Preparation

People have asked me in the past how it’s possible to worship lead, sing and play guitar at the same time; so here is my thought

It’s impossible to focus on all three things all at once; something will demand your attention more than the other. You will be in auto pilot for 2 out of the 3 and one will have the majority of your attention.

Think about when you are driving a car. When you first start out, it has your full attention. Then with practice you become more competent and confident in what you are doing, that you can listen more intently to the person talking to you, or the music that’s playing or even going over the list of things to do that you have already formed in your mind. When the traffic gets dangerous or the weather gets bad, you shift your focus to your driving because it is more important.

For me it’s the same with music. I can sing and play guitar at the same time while leading people into worship, but it comes down to a lot of practice. If I don’t know the melody of the song that well, it will be my main focus and I won’t lead as well. If I don’t really know the chords to the song, my singing might not be as good and my leading will suffer as well. I need to practice the songs so well that I can sing and play on autopilot allowing me to maintain my primary focus on God and seeing people enter into a place of worship themselves.

When worship is on autopilot, I know as a leader, I’ve fallen short on the best that others could have experienced. Practice takes time, effort and skill. If I have the basics right, I allow space for God to use me to do what He really wants to do, speak into the hearts of His people.