Devotion for Worship Team - 5 things to say in between songs

Sep 16, 2026

Worship leader guidance on what to say between songs to help the congregation connect with worship and engage actively. The content proposes five practical moments: a brief call to worship that reminds people of worship’s purpose, short song explanations to clarify lyrics and meaning, personal stories that build trust and add teaching value, prayers of invocation asking for God’s presence and transformation, and prayers of confession and assurance encouraging honest reflection and renewed faith.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLetters

FormatPDF

Pages5

Reading Time2 min

AccessFree to download

1-Call to Worship

Welcome and transitions

Purpose of worship

2-Song explanation

Clarify meaning and context

3-Personal Story

Brief experiences and teaching point

4-Prayer of invocation

Ask for God’s presence

5-Prayer of confession and assurance

Encourage confession and assurance

Continue Devotion for worship team tagalog Have you ever struggled with what to say in between songs as a worship leader? I do not think worship leaders need to say much, but sharing brief thoughts in between songs can significantly help your congregation connect the dots in worship and encourage them to engage. I usually have one or two places in the worship song set list where I will share a thought or lead the congregation in prayer.Planning and leading songs is an important pastoral role of a worship leader. For me, that’s the easy part. Lately, I have been pushing myself to pastor my congregation in between songs, and I want to help you do the same. Here are five things you can say in between songs as a worship leader.1-Call to WorshipAt the beginning of worship, you can remind the congregation why they are at church and why you are about to engage in worship. Where I lead worship, we play an opening song that lets everyone know worship is starting, so I do not say much before the first song.After the first song, we have a brief time of welcome and announcements. It’s usually less than a minute, and it is when we welcome first-time visitors. If it were up to me, we would not do announcements during the service at all.Then we transition into our set of worship songs. This is when I will say something to the congregation that reminds them about the purpose of worship and invites them to participate, or we read a call to the worship from the book of Psalms.One of our responsibilities as worship leaders is to give our congregation a compelling reason for why they should engage. People are coming into worship distracted by life situations, the 24/4 hour stream of media they have in their pocket, or what they are going to eat for lunch, and we need to help them focus on God. I’ll say something like,This morning I want to invite you to engage in our time of worship by singing and focusing all of your attention on God. The next hour is not a time to be a spectator, but a time to remind ourselves of the truth of the Gospel and give God the thanks he deserves. Allow God to work in your life this morning by being present and active in this time of worship.2-Song explanationSome of the best things to say in a worship service come from explaining songs. There are remarkable songs being written today, but for your congregation member who is hearing a song for the first time, it can be difficult to process the lyrics while learning how to sing it. In 10-20 seconds, you can shed light on song meaning for your congregation.For example, a few weeks ago we played the song, “Touch the Sky” by Hillsong United. I happen to think this is a well-written worship song. I also believe that this song needs a little bit of context for people to understand what it is about. It is a song inspired by the Sermon on the Mount and the upside-down nature of God’s Kingdom. If you want to be first, be last. If you want to be great, be the least. If someone slaps you on the cheek, turn to the other. Love your enemies. If you want to find your life, lose it. The lyrics of Touch the Sky brilliantly express this theme from the Sermon on the Mount, but that is not immediately apparent if you are never given the context. Before singing this song, I would say,We are going to sing a song that reminds us of the upside-down nature of God’s Kingdom. The world tells us that if we are to advance or make progress in life, we need to acquire more, become greater, and more independent. The way of God’s Kingdom is much different. If you want to ascend in status, you must descend. If you want to be great, humble yourself. If you want to find life, be willing to give it up. This is tough stuff, but it’s how God does incredible work in our life. Let’s sing this together.3-Personal StorySharing personal stories are a great way to allow your congregation to get to know you so that they trust you and want to follow you. I like sharing personal experiences that are super brief,

FAQs

Why should worship leaders speak between songs?

Brief thoughts between songs help the congregation connect worship “the dots,” focus on God, and move from passive attendance to active participation.

What should be included in a call to worship between songs?

Remind people why they are at church, invite them to engage in worship, highlight the purpose of worship, and sometimes read a call to worship from Psalms.

What are the five things a worship leader can do between songs?

A call to worship, brief song explanations, a short personal story, a prayer of invocation, and prayers of confession with assurance.

Sep 16, 2026

Upload by Taylor Morgan