Worship leader vs. worship pastor

In years past, I have largely ignored the great debate over the terminology used to describe the person responsible for the music ministry in church. As a kid, we just called them "the song leader". It was a volunteer position, typically held by someone with very little musical knowledge or ability, who randomly picked some songs out of the hymnal for us to sing loudly and off-key. Later, as I progressed into music ministry in larger churches, the terms "worship leader", "lead worshipper", "music minister", and "worship pastor" have been used interchangeably.

I have not given much consideration to these descriptions, believing them to all be practically the same thing. However, after recently reading the Worship Leader's article "Worship Leader or Worship Pastor" by Ross Parsley, I have begun to rethink my position. He brought up the point that a worship leader concentrates on musical knowledge, band techniques, and congregational participation. A worship leader is more concerned with musical excellence than with healing hearts. Whereas a worship pastor knows that musical excellence is important, but that "worship is fundamentally a function of the heart, and when a heart is transformed in worship, everything else follows." (great article. Look for it online at www.worshipleader.com)

I began to reflect on all the worship leaders/pastors that I have had the opportunity to work with in the last 24 years or so, and realized that out of all of them, only 3 or 4 could genuinely be called pastors. In the last 15 years, most of the people that I have worked with have been excellent musicians. They have challenged me, encouraged me, and tried to create the best atmosphere possible for worship. They have been friends, and become family. But most of them also stopped short of becoming pastors. They saw music ministry as a stage centered show rather than a way to love people. They did not pastor their musicians, much less even begin to try to pastor their congregations.

However, the worship pastors that I have worked with are the ones that forever changed me. Some of them were not as talented musically as others, but in pastoring their congregations, they helped people find healing and forgiveness. As these pastors ministered outside their comfort zones, God blessed them with great relationships and incredible opportunities. As lives were changed, people became more likely to engage in worship.

So, I think I like the term "worship pastor." Loving people and helping them along on their journey towards Christ leads to great and amazing worship. Excellence in music is certainly important. But, changed lives are of much greater importance than precise dynamics.