I do lighting at my Lutheran Church. As Bill said, it depends a lot on your church and its style of worship. I do lighting only for special worship services, such as Christmas Eve, Good Friday, Easter Vigil, Easter. For non festival services, we provide a nice, simple,
no color wash of the chancel area.
Lots of things are used in churches to enhance worship services. Furnishings, decorations, symbols like crosses and statues, candles, robes, and music are often used, and lighting is also part of the art.
I generally, try to be subtle about what I do, with the goal to enhance the mood without calling attention to the lighting itself. That often leaves out bold scene changes, radical colors, moving lights,
etc. Sometimes, just changing the overall light
level or the balance of "
house" lighting to the brightness in the Chancel can be powerful.
One service that seems to lend itself to being more expressive is Good Friday. There, the lighting can be more dramatic to help symbolize the death of Christ. After all, a crucifixion itself is a dramatic act. Some years, we do a service called Tenebrae, which is Latin for shadows or darkness. I can get pretty creative with that one.
On the other
hand, a church that uses loud contemporary music, and leans to more flashy presentation can do a lot more with
stage lighting. It also depends on how much your church is bound by tradition. Some churches welcome new things in worship easily, and some reject any change.
Remember that in worship, the focus needs to be on God. Talk with your Pastor about your ideas that can support worship. Some Pastors will be excited to try new things with lighting, as long as they have oversight. Others may just turn you loose to experiment, and still others may prefer to do little to nothing. Just remember that the Pastor is the worship leader, so you need to work with them as you would a
stage director.