55%
November 18, 2009
In preparing training for our worship teams recently, I came across a startling definition of communication.
COMMUNICATION:
15% – content
30% – tone or emotion
55% – body language
There is was, 55 %, the ammunition that I needed to convince our teams that they simply have to invest more time preparing so they can be more expressive on stage. When reviewing our services on video, I still see frowns and unsmiling faces which communicate that they don’t believe what they are singing and playing.
It sometimes feels fake or as if I am asking for a performance to teach about stage presence in church, but I feel we must. A performer makes it all about themselves, a lead worshiper makes it all about God. I feel compelled to help them embrace this definition of communication.
If the definition holds true, and I feel it does, than our content can be completely lost in the delivery. There are times that we have worked to choose just the right songs to support the Pastor’s teaching, prayed over them, convinced that they were God’s choices – only to find that they seemed to fall on deaf ears with our congregation.
As I review our services on video each week, the biggest difference I see is in the delivery. When the team looks distracted, under prepared or unhappy the congregation just stands there.
I direct our services. But, I force myself to remove my head set and walk up front and worship during our final service each weekend. My worship is directly affected by the team leading. I am either encouraged, by their body language and emotion to join in – or, when their body language distracts from the content of a song, I close my eyes avoiding distraction.
That is what my training will try to convince them of: the CONTENT, EMOTION and BODY LANGUAGE all have to match to look authentic in worship. People cannot hear the content unless your body language supports what you are saying. You cannot sing “Praise to the Lord” and frown!
The second part of the training I will be doing is to let them watch a silent sample of our 4 worship teams.
What better way to see if your leading is distracting, then to watch yourself in silence. This is brutal evaluation! No beautiful melody to fall back on, no amazing guitar skills to mask what isn’t happening on your face. Just your silent body language.
I pray God will use my time with our teams to encourage them to live out their love for Him on stage!
I count it my privilege and responsibility to continuously look for ways to lead our teams to a higher level of connection with our congregation and our Lord.
I would love to know, do you teach stage presence to your teams? Why or why not?
Related posts:
- 10 Tips for Worship Leaders: How to Enhance On-Stage Presence
- Letters to Leaders, Vol. 2
- Engaging Youth in Worship- Give Them Ownership
- A Humorous Communion Lesson
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when i was younger our worship leader would push us to smile, smile, smile. It was frustrating at first because sometime it's hard to focus and smile, or i felt fake. I'm sure you've heard it all, but today i'm glad to have had that influence on my life, and preach the same thing to my team.
I think those were great thoughts! Probably the biggest key is their preparation. I know my body language is only as good as my confidence in not being tied down to the music.
Also, I am always encouraging all of our musicians to stop and think about the music. As musicians, we love the "sounds" we are making, but at times forget about the lyrics themselves and just who it is we are singing to!
Communication is more than a forced smile. It is the overflow of what is already taking place in our hearts with no fear of what someone might think.
Great article!!!
I am going to use those stats myself. I try to convey to the singers that standing there with your arms folded has a damaging effect on the worship. I try to tell them to smile and worship. I noticed that at times they will worship more from the congregation than when they are on stage.
We are worshippers! We are pentacostal worshippers! We should be raising our hands, clapping, dancing and so on, and instead it looks like "well my name was on the schedule, I guess I have to be up here." It drives me crazy. Only problem with the singers, the musicians worship with their body language just fine.