What Kelsey McGinnis Taught Me About Asking Better Questions in Worship Ministry

By Matt Woltjer

One of the most impactful moments from Churchfront Conference 2024 came during Kelsey McGinnis’ keynote. I didn’t know I needed what she had to say until I was hearing it live—and honestly, it’s been stuck in my head ever since.

Kelsey is a musicologist and writer who spends a lot of time researching the culture of congregational music. She kicked off her keynote by talking about the kinds of questions she hears (and sometimes asks herself) when it comes to worship. But what made this talk so powerful was how she walked us through the process of turning a bad question into a better, deeper one.

It’s Not About the Songs—It’s About the Voices

The first “bad question” she tackled was: Why aren’t men singing in church? We’ve all heard that one before. And yeah, it’s loaded. It makes assumptions, it sets the wrong tone, and it kind of shuts the door on real understanding.

Kelsey shared that this question led her to a conversation with Dr. Randall Bradley from Baylor, who works closely with male singers. That’s when the deeper insight hit: it’s not about the songs—it’s about how people feel about their voices. Some guys don’t sing because they were made fun of during adolescence when their voices were changing. Others feel like their low, unpolished voices don’t belong in the mix of polished vocals and soft tenors. And if someone feels like their voice doesn’t belong, they’re not going to offer it as worship.

That struck a chord with me. As someone who’s passionate about helping churches foster participation, that truth reframes the whole conversation. Our job isn’t just to pick better songs—it’s to make sure people feel like their voices are wanted and welcomed.

From “Is Drumming Boring?” to “Where Do People Belong?”

Kelsey moved on to another question that hit surprisingly hard: Is it more boring to be a church drummer now than it was 20 years ago? As funny as that sounds, she made a great point. Worship music has shifted stylistically—more pads, loops, clicks, and precision. Some drummers feel creatively alive in that environment, others feel phased out.

And again, the better question wasn’t really about style—it was: How do we let worship evolve without making people feel obsolete? That one hurt a little. Because in our pursuit of excellence, there’s always the danger that people start feeling like they don’t belong anymore.

If we’re serious about building healthy, sustainable worship ministries, we’ve got to think beyond tech and style—we’ve got to think about people, their growth, and their value in the community.

The Tension Between Authenticity and Excellence

One of the last moments that stuck with me was when Kelsey addressed questions around vocal tuning and pitch correction. Should we use live autotune? Should we polish everything to perfection?

The better question, she said, is this: At what point do we edit the humanity out of our worship? Because every edit, every plugin, every tweak gets us closer to this airbrushed, Vogue-magazine version of church. It might sound amazing, but if we’re not careful, we risk losing the beauty of real, flawed, human worship.

That doesn’t mean we stop pursuing excellence. It just means we need to ask why we’re making the choices we make—and who we’re making space for (or leaving out) when we do.

A Final Takeaway

Kelsey closed her keynote with something I haven’t stopped thinking about: maybe the best questions in worship ministry aren’t about the music itself. Maybe they’re about the community. About the people. About what we’re actually trying to do when we gather to sing, serve, and create together.

That perspective shift? That’s what I needed to hear.

At Churchfront, we’re constantly talking about tools, systems, workflows—all the tech and techniques that make worship ministry run. But this keynote was a reminder that behind all that gear are people—each with a story, a voice, and a place in the body of Christ.

And maybe our job as worship and tech leaders isn’t to have all the answers.

Maybe it’s to get better at asking the right questions.