Car/Course Correction

I work with a Church here in Richmond where I manage and schedule the musicians for each weeks service. Along with this some other of my responsibilities are to select which songs we will play on a given Sunday, what new songs we should learn as we go forward, how (and if) to train new musicians, and how to spend appropriated monies. This would constitute the bulk of work for most positions like this, however there is an element to this position that I find more important and ultimately more rewarding, "Systemic Change". This I think is more an element of my character than it is a duty in my job description. I want to make it work better, I want it to be more effective, I want to change the environment in which I work by changing the way things work and the expected outcomes.

The difficulty I find in this, is that more often than not it is inappropriate to entirely dismantle social structures so that you can have a clean slate for the building of new ones. Their are too many people with too many attachments, too much invested, and too much nostalgia. Simply put there is too much "Social Inertia" already moving behind the traditional way of doing things. So what you have to do is jump into the drivers seat of a moving car, set a course, set the cruise, and then get under the hood through the glove box, and then get to work. You tweak this, and tighten that, remove redundant parts, increase efficiency and drop excess weight, now your moving a little faster than you were before! That means you have to climb back out through the glove box into the drivers seat and see if you've run over any one while you were under the hood. 

Who, What, Why?

This is the result of a conversation I had with the members of the worship team at St. Giles. I pray that it encourages you to ask questions about where you are in regards to effecting your congregations through worship. Maybe you've got an entirely different vision and direction, I would love to hear about it. What conversations are trending with your staff and volunteers?

Who Are We: First and foremost we are believers in the global eternal church of Christ, finding our value and confidence in his love and opinion of us. More specifically we are The St. Giles Worship Leaders, We are St. Gilians, Worshipers, and Leaders.

As St. Gilians we have a heritage and tradition of being Reformed, Charismatic, Believers. To delve into that I would like to draw out for you a little table of synonyms where one idea leads to the next and builds a more complete picture of our identity. As you'll see in the table below being a St. Gilian is more complex than you  might think, each layer adds more complexity and provides for us a level of understanding and excitement in regards to our heritage, and excitement in regards to our future.

Reformed/ Charismatic/ Believers

Submitted/ Spirit filled/ Followers

Chosen/ Passionate / Students of Christ

As Worshipers we are grateful for the work that has been done on our behalf, we are over powered by the love expressed from the father through his son, and find ourselves Lost in an overwhelming love towards the one that acted on or behalf and for our good. Its from this heart that we respond with lies pored out, and songs of praise.

As Leaders we are models of appropriate and uninhibited worship, we have a responsibility to teach through the word and our deeds what worship is and what it is about. We also as leaders must Shepherd those in the flock towards a place where spirit and truth in worship is a life changing event, and through this guard the flock from distraction and false understanding.

What Do We Do:  Again you will see how a very simple statement caries with it much weight when closely observed. What do we do? Simply put we Worship God and Lead the Congregation in Worship.  Through a quick observation of these four concepts you will begin to see what goes into this simple idea.

Worship - Lift up, Exalt, Focus on Proclaim, and Get Low Before God

God - Our Creator, Savior, Substitute, Redeemer, Bride Groom, The Huge and Perfect One!

          *so much more can be said about this singular topic, and ultimately an understanding of God alone is what eternal salvation is about, let alone the work done by him on our behalf. All of what we do is connected to this one fact.

Lead - Model, teach, Shepherd, Guard (as stated above the role of leader is much more than being a visible face, or the manager of people, there is serious spiritual significance in the role. One that brings about a higher level of scrutiny in Heaven, and ultimately a great reward of service for the Kingdom.

Congregation - Children to God, Siblings to Self, Bride of Jesus. All of these images and relationships are very powerful, and looking through each lens lends a different color towards our interactions with the congregation. I want to focus our attention on one that I believe carries with it great reverence and importance. As we were discussing the importance of being a friend of the Bridegroom the concept of ushering the Bride of Jesus to the alter really struck me. It is of ultimate importance that we place Christ first in our eyes, and then through His eyes view the congregation with great affection, never allowing their comments or criticisms to injure us, she is imperfect but when she meets her Groom she will be forever changed.

WHY Do We Do It: We do all of this because it is eternally important that the Church recognize the Position, Work, Sacrifice, and Power of our God. - AND- That they respond with and in an appropriate manner. This is our why.

Delusions of Grandeur or the Heat Mirage of Hope

I am in a new season of life, not only have I relocated my family half way across the country, I have also started a MFA program, and simultaneously been granted the opportunity to serve as a ministry leader in my church. With the class, work load, and rehearsal schedule all bringing themselves to bare in my life I find myself trying to obtain and execute what are the fundamental functions of Husband, Student, Teacher, Minister, and Manager. To be honest with you, these are not the most difficult aspects of this season. I think so far, the singular spur that has kept me awake at night is an unquenchable new appetite, it's this insatiable desire to build Kingdoms.

Even as I write the words "build Kingdoms" I think I should probably shape that so that it is more suitable to a conservative audience, but I believe this best describes what I feel. In each area of my life, when I look down the road two, five, ten years I have begun to see powerful institutions. Organizations that are really changing, challenging, and effecting their constituents and communities for Christ Jesus. Schools, Churches, Orphanages, Ministries  all of these working for the one Kingdom and in communion establishing that same kingdom, but in and of themselves they are like kingdoms. This part of my heart does not cease to move, nor does it rest, the workings of communication systems, electrical wiring, financial management, discipleship, product replication, recruitment and expansion populate a majority of my thoughts and often escort me to sleep.

What might be as wearing on me as the sleeplessness, is the present. Looking at where I currently stand and then glancing off in to the distance and seeing where its all going, or where It could go, and know that between here and there is more than I can see, more than I am currently equipped for, and more than I know. My hope is that what I am looking to is not a delusion, but an actual goal, a vision of what is to come. That it is what it appears to be and not an object being manipulated by the heat coming from the expanse that connects me to it.

What are your hopes for the environments and ministries the Lord has given  you to labor in? Where does your vision find its genesis? Do you struggle with the seemingly insurmountable distance of your goals? Are you currently running the Kingdom you saw from afar? How was the trip, and how did you get there? Or have you built a hutch along the path and stopped all together?  

FREE MUSIC!!!

You have got to love a guy who loves the Lord, and loves to sing about Him, and write about Him, and give away his charts!!!

Below is a link to Redman's chart page, just click to download, and start singing!

http://www.mattredman.com/chordcharts

Collapse from the Top Down

You never know when one of these things is going to reach and and grab you, but at any moment there are whole worlds of understanding just waiting to unfold in front of your eyes, or your minds eye I suppose. The theme of this post rotates around one thing, a theme all believers contemplate at least once in their walk (usually more than once) I would even suggest the Jesus himself pondered the idea. However before I launch let me give  you the ingredients.

1. I had a dream where I was being driven off of a cliff by some one who should not have been driving As I faced the bottom of the cliff a powerful calm came over me,
 
    "So this is it, this is how it ends."

Realizing the finality of the situation I waited to embrace Heaven.

* I understood that the standards for leadership had been compromised, and I was now being led off a cliff by some one who shouldn't have been leading.

2. While listening to NPR I heard a story of a Fireman who was caught in the collapse of the second World Trade Center. The reporter asked him what he thought about as he, on the second floor, heard the successive collisions of the hundred or so floors above him.

     "I was really calm" he said, "I figguhd, dis is it, dis is how it'ends."

As soon as he remarked on the calm he felt, my mind flashed back to the dream about my fateful car ride, and as if there were a voice of thought inside me, who's wisdom I cant claim, I heard

     "When there is moral failure in leadership, It leads to structural collapse"

This concept hit me square in the chest, and sat there for a long time. As a Worship Leader I know that there is a certain amount of responsibility placed on me in regards to my conduct both publicly and privately, but not just because of the "What would the Elders think?" scenario. I know that when I am in sin I am always going to lead poorly. I'm sure I have the fortitude to muster project completion, but how can I with a rebel spirit bring to bare the weight and glory of the cross, for the betterment of my team members and congregation, when I refuse to submit to its sweetness.

I pray this anecdote finds you in the right time and season, God Bless.

Contemporary to What?

Recently, I was asked to serve on a committee at my local church in San Antonio in regards to beginning a contemporary worship service at our church. The current style of worship is traditional and has been traditional for the past 150 years, so the idea of starting a contemporary service has been quite controversial to say the least. As I have served on the committee, reading members' emails and other correspondence, the question I keep asking myself is, "Contemporary to what?"

As I begin to pray about the aforementioned question, I began to think about worship in a different sense. When defined, contemporary actually means to exist along side. More often than not, contemporary and traditional tend to compete with one another. When Paul first writes to the Corinthian church, competition was alive and well. People were followers of Apollos, of Paul, of Cephas, and of Christ. Paul goes on to rebuke the church and talks to them about unity and the importance of working together for the advancement of the gospel. What does it say to a world that already things poorly of the church, when we can't seem to get along within our walls?

If we want to move away from competing worship styles, the church needs to move toward authentic worship. When juxtaposed to contemporary/traditional worship, authentic worship will win every time. When worship becomes authentic, then preference ceases to matter. When worship becomes authentic, we put aside our own interests and look toward the bigger picture, which is making Jesus the recipient of our worship.

What is authentic worship? Authentic worship is worshipping the Lord from our hearts without reservation. Rather than a style it is a matter of the heart.

Song Writing: A Community Event

     Bear with me as I unpack what I perceive as a personal fault. I am independently minded and often prefer to do things on my own, taking upon myself responsibilities that could easily be delegated to others.  Don't get me wrong, I know there is plenty of work to be done, and often, willing workers. Its not that I don't want to burden others with labors (which would be the selfless sounding response) quite simply, I don't trust them. This is not something I would consider a Leadership Strength. To my own peril I will avoid delegation and my justification for this is as follows: 

     If I do not give away the responsibility, Then I can not be disappointed with the outcome.

Meaning if the outcome is poor, I can only be upset with myself. I'm afraid the heart of this is that I find it easy for forgive myself and hard to forgive others. So how does this work in regards to song writing? 

     I have recently been spending a lot of time on the Worship Together blog (http://www.worshiptogether.com/). This sight is an excellent resource for professional and lay worshipers, with their product reviews, tutorials, and song charts. As I've been looking for new music to learn I continually come across videos of writing teams discussing their collaboration on a piece of music, and as they discuss their back and forth work process or the communion they experienced during the writing process, I look back at the list of songs I have composed and try to find any similar experience. Honestly I cant say that I have had one. Most of the music in my catalogue I wrote on my own. I suppose there is a satisfaction in ownership, but to be writing music for 10 years and never to have collaborated with another musician, I am more and more finding it hard to consider this a strength.

     So as worshipers, writers, and Christians the question I pose to you is this. How does/ should the idea of Christian Community influence your song writing process?

Authentic Worship

This is my first contribution to this blog. It's short, but I wanted to provide an example from my own life that I feel falls in line with the goal of this blog. Hip hop/Rap is not my preference when it comes to music. However, this song illustrates for me how different people can express worship to our great God, and it is lovely to Him. It should be lovely to me, too.

I appreciate this kind of Bible-saturated, Christ-exulting, Gospel-declaring worship.

A Current Favorite, Enjoy!

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know!

All right Ladies and Gentlemen this is your chance to get your questions answered. Not by me mind you, but by some one. We are developing what shall from this point on be referred to as "The Questions". This list of questions suggested by you will be compiled and asked to every authoring Worship Leader of this blog, and also future contributors and Pastors and Artists that we will be interviewing.

Your questions can address any number of issues: favorite atrists, equipment, progressions, writters, producers, hamburger topings, movies, etc, remember though we aiming at Worship, how to do it succesfully, skillfully, and reverently.

Post your questions here in the comments or email them, and start looking for the interviews to follow soon after!

Confluence

When two streams of water (like rivers) meet at a given point to create something entirely new, we get a moment of Confluence. That is what today is about, the beginning of something new. Lifted Worship launches today, and it’s my hope that we can begin a dialogue that will challenge and sharpen us all.