Music is a must for any retreat!
Times of worship during your retreat provide opportunities:
- For hearts to soften
- The Holy Spirit to speak
- Women to prepare their hearts and mind for the message
- Drive home a point of the session
- Background music during times of response
- Set the mood
- Wake up your women
- Bond the women thru a shared experience
- To use a theme song as a thread thru the weekend
There are a variety of ways to handle the music for your retreat:
- Hire a worship leader or worship band
- Recruit a woman from your church to lead worship for the weekend
- Assemble a worship team from your church to provide the music for the weekend
- Use a power point screen for the lyrics
- Print the song lyrics in your program
- Use CD’s with the artist’s recording of the song
- Download music tracks without the vocals
- Use the music that was included with your retreat kit
- Purchase a music sing-along DVD (they aren’t just for kids – I’ll share some below)
- Use a karaoke machine
Be sure to talk with your Music Minster/Director they may have some great ideas for you and may have some recommendations if you’re able to pay for a worship leader.
Also be sure you give your women the words to the songs you’re going to sing – whether you put on them up on a screen, in their programs, or both. Expect to have women join you that are not familiar with the songs you sing each week at church.
A few more thoughts on worship:
- Worship doesn’t have to be slotted at the beginning of every session. You may want to end with a song. Your speaker may want a time of response in the middle of her session.
- Not every song has to be sung by the whole group. Use a soloist, duet, or quartet. Play instrumental music. Just listen to the artist sing their song.
- New songs can be hard for your women to sing. Teach the song to them if you can.
- Your women don’t have to stand to worship. We had some sweet worship times sitting in our seats at our last retreat. It wasn’t what I had expected or planned in my mind…God’s vision is always better than mine!
Here are a few sing-along DVD’s you might want to check out:
Live: A Night of Extravagant Worship DVD |
Hymns Across America (DVD & Enhanced CD) |
To God Be the Glory, DVD |
iWorship @ Home DVD, Volume 6 |
Abide with Me (DVD & Audio CD) |
iWorship @ Home DVD, Volume 5 |
WOW Gospel 2013 |
You may also want to read:
Choosing Worship Music
6 Out of the Box Ideas for Using Music in Your Ministry
What Your Music Director Wants You to Know
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