Why Thursday Deadlines Make for Better Sundays at Your Church

Christianity Today recently ran an excerpt from my worship planning book, Engage, on its website, and I wanted to share it with you today: Why Thursday Deadlines Make for Better Sundays at Church Deciding details early coordinates efforts and avoids last-minute problems. The first church I pastored was a small Baptist church in Charlotte, North Carolina. I was a 21-year-old kid. … Read More


Nelson SearcyWorship Planning

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How to Be Sure Your People Listen to Your Preaching

Those of us who are teaching pastors tend to be quite protective of our preaching – sometimes to the point that it hinders us from having the impact we should. One area I’m rarely asked about, but I see as an issue over and over again in churches is that the people on Sunday mornings just aren’t tuned in – … Read More


Nelson SearcyPreaching, Worship Planning

Have you said these Five Dangerous Words?

Jason Hatley here . . . Pastor of Worship Arts at The Journey and Founder of www.WorshipLeaderInsights.com with a word of CAUTION! Uttering these five words is certain to bring disaster to your services and your team. It will create unnecessary stress, and without a doubt lead to confusion and missed opportunities. It may even be bad for the environment and … Read More


Nelson SearcyWorship Planning

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3 Powerful (and Easy) Summer Reading Goals

Jason Hatley here . . . Pastor of Worship Arts at The Journey and Founder of www.WorshipLeaderInsights.com . . . and I admit it. I have not always had a love of reading. But it didn’t take long as a young Worship Leader at The Journey for me to recognize my need to read in order to survive in ministry, much less … Read More


Nelson SearcyWorship Planning

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The #1 Obstacle to Leading Your Worship Team

Jason Hatley here . . . Pastor of Worship Arts @ The Journey Church and Founder of www.WorshipLeaderInsights.com. Today we wrap up the 3-part series on Leading a Growing Worship Team, and I think today’s topic is one of the most important leadership principles for doing just that. Two weeks ago we talked about how Personal Growth ALWAYS Precedes Ministry Growth. … Read More


Nelson SearcyWorship Planning

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How to Raise New Leaders on your Worship Team

Jason Hatley here . . . Pastor of Worship Arts at The Journey and Founder of  WorshipLeaderInsights.com. Do you remember the story of Michael that I shared with you last week? He is a fellow worship leader (and a member of my coaching network) who, after leading a round of auditions, recently found himself at the helm of a fast … Read More


Nelson SearcyWorship Planning

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Lessons for Leading a Growing Worship Team

Every week I receive emails from worship leaders, but I was blown away by this one. Take a look: “We just had our 2nd round of auditions this past Sunday. Trembling with excitement and fear in response to what’s happening here… Through our most recent auditions process “Journey style”… we have added about 40 new team members. I have been … Read More


Nelson SearcyWorship Planning

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How is your worship team “really” doing?

When is the last time you got on the balcony? No – not the balcony at your church building or even the hotel from your last vacation. It’s Jason Hatley here (Pastor of Worship Arts at The Journey Church) with a quick (but important) leadership principle that every pastor and worship leader needs to practice… Getting on the Balcony. Getting on … Read More


Nelson SearcyWorship Planning

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