Monthly Archives: August 2011

Lead Us To Expect

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Our first guest post is from Rebecca Tatum.  I met Rebecca in July during our Creative Coaching session.  “What do you wish you could say to worship leaders?”  This is the question I asked her and here’s the gem of an answer she gave us.  Enjoy…

Lead Us to Expect

My church opens every service with Vertical Time.  The band plays calmly for about 3 minutes and scripture is projected on the screen.  It helps to transition from social engagement with the congregation to spiritual engagement with the King of Kings.  Some people stare at the screen, others read the Bible, many pray, and a few fidget restlessly.

I under-estimated the value of Vertical Time until I visited another church.  For an individual with attention deficit issues, transferring from meet-and-greet to worship was like being asked unexpectedly to perform stand-up comedy.  My brain froze.  I was like a deer trapped in headlights.  I felt panicked.  “Hurry, Rebecca.  Stop thinking about the rich conversation from 12 seconds ago and throw your hands in the air.  Focus.  It’s time to worship Jesus through song.  Don’t just stand there – RAISE your flippin’ HANDS!” 

The average person, at this point, would realize that it’s time to shut off the inner-monologue and focus.  Maybe I’m not the average person, but I’m surely not the only one with a stream of consciousness that operates in over-drive.  I know what you’re thinking, “Why don’t you just show up 5 minutes early so you can focus and spend a few minutes in contemplative prayer?”  Good point, but that creates another issue entirely.  Lingering in the sanctuary quietly before service inevitably leads to one of the following:

1)  A well-meaning member of the prayer team assumes you’re seeking counsel or prayer.  You think to yourself, “Ironic that you are here, prayer warrior, because I was just praying that everyone would just leave me alone.”  That’s always an awkward exchange.  Always.

2)  Someone assumes that you are new or misplaced which leads to the generic what-is-your-name-how-are-you-where-are-you-from line of questioning from the hospitality team.  Not exactly conducive to focus.

So worship leaders, I have a request.  You are talented, gifted, over-worked and under-appreciated.  You leave your hearts on the stage for us to see every week (and if you don’t, maybe this isn’t your calling).  You invite the Holy Spirit.  You lead the congregation in praise and prayer.  None of that matters if people aren’t fully engaged.  None of that matters if folks are too busy thinking about a new acquaintance instead.  Help us bridge the gap and make room for the Holy Spirit to work.  If we’re intentional about clearing our minds and welcoming the Kingdom of God, we’re sure to see Him move.  Give us a few minutes to seek God and develop a sense of expectancy.

Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.  You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart. ~ Jeremiah 29:12,13 NIV

Oh, I’d like to add one more thing:  Have fun!   Nehemiah 8:10 may be one of the most over-used and abused verses in the Bible, but that doesn’t make it any less beautiful – the joy of the Lord is your strength!

Written by Rebecca Tatum.

Rebecca is the women’s ministry leader at Maryville Vineyard Church in Tennessee.  She describes herself as a foot-in-mouth Peter-type.  Follow as she wrestles to live her vision statement, “Always having the courage to blaze a trail with faith in Jesus Christ as my compass” at www.RebeccaTatum.com.

Build ‘Em Up

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I love building in to young leaders.

It’s one of the favourite parts of my job and probably one of the most rewarding parts of my job too.

This week I talked with two of our high school students who I think have the potential to lead worship some day soon.  I told them I admire their dedication to music and becoming better musicians.  I told them that I’ve observed that they take their faith seriously and that it’s evident they have a desire to grow in their relationship with Jesus.  I think they’re awesome.

Then I told them they should be leading worship.

Both of them had such cool responses to that statement.  And in both of their responses it was obvious that God had already been laying the ground work before I even thought to talk to them.

And so it begins.  The encouragement downpour, the convos that will help them grow as leaders, the assigned bible readings, the trips to go hang out at the music store together, the stepping back and letting them step up.  This is a fantastic journey.  This is what I love to do.

 

Is there someone who you see potential in that you need to start building in to regularly?

 

Vacation Situation

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Hey Readers!

I’ve got some good news and some even better news.

I’m going to be taking some vacation soon and before that I’ll be away leading worship at a Sr. High week of Camp Chamisall in Alberta.

This is good news for me and for anyone who regularly interacts with me as I will be rested up and there will be no danger of me falling asleep during one of our conversations.

The even better news is that I’ve got some seriosuly awesome guest bloggers posting while I am away.  I’m really excited for you to hear from them.  They’ve all brought some really cool perspectives and it’s going to be valuable stuff for you.

First up we have Rebecca Tatum.  Rebecca is the women’s ministry leader at Maryville Vineyard Church in Tennessee.  She describes herself as a foot-in-mouth Peter-type (which always makes for good reading).  I met Rebecca through our July session of Creative Coaching.  She’s going to be writing from the perspective of someone who sits in the congregation from week to week.  I told her, “what do you wish you could say to worship leaders?”.  For those of us who lead worship every week I think this view from the other side is going to be valuable.

Next up we have a great friend of mine, Adam Klassen.  Adam is the Director of Worship Arts at Immanuel Fellowship Baptist Church in Abbotsford, BC.  We went to bible school together for a while in Calgary, AB and we’ve remained great friends since then.  Recently we’ve been talking about how we can both grow as leaders of our worship ministries.  Adam has been working on a Purpose Statement that would guide their worship arts ministry at IFBC.  He’s gonna talk a little bit about the process of crafting that and share some of it with us.  As you head into the fall and a new season of ministry you might find this is a great tool that you could use in your ministry as well.

Last up we have my favourite guest on the blog, Brian Delamont.  Brian is my Dad.  Obviously he’s had a huge role in shaping who I am and has been the guy I turn to first for lots of questions about ministry.  We have a great friendship.  Over his life he has gained some pretty cool experiences from studio engineer, to touring with a Christian pop-rock group in Germany, to worship pastor, and now site pastor at Rock Pointe Church – Westhills Campus in Calgary, AB.  He is about to add a new role to his resume as he assumes the position of Track Advisor for the new Bachelor of Ministry – Worship Arts degree at Ambrose University College while still spending most of his time at Rock Pointe – Westhills.  With all of his experience I asked him to write about what he would say to a young worship leader who is just getting started in ministry.  What he has to say could have a huge impact on you as your stretegize for your own ministry.

Happy reading folks!  I’ll see you in mid-September!

Caleb

Significance

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We all have a longing for significance.  We all want our lives to mean something.

Some of us repress this feeling and try to ignore it.

Some of us allow it to fuel us and we accomplish amazing things.

But have you ever thought about how this longing for significance is a sign that we are searching for God?  That we’re longing for the one who has created us for a purpose?

And what about artists?  Why do we create?  Why do we reach down into our hearts, pull out something extremely personal and then display it for others to see?

Today I cracked open a book that some of you might be familiar with called “Heart of the Artist” by Rory Noland.  This book has been recommended to me many times by other worship leaders and I’ve finally started reading it myself.  I’ve just read the introduction so far but I’m already stoked about this book!  Noland includes an incredible quote from John Fisher’s book “What On Earth Are We Doing”.  I love how Fisher describes the connection between creating art and humanity’s longing for God.

“Artists reach into their colors or to the notes of a musical score, into the developing solution in a darkroom tray or to the flow of words on a page, they are interacting with the eternity God has placed in their hearts.  They are trying to be significant in their universe — trying to mean something more than a random collision of molecules.  Though modern philosophy tells them they are nothing, their hearts tell them something else.  Because their minds cannot fathom what their hearts know, they feel the weight of the God-placed burden.  Art often seems irrational, because the heart is reaching beyond the mind.  A modern art museum displays the heart reaching beyond what the mind knows, trying to find the meaning of its existence.”

Our hearts are longing for our creator.  How cool is it that we as artists get to explore that longing as we create?  And for those of us who have submitted our lives to the ultimate creator we get to create art that allows people to experience and understand God in new and fresh ways.

What fuels you to create?

What Did You Expect?

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You’ve heard the phrase, “you get what you expect”.

Recently I’ve been discussing this idea with a friend and we’ve been talking about how this idea could help guide us as we plan and lead our worship services on Sundays.

Well I think it’s working…

We had 3 awesome worship services this past Sunday at Saanich Baptist Church.

It started with a prayer.  A prayer that we prayed together at the beginning of the service.  It can be so hard sometimes to focus on God when we come in to church, out of our busy lives, out of mini vans with screaming kids, out of a lonely apartment that is now home after your spouse left you, out of the hospital where your child is dying of cancer.

Now I’m not here to say that singing a few songs about God together makes life peachy again.  But I do believe that proclaiming the truth about God with a bunch of other believers and inviting God INTO our tough situations can encourage us in our journey and bring us closer to God.

Here’s the prayer we prayed together this past Sunday.

God, we invite you to work in us today as we declare the truth about You.

We are here to praise You.  You are the God who saves.  You are Jesus Christ who has redeemed us.  And You are the Holy Spirit who leads us.

We invite You in to change us, to interrupt us so that we see you in a fresh way today.

We invite You in to our messy lives because You are the only thing that is steadfast.

Do not let us leave here the same today.  In Jesus name, Amen.

 

You could tell that after that prayer there was a sense that God was there and He was going to do something pretty amazing in our midst.

So remember to expect great things from God.  He’ll blow your mind.

 

Do you have any stories of God doing something amazing in your worship gatherings?