Hello all - a few thoughts on yesterday morning.
But before that begins, during my drive to work this morning I was struck - I couldn't tell you why - by what a blessing it is to be a part of this team with you all. As I drove I thought back, trying to recall any infighting, bickering, ego-assertion, evidence of pride or self-centeredness, and I was happily overwhelmed to realize that I have never seen any of the above to a degree that even approached the need for intervention or correction. What an evidence of God's grace in the individual lives on this team! The willingness that you all have to serve with humility, to learn, to try new things, to consider your abilities as a means rather than an end - it's all very pleasant for me personally, and pleasing for our Father. Thank you all for displaying his gracious work so clearly!
As for yesterday - all in all I think it was a decent morning. Two new songs is always a tall order and I don't approach a task like that lightly. Both of those songs have blessed me greatly over the last two weeks during which I've listened to each easily over twenty times. As I've reflected on the lyrics and their simplicity and depth, it's been fantastic for me. But at the same time, I recognize that they are not the simplest songs to sing. They're a bit of a challenge - some awkward vocal jumps here and there. Intuitive they are not.
But, Pat and Kate - you did a great job picking them up. Teaching the songs to you seemed simpler than I expected it would be. Well done - you asked good questions for the sections that needed clarification and I think the results were solid.
As for the congregation - it's hard for me to read since I have a monitor in my ear. But it seemed as though, at the very least, the chorus of each song had caught on by the time that we finished. I heard some feed back that it seemed as though people were responding even if they weren't able to sing comfortably. That was encouraging. Visually, it looked as though people were processing the music but were responding to the lyrics positively.
I want to do both songs again this coming week and I think that we can fit them in. So, hopefully, that should solidify them somewhat.
I'd appreciate any thoughts on the songs that any of you might have.
Dick - we were in and out a few times. Not sure what the cause might have been, but we definitely weren't tightly synced - especially on the slower songs. If you have any thoughts about how I can more effectively establish the rhythm for you to pick up, leave a comment and let me know so that I can implement.
Vocalists sounded great - some fantastic harmonies thrown in to the mix.
I thought that my comments after the Scripture reading could have been tighter, more concise and to the point. Perhaps they were impacted by the late hour changes to the order that I made in order to amplify the theme of the morning and direct things along the lines that I thought the Spirit was leading. Whatever the case, I wasn't as prepared as I should have been and I think that's always evident. Ernie - you selected a fantastic Psalm, I was blessed as I read through it, the encouragement of God's faithfulness in times of trial. Unfortunately it didn't align easily with the theme that I thought should be prominent for the morning, which is why I changed it along with a couple of the songs that I had initially selected. I really appreciate your ministry in faithfully selecting passages from the Lord's word to minister to his people each Sunday morning. Ninety-five times out of one hundred I believe that they have been perfectly suited for the morning. And I believe that the Spirit has worked through them very effectively. I wonder if it might be possible to get them just a little bit earlier in the week. I know that you've been very busy and that has accounted for the timing. But changes and adjustments are so much simpler if we have 24 hours or more to work through them. Maybe we can have a conversation about how we might achieve a schedule that would work well on all sides. Let me know your thoughts when you have an opportunity.
Sound, from what I could tell, was solid. John mentioned to me that it can be difficult to keep my vocals at an even level if I move too much during the songs. It's a problem that I'm aware of - yes, I am aware of what I'm doing up there! Usually I judge the moment to determine if I think that the song can be carried without my directly singing into the mic. If I think that it can, I'll feel the freedom to step away and allow for some physical expression of praise. While the joy of leading and playing praise is one that I more than happily accept as a blessing, if there is one frustration that I feel at times, it is the restriction that I cannot lift my hands, cannot clap, cannot just join in with abandon. So, I take the moments that I can.
But that said - I want to be aware if that's not helpful. My primary role is not necessarily to personally praise directly. As leaders much of our praise comes in the form of leading others to praise without distraction. We praise our Father by enabling others to praise. So, on a Sunday morning, my primary task is not necessarily to personally engage fully in worship - it's to help the congregation do that. If I'm not doing that I need to be aware of it. So, if any of you have any thoughts about the pros and cons, the benefits of having a leader who displays physical expressions of worship or the drawbacks to having a leader who may display those expressions too readily, I would really appreciate the feedback. Just leave a comment so that we can discuss.
One or two additional thoughts -
I'm hearing feedback that the blog is a helpful tool for communication and for distributing information - and I'm glad to hear it! A couple people had some computer issues at the 11th hour this week that made it difficult to get all of the information. So, a thought on that - the primary reason that I put the order of worship together so early in the week is so that all of us have opportunity to review the music, learn what's new, re-familiarize ourselves with the old, and mull over instrumental parts, harmonies, arrangement ideas etc. If we do that we can come together on a Sunday morning with a bunch of team driven ideas already generated. That can only happen if we're all listening to the stuff all week long (including those people who may not be involved in a particular week). So, I'd like to ask that you all review the order and download the music immediately upon posting. Then commit to listening to it repeatedly and learning it cold by Sunday morning. It will enhance our practices and it'll bring more ideas to the table as we arrange. On top of that - it'll help teach the congregation new songs if there are people interspersed throughout who are already very familiar with the music.
One final thing - I got a few emails from people with questions about the order, singers, technical problems, etc. Please - post those thoughts and questions as comments here on the blog. There's a decent chance that other people are wondering the same things. If we can answer all of the stuff that's out there at once, it would be great. And if no one is thinking of it at the moment, perhaps it will spark a discussion about something that we all need to think about. So, my request is this - unless the question/request/comment is extremely personal in nature, I'd ask that rather than sending me an email you post the question/comment on the site. From here on out, I may reply to your email asking you to do that rather than answering the question. Then, once posted, I'll reply. Let's take advantage of all of the opportunities the blog offers.
Thanks again everyone - it's a joy!
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