Good Friday reflection

Now that Good Friday has come and gone, I have to admit, I'm a little shocked that all of our rehearsals and our overall set went off without a hitch! There was a huge difference in the atmosphere of the service this year in comparison to last year. I'm glad our praise team had something to do with that.

I think my mom (the pastor of our church) was the most happy that things went very well. She was proud that we did a good job. She commented that I/we were anointed. However, after listening to the iLead Escape call last night, it got me thinking.

Pastor Sheryl Brady stated that "music cannot create a worshiping heart." She went on to say that music can make you think that you're worshiping, but it can be a foil. This really resonated with me because we sing to tracks every Sunday and I don't think anyone has ever really commented on our anointing before Friday night. The only difference I can note is that we had live music.

So are we anointed when we sing with live music, but not tracks? I didn't do anything differently Good Friday that I don't already do every Sunday.

Are we anointed some times and not others? Was it because we really rehearsed and everything was in order? Was it because I had prayed a bit more fervently that things would go well? Or does live music really sway people's perception of how P&W is going?

I don't know the answer to these questions. Sometimes it's hard to know because I wasn't in the audience so my perspective is quite different.

This is "What I Think I Know About Worship" is all about. Sometimes we think we know much when there's plenty left to be understood.

Blessings!

I need just a little more wisdom

Last night, Erica Campbell was featured on the Fronliners Call. Funny that I just did a review on her album with no knowledge that she would be the featured guest. Look at God! (Cue the shouting music.) Erica really gave me food for thought. So far, this is competing for my favorite iLead Escape U.S. session - right there with Israel's.

Here are a few highlights from the call:

You've got to be happy serving where you are.
One of the questions in the Q&A segment was something like how do you go about pursuing recording if you feel that God has placed that calling on your life, but you are not there yet.

I can't say that this is my goal. My dream job in life would be to sing backup for Solange. (Don't judge me - she's funky and I like her stuff.) But what a great question and Erica's answer/testimony was even greater. She explained that you have to be happy serving where God has placed you at this time. She explained that at her church, she and Tina were doing the choir thing. One of the things the choir did was to sing and minister in the hood and she loved doing this. This was before Mary Mary and before she had an inkling that she and Tina had something special. She emphasized being faithful at her church. She also explained that she knew she'd be recording at some point, but that it took 8 years for it to happen. Talk about patience. She stated that even though she knew some aritsts and producers, she was an outsider to the industry back in the day. She would attend concerts and no one would ever ask them join her (she clearly stated that wasn't her reason for attending, but that this is a somewhat common practice) and producers didn't know what to make of Mary Mary, as they clearly weren't traditional gospel nor traditional pop. She had to wait on God to do it, but she never stopped serving. How great is that?!

Then she went on to state that we've got to be comfortable where we are, it's ok to want more, but we have to be OK with where God has placed us at this time. OMG this really spoke to me! I spend a lot of time internally complaining about the lack of participation of the audience during P&W, the difficulty getting the team to rehearse, not having a musician, the distractions going on in the audience during P&W, how much better things would be if we only had x, y, or z. Clearly, I'm not comfortable with our current situation! I need to change my attitude to "God, you have placed me here for this time and for this season. Use me right here, right now."


There are some things that just come with the work; accept it.
Erica mentioned that she is often tired and she has to deal with it. As a full time working mother of a toddler, wife, P&W leader, daughter, this list goes on, I can relate.

One of the things that really came across in the call is how deep her roots are. She talked about not being influenced by others, but that we should be listening to what God is telling us. Further, when God tells us something, we should listen and act accordingly. She mentioned that you don't get what you deserve, you get what you negotiate and that in business we have to be men (or women) about things. (That is scriptural.) She also mentioned, that she had to learn how to better manager her time when she came home from the road because she was getting overwhelmed spending all of her time trying to catch up with family and friends and was getting distracted from spending time with God. She seemed to be very open, honest, and wise. She talked about mistakes in how she's treated people, past relationships, and catching wrong attitudes or feelings. She packed so much into that call, it was crazy.

In closing, I will leave you with Erica's favorite scripture as a bit of encouragement to those of us seeking wisdom in this Praise and Worship ministry:

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Proverbs 3:5-6 

Food for thought

Y'all know I like to post after I listen to the iLead escape hosted by Tasha Cobbs. Last night's guest was Dana Chanel, a new Christian lighting up social media with her concept of a "sprinkle of Jesus." The call didn't really center around praise and worship, but she did bring up something that I think my church is struggling with in our worship experience.

Right before or after she prayed (can't remember the order) she expressed how she's not one of those people who pray real "official"-like. She just prays what's on her heart. Isn't that the way it's supposed to be?

A lot of what Dana Chanel was saying is that she is who she is. You can't make her experience God how you want her to, she's not gonna pray the way you think she should pray. We have to accept people and who they are. She further expressed that she believes social media is such a powerful tool for expanding the Kingdom because people can read or see a post and because they are able to internalize the message, it speaks to them in a way that is more authentic than sitting in a church being expected to behave or act in the same way others act.

I think this parallels with what we are experiencing with our congregation. We have a lot of un-churched folks who attend our Sunday worship service. (i.e., folk who weren't raised in church) As a matter of fact, we have more un-churched attendees than life-longers. With that being the case, the culture of our P&W is a bit un-uniformed, which can be a little disconcerting if you're used to having things a particular way. We've got the folks who lift their hands, sing, focus on the words, etc. Then we've got folks who just kind of look a the praise team and don't seem to be very engaged in worship.

...So a little bit of background because I don't share a whole lot about the details of my church. We are Pentecostal. We are a part of a Pentecostal organization with churches in the states, West Indies, and Africa. Our church, however, in my opinion, is not hugely charismatic. There's not a lot of shouting or speaking in tongues. Not a lot of prophesying, crying, running the aisles, and we don't hold service long. With that said, I think there's a bit of a struggle in getting people to praise and worship in a way that's typical of Pentecostals. (Spontaneous "hallelujahs" and other sayings, dancing, etc.)

With that said, if we keep pressing for people to "behave" in a way that doesn't seem to be true to them, are we creating a culture where people feel like they have to act in a certain way? And will they feel "pressured" to conform to this church-y behavior that they might not identify with at the present time? Now don't get me wrong, I believe in waving your hands and other demonstrative actions, but I wouldn't expect this from the average un-churched person. Instead of beating folks over the head because they aren't demonstrative, I think our message should be more like "it's ok if you feel led to raise your hands' or "we raise our hands in honor of God's presence" etc. And if people don't raise their hands, that's ok too. Maybe that's just not them. Maybe in a year or two, they will.

I say all of that to say that I personally believe our ministry's approach needs to change. I'm sure Pastor would probably disagree. But you have to meet people where they are. We don't have a congregation of seasoned saints. I'm not saying we need to lower our expecations, but we def need to adjust them. The goal is not to have folks jumping around trying to emulate others, but rather for people to be engaged in worship in a way that feels right for them. It's kind of like saying I think all preachers should be able to sing in a that old Baptist-like voice "And the Looooord said. (big breath here)" No. Some preachers have a singy voice, some preachers never raise their voice, some preachers read lots of scriptures to support their topic, some preachers use one or 2. There's room for all types. Somehow, along the way, we've not let that be true for our worshipers.

Just some food for thought.

Blessings

Recap of tonight's iLead escape with Pastor William Murphy

I am too pumped up that I remembered the iLead escape frontliners call 2 months in a row!

Tonight, Pastor William Murphy was the guest speaker and dropped so much knowledge it was crazy. Here's a recap of what was discussed in case you missed it.

P.S. - Pastor Tasha, you really need to record these calls so people can listen after the initial run. Please and thank you! :)

Acts 3:19

• God is sending a refreshing! (Glorayyyy! - my words, not his.)
• God wants us to update or refresh our old "pages." He wants to do something new, but we need to be open to the new and not continue in the old thing that he established for a previous time or season.
• I have the grace on me to create a tangible, living, abiding presence of God. (#putapraiseonit right there! - my words again.)

Exodus 25:10-22 (the meat of the call)
If you're going to create a tangible, living, abiding presence of God...

• you must be pure inside and out (v. 11)
• this doesn't mean sinless, but rather your spirit has to be pure
• everyone in leadership has great struggles or challenges, but that doesn't mean your spirit subcumbs to every sin.
• you cannot be one-sided (v. 12)
• your worship has to be well rounded, multicultural - not just gospel, not just top 40
• you cannot get in front of God (v.14)
• you going to have to carry it (v. 14)
• Don't be lazy! You have to invest time. (spend time researching new songs, artists, etc.)
• It's going to be inconvenient, it will challenge you.
• you have to be tested because you have to have a real testimony (v. 16)
• you need a personal experience
• you're going to have to be shaped by God (v.18)
• shaped meaning hammered or beaten by God to form you
• you have to guard your ministry relationship (v.19)
• you cannot separate the worshipers from the mercy seat
• you have to be able to face one another
• you have to make the mercy seat a priority (v.21)
• being "right" or "wrong" isn't what's most important
• the visuals or the uniforms are not what's most important
• you have to have God's mind (v.22)

OMGoodness y'all this really encouraged me tonight! Even the Q&A was good!

The points that resonated with me were about having a multicultural sound, investing time to better our P&W, and having a personal testimony. More posts about the latter to come.

I'm truly looking forward to the iLead escape in 2015!

Blessings

The sound

You know, I'm always amazed when I remember to dial into the iLead Escape Frontliners call. As a full time working mom and wife, my schedule is crazy busy sometimes. Last night Tasha Cobbs's guest led us in prayer.

The call really struck a cord with me for 2 reasons. First, I have become more intentional in praying over the last year or so. I am definitely praying more frequently through out the day and am drawn to various prayer outlets. Have you ever seen so many prayer conference calls and services?! We surely need it as the body of Christ! Second, one of the things she prayed for was that us worship leaders would usher in the sound from heaven. Since I am personally in a season of creating and writing, this was a good prayer for me.

I have been a musical person probably all of my life. I remember playing the tonette (yes, reading music). I unsuccessfully took up piano. (My brothers stole all of the piano genes.) I played the flute and piccolo from fourth grade into college. I love musicals and enjoy attending live opera. I hum and whistle a lot. I'm singing to myself even when the radio is on. But how do you turn this into what we should be doing in P&W?

It seems that the tunes I'm creating are coming to me so fast. (Not a bad problem to have, but it can definitely be distracting.) In creating new music, I feel like there IS a sound from heaven and I know when I've got it right. Parts of the song click right away and when I try to get fancy and all musically interesting I seem to be drifting from the pull of the song. I think the sound of heaven is not a particular genre or trying to create the next "big song." It's the anointing, it's the lyrics, it's the sounds that will lead people into worship or praise. It doesn't matter if the song is a chart topper or a home-brew. It's the heart beat of the song that shifts us closer to God's presence.

Tasha definitely has the sound of heaven, but God is no respector of person. I am trusting and believing that as I continue to pray and create, that my sound will have a similar effect.

Blessings

Tasha Cobbs's next recording

Get ready everybody!

Tasha Cobbs's next live recording will take place Monday, October 13 at the Redemption World Outreach Center in Greenville, SC.

Check her out on Instragram, as she provides updates on events sporadically. (She posts regularly though.)

James Fortune interviewed her earlier this summer and Tasha explains what you can expect to hear on the upcoming project.

http://blackamericaweb.com/2014/06/20/tasha-cobbs-new-album/.U_wDXk2Bahc.blogger

Blessings

Tell 'em why you mad, son

Maybe the title of this post should be The Struggle, cause that's what it is right about now.

P&W at a small church comes with its own set of unique problems. Here's one that's really killing me: there's hardly no one attending church. I shouldn't be surprised by this because I'm almost positive the same thing happened last year, but dang! This is cray! It gets warm in Chicago and ninja don't know how to act or what to do!

This Sunday outside of my family (the "first" family), there were only about 3 others families at church. Attendance is at an all time low and it sucks. Perhaps it wouldn't be bad if everyone would lift their voices and sing, but that's not happening right now either.

In general, I'm slightly burned out. I like to think I'm focusing my time and energy on only 1 or 2 priorities, but this is difficult at a small church where one wears many hats. So when Tasha Cobb talked about spiritual burnout tonight on the iLeadescape, I knew I was meant to be on the call at that particular time. (It took me 20 times to get through.) While I would love to take a sabbatical, I wouldn't do that; it feels irresponsible when we've got such a small congregation and praise team. I have been thinking about attending another church's Bible class or weeknight service to get a different Word and replenish a bit. I'll keep you posted if I find anything worth while.

I know there's nothing too hard for God, so I'll keep my head up and keep on keeping on. I guess the challenges give me things to talk about with you guys. Trying to make lemonade out of lemons.

Holla back in the comments with anything you're struggling with. Maybe we all similar problems.

You on point Tip? All the time Phife.

The #ileadescape was on point tonight! (as usual)

Tonight's guest was Tye Tribbett. While I'm personally on the fence about whether I like him as an artist or not (I'm leaning toward "kind of') he definitely had a good word for the frontliners. He came from II Kings 5:1. While I was not familiar with this story, I'm def putting it on my to-read list. What I know is that I could relate to what Tye was saying.

Often, people have no idea what what you deal with personally. Due to the type of person that I am (discreet) and due to the relationship I have with our congregation (peripheral) I try to keep my issues MY ISSUES. What I will say is that people come to me with all kinds of worries and problems. My prayer list stays long. On top of that, I have my own worries and problems. What Tye said is that, like Naaman, God knows what's going on with me, as do a few key people. However, it's the responsibility of a P&W leader to lead the people into P&W. Everybody doesn't need to see every layer of you. When people see all of the intricate layers, they have to pull those layers back to move into worship. (insert Wowwww face here) It's so true. Would people be able to go into worship if they knew everything I struggle with? Not to be mistaken for being fake, but people are funny acting and are not definitely not as accepting when they know certain things.

The last point that I know I need to apply came at the end of the call when they did a few Q&As. Tasha Cobb explained that preparation is 90% of the battle. And Tye explained to us how hard he works his choir members. I remember those days when I used to sing with a popular choir back right before their peak. We rehearsed weekly and we rehearsed hard. We knew those songs backward and forward, sideways and everything in between. We could sing in a box and we could sing with a fox. We could sing in the rain and we could sing it on a train... That's totally not how I've been operating. Note to self: rehearse harder and more frequently. Got it.

Ok y'all, that's it for the night. So glad I actually remembered to dial in. I put a reminder in my phone. (Something else Tasha spoke about tonight: use the tools and gadgets God has given us to help us add more balance into our lives.) Preach, preacher!