Things That Will Hurt your Instrumental Ministry

· Use the orchestra only as the pre-service music (choir marching music). Solution: Use the orchestra as the call to worship instead of the choir (on occasion). Better yet: Find pieces that feature both the choir and orchestra (Richard Kingsmore's A Perfect Heart, for example).
· Never feature instrumentalists during the service. Solution: Find times at offertories or even other services (evenings, Wednesday) to utilize solos or ensembles (or the full orchestra).
· Give players non-transposed parts, especially on the hymns and choruses. Solution: If they don't have music, let them sing… or write parts for your players.
· Schedule an "off" Sunday. Result: Regular Sundays will begin to look like "off" days. Solution: Instrumentalists like to play… and they like consistency… use them every week, if only for the hymns and choruses.
· Never follow up on people interested in joining your ministry. Result: No new players… stagnated growth… eventual decline. Solution: Find ways to involve your players… begin an orchestra visitation team… use your care group and section leaders to follow up on players in their section… nothing replaces you as the first contact… it takes time… but that's why you get the big bucks!