Several months prior to the launch of SBC Worship at the 2025 Annual Meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, faculty representatives from five of the six SBC seminaries gathered in Dallas at the Worship Initiative for a conversation on a variety of topics – from providing resources for worship leaders to theological fidelity in corporate worship to a growing concern about the number of churches desperately searching for worship leaders. Anecdotally, we all sensed there was a looming and rapidly growing chasm between the number of churches that needed worship leaders and the number of worship leaders that could actually fill those positions in SBC churches. Our data at the time was based on the number of calls we received from pastors and search committees looking for worship leaders.
From that meeting, a research committee was formed which included research scholars from both SBC seminaries and undergraduate institutions. Through their excellent work, what we thought we “knew” anecdotally was confirmed through a survey completed by more than 4000 SBC churches. The survey gleaned significant and valuable information about church worship practices, worship leader staffing, and even education of worship leaders. But the most significant aspect of the survey was the data indicating that by 2040, 20,000 SBC churches will need worship leaders.
While Southwestern’s School of Church Music and Worship cannot prepare 20,000 worship leaders, our worship training program is designed to train our students theologically, biblically, pastorally, and musically, not just for their development, but for their investment in future generations of worship leaders. But as noted in the survey, the need in our churches in the next 14 years is massive.
In trying to meet that need now and in the future, our undergraduate and graduate worship students engage in specific classes on worship and choir ministry for children and youth. In addition to our curricular commitments, our SCMW faculty have also invested in the student worship camp designed for high school students who are serious about developing worship leading skills and biblical insights. And the SCMW’s Southwestern Music Academy (now in its 20thyear) was created to encourage children to explore music through individual instruction, worship ensembles, and children’s and student choirs.
All of the aforementioned curricular and co-curricular offerings in the SCMW are possible because of Southwestern’s commitment to pioneering and supporting the only School of Music embedded in a seminary in North America. More and more, churches throughout the country are looking to Seminary Hill for well-trained, ministry-minded, biblically-faithful, musically-excellent worship leaders who understand the formational nature of corporate worship and the reality that they have a Spirit-empowered role in helping prepare the Bride for the return of the King.
Now is the time for young people with musical talent and a sense of God’s calling to seriously consider the preparation necessary for a lifetime of ministry. The comprehensive nature of the music and worship degrees at all levels in the SCMW (undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral) isn’t simply to prepare individual students, but to impact churches and future generations all over the world.
As the Dean of the SCMW, I am thrilled to see other SBC seminaries and undergraduate institutions develop strong music and worship programs, but there is something very special about the comprehensive nature of what is happening at Southwestern. Students have opportunities to develop in every aspect of ministry engagement – from singing in choirs, to playing in worship bands, to connecting their training to internships in local churches to presenting papers at theological conferences. I believe Southwestern’s SCMW sets the standard for ministry preparation and it is vital for future students interested in pursuing worship ministry to know that their calling is our passion.
