Letting the Holy Spirit lead

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Permalink Reply by Bridget Powell on July 21, 2009 at 6:30am

I think you have to let the Holy Spirit lead...b/c He knows the mind of God, and He wants us to follow God's will when it comes to ministering to His people. Some of the most powerful moves of God I've experienced was when I got out of the way, and let God have His way - people were refreshed, received deliverance, and were encouraged. It's just exciting to see God move, especially in worship!

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Permalink Reply by Luke Martin on July 21, 2009 at 7:09am

I think that's totally true.

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Permalink Reply by David Goodwin on July 21, 2009 at 2:29pm

Totally agree with this :)

We've stopped in the main service before. Not often, but the whole band knew it was the right thing to do - I love that unity that comes in sensitivity to the Spirit leading.

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Permalink Reply by Lorraine Doswell on July 21, 2009 at 3:21pm

Me too.
David, I love that unity that comes in sensitivity to the Spirit is spot on. The Holy Spirit is sensitive and if it comes from Him then it is right. It is our job to be sensitive to Him in return and discern what He is asking of us. WOW what a combination. Praise Him.

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Permalink Reply by Luke Martin on July 23, 2009 at 1:28am

Thanks, David.

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Permalink Reply by Priscilla B. Martinez on July 21, 2009 at 8:04pm

I agree. Getting out of the way is one of the best things to do. We're still learning how to do that in our worship team, but, how awesome that you've experienced that! I remember reading once that while we may view things as being "in order", God may see them as chaotic - because of our lack of allowing Him to move. Maybe we need Him to cause "chaos", knowing that He's in control. I hope it makes sense.
:)

Blessings,
Priscilla

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Permalink Reply by Luke Martin on July 23, 2009 at 1:29am

Hey that's an interesting way of looking at it, It's so true. When we try to perform, we end up not pleasing anyone, not even ourselves. But if we just give it up to God, people get delivered, chains get broken, lives get healed, Christ is revealed, and everyone walks away blessed!

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Permalink Reply by Dave Hartwell on July 23, 2009 at 7:01am

I agree with all your comments. Absolutely spot on. An interesting twist to be careful of, however...

I have a friend that told me that his Pastor would call him on Saturday night and tell him that he was leading the next morning. He said that the pastor did it on purpose to keep him from getting too prideful or planned, that it caused him to fully rely on the Holy Spirit.

I told my friend that the first time the pastor tried that with me, I would correct his theology, and the second time there would not be a second time. Here's the point. When Jesus was in the desert and Satan comes to tempt Him, Jesus responds that we are not to test the Lord our God. Instead, I Corinthians tells us that we are to do our very best in everything we do, "all to the glory of God."

What's this got to do with your post? My friend was using that "depend on the Lord" thing to be lazy in his preparation and polishing, in his development of a strong and vibrant worship team, in his ensuring that all the sound equipment was working and functional, in his theoretical knowledge of music, in memorizing the words to the songs he was to lead, ... etc.

So... know your stuff inside and out, like an Olympic gymnast knows his/her floor routine. Focus on continuous improvement -- musically, technically, and spiritually. Know your Sunday set inside and out. THEN when the Holy Spirit calls you, (and He will, if you diligently seek Him through His word), you will truly be His servant, and in His service, on earth, as it is in heaven.

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Permalink Reply by Luke Martin on July 23, 2009 at 8:02am

I agree, even if you are leading a congregation, whether in worship or as a pastor, you should always start with a plan. Always plan the service, know your stuff, but if God wants to suddenly turn things upside down, let him.

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Permalink Reply by Junjie on July 23, 2009 at 9:34am

One thing I am a little concerned about is that there are some people who think that the Holy Spirit's leading will usually (or always) be something weird and a total departure from the planned routine. And for these people, doing the same songs for the worship set for two weeks in a row you are OBVIOUSLY moving in the flesh, rather than the Spirit...

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Permalink Reply by Luke Martin on July 23, 2009 at 10:45am

A lot of it is weird and different, but yes he does get us to do some things that are perfectly normal as well. I don't think that I have experienced our church doing the same song two weeks in a row. If anything, we go through hundreds of new songs a year, every week we seem to have a song (or a whole set of songs) that I have never heard of before.

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Permalink Reply by Junjie on July 24, 2009 at 4:54pm

That's flooding the people, they'll find it hard to get songs really inside them, know what I mean? One problem is that we musicians usually need a lot of new music to stay stimulated, while the congregation actually doesn't click with that very well...

That's how I see it. How does your congregation respond to that? :)

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