
Beyond Sunday Worship Leader Podcast
David Santistevan from the popular davidsantistevan.com blog dives into the heart of worship leading, worship ministry, songwriting, and making disciples. Discover how you can take your worship leadership to the next level through practical teaching, expert interviews, and the latest resources for worship leaders. From developing a discipleship strategy, engaging your congregation, writing your own songs, leading your best worship, and so much more, this podcast will help you become the worship leader you are called to be.
Latest episodes

Dec 12, 2023 • 46min
#300: Mack Brock on Sports, Songwriting, & Creative Process [Podcast]
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
So let’s talk about Planning Center. For those of you who are old enough, we often refer to worship leading eras as the pre-Planning Center days and the Planning Center days. It’s that game-changing and that important.
I talk about Planning Center pretty often on here, and if you’re a worship pastor, you might be wondering what more there is to Planning Center for you beyond worship planning and scheduling.
And there is.
Did you know that with a subscription to Planning Center Services you also have free access to another incredibly powerful product People?
With People, you can do things like create a volunteer pipeline to get new volunteers through their application process and then assigned to a team!
In People you can create an online form to get new volunteers, a workflow to help you walk them step-by-step through the training process, and then automatically add them to Services so you can get them scheduled!
And that’s just one way you use Planning Center People, so give it a try! Learn more at planningcenter.com/pipeline
And remember, if your church is looking for tools to help with things like giving, small group chat, event signups, live-streaming, and custom reporting, Planning Center has tools for that too, so let your church administrator know!
Topics Covered
Outdated NFL takes
The sad Carolina Panthers season
Creative process for starting a song
The story behind “O Come to the Altar”
Resources Mentioned
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
Just Like You’ve Always Done by Mack Brock
The post #300: Mack Brock on Sports, Songwriting, & Creative Process [Podcast] appeared first on Beyond Sunday Worship.

Nov 17, 2023 • 50min
#299: Chris Llewellyn on Rend Collective, Worship Songs, & Music for the Outsiders [Podcast]
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
So let’s talk about Planning Center. For those of you who are old enough, we often refer to worship leading eras as the pre-Planning Center days and the Planning Center days. It’s that game-changing and that important.
I talk about Planning Center pretty often on here, and if you’re a worship pastor, you might be wondering what more there is to Planning Center for you beyond worship planning and scheduling.
And there is.
Did you know that with a subscription to Planning Center Services you also have free access to another incredibly powerful product People?
With People, you can do things like create a volunteer pipeline to get new volunteers through their application process and then assigned to a team!
In People you can create an online form to get new volunteers, a workflow to help you walk them step-by-step through the training process, and then automatically add them to Services so you can get them scheduled!
And that’s just one way you use Planning Center People, so give it a try! Learn more at planningcenter.com/pipeline
And remember, if your church is looking for tools to help with things like giving, small group chat, event signups, live-streaming, and custom reporting, Planning Center has tools for that too, so let your church administrator know!
Topics Covered:
The world of Crossfit
The movie/song that launched Chris’ music career
Matt Redman’s influence
The challenge of writing upbeat, joyful songs
Why worship music is so slow and intense
Creative process
Honesty in Christian music
Resources Mentioned:
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
Honest by Chris Llewellyn
Rend Collective on Spotify
Gareth Gilkeson (Rend Collective) Interview
Andrew Peterson Interview
Graham Kendrick Interview
The post #299: Chris Llewellyn on Rend Collective, Worship Songs, & Music for the Outsiders [Podcast] appeared first on Beyond Sunday Worship.

Oct 13, 2023 • 29min
#298: Tyler Roberts on Red Rocks Worship, Discipleship, and Worship Culture [Podcast]
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
So let’s talk about Planning Center. For those of you who are old enough, we often refer to worship leading eras as the pre-Planning Center days and the Planning Center days. It’s that game-changing and that important.
I talk about Planning Center pretty often on here, and if you’re a worship pastor, you might be wondering what more there is to Planning Center for you beyond worship planning and scheduling.
And there is.
Did you know that with a subscription to Planning Center Services you also have free access to another incredibly powerful product People?
With People, you can do things like create a volunteer pipeline to get new volunteers through their application process and then assigned to a team!
In People you can create an online form to get new volunteers, a workflow to help you walk them step-by-step through the training process, and then automatically add them to Services so you can get them scheduled!
And that’s just one way you use Planning Center People, so give it a try! Learn more at planningcenter.com/pipeline
And remember, if your church is looking for tools to help with things like giving, small group chat, event signups, live-streaming, and custom reporting, Planning Center has tools for that too, so let your church administrator know!
Topics Covered:
Best practices for multisite worship
How RR builds community with their worship leaders each week
Defining the kind of worship leaders that are a good fit for your church
Sensing and shifting a room
How to develop young worship leaders
Lessons learned from co-writers
Favorite, most “underrated” song on Ascend
Resources Mentioned:
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
Ascend by Red Rocks Worship
The post #298: Tyler Roberts on Red Rocks Worship, Discipleship, and Worship Culture [Podcast] appeared first on Beyond Sunday Worship.

Sep 28, 2023 • 39min
#297: Matt Redman on The Heart and Mind of Worship [Podcast]
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
So let’s talk about Planning Center. For those of you who are old enough, we often refer to worship leading eras as the pre-Planning Center days and the Planning Center days. It’s that game-changing and that important.
I talk about Planning Center pretty often on here, and if you’re a worship pastor, you might be wondering what more there is to Planning Center for you beyond worship planning and scheduling.
And there is.
Did you know that with a subscription to Planning Center Services you also have free access to another incredibly powerful product People?
With People, you can do things like create a volunteer pipeline to get new volunteers through their application process and then assigned to a team!
In People you can create an online form to get new volunteers, a workflow to help you walk them step-by-step through the training process, and then automatically add them to Services so you can get them scheduled!
And that’s just one way you use Planning Center People, so give it a try! Learn more at planningcenter.com/pipeline
And remember, if your church is looking for tools to help with things like giving, small group chat, event signups, live-streaming, and custom reporting, Planning Center has tools for that too, so let your church administrator know!
Topics Covered:
How (and why we need to) expand our worship song topics
Why theology is important for worship leaders
How to reach for great theology and catchy melody
A look at the Worth Conference in October 2023
Guiding principles for building setlists
The importance of a “key moment” in a setlist
Incorporating liturgy and spontaneity
Resources Mentioned:
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
Worth Conference
The Father’s Song by Matt Redman
Facedown by Matt Redman
Podcast: Matt Redman on Visionary Songwriting, Co-Writing, & His New Album
Worship: The Missing Jewel of the Evangelical Church by AW Tozer
The Knowledge of the Holy by AW Tozer
Tozer on Worship & Entertainment compiled by James L Snyder
Under The Unpredictable Plant: An Exploration in Vocational Holiness by Eugene Peterson
Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ by John Piper
The post #297: Matt Redman on The Heart and Mind of Worship [Podcast] appeared first on Beyond Sunday Worship.

Sep 15, 2023 • 1h 4min
#296: Nathan Nockels on Playing Keys, Arranging Music, & Band Dynamics
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
So let’s talk about Planning Center. For those of you who are old enough, we often refer to worship leading eras as the pre-Planning Center days and the Planning Center days. It’s that game-changing and that important.
I talk about Planning Center pretty often on here, and if you’re a worship pastor, you might be wondering what more there is to Planning Center for you beyond worship planning and scheduling.
And there is.
Did you know that with a subscription to Planning Center Services you also have free access to another incredibly powerful product People?
With People, you can do things like create a volunteer pipeline to get new volunteers through their application process and then assigned to a team!
In People you can create an online form to get new volunteers, a workflow to help you walk them step-by-step through the training process, and then automatically add them to Services so you can get them scheduled!
And that’s just one way you use Planning Center People, so give it a try! Learn more at planningcenter.com/pipeline
And remember, if your church is looking for tools to help with things like giving, small group chat, event signups, live-streaming, and custom reporting, Planning Center has tools for that too, so let your church administrator know!
What You’ll Learn:
Nathan’s journey as a musician and producer
Finding your skill set
The writing of 10,000 Reasons with Matt Redman
Simplicity
Nathan’s live piano rig
Chroma pad from Peter James
How to play effective keys in ministry times
Resources Mentioned:
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
Ableton Live
Noir by Native Instruments
The post #296: Nathan Nockels on Playing Keys, Arranging Music, & Band Dynamics appeared first on Beyond Sunday Worship.

Aug 29, 2023 • 58min
#295: Chris Davenport on Writing Worship Songs [Podcast]
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
So let’s talk about Planning Center. For those of you who are old enough, we often refer to worship leading eras as the pre-Planning Center days and the Planning Center days. It’s that game-changing and that important.
I talk about Planning Center pretty often on here, and if you’re a worship pastor, you might be wondering what more there is to Planning Center for you beyond worship planning and scheduling.
And there is.
Did you know that with a subscription to Planning Center Services you also have free access to another incredibly powerful product People?
With People, you can do things like create a volunteer pipeline to get new volunteers through their application process and then assigned to a team!
In People you can create an online form to get new volunteers, a workflow to help you walk them step-by-step through the training process, and then automatically add them to Services so you can get them scheduled!
And that’s just one way you use Planning Center People, so give it a try! Learn more at planningcenter.com/pipeline
And remember, if your church is looking for tools to help with things like giving, small group chat, event signups, live-streaming, and custom reporting, Planning Center has tools for that too, so let your church administrator know!
Topics Covered:
The design of Chris’ new studio space
Chris’ favorite upright piano
The importance of finishing songs
Not having a songwriter poverty mentality
Taking action on your dreams and setting goals
The power of deadlines and schedule
Resources Mentioned:
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
Time by Chris Davenport
Keyscape by Spectrasonics
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
The post #295: Chris Davenport on Writing Worship Songs [Podcast] appeared first on Beyond Sunday Worship.

Aug 4, 2023 • 28min
#294: Tiffany Hudson on Elevation Worship, Finding Your Voice & Sound, & Healthy Worship Culture
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
So let’s talk about Planning Center. For those of you who are old enough, we often refer to worship leading eras as the pre-Planning Center days and the Planning Center days. It’s that game-changing and that important.
I talk about Planning Center pretty often on here, and if you’re a worship pastor, you might be wondering what more there is to Planning Center for you beyond worship planning and scheduling.
And there is.
Did you know that with a subscription to Planning Center Services you also have free access to another incredibly powerful product People?
With People, you can do things like create a volunteer pipeline to get new volunteers through their application process and then assigned to a team!
In People you can create an online form to get new volunteers, a workflow to help you walk them step-by-step through the training process, and then automatically add them to Services so you can get them scheduled!
And that’s just one way you use Planning Center People, so give it a try! Learn more at planningcenter.com/pipeline
And remember, if your church is looking for tools to help with things like giving, small group chat, event signups, live-streaming, and custom reporting, Planning Center has tools for that too, so let your church administrator know!
Conversation Topics:
How Tiffany started leading worship
Embarrassing moment stories
Elevation worship culture
Preparation and spontaneity
Songwriting and production on the new album
Resources Mentioned:
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
Hidden Here by Tiffany Hudson
The post #294: Tiffany Hudson on Elevation Worship, Finding Your Voice & Sound, & Healthy Worship Culture appeared first on Beyond Sunday Worship.

Jul 14, 2023 • 56min
#293: Nick Day on Bethany Music, Flowing in the Spirit, & Fostering Diversity in Your Worship
Show Sponsor: Bethel Music Worship School
This episode is brought to you by Bethel Music Worship School. As I look back on my development as a worship leader, I can pinpoint a handful of strategic conferences and events that changed the trajectory of my life. I can’t recommend the Bethel Music Worship School enough, taking place this summer in Redding, CA July 17-21.
The Bethel Music Worship School began over two decades ago and is an opportunity for worshipers, leaders, songwriters, musicians, and creatives to come together to grow, learn, and expand their craft.
This year’s special guest is 15-time GRAMMY Award winner and gospel music’s most highly decorated female artist CeCe Winans, along with Members of the Bethel Music Collective: Brian + Jenn Johnson, Josh Baldwin, Paul + Hannah McClure, Kristene DiMarco, David Funk, and more.
Guest speakers this year are Bill Johnson and Ray Hughes + more to be announced in the coming weeks.
Over the course of five days, you will have the opportunity to attend over 50 classes led by teachers who are experts of their field ranging from worship leading and songwriting to music publishing and studio production.
This is an incredible opportunity to invest in your worship leader, your worship team, growing and expanding your skills and encountering God with other like-minded leaders.
Beyond Sunday listeners will get $75 off their registration when they use code BEYOND75.Just head on over to bethelmusic.com/worshipschool and use BEYOND75 for $75 off your registration.
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
So let’s talk about Planning Center. For those of you who are old enough, we often refer to worship leading eras as the pre-Planning Center days and the Planning Center days. It’s that game-changing and that important.
I talk about Planning Center pretty often on here, and if you’re a worship pastor, you might be wondering what more there is to Planning Center for you beyond worship planning and scheduling.
And there is.
Did you know that with a subscription to Planning Center Services you also have free access to another incredibly powerful product People?
With People, you can do things like create a volunteer pipeline to get new volunteers through their application process and then assigned to a team!
In People you can create an online form to get new volunteers, a workflow to help you walk them step-by-step through the training process, and then automatically add them to Services so you can get them scheduled!
And that’s just one way you use Planning Center People, so give it a try! Learn more at planningcenter.com/pipeline
And remember, if your church is looking for tools to help with things like giving, small group chat, event signups, live-streaming, and custom reporting, Planning Center has tools for that too, so let your church administrator know!
Topics Covered:
Nick’s journey of faith and getting involved at Bethany Church
How Nick Connected with Smokie Norful
Developing as a worship leader
The story of Nick not making the worship team at Bethany Church
How to foster a diverse church and a diverse worship team
How to practice spontaneous worship as a team
Developing a songwriting culture
Making worship your “retreat”
Resources Mentioned:
Show Sponsor: Show Sponsor: Bethel Music Worship School – July 17-21 (use code BEYOND75 to get $75 off your registration)
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
Live from New Orleans by Bethany Music
Easy to Worship by Nick Day
The post #293: Nick Day on Bethany Music, Flowing in the Spirit, & Fostering Diversity in Your Worship appeared first on Beyond Sunday Worship.

Jun 26, 2023 • 60min
#292: Jonsal & Jenna Barrientes from Elevation Worship
Show Sponsor: Bethel Music Worship School
This episode is brought to you by Bethel Music Worship School. As I look back on my development as a worship leader, I can pinpoint a handful of strategic conferences and events that changed the trajectory of my life. I can’t recommend the Bethel Music Worship School enough, taking place this summer in Redding, CA July 17-21.
The Bethel Music Worship School began over two decades ago and is an opportunity for worshipers, leaders, songwriters, musicians, and creatives to come together to grow, learn, and expand their craft.
This year’s special guest is 15-time GRAMMY Award winner and gospel music’s most highly decorated female artist CeCe Winans, along with Members of the Bethel Music Collective: Brian + Jenn Johnson, Josh Baldwin, Paul + Hannah McClure, Kristene DiMarco, David Funk, and more.
Guest speakers this year are Bill Johnson and Ray Hughes + more to be announced in the coming weeks.
Over the course of five days, you will have the opportunity to attend over 50 classes led by teachers who are experts of their field ranging from worship leading and songwriting to music publishing and studio production.
This is an incredible opportunity to invest in your worship leader, your worship team, growing and expanding your skills and encountering God with other like-minded leaders.
Beyond Sunday listeners will get $75 off their registration when they use code BEYOND75.Just head on over to bethelmusic.com/worshipschool and use BEYOND75 for $75 off your registration.
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
So let’s talk about Planning Center. For those of you who are old enough, we often refer to worship leading eras as the pre-Planning Center days and the Planning Center days. It’s that game-changing and that important.
I talk about Planning Center pretty often on here, and if you’re a worship pastor, you might be wondering what more there is to Planning Center for you beyond worship planning and scheduling.
And there is.
Did you know that with a subscription to Planning Center Services you also have free access to another incredibly powerful product People?
With People, you can do things like create a volunteer pipeline to get new volunteers through their application process and then assigned to a team!
In People you can create an online form to get new volunteers, a workflow to help you walk them step-by-step through the training process, and then automatically add them to Services so you can get them scheduled!
And that’s just one way you use Planning Center People, so give it a try! Learn more at planningcenter.com/pipeline
And remember, if your church is looking for tools to help with things like giving, small group chat, event signups, live-streaming, and custom reporting, Planning Center has tools for that too, so let your church administrator know!
Topics Covered:
Elevation Nights tour
Pop-up church experiment at Elevation
The influence & growth of Elevation Worship
The songwriting/collaborative culture at Elevation
They congregational style of Elevation’s past few albums
Resources Mentioned:
Show Sponsor: Show Sponsor: Bethel Music Worship School – July 17-21 (use code BEYOND75 to get $75 off your registration)
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
Jesse Reeves Interview
Craig Dunnagan Interview
Can You Imagine? by Elevation Worship
Elevation Nights
The post #292: Jonsal & Jenna Barrientes from Elevation Worship appeared first on Beyond Sunday Worship.

Jun 16, 2023 • 1h 6min
#291: Graham Kendrick on Early CCM, Songwriting, & Diversity in Worship Music [Podcast]
Show Sponsor: Bethel Music Worship School
This episode is brought to you by Bethel Music Worship School. As I look back on my development as a worship leader, I can pinpoint a handful of strategic conferences and events that changed the trajectory of my life. I can’t recommend the Bethel Music Worship School enough, taking place this summer in Redding, CA July 17-21.
The Bethel Music Worship School began over two decades ago and is an opportunity for worshipers, leaders, songwriters, musicians, and creatives to come together to grow, learn, and expand their craft.
This year’s special guest is 15-time GRAMMY Award winner and gospel music’s most highly decorated female artist CeCe Winans, along with Members of the Bethel Music Collective: Brian + Jenn Johnson, Josh Baldwin, Paul + Hannah McClure, Kristene DiMarco, David Funk, and more.
Guest speakers this year are Bill Johnson and Ray Hughes + more to be announced in the coming weeks.
Over the course of five days, you will have the opportunity to attend over 50 classes led by teachers who are experts of their field ranging from worship leading and songwriting to music publishing and studio production.
This is an incredible opportunity to invest in your worship leader, your worship team, growing and expanding your skills and encountering God with other like-minded leaders.
Beyond Sunday listeners will get $75 off their registration when they use code BEYOND75.Just head on over to bethelmusic.com/worshipschool and use BEYOND75 for $75 off your registration.
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
So let’s talk about Planning Center. For those of you who are old enough, we often refer to worship leading eras as the pre-Planning Center days and the Planning Center days. It’s that game-changing and that important.
I talk about Planning Center pretty often on here, and if you’re a worship pastor, you might be wondering what more there is to Planning Center for you beyond worship planning and scheduling.
And there is.
Did you know that with a subscription to Planning Center Services you also have free access to another incredibly powerful product People?
With People, you can do things like create a volunteer pipeline to get new volunteers through their application process and then assigned to a team!
In People you can create an online form to get new volunteers, a workflow to help you walk them step-by-step through the training process, and then automatically add them to Services so you can get them scheduled!
And that’s just one way you use Planning Center People, so give it a try! Learn more at planningcenter.com/pipeline
And remember, if your church is looking for tools to help with things like giving, small group chat, event signups, live-streaming, and custom reporting, Planning Center has tools for that too, so let your church administrator know!
Topics Covered:
The evolution of full time Worship Leaders/Pastors
Worship leading in the 1960s & 1970s
The founding of Spring Harvest in the 1980s
The transition from head to heart in congregational singing
The impact of genre on lopsided praise & worship music
Resources Mentioned:
Show Sponsor: Show Sponsor: Bethel Music Worship School – July 17-21 (use code BEYOND75 to get $75 off your registration)
Show Sponsor: Planning Center
Graham Kendrick
The post #291: Graham Kendrick on Early CCM, Songwriting, & Diversity in Worship Music [Podcast] appeared first on Beyond Sunday Worship.