Free Team Devotional: Heart Check, Week 1

By Jon Nicol

Today's post is a Worship Team Devotional. It's designed to be read and discussed in a few minutes, allowing your team to prepare to worship, and lead others in worship. This is the first week of a five-week series called Heart Check. Parts of this devotional series first appeared as articles written for WorshipMinistry.com. A one page printable version is available below.

Let’s call her Lydia. When Lydia’s voice is on, it’s fantastic to listen to. When it’s off, it’s like poking a Q-tip too far in your ear. So when certain songs call for a female lead, I’ve got a dilemma – should I give it to her, or shouldn’t I?

Lydia notices when I don’t give it to her. And calls her friend. And it eventually gets back to me that she’s upset.

If Lydia were to ask herself the our first “heart check” question, “Do I get offended (even slightly) when someone else gets the lead part or receives praise from others?” and she were honest, she’d say yes. She may not say she’s offended. Hurt, disappointed, maybe frustrated might top the list. And then it would be followed by an explanation: “I just love to sing…”

King Saul got offended. We see issues with him early on, but a pivotal moment in his demise is when he hears the maidens singing:

“Saul has slain his thousands,
and David his tens of thousands.” (Read the whole story in 1 Samuel 18)

In worship team terms,
“Saul sang lead on verse two of a pre-service song.
David landed the solo on the big anthem of the Easter Celebration.”

I’m not sure if Lydia is ready to hurl spears. But she’s holding an offense. And the next time it happens, her heart will wrap more tightly around it, nursing it, helping it grow.

What do we do when we answer yes to the question “Do I get offended…?” It means my heart is nursing an offense, and I need to forgive. I also need to confess the jealousy, envy, and maybe even bitterness that I’ve allowed to grow.

But this issue rarely goes only as deep as the lead part on Revelation Song. There’s a deeper wound that’s causing my insecurity and arrogance. And that needs to be explored with my heart open to the Holy Spirit’s guidance and the healing touch of Jesus.

For Team Discussion:
If I get passed over for a lead part, can I be “disappointed” and still guard my heart against jealousy and bitterness? How?

Follow-up: Where’s the line between genuine & appropriate “disappointment” and jealousy/envy/bitterness?

What does “nursing an wound or offense” do to your heart and attitude? If this occurs within our team, what will it do to our team?

If you’ve ever struggled with this, how did you overcome it?

Do you agree with Jon that there’s likely a deeper wound or issue causing our insecurity?

Challenge – next time those feelings of envy, jealousy or “being offended” well up in your heart, ask Jesus if there’s a deeper root to this issue. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you to that and allow Jesus to heal that place.

Download the printable verison of Heart Check: Week One