From Danny Graham serving in Keiser, AR
QUESTION: Prayer?
Can you give me some things you pray for during the week or before each service about your leading in worship?
RICK MUCHOW:
The Bible is clear that we should pray in all things without ceasing, and yet how easy it is for us to rush through our prayers or pray out of repetition not from our hearts. . . At any point when we cease to pray during the planning, production and presentation of worship, we are on shaky ground.
I start by praying about what songs to do, who to have serve during that weekend, and the worship flow. This is a Thursday thing for me, 9 days before the first of the weekend services I'm starting to plan through. I work to get connected to my Powersource. I want to be in my place as a branch connected to His Vine.
Next, in preparation for the weekly Tuesday rehearsal, I start with prayer for God's guidance to help me plan the rehearsal outline which includes every detail and element of the rehearsal: devotion, prayer time, worship, fellowship and learning music.
At Tuesday rehearsal, we begin with prayer, break into prayer teams to pray together in the middle of rehearsal, and end with prayer. The opening prayer is a general covering of the rehearsal with thanksgiving and a dedication of the rehearsal to God. The prayer teams are at most 3-5 choir members praying for each other's specific needs for about 10 minutes of total time. The ending prayer thanks God for the rehearsal and for each other, asking guidance throughout the week to help us be worshippers beyond the Sunday services.
From Wednesday through Saturday, I ask God to direct me as a leader and in working to serve our volunteers, other pastors and staff. I ask God for vision so that I can see how He wants to lead the ministry.
Finally, before we lead at the first of the weekend services, we pray at the sound check, asking God to be the Lord of our lives and we dedicate the services to Him. It's all about Him, not about us. I ask specifically that many people will come to know Him and that He will use us, the worship team, to help connect the congregation to Him. I have overlooked this prayer before sound check in the past, only to find that we can accomplish so much more with the Spirit's help than in our/my own strength.
Prayer is a key to team unity and effective worship leading which is empowered by the Holy Spirit.
