On the Bench
Worship singers and musicians, if you are not OK to be put on the bench, you are probably involved with worship for the wrong reasons. What do I mean by “on the bench”? In the world of sports, teams often have their best players out playing the game, while there are other players that are sitting on the sidelines—on the bench—waiting for a chance to play. Players on the bench may be there because they are not perceived by their coaches to be as talented or experienced as others playing the game. They may also be on the bench because they have not been playing by the rules or because they’ve gotten injured and need to rest up. And sometimes, a coach will save a highly qualified player and wait to send them in to play until the very end or at a very critical time when the opposing team least expects it. Players on the field or on the court are often celebrated, and the ones on the bench are often not remembered at all. When it’s your passion to play, it can be very difficult to be on the bench, because it feels like you are doing nothing.
There can be very similar scenarios in ministry—including worship ministry. For many different reasons, whether it is because of the decision of our leaders, because more talented people have arrived, or because of personal mistakes or character issues, we can find ourselves “on the bench.” We are not getting to play, to sing, to be in the center of things like we hoped. Maybe we used to, but now others seem to have favor, opportunities, and visibility. We seem to be forgotten, hidden, and unseen. And it can feel so hard because this is our passion and what we feel called to do! But I believe that the hand of God is often behind all of this. Isaiah spoke of this experience: “Before I was born the Lord called me; from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name.” He understood the great significance of being called, but then went on to say, “He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver” (Isaiah 49:2-3, NIV, emphasis added). Isaiah was a weapon that God intended to use against the enemy, like a sword or an arrow, but God was choosing to hide, polish, and conceal him for the timebeing—saved for a later time. Those who are called by God often find themselves in a place where they just feel hidden, concealed, or, for lack of better terms, “on the bench.”
For young leaders, especially musicians and singers on worship teams, it is important that we are just as okay being off of the stage and worshiping alongside our brothers and sisters, as we are to be up on a platform. Worship ministry is holy unto the Lord. Worship is not about having an outlet for our own talents or creative expressions. It is not about getting recognition for ourselves, but rather about calling everyone to recognize the lordship of Jesus Christ. It is a mistake to think that we are “called to worship ministry” if we forget that, first and foremost, we are called to the Lord and to be His servants—ready to serve anywhere and any way that pleases Him, giving our lives away to serve His Church. Nobody owes you an opportunity. God, your leaders, and your church don’t exist so that you can have a creative outlet to use your gifts. We don’t deserve to be in worship ministry, or to have influence. We deserve hell. And by the grace of God, He has brought us into his kingdom. That always needs to be enough for us. I would encourage you to take note of the many times the Bible talks about being “called.” If you do, you will find that most of the time, the call is (1) an invitation to follow Jesus, (2) related to our hope of eternal life, and (3) an admonishment to be holy and separate from the world’s sinfulness. Our calling has everything to do with Jesus, a pure life, and eternal life with Him, and it has far less to do with having influence in ministry. If we need to be on a worship team or in visible ministry, there is some other motive other than worship in our hearts. Worship is fundamentally about bringing the Bride to a place of greater love and connection with her Bridegroom. If we want a piece of the Bride’s love for ourselves, something is very off, and we will come face-to-face with a jealous God. Worship ministers have the glorious calling to be friends of the Bridegroom (John 3:29-30), not thieves of the Bride for their own purposes. He must become greater, and we must become less.
As a pastor, when I choose people to be part of worship ministry in our church, I first and foremost look at how willing they are to serve in other areas, and I look at how they worship when they are offstage. If someone is not willing to serve in children’s ministry or by cleaning toilets, they have no business thinking that they should be a leader. And if they are not engaged in worship unless they have a microphone or instrument in their hands, they are just posers. God is seeking true worshipers, not just singers, musicians, or talent. So I’m looking for those who worship with equal passion when people are watching as they do when they think no one is watching.
Leadership and influence in the Kingdom of God is for those who will become a servant of all. If you are on the bench right now, whether that is because your pastoral leaders put you there or because God has you there, embrace the season. Love God with all your heart and love the people around you. If you think that you will be happier when you are in the limelight, you are deceiving yourself. Being on stage and having people see you will never fill the deepest desires in your heart. Increased leadership opportunities also come with warfare, opposition, sacrifice, responsibility, and testing. Before God trusts you with those things, He will develop and test your character on the sidelines.
It is important that you are just as excited when someone else gets chosen to be on stage as you would be if it was yourself. Why? Because the Bride is still coming closer to Jesus, and that’s why we are in this ministry at all. This is not a competition or a popularity contest. You already have the affection of the most important Person in the universe on your life. You don’t need to seek anything else. “Better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked” (Psalm 84:10, NIV). May we always remember that the best place to be is in the presence of God, and may we always be grateful and content if we are servants—even doorkeepers—in His house. It is a great and wonderful privilege.
If you truly believe that you are called to be a person of greater influence, always remember that this is the way of the kingdom: “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’” (Matthew 25:23) The greatest heroes of the Bible, who had massive leadership callings, were developed and tested for years before they ever walked in what they originally felt called to—people like Joseph, David, Moses, and the Apostle Paul. Anybody who met them in the middle of their process would have called them losers, not leaders. We need to know these stories so that we understand God’s process in our own lives. If God has called you to large levels of influence, He will first see what you do with a very small level of influence. What you do with what He has entrusted to you already reveals your character. And your character is going to determine what you would do if you were ever entrusted with more. The greater the level of influence and impact on others God would trust you to have, the greater the preparation. There is very often a season of hiddenness when God has called you to great visibility, and it can be easy to think that God has forgotten you there (Isaiah 49). But quite the opposite is true. He is preparing you and saving you for whatever time and purpose pleases Him the most. His wisdom on when and how to release us is always higher than ours (Isaiah 55).
If you are on the bench, here are some practical things that you can be doing right now:
Serve with all your might in whatever area there is need. Go to your leaders and find out where they need help. Come early, and stay late. At my home church, we have over 70 different areas that require volunteers for a Sunday morning service. How many areas can you plug into? Let’s be honest, being part of a music ministry is one of the most pleasurable types of service there is! Serve in the areas that are not attractive or fun. And when you serve, don’t do it with the ulterior motive of being promoted to a higher position. Do it because the Lord is worthy of being served. Serve because you love Him and you love His people.
Pray for those who are currently in visible positions of leadership to be able to do so with great anointing and pure hearts. Support them, celebrate them, and honor them, so that a root of bitterness does not grow up in your heart and disqualify you and defile many.
Find ways that you can use your gifting to serve groups of people that may not have anybody leading them in worship. Rather than trying to squeeze into a position that already has plenty of people to fill it, look for where nothing is happening yet. Is there a need for someone to do worship with children? Is there a home group that doesn’t have someone to lead them in worship? Are there members of your church who are homebound and unable to come to a church gathering because of a physical condition or because they are elderly? Are there prayer groups or outreaches that don’t have worship? If you’re truly called to worship, you are the answer, and you can make the difference. Also, be willing to serve in other areas that relate to worship. You may be a bass player or a vocalist that is not currently getting to be on the platform—but maybe there is a need for someone to help run the lyrics. If your heart is for worship, you’re happy to jump in to any opportunity to help facilitate worship.
Practice your instrument and your singing, sharpen your skills, and prepare for when the opportunities will arise. Take lessons or enroll in a course to get better. God deserves the best! Practice singing the Scriptures spontaneously. Write songs diligently. Many people wait for someone to give them an opportunity and then they start practicing. God deserves better than that, and His people deserve better than that. Psalms is very clear that we are to play skillfully before the Lord. Don’t be waiting around for someone to give you a chance. Be getting ready for when God will need you to step up.
Keep growing spiritually, and be part of a church family. It is vital that you read and are growing in the Scriptures. It is vital that you are connected consistently with a group of people who love you and can challenge you—and yes, rebuke you—when you need it. It is vital that you are under the covering of leadership who can watch over your soul’s condition. Don’t float around from church to church or event to event, hoping to find a gig that you can be part of. When you find out who your people are and find out who your family is, and then you will end up living in the destiny that God has for you.
If you’re on the bench because of personal character issues, sin, or mistakes you’ve made, don’t despise the discipline of God or leaders in your life. And in this season, press into it rather than running from it. Don’t try to go through this so you can get back into your position quickly. Instead, focus on your true calling, which is to Jesus, to purity, and to the things of eternity. He will open doors for you when it’s the right time, if it’s ever the right time. You are called to Him first, not ministry or music. You don’t want music or ministry without Him. It will always leave you empty.
I hope these words encourage you and bring clarity to your situation if you are on the bench. If you haven’t been on the bench yet, you probably will be at some point in the future, and maybe these words will help you then. If you are on bench, you are not alone. You are in the company of some of the greatest heroes of the faith that have ever lived.