Congregational Singing Through the Eyes of a Young Worship Pastor
I’m twenty-five years old. I recognize that to most people, that’s considered young. In searching for ministry openings at various churches, I often came across some raised eyebrows when my age came up. In reality, I am young, but I’ve been blessed to have a healthy amount of ministry experiences over the years. Those experiences came from a variety of sources, from a small church plant in one of the poorest areas of the country, to a contemporary congregation of about 400 in the middle of nowhere. Through all of these opportunities, I’ve been able to make some observations about congregational singing in many different settings, and in many different styles.
First, congregational singing is so critical to the life of the church. As such, it demands a certain amount of priority, especially over the preferences of the worship leader. I remember as a young worship leader, I had the opportunity to do some traveling, and lead worship for several youth events, revivals, camps, etc. Without fail, I neglected to consider the congregation that I was ministering to when I chose music. I had my preferences — songs that I connected with, or songs that were popular, whatever the case may be. Regardless of my reasoning, I explicitly remember choosing music that I liked, and paying no attention to what the church may or may not be familiar with, or comfortable with. That’s not such a bad thing when you’re talking about a one-off event, but then I served on staff for the first time. My philosophy didn’t change much. I tried to push a traditional church into modern worship, long before they were ready. I ripped the proverbial band-aid off. Our singing suffered, and in turn, so did our fellowship.
Second, some churches can just flat sing. I remember the very first church I ever worked with. It was a small church plant in a poor part of southeastern Kentucky. Most of the congregation was below the poverty line. It didn’t matter what music I chose, they sang. I could do hymns, modern music, southern gospel, and everything in between, and they’d sing it — with gusto. A few years later, I served a church that was full of middle-class families, mostly older (55+), and had been in the same church for generations. It was like pulling teeth to get them to sing much of anything. They loved “special music,” and would engage with a soloist, but not a congregational piece. I learned that yes, it’s important to encourage congregational singing in any way possible, but some churches are simply more musical than others — just like some people are more musical than others.
Third, a good worship pastor pays attention to the culture and climate of the congregation. For example, some weeks lend themselves towards a congregational lament, rather than songs of praise, especially following a community tragedy. Other times lean to praise and adoration, particularly surrounding a joyous occasion in the life of the church. The worship of the congregation must be occasional. When a church is mourning, it’s difficult to sing songs of exultation. When a church is celebrating a season of growth, or weekend of service, it’s much easier to sing praise.
Congregational singing is so important to the life and health of the church. As worship leaders, it’s our responsibility to be constantly improving our craft, to lead our churches better. This means observing and learning from our experiences. We learn the art of reading a congregation, and how to encourage our churches to sing. These are simply a few of the observations I’ve made in my few years of worship leadership.
