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I love reading books by worship leaders for several reasons. First, its nice to hear their stories from when they weren’t well-known and blasted all over K-love. They are real people, too. They are real worshippers. Second, the fact that they are well-known now must mean they did something right. There are always nuggets of insight that make me say, “Why didn’t I think of that?!” or “I would never have thought of that!” And sometimes, they just provide a fresh perspective to old concepts. This is one such enlightenment:

Step one: get our your Bible and read Matthew 16:13-19

Step two: reread verse 17

The power of the Spirit of God in our lives is incredible. This portion of scripture clearly states that it is the Spirit who reveals Christ to us. “Jesus replied, ‘You are blessed, . . .  because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being.’” The Message paraphrases this sentence as “My Father in heaven, God himself, let you in on this secret of who I really am.” In his book, The Way I Was Made, Chris Tomlin notes, “No individual–no matter how appealing or talented–can reveal the truth of God to another human soul. Only God can do that. That’s why we must depend on the Spirit to come into our worship times in fullness and power.”

So the issue becomes human persuasion versus divine power. I can’t force anyone to know God; I can’t force anyone to want to know God. Don’t get me wrong, this in no way negates the need to evangelize. As followers of Christ, it is our responsibility to lead a life worthy of that name. We must live in such a way that we can’t help but share our faith with those around us. But in doing so, it is important to remember that we are in submission to God’s Holy Spirit. It is His Spirit who transforms the hearts of people, including our own. We must create the opportunity for non-believers to see the Holy Spirit at work in our own lives, and we must ask God to lead us into situations where we can be used effectively by His Holy Spirit.

Maybe this struggle is seen more frequently in a worship leader. The fine line between providing an opportunity for people to worship God, and trying too hard to force people to worship God is a tricky one to walk. I pray for the power of the Holy Spirit to invade our worship experiences, so that others can know there is nothing greater than a life with Christ.