When the bucket spills

Posted on May 18, 2011 | 0 comments

Have you ever heard someone talk about a moment of “breakthrough” in worship?

“Dude, when you guys hit that last song, something just snapped and I felt God in such a real way!”

It’s one of those things that you kind of understand. You know, enough to nod your head and agree, but not clearly enough to preach on it. It really is something special though. Honestly, as a worship leader you can try to fake those moments. Whip up a climax with huge drums and a fist pumping chorus. But it just falls short. It’s not the same.

Sometimes those moments creep up without any singing at all. Sometimes it happens in silence.

When I’m leading worship, I picture everyone in the room holding a little dixie cup of water. The water is praise and affection for God.

When a person engages with God, they pour that little cup of water into one big bucket. Little by little, the bucket fills up. There is a tipping point in worship. Eventually, the bucket fills up to the point of overflow…and everyone gets wet

Here’s the takeaway for worship leaders: find ways to engage as many people as possible in your worship gathering. Some respond to spoken words, others are drawn in through quiet reflection, etc. Ask the Holy Spirit how he wants to woo people into worship.

Here’s the takeaway for worshippers: What are you going to do with your cup? You have a part to play in what’s going on. You can choose to give your attention to something…to Someone…beautiful and glorious. You also have the potential to miss out altogether. Choose to pour your cup.