By Jeff McIntosh
The role of a lyric operator in worship services is extremely important. You are so much more than a button pusher – you lead people in worship visually.
Providing lyrics for your church not only enables regular attendees to worship more freely, it allows newcomers to comfortably join in on the experience.
Here are a few ways that you can prepare during the week for this crucial role:
1. Add Every Service Element to Your Presentation Playlist
Having to hunt for each song, video, and presentation in the moment creates entirely too much stress. Add each part of your service to your playlist so that you can easily access them. Remember to include even the small details.
2. Outline Your Lyrics As They’re Sung
Ordering your lyrics in the exact way that they’ll be sung enables you to click to the next slide with confidence. Not having to worry about displaying the wrong words makes a big difference when you’re making an effort to display the next line before it’s sung.
3. Choose Your Backgrounds for Each Song
Determine which motion or still graphic you’ll use for each song ahead of time and add it to your presentation. This takes away the pressure of having to choose a background in the moment and removes the risk of selecting one that doesn’t match the tempo.
4. Double-Check Spelling and Grammar On All Slides
Typos stick out like a sore thumb for audience members and distract for the entire duration of a song. Avoid the chuckles from your congregation by proofreading your slides ahead of time.
5. Listen to Your Worship Set All Week
This is an easy habit that everyone involved in worship should pick up. Create a playlist with your worship set for that weekend and listen to it throughout the week. By the time Sunday comes, you’ll already know the songs by heart.
6. Touch Base With Other Ministry Leaders
An obvious sign of unprofessionalism is different areas of an organization not being on the same page. Take time during the week to connect with your worship leader, speaking pastor, lighting tech, and sound engineer to ensure you’re all telling one unified story on Sunday.
7. Test Everything Before Service Begins
There is potential for error in every area of your role. Take time before service starts to test each piece of media and presentation that will be used. When you’re confident that everything is in tip-top shape, you’ll move through each service element stress-free.
8. Pray For God to Do Big Things
Want to know how to give your production team an edge? Pray. Ask God to use you in the service to do more than simply project lyrics. Ask for Him to help you to create a distraction-free environment for life-change.
Jeff McIntosh is the founder of Church Motion Graphics, a ministry-focused, design studio dedicated to creating eye-catching, background graphics and videos that are specifically designed to look great in worship environments, www.churchmotiongraphics.com.
