This page is for the people who help me shape our worship together — whether you’re stepping up to lead for the first time or you’ve done it for years. It covers the why behind what we do, plus a practical checklist to work from.
The heart of it
The primary role of the Worship Leader is to help the congregation connect with the Spirit, with themselves, and with each other. You’re building the structure — the framework — that lets that connection happen.
This isn’t about pushing your own agenda. We all have songs and styles we love, but worship leading is an others-focused ministry. Bring all of who you are — your musical taste, your liturgical background — and use it in service of helping the congregation engage.
Working with the preacher, and why we use the lectionary
Before the service, talk with the preacher to make sure you’re building the same thing. They usually set the topic, but ideally it’s a conversation, not a handoff — you’re building the whole together.
We use the Revised Common Lectionary because we’re part of the one holy catholic and apostolic Church — a worldwide movement of churches shaped by the same stories. Each Sunday we read the same passage as people worshipping in Gaza or Ukraine. It also keeps any one preacher (me included) from only ever preaching their favourite texts. (For 2026, we’ve set the RCL aside in favour of the Women’s Lectionary — we’ll return to the RCL in 2027.)
Once you’ve talked with the preacher, look over the checklist and suggested resources below for ideas. You know this congregation better than anyone — trust yourself to work out what will land.
Setting the space
We have a wall of liturgical goods in the back room — go and explore. We want people to bring all their senses into worship, sight and smell included (go easy on strong smells — at least one person in the congregation is sensitive to them).
We set the room up to help people connect with the Spirit, with themselves, and with each other — not to show off anyone’s styling skills. You don’t need a big creative display. Hand prints and a rainbow cloth are just as meaningful as anything elaborate.
Our Rainbow Cross says plainly that we’re shaped by queer theology, and that we see Jesus as intimately bound up with the queer experience — it tells people who this community is for. Our Aboriginal Flag tells the story of the land we worship on.
Walking through the service
Nothing here is gospel — including the idea that you need a Gospel reading! This is one way through a service, with a bit of the thinking behind it, so that once you understand the why, you can go free-range.
Arriving at worship — Our minds are still full of the week. This part is about helping people lay that aside: naming the place we’re in, remembering the stories that shape it, and saying plainly what we’re hoping for today (“we come seeking…”). It usually holds the Welcome, Acknowledgement, Call to Worship, an opening song (familiar — good if it’s on theme, not essential), and the Prayer of the Day: what’s been happening this week, what’s on the community’s mind, named and laid down. This is often where a Prayer of Confession sits too — one that’s about laying down self-imposed guilt, not manufacturing it, and that ends in the assurance that we’re loved and it’s okay.
Deepening — this is where we do our learning, sitting with the readings. A song (can be new, themed to the day) leads into the Reading — usually one text, using the lectionary, told through the written word, a drama, a song or a poem. Practice it a few times beforehand; not for perfection, but because reading it grows it in you, and that changes how you share it. A time of Centring follows — music helps, live better than recorded, as long as it relates to what’s happening — before the Reflection (the sermon, or reflection space) and a song that ties directly to it. Worth planning that last song closely with the preacher.
Responding — the “so what.” We take the reflection and ask what it means for our lives: Community Sharing, News and Notices, Prayers for Others and Ourselves. This bit can run away — people love to share — so keep it moving without cutting anyone off. Then the Offering: we’re all in this together, and part of that is financial. Always name the other ways people contribute, but don’t shy away from the fact that the lights need power. Communion, on the first Sunday of the month, usually sits near the end — a song beforehand and the blessing after works well.
Sending — a closing song, the earworm, the one with a groove. It’s the last thing people carry out the door: a groovy smile if we finish on one, a frown if we finish on a dirge. Not the moment for something new — familiar is good. I like to imagine people humming it in the car on the way home. Then the Commissioning and Benediction: we arrived saying we wanted x and y; we heard this story; how do we want people to leave? Always land on the fact that God is love, and we are loved.
After the service, I like to keep the liturgy and go back through it the following week — what worked, what didn’t, and where the unexpected moments of joy showed up. It’s worth doing, even briefly.
The checklist
A working list, not a rulebook — adjust it to what the service needs.
- Talk to the preacher, ideally two weeks out
- Read all four of the week’s lectionary readings
- Pick the music in consultation with the preacher
- Contact the Bible reader, and anyone else involved in the service
- Think through how you’ll set up the space
- Pray beforehand
- Arrive by 9:30
- Build the liturgy and upload it to the Worship folder in the church Google Drive
- Send the liturgy to Richard by the Thursday before the service, so it can go into Proclaim
- In the Order of Service, note any variations on the songs — which verses, whether one repeats
- Mark clearly whether the words for prayers and the Call to Worship go on screen, and bold the congregation’s responses
A couple of notes for Proclaim: keep the leader’s words in normal (not bold) font, and the congregation’s responses in bold — yellow works well against most backgrounds, or change the background if yellow doesn’t read well. Make sure the song title is on the first slide.
For song and prayer ideas, these are worth a look:
- Lectionary Song
- RE-Worship
- The Worship Resources folder in the church Google Drive
