After the last worshiper exited the sanctuary, I went to the front to make some adjustments to what I thought was a visual masterpiece: a couple of pieces of foam core from which was cut a silhouette of the town of Bethlehem with strings of Christmas lights highlighting the silhouetted town.
Two church members joined me. She was the organist, and he was a regular member of council. Both were small in stature, but they were serious influencers in our neighborhood church. She with her hand to her chin and he with both hands behind his back, they asked me to tell them about my creation. They listened without interruption—like, really listened. When I finished, they thanked me for my contribution to worship and said they’d be looking forward to more.
I was probably a freshman in high school at the time, and my little town of Bethlehem wasn’t nearly as great as I thought. It was too small for the front of the sanctuary and lacked any sort of point besides it being Christmas.
Scale Is Important
I remember this experience because I learned an important lesson in scaling visuals for worship. Often the spaces where we gather are big, and often beginners’ designs are too small.
More importantly, though, I learned a lesson about the role encouragement plays in raising up church volunteers. Encouragement prompts talent to grow until it fits the scale of what a church might need. If you’re a pastor or worship leader, here are some tips for scaling up your encouragement.
- Don’t Stop Asking: Young people especially might need repeated requests to get involved. Start low-key and scale it up if you see any interest.
- Make Connections: People often lack confidence when they start to share creative ideas in front of a group of people. Leaders know lots of people in the congregation who might be a good mentor for a newbie. Please, get these people in touch with each other.
- More Than a Job: I don’t know if musicians feel this way too, but church artists and designers sometimes feel as if their work is an assignment, like the paid work they do during the week. Remember that art done for worship comes from the heart and is as much of an offering as the dollars we put into the offering plate.
- Constructive Criticism: Even if you’re not a seasoned artist or designer, you know something about worship, so don’t hesitate to teach us what you know so we can learn how to do our part better. If you see a problem, try to focus on the result (e.g., legibility) rather than dictating a fix (specifying your favorite font).
- Say Thank You: Maybe you don’t have the time or interest to learn everything artists might want to tell you about their work. That’s OK. But do remember to show your appreciation. It goes a long way.
Thank you for doing your part to make sure all members are given an opportunity to express their gifts in worship.