Keys To Becoming An Effective Worship Leader Chapter 2

I haved failed God so many times, so why do I deserve to worship him? This question is one that not just worship leaders battle with. Anyone who wants to worship will eventually struggle with this question. As worship leaders, it is easy for us to believe that because of our broken nature, we are not worthy to lead others in worship. Kraeuter says that he believes that the biggest struggle of any Christian is trying to fully comprehend the power of our God. We fail to understand just how powerful the Gospel is and we fail to believe in it fully. However, even though we constantly fail, God gave us a way to receive grace, and that's through Jesus death and resurrection. Jesus' blood washes away all sin and guilt. Kraeuter says, "The gospel does not just contain facts about the power of God, but it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes." The Gospel does not just save us from hell, but it also gives us forgiveness that we do not deserve. The best way to understand the power of God is living daily for him instead of relying on our own strength. If we make mistakes, we will not change by beating ourselves up but repentance to God will yield change. After all, God knew about your failures long before you were born, yet he still called on us to be his children. We will make mistakes again and our response may be to hide from God. However, if we could rely on ourselves to become perfect and sinless, Jesus death and resurrection would mean nothing. We can only be filled with the goodness of God once we understand his love for us.

I liked how this chapter is not just relevant to worship leaders, but also to anyone who feels like they have failed God in some way. However, Kraeuter encourages us by saying that God knows that we will fail, but he still loves us unconditionally and calls us into his kingdom. We have to believe that the Gospel is the power of God, not just facts about the power of God. We have to rely on him daily instead of  on ourselves. If we do this, then God will make changes in our lives and the lives of the people around us.

Keys to Becoming an Effective Worship Leader Chapter 1

In this chapter, Kraeuter starts by saying that his main purpose for leading worship was to thank God for saving him. However, he says that it is very easy to lose focus and worry more about how great worship sounds or about if you are playing the right part. It is easy to judge how good worship is based in the congregations reactions instead of what God wants to say through worship. As worship leaders we worry about if transitions are smooth and if our electric guitar player is playing the right solo. Eventually, the quality of worship deteriorates and instead of playing for God, we are playing for ourselves. It is most important that worship leaders focus on growing in their relationship with God instead of relying on the gifts God gave us to lead worship. Eventually, if we are not leading for God, we are simply wasting talent and time because God can take our abilities so much farther. If we are not filled by our relationship with God, how can we expect to give any genuine worship when we lead. Therefore, our anchor must remain in God.

My favorite part of this chapter was that we can all relate to being caught up in how great or how bad worship sounds. We fall into the trap of focusing more on technique and talent then on the one we should be worshipping, God. I agree that the most important thing a worship leader can do is focus on our relationship with God. I have often been told that you can only lead as far as you have been. How can we expect to lead someone in worship when we are faking a relationship with God? Instead, it is better to be genuine, grow closer to God, and let him be the center of our worship.