Compared to the time spent learning to preach, most seminarians do not spend much time learning to lead worship. And yet, for pastors, the ability to direct a congregation's response to God is essential. Mastering Worship, an upcoming book in LEADERSHIP's Mastering Ministry series, offers the tested wisdom of Jack Hayford, John Killinger, and Howard Stevenson. This article is excerpted from Howie Stevenson's chapter on worshiping through congregational singing.

One of the most magnificent and impressive "choirs" I ever heard had never rehearsed. It was the vast audience that gathered in Anaheim Stadium one night during the 1985 Billy Graham Southern California Evangelistic Crusade.

I had been selected as the chairman of the local music committee and so assisted in the recruitment and direction of a 10,000-voice crusade choir, the largest crusade choir ever assembled in North America, according to Cliff Barrows. A magnificent sea of voices stretched along the entire ...