WorshipCentral

Hey Nicolaa!

I have wondered the same thing. For me it is a matter of wanting to do my best. If I have a interest in something I feel compelled to pursue excellence in it. Not that the excellence is my focus, but inherent to my interest is my attention to details. So with drawing or painting and especially music I am keen to learn anything I can that may better myself as a musician/artist.

I think it is a simple connection to make for worship music. I sometimes obsess over silly things with worship music because I have a similar obsession with Jesus. Worship is my reaction to Jesus, it is something that for me connects, expresses, and inspires me. So I put time into it, I fuss over silly things like tuning and if singing happy songs verses sad songs verses loud songs verses soft songs works better than whatever else. I want to express my love for him, adoration to Him in the absolutely best way I possibly can!

But I think you make a really valid point. It is super easy to get focused on the production, to make worship music the means to itself. To neglect the passion for Jesus really guts out any benefit we get from worship.

But, a cool thing is. Despite the fact that we sometimes get off track God still works through it all. He moves despite our selfishness, pride, anger, and arrogance! Not to use that as an excuse for neglecting our our part in trying to keep worship grounded in Jesus, but when we miss the point God still moves.

What do you think?

I'm pretty much in agreement with Marc over this actually. Minus drawing or painting though. I am probably the worst on the planet at that!

Here's my personal take on it anyway. Though I'm a bit shattered so if it doesn't make sense, someone kick me and I'll try to put it a bit better when I'm more with it!

I'll always try to prepare as best I can before the service since like Marc I enjoy doing it, and I feel that at least to some degree it's necessary! I'm sure it's possible to over prepare though - I always like to leave things at least a bit flexible - if I've spent some number of ridiculous hours going over every little last detail then personally I don't think I'd be as flexible to where the spirit might be guiding me in the service.

Despite the fact I like to get things as "musically good" (so to speak, trying to use terms carefully here to avoid confusion!) as I can in advance, I think that when it comes to the service it's really all about where your heart is and where the musical fussiness stops. Though of course that's an ideal for me, personally I know there's often more of me than should be still thinking about notes and suchlike! Something I need to work on... But yeh, I firmly believe God sees right to the heart, and however much anyone's practiced things will still go wrong every so often. So wrong notes, keys, timings or whatever, as long as your heart's in the right place I honestly don't think it matters one bit.

There's a balance, I suppose - I'd want to give God my best, and that would mean practicing (also a smoother sound helps people to worship better and not get distracted by duff notes or whatever); but then there's the keeping humble part

The problem with too much practice is that it can start to get to be all about the music, and that's when pride gets in the way. But we shouldn't neglect our talents, but invest in them - besides, God is awesome and deserves our best!

We need to be humble in our worship, it isn't about us at all, but about God. God's Spirit moves whether or not the music is amazing, it's the heart attitude that counts.

Hopefully that makes sense, I think I'm beginning to ramble...

Yeah, great things you've said there Marc and Michael! And I totally agree, after all God is omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent and is in our hearts all the time and works through our actions, even in the more selfish of times. But when we are selfish, are we not also holding back the Holy Spirit from working through us and reaching out to others? (Sorry, more questions! lol)
Also like the point you made there about obsessing over silly things with worship music because you have a similar obsession with Jesus - I think this should be true for more of us. Because some obsess over the 'silly things' (which sometimes aren't silly at all) because they want it to sound 'perfect' to them, but really we should be obsessing over (or maybe, to put it slightly differently, 'showing greater interest in') these 'silly things' because we show that much interest, and more, in Jesus!

At band yesterday morning (youth band, that is) we were working so hard to get these two new songs right... the first one we tried, we worked at and worked at but it just wasn't 'working'. We didn't want to give up on it, but decided to try the other one and see how it went. So, we listened to it on a CD to see where it might be best to build up/calm it down and then had a go at it, and it just came together immediately! We played it a few times and it was amazing cos I was looking out and saw our old youth worker out there just praising and I was like ‘Wow! Is this really the impact we have on the praises of others?’
So yeah, we tried the first one again, but it still wasn't working. One member had popped out to get a capo for the guitar (being the keys player, and only just starting to learn guitar, she couldn't play all the chords, so we transposed it n stuff and needed a capo). So i jumped off the drums (not literally lol) and went over to the keys and was just 'tinkling around' with the chords and singin it, and our old youth leader and other band members were like 'that's what it needs to do'... so half of us ended up switching instruments and had a go at it - was just...'wow'?! I know this is going slightly off topic right now, but some of us taking up different roles than what we usually would have really gave the music something different. And, again, the adults (that we had to have with us for safety reasons) were just sat there (and even came and joined us on the platform at one point) worshipping along and really getting into it. Was really one of those 'wow' experiences, and during that time really focused me on God, seeing that eventhough we were doing things differently to usual and weren't all amazing at those different instruments, it still sounded heavenly and we could really worship God through that.

Kathryn, yeh agree with pretty much everything you said too! - not much else i could say on that tbh

(Sorry... mega-post again lol)
God Bless
Nic
xxx

Mega posts are great!

Funny you should say that actually, it's been going through the back of my mind for a while what would happen if people swapped around and played different instruments to usual, sounds like it might be worthwhile and not just another silly idea that floats around in my head (along with all the others that there isn't space to mention..!)

As for whether we're holding people back if we do things selfishly - I'd say that more than anyone else we'd be holding ourselves back. Of course God can and will work through our selfishness but if we're not open to God whilst leading, then in my mind we're the ones missing out on true worship more than anyone else.

Michael

Michael, yeah it's worth doing it just to see, even if it turns out to completely flop and not work at all. There's no harm in having a laugh about it if it doesn't work! But if you don't try, then you'll never know if it would work or not.

Yeh, i get what you mean. In a way, would we be liek closing our hearts to true worship, so missing out on God's wonders working in us? Or is that basically what you said, just said differently? lol

God Bless
Nic
xxx

I think that's what I was trying to say, you just managed to summarise it in a sentence and I babbled on for a paragraph! I need to spend more time on these forums when I'm actually awake...

I guess the way I see it it's a case of we're preventing God working in us but not preventing him working through us - if that made any more sense. I think you get what I'm trying to say anyway :)

yeh, well blabbing is good... sometimes lol.

yeh, that makes total sense too

Hey :)

I dont like big lumps of text (thats why mine are rather short) so this has probably been said already :P

I like this topic :P Thankfully my parents can sing and they passed the talent to me =] i do all sorts of crazy things with my voice and most of them work...or i just end up yoddling and start laughing xD

I really used to struggle about people around me looking at me, but a few years ago I just realised it between ME and GOD...nobody else!!!

So sometimes I'll be the only person at the front, hands fung in the air while I burst a lung or two singing like I mean it (which I do) in worship!!!!

And that sums up my Sunday evenings :D

God bless,

Jordan =]

Hey

Our First main goal should be on God. Our Second Main Goal should be on God and our third main Goal should be on God.

Others are below our list. Yes, Sounding nice is important but without Spirit and Truth its just noise.

Once we have the Heart of Worship in place we should then concentrate on being "In Tune" I kind imagine the Church as a whole is also like God's iPod. So our music should be Good to please him when He listens to His "iPod".