In my last post on this topic, I suggested that we, as the lead worshipers, need to be able to "take people where we've been" ourselves--that is, if we're going to lead them into God's presence on Sunday morning, it helps a LOT if we've been in his presence in worship ourselves before we walk onto the stage. In this post, I'm going to suggest some ways that we can do this.

In most churches--and this is certainly true of our church--the worship team is a ministry that involves a very high level of time commitment. Our team has a weekly rehearsal that lasts from two to three hours per week, and since we lead worship in two services, most of the team is committed to another three hours each Sunday morning. On top of that, some members of the team are involved in preparing music, practicing, creating song charts--all on their own time. In many other ministries in our church, volunteers are often asked for perhaps an hour or two per week at most, and many ministries involve only a monthly commitment of an hour or two. In other words, the members of a worship team already invest a lot of time. It's a labor of love for most of us, but how do you find even more time for personal worship?

I once heard a well-known worship leader suggest (to other vocational worship leaders) that you should take some time to go to your sanctuary or auditorium alone and sing through your worship set sometime during the week, when no one is around, and use that time, both for rehearsing the material, and for personal, private worship, just you and God. That's great if you're a vocational worship leader, on a church staff, but even worship pastors can be so busy with other responsibilities that this can be tough to do. And the truth is that many, if not most of those who lead worship do so as volunteers, or perhaps bi-vocationally (i.e., while holding down a day job). So where do you find the time?

I've often used "windshield time"--time when I'm driving--as worship time--this is particularly useful on long drives. I'll put a CD in (or these days, my iPod), and crank up some worship music--usually the same material that I'm going to be using in church the following Sunday, and just sing with it, and let the meaning of the lyrics and the beauty of the music sink in. If you're like me, there are certain songs that always put me in a worshipful mindset, and you may want to set up a playlist on your iPod, or make a CD that contains a few of your favorites, to help you move from the distractions of your day into an awareness of God's presence with you. But be careful, and watch what you're doing--I've driven 20 minutes past my exit on the highway because I was absorbed in worship, and in at least one case, ended up late for an appointment as a result! If you find yourself in tears while worshiping in your car (it's often happened to me), don't hesitate to pull off of the road for a little while to regain your composure--drive safely out there!

A few hundred years ago a monk named Brother Andrew wrote a little book titled Practicing the Presence of God, in which he explained how everything he did during his day, even the most mundane things, like baking bread or doing his chores around the monastery, can be acts of worship, if your heart is in the right place as you work. These days, it is possible to carry your worship music with you (with an iPod or MP3 player) almost all the time, depending on the kind of work you do, and this can be a very worshipful experience.

If you exercise regularly, those times can be put to good use as well, either listening to music, or memorizing Scripture, or praying. Most of us, if we look at our schedule and our activities through a typical day, can find times during which our minds can be occupied with worship while we're doing other things. A quiet evening walk through the neighborhood can be a significant time of worship if you are intentional about it.

Last, but certainly not least, your daily Quiet Time, or devotional time, or whatever you call it, should definitely be a time for worship. Set some of that time aside for devotional reading of the Psalms, for example--you may want to have some worship music playing in the background as you read your Bible, or as you pray. If you play an instrument, such as the guitar or piano, you may want to use some of your Quiet Time to just sing and play your instrument to the Lord. Be sensitive, of course, to the other occupants of your household, particularly if they're not awake yet! I often take advantage of any solitude I get at home, when everyone else is out of the house, to sit and play my guitar and sing the songs that are most meaningful to me.

The bottom line is that over time, our whole lives should be characterized by an inclination to worship wherever we are, whatever we are doing. Imagine what a difference it would make if, instead of spending your walking time thinking and worrying about some stressful situation in your life, you were to use that same time to focus your heart and mind on God and his attributes, or memorizing passages of Scripture, or praying through a Psalm, or listening to worship music and reflecting on God's glory. Imagine how your life might be enriched if, while washing dishes, you were singing (in your head, if not aloud) songs of praise and adoration to God.

When we worship outside of the context of the worship services we lead, we prepare ourselves to lead people into the very presence of the God we love to be with. As a worshiper in the pew, wouldn't you rather be led by people who know what it means to worship God, not just great singers and players who know how to make good music?