I’ve lead worship for 15+ years and, through the years, I’ve seen two kinds of services: easy services where it seems like God shows up instantly, and challenging services where every word sung feels like a battle to cut through. If you’ve been involved in leading worship, you’ve surely encountered these two different experiences. We all experience it. It’s the difference between the Sundays where you want to quit, and the Sundays where you remember why you do what you do. And I know I’m not the only person to have these days because John Revere discusses this as well. But in his discussion, He relays a key factor in overcoming this phenomenon. The key is reverence.

In John 4:23-24, Jesus states:

But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.
(John 4:23-24 ESV)

When you look at the Greek in this scripture, you find that worship is defined as “paying reverence to” and gives the picture of kissing the ground while laying prostate before an authority. This is a reverence that, I believe, is often forgotten in our leading of what is supposed to be that very thing: a laying down in humility before the one true God. In Acts 3:19-20, we see a link between repenting (returning our mind to the will of God) and times of refreshing in His presence. This is our playbook for leading worship: honor Him in the way He should be honored by returning our minds to His will, and He will refresh us in His presence.

Practically, what does this look like in a service context? The key is remembering to lead in reverence.

1. Plan songs of reverence

   Leading in reverence begins when planning the service. I don’t think there’s anything inherently wrong with selecting songs based on the pastor’s message for that service but it shouldn’t be a higher priority than reverence of the Lord. So plan songs that lead people in expressing the awe of the Lord. Some of my go-to type songs are songs that mimic Heaven’s worship found in scripture.

2. Lead the team in reverence

   When a common goal among a team is missing, the result can’t make it to the target. So, remind your team of why you’re here. Remind them that honoring Christ and acknowledging Him is above reaching the right notes, having the right tone, or hitting every cue perfectly (although each of these are important). Stress the importance of engaging with the audience of One.

3. Lead the room in reverence

   Sometimes, we can get caught up in the theatrics of the music and lights and forget that the congregation is there as a living instrument to worship God alongside us. With that in mind, communicating with and inspiring the congregation to revere the Lord can be a critical piece of preparing the way for those times of refreshing. Don’t forget to remind the congregation of why we’ve gathered — to revere the Lord.

As we continue with our upcoming worship sets, let’s embody and help develop a culture of reverence within our churches by intentionally planning for it and leading ourselves, our teams, and our congregations into it.