“Should the singers have click in their ears?” many a worship leader has asked.

I can almost feel the visceral reactions as you read that.

Are you aging out of worship leadership? Are you feeling burned out or pushed out? Do you wish you had the same passion for Jesus, worship leading, and people that you once had before all those years in worship ministry? How can you rekindle a youthful, yet mature exuberance for the next season of ministry?

Thanks for reading this year! As we prep for a new year, I want to equip you with tools for reflection. Worship leaders usually aren’t very good at reflecting. Introspection and navel gazing, yes, but real reflection, not so much.

It’s happening all over America. Worship leaders with twenty and thirty years of experience are “aging-out” of leading worship.

No, they’re not, but that’s what they call it.

Have you appreciated receiving the Worship Fertilizer or any of the many resources from Ad Lib Music?

Can I ask you a big favor?

The Five Faders book launches TODAY!

I turned 50 in February. I’m not sure how it happened. I’m pretty sure yesterday I had all my hair and it was much darker, I could see at night while driving, and there were more days ahead of me than were behind me.

Have you ever wondered where the Five Faders came from? This is its origin story!

“Dad, aren’t you going to use filtered water to soak the oats?” Aspen scolded.

I was talking with an audio coach in rural Illinois and we were reflecting on the realities that many churches don’t realize how far from their potential they have settled for, how they’ve grown accustomed to simply functioning on the lowest possible rung.

Sometimes lighting a fire feels like lighting you’re using soaking-wet wood. It’s impossible despite your best efforts. Other times, the gas-lit fire practically jumps on you.

Hello, fellow amphibians!

We went to the beach last week, and the singular thing my fifteen-year-old was looking forward to was…fishing!

You know that verse about not saying we’re gonna do this and go there and make business happen but rather say, “If God wills, we’ll do this or that”?

Three short stories. (they include your goals for 2025)

I was going to say the last several months have been quite a battle, but honestly, the last five years in Costa Rica have been a battle. What’s been the effect on me?

But what if no one is ministering to the Lord?

When we start something, we’re never amazing at it. This Fertilizer is dedicated to worship leaders, teams, and techs in their first five years of serving.

Seeing where you’re going is more important than you think. Ask any of us who have meandered through a dark house on the way to a bathroom break in the middle of the night only to find out just how flexible our little toe is compared to the coffee table leg. Right?

Whenever I browse social media, I consistently see posts about “the only 5 magical things that can do everything better…” #clickbait

Seven years ago, my life changed. We added a dog to our family. The idea of getting a dog was not mine.

I was a little naughty.

My college roommate, Troy, was visiting me in Pennsylvania from his home in North Carolina. I had just started getting to know a cute girl (who I later married.)