When Jesus calls us to follow Him and serve Him, He makes it very clear that we are to be fully committed to Him. Now, I know that word, "committed", is not a popular word in the 21st century, but Jesus' expectation hasn't changed. I literally sometimes get amused at people who have committed to serve by leading worship as they say, "Well, too much is expected of us". Sometimes, I kind of smile inside and think; "What is too much?". For the same people, what the civic club, the band boosters, or the sports teams demand or expect is not too much. It is amazing how quickly we can become more committed to other things which will pass, as opposed to serving in the kingdom, which will not pass.
I am truly thankful we have so many in our worship leading choir, worship teams, worship band, worship orchestra and our worship support team who take their commitment seriously, as to what they have been called to do. It makes all the difference in our worship as a church. Want to share some spiritual principles from Mark Epperson's book that give guidance to our commitment. Because of space, I pray you will look up the passages.
1. We are not singing and playing because we are good. (Eph. 2:4-10; Titus 3:5-6) It's God's goodness and grace that allows us to represent Him in spite of our imperfections.
2. Being seen or recognized is not our goal. (John 3:30; Psalm 40:3) Our goal is for Christ to be seen.
3. We are not the stars. (II Cor. 4:5; Col. 1:18) The star is Christ Jesus; He has first place in all of it.
4. Confess our faults. (James 5:16) As the sign in the choir room says, Pobody is nerfect. We don't need to make lame excuses if failing in our commitment, we ask God to give us the strength to follow through. We need to keep one another informed when there is a problem to overcome. We are in this together and grow in grace together.
5. Our music doesn't determine our success. (I John 3:23; Phil. 1:9--11) Millions of folks can produce music. Our success is dependent on our love and commitment to Him and directing people to Him in worship. That is servanthood.
6. God is a God of order, not confusion. (I Cor 14:40; John 4:24) We should be accountable to one another in being faithful, punctual, dependable, and flexible. Structure and order are important in our personal lives and our worship within Biblical guidelines.
7. God deserves our best. (Matt. 5:16) God gave His best in Christ; He deserves our best. We should not offer Him anything that costs us nothing. Rehearsing faithfully and joyfully in preparation for what He has called us to is a must.
8. Our participation in this ministry makes us ministers; we will be the recipients of God's goodness, but also Satan's attacks. ( II Cor. 4:1-6; E[he. 6:12; John 10:10) As worship leaders - expect spiritual warfare.
9. Participation in the ministry of worship and music is not a substitute for Bible study, tithing, or serving as God leads in other functions of the church. (Heb. 10:24-25) Personal spiritual growth and service is so important to our worship leading.
10. Support your leaders. (I Tim 2:1-3; Heb. 13:17) We should be faithful to pray for and support those who lead us. When we have concerns, we should go and communicate maturely and honestly at an appropriate time.
Thanks to those who lead worship faithfully among the First Family! "As for me and my house . . . we will serve the Lord!" mjm
