that unless you have a super creative congregation… it takes around 250 people to find one standard church band. So stay realistic, even as you go for growth!