Hillsong Publishing Music Conference Manila July 16, 2011

Profile of speaker: Steve McPherson

I was totally excited when I first heard that there will be a seminar / workshop by Hillsong in Manila. I inquired at House of Praise (Panay) and luckily it was the last day of early bird sale (P800), normal rate is (P1000). Well, on the day of the event, I was the only one from my Church but I went anyway with some of my new friends in CBCP. We were on time and decided to seat at the front balcony of the CCF Auditorium. It was the first time I went there and was really surprised to see a very big house of worship.

Anyway, we started with songs from Hillsong. The only song I remember singing is Heart of Worship. After the introductions have been made, we started our morning session with a topic called "Leading Worship". I guess most people came for this session due to the necessity of properly leading worship in the Church. I, on the other hand, came for all three reasons: I want to improve on my worship leading. I want to know if I'm violating any copyright laws especially when it comes to worship songs. I want to write better songs.

LEADING WORSHIP
The 10 points that were discussed: (Based on my notes from the sermon)

COMMUNICATION
* Leading worship is all about getting people's focus from their circumstances and shift their focus to the Lord. It is about communicating a message. (The team members are all worship leaders)

My handbook

1) Believe in what you say [MESSAGE]
* The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on
   fire. What is your message? Is it about hey look at me?
   or is it I love you and I want to worship God with you.
* You are a big part of your message. Do people see the
   same person off and on the stage?
* Be passionate. Do you believe in the power of God to
   use that music / song for worship? Remember, we are
   not just using worship songs (as in a concert), but we
   are worshiping God.
* Have a revelation that God placed you there (in that
   Church, in that ministry, in that moment) for His
   Kingdom.

2) Believe that people can change [PURPOSE]
* Expect God will touch and change lives
* A great singer/worship leader would want to touch lives
   of people, inspire them, and believe in the work of the Holy Spirit
* It's our job to do the hard work, it's God's work to do the heart work.

3) Live what you say [CREDIBILITY]
* Credibility is key; Unless you have credibility, we can't lead effectively.
* People follow and carefully watch our lives as worship leaders. This is integrity
   and authenticity before God.
* Heb 13:15 => "What is the fruit of our lips?" What is my lifestyle?
* Be you! Is it just an act?

4) Know when to say it [TIMING]
* Observe and lead through what you observe
* There's a right time and a wrong time
   o Timing is important especially when bridging people from their focus on the world
      to focus on God.
   o Dynamics also play a big role / can be used to lead people to worship
   o Voice (breathiness, projection, etc.) will also help
   o Flexibility to change => responding to situation but respecting leadership (esp. if
      there's a time limit)

5) Know how to say it [METHOD]
* Creativity greatly enhances communication

My Wrist Tag/Band

* Use tools to make time of worshiping God interesting; keep it memorable & captivate them through:
   o Song Selection
   o Order of Songs
   o Music Drama
   o Visuals / Media
* Avoid being too predictable & interruptive to what God is doing
* Know how to communicate through face and body - be appropriate
* Preserve & learn as you go & trust God
* Don't allow those bad days to drag you down

6) Know why to say it [PASSION]
* Know why people need to worship
* We need to remind people / ourselves of how great he is.
* Testimony - this is the fire that fuels your passion (Think about how I got saved...
   The way he healed me... the way he placed people in our lives, etc.)
   This is how we remind people of what God has done in their lives.

7) Have fun saying it [SIMPLICITY]
* If you're not enjoying it, how can others?
* If people feel that worship is fun and simple, then they would want to join in and
   not be spectators.
* Personally, if you feel burdened and feel it is like a job, then it shows in our worship.
   (Infectious)

8) Show it as you say it [EXAMPLE]
* People are visually oriented
* Body language => it is good to also see instrumentalist singing as they play.
* Your heart is on your face - be mindful of this!

9) Say it so people can own it [INCLUSION]
* People will not respond to a leader that does not seem to connect to them
* If you can't connect with them, then they will not follow you.
* Get them to participate
* We're not playing "to" people, but we're playing "for" people so that they will be able
   to worship God not you!
* Look at the songs:
   o Are they too High (keys)?
   o Are the melodies too tricky?
   o Is there too much music coming from stage? etc.

10) Say it so people will do it [PARTICIPATION]
* Encourage action / response so that they will do what you want them to do.