Good Stock

This upcoming weekend my family is celebrating Thanksgiving.  Sure, it's a few weeks ahead of time however, it is a day where a majority of us can be together.  Seeing family is always a good thing and yet, it is not always easy.  We live apart from each other, talk on the phone, send the yearly Christmas card, but there is nothing like have that face to face interaction.  As I was thinking about this weekend I thought to myself "I'm thankful that my mom is willing to call people, prepare food, and plan a day for us to be together".  ( I really did think that)  And then, my thought process continued....

My mom is really great.  

Not just pat on the back great but squish your guts out bear hug great.  She is a woman who has exampled Godly womanhood to me in many ways throughout my entire life.  I have witnessed this woman have such a sensitive heart for her children, family, friends that I am constantly amazed at how she keeps track of the people she cares about.  Her joy and giddiness towards life is contagious and has resulted in much laughter.  She loves and has a beautiful reverence for our Lord.  She is always learning and yet she has so much to share.  I love watching the relationship between my parents continue to grow after 45 years of marriage.  She loves my dad and my dad loves and adores her.  They really are just cute. (almost fuzzy kitty cute)  Mom has taught me how to iron, sew, cook, embrace the odd moments of life, respect others, be joyful, be passionate about what I believe in, to love, and among many others out of an incredibly long list, how to pray.  She is a praying woman.  I believe she does it all day long.

Congratulations Mom!  You're beautiful!

She is a hardworking dedicated and determined woman who has finally retired from working.  I am proud of her for stamina, amazing ability to have patience with multiple people, ability to learn new computer things even when it frustrates her, and for being a Godly woman in the workplace.  Now she can embark on a new season of life and continue to show the world who God has created her to be.  That's my mom.  She really is great.  I'm praying some of her good stock will continue to rub off on me.

And why am I surprised?

It is a constant amazement to me just how remarkable God is.  Just when you think you know what you're doing, he has a way of giving you a new perspective that reminds you of how omniscient (all knowing) the Lord truly is.  Sure it may seem like an obvious statement but how often do we stumble through life waiting for God to pick up our pieces just to forget how we were held in his almighty hand the moment life smoothed out.  My current goal is to never forget what a stronghold in my life my God is.

I am currently blessed to have embarked on a new adventure in my life as the music leader at Chain of Lakes Presbyterian Church.  It has only been a month and I am still so excited and honored to have the opportunity to plan, lead, and participate in worship with this growing congregation.  They are beautiful people and I want them to grow in the knowledge of the love and mercy of our holy God.  I'll admit that by now I thought maybe the "oh no...what am I doing?" thought process would kick in.  Alas, it has not and this is a sign for me that the initial excitement I felt for this opportunity was from God and not human desires.

This is a decision and new direction for me that without God's direction I would never have been prepared for.  The past year or so of my life has served as a grounds for preparation in multiple ways that I will eventually write about.  But I can leave you with this.  Listen to God's voice.  The small one inside that sometimes makes you think you're a bit crazy, the one that becomes more distinct when you ask others to pray for wisdom, the one that continues to echo in your mind when you are trying to distinguish it between your own and the Lord's.  It will not always lead you on a path that you have mapped out.  It will lead you on the path where God's hand is the only one you can hold on to.

Rock Star Wanna Be

I love the craziness of a church filled with kids for VBS.  Or basically any other time you get a large group of kids together.  I tend to love the craziness because I admit, it allows me to be a bit crazier and sillier than the responsible adult me is supposed to be when I go to work and sit at my desk to shuffle papers all day.  This week it has allowed me to dress like a wanna- be 80's rockstar and encourage about 50 or so k-5th graders to sing awesome fun songs about Jesus.  It also makes me feel a little bit like Richard Simmons..."the whole jumping around for 4 minutes and encouraging the people in front of you bit".
And even though I love the craziness, there is only one thing that spurs me to do it and feel like it's "okay".  It is the fact of knowing it is done so that all those little smiling faces I see sitting in front of me have an opportunity to be someplace fun where they can learn about how much Jesus loves them.  That really is it.  My role of getting kids excited and singing is only one out of the many of people who teach through crafts, snacks, games, and stories.  Non-stop tangible lessons about Christ for 2 hours!  It's amazing.

So I will jump in my heels, tell them Jesus loves them, give them hugs and let them think I'm a rock star wanna be...all in the name of Jesus.  If only this was my real job...I could wear really big hair.

Mr. Perfect

Any of my friends who have had worship pastor discussions with me know that I may be becoming a bit more cynical than I used to be in regards to what churches call worship pastors/ministers/leaders etc...  Today I came across a posting that made me laugh.  I'm not laughing at the church because I sincerely believe that they are trying to find the right man for the pastoral position they are seeking.  Instead it is directed towards what our contemporary christian culture has done to the position we call pastor and what it has impressed as the necessary qualifications to lead God's people into worship through music.  

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Here at (insert contemporary church name here) we have an extremely friendly and generous congregation of 450. We have several well trained and talented vocalists and instrumentalists that comprise full rhythm sections and an underused brass section. What we need is a center piece Kennaniah type Worship Pastor that we can build around. Please see description below;

Male, Vocalist (Baritone – Tenor) Pianist and or Guitarist 
Married (ideal) Single is ok. We’ve got women here. 
Good leadership, people and music skills (Clifton Strength Finders)
Calm and Confident but not Cocky
Experienced but Teachable 
Musically skillful and sensitive to The Spirit but not flaky or hyper spiritual.
Passionate, pragmatic and practical in life and ministry
Maturity beyond their years if in early to mid 20’s. 
A presence that captures the room that others would miss if it wasn’t there
Able to see the whole picture and inspire all ages, because everyone matters
Able to blend the vertical with the horizontal and older with contemporary
Able to target the 30-60 something age range(teens and twenties are important too but are transient) 
Able to lead worship unplugged by yourself without power point or electricity 
Able to organize, schedule and lead others while working within the Lead Pastor’s direction and desires
Able to model and mentor music ministry and develop others in that too
Able to remember that we have an audience of one in room of 500 
Able to get others to realize that too
Believes faith and funk and holiness and harmony goes together
Is far sighted, thick skinned and has soft hands (if you have those you’ll understand what I mean)
Has a good sense of humor (absolutely necessary to work here)
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It makes me want to send them a Ken Doll with a modern male worship leaders name plastered across the front of the package with a note saying "I'm sorry if my hands aren't soft enough".    Either that or send them my resume so I can be one of the available women he can pick from to marry if he happens to be single.

Oh My Soul

Like sunshine on a fading face, the word of the Lord gives life to my soul.

Verse two of one of my favorite hymns is a comfort.  A comforting reminder of how steadfast, sovereign, loving, patient, and powerful God really is, has been, and will be.  It is a beautiful thing when one's soul is at rest in the Lord.  Nothing else matters, only the reflection of Christ and the fire that burns within, the fire that is kindled by knowing my Saviour is on my side.

Be Still My Soul (Finlandia)   

text: Katharina von Schlegel  music: Jean Sibelius

Be still, my soul: thy God doth undertake


To guide the future, as He has the past.


Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;


All now mysterious shall be bright at last.


Be still, my soul: the waves and winds still know


His voice Who ruled them while He dwelt below.

Looking for the right team

I am in the process of pursuing a career in music ministry.  Admittedly it is a unique adventure and can be gratifying and frustrating at the same time.  There is a bit of excitement when a church actually chooses to respond to your resume whether it is positive or negative.  It's always nice to know that there are still some organizations out there willing to take the time to tell you you're not what they are looking for.  It is frustrating to send out resumes and not hear anything back.  I would expect that behavior in the public, corporate side of the job search; it is disheartening when it is coming (or not coming) from churches.  The amount of time I have spent looking through ministry websites for positions labeled 'worship pastor' 'music director', 'worship arts director', 'worship leader', etc...sometimes seems fruitless.  Not because there aren't any positions out there but rather trying to decipher what they are "really" looking for becomes a bit of a game.  

What I have discovered is that a church listed as Evangelical, Community, Baptist, and a handful of others falls into the category of "we want an established guy who plays the guitar and loves God to keep our church relevant".  This is especially true if they are north of the Mason Dixon Line.  Churches in these same categories that are on the West Coast are looking for "an established guy who plays the guitar, loves Jesus, and is comfortable with diverse communities while still maintaining to keep the church as relevant as it was when it started up seven years ago."  Move this category to the East Coast and they are not afraid to embrace a bit of their heritage and explore ways to respect the worship traditions that have already been formed and take the time to seek out ways to breathe new life into their worshiping community.    

Churches listed as Presbyterian, Methodist, or Episcopalian have a tendency to have a different focus whether they are located in Florida, or Nebraska.  I find that the typical postings seen from this group are more focused towards a 'classically trained' individual.  Not only do they look for a different musical skill set, they are more direct on what they are looking for as a minister.  Either they are looking strictly for a musician (pianist, organist, choir director), or they become more detailed and essentially describe a pastor who uses music as a tool. 

One of the aspects I find even more intriguing about this venture is that the second group while being more definitive in their position descriptions for a worship minister or pastor, are also more likely to hire a woman in a pastoral role.   It is a bit of a complex for me as someone who considers myself on the conservative evangelical side of the fence to be a woman that isn't really accepted in a tradition she is familiar with (even if they say it doesn't matter, it does in their world). 

I do realize that this may be a bit of a generalization in the world of "worship pastors" but there is some truth to it.  If you've looked at a handful of what is out there you will realize that it is the reality.  Big picture for someone like me boils down to three strikes in my own game: being single, being female, being evangelical.  They don't add up to a career in ministry.  What they do add up to is the perfect volunteer that any church would love to have around because you are capable, skilled, willing, and a Godly woman.  If those three strikes are only foul balls in someone else's game, I'd like to know how you're managing to stay on the field. 

Sometimes

Sometimes....God has a funny way of speaking.
Sometimes...God doesn't let you forget what you loved in the first place.
Sometimes...God lets you sit in unbearable silence.
Sometimes...you realize it isn't silence.
Sometimes...it is easier to think about what you "should" or "could" be doing
Sometimes...it is better to think about what you are doing
Sometimes...you realize that it really is all about Christ.
In all things.  It is about Christ.