Contemporary Worship Leader

Leesburg United Methodist Church’s Arise Contemporary Worship is seeking a passionate and spiritually grounded Worship Leader to guide and lead our contemporary worship music. The ideal candidate will have experience leading contemporary Christian worship, strong vocal and instrumental skills, and a heart for building a worship team to lead the time of praise in the contemporary service. The role involves planning and leading weekly worship praise, coordinating with pastor and tech team, and nurturing a culture of worship that invites all people into the presence of God.

Applicants should be email their resume and cover letter to  [email protected].

Contemporary Worship Leader Position Description

Updated: May 2025

Title/ Position Type: Contemporary Worship Leader , Hourly (12hrs/ week), non-exempt, 50 weeks/ year

Goal: To plan, prepare and present music to inspire and enhance worship at the Arise contemporary worship service held at LUMC as part of the overall music ministry of the church.

Relationships: The  Contemporary Worship Leader will work primarily with the “Raising Praise” praise team (9:30am) and other music groups in the church and outside the church to prepare music for Sunday morning worship at 9:30, and for other special occasions. He/she will work with the pastor, the Director of Traditional Music and the Worship Team to plan both regular Sunday worship and special worship services throughout the year.

Hours: This is a part-time position, 12 hours/week or 50 week/ year.

Qualifications: Experience playing with and directing a praise team; ability to work in a team environment with other music leaders and the pastor.

Principal Functions: The principal function of this job is to lead the contemporary worship service’s music component. This includes working with the pastor to ensure the music flows along with the theme of the service each week, organizing the volunteers and working with the sound and audio visual team to ensure that the service flows smoothly each week.

Strong vocal skills are needed as well as the ability to play an instrument. Computer skills and knowledge of sound systems/techniques are also required.

Will establish, maintain, and be responsible for LUMC Praise Band and will recruit and lead other team members including volunteer musicians, vocalists.

The most important part of this job, beyond leading the worship team, is to develop meaningful relationships with the congregation, encouraging them to grow in their faith.

Responsibilities:

• Work in consultation with the pastor, Director of Traditional Music and Worship Team to select appropriate music for weekly service. As the pastor is committed to share an annual worship schedule, the expectation is to plan in advance and share a quarterly schedule.
• Recruit, organize, coordinate, and lead the praise band, in a way that will help the service be effective both in its spirit and in its quality presentation. This includes providing training for members of the band, both instrumentally and vocally, as needed to help members of the team grow in their musical abilities.
• Conduct weekly rehearsals, and direct the praise band. In the event the Praise Band Leader is absent, collaborate and coordinate with music ministry leaders  to identify a qualified substitute.
• Attend and contribute to any worship music planning meetings as called by the Worship Committee/ pastor.
• Assist and support all other services as necessary, including planning of special worship services as assigned by the Senior Pastor
• Serve as a member of the LUMC staff, and work as a team to ensure the unity among the various worship services, and the entire church program.
• Work closely with the audio/visual team to assist in preparing the presentation aspect of the service.
• Contemporary Worship leader will be familiar with and continue to research current contemporary music and worship trends, introducing the congregation to new songs as well as keeping songs the congregation likes in the normal rotation.

Other Responsibilities

• Oversee the music resource area and sound room for the storage and cataloging of the band’s music, equipment, etc.
• Supports the Mission and Values of LUMC through communication, performance, and by self example to the congregation and the community.

Accountability / Supervision:

• Meet regularly with SPRC liaison.
• Supervised by the pastor.
• Annual Evaluation will be conducted by the pastor.