New Song Series #6: The Goal and Purpose of Picking and Singing New Songs

What is the goal of introducing new songs? Is there thought that needs to go into it before they are picked? Yes. Does this song meet a need for your congregation? Is there thought that should go into rearranging them for your congregation? Yes! Some of the new songs that come out on the radio have a lot of cool parts that may be hard for some novice musicians to play, as well as too hard for the people to sing along. They may need to be adjusted to fit your congregation. There is nothing wrong with making a song your own or making it more playable and singable by making it your own.

Musicians need to be able to enter into the presence of God just like the singers and the congregation. If they are so caught up in concentrating on the technical parts of it the entire time, they might grow weary and or not enter in at all. Likewise, the worship team needs to feel ready and comfortable. Yes, a lot of practice goes into things behind the scenes, but we also need to make adjustments to fit personal needs so we can enter in. Music Directors may change the melody line to fit the vocal range of their group or have everyone sing a line in unison because it makes what is being sung feel stronger. It might be just what the congregation needs. After all, our true purpose in leading worship is to serve the local church.

The goal is for the new song to be sung so that the people can enter in and feel the presence of God. If you are thinking about adding new songs, listen to the arrangement. Seek to arrange for simple chorus and versus. Bridges are good too, but often the radio songs are very tricky and leave people wondering when, where, and how to sing. Sometimes we lose people when we go off and do some cool part. If we do that, we have missed the purpose of why we are there. We are not there to lead our people into the dust, but to let them come up to the high mountain of God of with us.

Remember to lay your pride down. What is best for the people? If the intro drags and the congregation does not respond, cut it and change it. What if you can’t play the intro like they do on the CD? Can you put your pride aside and adjust it for the people? That would be better than just cutting the song, a song that you picked because your people needed to hear and sing the lyrics to be encouraged and led closer to God. Do you sing songs because they are your favorites and you pick them without considering the needs of your congregation, then you need to pray about this too.

Sometimes we think the elaborate is what the people want, but often they want to be able to feel apart and join in like a camp fire sing along. When we all get together and sing and praise in unity, mighty things happen!

New Song Series #5- Out with the Old and in with the New

I invite the presence of the Lord to fill our homes, our rooms, our hearts, our minds, and our souls with new life. Will you join me? For some, this will be a difficult entry to read and frightening ground to consider. Our flesh resists the moving of God, and if God is moving, He is moving on our behalf. Our feet have to be willing to go, or we will be stuck. This means letting go of things, stuff, positions, etc.

We have to want the new and allow the Lord to move out the old. I was helping a friend move today. She had a bed that was over 20 years old. She was holding on to it and did not want to sell it, though she had no place to store it. It represented the “thing, things, and or her old life” she had and could hold on to. It represented her past, which was broken like so many of us who are reading this.

When we are in between the old and new, we can sense what is familiar to us and stay in a pattern of limbo or worse yet, stay stuck in the past. But folks, when I looked at the furniture, it was in terrible shape. It was beyond repair and time to give it away or sell it. This was a revelation to me. Often when we are stuck in the old, we don’t know we are stuck, but people on the outside can see we are stuck. This is what I saw today. I could see as an outsider the true condition of the bed and bedroom set. This is what we need. God can provide this spiritual vision or people who are close to us can call a situation for what it is. Even my husband told her to let it go. Letting go of this object is a big step of faith. I believe that she is getting a new life and second chance. I ask God to give you revelation right now. If you want to move on in God, you have to have the new song. Out with the old and in with new, I say!

If this is what your life looks like, you need to let it all go and ask the Lord to give you a new song, a new life. Again, I invite the presence of the Lord to fill our homes, our rooms, our hearts, our minds, and our souls with new life. Will you join me? For some, this will be a difficult and frightening to consider. Our flesh resists the moving of God, and if God is moving, He is moving on our behalf. Our feet have to be willing to go, or we will be stuck. This means letting go of things, stuff, positions, etc. It's time!

New Song Series #4: Come Prepared; Come Expecting!

This week as I was walking off the platform, I heard the words “come expecting; come prepared” dropped into my spirit. I stopped at the nearest seat and jotted down those words. I ran to the restroom, imbibed, and reflected on these nuggets. Then I returned to my seat, jotted down a few more things, and settled into Pastor Keith’s message. Here is what transpired between the restroom and tuning into Pastor Keith’s message. When I fled to the restroom and took the opportunity to listen to the flood God was pouring in me, there were two major areas of this download from heaven: preparation and expectation.

In the area of preparation, God was reminding me that if I want the new song and the fresh move of God, I have to be prepared before I lead the congregation into the high mountain of praise. I am NOT talking about making sure one knows how to sing, play, and for the leader’s sake, lead the songs, but it is much more than that. These are the obvious! But are you behind the scenes asking God to move in a fresh way throughout the week and yes, right up until service starts? Is this just for the leader or the entire team? He is looking for more dedication and abandonment from all of His ministers. I told the Lord I am “all in” and ready to go to the next level. This means I have to give myself to more prayer. I have to be fresh too. This means that I have to deal with the bad stuff that creeps in, and I have to surrender my heart to Him. The closer I get to God; the closer I believe the people will get to God. After all, my ministry unto the Lord is an overflow and out pouring of what he is already doing.

Regarding expectation, the Lord told me to expect to see Him move. Expect healings and deliverances. Pray and ask God ahead of time for these things, to look for them when I am leading, and to expect them to manifest. Expect His presence to fall. Expect Him to meet his people a fresh. Expect to hear the new song breaking out! Expect to hear new and vibrant praise!

So, again the key is fresh oil from heaven. Prepared and pray for that oil and believe that He will pour it out on His house and on His people. Expect it! If you don’t prepare, one cannot truly expect. There are no short cuts. God is looking for worship teams that are willing to expose their heart cries to Jesus in the public; however, this would be a result of what was done in the secret with Jesus that week. Are you ready to seek God, prepare for his out pouring, and expect Him to move? If so, commit yourself to seeking, praying, Reading His word, praising, and worshiping Him more. Give Him all of yourself. Let heaven touch earth.