How to Lead a Worship Song

Hey friends,

Thanks for stopping by! If you haven’t already watched the video above, I’d encourage you to check it out. In it, I walk through some real-life lessons I’ve learned (mostly the hard way) about leading worship in a way that’s sincere, engaging, and meaningful. Below, I’ve pulled together some of the key points and expanded on them a bit more. My hope is that this post can be a resource for you—whether you’re brand new to worship leading, somewhere in the middle, or even if you’ve been doing this for years and just want a reminder to keep things grounded and real.

1. Engage With Your Environment

Worship isn’t just about singing songs on pitch—it’s about connecting with the room. This starts with a simple but often overlooked act: noticing where you are and who you’re with.

When I’m leading, one of the best places I can start is by acknowledging the people right in front of me. Sometimes that’s my seven-year-old daughter in the front row, or a visitor I’ve never seen before. In either case, they’re here, and so am I—and that alone is something sacred.

One of the most powerful things you can say to your congregation is something like, “I’m really glad we’re here together today.” And mean it. There’s something profound about recognizing the now—this exact room, these exact people, this exact moment. That’s where worship happens. It doesn’t have to feel perfect or polished; it just needs to be present.

This kind of awareness creates an atmosphere of welcome and inclusion. It’s an invitation that says: This is a shared experience of turning our hearts toward God's spirit of forgiveness, patience, kindness. Your job as a worship leader is to remind people of that—not by preaching, but by being fully alive to the moment and drawing others into it. Let's learn how to do this together, as I still have so much to learn!

2. Acknowledge Mistakes With Grace

Let’s face it: things will go wrong. Strings break. Cables get plugged into the wrong input. Lyrics disappear from the screen. Your capo is off by one fret (been there). The question isn’t if something will go wrong—it’s how you’ll respond when it does.

Here’s what I’ve learned: acknowledging mistakes calmly and openly—sometimes even with humor—can actually build trust with your congregation. It shows them you’re human. It signals that worship is not about flawless execution but about humility. It also helps break down the barrier between “the person with the mic” and “the rest of the room.”

One time I had 10 minutes of dead space before a sermon video was ready to stream, and I hadn’t planned for that. The first time, I panicked and told everyone to “prepare their hearts in silence”… for ten minutes. It was as painful as it sounds. The second time, I lightened up and said, “Hey, we’ve got a few minutes. Grab a drink of water, greet someone you don’t know, and we’ll start when the video comes in.” So much better. People appreciated the honesty and freedom.

Bottom line: you don’t have to pretend everything’s fine when it’s not. Just be real, stay calm. People connect with that far more than perfection.

3. Look at People—For Real

One of the most powerful ways to lead a song is also the most basic: make eye contact. I mean this literally and metaphorically. Look up from your chord chart or lyrics screen and see the people. You’re not just singing at them. You’re singing with them.

I try to intentionally scan the room when I lead—sometimes locking eyes with someone I know, sometimes catching the gaze of someone who looks unsure or burdened. I’ll smile. I might even wink (yes, it’s weird, but it works). If I see someone I know is going through something hard, I’ll silently send them a little mental blessing: “You’re not alone. You’re going to make it.”

When I used to see my daughters in the congregation, all five lined up in a row, I’d shoot them the “you better be singing” smile. They’d stick their tongues out at me. It’s those little moments of connection that remind me worship is a relational act, not just a musical one.

Even if you’re playing a song you haven’t memorized, you can still glance down, grab the next lyric or chord, and then look up and sing it to someone. Doing this makes the whole experience more alive for everyone in the room. And don’t underestimate the power of a smile—it’s a nonverbal way of saying, Come on. Let’s sing this together.

4. Follow Your Gut

You’ll get a hunch sometimes that you should cut this next verse, or that the folks might need a short word of appreciation. f your spirit is grounded and humble, you can trust those instincts.

This doesn’t mean being reckless or throwing the plan out the window for the sake of spontaneity. It means staying tuned in—to the moment, and to the emotional energy in the room. When your own heart is soft and attentive, you’ll be able to respond to what’s needed.

Maybe that means giving space for silence. Maybe it means ramping up the energy when you feel the room’s starting to go flat. Maybe it means padding under the preacher, or not! The point is: the more you develop your awareness and peace as a worship leader, the more your instincts will serve you—and the people you’re leading.

Worship Leading Is Presence, Not Performance

If there’s one thread running through everything above, it’s this: worship leading is mostly about being present. The music matters, yes. The technical stuff, the planning, the transitions—they all play a role. But the heart of it all is whether you are actually there, awake to the people around you, and grounded in the moment God has given you.

And the truth is, that takes practice. It’s something I’m still learning, and always will be. But I’ve found that when I stop worrying about being “good enough” and instead focus on simply being real—everything else falls into place.

So wherever you’re at in your worship leading journey, I hope this encourages you to lead not from a place of pressure or performance, but from a place of peace and connection.

Thanks for reading (and watching). I’m glad you’re here.