How to Lead A Service

### Episode Summary: "How to Lead a Service"

In this episode, the host dives deep into the often overlooked but essential role of a service leader in church. Leading a service is typically one of the first responsibilities given to new ministers, but it is rarely taught or fully explained. The host highlights that the service leader's job is not just to get through the preliminaries but to create a smooth, spiritually-led flow that builds up to the main event—the preaching of the Word.

Key points discussed include:
- **Purpose of the Service Leader**: The role is not just about moving from one event to another (like prayer, offering, or announcements) but about creating a cohesive and engaging worship experience that leads the congregation toward the sermon.
- **Pre-Service Preparation**: Living a life that represents God and the church well, being Spirit-led, and arriving at the service prayed up are crucial to effective leadership.
- **Service Flow**: Every aspect of the service—prayer, worship, and announcements—should be done with a focus on building anticipation and expectation for the preaching. Avoid "sneaker preaching," excessive humor, or distractions that detract from the flow.
- **Involvement**: Even after the service ends, a service leader should stay engaged with the congregation, offering fellowship and connection.

### Key Insights:
1. **Preaching is the Main Event**: The sermon is the focal point of a regular church service. The service leader’s role is to guide the congregation through the preliminary activities while keeping the focus on preparing for the Word.
2. **Spirit-Led Leadership**: Being attuned to the Holy Spirit is vital. The service leader must be flexible, understanding that while there is an order of service, it can change depending on the spiritual flow.
3. **Preparation Matters**: A service leader should arrive spiritually prepared, having prayed both at home and before the service to set the right tone.
4. **Fellowship After the Service**: A leader’s role extends beyond the pulpit. Post-service fellowship and connection with the congregation are equally important to building trust and community.

### Actionable Tips:
- **Stay Warm and Engaging**: When leading a service, avoid awkwardness, and make sure to be yourself. Look out across the congregation and engage with them.
- **Avoid Overselling the Preacher**: When introducing the preacher, speak positively but avoid making exaggerated statements, which can make the preacher uncomfortable.
- **Lead by Example**: Whether in prayer or worship, be the first to engage so the congregation can follow your lead.

### Quotes for Social Media:
- "The job of a service leader is not just to get through the preliminaries, but to build anticipation for the main event—the preaching of the Word."
- "Preaching is the main event, not the altar call. The altar call is the dessert, but the Word is the meal."

### SEO-Friendly Keywords:
Service leader, church leadership, Spirit-led worship, leading prayer, church preliminaries, service flow, preaching importance, church worship, effective service leadership, church service tips.

This episode provides valuable insights for anyone stepping into the role of a service leader, emphasizing the need for spiritual preparedness, smooth transitions, and a focus on the Word of God. It is a must-listen for both new ministers and regular congregants who want to understand the flow and structure of a church service.

Transcript

 Today's episode is titled how to lead a service.  

This is a, I think this is an interesting topic. I think it's a very needed topic. It's not one that is generally. I taught across the board.  It's I think it's very needed. And why is it needed? Because leading a service is often the first place a new minister gets used.  You know, when when a new minister says.  

I want to be used. The Pastor will say. Okay, get up there and open up the service. Take up offering. 

But very seldom. Does he actually tell you how to do it? He expects that you've been paying attention. And realistically, you probably have not been paying attention.  

And even worse, even if he tells you how to do it. You know, it tells you, okay. Lead us in prayer. Okay.  Make eye contact, whatever.  I don't believe.  That the purpose is often truly expressed.  And so that's what we're going to talk about today. A service leader is not there just to get through the preliminaries.  



Not everyone likes that word preliminary, but it's actually not a bad word. 

What do preliminaries mean? That were well, there's two definitions. The first one can be offensive. Something that precedes another item of a similar kind. That kind of.  Makes minimum minimizes the importance. But there's another definition and event that precedes the main event.  That to me. Gives the service leader, a better purpose. Prayer is important. 

Offering is important in worship is important. Your announcements are important, but those are not the main event.  Not of your regular church service. If you're having a prayer service in your prayers, your main event. If it's a singspiration and you know, They're worshiping your worship is your main event. If it's a fundraiser, then your offering is your main event. 

But if it's a regular church service, Then none of those are your main event.  And I want to say something here and make you think about it. The altar calls, not even your main event.  The altar calls is, is the desert.  

You know, think about that. What would happen if every time you come to church?  The spirit balls out and you go straight to altar call.  Eventually a pastor's going to have to get up there and not have worship, and he's going to do what he's going to open up that Bible and he's going to have to preach.  Because God chose the foolishness of preaching. The preaching is the main event. 

The word of God is the main event.  Not what.  We not, not what we can get out of it, but what he has to say.  And that's really two different things.  The altar call against the result of everything, but that's just the cherry on top. We, we need to focus on getting to the preaching. The job of the service leader is not just to get through the preliminaries, but the fullest through the preliminaries. To build up to the preaching.  The service should not be clunky. 

Everything should flow. These are not individual events. When you get up there, you're not there just to do, offering, just to do prayer. But you're there to segue into the next you're there to flow into the next.  I want today's podcast to also be useful for anyone, not just a service leader, but just a regular person who attends church, because I wanted to maybe give you an appreciation for what's expected in a service.  So today we're going to break down the parts of the service.  And to make sure that this is not just my input.  I asked. Other pastors. And this is a culmination of many different pastors inputs in their ideas of what they expected. From a service leader. And I will admit.  That when I was putting this.  Podcasts together. That I would have to say that I'm not a good service leader or at least I have not been and I would like the opportunity to lead a service so I could do it better.  So I'm not here to claim to be.  The best and.  In the past. But I have a new sense of. Passion and burden for it because I feel it can be done better.  



So here we go. 

This is our collect. This is a collective effort.  In number one.  

The very first thing that a service leader must comprehend and must accomplish. Is to live a life that represents well, You must represent God, you must represent your church. You must represent the leadership. Be someone privately that people can follow publicly.  It matters.  It matters how you live your life. 

It matters what you do.  It matters how you dress. You got. Look respectful. You got to look up. Appropriate.  Represent. Well,  first and foremost.  Secondly be spirit led.  

W we. We are not bound to a schedule. Just because we have an order of service does not mean we're stuck to the order of service. We need to be spirit led. Now here's the trick to that. You have to live a life.  That gives you the ability to follow the spirit. You need know what that spirit sounds like. You need to know how to follow in how to obey the spirit. 

So that's not just something that magically happens. That comes from experience that comes from practice and that comes from faith. So that is a lifestyle.  You have to do what it takes to hear and know that spirit.  

And before you even arrive at the church, and this is number three, before even arriving at the church, you should have already prayed for that service.  Don't wait till you get there to get your mind on church. Leave your house with your mind on church. Pray for the service. Ask for direction, ask for a spirit. 

Ask for.  Lost souls as for visitors.  

Go ahead and leave your house. Focused. Leave your house determined.  And then when you get to church, have pre-service prayer again. What's why what's the point in praying twice, because now you're inside the building and you can create an atmosphere of prayer.  And when you pray inside that church, not for a sake of a show, not so people can say, oh, he's spiritual, but let your voice be heard.  So that it can build faith in others.  You're not again, it's not, not to impress anyone. But to encourage everyone, let your voice be heard.  But above all, never go to that pulpit empty.  You must go prayed up and focused.  So now that we've lived our life well, now that we're trained and practiced and being spirit led, now that we've left our house prayed up and we got to the church prayed up. 

Now we're at the alter prayed up.  You need to welcome the congregation.  

Don't be awkward. Be warm and engaging. Be yourself. Be comfortable. Be positive.  

No, who you are nor your place. So make sure you stay away from standards, stay away from money, stay away from things that the service layer, you know, This you're just there to be warm and engaging.  Here's a tip. Throughout the service don't ask for open testimonies, unless it's okay by your pastor.  Now, I'm not saying we should never have testimony service, but that's something your pastors. I should have a say on.  

Again, unless you're being spirit led and you know what you're doing.  

As far as telling a joke.  It, if it has a point.  But you're not that I'm personally, I have a habit of when I get nervous, I default to humor. So don't get up there and turn it into a standup routine. I don't be self-deprecating. And I hear something I've seen people do. Resist the urge to shut your eyes. 

I don't know why people do that. It's okay to look out across the congregation.  Here's the major one don't do. What's called sneaker preach.  I'm bad about doing this when I'm asked to testify that's because I don't know what their expectations are. You know, someone will call me up. If I'm visiting church, come up and leave a word. I feel like they're wanting me to sneak a preach. But when you're leading the service well, that's different. 

That is not your time.  To preach. Okay.  

You may have a brief thought, you know, like the Bible tells us to enter his gates with Thanksgiving, or God is here to meet your need.  But if it requires.  Explanation. That's not the place.  So be encouraging and realize you're there to raise the expectation for what's about to happen.  

You're there to lead the congregation in a quick worship. You're there to lead them into prayer. You're there to lead them, but you're not there to preach. That's not your job.  

When it is time for worship, whether you're the worship leader or not being an example of worship.  Go all in, do not just stand there. Do not go. Even if you're no longer on the platform. Even if you've done moved off to the pew. Worship you are still an example.  One thing. I like to challenge people when it comes to worship or what are your hands doing?  If you're just standing there moving your lips, that looks dead to me. What are your hands doing?  B.  Involved in the worship.  

If you notice someone is being impacted by the worship. No, your password expectations, but don't be afraid to go and pray and worship with them. If the spirit prompts you. This is encouraging for as a service leader, because it lets the people know that you are involved in that service.  And again, you need to have that conversation with your pastor to know what their expectations.  Are.  

When it's time for prayer. Focused prayer. You know, there may be different cues on how a wind. You should come up. Personally, I don't like. Stopping. Mouse also is going to come up and lead us in prayer. But I think that. It's better when you flows better. When you know, okay. After this song, I'm coming up. Because again, you're there to flow.  But come in and let them hear your voice. 

Lead them in prayer. Encourage them to lift their hands, incurred, encouraging to lift their voices. Be confident.  

Make sure that you're in sync with the worship and what has happened thus far. And with the way the spirit is flowing.  

But I remind you that even after the song, God may have given you a short exhortation. But if it requires explanation, even after a good worship song and it's a good thought. Now it's not the time. That's when you write it in your little notebook or your little notepad. And you save it for later.  



But it encouraged him to pray. 

The reason it's called focused prayer because it's time for everyone to pray together.  Don't be afraid of mentioning those needs, whether it's a natural disaster. Local need for the church. Someone's a specific need. We encourage them.  When it comes time to preaching. Unless to pass your fields, need to say some whore preaching.  You know, you, you may introduce them.  Don't overdo it.  You know I don't like it when people oversell the preacher.  Because that makes it awkward for the preacher as well.  Just speak well of the person you may speak to your relationship with the person. But.  



Again, the main event, it's not the person. 

The main event is the word.  

You will need to minister throughout the whole church service, you are expected to be involved in everything. So when that preacher is preaching,  

That's your time to say, Hey man, that's your time to preach with him? Whether you're on the platform or on the pew you are in, you are still leading the service.  Come altar call. Make sure you are the first to respond.  There's nothing wrong with going to the ultra first and praying your, your heart out and being, you know, getting your own blessing. 

There's nothing wrong with that.  

But sometimes.  You need to help pray for other people. And here's the thing you need to be aware of. Not everyone who comes to the altar. Knows that they need the holy ghost.  They may come to pray for someone else's cause that's what they see everyone else doing. So don't be afraid to ask them if they need the holy ghost.  If nothing, nothing else. 

You could use the language of the message. You know, if they're, if we're preaching about coming home. Use that language, whatever. And let the spirit lead you. And.  

And work that alter do not be the first one. To come to the alter and be the first one to leave the altar.  

Work it be a leader.  

On the subject of announcements. Let me warn you now this again, the work is that with your pastor, but.  

And alphas can really interrupt a service.  You know, the.  They really can kill a flow.  I'm not sure the point of putting. Announcements in the middle of a service. After the service is a good time. Having it projected on the screen before services is fine. But can you imagine having a really good song, a really good prayer and oh, by the way, we're going to sell cheesecakes.  That doesn't make any sense to me. But if you are lead, whenever you're leading announcements, Or whenever you're making an affluence, that's not a time to re preach what we preach. That's not a time to embellish what the preacher said.  You're there to do your job.  Thank everyone for coming to church. 

Share the announcements. Just to explain what's going on.  So last year.  That is what's to be said on the announcements, trying to keep it simple.  Now there are some.  More things to talk about because now the service. Has concluded you've been dismissed. Is your job over. No. Your job is not over as a service service leader.  Now you need to fellowship.  You don't have to be the last person to leave the church. But you should never be the first person to leave either.  You should be involved. You should go introduce yourself to new to the new people. Go. Shake hands with the people that are always there.  Make yourself known, let them know that you care that they were there. Connect with people.  They've seen you connect with God. Now they need to see you Connect with other people.  B spirit led and how you prioritize the people with whom you interact.  Sometimes spirit will tell you to go talk to this person in spirit until you go talk to this person. But you need to connect with the people.  In summary.  Let the preacher preach.  Don't push people. Lead them in worship. Make sure you do the worship. Don't expect them to do it without you doing it first.  If you're asked to lead them in prayer. They lead the prayer. If you're asked to make announcements to make the announcements, but please don't feel the need to preach exhort, sweat. sweat. scream, holler, Yale, flail, gyrate, or whatever. 

Just do what you're asked to do.  If you're not the preacher for the service, quit trying to be.  The point of the preliminaries. Is to lead up to the main event, which is to preaching. So at your job. Is to set up the stage. your job. is to set up the flow. So when you're leading the prayer, make sure you are doing your best to lead up to that when you're taking, when you're leading the worship, make sure you're doing your best to lead up to that. You're not just there to get that. check in the box. 

Okay. We did our. our. prayer. Okay. We did our offering. No. This is flowing up. This is building up to something. That is your job as a service leader. And it doesn't just start and stop with the service, but it starts with how you live your life.  And it ends with how you live your life. because they need to see you and believe in you and have confidence in you.  In that. Is how you lead a service.  Today's podcast is probably shorter than normal.  That's okay.  I feel it needed to be taught. I've already recorded like three guests since I've got this one posted. Cause I took a week off. I had some, I went back to school. It's kicking my tail.  But man we've had some good guests. I can't wait to get these posted. I've got some more good guests coming stick with me. 

Thank you for following the podcast. Make sure to give me a like or subscribe. Find someone else. I appreciate you all.