TWLL #54: Worship Leading & Seeing Yourself How He Sees You

read time: under 5 minutes

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I think all of us struggle to see ourselves accurately.  Whether it's thinking of ourselves too highly, not highly enough, or some combination- I think it's a universal challenge for everyone.

And I don't know for sure, but I wonder if being in a position like worship leading can amplify the struggle. 

I want to share a few thoughts today about being in a high profile position like worship leading, and seeing ourselves accurately.  

The Pedestal

When you lead worship at a church, you're in a more visible position, and you're seen as a leader.  

Not everyone, but many people will put you on a pedestal (some will do it subconsciously) for multiple reasons.

Maybe it’s because you have a position of leadership in the church, maybe it’s because of your musical talent and gifting, maybe it’s simply because they like it when you lead worship.

But regardless of the reason, and again whether they’re fully aware of it or not, you are elevated in their view.

This creates challenges for us, because yes when we’re honest with ourselves we know we’re just ordinary people with issues like anyone else— but at the same time if we’re constantly around people telling us how awesome we are and how much they love what we do, we can subconsciously start to adopt their view of us for ourselves.

The Penalty Box

But the challenges of being higher profile don’t end there.  It can also intensify the voice of our inner critic.

Having that many eyes on us can cause us to feel more pressure, and that if we make a wrong move we're sunk.

Internal fears like the idea that we're not enough, that we can't do this or that well enough, that we're not gifted or skilled enough- all of this can become louder in our minds, and the next thing we know it's almost like we’re internally living in this penalty box we’ve put ourselves in.

Seeing Ourselves The Right Way

What's the answer to this dilemma?  How do we get off the pedestal and out of the penalty box, and into the right head space of how we see ourselves?

It starts with Him.  It starts with the fact that He sees us accurately— not as more than we are, not as less than we are, but just as we truly are. 

And as we even attempt to step outside of our own limited perspective and into His, we start to realize one of the main things that is true about us.  And that is that we are loved.  

More specifically we are loved by Him— a lot.  And getting clear on this reality is where a healthy view of ourselves begins to form.

The thing that drowns out the applause of men and silences the voice of the inner critic is understanding how deeply we are loved by God.

Process

Understanding this idea can happen in a moment.  And being reminded of this reality when we forget, keeps our hearts pointed in the right direction. 

Becoming truly secure in His love- that is the journey and process of a lifetime.  

What are the steps that keep us moving down the path?  Multiple things, but 2 that stand out to me are 1) seeing the way that He loves people through the story of Scripture, and 2) literally asking Him for His perspective of ourselves.

As our understanding and experience of His love for us grows through the lens of His Word and the leading of His Spirit in our hearts, we're able to more quickly recognize when we're starting to swerve into the applause of the people or into the voice of our inner critic.  

And when we can even partially identify what's going on like that, then we're more easily able to re-center on the truth that God sees us as we are, that He deeply loves us, and that we too can see ourselves like this.

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Whenever you're ready, there are 2 ways I can help you: 

1. The Connection-Based Spontaneous Worship Course.  If spontaneous worship has been a struggle, you might want to check out Connection-Based Spontaneous Worship.  It's a self-guided, self-paced course that empowers you to lead spontaneous worship with confidence, enables your musicians to flow with you, and helps your room engage.  

2- Join A Zoom Group.  Every 3 months I host small zoom groups- one focused on worship leading and one on songwriting.  Each group meets once a week for an hour on Zoom over a 12-week period, as we walk through the process of learning to leading worship/write songs out of connection with Jesus.  For more details about the next upcoming zoom group, including schedule & cost, email me at [email protected]