Led through the Gate

"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." Matthew 7:13-14

Wow, this verse is heavy! This verse places a lot of weight on worship leaders. I mean, as a worship leader I read this verse and it kind of scares me.

Worship leaders a responsible to God for leading people through the gate, the narrow gate. Worship through music is said to be the way to "lead people to the Throne of God." I've heard that so many times that every time I read something on leadership, I read it through the lens of leading people to the Throne of God through music(also probably because I am a worship leader). So when I read this verse it says to me, "Travis, you are responsible for leading people through the narrow gate through music." Whoa! The question I thought of was this. How can I be effective at leading people through the narrow gate, instead of leading astray through the wide gate? This passage is great because it answers that question.

The first thing I can do is follow the example of other worship leaders. The Scripture says, "...narrow is the road that leads to life, and only a few will find it." I'm not the first person to find the gate. Others have found it before I did. So I get the opportunity to watch and learn from other worship leaders. One of the best pieces of advice I've ever been given on leading worship is that I need a local church to connect to. I need to find a church to be a part of every week. Just because I'm not on staff at a church doesn't mean I can wander from church to church looking for opportunities to lead.

On the other side of the coin is that "broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it." Sadly, a lot of leaders are taking their people down the wrong road. So we have to be careful who we surround ourselves with. Don't just jump on the biggest bandwagon, this scripture tells us specifically that more people find the path that leads to destruction that those who find the path to life.

The other thing this passage tells us is that the gate is Small and the road is narrow. It's hard to get through and hard to maneuver yourself through it. Leading worship in a way that leads people through the narrow gate is difficult. Jesus tells us that trouble will come; count on it. So we can expect trouble when trying to lead people through the narrow gate. What kind of trouble? People will question your choice in songs. People will question your calling to even be leading worship. People will leave your ministry and your church. People will say things that just aren't true. Troubles will come; expect it and be ready.

Scripture is full of examples on how to lead effectively. I always enjoy learning all I can on leadership, but the Bible is the best leadership book ever. We can learn from the leadership of Moses, Noah, and Jesus. Listen for God to speak to you on how to lead your area of ministry effectively through His Word.