The Last Five Percent
We helped unload a shipment of ten 4x4 crates containing donations for needy families. Since they had no further need for the crates, the Central American Mission Projects (CAMP) leaders said we could have them. With my help, the three youth I had brought along began disassembling them. Each crate was made of about 80 screws, six 4x4 sheets of 3/4-inch plywood, and other assorted support lumber.
Improving Your Worship Experience
How can you improve your worship experience?
There are at least two perspectives as you read that question. One says, “yes, I’ve been wanting to up our game for the worship experience!” The other says, “I don’t like that you call it a ‘worship experience.’”
Post Conference Blues
Conferences are great! I used to be the guy who would sit in the auditorium in the afterglow. I didn’t want to leave. I had been inspired, encouraged, stretched, and poured into. What I received was not just information, it was impartation. I wanted to take many of the presenters home with me.
The Long Game
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?
My Favorite Questions
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.
Ministry Model
Stop and think for a moment. What has most influenced my model of ministry? Many of us don’t even realize we have a model. Can you identify it? Who shaped it? A pastor? A co-worker? An industry? A speaker at a conference? An author? A friend? A podcaster?
A Really Good Lunch
I was on staff and was failing with my techs. There was constant tension. There was contempt and sarcasm. And so much passive aggressiveness. There was no life. Rehearsals were dreadful.
Outlast
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.
Which Fader Is The Greatest?
Which of the Five Faders matters most? The logical answer is “my Fader!” :)
This question makes sense, but it isn't the most useful one. Often, the underlying concern is finding justification to challenge a leader or team member who is out of balance or unhealthy.
The Five Faders Book is HERE!
Have you appreciated receiving the Worship Fertilizer or any of the many resources from Ad Lib Music?
Can I ask you a big favor?
What You Do Matters
It’s easy to lose sight of it, but “What You Do Matters.”
How to Pursue Excellence in a Volunteer Culture
A close friend of mine, who is also a tech supervisor, sent me a picture of a young volunteer mixing the broadcast audio for the live stream at his church. This young unfaithful servant had his feet propped up on the desk and was leaning back in his chair while the music portion of worship was taking place.
Hospitality Can Transform Your Team
If You Can Be Anything, Be Kind
I am not often envious of my daughter’s wardrobe, but she has one shirt that I covet. On the front, it says “be kind,” and on the back, it says “everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about.” It’s a simple concept that has become my personal mantra as a worship leader and church planter.
Creating A Multiplication Culture
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.
Something’s Not Right
Did you ever feel like something was just not right in your sphere of ministry? Wade Mullen wrote an extremely helpful book called Something’s Not Right. It was invaluable to me during a very difficult time as a worship director on staff at my church.
Did Jesus Lie About The Whole Yoke Thing?
I was overwhelmed during a season of life and ministry that felt so heavy. I felt no traction. I wanted a clear, big picture to shoot for and a simple strategy for making daily progress.
Nick-of-Time Is My Nicotine
This Fertilizer is for my fellow procrastinators, those who have made a habit of getting things done in the nick of time to the point that it’s as addictive as the nicotine in cigarettes.
The Berkey Water Filter and the Scarcity Mindset
“Dad, aren’t you going to use filtered water to soak the oats?” Aspen scolded.
Functional To Flourishing
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.
Leaders Need To Read Kings To Get The Fire Of Holiness Back
Ever notice how some brothers and sisters seem to over-emphasize God’s “love” and under-emphasize our need for repentance? It’s in our culture. Like high places. High places that need to be destroyed.