Recently, I was speaking to a lay leader from a church who had a concern about a change she is seeing in the worship of her church. The congregational response is becoming more and more visible and expressive. People are clapping, lifting their hands, standing up during a presentational song, kneeling at the altar, and […]
Is There Room for the Unexpected in Our Worship? – by Mike Harland
I wish I had a nickel for every conference I’ve ever attended. They start to run together as I reflect on some of the experiences we have had leading and taking part in literally hundreds of conferences during my time at LifeWay. But I’ll never forget the last two.
4 Songs We Shouldn’t Forget About – by Mike Harland
We move on from songs really quickly these days. A song will come out of nowhere, take the church by storm, then fade away to be forgotten. As musicians, we move past songs much faster than our congregations do. Usually, by the time they feel like they know it well enough to really sing it, […]
Don’t Let Your Worship Team Become the “Cool Kids” – by Mike Harland
My son John was the first person I heard use the phrase, “Cool Kids.” He was serving on the Student Ministry staff of our church and would use the term to describe a certain group of students that would frequently isolate themselves from the rest of the students. They were an exclusive group that moved […]
The Greater Work – by Mike Harland
Prayer does not equip us for the greater works – prayer is the greater work. – Oswald Chambers Oh, how I wish I knew more about this. It seems that as the years go by, we get better at virtually everything we do. … better at managing a budget. … better at understanding technical […]
4 Warning Lights to Look for on the Dashboard of Your Life – by Mike Harland
I can’t really tell you why this is on my mind. It couldn’t be because I have one or two of these lit on my dashboard right now, could it? Nah. That’s not it. But, if our lives had a dashboard with warning lights, there are a few warning lights we would all do well […]
Fake Mike Harland – By Mike Harland
In the wacked-out world of social media, a phenomenon has developed that until recently, had happened to everyone else. It has become so common that platforms like Twitter have a process where an account can be certified to protect against the “fake” accounts that can pop up overnight and take over someone’s identity. In recent […]
3 Simple Actions That Will Expand Your Influence – By Mike Harland
Volunteer for Duty Churches call for volunteers all the time – a need for host homes for the DiscipleNow, or more adults to chaperone the Kid’s ministry event, or just someone to serve potatoes in the Church Supper line. It goes on and on. But, often worship ministry leaders take the position that we are […]
Prayer for the Christmas Production – By Mike Harland
Jesus said, “Without me, you can’t pull off the Christmas program.” Well, that’s not an exact quote but it does align with John 15 for sure. He is the vine, we are the branches, and we had better be totally connected with Him as we go through our Christmas music presentations if we desire for […]
3 Points of Focus for the Christmas Production Season – By Mike Harland
It’s the time of year when music ministries in many churches go into another gear. Those lingering days of November bleed into December and the countdown clock to the Christmas programs at church are staring us down. It can be a wonderful time, or an awful one. Here are three points of focus that […]
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