Jake Gosselin is the creator of Churchfront, a media platform for over 100,000 worship leaders and tech teams around the globe. He’s the lead instructor and coach for Worship Ministry School where he creates step-by-step online courses and provides coaching to help worship teams lead gospel-centered and tech-savvy worship. Churchfront is a resource run by me, Jake Gosselin to help you lead gospel-centered and tech-savvy worship. I'm a follower of Christ, husband of Kaylee, worship leader, entrepreneur, and passionate about helping local churches reach more people for the sake of God's Kingdom.

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1. Connect With People Before & After The Service

I believe one of the most important parts of a service for a worship leader is before and after the meeting. This is where we make connections with people and build relationship with our congregations. If you can build relationship off the stage, you will have it with the congregation when you’re on the stage.

2. Start Strong, Be Bold

The first 30 seconds of a worship set lays a foundation and sets the tone for the rest of the meeting. If you start timid and are unsure of yourself, the rest of the set will most probably represent that. As soon as you set your foot on that stage, ‘step into it’ and be bold.

3. Play & Sing With Conviction

Sing and play the song as if you wrote it. If you have to study the lyrics, do so. The Bible says that God is looking for worshipers who worship Him in spirit and in truth. There has got to be truth and conviction behind what we are singing about.

4. Only Speak If You’ve Got Something To Say

If you feel from God you have something to encourage the church in, great! But you have to be careful that you aren’t filling spaces that God should be filling just because you think you need to say something.

5. Speak Confidently & Clearly

Following on from my previous point, when you do say something, make sure you speak confidently and clearly. Be sensitive to the moment but at the same time don’t hold back or be timid. Say it!

6. Be Mindful Of How Much You Close Your Eyes

The heart behind this is about staying engaged with where the congregation is at. The stage isn’t the place for our own personal worship time. The stage is about us leading others in worship while connecting to God ourselves. We need to stay aware of where the meeting and people are at.

7. Lead People But Don’t Over Do It

Be mindful of how many times you say phrases like “lift your hands” and “Sing this out”. You can start to sound like a broken record if you keep repeating yourself. People will disengage if they feel as though the worship is being pushed or forced upon them.

8. Have Stage Presence

Now this is going to be different for everyone, but we've all got to have some level of stage presence. Passion is contagious and we can’t expect our congregations to ‘get into it’ if we aren’t into it ourselves. Lead by example.

9. Don’t Be So Serious - Smile

Worship is something to be enjoyed and worship is a celebration of the character & goodness of God. It is meant to be liberating. Our expression should show this. Relax, enjoy yourself and smile.

10. Embrace Feedback

It doesn’t matter how much experience you have, there’s always room for improvement. Listen and watch yourself back and ask your pastors and leaders for feedback. Embrace it, even that which you might not agree with. The teachable person will always go the furthest.

Ambient pads are the easiest way to enhance the sound of your worship ministry. They fill the sound of your band. They make it easy to create smooth transitions. They free you up as a worship leader to speak or pray between songs without needing to play your instrument.

My friend Boomer Bate created a bundle of 10 ambient pads for worship. In this article, you can demo the pads, and you’ll learn about Boomer’s creative process behind making them. You’ll learn how he achieves these unique sounds and you’ll gain insight on how to apply them to your worship ministry.

#1 - Organ

This sound is a modern remake of a classic church instrument. Organs have been used in worship for hundreds of years! While you may think the organ sound is appropriate for only old churches with stained glass and steeples, this sound will debunk that myth.

Boomer used a low-pass filter on this organ pad to create a warm sound great for any acoustic setting. I think this pad would sound awesome set to hymns. It has that old-school sound but sounds modern at the same time.

#2 - Bells

To create this pad, Boomer used one of his favorite synths called, “Dusty Mirror.” He usually uses this sound during speaking points or quieter songs in worship. The bulk of this sound consists of droning bells, but there are also some subtle reverb bells throughout.

#3-4 Airy Low and Airy High

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These pads both have a distinctive “hiss” that cuts through the mix. Boomer wanted to make a low and high version of this pad for greater use flexibility depending on the situation. These pads would work great for high-energy songs or sections of songs where you want to increase the energy.

#5 - Shimmer

Shimmer is a warm synth like Organ, but it has “shimmer” in the higher frequencies. It’s almost like blending Organ with Bells. This pad is another favorite for using in an acoustic set.

#6 - Foundation

Foundation emphasizes the low and mid frequencies. This pad is ideal for droning under transitions or speaking parts during the service. The goal of this pad was to establish the tone or foundation of the song. Since it is so bass heavy, you may want to fade this pad out as your full band kicks in. I like how this pad gives a cinematic feel and will help the congregation focus in on what is said or prayed.

#7 - Valley

Valley is low but not as bass-heavy as Foundation. There’s some nice brassy and string-like texture to this pad, almost as if you had a cello or French horn droning in the background. This pad is ideal for transitions and speaking parts.

#8 - Ice Particles

Ice Particles has a very distinctive sound. It emphasizes the higher frequencies with subtle movement. It’s a mix of shimmer, music box, and a toy piano. It has a lighter and more playful tone.

#9 - Full

We almost called this the “beefy” pad. It encompasses the entire spectrum of frequencies. This pad would be great for times when you want a full sound and strong support from pads.

#10 - Movement

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In my opinion, this pad helps build anticipation. It uses an arpeggiator that pulses the notes in the chords. It emphasizes the higher frequencies so it would work great droning through the entirety of a song.

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I have already begun implementing these pads in my church, and I love them. I love their distinctive sound while at the same time maintaining simplicity.

You can start using these pads in your worship ministry this Sunday! Click the button below to learn more and purchase.