Basic Acoustic Guitar in Worship
What You'll Learn
Basic Gear
Using the Capo
Playing Technique
Song Preparation
Meet Your Instructor
Austin Johnson
Originally from Lindale, Texas, Austin Johnson now lives in Redding, California, where he serves on the worship team at Bethel Church and is part of Bethel Music. Growing up in the church, Austin developed a deep love for worship from a young age. After experiencing a true transformation as a born-again believer during his teenage years, he began leading worship for the local church youth ministry and Sunday services, laying the foundation for his future in ministry.In 2014, Austin moved to Redding, California, to attend Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry. There, he began serving on the worship team at Bethel Church and launched his career as a songwriter for Bethel Music in 2018. Austin is passionate about serving the church through writing and leading songs that inspire the Body to offer an honest, true, and wholehearted response to who God is and all He has done—cultivating a people whose greatest desire is to minister to Him above all else. When he isn’t leading worship, traveling, or writing music, Austin enjoys spending time at home in Nashville with his wife, Ariana, and their daughter, Elsie.
Course Overview
From small groups to stadiums, worship is often led musically from the acoustic guitar. However, one of the more common obstacles many face when starting this journey is getting from learning chords at home to plugging in on stage and playing with a team.
In this course with Austin Johnson, many of the common hurdles and basic knowledge are given on how to approach song preparation, different chord voicings, how to use a capo, common and necessary gear, and how to fit it all together into the context of a worship set.
This course is designed to equip acoustic players with accessible ways to show up prepared, and approach acoustic guitar with intentionality and excellence, even at the basic levels of playing.
COVERED IN THIS COURSE:
⁃ Basic strumming and picking techniques
⁃ Capo usage and chord voicings
⁃ Necessary acoustic guitar gear
⁃ The role of acoustic in a band
⁃ A full song preparation walk through
Course contents
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Hey [Pastor Name],
Here’s what I found: Self-Paced Courses Example: “Worship Guitar Essentials” breaks down chords,
How we’d use it: Assign the module to our guitarists; they can finish it before next rehearsal and come ready to play.
Song Tutorials Example: Their library has dozens of popular worship songs with on-screen chord charts play-along tracks and downloadable PDF charts.
How we’d use it: Anyone can learn a new song on their own time—no more scrambling to swap parts on Sunday.
Quick Skill Boosters Example: 3–5 minute videos like “Thumb vs. Fingerpicking” “Three Tips for Stronger Harmonies” or “Stage Presence 101.”
How we’d use it: Team members can grab a coffee and knock out a tip video between services.
Team Dashboard & Progress Tracking
See who’s completed which lessons
Encourages accountability and makes it easy for you to follow up.
What do you think? Want to see for yourself?