Today, we’ll look at the first three (of six) areas we should focus on in order to help Create Seamless Worship Services.
In Part 1 we looked at one important word we should consider when planning worship services.
Each of these ideas hinge on excellence.
Excellence.
While God doesn’t need us to accomplish His will,
He does WANT to use us.
Therefore, we should give Him our best in everything we do.
If you want to have FLOW in your worship services, you need to strive for excellence in several key areas.
1. Make It Better.
What do I mean by “it”? Whatever needs improvement.
It might be your Sound System, Vocals, Band, Lighting, Stage Design – anything that is a part of your worship service.
But excellence is more than just fixing problems. Everything can be improved. So constantly ask, “How can we make every area of worship better?” There is always room for improvement.
Two things must be done if you’re going to make it better. (Here’s more info on this from Andy Stanley.)
Evaluate.
Evaluate what you are doing right now – the good and the bad. Honestly ask yourself, “What are some things we need to make better?” Get feedback from people you trust.
Ask first time guests to fill out a survey of their experience. Ask your volunteers what they think is working and what’s broken. The feedback you receive might not be easy to hear, but if you want to get better you have to honestly evaluate every area of your worship.
Orchestrate.
After you evaluate each area, clearly define what needs improvement and the steps that should be taken to get better. Give attention to every detail.
The key to orchestrating is communicating clearly what the process is for each area. Make sure everyone on your team knows what you expect and how they can excel in their responsibilities. Help them understand, “this is how we do it here.”
2. Excellence In The Ordinary.
Everyone responsible for planning worship has “ordinary” things that have to be done each week; making copies, cleaning the stage, emailing schedules, communicating changes, putting together lyrics for the screens, etc.
These every week occurrences, although ordinary, are necessary when planning a quality worship service, and they shouldn’t be considered unimportant.
If you will spend the time to make these ordinary tasks EXCELLENT, you will see a noticeable shift in the FLOW of your worship.
Here’s a few things you can start doing today.
Exceed people’s expectations.
Put things back where they go.
Start rehearsal on time every week.
Handle your equipment with care.
Keep your stage clean and organized.
Use proper grammar in your communications.
Excellence in the ordinary will help you plan and execute quality worship experiences each week.
3. Attention To Detail
Some people are very detail oriented. Others are not. If you plan worship and are not detail oriented, I encourage you to find someone who is, and ask them to be your eyes. Ask them to point out details that need attention.
Details are often time consuming but they matter. The temperature of the room, rehearsal time, music in the correct key, how your team looks on stage – these are all details that if overlooked will make it difficult to create a seamless worship experience.
God deserves our best, especially when it comes to planning worship.
What are some ways you can make it better?
What ordinary things do you need to excel in?
Are there details you are overlooking?
Let’s chat about it in the comments.