Bruce Cannon, associational missionary for the Bladen Baptist Association, commented that it seems like we are worshipping in a “dry and thirsty land” in many of our churches. Almost every week I hear from a pastor or associational missionary concerning the desperate situation in so many North Carolina Baptist churches that lack needed worship leadership.

One pastor described his church’s situation as having a pianist who can only play in three or four keys and an organist who has very little ability. Although the pastor was very grateful for volunteers willing to serve, he shared that the church is limited in the older, more traditional, music they can do, and they cannot even venture into newer music.

The pastor asked what could be done to help his church’s corporate worship times.

These stories are not at all uncommon. The younger generation is producing very few instrumentalists to replace retiring church musicians. Many churches find they have instrumentalists with vast limitations or no musicians at all.

Volunteer leadership in many of our churches is in great need of training. Many churches long to move beyond traditional forms of worship, but find that impossible with the limitations they have. What is a church to do?

After much time interfacing with smaller membership churches and hearing from concerned pastors and associational missionaries, I have developed a training event that will inform and equip the church worship leadership on ways to renew worship in churches with limited resources.

The event is called “Worship Leader Boot Camp: Special Edition (Leading Worship with Limited Resources).” It takes the popular Worship Leader Boot Camp training event, offered throughout North Carolina last year, and changes the direct application of the biblical and leadership principles through practically helping churches with limited resources to engage technology and new ways of thinking to lead worship with only one or two, or perhaps no instrumentalists.

The theology of worship and leadership principles taught in the original worship leader boot camps are unchanged. The practical application will instruct participants to use resources such as LifeWayWorship.com and other technology to inexpensively provide meaningful and musically excellent worship experiences in the local church. All times of worship will be led by only one to three musicians, demonstrating worship in churches with limited resources. For instance, a worship segment may be led by one keyboardist utilizing only tracks on some songs, just keyboard on some songs, and a combination of the two on other songs. The songs will be woven together in a seamless fashion to demonstrate the effectiveness and use of these practices.

Finding excellent new songs for use in worship and learning about the best ways to introduce new songs into a congregation’s worship is another vital part of the training.

Participants will be encouraged to bring their computers, if available, and people from their church with technical ability and some knowledge of music since there will be some hands-on time of constructing musical segments for worship.

For more information, visit my worship blog at www.RenewingWorshipNC.org. The blog articles are written specifically for pastors and worship leaders, to assist them in their journey to renew worship in the local church. At the blog, you will find out how to connect with me on Twitter and Facebook.

You can also find additional information about the BSC worship & music ministry at worshipNC.org.

A Worship Leader Boot Camp: Special Edition is scheduled Feb. 10-11, 2012, at Ridgecrest Baptist Conference Center; fee: $30/person; housing/meals cost: single occupancy – $105 (includes lodging and three meals) double occupancy – $68/person. Contact Ridgecrest for commuter fees and meal plans for off-campus participants: ridgecrestconferencecenter.org or (800) 588-7222.