Resources for Your Worship Team from WorshipGod11: Leading, Songwriting, Tech

Last August at WorshipGod11 we offered 40 seminars for pastors, musicians, leaders, vocalists, instrumentalists, and tech teams. Today and tomorrow I’m posting the descriptions of a few that might serve you and your team in the coming year. Right clicking on the title will download the MP3, and of course, right clicking on the outline will get you the…outline.

Leading

Putting Songs Together – Bob Kauflin (outline)
Why do you choose the songs you do? What factors go into deciding whether one song is better to use than another? What’s the difference between lyrical flow and musical flow? How can we use songs to effectively care for people’s souls as they sing them? These questions and more are addressed in this important but often overlooked aspect of leading congregational worship. Whether you’re choosing an individual song or a group of songs, this seminar will give you criteria for doing it more effectively.

Making Room for the Spirit’s Leading – Pat Sczebel (outline)
This seminar is designed to increase your eager expectation for the active presence of God’s Spirit in your meetings. Pat looks at questions like, How do you help your church learn to expect and appreciate the spontaneous activity of the Spirit in your meetings? How do you guard against spontaneity becoming a faithless activity or a pursuit of experience? How can my church know more of God’s power and active presence when we gather?

Thinking Surgically While Leading Liturgically – Jamie Brown (outline)
Trying to lead worship in a liturgical church can feel like trying to paint in a straightjacket. But it doesn’t have to be that way. In this seminar Jamie explores ways worship leaders can work within the confines of a more formal liturgy, using music as a tool to help their congregations experience vibrant, Christ-centered corporate worship in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Theology, Doxology, and Sociology – Shai Linne
Our understanding of who God says He is, our praise to God, and our culture…how do they fit together? How can we reflect God’s plan for unity in diversity without compromising or watering down the unchanging truths of the gospel and God’s Word? In this seminar Shai Linne gives a biblical perspective on how to think about bringing glory to Jesus Christ in varied cultural contexts.

The Benefits and Limits of Creativity – Bob Kauflin (outline)
We owe a great debt to Christians through the years who have pushed the boundaries of what kind of creativity is beneficial when it comes to music in the church. But sometimes creativity can exceed biblical bounds, turning something helpful into something harmful. In this seminar, Bob describes ways to think about creativity that will fan into flame your creative spark, while leading both believers and unbelievers to leave our meetings saying not, “What great creativity,” but, “What a great Savior!”

Bringing Order Out of Chaos – Ken Boer (outline)
You’ve practiced your instrument, grown in your knowledge of God, sought the help of others, and committed your skills to the Lord. But as your team has grown, you find that you’re doing more and more administration and less and less music. What worked when the church was smaller isn’t working as well now, and you think you might need to make some changes on the team. This seminar is designed to offer biblical and practical ideas for the leadership, organization, and administration of a growing team.

Worshiping a Big God in a Small Church – Pat Sczebel (outline)
After serving on staff in large churches, Pat Sczebel has spent the last ten years helping to pastor and lead worship for a small church in Surrey, British Columbia. In this seminar he describes how to make the most of limited resources, how to maintain a strong faith in God’s plan, and how to serve with contagious joy.

Songwriting

Practicing and Planning Creativity (for songwriters) Mark Altrogge, Steve & Vikki Cook (outline)
Is waiting for God to give you a moment of inspiration the only way to write a song? Are there practices we can develop as songwriters that will foster and cultivate the creative spark? Based on a combined experience of 50 years of songwriting, Mark Altrogge and the Cooks share practical ideas and methods for becoming a more faithful and skillful songwriter.

Before and After – The Evolution of a Song – Mark Altrogge, Steve & Vikki Cook (outline)
Despite some great songs being written almost “spontaneously,” most great songs don’t start out that way. Humble and wise songwriters know that in the writing process any part of a song can be rewritten. In this seminar, the Cooks talk about what that process looks like along the way and build faith for making radical changes to your songs that will make them stronger.

What Makes These Songs Great? – Steve & Vikki Cook (outline)
Ever wonder why more people aren’t singing the songs you write? Maybe they’re missing some of the key elements that most great songs have. Steve & Vikki Cook take an in-depth look at a number of well-known worship songs and talk about what makes them so popular.

Worshiping God When Your World is Shaking – Craig Cabaniss (outline)
How do we worship God when our lives are falling apart? What does it mean that God is sovereign? What’s the difference between trusting that God is in control and being fatalistic? Craig Cabaniss addresses these questions and more as he seeks to help us cultivate a greater appreciation for the great and awesome God who reigns over all things.

Tech

Building and Caring for a Tech Team, PT1 – Dave Wilcox (outline)
Serving week to week behind the scenes on a tech team can be a challenging task. Long hours, little recognition, and a lack of volunteers can test the most faithful team. In this seminar, Dave Wilcox explores how Biblical motivation, ongoing care, and faithful leadership are essential to building a tech team that honors God through joyful serving.

Building and Caring for a Tech Team, PT2 – Dave Wilcox (outline)
Peaceful and joyful service on the tech team comes when the right people are serving in the right place with the right training and the right information. In this seminar Dave discusses ideas and practices to most effectively recruit, train, and deploy people on your team.