Discover Top Posts Tagged with #isaiahbarker

How to Worship as a Worship Leader While On Stage

A topic arose during a discussion with a mentor of mine who leads worship at our church. We posed this question to each other: "How do YOU worship as a worship leader while on stage?"

It's a topic that I've been digging into for at least a good six months, and I figured it's time to write my thoughts.

First, I want to talk about the "stage or platform." This platform is often different depending on where you are. Identifying who my audience is, and the broader setting I am leading, in really helps guide me on how I worship. If it's Sunday morning and I am leading a 4-piece band and they are a familiar congregation, then my role as a worship leader will look very different than if I am huddled in a circle in a friend's living room singing and sharing together with some of my closest brothers and sisters.

I firmly believe that my most heartfelt and committed times of musical worship has not been on stage, and for good reason. In fact, the times where I break down in total praise and adoration (worship) is in my bedroom alone, singing and crying out lyrics that have been placed in my heart and on my lips by the Holy Spirit. Sometimes, this worship occurs as I drive home after a night of work while thinking about the day and praying.

Here's why that kind of worship experience doesn’t often happen while I’m leading others in worship. It's literally because it can be a distraction

1. Distraction: If I were in the congregation and the person on stage fell to his knees crying and clearly creating a dramatic scene that drew my attention off of Jesus and on to him, questions would pop up in my head:

A. My attention would be drawn to trying to figure out what is going on in his personal life that was making worship all about him. Probably, those things should have been addressed with God prior to coming on stage to lead others.

B. So, what happens now? How do we get our focus back on Christ? I would assume that most would be uncomfortable or may even be feeling a bit of awkwardness.

C. Others may even questions about whether his or her worship is genuine.

When the focus switches to us, God is not getting the full attention He deserves and asks of us. Christ simply states this in the context leading up to what we call 'The Lord's Prayer.' In fact, all of Matthew 6 deals with this sort of hypocrisy.

“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you." (Matthew 6:5-6 ESV Emphasis added)

2. Appropriateness: Our job as leaders is to...lead! Facilitate. Bring people Jesus. Our position is a humble one. We must humble ourselves in a sacrificial sort of way—we step back, let God use us in such a way that others are able to focus on God. He is the One that is to be glorified.

Using the example in point one, if that worship leader fell to his knees for the sake of worshiping his God while alone and in his private worship time, it would be a different story.

I heard a great analogy from my mentor that he also heard some time back.

We are to be like the Palm Sunday donkey.

What do we know about the donkey? NOT MUCH! Jesus chose this young, unridden donkey. In a paraphrase, the text says "Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem on a donkey." So what was the role of this donkey? Answer: He brought the people Jesus. And in correlation, what is the role of the worship leader? Bring the people Jesus! We do not know much about the donkey, but what we do know and see is that Jesus needed to use him, the donkey obeyed God’s leading, and people glorified God!

So what does that look like for us? Well, I guess an appropriate question would be: How do we facilitate people in a way that is God-glorifying, self-reducing and brings them to Jesus?

Here are some things I do that help me stay focused and engaged in worshiping my God while on stage, yet still facilitating the congregation.

1. OBSERVE. There is something about looking out at familiar faces that have their eyes shut and their hands high. Or, hearing that guy singing in the back who understands what it means to make a joyful noise to the Lord with complete abandon. Or, seeing the man standing next to his wife and holding his two-year-old baby girl singing to her "Spirit make us one church!" These things automatically align my heart with a sense of what God is doing in the room.

2. PRAY. Prayer is worship. Prayer is crucial before stepping foot on that stage. It's important at any time, all the time.

3. SCRIPTURE. Reading from the Word of God can be worship. Refresh your heart before, during, and after your set.

4. WRITE. I have personally found that I am more engaged when I’m singing a song that the Spirit has allowed me to write; whether it's about what God has been doing in my life or if it's been written for the unity of the congregation.God has often broken through to me on and off stage with the way He uses the songs He’s given to me during my personal times of worship.

These are just some things that have been helpful for me, and I hope they can be helpful to you.

So here are some questions to ponder:

1. How do you worship as a worship leader on stage?

2. What are the differences for you when leading worship, practicing, and while alone?

3. Are you a better representation of the "hypocrites" that Jesus talks about in Matthew chapter 6, or do you "pray to your Father who is in secret?"

4. How do we facilitate people in a way that is God glorifying and self-reducing?

#worship #worshipleader #Isaiahbarker

Worshipping in Spirit and Truth (Let's Clear Things Up)

My aim here is to be concise and to the point. Many are confused on this topic, even though it seems to be talked about a lot, and I think that's the case because it's much harder to be done than it is to be said.

"God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." (John 4:24 ESV)

5 Things About Worshipping in Spirit and in Truth:

1. Spirit: (a) The Holy Ghost: We cannot worship God without His Spirit interceding. He must be there to produce the true worship. We must be saved through the blood of Christ and receive the Holy Spirit. The foundation of one's true worship is salvation. (b) Passion: Worship is not by any means an external action. It comes from within, in the spirit. There must be authenticity, passion, zeal, love, affection, adoration, and humility as we approach our God to bring Him praise and glory.

2. Truth: God's Word. We need it. Simply put.

3. Word of God: We must be committed and faithful to His Word.

4. Offering: An offering up of ourselves. Denying and dying to ourselves.

5. Freedom: God allows it and does not force us. We are always worshipping. But with an overflowing love for God and His Word is where worship should come from.

"The nature of worship, then, is to offer God worship from the depths of our inner being in praise, prayer, song, giving, and living, always based upon His revealed truth. The person who would worship God must therefore have a faithful commitment to the Word of God. Worship does not happen by a zap out of heaven that makes us fall down. It is the overflow of our understanding of God as He has revealed Himself in the Scriptures. That is worshiping in spirit and in truth."

- John MacArthur - Worship (The Ultimate Priority) p. 164

I hope these were helpful to you in your walk and journey. Worship the Lord!

- Isaiah Barker

- isaiahbarker.com

#worship #Isaiahbarker #johnmacarthur #spirit and truth

5 Things To Consider Before Pressing Play

Before you press play on the new worship album you just bought, I invite you to consider...

#1. Consider the writer(s).

Do you know the writer(s) of the song? Maybe you don't know them on a personal level, but you may have followed their career. What situations have they gone through? What songs have they written, and why? How have they impacted your life thus far?

#2. Consider the title.

You're about to click on a track titled "Amazing Grace" that you've never heard before. Think about why it's titled the way it is.

Listeners don't tend to realize how difficult it is sometimes to take the theme of the song and every line into consideration and hash out a two-worded titled. Which brings me along to my next point.

#3. Consider the lyrical content.

Before you hear three verses, a pre chorus, a catchy melody, and a thriving bridge, the writer(s) may have spent HOURS hashing out the lyrics. By the time you get to hear the final track, it may have been the 18th version the writer(s) wrote. Allow me to put you a songwriter's mind for a minute.

A song does not always start with - in fact, it is probably even more rarely - a shining ray of inspiration. #1. We start with an idea. For example - "Grace." #2. We prepare for our "sermon." Just as a pastor spends a whole week plus practically most of Friday or Saturday to prepare his sermon, songwriters do the same. The only major difference is writers will most likely have 2-20 songs on their mind at once. So we grab our Bible, pen and paper, computer, that book we've been reading and marking up on the topic of grace, and all the commentaries we can find. Sit at the desk and write. #3. We write, write, write, write, and write till we THINK we have a final product. #4. We edit our song. #5. We have other people edit our song. #6. We edit our song again. #7. More people help with the song. #8. We get approval from our mentors and pastors. #9. We share it with our congregation. #10. We tweak it even more due to how the congregation received the song. #11. We lead it again. #12. We make a demo. #13. We get input on the demo. #14. We make another demo. #15. We record and try finalizing it before it gets into your hands and ears.

My friends, it's a very long process.

#4. Consider the message.

Now thinking through all of that, press play. Listen to the content. Maybe read the words along with the listen. Play it another time or two.

#5. Consider the beauty.

Musicianship, authenticity, creativity or whatever you would like to call it is very much a part of the hard work a writer puts into a song. Consider how the song makes you feel during and after the listen. Does it inspire you to do something or behave a certain way? The beauty/rhythm/and mood of the song can very much portray what the author(s) want you to know and how they want you to feel.

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So... writing music isn't easy.

It's not the glamorous lifestyle that you see performers have on stage. In most aspects it's a very brutal process. But, I think every song writer can attest to this:

There is nothing better than using the gifts the Lord has given to us and working hard on writing a song that glorifies the Lord.

- Isaiah Barker

#Writing #songwriting #Isaiahbarker #lists #worship

I'm Writing Again!

I have been curious to see how this would play out. These past couple months writing has been on a decline in my life. I was initially making excuses like: "Well, I'm putting all my creative efforts into my worship album." or "I don't want to just write another song, but I want it to be really thoughtful and genuine."

Although I still think that those excuses are part of it, it became evident that the problem was a matter of the heart... my heart.

Songwriting became more important to me than His Word and His Church, the foundations of which He writes through me the most. It was a hard realization for me.

So, I took some time off. A fasting from writing if you will. Replacing those times of writing, listening and playing with reading, praying and seeking. It wasn't necessarily that it was my heart's desire to stop writing, but it was because my heart's desire was and is to obey the Lord and worship Him alone.

I was afraid of the turn out of this "break." I read a short story from a Hillsong worship songwriter and how he took two months off from writing. He found that it was extremely difficult to get back into the swing of writing again.

So on one hand, I thought is was going to be like that. But, now it seems like that is not the case. My God is the God of blessings. And He continues to bless me everyday. And one of those ways is allowing me to write and sing songs to Him.

So here are two songs that I wrote (one today and one yesterday) that have been written about what has been going on in my head and heart.

Enjoy! I'd love to hear back from you.

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Myriads of Angels - Isaiah Barker

And this is true that myriads of angels

Worship You on their knees, yes they fall

So You don’t need my callous acts of worship

And who am I to sit here without reverence

You’re deserving of all praise

And worthy is Your matchless name

Yes You’re deserving of my praise

So I will give You all my all

Yes I will give You all my all

The angels sing, "Worthy is the pure Lamb

Who was slain to receive all wisdom

And all wealth, receiving might and power

With all blessing, all glory and all honor."

I give my worship, my praise, my all to You

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You Are Worthy - Isaiah Barker

We come before You seeking rest

But truly here to give our best

Despite our pain give us Your joy

That we may offer You our voice

For You are worthy

You are God, our Lord,

Righteous King, above all things

Yes Three in One,

Lord of man and Lord of everything

You’re a God who wants our all

Our worship, praise, and all our songs

Everything here is worthless

Unless we give to You our best

For You are worthy

#isaiahbarker #Worship #writing

My lady draws these doodles and today she drew one from a song that I wrote. I love her.

#Isaiahbarker #evennow #worship

#spiritreign #Isaiahbarker

Priorities...

I bought a book!

Now, if you know me then you know that I am not the best with fully reading a book. I've tried countless times - only to succeed less than a handful. In light of yesterday's post, I bought a book on worship by John MacArthur called Worship - The Ultimate Priority. The goal here is to turn a new leaf; a leaf of true obedience and true spiritual seeking.

The title is perfect in my current situation: dealing with what is most important to me. And when it comes to my faith, what really matters to me? What are my priorities?

This book will cover a number of topics that I am excited about, such as: How we should worship; Worshiping as a way of life; Worshiping the Father; Worshiping in Spirit and in truth; and Worship as it was meant to be.

I don't want this to be another book I get lazy with and put down three chapters in. My hope and prayer is I grow. I feel that I will.

Ask Yourself:

I think this question is enough for our pondering. Feel free to respond, I'd love to here from you.

1. Is worship the ultimate priority in my life?

#Isaiahbarker #worship #johnmacarthur

Intentions

I’ve been experiencing a period of very minimal song writing lately. I haven’t understood why this has come about or if anything in particular triggered this. I’ve wondered if God is trying to teach me some sort of lesson during this frustrating down time. But I do know this—I don’t like it.

Today, like most days, I was reading the Word of God. Reading the Bible is essential to the Christian faith, essential to a worship leader, and definitely essential to a worship songwriter. During my reading, I realized something. I was looking for content to jump out at me which would trigger me to write a song. That’s good, but there’s more to it than that. When I wasn’t getting what I was looking for in my reading of the Scripture I put it down and closed the cover, only to be opened again tomorrow. Something was wrong and I knew it. I sat back and thought about it. “How many times have I done that before,” I questioned? A bit of heaviness came over me as I realized what the problem was.

Well, I’d been wondering why I’d been experiencing a slow decline in my song writing but during time of pondering and praying, God helped me to understand the reason. The answer was found in my own self-serving purposes. My intentions in reading the Bible had not been that of seeking God’s rest, insight, wisdom and peace. As a result, I was not growing in my understanding of His amazing love for me. My so-called Bible study had been solely for the purpose of receiving lyrical content. It had become just about me.

Romans 8:5-8 says,

“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”

If my aim is to please and worship God, and write songs for Him, then I must not do that by sole effort. If I am living in the flesh then I cannot please God!

This week I will strive to relearn what it means to rely on God for all that I do.