{Rehearsal, Not Practice | Bringing Your A-Game to the Platform}

Ah, rehearsal. That time during the week or pre-service when the worship band comes together to. . . well, rehearse. What’s that mean anyway? I know what you must be thinking. Rehearsal is when you show up and just practice the set list for the weekend services. But, let me challenge that notion. Rehearsal is not the time to learn the music; nor is it the time to hear the music for the first time.  What if rehearsal was the place we rehearsed the songs rather than just play the chords? What if rehearsal was the place to bring our already prepared selves and figure out how to make one beautiful whole out of all the moving parts? What if rehearsal was a place where we learned to listen and make space for each other? Yeah, that might be nice. See, rehearsal, like most all things related to worship ministry, isn’t about you or me. I know, that stings a little. Hang with me, because saying that rehearsal is not about us doesn’t let anyone off the hook. It actually hooks us in a big way.

Here’s the thing: What we do before we show up at rehearsal will effect what we do during rehearsal. 

So, here are a few tips on bringing your A-game to the platform for rehearsals. 

1. Fix your eyes and ears and heart and mind. Please don’t miss this one. It’s first on the list for a reason. Spend time with Jesus on your own. Spend time worshiping, reading Scripture, and talking to Him through prayer. Every. Day. Pretty basic, I know. Yet, I can’t tell you how many times over the years I’ve gotten so busy serving and doing that I drifted away from this very important habit. We can make idols out of even the good things in our lives. God gently corrected me by reminding me that it’s quite hard to lead worship if you don’t live worship. Corporate worship - worship that happens we when gather with other believers - should be an extension and overflow of our personal, private worship and devotion to Christ. 

2. Rehearse like you mean it. Even our rehearsal time should be considered an act of worship. Yes, we come together to work on playing skillfully before the Lord (Psalm 33). But, what if we come and engage our hearts and minds by fixing our attention on THE ONE we’re singing for? It’s all about Him — start to finish! It’s a challenge, I know, especially for those midweek rehearsals; but, it’s not an unattainable goal. Worship is not just another gig or a show. Even in striving for excellence we can be intentional about keeping our hearts and motives centered on Him. So, go ahead and worship during rehearsal. Give it a go and see if it doesn't change the way you approach rehearsal time. I bet it does. 

3. Listen to the music. Even the songs you’ve played 100 times. If you’ve played it 100 times, maybe it’s time to try and memorize it. But, I digress. Listening to the music on your own time will develop your musical ear. If you are actively listening to a song,  you will start to pick up on things you might not have heard before. And, take notes! Mark up the chord chart with song order, solos, intros, instrumentals, etc. Something else will happen if you spend time listening to the set list. The songs will become familiar. There’s a difference between a song we’re comfortable with and a song we know way down deep. Challenge yourself to spend 10-15 minutes a day looking at and listening to the music for the week. It makes a difference!

4. Be early. It takes time to get plugged in and tuned up or to find that perfect synth sound. If you need extra time, then come early so you’ll be ready to go at start time.  I’ll just leave that right there. 

5. Practice for rehearsal. See what I did there? Rehearsal time is not the same as practice time. Practice is something you do on your own time as an individual so that you are prepared for rehearsal. Rehearsals are about the big picture, if you will. There are a lot of moving parts and pieces, so getting everyone and everything on the same page is no easy task. However, we set ourselves up for the best chance of that when we show up prepared. Rehearsal time then becomes more productive. Bands learn to . . . well, be a band. One cohesive, unit creating something that no one member could create on his/her own. Have you ever been part of a rehearsal where it seemed like everyone was on a different page, even though everyone had the same chord chart? Yeah, me too. Too often that’s exactly what's happening — every member is doing their own thing rather than working to figure out where they fit in the big picture. So, listen to the music, yes, but also PLAY through the music on your instrument. At home. Learn the part you need to play. When does the electric guitar come in? Where is it just synth pads and drums? And once you’re in rehearsal, listen to the rest of the band too and create space for everyone to contribute the thing they’re bringing to the table. Yeah, do that. 

Worship ministry and worship leadership is an awesome thing to be a part of, truly. But being a part of a team comes with the weight of being a great, blow-your-socks-off team member. We are serving each other well when we steward our time and talent well. And, above all, we bring honor to God who gifted us to do this thing in the first place. Pick up your game. Go above and beyond. If you’re slacking a bit in one of these areas then challenge yourself to grow. Yes. Always, always be growing. And, always keep your heart fixed on the One whose worth far outweighs everything else. 

Keep singing. Keep playing. Lead well.

{A Guest Blog | Purpose Over Preference}

I'm hosting a very special guest blogger today, and I'm SO excited. Y'all this guy is one of my favorites, and that's not just because he's my brother! You can follow Aaron on his blog, aaron-gibson.com or find him on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.  I couldn't be more thrilled to have him as my guest today.

Aaron Gibson | Musician. Teacher. Coach. Mentor. Husband. Coffee Drinker.

This is Aaron. He's a husband, puppy-daddy, musician, and pastor. As a teacher and speaker, he's relatable. He engages the topic at hand with an outside-the-box perspective and real life examples. His dynamic approach and teaching style are unmistakably authentic.

Aaron has been in full-time ministry since 2006 and currently serves on staff at Blythe Island Baptist Church as the Worship & Creative Arts Pastor.  He has a heart for ministry and wants nothing more than to see churches thrive and help people to experience the love of Jesus. He brings a wealth of knowledge to the table in the areas of church planting, team building, vision casting, and church production.  Aaron hopes to serve as a resource for others who are in need of direction and for those who are looking for fresh inspiration.

Aaron and his lovely wife, Tamara, live in South Georgia with their two puppies, Lyla and Sadie.

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{Purpose over Preference | Shifting Perspectives for Leading Worship} by Aaron Gibson

Have you ever stepped off the stage after leading what you thought was going to be an incredible set and felt like you were the only one who liked it? Or put a lot of energy and effort into selecting songs and working on flawless transitions to leave the service feeling like it didn’t matter anyway? What about anger? Have you ever started to get frustrated or angry with the congregation you’re trying to lead because they just don’t seem to be getting it? I believe we've all been there before. We've all wanted to lead an engaging life changing worship set only to be left feeling like we were the only ones worshipping.

That is a common problem facing worship leaders, but what do you do with that? How can you leave the stage knowing you've done everything you can to lead and not be a distraction? Is there anything that can be done to walk away with a clear conscious? I believe so. Through a challenge-laden season of my life, God taught me there are few things we can do, while on stage, to avoid having this tsunami of guilt destroy our confidence in our calling. But, most of what we need to do has to happen in the preparation.

I can remember coming home some nights, sitting on the floor with my head in my hands and weeping. Feeling defeated. Feeling like everything I was trying to do was a waste. I grew bitter. As a worship pastor, I became bitter and angry toward the people I was trying to lead. I remember saying things like, "There shouldn't be this much resistance", "Why don't they just get it", "Am I even doing the right thing".  The more bitter I became, the more I complained about the people.  

During this season, my wife and I took a trip to New York. I can't remember why exaclty, but I'm sure I was probably eating pizza and bagels for most of the trip. I can remember having really negative thoughts about my congregation back home.  While I was mid-thought, Moses came to my mind and the many conversations and difficulties he had with the Israelites and the many intercessions I read about.  Then I felt God speak so clearly to me it was almost audible. I simply heard, "Aaron, I called you to lead them to where they need to be, not complain about where they are."  That was my Job moment with God. Immediately my mind shifted directions. I knew God was taking our church somewhere special, and up until that moment, my heart had never broken for our people that deeply.  Up until that moment my heart hadn't been broken for my purpose as a worship pastor. To help people experience the greatness and victory of Jesus through worship. That is our purpose as worship leaders. Above all. Our pupose is to help people see and experience Him.

To accomplish that we have to Pursue Purpose over Preference. When we pursue fulfilling our purpose more so than we try to satisfy our preference, then when we'll see God use us the greatest. I believe we see from the beginning of time that man's preference has kept him from God's ultimate purpose for him. In my opinion, there are 3 key areas we need to discipline ourselves in the preparation process to lead people to the worship experience we all desire.

     1. Pursue Obedience over Opinion

This may require some extensive conversations with your worship pastor or senior pastor, but this is where it all begins. God has called each every church to be and to reach someone specific.  Who is it God has called your church to reach. We have to be obedient to that calling, not opinions of who we should be as a church. Sure, we may have a specific skill set or certain abilities.  Maybe you're really good at pulling off that country twang in a song or nailing some of those Hillsong guitar licks. We have to come to a place where we realize God's plan isn't dependent upon our qualifications. Paul is a great example of this. Everything about Paul would have led us to believe God was going to send him to the Jewish people to preach the Gospel. He knew the culture and the religion better than anyone. Paul had to change up his style a bit to reach the Gentiles. But he did it. He looked past his qualifications, past his opinion and he pursued obedience.

If we're going to lead people, we have to know who we are leading.

     2.  Pursue Relevance over Preference

After we know who God has called us to reach, we have to be intentional about reaching them. Paul says it like this in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23.

19Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law, I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. 22To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. 23I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

It's hard to do this one. It's hard to select songs based off of what people need versus what we like/want to play. I don't necessarily think there's an, "I don't care what you need" mentality. It's just not something on the forefront of our minds.  One thing that helped me with this is prayer. Not a prayer for wisdom, but prayer for the people. Prayer for them to experience the freedom and victory that worship offers. The more I prayed for the congregation, the more my heart broke for them. The more my heart broke for them the more natural it came for me to select songs that would lead them to where they needed to be.

Worship does an incredible thing in our life. Worship brings victory over life's difficulty. Worship positions us right in the middle of a collision where we are reaching for God and He is reaching for us. We get to lead people to that place. We can't make them worship, but we can remove distractions by selecting worship songs that are relatable to them and their life. Perhaps we should get past the words modern, traditional, or contemporary and simply try to relate to who God has called us to reach.

     3.  Pursue Engagement over Expectation    

I love soda. I love soda more than you do. Diet Dr. Pepper to be specific. I could drink it all day long. I would wake up in the morning to a bowl of Lucky Charms and Diet Dr. Pepper. Why? Because it's delicious. But about 1 1/2 to 2 years ago, I read that all the additives in a soda will certainly kill! But only after losing all of your fingers and toes. Well, maybe it wasn't that extreme, but I thought it'd be best to give it up. After about 6 months of being soda free, I thought I'd reward myself because I had been so good. Just a sip won't hurt. Besides...It's sooo good! Well, something happened in those 6 months.  My taste had changed. What I remembered to be so good, wasn't quite as good anymore. I went in with the expectation of complete satisfaction but left feeling disappointed. I believe we have the same type of expectation when it comes to the congregation we're leading.

We've all probably had or seen that worship experience that was just incredible. It sticks out in our minds and we strive for that type of experience again and again. Which is great, but often we are not having that same experience because we are expecting the congregation to come in ready to worship. We are ready, sure! But we have to remember, we've been there a couple of hours already. We've been playing the music and praying for the service. We were preparing with the intention for God to move in a big way. But what we forget is the husband and wife may have just had an argument in the car on the way to church.  They're feeling frustrated because they're running late and this time, they actually found both shoes, but only one kid. Maybe they had a rough week at work. Maybe they got fired. Maybe they got bad news from the test results. Whatever the case, we cannot expect them to come in ready to worship. We have to show them there is victory in life and over their difficulties in and during worship. We have to help them focus their hearts' affection and minds' attention on a God whose love for them is not based on their circumstances.  

Draw them in. Invite them in. Lead them to where they need to be.

I gauge the effectiveness of our worship gatherings a little differently now. Instead of asking, did they worship? How did they respond? I simply ask, was I obedient? Was I relevant? Did I try to engage the congregation into worship? God has me here for a purpose, did I pursue that purpose?

 I simply cannot make people worship. I can only lead them to a place of worship. If we pursue the purpose God has called us to, He is faithful. We will see the worship experience and life change we desire. I can honestly say that because it's His desire. Doesn't it just make sense to jump on board with where He's already going?

{Worship | What's that mean anyway?}

So, when I say worship where does your mind go? Music? The twenty minutes before the sermon on Sunday morning? Does it stir up any weird feelings? Have you ever tried to define the word worship? I have. Several times. I’ve written pages and pages to define it. Once I was asked to sum up my ideal of worship in one short phrase. Boy, was that a tough assignment, but here’s what I came up with: No Greater Love, No Greater Privilege. Yeah, that about sums it up. Let me explain. God demonstrated great and lavish love and because of that I am extended the privilege of worship. I am so grateful for that lavish love and for the invitation to worship. There have been seasons of my life when worship was the key to lifting me out of the pit I was buried in. It has been the thing that helped me put one foot in front of the other while walking through painful moments. That’s because worship reminds us of who God is. I can't imagine a better way to spend space on this blog than writing about those kinds of things, the kind that remind us who God is. See, the invitation to worship is one of the greatest privileges extended to man, and worship matters for all of us. It's what we were actually created to do. To worship Him. To live in His presence. To know Him. To reflect His glory. It’s all about Him, really. So, let’s start there, because it's the only appropriate starting point for any conversation on worship. God. 

Worship begins and ends with God. In the beginning God created, and He initiated worship when He spoke the world into existence. Everything was created by Him and for Him. But, here’s the thing: God did not create out of necessity; He created out of desire. Did you get that? He created us because He wanted relationship with us, and worship is born out of that relationship. A.W. Tozer explained it this way, “God who does not need anything nevertheless desires the adoration and worship of His created children.” That’s it. Worship, at it’s core, is about the relationship between God and His people. Worship cannot happen apart from relationship. It just can’t. Scripture paints a clear picture of God’s plan of redemption and salvation. It’s a plan where relationship and worship are inextricably woven together. True to His character, God started the whole thing before the foundations of the world. We didn’t have to do a thing. 

God created you because He wanted to. I’m talking about the Creator of the Universe. The One who wrapped the night sky with a starry blanket. The One who knows your name. The One who knows the number of hairs on your head. He wanted to create you. He loves you. Let that sink in. 

Looking back in Scripture, we see God’s intention in the Garden of Eden.  Adam and Eve had fellowship with God, meaning they spent time in His presence. Every provision was made so that they could know Him and worship Him. We also see the same intention with Moses and the Children of Israel. God spoke to Moses as a man speaks to a friend. In His first meeting with Moses, He established His purpose for the nation of Israel when He said, “When you have brought my people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” And again when He said, “Let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them.” He didn’t stop there! God reminded Moses of His plan again when He said, “Then I will dwell among the Israelites and be their God. They will know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of Egypt so that I might dwell among them.” So, what does any of that have to do with us? God’s intention for His people (all people) has been the same from the beginning — it hasn’t changed.

See, we were created for worship. This is not new information. Yet, I wonder if we overlook the implications of that truth. What does that really mean? Does it mean we were created to simply gather each week and sing a few songs before the pastor teaches? Absolutely not. Being created for worship means being created for relationship with the Creator.  We were all born with a God-given desire to worship. But here’s the thing: We were also created with the capacity to choose. What I’m saying is that the choice is not whether we will worship; rather, the choice becomes about who or what we worship. Every person walking the planet will worship something or someone.  It’s true. Just like the sun was created to give warmth and light, human kind was created to worship. And, God is the only worthy recipient of that worship. 

Worship is who we are before God every moment, every day. We have to be intentional. We have to worship Him actively and on purpose. Thankfully, He’s given us some instruction through Paul in Romans 12. 

So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. (The MSG)

Yeah. What if we do that. 

{God Take Me Back in 2016}

The Lord has been reminding me of something this week, and I am so thankful. I appreciate that He graciously and lovingly corrects us when necessary. I am especially grateful for those times He drops something right in front of me and whispers, "Beloved, this is for you." See, there has been ALOT going on. The last half of 2015 was challenging. I sat across from a sweet friend this weekend and she said, "You must feel like you've been through the ringer." And, I do. Mostly because there has been too much noise, too many voices, too many things competing for my attention. That's when He does it. That's when He drops that just for me something right in my lap. I can't ignore it. I can't explain it away. I can't deny it's exactly what I need in that particular moment. This time He used a song. 

I heard the song the Sunday after Thanksgiving at Passion City Church. They were leading it for the first time ever in a worship service. In a moment, one song said everything that needed to be said by me to the Lord. So I sang it prayerfully during that sweet time of worship and tears rolled down my face. He heard and saw. 

Somewhere between the Thanksgiving turkey and the Christmas tree, I forgot about the song.

On New Year's Day I saw something on social media about the release of the new Passion album. It was available! That's new. The album is normally recorded live at Passion Conference and released in March or April. I was so excited! Please Lord, let this album be available on Apple Music so I can download it with my monthly subscription. And, it was. YAY! I immediately added it to my music and started scrolling through the track list. You know where I'm going with this, right? 

Song number five. The title caught my attention. It was weird, ambiguous. Now, it makes perfect sense of course! I tapped the title, and as soon as I heard the first note, the Lord reminded me of that moment in a room of a thousand people where He saw me. And there were tears. Then He reminded me again a few days later when I was chatting with a friend. 

So, it's my prayer focus as I head into the new year. Here it is. Simple Pursuit. One that changes everything. What are you pursuing into 2016? 

Simple Pursuit | Ben Catelon, Matt Redman, Nick Herbert, Sam Bailey | Passion: Salvation's Tide is Rising

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