How do you lead a task when you only know a little? Most of us in ministry face this situation all the time. We lead because we’re the best we have, and that isn’t saying a whole lot.

I lead worship on Sunday night (who even has Sunday night church anymore) in a small church (over half the churches in America are under a hundred people) in a small town (under 4000 people). The bi-vocational senior pastor had a vision for Sunday night that it might be a dynamic, inviting atmosphere that would draw people interested in God but not interested in church.

On and off for the last 30 years, I’ve led worship in various small settings for one reason. No one else played guitar. I’m an adequate guitar player and a middling singer. It may not be torture to hear me but it doesn’t soothe the soul as did David’s harp for King Saul. Time improved my skills but practice would have done much more. And yet I lead a good worship band every week in a church that once again called me, “You are the only one who plays guitar.”

Today’s worship bands require an immense amount of expertise. Multiple instruments, multi-media, a digital soundboard, lead and harmony vocals, various rhythms, changing keys, engagement of a congregation, flow of worship, and certainly the dynamic of the Holy Spirit. Even if I wanted, I could not be the expert in all these areas.

So I strive to know a little and coach the rest.

Develop a culture of trust

Coaching doesn’t start with great questions. It starts with trust. I promise the band, “I won’t let you look stupid.” That takes away a lot of fear and allows a place for encouragement. If an instrument is out of tune or off beat or a vocalist is flat, we call it out. No one likes to be called out, but they like it even less when they perform poorly in a public setting.

We’ve built trust in several ways.

1. As a team, we created a Code of Conduct to make clear our expectations of ourselves and each other. We revisit this code on a regular basis before each week’s practice.
2. We hang out together and show concern for each other’s lives.
3. We promise to never let anyone look stupid.
4. We ask and listen for how each member feels about the songs and the flow.
5. We pray together as a team

Develop a culture of innovation

When no one has the expertise, you must encourage risk. Long ago, I tried to explain to a drummer what beat I was looking for. He looked at me like I was from Mars, and he was right. I was from Mars. I had no expertise at all to help him come up with a beat for this particular song. The coach must encourage each member of the band and crew to take risks and see what works.

This means a lot of things won’t work. We quickly identify what works and what doesn’t and keep trying. We praise people for failing. Most people know when something is a failure. What they don’t always know is when something works. By creating an atmosphere of trust, the team takes more ownership and is more willing to put themselves out there.

Develop a culture of potential

There are some people who can not sing. It doesn’t matter what you do, their noise will only be joyful to God and their mother. But in many settings, you can turn a fair musician into a good musician. They have to trust you, and they have to be willing to take risks and fail, but they can improve.

Our church just upgraded from an analog mixer to a digital mixer. The learning curve is steep, and no one but the installer will ever be an expert on it. And God forbid we do find an expert. The Sunday they leave or get sick or refuse to help we will be left high and dry. (That sounds wrong. It seems more likely we would be left low and wet, drowning in a sea of complicated technology.) Now is the time to look for potential and invite new people on to our technical team. (Update: I invited a technician who will join our band this month.)

Looking for potential looks beyond willingness. We aren’t looking for a sound technician, as if you are going through a grocery store looking for what is already available. A digital soundboard expert is not sitting in our pews. We need to identify who has potential and encourage them into some expertise. (Update: The person I found works in a technical field and sings in the morning choir. She isn’t an expert on sound mixers but she has the right ingredients.)

Conclusion

The main impediment to my coaching is usually knowing too much. If you’re too good at something, no one will want to take any risks. They might look lame next to how good you are. I need to know a little and coach the rest. This approach to leading takes the pressure off and builds up a strong support around you.