If we were to ask you what traits every great worship leader should possess, how would you respond? Do you think they should have an amazing voice? Are they always on fire for God, worshiping with passion? Do they have it all together?
What about humility? Did that one make your list?
Worship arts student Halley Krochta lives by one of her favorite verses, 2 Corinthians 1:6, “If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer.” Krochta knows that everyone goes through hardships, but it’s how people respond to them that really matters. According to Krochta, no matter what happens in a person’s life, it’s important to keep praising God.
When she first came to Grace, Krochta was majoring in educational ministries and minoring in the worship leader degree. During her first week on campus, she had a long meeting with her advisor that left her feeling unsatisfied with her major and questioning what she was supposed to do. The words spoken to her that previous weekend were still ringing in her mind.
“You have a gift for leading with humility,” a woman from church had told Krochta after she led worship that Sunday.
Although Krochta had loved music since she was a kid, she had never thought about pursuing it with a worship leader degree. Through the encouragement of her advisor and the woman at her church, she changed her worship arts minor to a major.
Now wrapping up her fourth and final year in the worship leader degree, Krochta has learned a lot about being humble. “I have to know that this is a calling, and I don’t have to be perfect,” Krochta says. “I can step into the growth and know that I’m not where I want to be yet, but I’m getting better.”
Even though she felt led to pursue a worship leader degree, she began to doubt her calling when she was denied from the chapel band her first two years. The disappointment left her feeling like she wasn’t good enough to pursue worship arts.
Although it was hard at the time, she now uses her hardship to support others who go through similar struggles. Learning how she could turn her challenges into opportunities to practice empathy has been humbling for her. “It’s a blessing in disguise,” she says.
Last year, she made it onto the chapel band and is now in her second year as a worship leader. She has been humbled by people sharing how they have been touched or encouraged during worship. “I know it’s the Lord,” Krochta says. “Sometimes, I’m still surprised that He allows me to be part of that.”
When leading worship, Krochta tries to not focus on herself but rather on God and how she can move the audience to worship. “When I’m leading in chapel, I try to find people out in the crowd and sing for them so they will press into the song and surrender to God,” she says. “I ask myself if I’m embodying a heart of surrender and if I’m inviting others into that, too.”
While Krochta knows it can be easy to go through the motions as a worship leader, she is still amazed how God can use that for His purpose to move people during worship. “It reminds me how big God is that he can work through me in my unfaithfulness,” she says. “It can either be daunting or it can be an invitation to how I can speak love and life to these students.”
Krochta says that she has led worship through some very difficult times. Though it can be challenging, she tries to refocus her attention on the audience. “I’m always reminded that I’m not alone in the weightiness of the hardships,” she says. “It feels as though I’m being invited into the hardships of those around me as we are able to seek God together with our weary hearts.”
After she completes her undergraduate degrees, Krochta will graduate in 2023 from Grace with a Masters of Divinity with a concentration in Pastoral Counseling. She isn’t sure what career she will pursue, but no matter what, she wants to keep a humble mindset. “I want my life to be marked by humility, and I know that I still have a long way to go,” she says. “How we respond to hardships is a choice. I still have a lot of humility to experience and embody.”
Do you want to be a worship leader who moves others to God through humility? Check out our worship leader degree programs.
