At our church growing up there was this giant map of the earth on the wall outside the sanctuary. You know, the one where Greenland looks like it's getting ready to take over the planet, and Russia was labeled "USSR" long after the collapse of said Union. It was a nifty map, though, because it was lined on either side with the pictures of families and individuals, and each picture had a little red button underneath it. You could push the little red button and it would light up a little light somewhere on the map, showing you where that particular person or family was located. This was super high-tech stuff. I don't remember ever caring particularly who any of those people were, or where in particular they lived, or why they lived there, it was just an amusing little novelty in between Sunday school lessons to be able to push the button, see the little little, push another button, see another little light.
At Momentum, we've been talking a lot lately about God being a "sending God." About the Father sending the Son, the Son sending the Spirit, and they together sending the church into the world. I think we get that. At least I think we think we get that. God is on a mission, and He sends His church to carry out that mission. Easy enough, right? Evangelism...missions...justice and all that...it's important. We get it.
Recently some good friends came and did a Q&A session/dessert party at Momentum. They are missionaries over in eastern Africa, and they came and shared with us about the way they live, about their efforts to learn the culture, and about their strategies for manifesting the gospel in a way that their friends there can understand and access. They talked about the tangible things they do to meet the needs of the people they meet there, and how those acts of service help build relational bridges from which discipleship can begin. After all, these are the things missionaries do. They orient their entire lives around a mission, a goal, a purpose. They learn new languages, study cultural meta-narratives, and pretty much spend every hour of every day investing in people and seizing on opportunities to point people to this Jesus. Bible study, prayer, fellowship...these are not ends within themselves, but disciplines that better equip the missionary to accomplish their mission of pointing people to Jesus.
I get to thinking about that map again. About church sanctuaries lined with the flags of 50 different countries. About people and families over in Timbuktu and Who-knows-where; little lights on the map; big ole flags hanging proud. It's obvious that we care about global missions - about evangelizing the pagan peoples in far off lands. But what about the people here in my neighborhood? What about the people across town, in the rough neighborhoods where none of us want to venture. Are missionaries being sent there? Are missionaries being sent to my neighbors across the street? What grand strategies are being devised to reach them? What little red LED is lighting up there?
Seems like maybe the distinction we've made between the people who live and serve way over there, the people "called to missions," the "missionaries," and those of us normal Christians left here to live our normal Christian lives, us "uncalled ones," is a false one. Maybe we're all called to be missionaries. Maybe each and every one of us who claims to follow Christ should be living with the same intentionality and focus as those missionary friends of mine. No longer seeing church attendance, Bible study, or fellowship as ends in and of themselves, but as means to be better equipped to carry out our singular mission of pointing people to this Jesus (and perhaps tracts, four spiritual laws, and standing on street corners with bullhorns has nothing to do with this...). Maybe we should all be devising strategies to better bridge the gap between our culture and the Gospel of the Kingdom, like missionaries in far off places do. Like aliens sent to live in a foreign land do.
Like Jesus said to those who had chosen to follow him, "As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you..." Maybe Jesus has sent you to shine your little light right where you are. To live your life with the greatest intentionality. To live like you're on a mission from God.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Planning Song Sets for Worship
As a slight change of direction, I thought I would wax a bit about my processes for putting together song sets at Momentum from week to week. While I'm sure methodologies here vary widely, from the super-spiritual (i.e. "what songs does God like this week?") to the overly-mechanical (i.e. "these songs are all in A, let's do them!"), I try to make as many practical and spiritual considerations as possible, then move forward from there. Some weeks, practical considerations weigh more heavily, other weeks, spiritual matters are most important.
Here are some of my criterion in programming out song sets, and the accompanying questions I ask myself for each criterion:
Function
What is the energy of the song?
Is this song more celebratory/horizontal, or introspective/vertical?
This is a major consideration for me. In my experience, kicking off your service with an engaging, high-energy pick-me-up song ("Awesome is the Lord", "Happy Day") is an absolute necessity. By the same token, a powerful, singing-straight-to-God-from-the-top-of-my-lungs type of song ("How Great is Our God," "Jesus Paid it All") can be the best way to close out a song set, especially one that leads right into the teaching time.
The energy of a song is determined by a number of factors, namely tempo, dynamics, and what I like to call the "clapability factor." Ultimately this is a subjective thing, but it's a useful exercise to characterize the overall energy of a song.
This is where having a well-catalogued music library can be a huge help. I have all the songs in our planningcenteronline.com database labeled as one of three "feels":
While this may sound a bit mechanical, it's actually one of the most artful considerations to make in song planning. This is because it requires that you rehearse the song in your head, to test how it will function, how people might respond, and how the different feels might flow from one to another. You'll probably lose your audience if you move too quickly to a super introspective song, because you haven't given them time to really orient their hearts in that direction. You also don't want to juxtapose too many slow songs with fast songs right after.
It is in thinking through the feel and energy of a song that you can give your sets the greatest sense of "flow," where one songs seems to naturally flow to another - a high energy song to a mid-tempo, medium energy song, and finally to a contemplative, focused, vertical (singing directly to God) type of song, or something close to that. This consideration requires a lot of sensitivity on the part of the song planner.
Frequency
When was the last time we did this song?
How many times have we done this song in the last year?
For newer songs, I like to introduce them one week by putting them in a low-pressure slot in the service, like during communion where most people are preoccupied doing things other than singing. Then we'll make sure to do them a second week in a row, to really help with recognition and retention, take a week off, then do it a third time the next week. Introducing songs this way ensures that people feel comfortable with them by the end of the third repetition, and that song is then ready to be put into your regular rotation
I try to avoid doing any one song more than 7 times in a year, as anymore than this and the band starts getting bored with it. This is a little bit selfish, since ultimately our job as the worship leaders is not just to keep ourselves entertained but to help our community praise God, but it's a worthwhile consideration because if your band is bored with it, they're not going to bring much enthusiasm or energy to it, nor are they going to prepare as well for it during the week.
Content
Is this song pertinent to what's being taught about?
Is this a song that our people really need to be challenged with?
This is ultimately the most important consideration in song planning. It's where you have to learn to use your "spiritual radar" to determine how best to edify/encourage/challenge the body through song. If you sense that your community needs to be challenged in the area of giving, you might build your set around Matt Redman's "Breathing the Breath." If your people are particularly timid about raising hands, you might build around Chris Tomlin's "Unchanging," teaching through the idea that we are instructed to "raise up holy hands in prayer" (1 Tim. 2:8). If you know that the teaching is going to be focused on how we use our tongues, it would be a good idea to plan a song like "Take My Life" post-teaching, as a moment for the body to respond to the teaching through song.
Songselect.com's "theme" search can be an invaluable tool for this sort of planning, because in just seconds you can search for all the songs in their database that pertain to any particular keyword, like "thanksgiving" or "missions." You'll inevitably have to wade through a lot of really bad songs, but if you keep in mind that most of the songs that are worth doing are marked with a little icon for Audio, Chords, Leads, and/or Hymns, you can quickly navigate to the songs that are actually decent (i.e. widely performed).
The lyrical content and subject matter, as well as its applicability and benefit to your congregation is one of the most important factors in song selection - and one that's accomplished best through prayerful consideration.
This is just a little glimpse into my process for planning song sets. Hopefully it provides you with a start for purposeful, creative, tasteful song planning.
How do you plan song sets?
Here are some of my criterion in programming out song sets, and the accompanying questions I ask myself for each criterion:
Function
What is the energy of the song?
Is this song more celebratory/horizontal, or introspective/vertical?
This is a major consideration for me. In my experience, kicking off your service with an engaging, high-energy pick-me-up song ("Awesome is the Lord", "Happy Day") is an absolute necessity. By the same token, a powerful, singing-straight-to-God-from-the-top-of-my-lungs type of song ("How Great is Our God," "Jesus Paid it All") can be the best way to close out a song set, especially one that leads right into the teaching time.
The energy of a song is determined by a number of factors, namely tempo, dynamics, and what I like to call the "clapability factor." Ultimately this is a subjective thing, but it's a useful exercise to characterize the overall energy of a song.
This is where having a well-catalogued music library can be a huge help. I have all the songs in our planningcenteronline.com database labeled as one of three "feels":
- High energy
- Medium drive
- Contemplative
While this may sound a bit mechanical, it's actually one of the most artful considerations to make in song planning. This is because it requires that you rehearse the song in your head, to test how it will function, how people might respond, and how the different feels might flow from one to another. You'll probably lose your audience if you move too quickly to a super introspective song, because you haven't given them time to really orient their hearts in that direction. You also don't want to juxtapose too many slow songs with fast songs right after.
It is in thinking through the feel and energy of a song that you can give your sets the greatest sense of "flow," where one songs seems to naturally flow to another - a high energy song to a mid-tempo, medium energy song, and finally to a contemplative, focused, vertical (singing directly to God) type of song, or something close to that. This consideration requires a lot of sensitivity on the part of the song planner.
Frequency
When was the last time we did this song?
How many times have we done this song in the last year?
For newer songs, I like to introduce them one week by putting them in a low-pressure slot in the service, like during communion where most people are preoccupied doing things other than singing. Then we'll make sure to do them a second week in a row, to really help with recognition and retention, take a week off, then do it a third time the next week. Introducing songs this way ensures that people feel comfortable with them by the end of the third repetition, and that song is then ready to be put into your regular rotation
I try to avoid doing any one song more than 7 times in a year, as anymore than this and the band starts getting bored with it. This is a little bit selfish, since ultimately our job as the worship leaders is not just to keep ourselves entertained but to help our community praise God, but it's a worthwhile consideration because if your band is bored with it, they're not going to bring much enthusiasm or energy to it, nor are they going to prepare as well for it during the week.
Content
Is this song pertinent to what's being taught about?
Is this a song that our people really need to be challenged with?
This is ultimately the most important consideration in song planning. It's where you have to learn to use your "spiritual radar" to determine how best to edify/encourage/challenge the body through song. If you sense that your community needs to be challenged in the area of giving, you might build your set around Matt Redman's "Breathing the Breath." If your people are particularly timid about raising hands, you might build around Chris Tomlin's "Unchanging," teaching through the idea that we are instructed to "raise up holy hands in prayer" (1 Tim. 2:8). If you know that the teaching is going to be focused on how we use our tongues, it would be a good idea to plan a song like "Take My Life" post-teaching, as a moment for the body to respond to the teaching through song.
Songselect.com's "theme" search can be an invaluable tool for this sort of planning, because in just seconds you can search for all the songs in their database that pertain to any particular keyword, like "thanksgiving" or "missions." You'll inevitably have to wade through a lot of really bad songs, but if you keep in mind that most of the songs that are worth doing are marked with a little icon for Audio, Chords, Leads, and/or Hymns, you can quickly navigate to the songs that are actually decent (i.e. widely performed).
The lyrical content and subject matter, as well as its applicability and benefit to your congregation is one of the most important factors in song selection - and one that's accomplished best through prayerful consideration.
This is just a little glimpse into my process for planning song sets. Hopefully it provides you with a start for purposeful, creative, tasteful song planning.
How do you plan song sets?
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Sunday Summary - 6.1.09
Man, what a fantastic week at Momentum! The energy was high, the music was loud, the production team was tight, and the band was ON! It was definitely one of the strongest sets we've had in a while, and the music team pulled it off brilliantly.
The band opened with the high energy "Filled With Your Glory", which we've done quite a bit over the last 6 months. It's a really great song, but I'm afraid we haven't been able to give this song a fair shake because we pretty much always use it as an opener, and the vast majority of people who join us on Sunday morning are not seated and ready to go at the start of the service, so inevitably the opening song becomes more of a performance song that people just hear as they amble into the service. There's been the temptation to give in to the lateness, and either start the service later, or start it with something that doesn't require rehearsal and preparation like a song does, which can end up feeling like a throw away, or like a wasted effort if people are not participating with what's go on, or not even there at all. However, we've decided to stick to our guns and keep starting right on time, in hopes that eventually people will get the idea, and head in a little earlier than usual. Although, I've also come to realize that one big reason people may not be seated as the service is starting is that they are actually conversing and connecting in the foyer, in the children's area, outside, or wherever, and that is definitely a good thing! So, for now, we'll just keep on doing what we're doing, and hope that it does actually serve some functional purpose.
It's always a treat when we can have two electric guitars on stage, especially when they're as ridiculously talented as Chad Johnson and Joel Chandler are, but this week seemed especially so. Vocals sounded great, rhythm section was tight, the mix was spot-on, and the songs were the kind you just want to sing from your toes! Having two electrics trading off on lead and rhythm was just the cherry on top. Add in the fact that the lights were as dynamic and energizing as I've ever seen, and the video loops provided just the right ambience, and it was just a really great service. Brad Sinclair's vocals on "Lift High" were amazing, and Julie Cruz on "Lead Me To the Cross" was chill-inducing. Man, that girl can sing! Walker brought the funk on "You Are Good", which was good, because he's pretty much always itching to bring the funk. Patrick Greer was as solid as ever, especially on the various stops and fills on "Lift High," on the new song "Lead Me to the Cross," and on the high-energy, lay-it-all-out-there iteration of "You Are Good." Patrick just continues to amaze me with his versatility, and the ease with which he seems to pick up new songs and new rhythms.
This was a week that saw us return to the familiar full-band setup after several weeks of simpler, more stripped-down ensembles, and it was a great way to do it. When you mix in the fact that the band can pull it off like they did with minimal involvement from me, the "staff guy," that makes for a big win for Momentum! Way to go guys!
I wanted to take a moment to recognize our fantastic Production Team. This week, I had the privilege of serving with the Production Team as the producer, and that is always so much fun for me, both because I enjoy being able to lead in a more behind-the-scenes role, and because the team is just so enjoyable to work with. These folks put in a lot of time and effort to making sure that our services run smoothly, that the environment and ambience is conducive to connecting with God, and that the efforts of those on stage are enhanced in any way possible. All this means that if they are doing their jobs to perfection, they probably won't be noticed. If the sound tech has it mixed just perfectly, most people are just going to think the band sounds amazing (which they do!), but not think much about what it takes behind the scenes for it to sound like it does. If everything is running like a well-oiled machine, not many people are going to realize that it's due in no small part to the leadership and direction of the producer who is on that week. So, if you are reading this and have not recently thanked the members of the Production Team for the incredible job that they do week in and week out, do so ASAP! Our services would not be what they are without these dedicated folks, these "technical artists," if you will. Michael, Maria, Heidi - it was a pleasure serving with you guys this week, and you all did a fantastic job! Heidi - great job staying on the ball, and picking tasteful and appropriate video loops! Maria - definitely one of the best mixes I've heard in a long time; you've got a fantastic ear! Michael - thanks for being willing to get creative and a little bit "out there" in the use of stage lighting this week.
On a final note, this was probably Julie Cruz's last week singing with us at Momentum. She and her family are going to be heading back to their old stomping grounds in California. We wish them the best, and will be excited to see how God uses Julie and her AMAZING voice to advance his Kingdom, and to inspire others to worship Him. We will also be sad to see her go, as she has definitely been a blessing to us over the last year that she's been with us. We love you, Julie!
Music Team
Julie Cruz - BGVs, lead vox
David Walker - bass
Patrick Greer - drums
Joel Chandler - electric
Brad Sinclair - acoustic, BGVs, lead vox
Chad Johnson - electric
Production Team
Maria Taylor - sound tech
Heidi Leonard - media tech
Michael Wcisel - light tech
Me - producer
Songs
"Filled With Your Glory" by Starfield
"Hosanna" by Hillsong United
"Lead Me To the Cross" by Hillsong United
"Lift High" by Eddie Kirkland
"You Are Good" by Israel Houghton
The band opened with the high energy "Filled With Your Glory", which we've done quite a bit over the last 6 months. It's a really great song, but I'm afraid we haven't been able to give this song a fair shake because we pretty much always use it as an opener, and the vast majority of people who join us on Sunday morning are not seated and ready to go at the start of the service, so inevitably the opening song becomes more of a performance song that people just hear as they amble into the service. There's been the temptation to give in to the lateness, and either start the service later, or start it with something that doesn't require rehearsal and preparation like a song does, which can end up feeling like a throw away, or like a wasted effort if people are not participating with what's go on, or not even there at all. However, we've decided to stick to our guns and keep starting right on time, in hopes that eventually people will get the idea, and head in a little earlier than usual. Although, I've also come to realize that one big reason people may not be seated as the service is starting is that they are actually conversing and connecting in the foyer, in the children's area, outside, or wherever, and that is definitely a good thing! So, for now, we'll just keep on doing what we're doing, and hope that it does actually serve some functional purpose.
It's always a treat when we can have two electric guitars on stage, especially when they're as ridiculously talented as Chad Johnson and Joel Chandler are, but this week seemed especially so. Vocals sounded great, rhythm section was tight, the mix was spot-on, and the songs were the kind you just want to sing from your toes! Having two electrics trading off on lead and rhythm was just the cherry on top. Add in the fact that the lights were as dynamic and energizing as I've ever seen, and the video loops provided just the right ambience, and it was just a really great service. Brad Sinclair's vocals on "Lift High" were amazing, and Julie Cruz on "Lead Me To the Cross" was chill-inducing. Man, that girl can sing! Walker brought the funk on "You Are Good", which was good, because he's pretty much always itching to bring the funk. Patrick Greer was as solid as ever, especially on the various stops and fills on "Lift High," on the new song "Lead Me to the Cross," and on the high-energy, lay-it-all-out-there iteration of "You Are Good." Patrick just continues to amaze me with his versatility, and the ease with which he seems to pick up new songs and new rhythms.
This was a week that saw us return to the familiar full-band setup after several weeks of simpler, more stripped-down ensembles, and it was a great way to do it. When you mix in the fact that the band can pull it off like they did with minimal involvement from me, the "staff guy," that makes for a big win for Momentum! Way to go guys!
I wanted to take a moment to recognize our fantastic Production Team. This week, I had the privilege of serving with the Production Team as the producer, and that is always so much fun for me, both because I enjoy being able to lead in a more behind-the-scenes role, and because the team is just so enjoyable to work with. These folks put in a lot of time and effort to making sure that our services run smoothly, that the environment and ambience is conducive to connecting with God, and that the efforts of those on stage are enhanced in any way possible. All this means that if they are doing their jobs to perfection, they probably won't be noticed. If the sound tech has it mixed just perfectly, most people are just going to think the band sounds amazing (which they do!), but not think much about what it takes behind the scenes for it to sound like it does. If everything is running like a well-oiled machine, not many people are going to realize that it's due in no small part to the leadership and direction of the producer who is on that week. So, if you are reading this and have not recently thanked the members of the Production Team for the incredible job that they do week in and week out, do so ASAP! Our services would not be what they are without these dedicated folks, these "technical artists," if you will. Michael, Maria, Heidi - it was a pleasure serving with you guys this week, and you all did a fantastic job! Heidi - great job staying on the ball, and picking tasteful and appropriate video loops! Maria - definitely one of the best mixes I've heard in a long time; you've got a fantastic ear! Michael - thanks for being willing to get creative and a little bit "out there" in the use of stage lighting this week.
On a final note, this was probably Julie Cruz's last week singing with us at Momentum. She and her family are going to be heading back to their old stomping grounds in California. We wish them the best, and will be excited to see how God uses Julie and her AMAZING voice to advance his Kingdom, and to inspire others to worship Him. We will also be sad to see her go, as she has definitely been a blessing to us over the last year that she's been with us. We love you, Julie!
Music Team
Julie Cruz - BGVs, lead vox
David Walker - bass
Patrick Greer - drums
Joel Chandler - electric
Brad Sinclair - acoustic, BGVs, lead vox
Chad Johnson - electric
Production Team
Maria Taylor - sound tech
Heidi Leonard - media tech
Michael Wcisel - light tech
Me - producer
Songs
"Filled With Your Glory" by Starfield
"Hosanna" by Hillsong United
"Lead Me To the Cross" by Hillsong United
"Lift High" by Eddie Kirkland
"You Are Good" by Israel Houghton
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Sunday Summary - 4.12.09
Despite the negative tone of my last post, Easter Sunday really was a great morning of celebration at Momentum. The energy was high, the lights were bright, and the music was loud (too loud for some, I've heard...). This was due in large part to the unveiling of the new stage, video screen, lights system, wall curtains, and tweaked sound system. It was fun to watch peoples' reactions as they entered the newly revamped space for the first time. I think many people were surprised about how much had been accomplished in a week's time, and how much of a difference those changes made in the overall feel of the room.
The music team was awesome, and it was a set that really allowed us to keep the energy and spirit of celebration high throughout the service. The pseudo-special "Christ is Risen", as the culmination of the "Easter Changes Everything" teaching was really a highlight. Even though it is a very simple song (I think there are only three chords in the whole song), its simplicity makes it very accessible to listener and performers, and it was frankly just a lot of fun to play. It was awesome to see the response of the body as in both services people were inspired to stand and sing with us in praise to the risen Christ - "He is risen, hallelujah..." Very very cool moments. Totally appropriate then as we closed out with "Salvation is Here" to cap off a morning of high-energy celebration of Jesus.
Music Team
Patrick Greer - drums
Julie Cruz - BGVs
Brad Sinclair - acoustic
Chad Johnson - electric
Glenn Smith - bass
Me - keys, lead vox
Songs
"All Because of Jesus" by Steve Fee
"Happy Day" by Tim Hughes
"Til I See You" by Hillsong United
"Christ is Risen" by Jeremy Riddle
"Salvation is Here" by Hillsong United
The music team was awesome, and it was a set that really allowed us to keep the energy and spirit of celebration high throughout the service. The pseudo-special "Christ is Risen", as the culmination of the "Easter Changes Everything" teaching was really a highlight. Even though it is a very simple song (I think there are only three chords in the whole song), its simplicity makes it very accessible to listener and performers, and it was frankly just a lot of fun to play. It was awesome to see the response of the body as in both services people were inspired to stand and sing with us in praise to the risen Christ - "He is risen, hallelujah..." Very very cool moments. Totally appropriate then as we closed out with "Salvation is Here" to cap off a morning of high-energy celebration of Jesus.
Music Team
Patrick Greer - drums
Julie Cruz - BGVs
Brad Sinclair - acoustic
Chad Johnson - electric
Glenn Smith - bass
Me - keys, lead vox
Songs
"All Because of Jesus" by Steve Fee
"Happy Day" by Tim Hughes
"Til I See You" by Hillsong United
"Christ is Risen" by Jeremy Riddle
"Salvation is Here" by Hillsong United
Easter Reflection
I always have a hard time with Easter. It's hard to program for, it's hard to execute, it's hard to deal with the dynamic of a bunch of new folks (family members, one-time visitors, etc) that we'll likley never see again, and it's hard to know how to approach it mentally and spiritually. Because we are not a tradition that follows much of the traditional Christian calendar, Palm Sunday/Easter and Christmas Eve/Christmas always feel so totally disruptive to the rhythm of teaching and forward movement we normally experience. In those traditions that do follow the Church Calendar, the year begins with Christmas celebration, and builds to a crescendo culminating at Easter, so that by the time you reach Resurrection Sunday you've been anticipating it and building towards it through 40 days of Lent, special Holy Week observations including Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday. In this context, Resurrection Sunday is truly climactic, truly a day of joyous celebration that you have looked forward to through the pains of a 40-day fast, through pre-Lenten reflection on Jesus' life and ministry, and even through Advent and Christ-tide.
In our tradition, though, we maintain a more fluid schedule for teaching and reflecting on the life of Christ. We do our best to respond to exactly what we feel our body needs to hear and be challenged on at any given point in time. We also observe the Lord's Supper every week, so every week we are remembering and reflecting on the death and resurrection of Christ. Because of this, Easter celebration has often felt forced to me. We sing loud and joyously because we know that the resurrection was something truly significant, and we teach, once again, about how significant the resurrection was...but somehow there's a disconnect, perhaps because Easter celebration really only makes sense in the context of the Church Calendar.
I'm still totally unresolved on how to rectify this situation. I've had a strong desire before to adhere more closely to the Church Calendar, to live within the rhythm of life and time that the Church has for so long in following the Calendar. Though I've never been a part of a tradition that actually does this, part of me has really desired this for a long time. Recently, though, I've really questioned the validity and value of this, because there doesn't seem to be any biblical record of the early Church following this sort of a tradition. Because we are stuck somewhere in the middle, in observing certain parts of the Calendar but not others, we miss the value in it entirely. Maybe we should do all or nothing. Perhaps we would do best to either fully buy into that tradition, or do away with it entirely and establish our own rhythm of learning, growing, and moving forward as the body. Any thoughts? Anyone feel similarly about Easter?
In our tradition, though, we maintain a more fluid schedule for teaching and reflecting on the life of Christ. We do our best to respond to exactly what we feel our body needs to hear and be challenged on at any given point in time. We also observe the Lord's Supper every week, so every week we are remembering and reflecting on the death and resurrection of Christ. Because of this, Easter celebration has often felt forced to me. We sing loud and joyously because we know that the resurrection was something truly significant, and we teach, once again, about how significant the resurrection was...but somehow there's a disconnect, perhaps because Easter celebration really only makes sense in the context of the Church Calendar.
I'm still totally unresolved on how to rectify this situation. I've had a strong desire before to adhere more closely to the Church Calendar, to live within the rhythm of life and time that the Church has for so long in following the Calendar. Though I've never been a part of a tradition that actually does this, part of me has really desired this for a long time. Recently, though, I've really questioned the validity and value of this, because there doesn't seem to be any biblical record of the early Church following this sort of a tradition. Because we are stuck somewhere in the middle, in observing certain parts of the Calendar but not others, we miss the value in it entirely. Maybe we should do all or nothing. Perhaps we would do best to either fully buy into that tradition, or do away with it entirely and establish our own rhythm of learning, growing, and moving forward as the body. Any thoughts? Anyone feel similarly about Easter?
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Another fantastic week of music at Momentum! A solid band, great songs, an engaged congregation...all around, one of the strongest weeks we've had!
The service opened with the high-energy "I Am Free" that Joel Chandler introduced a few weeks ago. I'm a little bit skeptical that anyone at Momentum except for Mo is actually, legitimately excited that we are "free to dance" because of Jesus, and that will probably be a line that will always bother me about that song; not because I think there's anything wrong with dancing, or singing about dancing, or singing about being free to dance or anything like that, but because I've never been a part of a body that was actually excited and engaged enough to actually dance. I've heard about such groups, but have yet to witness it for myself. So until we get some high-energy movers bold enough to dance, I will feel weird about singing "I am free to dance." But I digress. It's a great song, though, and the band really played it well.
We introduced a new song, "Lift High", by North Point's Eddie Kirkland. It's a great song, with a fantastic melody, which may be a bit of a stretch for congregational sing-along, but it really works well coming out of our "Jesus is Lord" series and heading into Palm Sunday/Easter. The chorus lyric, "lift high your chains undone....all rise exalt the Son..." has such beautiful imagery, which is particularly poignant with all the teaching on slavery and freedom that was a part of the "Jesus is Lord" series. Unfortunately, I had this placed a bad point in the service for first service as the second song of the opening set, followed by an oddly placed welcome and meet-and-greet. Sometimes you just can't foresee how these things will play out until they actually play out. It just really didn't work too well having a new song that's very reflective and worshipful going on while people were still walking in the doors, followed by the meet-and-greet, which really needs to ride on the energy of a high-energy song in order to have the appropriate feel. We recognized it after first service, and made some pretty significant changes to improve the flow for second service. It was a vast improvement.
Jessica Greer sang lead on "Hosanna," which ended up becoming the closing song for second service, and it was phenomenal. The band really really nailed it. Sarah learned this fantastic little lick on the piano that added just that perfect little ornamental sound, and Chad was all over the super-powerful solo at the climax of the song. All around a really fantastic performance of a really great song, and one that people really engaged with.
All-around, it was just a really strong week. The band was really tight - dynamics, cutoffs, tempos all were right on. I spontaneously inserted a whole section on "I am free," and they totally flowed with it. It was awesome. It was truly a joy to play with them!
Music Team
Patrick Greer - Drums
Stephen Jernigan - Bass and BGVs
Jessica Greer - Lead vox, BGVs
Sarah Hart - Keys, BGVs
Chad Johnson - Electric guitar
Me - Acoustic guitar, lead vox
Songs
"I Am Free" by John Egan
"Beautiful Jesus" by Kristian Stanfill
"Surrender" by Marc James
"Lift High" by Eddie Kirkland
"Hosanna" by Brooke Fraser
The service opened with the high-energy "I Am Free" that Joel Chandler introduced a few weeks ago. I'm a little bit skeptical that anyone at Momentum except for Mo is actually, legitimately excited that we are "free to dance" because of Jesus, and that will probably be a line that will always bother me about that song; not because I think there's anything wrong with dancing, or singing about dancing, or singing about being free to dance or anything like that, but because I've never been a part of a body that was actually excited and engaged enough to actually dance. I've heard about such groups, but have yet to witness it for myself. So until we get some high-energy movers bold enough to dance, I will feel weird about singing "I am free to dance." But I digress. It's a great song, though, and the band really played it well.
We introduced a new song, "Lift High", by North Point's Eddie Kirkland. It's a great song, with a fantastic melody, which may be a bit of a stretch for congregational sing-along, but it really works well coming out of our "Jesus is Lord" series and heading into Palm Sunday/Easter. The chorus lyric, "lift high your chains undone....all rise exalt the Son..." has such beautiful imagery, which is particularly poignant with all the teaching on slavery and freedom that was a part of the "Jesus is Lord" series. Unfortunately, I had this placed a bad point in the service for first service as the second song of the opening set, followed by an oddly placed welcome and meet-and-greet. Sometimes you just can't foresee how these things will play out until they actually play out. It just really didn't work too well having a new song that's very reflective and worshipful going on while people were still walking in the doors, followed by the meet-and-greet, which really needs to ride on the energy of a high-energy song in order to have the appropriate feel. We recognized it after first service, and made some pretty significant changes to improve the flow for second service. It was a vast improvement.
Jessica Greer sang lead on "Hosanna," which ended up becoming the closing song for second service, and it was phenomenal. The band really really nailed it. Sarah learned this fantastic little lick on the piano that added just that perfect little ornamental sound, and Chad was all over the super-powerful solo at the climax of the song. All around a really fantastic performance of a really great song, and one that people really engaged with.
All-around, it was just a really strong week. The band was really tight - dynamics, cutoffs, tempos all were right on. I spontaneously inserted a whole section on "I am free," and they totally flowed with it. It was awesome. It was truly a joy to play with them!
Music Team
Patrick Greer - Drums
Stephen Jernigan - Bass and BGVs
Jessica Greer - Lead vox, BGVs
Sarah Hart - Keys, BGVs
Chad Johnson - Electric guitar
Me - Acoustic guitar, lead vox
Songs
"I Am Free" by John Egan
"Beautiful Jesus" by Kristian Stanfill
"Surrender" by Marc James
"Lift High" by Eddie Kirkland
"Hosanna" by Brooke Fraser
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