Last night I led worship for our F1rst Wednesday Service at Church.
I’m comfortable playing guitar in front of people. Singing? Not so much. Leading worship? Not at all.
But the opportunity was there, and I consider it a privilege to lead other people in praising God, so I took it.
Sound check was rough. I couldn’t find notes. Couldn’t hear myself well enough. I began to wonder if it was a mistake. If someone had offered to lead for me right then, I might have considered it.
But I went through with it, and it went well. The band behind me was great. No major vocal screw-ups to kill the atmosphere. And from what I could see, it seemed like people were engaged.
When was the last time you did something that was very much outside of your comfort zone? If it’s been a while, may I ask why? If it’s because no opportunities have arisen, that’s one thing. But if you’ve been turning down chances to stretch yourself or do something new because you’re afraid you’re going to embarrass yourself or you’re worried things won’t go well, then let me give you some friendly advice: overcome your fears and do it.
What’s the worst that can happen? You completely screw up? Well, then at least you tried and now you know that opportunity wasn’t for you. (And don’t worry about what people will think…they probably already think you’re a doofus anyway.)
Not to go all Seth Godin on you, but maybe “What’s the worst that can happen” is the wrong question. Maybe we need to ask “What’s the best that can happen?”
Will I ever lead worship again? I don’t know. If I’m ever asked to again, I probably will. Definitely glad I said yes this time, though.
What about you? Has there been something you’ve done in the past 6 months that really stretched you and rocked your comfort zone? I’d love to hear about it. Stories like that often inspire me to shake things up a bit in my life too…