Volume 23 | No. 2

M A R C H /A P R I L 2 0 1 4

W OR SH IP LE A D E R

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T H E A R T O F C E L E B R AT I O N

THE ART OF CELEBRATION AVA I L A B L E W O R L D W I D E

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J AN UARY /FE BR UARY 2014

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WORSHIP LEADER | MARCH/APRIL | VOL 23 NO 2

CONTENTS

LEADERSHIP 10

FULL COMMUNION | MARK D. ROBERTS

12

REACH OUT HORIZONTALLY | RORY NOLAND

14

CONFESSION, CONVERSATION, AND COMMUNITY | PAUL BALOCHE

16

WORSHIP THAT DELIGHTS | RON ALLEN

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VERTICAL HORIZONTAL WORSHIP LEADERSHIP | TIM SHEPPARD What does it really mean, and why does it really matter?

MUSIC 24

NATIONAL WORSHIP LEADER CONFERENCE SPOTLIGHT | CHRISTY NOCKELS

26

SONG DISCOVERY NEW ARTIST SHOWCASE

28

THE HORIZONTAL IMPERATIVE | KEITH GETTY

MISSIONAL 30

GOSPEL ARTISTRY | DOUGLAS C. MANN

36

HAPPY LITTLE TREES | REGGIE KIDD

SKILL 38

NEW SONGS, OLD SONGS | ANDY CHAMBERLAIN

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BEYOND COMFORT | TANYA RICHES

42

3 BURNING QUESTIONS | TIM HUGHES

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4 + 4 = 8 WAYS TO HONOR GOD AND PEOPLE | CRAIG GILBERT

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7 KEY ATTRIBUTES OF A WORSHIP LEADER | KEVIN R. KURIAN & ALEXIS D. ABERNETHY

PRODUCTION 48

MEDIA TO PROPEL YOUR MINISTRY | SHAREFAITH

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3 PURCHASES WITH NO REGRETS | BRIAN STECKLER

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GOING PORTABLE AGAIN | KENT MORRIS

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WHAT’S NEW | ANDY TOY

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GEAR REVIEWS | ANDY TOY

HIGHER LEARNING 58

AN OPEN LETTER IN THE SPIRIT OF PAUL | CONSTANCE CHERRY

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FANNING YOUR CALL INTO FLAME | SPECIAL ADVERTISING Worship Leader’s guide to colleges and conferences

IN REVIEW 88

REND COLLECTIVE | FEATURED REVIEW

90

MUSIC FOR LEADING

96

PERSONAL PLAYLIST

98

THE BOOKSHELF

102

PROGRAMMING RESOURCES

DEPARTMENTS 6

SURROUNDED BY A BUNCH OF STRANGERS | JEREMY ARMSTRONG

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FORUM

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LISTENING TO THE SONGS OF OTHERS … WITH THANKSGIVING | CHUCK FROMM

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SURROUNDED BY A BUNCH OF STRANGERS

AT

the tail end of this recent summer I got one of those phone calls. You know the ones, the ones we all dread. “We’ve got some bad news about mom,” my dad said. The next five minutes rearranged the foundational elements of my life. I lost balance.

At the time of that phone call, my mom seemed healthy and strong, always leading the charge when we took our family’s collective dog pack for a walk around the neighborhood. As things currently stand, as a result of stage IV pancreatic cancer, we will consider it a grace from God if she is still around to read this article in print.

What do you do when something like that hurricanes into your world?

I have to check the wall posts on Facebook each day and see good news all around me; I have to get up in the morning and play my part in a magazine, website, and conference that is essentially centered around celebration. I still go to church every Sunday, and the healing I pray for is not the kind that finds physical recovery for my mom. It’s the kind that asks for the peace of Christ to dwell richly in her heart in these, her last days this side of paradise.

In the book The Fault in Our Stars by John

Green, one of the characters says this about her favorite book, “That’s part of what I like about the book in some ways. It portrays death truthfully. You die in the middle of your life, in the middle of a sentence.” At church every Sunday, I feel caught in the middle of a sentence, filled with grief—asking my only eternal constant in this life to, just, still be constant for me. Because I have no idea what else to ask of him.

And in the midst of this, feeling like my foundation is gone, I’m asked to celebrate the good news of redemption and healing—in a dark room surrounded by a bunch of strangers.

I think this is the essence of vertical/horizontal worship.

Not my story, per se. But the fact that I have a story. The fact that you have a story. When we gather each week as the body of Christ to lift our praise, to moan our laments, to doubt our doubts, to celebrate our victories, we are a broken-made-whole people. Made whole by Christ, and made whole in Christ. Yes, worship is first and foremost to express praise and thanksgiving to God, but it is also to remind us who we are in him: we are his body, and “there is one body and one Spirit … one Lord, one

BY JEREMY ARMSTRONG

faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Eph 4:4-6). And if we take this to heart, our weekly praise may be noise to his ears if we are not also making sure to notice those around us. To listen for God’s still small voice in the midst of our worship as it directs us to his children—to partake in both their joys and their deep sorrows and respond with prayer, sensitivity, and love.

Vertical/horizontal worship isn’t just a neat idea for us to think about. It is absolutely vital for the body of Christ in its faithfulness to biblical worship. Without it we have lost the essence of what Christ has created in us and for us, his bride and his body. In this issue, we have taken the opportunity to explore this through many points of view, many interpretations … through many unique stories that come from God’s utterly diverse and wonderfully unique children. At our churches around the world, what will we be to one another? Will we be the body of Christ, or will we be surrounded by a bunch of strangers? W

– Jeremy Armstrong, managing editor

worshipleader CEO/PUBLISHER Chuck Fromm, PhD

EDITORIAL BOARD Warren Anderson, Paul Baloche, Brenton Brown, J. Robert Clinton, Maggi Dawn, Craig Detweiler, Jeff Deyo, Carlton Dillard, Stan Endicott, Susan Fontaine Godwin, Shaun Groves, Tony Guerrero, Debby Kerner Rettino, Reggie Kidd, Roberta King, Greg Laurie, Hughes Oliphant Old, Andy Park, Matt Redman, Robb Redman, Jason Ritchie, Mark Roberts, Lin Sexton, Martin Smith, Brian Steckler, Laura Story, Rick Warren.

SUBMISSIONS See our submission guidelines at worshipleader.com. For all other feedback or inquiries, contact jeremy@wlmag.com.

SONG DISCOVERY 115 LISTENING BOARD Stephanie Leachman, Jeff Little, Brandi Harvey, Josh Roland, Erna Daniel, Josh Lopez, Daniel Doss, Tim Walsh, Ben Schoffman, Judy Meinzer, Mark Snyder, Norman Silver, David Gauthier, Bob Marshall, Randy Hitts, Debi Ruud, Andrew Kong, Shawn Denton, Carol Rosser, Jeremy Armstrong, Phil Sillas, Andrea Hunter, Andy Toy

EDITORIAL MANAGING EDITOR Jeremy Armstrong DIRECTOR OF CREATIVE & PUBLISHING SERVICES Andrea Hunter ART DIRECTOR Katie Noel SONG DISCOVERY SONG DISCOVERY A&R Phil Sillas SONG DISCOVERY ASSISTANT Andy Toy EVENTS DIRECTOR OF TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT Suzie Stablein ADVERTISING & SPONSORSHIP VICE PRESIDENT OF SALES & MARKETING Daniele Kimes SALES & MARKETING COORDINATOR Alissa Smith OPERATIONS AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT Nicole Fromm ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Judi Coffin

TO SUBSCRIBE/MANAGE YOUR SUBSCRIPTION: worshipleader.com/subscribe CUSTOMER SERVICE: 888.881.5861 FOREIGN SUBSCRIBERS: 714.226.9782 WORSHIP LEADER OFFICE: 949.240.9339 ADVERTISE IN WORSHIP LEADER CONTACT daniele@wlmag.com PERMISSIONS We grant duplication permission for up to 100 copies of any original article for use in a local church. For any other quantity or use, email jeremy@wlmag.com.

NOTE ON BIBLE QUOTES Unless otherwise noted, Worship Leader defaults to the NIV 1984 version.

song DISCovery Worship Leader® (ISSN 1066-1247) is published bi-monthly by Worship Leader Partnership (29222 Rancho Viejo Road, Ste 215, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675-1046).

Copyright: Worship Leader magazine © 2014 by Worship Leader, Inc. Worship Leader® is a registered trademark.

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WRITE US // EDITOR@WLMAG.COM OR JOIN THE CONVERSATION ONLINE AT WORSHIPLEADER.COM

FORUM This month, there was a good amount of chatter on worshipleader.com. Here’s a little of what’s being said.

Here is what people are saying about “What The 2014 Grammys Tell the American Church About Race and Worship.”

Read the full article: go.wlmag.com/grammys-worship Ken Main said: I do agree that we need to be more racially diverse in our taste of worship music. I have seen some inroads though. Lincoln Brewster had Israel Houghton on his The Power of His Name release. Jars of Clay have released racially diverse/hybrid music on Who We Are Instead. I also agree that there must be churches that focus on hymns for those Christians where “popular” music does not sound like Christian music to them. The older I become I see the different ideas of what Christian/worship music “should be.”

David said: I think that people just don’t know where to start. We have sung part of a song in

Spanish, but not congregationally (yet).

And we have a choir special coming up in Spanish, but, again, not congregationally.

What is needed for congregational songs are easy choruses that our people can pick up on more easily than eight different lines of different words. And that’s a step for our congregation, but is that what Spanish-speakers are looking for?

Tom Rawlings said: As the worship director for a decent-sized multicultural church I can tell you that it’s work! We’re striving to be not only multicultural, but multi-generational. Choosing songs that balance old and new and different cultures is not an easy task, but we’ve been able to pull it off for 15 years.

I think that one of the issues is getting beyond ourselves and our personal tastes in music ... The multicultural part has not been that difficult for me; the multi-generational part has been a little more so for me personally, but I have recruited a team made up of a cross-section of our congregation to help me find music that will allow the congregation to participate.

worshipleader THE APP IS NOW AVAILABLE! NOW YOU CAN BROWSE THE ARCHIVE AND PURCHASE SINGLE ISSUES TO READ ON YOUR iPAD. Single issues and subscription available • 99¢ sampler May 2012 iPad is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc

Here is what people are saying about “Harmful Attitudes That Spoil Relationships in a Worship Team.”

Read the full article: go.wlmag.com/harmful-attitudes Anonymous said: I have learned in my position as coordinator that I have a responsibility to directly address attitude or behavior problems that are consistent, cause division, and quench the Holy Spirit—quite the opposite from bringing blessing. It is not enough to just “keep the peace” so to speak. If problems are not dealt with in a timely manner then an attitude of resentment can begin to erode the worship team and actually drive people out.

Amy Kraut said: We are charged with a great job. We can look at the things that we shouldn’t do while we are together, or we can set our eyes on the job that we have been entrusted to do each and every time we step up on that platform, whether it be a Sunday morning in front of God’s precious chosen, or just in practice. It is a glorious job.

We owe it to Christ and the Father to walk in sincere love and honor and respect of each other in this task. W

the white album [remix project]

a v a i l a b l e e v e r y w h e r e 3. 4 . 14

hillsongunited.com

facebook.com/hillsongunited

twitter.com/hillsongunited

LEADERSHIP

BY MARK D. ROBERTS

FULL COMMUNION

G

rowing up in the Church, I always understood communion to be a deeply personal and therefore profoundly private experience. Although my congregation celebrated communion together, there seemed to be an unwritten rule that this was an intense “Jesus and me moment.” Even when we passed the plates of bread (more like Styrofoam, actually) and juice, we were care-

EXPANDING UNDERSTANDING Years later, I discovered that what our new pastor advocated was solidly rooted in Scripture, especially in 1 Corinthians. One of the reasons Paul wrote this letter was that the Christians in Corinth were practicing communion in an individualistic way, thus contradicting part of the meaning of the Lord’s Supper. In their corporate gatherings, the Corinthians were so

“…FULL COMMUNION IS FELLOWSHIP BOTH WITH CHRIST AND WITH CHRIST’S PEOPLE, THE MEMBERS OF HIS ONE BODY.” ful not to invade each other’s space or even make eye contact.

Then, a new pastor came to stir the pot.

He taught that communion was something shared by God’s people together. To demonstrate this theological reality, our pastor wanted us to speak to each other while passing the plates. We were to say, “This is the body of Christ, broken for you” and “This is the blood of Christ, shed for you.”

He even encouraged, gulp, eye contact. I found this new practice to be both enticing and uncomfortable. It felt like enacted heresy, yet there was something wonderful about hearing and speaking the good news represented by the bread and the cup.

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focused on their own spiritual experience that they neglected the experience of others. Paul admonished them, teaching that they were wrong to “eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ” (1 Cor 11:29). The NIV supplies “of Christ” here, a phrase not included in the original Greek, but surely implied.

What does it mean to discern the body of Christ? If we turn back to 1 Corinthians 10, we find an answer. In this chapter, Paul is teaching the Corinthians to care about each other when it comes to the divisive issue of eating foods offered to idols.

In this context, many of the believers in Corinth, so focused on themselves and

MARCH/APRIL 2014

their own spirituality, had been neglecting their brothers and sisters. Paul urged them to put aside such individualism and start caring for others. In this context he wrote, “And is not the bread we break a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share in the one loaf” (1 Cor 10:16b-17). The word translated here as “participation” is koinonia in Greek, which is related to the English word “communion” by way of the Latin communio. Notice that our communion in the body of Christ is not just individual fellowship with Jesus because “we are one body.” In other words, full communion is fellowship both with Christ and with Christ’s people, the members of his one body. The one bread represents the physical body of Jesus and the corporate body of the Church.

INTIMATE AND INCLUSIVE Thus, full communion is deeply personal, yet also deeply corporate. It is a profound “Jesus and me” moment” and, at the same time, a profound “Jesus and us together” experience. It is essentially vertical and horizontal. Take away either dimension and you don’t have full communion.

Of course, there are lots of implications here for our worship. A full understanding of communion should encourage us to make sure that every communion experience in our churches is both vertical and horizontal. But, for those of us who lead worship, a new awareness of the corporate element of communion can be especially encouraging and transformative. It can be a time when we receive as well as give, when those we lead can lead us by offering tangible signs of God’s grace. It can be a time when we watch as God’s love in Christ is poured out upon our people, a time of joy and thanksgiving.

MARK D. ROBERTS is Executive Director of Digital Media of Foundations for Laity Renewal. Blog: patheos.com/blogs/markdroberts. Daily Reflection: thehighcalling.org.

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LEADERSHIP

BY RORY NOLAND

REACH OUT HORIZONTALLY: FINDING A FRESH TEAM-BUILDING IDEA

Q:

I really want to build into my team this year. My volunteers are good musicians. They work hard.

They’re faithful and committed. In the past, I’ve thrown parties and done retreats. This year I’d prefer to do something more personal, something that makes each of my worshipteam members feel special. Any ideas?

A:

I offer a suggestion that many of the worship leaders I mentor have found helpful this year. I recommend you meet personally with every one of your volunteers. Give them each some quality relational time with you.

I would begin by announcing that you’ll be contacting each volunteer to set up a time to get together. Let them know that it’ll take awhile to get around to the entire team, so if they don’t hear from you right away, not to feel left out. Depending on the size of your team, it could take you six months to a year for you to meet with every one of your volunteers. If possible, I would also include your technical team or any other non-musical team members you have. This would be an excellent opportunity not only to build into them, but also underscore their importance to your ministry. Some of the large ministries I work with divide their roster among their top leaders. For example, one leader meets with all the vocalists, another with the instrumentalists, and yet another takes the tech team.

CREATIVE & SENSITIVE SCHEDULING As far as when and where to meet, you have several options. You could meet some people for lunch—either brown bag it and meet at church, or meet at a nearby restaurant. If your ministry budget allows you to pay for lunch, that’s always a nice way to express thanks to 12

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your volunteers for serving faithfully. If lunch is not an option, schedule a time before or after rehearsal. Between services is another good option. Some folks might even be able to meet you at church during office hours. Just make sure you allow enough time. I usually plan on an hour. You may not need all that time, but that way you won’t feel rushed or distracted.

GUIDING THE EXCHANGE Once the logistics are taken care of and you’re sitting face-to-face with your volunteer, it’s important to ask meaningful questions (obviously these will be influenced by how well you know the particular volunteer). It would be a waste of your time (and theirs) to engage in small talk for an hour. You don’t need to control the conversation, but you’ll want to get it going in the right direction. Remember that topics and questions that are neutral for some can be emotionally loaded for others, so if you touch on a tender spot, proceed with sensitivity. Begin by asking non-threatening personal questions pertaining to work and family. For example: How are things at work? What is it exactly that you do, and what are you working on these days? Are you happy at your job? Do you see yourself staying there a long time? Do you have any time off coming this summer?

If so, do you have any vacation plans yet?

How’s your family? How many kids do you have? Names?

Ages? How’s your marriage going? How long have you been married? How did you and your spouse meet?

NEXT, I WOULD MOVE TO QUESTIONS ABOUT CHURCH AND MINISTRY:

How long have you been attending our church?

What made you decide to make this your church home? How do you feel about the church these days?

How do you feel about the worship ministry?

How do you feel about your role in the ministry? Is it rewarding? Anything you find frustrating? How I can make your serving experience better? What do you feel is the next step for you in your development as an artist and/ or worship leader?

LASTLY, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, MAKE SURE YOU STEER THE CONVERSATION TO SPIRITUAL THINGS:

How are you doing spiritually? Do you feel close to the Lord these days? How did you come to Christ? What’s the next step for you in your spiritual growth?

As your volunteers share their stories, make sure you listen attentively. Be fully present; give them your undivided attention and sincere care. You may learn things about them you didn’t know before. You might also discover some that are struggling or going through hard times. So meeting one-on-one with your people is a great way to get to know them better and minister to them on a personal level as well. These meetings will also go a long way in building team unity and achieving authentic community. I predict your ministry will reap the benefits of these one-on-one conversations for several months, maybe even years, to come. W RORY NOLAND (heartoftheartist.org) directs Heart of the Artist Ministries and is the author of Worship on Earth as It Is in Heaven.

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LEADERSHIP

BY PAUL BALOCHE

CONFESSION, CONVERSATION, AND COMMUNITY

THE LIFELINE Of course, realizing we need to be centered, and actually doing it are two different things. I find that when life has sapped me dry, right on cue at 8:00 a.m.

Sunday morning, I need to grab a couple of people on the team, even if it’s last minute, and ask them to pray for me. We have to let our community know when we’re struggling—that we need to be held up in prayer. It is of utmost importance to acknowledge our emptiness to the Lord. To say something to the effect of: Lord, here I am … about to lead others in worship, and I feel so far from you at this moment.Yet I have a job to do. I don’t want to get in the way of what you want to do in the lives of these people.

L

ead worshipers or “worship leaders” are in a strange place; we have the privilege of creating a space of surrender for people to offer their hearts to God yet our position also carries responsibilities that require our hearts to be in a place of worship before Sunday morning. And just like everyone else, we deal with the stuff of life. We deal with allergies, missing our taxes, paying bills, the emotional needs of our families, and every other thing that comes with real life.

One recent revelation that I’ve had is that if we expect to effectively lead worship every week, we have to keep short accounts with God. We cannot allow our sins to fester unconfessed and undealt with. Failing to do so jeopardizes our “sense of closeness” with God and hinders the excellence of worship that we are offering. While that is a great responsibility, it is also one of the great blessings of serving the Church. The fact that I have to deal with my stuff each week has been a lifesaver.

COMMUNITY When we stand in front of our congregation week in and week out, in front of those who know us—who can read our facial expressions and read our hearts— 14

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we must deal with the issues in our lives.

It helps to cultivate a 24/7 conversation with God, turning our hearts toward him a thousand times a day in order to be real worshipers, which in turn makes us authentic worship leaders.

Whatever we’re doing, mowing the lawn or picking up the dog’s mess, we can build the habit of being preoccupied with the Lord—working at being one with him by keeping a conversation going with him at all times. That happens, not just on Sunday morning, but every day in our normal lives.

In a perfect world, we would always be completely inspired and full of God and full of the Spirit. But if we lead worship on a consistent basis there are going to be days when we struggle. That is part of life.

Unfortunately, there are probably more days than we would like to admit when we didn’t take the time to get our hearts in the right place. There have been many times where I’ve been getting ready to go on the stage and thought, “Wow, this is gonna be hard”—days when I’ve come to the sanctuary spent. But those are also the days to remember that our first job is to be centered in the Father. That is our top priority. Our job is to try to help people find that place in their lives.

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My experience is that when I have brought myself before the Lord, shared my brokenness with my team, God shows up. Sometimes even in the middle of the first song.

There have been times I’ve had to back off the mic because the tenderness of the Lord has come upon me and filled that emptiness with his presence.

PONDER THESE WORDS Conversation. Community. Lately, I’ve been chewing on these two words and asking questions such as, Did our worship time feel like a conversation with a living person…with God, or did we just contrive a precise performance? Did our time of worship foster a sense of community within the church or are we just enabling people to have a solo “experience” with God?” At the end of the day our primary role is to help facilitate conversation and community between God and his people. And that begins with relationship: vertical and horizontal. W PAUL BALOCHE (leadworship.com, @paulbaloche) has written songs such as “Open the Eyes of My Heart,” and most recently released The Same Love.

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LEADERSHIP

THAT

Worship Throughout history and in the Bible, God rejected certain types of worship.

What do these worship practices have in common?

DELIGHTS

T

here are times in the Hebrew prophets when we read of God’s rejection of Israel’s worship. Not surprisingly, these passages of condemnatory words are directed against false worship, the worship of idols, the evils of syncretism, and the like.

From the seething sarcasm of Hosea regarding Israel to the sickish sadness of Jeremiah respecting Judah, the prophets scorn idolatrous practices among the peoples of God. In both of the following passages, the voice is that of the Lord: [My people] offer sacrifices on the mountain tops, And burn incense on the hills, Under oaks, poplars, and terebinths, Because their shade is good (Hos 4:13) What injustice have your fathers found in Me, That they have gone from Me, Have followed idols, And have become idolaters? (Jer 2:5).

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BY DR. RON ALLEN

WORSHIP GOD DESIRES

The surprising thing is when we read that God also at times rejected Israel’s worship when it was right!

That is, when worship seemed to be right, at least in outward form and ritual. For true worship to go wrong is astonishing. But this happens when it is either wrong in substance or wrong in the heart—or both.

This was the message of Isaiah in his astonishing condemnation of the worship of the people of Judah in the courts of Yahweh’s holy Temple: “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?” Says the Lord.

“I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams And the fat of fed cattle.

I do not delight in the blood of bulls, Or of lambs or goats” (Isa 1:11).

These ideas are presented in the first descriptions of God’s worship in the Bible in the post-fall world— the well-known story of Cain and Abel (Gen 4).

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IN THE BEGINNING The worship of both sons of Adam and Eve was done, we may believe, according to the instruction of Yahweh. They simply would not have made it up. During the years following their sins in the Garden and their expulsion from Eden, Eve and Adam would have received much instruction from their loving Lord, including the subject of his holy worship. For a farmer, the proper response to God following the bounty of harvest was to present produce to God as a sacrifice of joy in being a part of the work of God and a beneficiary of his mercy. The same was true of the herdsman.

The presentation of a sacrifice of an animal was a symbol of dependency on the mercy of Yahweh.

The key verb in this text describes God’s evaluation both of the persons and of their particular offerings. This verb (Hebrew sha`ah) signifies that the Lord looked with insight and perception. He saw what they were and then observed what they did. On the one man, Abel, Yahweh looked with favor both on the person and his offering.

On the other, Cain, there was neither the insightful favor on the person nor on his offering. The one did the right thing and was the right person; the other was flawed both in his heart and in his actions.

BEYOND THE RIGHT FORMULA These ideas are presented as well in the words of Jesus in the even better-known story of his conversation with the Samaritan woman “at the well” (Jn 4). When Jesus spoke of worship that is “in spirit and in truth” (Jn 4:24), He was using a figure of speech conveying more than one level of meaning—something common in the masterful teaching of our Lord.

On the one hand, worship that is acceptable to God must be in concert with the work of the (Holy) Spirit and on the level of revealed Truth in God. Mere “sincerity” is not enough. One of my professors, many years ago, developed a Gospel tract using (with permission!) a cartoon from the venerable “Peanuts” strip. It was one of those days in which Charlie Brown’s baseball team lost another game.

For Charlie Brown’s team, a loss was rarely close. It was more like the hapless Broncos at the crafty hands of the Seahawks in a recent little game of football. With a very lopsided score, Charlie attempted to

make a better face of things by saying, “At least we were sincere.” Dr. Charles Ryrie remarked in the tract, “Sincerity is not enough”—not in the things of God. True worship must be in the power of the Spirit and must be in accord with Truth—the truth of God.

HEART-ENGAGED WORSHIP But true worship must also be in “spirit and truth” in terms of the individuals who come to the worship of God. What they do and say, what they think and imagine— what is in their heart—these are the things of true worship. My dear fiend and writing partner Dr. Gordon Borror wrote years ago, “Worship is more a state of the heart, than a state of the art.”

These ideas are found as well in the Psalms, particularly well in Psalm 40. David says something quite remarkable and unexpected in Psalm 40:6: Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; My ears You have opened.

Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require.

At first blush, one might think that these words make no sense at all. If God did not require sacrifices, who in the world did?

God’s pleasure is in the one who does what God commands, and does so with a heart subservient and glad—the heart of a delighted servant.

Such was the remarkable report of David. In the middle of the verse (Ps 40:6) he says, “My ears You have opened.” This is his poetic way of suggesting God’s shaping of the inner ear, from the scene in Genesis 2 of Yahweh God crafting the body of the man from clay (Genesis 2:7 uses the verb of a potter). God has made me a sentient creature, a person who is designed to be responsive to the will and word of Creator God. So in the midst of his worship, with all of the ritual and sacrificial requirements God had established for the Hebrew people in the days of sacrificial worship, David confesses: Then I said, “Behold I come; In the scroll of the book it is written of me.

I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your Law is within my heart” (Ps 40:7, 8).

HEART TO HEART See, Gordon Borror is right again! Worship is a matter of state of the heart, not a state of the art. When David says, “I delight” in verse 7, he is using a form of the same word used of God in verse 6, “You did not desire.”

“THE PLEASURE OF THE BELIEVER WHO COMES TO THE WORSHIP OF GOD WITH A HEART READY FOR WORSHIP, IS A PART OF THE PLEASURE OF THE GOD WHO IS WORSHIPED!” The key to the correct understanding of these words is found in the word rendered “desire.” This verb (Hebrew, haphets) is a term of enjoyment, of laughter, of a smile.

(This is the same word used by Isaiah in the verse cited above, Isaiah 1:11, “I do not delight in the blood of bulls, / Or of lambs or goats”).

WHO GOD IS NOT God does not take pleasure in blood and carnage; God is not a ghoul. The killing, bleeding, burning of sacrificial animals under a hot Judean sun, with flies, smells and noise—these are not the things that bring joy to the Lord.

Here is the point: The pleasure of the believer who comes to the worship of God with a heart ready for worship, is a part of the pleasure of the God who is worshiped!

It is heart ... to heart. W Dr. Ronald B. Allen is Senior Professor of Bible Exposition at Dallas Theological Seminary. Author of numerous books including Worship: Rediscovering the Missing Jewel. Allen was one of the senior editors for The New King James Version, Old Testament, and was the Old Testament editor for both The Nelson Study Bible (aka The NKJV Study Bible) and Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary. *All Scriptures quoted from the New King James Version of the Bible M A R C H /A P R I L 2 0 1 4

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NEW WORSHIP MUSIC ON

MARCH/APRIL 2014 VOLUME 115

1. OH LORD

7. AWESOME IS HE

As heard on Pictures and Frames. Words and music by Rebecca DeVries/Carl Cartee/Kerri Crutchfield. For more information visit: beckiryan.com

As heard on Stand Up. Words and music by Ben Cantelon/Luke Hellebronth/Nikki Fletcher/Tim Hughes/Tom Smith. For more information visit: worshipcentral.org

2. FIX OUR EYES

8. MERCY TREE

As heard on No Other Love. Words and music by Jeremy Horn/ David Moffitt. For more information visit: jeremyhornmusic.com

As heard on Mercy Tree. Words and music by Krissy Nordhoff/Michael Neale. For more information visit: krissynordhoff.com

3. THE DAY THAT HE RETURNS

9. EVER FAITHFUL

As heard on Make Us One. Words and music by Evan Wickham/ Tyler Chester. For more information visit: evanwickham.com

As heard on Ever Faithful EP. Words and music by Kris Neel/Brent Milligan/Mia Fieldes. For more information visit: healingplaceworship. com

4. GRACE SO GLORIOUS

10. HOPE WILL RISE

BY BECKI RYAN & KERRI CRUTCHFIELD

BY JEREMY HORN

BY EVAN WICKHAM

BY ELEVATION WORSHIP

As heard on Only King Forever. Words and music by Steven Furtick/Israel Houghton/Chris Brown. For more information visit: elevationworship.com

5. SONG TO THE SAVIOR

BY TYRUS MORGAN W/NICOL SPONBERG As heard on Song to the Savior. Words and music by Chris Lockwood/Jay Speight/Tyrus Morgan. For more information visit: tyrusmorgan.com

BY LUKE HELLEBRONTH

BY KRISSY NORDHOFF

BY HEALING PLACE MUSIC

BY WARR ACRES

As heard on Hope Will Rise. Words and music by Aubree Huffman/ Chris Crow/Emily Moore/Kristy Starling/Lael Louthan/Maggie Payne.

For more information visit: warracres.tv

11. SET YOUR EYES

BY JONATHAN & EMILY MARTIN As heard on Set Your Eyes. Words and music by Jonathan Taylor Martin. For more information visit: jonathanandemilymartin.com

6. ALL YOUR PEOPLE SING

BY A JESUS CHURCH

As heard on Carry Your Name. Words and music by Matthew Zigenis/Eric Lemiere/Michael Watson. For more information visit: ajesuschurch.org

Worship Leader’s Song DISCovery® would like to thank our ministry partners for their contributions to Volume 115: Watsky Music, Kompass Music, Carl Cartee, Lillian Grace Music, Photon Music, Universal Music-Brentwood Benson Publishing, Ardent Music, LLC, EMI Christian Music Publishing, From The Indigo Room, Evan Wickham, Worship Together Music, Terrific Tiger Music, Sony/ATV Tree Publishing, Elevation Worship Publishing, Integrity’s Praise! Music, Sound Of The New Breed, Provident Label Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Chris Lockwood Music, Right Angle Music, Tyrus Music, Jay Speight Publishing, Curb Records, Inc., Zigenis Music, ERL Music, Above The Golden State, A Jesus Church, Alpha International, Thankyou Music, Integrity Music, TwoNords Music, Music Services, Inc., Healing Place Music, Victory Productions, LLC., Dream Records, JME Music Publishing

Songwriters: Have a song you want to share with the Church?

Submit your song at worshipleader.com/submit-a-song

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LEADERSHIP

BY TIM SHEPPARD

we

are called to connect with God and to connect with people as we lead worship. The very title “worship leader � emphasizes both the vertical and horizontal dynamics of our role. We worship (vertically connect with God), and we also lead (horizontally connect with the congregation).

When either of these connections breaks, we miss the mark. If we get lost in the vertical connection, our worship becomes a private experience on public display that leaves the congregation behind. If we get horizontally focused, we become performers and never get vertical ourselves. Neither imbalance promotes the corporate presence of God.

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LEADERSHIP

Shepherding Through Worship

We must do more than deliver an epic song list or tell the congregation, “Come on, now … let’s worship!” If we intend to take people with us on the worship journey, then we must connect with and pastor them. Even though connecting with God in front of people may model personal worship, most people still need road signs in order to take the journey with us.

The Psalms are filled with examples of both horizontal and vertical elements in worship leading. In Psalm 40:1-4, David exhorts through personal testimony to trust in the Lord (horizontal). In verse 5, he goes vertical: “Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are toward us.” Psalm 100 is a horizontal call to worship. The very next psalm goes vertical again: “I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto Thee, O Lord, will I sing” (Ps 101:1).

The theology of vertical and horizontal worship leading is also tucked away in a single word that, on the surface, appears to be more about prayer than worship.

That word is intercession. Your worship leading will be revolutionized when you understand that your primary responsibility as a worship leader is to be an intercessor.

Spanning the Distance

My pastor, Robert Morris (senior pastor of Gateway Church), once preached a message entitled “The Joy of Intercession.” He explained that we can pray a prayer of intercession. However, intercession is not fundamentally a prayer. It is actually an activity or action. Intercession is the act of bringing two parties together. When we intercede, we build a bridge to connect people with God. The Hebrew word paga in the Old Testament is sometimes translated “intercession.” More often, it refers to the place where two borders touch or meet together.

Joshua 17:10 says, “Southward it was Ephraim’s, and northward it was Manasseh’s, and the sea is his border; and they [the borders] met together [paga] in Asher on the north, and in Issachar on the east.” So, intercession is similar in meaning to the word intersection, which refers to the place where two roads cross or come together.

The New Testament tells us that Jesus and the Holy Spirit make intercession for us (Heb 7:25; Rom 8:2627, 34). The words translated “intercession” in all these verses is from the same Greek root that means a meeting with, an interview, a coming together. Do these verses mean that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are praying for us?

Heaven Meets Earth

A better interpretation is that Jesus intercedes or makes an intersection to put us on a collision course with the Father.

He did this by destroying the wall that separated us from God through his sacrifice on the cross (see Isa 53:12). The Holy Spirit helps build a bridge between heaven and earth to connect our desires with the Father’s desires. He helps us not only pray but also live according to the will of God. First Timothy 2:1 says, “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men” (KJV). This word intercessions is from the same Greek root that describes Jesus’ and the Holy Spirit’s intercession. We are called as believers to build bridges by creating intersections for people to collide with God. This amazing truth directly impacts the way we lead worship. We should see ourselves as bridge builders by taking God’s hand (vertical), taking the congregation’s hand (horizontal), and then bringing the two parties together (intercession). This is worship leading as intercession.

We cannot build the bridge without connecting with God and connecting with the people. As worship leaders, connecting with God should be instinctive.

However, connecting with people so they can make the journey in worship with us requires us to develop horizontal leadership skills. Here are a few suggestions you can immediately implement to provide road signs in worship:

1. GET A VISION FOR WORSHIP. Only when you have clear direction for the journey can you pave the way and set up road signs for others to follow. Ask the Lord to give you a particular theme or emphasis for worship. I’m not referring to a topic to build your song list around, but rather a specific underlying purpose you believe is on God’s heart.

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LEADERSHIP

As I recently prepared for weekend worship, I was reminded that praise is a weapon God uses to silence the enemy (Ps 8:2). Though no song touched on this truth, the worship team and I focused on it and prayed into it throughout the weekend. We reminded ourselves that as we praise, we are not only bringing pleasure

Think carefully through your worship list to find the right place to share. Give the same care to prepare your spoken words that you give to prepare your songs.

Here are some talking points: •

Read a Scripture. Read a few Bible verses that reinforce some truth God

“WE ARE CALLED AS BELIEVERS TO BUILD BRIDGES BY CREATING INTERSECTIONS FOR PEOPLE TO COLLIDE WITH GOD.” to God but also doing warfare by silencing the enemy so people can hear God’s voice.

Sharing the vision with the worship and technical support teams will call them to the cause. Gather everyone before your run through to declare what God has laid on your heart. Rally the troops! Give them a hill to charge! As you pastor the team and they engage with you, the congregation will follow.

2. LEAD WITH COMPASSION. Jesus’s earthly ministry was marked by compassion for people. He wept over cities. Ask God to give you his heart for the team … the congregation … the city.

Some congregants who come to worship will be broken and desperate, secretly crying out for God to somehow intervene in their desperate circumstances. Are you broken for them?

3. SHARE YOUR HEART. People want to know how you personally relate to the songs you lead, so share your heart. Don’t try to teach a mini-sermon between every song, though. Leave the teaching up to your pastor. Trust the songs to speak for themselves, and then make an occasional comment that will move the congregation forward in the journey of worship. Plan your words wisely and be succinct.

•

•

has laid on your heart. Use newer translations to bring freshness to familiar passages. Invite the congregation to read aloud a portion of the passage with you from the video screens to help engage them.

Share a brief story from your life.

Use good judgment when you share.

Don’t embarrass or put others in a bad light.

Be encouraging. Avoid correction and admonishment. I once heard a worship leader say to the congregation that they may have come thinking it was their duty, but that God wanted them to come with their whole heart. That kind of comment presumes the worst and insults those who come prepared and ready to worship.

4. PARTNER WITH YOUR PASTOR IN WORSHIP. Though you may be the main worship leader in your church, your pastor usually sets the worship thermostat. The majority of the congregation watches his responsiveness to gauge theirs. Consider your pastor as your main partner in worship.

Look for ways to involve him and encourage his influence to bring the congregation along the journey.

5. WALK WITH PURITY AND INTEGRITY. Worship leading is actually a form of teaching. We teach by word and by example, and are therefore held to a higher standard: My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.

(Jas 3:1-2 NKJV) Our conduct directly reflects on our ability to lead effectively. Don’t forfeit the privilege of leading God’s people in worship through disqualifying words, attitudes, and actions. Whenever we interact with anyone anywhere, we need to ask ourselves if our conduct toward them will in any way disqualify us from leading them in worship. You’ll find that as you lead well off the platform, you will lead well on the platform.

As worship leaders, we have been given the enormous privilege of modeling biblical worship. In order to pastor God’s people in worship with skillfulness of hands and integrity of heart, according to Psalm 78:72, we need his wisdom and anointing to help us. As we embrace worship leading as intercession, we will lead both vertically and horizontally. By taking God’s hand, taking the congregation’s hand, and then bringing the two parties together, a transformational intersection will be built for people to collide with the living God. I’m grateful to be on the journey of worship with you, and hope and pray God’s best for you as you grow in leadership. W Tim Sheppard is a worship pastor and artist in residence at Gateway Church in Dallas, Texas. He has been in fulltime music ministry his entire adult life. Many of Tim’s songs have been recorded by major artists, including “I Am Determined,” “Before the Rocks Cry Out,” “He Will Carry You,” “Inside My Room,” “Me and My House,” among others. His passions are leading worship, writing and recording worship music and mentoring emerging worship artists, songwriters and producers.

* All scripture KJV except as noted.

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MUSIC

BY CHRISTY NOCKELS

NATIONAL WORSHIP LEADER CONFERENCE

SPOTLIGHT

Christy Nockels, artist, songwriter, and impassioned worshiper explores the myriad benefits of training. She gives voice to worship music’s changing demands and realities, while proclaiming God’s transforming love for us, and the power of finding our true identity in him. Christy Nockels will lead worship at the National Worship Leader Conference in the Washington DC area, May 12-15.

WORSHIP LEADER: HOW HAS LEADING WORSHIP CHANGED SINCE YOU FIRST EMERGED AS A WORSHIP LEADER?

CHRISTY NOCKELS: I’ve said many times over the years, “I was leading worship when worship wasn’t cool.” There are many of us who can remember a time when worship music wasn’t so much a genre as it was a true renewal of hearts throughout the entire Church as a whole.

We all know that worship isn’t a new concept by any means; we join in a song that has been sung both day and night around the throne of God since the very beginning. What is “new” is that worship music has become a style [genre], and like any other style of music it has become commercialized and marketed all around the world. That has changed drastically since I first emerged as a worship leader. In fact, I wouldn’t even have called myself a “worship leader” at that time—that wasn’t a phrase we even threw around. We knew about “music ministers,” but what we were experiencing looked very different than what we grew up seeing in our churches. At the time, we didn’t talk in terms of the latest worship song or worship leader; it was more about revival, renewal, and what God was doing in the Church globally. I absolutely believe there are still pockets of leaders who care about those things tremendously; in fact, I know a few and would like to think I’m still one of those people!

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Of course over time, it has taken on a life of its own, and worship songs now win Grammy’s, which is wonderful of course, but it just goes to show you how far worship music has come over the years.

The level of experience and technological expertise has obviously soared as well, and the demands artistically certainly have changed the way leaders think, write, prepare, and lead. But one thing that hasn’t changed is when leaders humble themselves before God and pray, revival comes.

WL:

DO YOU FEEL IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WORSHIP LEADERS COME TOGETHER TO TRAIN AND TO SHARE THEIR STORIES, QUESTIONS, AND LIVES WITH OTHER WORSHIP LEADERS FACE-TO-FACE IN A CONFERENCE SETTING?

CN: I believe that every worship leader should take at least one opportunity per year, if not several, to connect with other leaders. We all love stories and doing a bit of “eavesdropping” on someone else and how they do life in general. The times that I was able to sit and ask questions and watch other leaders in the very beginning was life changing for me. In fact, I still implement new things after watching other leaders lead. As you get to learn from others and sit under their leadership, it gives you time to evaluate the health of your heart before Jesus. It is a time to listen, to be inspired, to be still, and receive.

Because I still gain so much in these settings myself, I absolutely love getting to share and teach in these environments. I truly understand what it means to people.

After all, getting to listen to and learn from others often answers the question we are

“I BELIEVE ONE MAJOR SCHEME OF THE ENEMY IS TO JUST KEEP THE PEOPLE OF GOD IN A HAZE ABOUT WHO THEY REALLY ARE. HE KNOWS THAT IF WE REALLY LIVED LIKE WHO WE ARE, TRUE REVIVAL WOULD COME.” I believe this is how certain songs that come from this kind of prayer seem to transcend a “genre” or a “style.” They become an anthem for the Church to sing as well as the “heart language” that can connect the Church globally. Going forward, it would be amazing to have the best of both worlds—having a heart for revival and renewal in our nation and using every bit of our “expertise” to lift up the name of Jesus in all the world.

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all longing to know: “Am I crazy?” All of the sudden we don’t feel so lost after all, and we realize that we really are all in this together. This brings unity to the body of Christ and an appropriate amount of vulnerability to the table as leaders, which is much needed in an age of “worship rock stars.” People get to see that they aren’t “rock stars” after all ... just ordinary people who want to serve and share Jesus as much as they do.

MUSIC WL:

WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO SHARE WITH/IMPART TO THOSE GATHERED AT THE NATIONAL WORSHIP LEADER CONFERENCE?

CN: In a world of “doing,” and moving on what feels like a high-speed train, my prayer as I lead others is that people would experience the rest of Jesus on their lives.

Not just a time to rest their minds and their bodies but their soul and spirit as well. There’s a deep “soul rest” that Jesus desires for us. Matthew 11:29 says, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your weary souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” I was raised in the Church and my Dad has been a pastor my whole life. I understand the lives of people in vocational ministry and in church work. I know the demands it can put on your family life and your marriage.

My prayer is always to come and lead with the mantle of Jesus on my life by the Holy Spirit. To somehow impart his way of doing life, his yoke, as we worship together. Many people on church staff and in ministry have a skewed view of Jesus because the very leadership that is supposed to lead them to him has placed a heavy yoke on them. They somehow begin to look at God the way they view their earthly leadership, and it causes wounding and hurt and often confusion about God’s true heart for them. My prayer is to bring and impart a “remembrance” of who Jesus is and the true, soul rest and freedom that he offers to those who seek him.

are, that we are beloved and we receive that love, we can truly be love to the world around us. Sometimes it truly is the most simple truths that we either refuse to believe or they seem “to good to be true,” so we just believe it for others instead of for ourselves. I believe one major scheme of the enemy is to just keep the people of God in a haze about who they really are.

He knows that if we really lived like who we are, true revival would come.

WL:

OUR THEME THIS YEAR IS PSALM’S, HYMNS, AND SPIRITUAL SONGS BASED ON THE SCRIPTURES IN EPHESIANS AND COLOSSIANS. DO THESE HAVE ANY SPECIAL MEANING FOR YOU?

CN: I love these passages. Particularly, the passage in Colossians 3 is very dear to me.

Verse 12 says, “Therefore as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” First of all, don’t you love how God reminds us of who we are most every time he asks us to do something? He says, “As God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved”... clothe yourselves with these virtues. He’s basically telling us we are already capable of this because we belong to him, and we are dearly loved.

In verse 13, he tells us to bear with each other, forgive one another as he has forgiven us, and most of all, put on love, which binds up all these virtues in perfect unity.

When we do this, our reward and our out-

come are unity and thankfulness. From unity and thankfulness, I believe naturally come the psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Isn’t that a beautiful process?

It first comes from knowing who we are and whom we belong to. In knowing and understanding it we put on love, we see each other with new eyes, and we begin to relate to one another as loving siblings in Christ. We begin to speak to one another in a different way, and songs fill our lives as an overflow of knowing who we are! Beautiful.

WL:

DO YOU HAVE ANY NEW BOOKS/CDS IN THE WORKS, AND IF SO, WHAT WAS THE IMPETUS?

CN: My friends laugh at me because I have been saying, “I’m writing a book” for about the past three years now. It has been like climbing Mt. Everest for me! Trying to balance motherhood, writing, travel, and church has proved to be extremely challenging. In the end, I never want to regret not spending enough time with my children, so I just write when I can. It would be a dream to finish it this year along with a new record, hoping to release both of those in 2015. I have had the privilege of getting to lead some young women worship leaders here at our church, and they continue to inspire me to equip and encourage women on a deeper and even wider level. Songwriting and telling my story continues to be a simple but truly authentic way that I can encourage others and cheer them on. I absolutely love it. W

WL:

WHAT IS ON YOUR HEART AND IN YOUR THOUGHTS REGARDING GOD, HIS PEOPLE, AND WORSHIP AT THIS TIME?

CN: What is on my heart for God’s people is for us to understand who we truly are.

This is not to say that I have this completely figured out and mastered, and I’m ready to tell the world. I have just had a few sweet glimpses this past year in particular of understanding on a deeper level of who I am in Christ, and I have watched that transform my life in many areas and the lives of people around me. I believe it’s in discovering who we really are that we experience true freedom for the first time and true love for others. I think there is something profound about God calling us “Beloved.” When we understand who we

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MUSIC

NEW ARTISTS FEATURED ON SONG DISCOVERY

NEW ARTIST SHOWCASE

JONATHAN & EMILY MARTIN

BECKI RYAN & KERRI CRUTCHFIELD

Song on Song DISCovery: “Set Your Eyes on Him” Home: Raleigh, North Carolina | Church:Fellowship Raleigh

Song on Song DISCovery: “Oh Lord” Home: Kerri: Denver, North Carolina | Becki: Nashville, Tennessee

WHAT’S YOUR MUSICAL BACKGROUND?

WHAT’S YOUR MUSICAL BACKGROUND?

I (Jonathan) grew up in Texas where I started serving on my Church’s youth worship team as soon as I was able. Throughout the years I began writing and leading songs of my own. Emily grew up in North Carolina. In her early years, she had more of a musical theater and country artist background singing for all kinds of events. We met in Nashville, Tennessee, at Belmont University where we joined forces musically to lead worship for various events. Emily attended as a voice major, and I got my degree in music business. It wasn’t too long before we dated and eventually got married. For several years after college, before seriously launching our ministry as a couple, we were a part of a traveling music ministry called Mosaic along with a group of our close friends from Belmont. We’ve loved the journey God has had us on in our music and ministry.

Kerri: I grew up singing in my tiny Baptist church in Iron Station, North Carolina. Every church I attended growing up, God would place me in a position to learn and grow from the worship leaders there. I have no formal training or degree just a love of Jesus and a desire to see people meet him in worship every single time.

Becki: I got my bachelor’s of music in voice from Belmont University. From there went on to be a session singer—singing on records by artists from Amy Grant to Hilary Duff and all genres in between. I also sang on TV commercials. Currently I’m a signed songwriter/worship leader and I get the privilege to develop and work with up-and-coming artists and bands.

WHAT SPARKED THIS SONG?

I was reading in John one morning, and verses 3:14-15 jumped out at me. Jesus is reminding us of when the people of Israel were bitten by deadly poisonous snakes and how Moses made a bronze snake and lifted it up on a pole for all to see. As soon as the people looked at it, they were healed. There are so many amazing parallels to what Jesus has done for us on the Cross. Jesus was lifted up on the cross and took on himself “the poison” that is killing us all: sin—all the while becoming the miraculous cure for us that we need. It was just another moment of being amazed at the gospel of Jesus Christ, and I wanted to write a song to capture what the Holy Spirit was speaking to my heart through the Word.

WHAT ARE YOUR FIVE FAVORITE SONGS OF ALL TIME?

Our recent favorite worship song to lead has been “We Are Saved”

by Paul Baloche. I (Jonathan) love a lot of Jon Foreman’s writing, one of my favorites being “Your Love Is Strong.” As a family we love the hymn “Tis So Sweet.” We also both love Brooke Fraser’s writing, “Flags” being a favorite along with “None But Jesus.”

WHAT SPARKED THIS SONG?

Becki: We wrote this song with Carl Cartee, and when we started writing we simply began to worship—no formula or boundaries. Kerri and I were in a place of desperation, so to speak. We were each coming out of different seasons of life that were difficult for us both and our families. So as we began, the Spirit just led us to the lyric and melody. No matter how much time passes it will continue to be the cry of our hearts as we are desperate for The Lord. (To read more behind the song, check out our new blog at: conversationsonabrowncouch.com.)

WHAT ARE YOUR FIVE FAVORITE SONGS OF ALL TIME?

Kerri: “Another Kind of Green,” by John Mayer Trio; “Champagne Supernova” by Noel Gallagher (Oasis);“Death in His Grave” by John Mark McMillan; “Though You Slay Me” by Shane & Shane; and “Just One” by Jonathan and Melissa Helser Becki: “Once” by Stone Gossard (Pearl Jam); “Everything” by Alanis Morissette, “You Know Me” by Steffany Frizzell and William Matthews (Bethel Music); “Landslide” by Stevie Nicks (Fleetwood Mac); and “Where the Streets Have No Name” by Bono (U2). W

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Sweetwater-exclusive interview: The Digital Age

Former David Crowder Band members talk with us about their new sound, their approach to recording and performing, and the gear they use to share their musical message.

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THE

DIGITAL AGE

In January of 2012, the David Crowder Band ended their 12-year run as one of the Christian music industry’s most successful groups. Former DCB guitarists Mark Waldrop and Jack Parker, drummer B-Wack, and bassist Mike D went on to start a new musical venture called The Digital Age. Their debut album, Evening : Morning, was released to rave reviews in 2013. Recently, Sweetwater’s Jeff Barnett caught up with Mark Waldrop.

Can you give us a little history and recap what has happened since the last David Crowder Band show?

For those who don’t know what the David Crowder Band was, we started as a little worship team from University Baptist Church (UBC) in Waco, TX, a church that David Crowder founded with Chris Seay in the mid-’90s. We toured for about 12 years. Then in 2010, David transitioned from Waco to Atlanta, and the rest of us really wanted to stay in Waco and stay involved with UBC. So The Digital Age is essentially that. We’re still involved with UBC, and we’re still writing the same genre of music: upbeat, programming-heavy “fun worship,” as we call it. The Digital Age has been a band for a little over two years, which is crazy to say because it still seems so new.

We released a live EP called Rehearsals in 2012. We were just rehearsing for church, tracked it, and released it as an EP. And in 2013, we put out a record called Evening : Morning and followed that with a fall tour.

Evening : Morning doesn’t sound like just another DCB album, though. Can you describe the sound of The Digital Age? When you’re in a band and have an established sound and way of doing things, then you start a new band, you get to pick and choose what you liked about what you’ve been doing. But you also have a really natural moment to question what you want to do differently. With The Digital Age, we’re still writing songs for the same congregation. UBC is about 70% college students, so we tend to sound like what college kids are listening to.

We keep a close pulse on that.

The Digital Age’s latest album, Evening : Morning,, is available now.

To find out more, go to thedigitalagemusic.com!

David led from an acoustic guitar, and he would be a hard person to replace. One of the very first things we all agreed on was that we shouldn’t attempt to replace him. I usually play an electric, so now I’m leading on electric, and that fundamentally changes the sound of things.

You mentioned your studio in Waco. What made you decide to open a studio?

When David moved to Atlanta, we effectively lost our recording and rehearsal space. We found this place in downtown Waco that was an old dirty boxing gym, and we built a studio in it. We spent three months renovating it. The boxing ring was where our control room is now. It was designed by B-Wack, and it’s been really great for us.

We’re very programming-heavy, and we use a lot of synths onstage. We’re multitasking a lot more, too. As for what we sound like, that changes from one song to the next. All of us listen to different genres of music, so, “What do we want this to sound like?” is a conversation we have with every song. We don’t like to be the same on every song and on every album, so the sound of The Digital Age from album 1 to album 2 could be completely different.

We practice and rehearse there, and we also have bands come in and we record them. It’s an extension of our ministry. It’s been great for us to be able to help new worship bands.

Walk me through your creative process in the studio.

We all have our own mini Pro Tools studios at home, and we track these ideas as they come. Sometimes they’re full songs, sometimes just pieces. When we each have a handful of ideas, we all get together in our studio. All of these ideas start coming together, and we start to figure out how we are playing things as a band. We’ll either sit around the computer and start programming it out or head into the tracking room and start recording live parts. We all write, but we realize not all of us have the same strengths. I think one of our collective strengths is that we keep a really loose attachment to our ideas, and we see that they are all just pieces to a larger puzzle.

You still lead worship at UBC? We’re still very involved at UBC. When we were in the construction phase on our studio, we took a break from leading and just went to church without leading worship for the first time in a decade. Those three months were amazing; it was something we took for granted, and we didn’t realize how important it was. Now, we’re one of several worship bands at UBC. Our goal is to play there around once a month, depending on our tour schedule.

What gear do you use in your studio?

We are running Pro Tools HDX in our main control room. We use a lot of API preamps and the PreSonus ADL600. We use an LA2A compressor and a lot of gear that B-Wack made himself. Our main vocal mic is the Blue Bottle — so much character and so easy to change sound. For guitars, we use a mix of Shure SM57, Sennheiser e906, and Royer R121 mics.

For bass, we use the Shure SM7B microphone. On drums, we mostly use the same Sennheiser Evolution series dynamic mics that we use live. We use a Yamaha SubKick on kick drum, and a Sennheiser MD421 on snare.

We’re really into soft synths. We use Native Instruments Komplete. We also use Native Instruments Maschine heavily for programming. We lean a lot on Spectrasonics’ Omnisphere for pads. We use Reason a lot for piano sounds and sequencing.

We also have a lot of vintage synths.

How do you translate an album like Evening : Morning to something that works live?

A lot of it is decisions made in production. We use a lot of loops live, but one of our rules is that we never put anything in the loops that can be played live — no vocals or guitar parts. That makes it more challenging in a live setting. So when we record, we have to be very intentional with things like guitar parts and not put anything on the record that we can’t re-create live.

What software do you use onstage?

Ableton Live. On Mike D’s keyboard rig, he runs Live and Reason. He has a slew of Korg Nanokeys in addition to an M-Audio MIDI controller, and some of the keys are assigned to things such as mutes and changing different values instead of triggering notes. We also run some vocals through Live for effects.

What kinds of technical challenges do you see worship leaders facing today?

For us, the coolest thing you can do is create your own loops. I think when a lot of people see something that is loop heavy, they think that it doesn’t fit into the way they do music. Or they think they can’t do the songs because they don’t have the technical know-how to pull it off. It’s possible to do it. You can get a copy of Ableton Live and a MIDI controller for next to nothing and make incredible sounds with it. It’s been really cool for us to travel around and see these churches start to learn and incorporate the technical stuff into the church services. We love it when churches take one of our songs, create their own loops for it, and make it their own.

blisskatherine.com

You guys have had a very long relationship with Sweetwater. Why is that?

Relationship says it all. We love that if we have questions about gear, we can call and ask. We love that if there is something that piques your interest, we’ll get a phone call to tell us about it. The prices are always competitive, and as far as customer service goes, it’s always great. If anything is ever wrong, it’s always taken care of quickly. We travel a lot. If something isn’t working, getting a replacement quickly and easily is really important. It’s great to be able to get things fixed or questions answered without hassle. We really love the personalized nature of what Sweetwater does. You’re always great about asking what we need the gear to do. Even with a band like us, it’s so good to have somebody showing us how the gear we use can help us be better at doing what we do.

Photos by: Bliss Katherine

You can find out more about The Digital Age at thedigitalagemusic.com.

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Freelance live sound engineer

Daniel Ellis

FOH engineer for The Digital Age How long have you been working with The Digital Age? The first tour I did with them was as the David Crowder Band, during the Remedy Club tour in 2007.

I was with DCB for five years. Then, when they started The Digital Age, I mixed their very first show and I did their first tour, as well.

What gear do you use with them onstage?

We use mostly Sennheiser mics, on just about everything. Mostly the Evolution series. One thing I don’t think I’ve seen anybody else do is that we use a Sennheiser MD441 on B-Wack’s snare. It works great and gives us a fatter sound than other mics I’ve tried.

On vocals, Mark and Jack both use a TC-Helicon VoiceLive Touch to add reverb and delay to their voices before they ever get to me. That’s cool; it makes my job easier.

At front of house, I run a Behringer X32. We use the S16 digital snake system, as well. That console is amazing. It’s so small and light — I can set it up by myself if I need to. When we started the tour, I was thinking, “There has got to be a reason this thing is so inexpensive, and I’m going to find out why.”

I still don’t know why. It’s a great console. I love it.

The guys use Sennheiser 300 series in-ear monitors, and they mix them themselves using Behringer’s X32-Q app for iPhone. That’s been amazing. It’s so much easier to not have to worry about doing FOH and monitors at the same time, and we don’t have to have a monitor engineer.

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Are there any unique challenges working with The Digital Age? Since they run all those effects on the stage, what I get is a wet vocal. When we started out, sometimes it was way too wet, and we didn’t really have enough clarity in the FOH mix in the vocals. So we had to work on getting those reverb levels down and make sure that they trusted me to add more reverb at the console if it was needed.

You and The Digital Age have been very loyal Sweetwater customers for years. Why is that?

Because of the relationship. Because of you! Seriously, it’s because of you. We don’t just call a 1-800 number and get some random guy; we get the same guy. And the candy. You send candy with everything we buy. I never share it.

From left to right: BWack, Mike D, Mark Waldrop, and Jack Parker

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MUSIC

BY KEITH GETTY

THE HORIZONTAL IMPERATIVE: FIVE LEADERSHIP SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVING CONGREGATIONAL WORSHIP

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here is a common frustration among worship leaders about our corporate worship today. The Monday morning review of the weekend’s services centers around production values, stylistic issues, people management, and whether the service finished on time. These leaders want to change the conversation, but they don’t know how.

Perhaps, to change the conversation, you have to change the questions.

Shouldn’t we be asking: How well did the congregation sing?

This puts the focus on the congregation and their participation—not the worship experience, which is a different thing.

During our travels, we have witnessed commonalities among congregations that sing wholeheartedly. First and foremost, they are bonded together as committed believers in Christ. Dead people don’t sing.

From the Church in the Acts of the Apostles to today’s stories of the house churches in China, we know that a vibrant faith and passionate congregational singing are inextricably linked.

Given this as a prerequisite to anything else, here are five other practical observations that may be of help in securing favorable answers to our questions around congregational participation: 1. BEGIN WITH THE PASTOR. Show me a congregation not engaged in worship through singing and the most consistent correlation is a senior pastor equally as disengaged.

Pastors have a responsibility to teach and personally model the importance of congregational singing. We need pastors who constantly delight in their congregation’s singing and the musicians who serve them. As worship leaders we must pray for and do our part to develop great relationships with our pastors and encourage them in this duty.

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2. SING GREAT SONGS. Great songs make great singing easy. Great songs exalt Christ, contain rich lyrics of inspiring truth, and consist of irresistible melodies that we can’t wait to sing. (Beware: whether or not a song is the current popular hit or an ancient hymn is not the issue—or an automatic qualifier.)

Assemble any Christian group, and practically everyone can join you in singing “Amazing Grace” confidently and passionately. It’s that great of a song. We’re drawn to sing great music, much like we’re drawn to savor a delicious meal or view a beautiful painting.

Art ultimately is an expression of life and low-quality songs do not reflect spirited, serious believers.

3. CULTIVATE A CONGREGATION-CENTERED PRIORITY IN THOSE WHO LEAD. From the worship leader to the worship team to the congregation, it’s vital to build a culture where everyone realizes that our responsibility before God and to each other is to sing together. Throughout Scripture, the command to sing is given to God’s people more than 400 times. Ephesians 5:19 instructs believers to address one another in “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs....”

Many of our common challenges—the overly exuberant drummer, the diva-like vocalist, the subversive choir member, the worship leader who says too much, or any unhealthy priority on performance— can be corrected through teaching and encouraging each person involved to be excited about using their many rich and colorful gifts to support the high calling of congregational singing.

4. SERVE WITH MUSICAL EXCELLENCE. Scripture commands us to make music that is good and excellent. Psalm 33 tells us to both “shout for joy in the Lord” and

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play our instruments “skillfully” (v. 3).

Our calling is to work heartily at whatever we do, as for the Lord and not men (Col 3:23). It doesn’t mean the music must be complex or style-specific. It does mean we take seriously our role in such holy activity. This requires people who are trained and well prepared. As leaders, we should constantly seek to be fresh, interesting and connected with our congregations. Listen to new music, arrangements and sounds with the goal of increasing excellence so that our congregations sing better.

5. MANAGE THE CONGREGATION’S REPERTOIRE INTENTIONALLY. Strive to find a healthy balance between singing the well-known, best-loved songs and introducing new material. Parcel out the well-known song so that people don’t tire, but welcome singing it, like meeting an old friend. When it comes to new music, introduce it with tools to learn it well, and then sing it regularly until it is well established and can be readily sung by the congregation.

Periodically, look through your libraries and determine if there are songs that seem to no longer speak to the congregation as they once did. Not all songs that engage a congregation will be passed on to the next generation—some will fall out of use, and some will continue to speak for generations to come. Also, learn from the rich heritage of liturgy and how it provides a pathway of ordering songs for a service.

AND FINALLY… Why not in 2014 begin the Monday morning review by asking How did the congregation sing? And How can we help them do it better?

Starting here, we may find that the other questions begin to resolve themselves. W KEITH GETTY and his wife Kristyn have been writing hymns for more than a decade, bridging the gap between traditional and contemporary, and creating what is described as singable theology.Their songs, many co-written with Stuart Townend, have pioneered a new generation of modern hymns.

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Gospel Artistry:

MISSIONAL

Understanding Worship as a Creative Lifestyle

Colors of Ukraine: courtesy of DankoArtStudio.com

BY DOUGLAS C. MANN

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MISSIONAL

In this biblical, challenging, and at the same time revitalizing, view of both vertical and horizontal worship, Douglas Mann calls to the artist in each of us.

E

arbuds have become part of our cultural DNA; for many of us, they might as well be a permanent part of our anatomy.

We imagine our earbuds surrounding us with the soundtrack of our lives. Many of us sanctify our soundtracks by pumping Christian music through our earbuds and constantly feed off worship. Worship, of course, is far more than a song; it is an intentional lifestyle.

Romans 12:1 tells us, “I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” Living as sacrifices is our spiritual act of worship. We please God not when we listen to worship music but when we worship through active obedience and sacrifice. When we give of our time and our resources, when we care for the neighbor next door, the widow and orphan, the poorest of the poor—all with a vision and great hope to see cycles of physical and spiritual poverty broken and good news breaking into people’s lives—then we are worshiping.

Christians seem to be highly adept at talking about this kind of worship, but finding the place of sacrifice and then dwelling in it is something we often manage to avoid. Can it be said of us what Paul said of the Corinthians: “There’s no end to what has happened in you—it’s beyond speech, beyond knowledge. The evidence of Christ has been clearly verified in your lives” (1 Cor 1:5-6 The Message)? Or what about the Romans: “People everywhere keep telling me about your lives of faith” (Rom 1:8 The Message)? As ambassadors of Christ to this world, we can’t simply live off of what God has done in our lives; we are meant to invest in those around us.

Church of the Living Earbuds

We too easily find ourselves in the Church of the Living Earbuds. But God is calling us to be the Church of the Enkindled Countenance.

The Church of the Living Earbuds is a mobile collective of sole proprietorships. Each is part of an individualized institution that insulates like a Teflon coating, helping the faithful tolerate what life throws its way, and altering moods like a pharmaceutical store through apps, music, books, podcasts, games, and more.

The Church of the Enkindled Countenance is not recognized by songs about love, clever slogans, symbols, tag lines, accessories, or devices. Onlookers recognize the Church of the Enkindled Countenance by how its members love one another—and

also how they love others, even the unlovable, against the canvas of a loveless and impassive culture. It’s not so much what they say as it is what they do and how they do it. This is an inspired ecclesial community, one whose profile ignites flames that are encouraged, awakened, instigated, and spurred into forward motion. It is a church acutely tuned to the suffering of the world and those around us, so much so that it is impossible to flash pearly white smiles, groomed and coiffed hairdos, and drink Evian water. Instead, this Church is willing to suffer as our Savior did.

Active participants in the Church of the Enkindled Countenance are intensely interested in being genuine agents of influence, in effecting change in their local communities and the world, in being creative inciters where they live purposely, if not passionately, in pursuit of a life that models sacrifice.

More Than a Song

Singing songs to a loving God is appropriate. Don’t get me wrong. But it’s far too easy to reduce our understanding of worship to singing, or getting together to sing, once or twice a week, perhaps even only at Christmas and Easter. Worship is in reality more primal than that: it’s a constant response to the overwhelming love, mercy, and grace poured out on us from our heavenly Father. That we have a mediator in Christ who provides us with an eternal inheritance is more than enough to ignite some form of worship in our hearts that then seeps out from the very pores of our lives for all to see. As worship music artist Ben Cantelon once said, “Worship reminds us that God is far bigger than any of us, far brighter than any of our gloom and far more real than any of our denial.”

The Beatitudes, now that is worship. In the Beatitudes we are invited to embrace the characteristics of Christ.

You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.

You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less.That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought. . . .

You’re blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right.Then you can see God in the outside world. . . .

Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me.What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable.You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company.

My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble. (Mt 5:3,5, 8, 11-12 The Message) Embracing the Beatitudes, we come to understand that this life and world are not really all about us. We truly begin to live life as

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MISSIONAL it was meant to be lived—which is the heart of worship.

Imagine if our lives sang back to God what he is saying to us.

People would marvel at such a dialogue. When the immeasurable width and depth of Christ’s love is encountered and the Spirit works in and through us, then, over time, those around us will recognize the true definition of worship.

Square Pegs, Round Holes

Christians anticipate the unveiling of a heavenly city whose architect and builder is God (Heb 11:10). In the eyes of the world, this makes us appear odd, like square pegs in a world of round holes.

That’s part of the plan, I think. Being odd, being shaped for a different setting, is one of God’s acts of creative incitement: like the burning bush that roused Moses’ curiosity and caused him to come up close, Christians are meant to be artistic oddities that draw others to God. Maintaining that oddness, and keeping our oddness artistic and not just odd, is one of the challenges of faith.

I don’t think we ever lose a love of the freedom to be who God made us to be. Some part of us longs to be that square peg once again, to see our edges refined and sharpened. Our inner oddness wants to rise up and break free from the boxes we’ve been placed in. We are meant to cut against the grain, to cultivate a dynamic, positive tension around us that points people to the good news that Christ offers.

Our fellow artists, musicians, writers, and other creative inciters of faith can be models for us in this, breaking free from those conventional boxes and carving a new pattern in the fabric of the

“Some worship leaders approach their craft with a sense of entitlement, rather than seeing it as a ministry of creative incitement, a precursor to the church’s sacrificial obedience.”

Church. Unsatisfied to merely appreciate or consume, they hurl themselves into their craft with all its unpredictable discoveries, producing art that stirs and awes hearts and imaginations, and over time incites others to a similar creative engagement. And by doing so, this creative engagement and the incitement it generates spills over to others in the Church and perhaps into the lives of others. What a wonderful yet disturbingly diverse and unique mosaic this could look like in the body of Christ—one that is led by the Holy Spirit and orchestrated by the very hands of God.

Redefining Worship

The heart of worship and the Christian life itself is about our focus on God; our daily encounters with him and our interactions with other people create the context of our worship. Worship should never exist to serve the Christian subculture; it should not be allowed to pay homage to a personality on a pedestal or 32

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behind a pulpit. Worship should inspire, strengthen, and build the Church, and lead to the transformation of individual lives, local communities, and ultimately the world.

Perhaps, then, we don’t need to see worship itself redefined as much as we need to change how we approach it.

In the Church of the Living Earbuds, well-intentioned, truly gifted human beings, through no fault of their own, can become venerated images, idols that unintentionally distract us from the one true God. It’s extremely sad to see talented men and women of faith come to expect a kind of preferential treatment because a precedent had been set in motion early on with many of their predecessors. Some worship leaders approach their craft with a sense of entitlement, rather than seeing it as a ministry of creative incitement, a precursor to the church’s sacrificial obedience. If we want to be the Church of the Enkindled Countenance—that square peg that oddly appeals to a world of round holes—we need to render to the worship superstars of this world what is theirs and render to God what is God’s.

I have worked with a well-known Christian music artist or two in my time who would demand more money, first-class flights, even transportation in tinted-windowed Cadillac Escalades to and from performance venues. Juxtaposed against such disordered ministry is the life and legacy of Rich Mullins, a Christian music artist and songwriter well known for his devotion to his Lord and the enormous generosity of his charity to others.

Shortly before his death in September 1997, Rich Mullins was quoted as saying, Jesus said whatever you do to the least of these my brothers you’ve done it to me. And this is what I’ve come to think.That if I want to identify fully with Jesus Christ, who I claim to be my Savior and Lord, the best way that I can do that is to identify with the poor. This I know will go against the teaching of all the popular evangelical preachers, but they’re just wrong. They’re not bad, they’re just wrong. Christianity is not about building an absolutely secure little niche in the world where you can live with your perfect little wife and your perfect little children in a beautiful little house where you have no gays or minority groups anywhere near you. Christianity is about learning to love like Jesus loved.

Worship that does for Jesus what he doesn’t need done, and, worse, absolves us from doing for Jesus what needs to be done— what Matthew 24 unambiguously singles out as the active care for the least of these—is not ultimately true worship. It’s more like fishing for Zen, more like attending the Church of the Living Earbuds. True worship involves a woeful countenance because there are so many “least of these” within our reach but suffering our neglect. Worship is woeful countenance because until that day when God wipes every tear from every eye, God’s Church should vigilantly mourn with those who mourn and seek the good of those who suffer.

Beyond Knowledge

Being concerned isn’t enough; to worship is to be compelled.

Being aware isn’t enough; to worship is to be moved to action.

We’re not in this world to make a living but to extend the hope

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MISSIONAL that has been extended to us. If we forget that, we risk our own spiritual impoverishment, our own alienated hearts. We walk further down the road toward spiritual bankruptcy. I wonder what kind of good news we reveal to those in need and to a scrutinizing, skeptical world if we act out what the apostle James wrote in his letter to the Church: If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. (Jas 2:15-17 ESV) How many of us would be comfortable to have the apostle Paul walking among us today, looking here and there, poking around in places we think he shouldn’t be? What a mess that inciter would make. Would he say to us what he said to the Athenians: “I see that in every way you’re very religious” (Acts 17:22)? I think Paul would adamantly remind us that God doesn’t live in temples built by human hands, and that we’re not meant to follow the ways of this world. Why? Because God lives in us; we are his workmanship, created in Christ to do good works for God’s kingdom, not for our own self-sufficient fiefdoms.

Connected Churches is a Seattle-based organization working to network and connect church leaders with artists, writers, musicians and other creative inciters, assisting them to engage in conversations that will lead to actual change, change prompting positive and productive creative action from truth and godly motives.

Wade Olinger, executive director of Connected Churches, is leading the initiation of these conversations to cultivate environments of true worship, those of authentic creative incitement.

This is generating a greater sense of openness and flexibility by everyone involved where churches are collectively sharing resources instead of operating individually, and returning many to live sacrificially and adopt the call to come die with us.

Living With Intention

As creative inciters we may want to consider not only living with intention but also pressing forward into intentional tension. Intentional tension is synonymous with creative incitement. When our resolve is so acutely purposeful, pushing and pulling, it creates forces that act in opposition to each other—like a tug of war.

While reactionary, violent tension is not good, the intentional creation of tension can bring about dramatic transformation, as evidenced in the civil rights movement, the Reformation, the martyr tradition and, yes, even the turning of tables by Jesus in the temple.

We know and understand that we’re created in God’s image, but do we really believe that we are? What does that look like in each of our lives, and how does that play out and move forward?

Implicitly, God is a creator, not a duplicator. So as our heavenly Father’s children, wonderfully made in his image, why would we not model this in our own lives by living an intentional yet creative lifestyle, which can’t be judged in a short time frame but rather becomes apparent over seasons of time?

“Implicitly, God is a creator, not a duplicator.

So as our heavenly Father’s children, wonderfully made in his image, why would we not model this in our own lives by living an intentional yet creative lifestyle, which can’t be judged in a short time frame but rather becomes apparent over seasons of time?”

Christians everywhere can apply an intentional lifestyle of creativity throughout our week. The clerk at your local grocery that you have always wanted to say something to but haven’t? A work colleague suggesting that you meet over a coffee? These are opportunities to practice the art of conversation with others and to move into their lives. Though our lifestyles look the same, how we shape the expression of the creativity that flows from our lives will look different. In doing so the Church truly becomes the Church, a vivid snapshot of uniqueness and diversity; a body made up of different parts, skill sets and gifts—a work of art that incites people to worship.

Doing the Same

Traversing overseas to many different cultures on ministerial expeditions in cafés, pubs, hostels and streets (with some sense of nomadic wanderings) has, in a sense, become my own sacrifice of praise, giving glory to God by inciting something where God had put me. I’m not a risk taker or adrenaline junky, but because Jesus pressed into the lives of others by keeping company with people who were undesirable or written off as sinners, extending them the cups of grace and hope—because he so consistently showed such people glimpses of the gospel—how can I not do the same?

To worship God in Spirit and truth is to get our hands dirty and uncomfortable, to move into the brokenness of people’s lives. Artistry is like that—a little messy most of the time and extremely messy now and again. But we’re called to a gospel artistry, called to live out the gospel in practical ways, to creatively incite people toward life in Christ. Gospel artistry starts with the willingness to show up, allowing your heart—your self—to be available and vulnerable to those around you. As we do that, we become gospel artists, but more than that, we become an image of his work of art. W Douglas Mann is a songwriter and a former music-business and book-publishing exec. An evocative visual artist, he believes “art is music frozen in time.”

Taken from The Art of Helping Others by Douglas C. Mann. Copyright (c) 2014 by Douglas C. Mann. Used by permission of InterVarsity Press, P.O. Box 1400, Downers Grove, IL 60515, USA. www.ivpress.com

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WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING Amazing time to get refreshed, recharged, and restored.

– Jaison Samuel, Life Church, Omaha, NE John Wesley created a worship revolution in the 18th century. It’s in our genes to be worship revolutionaries, and I know of no better place to be inspired and informed than the worship conferences put on by Worship Leader magazine. This conference hits on all cylinders, theoretical, theological, practical, skill-based. It offers a range of ideas, and musical expressions that are culturally diverse, and congregationally friendly. I recommend National Worship Leader Conference wholeheartedly. – Leonard Sweet I came to this conference with high expectations, and every single one of them were exceeded! I was affirmed and uplifted throughout every portion of the week. I’ve been to many conferences related to my career in teaching music, but this is the first time I felt at home.

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MISSIONAL

BY REGGIE KIDD

HAPPY

LITTLE

TREES

ON

her birthday Meg’s husband told her he didn’t love her and wasn’t sure he ever had. Seven months after the divorce became final he married his girlfriend. By a happy coincidence, Meg was out of town visiting my family the day of her ex-husband’s wedding.

How to spend that day? We discovered that the late Bob Ross, host/star of the TV show The Joy of Painting, had established a teaching studio in nearby New Smyrna Beach, Florida. His students still teach people how to paint “happy little trees.” The promise was that in a three-hour session we could learn the basics, and each student would walk away with a personally completed work of art. We signed up for a class.

It was amazingly fun. We happened to sit on the back row. We couldn’t help but notice the two teenage girls in front of us who didn’t fit the middle-class profile of most of the people in the room. They were accompanied by someone who carried herself like a softer version of SNL’s “The Church Lady.” Nobody in the class was having more fun or experiencing more

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delighted surprise at what was showing up on canvas than these girls.

FRAMING THE MOMENT At the end of the class we were all given the opportunity to pay a little extra to have our paintings framed—right there on the spot. Who wouldn’t want to do that after discovering they could actually paint something not just recognizable, but really kind of cool?!

I failed to catch the wistfulness on the two girls’ faces as they watched classmates’ paintings being framed. But Meg noticed.

Quietly, she asked the proprietor if she

MEG’S FINISHED PAINTING

the sorrow she carried within her was, her spiritual resources were deeper. On a day in which she could have nursed bitterness, she created joy for someone else.

Meg’s act was horizontal worship. The gospel changes us from self-centered to other-centered. Vertical worship teaches people that they are profoundly loved; the bread and wine that they take in makes them different people. As theologian Alexander Schmemann quips: “At this meal we become what we eat.” That day Meg did a lot more than paint “happy little trees.”

She became bread and wine to two girls, a shop owner—and me. W

“I KNEW THAT MEG’S DIVORCE HAD STRAINED HER IN EVERY WAY, FINANCIALLY AS WELL AS EMOTIONALLY. YET AS DEEP AS THE SORROW SHE CARRIED WITHIN HER WAS, HER SPIRITUAL RESOURCES WERE DEEPER.” could pay for the girls’ frames. Stunned, he obliged. The girls were thrilled.

CHOOSING TO WORSHIP My throat tightened. I knew that Meg’s divorce had strained her in every way, financially as well as emotionally. Yet as deep as

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REGGIE KIDD wrote the book With One Voice and teaches at Reformed Theological Seminary and the Robert. E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies.

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SKILL

BY ANDY CHAMBERLAIN

NEW SONGS, OLD SONGS: ONE EASY WAY TO GET YOUR CHURCH SINGING

G

rowing up in the UK in the mid ’80s, there was one inescapable musical phenomenon known as Stock, Aitkin and Waterman that for about five years completely dominated the pop landscape. They wrote and produced over 100 Top 40 hits, sold over 40 million records and were very much instigators of that synthpop Hi-NRG sound that came to typify the ’80s.

Alongside the original songs their genius was also that they took old songs that were just too off-radar for teenagers like me and re-imagined them with their own en vogue artists. Of course, it occurs lots today, but back then it was relatively new, and it helped me discover a bunch of great songs that I’d normally deem old, uncool, and to-be-filed-under “dad-music.” Sadly though it means I still think of Big Fun’s version of “Blame It on the Boogie” as the “original.”(Don’t YouTube it.)

So what’s this got to do with worship music?

PRESCRIPTION FOR DISASTER There’s lots of talk about some folks being bored with the current worship genre, and I’ve noticed a growing practice where worship teams will only play new songs in the hope of keeping things fresh. Trouble is that with rotating worship leaders and often no churchwide cohesive approach to what pool of songs are sung over say a sixmonth period, most worship leaders just choose their personal favorite new songs.

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the congregation to learn, and the end result is people don’t sing.

Test it! When a newish song is playing, how many people sitting in the back half of your church are actually singing? Not just mouthing along, but really singing?

I’m not talking about recreating the ’70s either, just occasionally reintroducing some long-since-retired songs to get people off worship autopilot. For instance I recently looked at “Amazing Love” by Graham Kendrick. Most churches don’t sing

“WHEN A NEWISH SONG IS PLAYING, HOW MANY PEOPLE SITTING IN THE BACK HALF OF YOUR CHURCH ARE ACTUALLY SINGING?” I’ve heard lots of worship leaders say their congregations don’t sing as much as they used to, and many put it down to “spirituality” issues. But more often than not, people just don’t know the songs very well.

NO SINGLE ANSWER So what’s the solution? It’s never a blueprint formula, but one option is to maybe start interjecting a few old songs again.

We’ve got four decades of great tried-andtested, meaningful, and forgotten choruses out there. Let’s be honest, a large proportion of your church members will have been Christians for a long time, and those old songs will be neatly tucked away in the memory banks. So for them, it’ll be a refreshing moment of being able to let go with some familiar words. And for younger people, it’ll be like a new song, but probably a simpler one.

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it anymore, yet I bet a large proportion of the congregation (certainly in the UK) will know it. The lyrics have depth. The tune is contemporary and easy enough to pick up quickly. There’s lots of scope for dynamic meaningful playing and even re-harmonization if you want to. Plus there are plenty of versions on YouTube to get newbie musicians up to speed. So mix up the old with the new, dig up the back catalogue of forgotten classics, and make the familiar fresh again. You never know, people might just start singing a bit more too! W ANDY CHAMBERLAIN is co founder of Musicademy.com and Worshipbackingband.com that produce instructional DVDs for musicians involved in worship and multitrack backing tracks and software for churches with missing musicians.

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SKILL

BY TANYA RICHES

BEYOND COMFORT:

C

enturies ago, furious war broke out between “ancients” and “moderns.” Moderns argued that development of firearms, the printing press, and the nautical compass meant they knew far more, were more innovative, more linked to “reality” and had discovered more new ideas and places than their predecessors the ancients. Therefore, they— and their perspective—were incontestably superior. Similarly over the years, in the realm of Psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, worship wars emerged. Traditionalists proclaimed “faithful” from the lectern, turning a deaf ear to the spiritual song emerging in churches, while modernists created websites shouting “relevant” in capital letters, divorcing themselves from the Church’s rich past.

TRUCE But we’ve moved towards a post-we’renot-sure-what age, and many churches now seek fresh sacred space, reintegrating liturgical truths in creative ways and introducing new songs that reflect what God is doing presently and at the same time drawing on eternal truth—suggesting we don’t need to sacrifice faithfulness for relevance, or tradition for inclusiveness.

Now, churches are widely and gloriously different. Many definitions of worship exist, but ultimately the end goal of all worship is that we attribute glory and honor to God. This also means dethroning the self, which always wants to get in the way.

The role of a worship leader is to stretch congregations beyond the comfortable, and UP and OUT. If you’ve ever hurt a muscle, you will know it can be painful to move after long inactivity. It is only with regular use that movement comes with ease. Here are 10 ways to stretch up and out in worship.

TANYA RICHES is an Australian worship leader, PhD student at Fuller Theological Seminary, and songwriter of tunes such as “Jesus What a Beautiful Name,” published by Hillsong Church.

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10

PRINCIPLES OF CONGREGATIONAL WORSHIP THAT REACHES UP & OUT

1. CULTIVATE LOVE FOR GOD’S PRESENCE. For me, preparations to worship-lead are sitting quietly with my Bible and becoming aware of God’s presence in the Word and world—before any rehearsal time.

2. KEEP THE RIGHT AUDIENCE IN MIND. There are many ways to measure worship, but our ultimate audience is the King of Kings.

3. WORK TOWARDS UNITY WITHIN CHURCH LEADERSHIP. Often, worship leaders avoid asking what the pastor wants because it curbs creative control. But lack of communication creates division. A clear brief and already dented block of marble didn’t restrict Michelangelo’s David sculpture. Creativity actually flourishes with set guidelines, which forces innovative solutions.

4. TEACH YOUR CHURCH TO WORSHIP, NOT JUST SING. God’s creation plan was birthed before time. As worship leaders, our job is to bring attention to God’s character and attributes and lead an appropriate response. This is not dependent on style or volume of music.

God warns music alone is not worship (Am 5).

5. YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE PERFECT. Many churches strive towards perfect worship. When I think about a perfectly set table, I see folded nap-

MARCH/APRIL 2014

kins and shiny candlesticks, but empty seats. God’s table is intended to be full, not perfect (Mt 22).

6. GET TO KNOW YOUR COMMUNITY. Don’t just look at demographics; have conversations with people who live in the area around your church.

How old are they? What language do they speak at home? What music do they like? Find out their hopes, dreams, and heartbreaks.

7. FIND OUT HOW NEW PEOPLE EXPERIENCE YOUR CHURCH. If you don’t know what it’s like to visit your church for the first time, maybe commission a church neighbor to tell you. Do they feel welcomed? Can they understand the service?

8. CHURCH ISN’T THE BUILDING. Some of the best worship services are those held in prisons, nursing homes, parks, and cafes. If the Church is the people, we can loosen up a little about staying indoors and unseen.

9. PRACTICE LOVE AFTER THE SERVICE. Most restaurants say their most difficult customers are Sunday lunchtimers. Encourage people to practice love immediately after being sent from the service.

10. BE OPEN TO CHANGE. Change is inevitable. The seasons show us how God can bring the best out of change. W

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BY TIM HUGHES

BURNING QUESTIONS

E

very time I lead worship there are three questions I ask myself.

These have helped focus me and provided a foundation that has enabled me to continue to grow and develop as a worshiper and leader.

1. HOW ARE WE PREPARING? Before leading a time of worship we need to ask ourselves, how are we preparing both spiritually and practically? We are usually quick to hone in on the practical, song selection, arrangements, and production, all of which are vital, but if we want to see the worshiping life of our local church really flourish in a way that is both vertical and horizontal, then we need to invest more in our spiritual preparation.

It is rumored that the great evangelist John Wesley was once asked to describe how he balanced his prayer life with his busy schedule of preaching and outreach. According to myth, he replied, “Every morning I set myself on fire for Jesus, then I go out and people watch me burn.”

Whether or not Wesley actually said it, imagine what the impact on the local church would be if every worship team spent time seeking God passionately in prayer and private worship. As leaders of worship, one of the greatest gifts we can give to our churches is that of being spiritually alive and fresh.

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and how people might be responding. Practically look around to see what’s happening. How are people responding? Are people engaged?

In doing this we are allowing our worship to become more horizontal. Our worship moves from being a “performed set” by a few on a stage, to a journey that is shaped and shared by everyone gathered together.

Great worship leaders have sensitivity not only to what God is doing, but also to what is happening in the hearts of the congregation.

3. WHERE ARE WE GROWING? 2. WHAT IS GOD DOING? Vertical worship is a two-way engagement.

To view worship simply as something we offer up to God misses the wonder of worship.

Many of us can view worship as something we do: a task. We attend church; we pray; we give our tithe; we serve the poor; we give, give, give. This view of worship not only places our “selves” at the center of worship, but also leads to exhaustion because in our own efforts we can never do enough.

Another perspective of worship is that it is a gift. Worship is something we are invited into. In worship we experience God’s pres-

One of the exciting aspects of leading worship is that there are always ways we can grow and develop; there is always more to learn. We should continually be asking our team what we can do better, what worked, and what didn’t. And we need to be ready for the answer. We need to embrace constructive criticism, because only then will we grow. This is also a great place to get feedback from our congregations so that we can ensure we lead in a way that facilitates and releases them in worship.

Are you growing in your creativity? Is there a freshness in your worship? Are you being stretched in your thinking? Are you

“WE SHOULD CONTINUOUSLY BE ASKING OUR TEAM WHAT WE CAN DO BETTER, WHAT WORKED AND WHAT DIDN’T. AND WE NEED TO BE READY FOR THE ANSWER.” ence and are gathered up into the community of God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In worship we receive God’s love as it is “poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us” (Rom 5:5). In worship we are encouraged, given vision, inspired, restored, replenished, and renewed.

We see such fruit when we give space in our worship and look to see what God is doing amongst his people. We miss so much in our gathered worship when we blaze through our pre-prepared setlists without a consideration for what God might be doing

MARCH/APRIL 2014

developing as a leader? Are you building an effective team? There’s so much to grow in.

So there you have it: three questions to keep pushing you on in leading worship. W TIM HUGHES WORSHIP CENTRAL Writer of songs such as “Here I Am to Worship,” “Happy Day,” and “The Cross Stands.” He co-founded and leads Worship Central, an international worship training and resource center (worshipcentral.com).

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SKILL

BY CRAIG GILBERT

VERTICAL & HORIZONTAL WORSHIP:

4+4=8 WAYS TO HONOR GOD AND PEOPLE 4 HORIZONTAL ACTIONS 1. Broaden your worship language beyond

J

esus said the greatest commandments were to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves (see Mk 12:13-31; Mt 22:36-40; Lk 10:27; also refer to Deut 6:5; Lev 19:18). I believe in worship we are called to show our dedication and acceptance of these commands. What we do in corporate worship in an effort to build our relationship and express our love to God, through Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, should be done with our whole being. Likewise we should understand that we do not worship God in a vacuum, but worship as a community of faith, a royal priesthood, a holy nation—one that is committed to God and to each other.

As worship designers, planners, and leaders we must always remember these two directions as we plan the content of our worship services. Each action in a worship service should answer one or both of these questions:

1. How does this action help a congregation member realize and engage in the reality that God is present and seeking a relationship with him or her?

2. How does this action help a congregation member drop their personal walls and understand that we are a worshiping community, not just a collection of (mostly) like-minded individuals?

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Based on those two questions, here are some actions and approaches that allow our worship to be both horizontal and vertical:

4 VERTICAL ACTIONS 1. Use God-directed praise and worship that includes little or no references to us at all, but focuses on the actions, the story if you will, of God in all of creation. Then sing about our reaction and interaction with God’s story.

2. Make sure that all aspects and persons of God are celebrated. Include specific Trinitarian language.

3. Use the names of God, not just capitalized pronouns “He” and “You” (i.e., Jesus, Father, Holy Spirit, or translations from the Hebrew: Everlasting Father, Father of Lights, King of Kings, Living God, King of Nations, God of All Comfort, among many others).

Names express a personal relationship. Pronouns are sometimes distant and can be non-relational.

4. Emphasize that worship is a two-way conversation. Be sure to include time in your worship service for both personal expression to God and a chance to hear from God. Have silent, listening time built in.

Guide believers to spend time working on whatever is keeping them from a full and right relationship with God while they are at the altars or from their seats.

Spend time thanking God for specific blessings provided.

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the individual or the converted. I’s and me’s in worship lyrics do not express community.

Religious speak does not include the uninitiated. Explanations of what is happening and why makes the newcomer, both unbelievers and believers from other faith traditions, feel included in your services.

2. Experiment with including a guided time of greeting that gives people a reason to do more than casually recognize the people in their immediate area. Perhaps a time of sharing where people can express to each other a blessing God has given in their lives or of someone they know. (Yes, this will make some people very uncomfortable, but growth rarely comes without some effort and/or discomfort.)

3. Include times of prayer where people are invited to pray for each other, specifically, not just generally.

4. Make sure all your actions are planned for maximum group participation. Whether it is choosing music (keys, singability, etc), praying, or preaching, visuals, or even smells, everyone in the room either needs to understand how this action includes them, or they should be able to celebrate with those for whom it is directed.

An intentional focus on vertical and horizontal worship does not just happen. It must be cultivated and nurtured, planned and executed so that our worship services reflect what God has intended for us in his presence. W DR. GRAIG GILBERT is a veteran worship leader, teacher, author and consultant. He is the founder of TheWorshipDoctor.com ministries.

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SKILL

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Worship Leader Engagement: Insights from a Study of Worship Leaders By Kevin R. Kurian, MA and Alexis D. Abernethy, PhD

KEY ATTRIBUTES OF A WORSHIP LEADER

T

he Experiences in Spirituality and Health Related Outcomes Research Team at the Travis Research Institute of the Graduate School of Psychology at Fuller Theological Seminary recently conducted a study of music and worship leaders. We sought to understand how worship leaders view worship and glean insights regarding factors that enhance and impede their engagement in worship. We asked in-depth questions about worship leader preparation, embodiment, character, purpose, intimacy with God, and relationships with the congregation. We selected exemplar worship leaders from various ethnic and denominational backgrounds.

We interviewed them about their lives as worship leaders and explored their views of and experiences in worship leading.

The wisdom offered in these interviews was humbling. Worship leaders openly discussed their struggles and victories in their worship leading. Their responses reflected how much the role is affected, both positively and negatively, by their relationships with pastors, worship team members, and congregations. In some cases, these relationships led to feeling distracted or disconnected in the worship experience. In other instances, it tuned worship leaders

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into their purpose and even affected the freedom of their worship expressions. Here are the seven key attributes that came forth from that study.

1. PREPARED MUSICALLY Worship leaders discussed how essential preparation was to the practice of worship leading. As expected, this included technical and musical preparation with the worship team, such as selecting songs and working on transitions.

2. SPIRITUALLY CONNECTED More interestingly, was the emphasis on a 24/7 approach to spiritual development. Worship leaders would frequently tell us how important it was for them to remain prayerful through the week and restful—especially on Saturdays before service(s)—so that they were better able to offer themselves and their gifts in acts of worship.

For many worship leaders, this meant that they were continually committing themselves to a life where they could stand before God and others with a clean heart, including seeking forgiveness from others and God.

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3. AUTHENTIC Despite this commitment, worship leaders acknowledged their humanity and confessed that there were times when they were depleted, distracted, and reluctant to lead. The participants stressed that in relating to congregations, authenticity in worship was essential. Some worship leaders stated that during times of difficulty, transparency with worship team members and occasionally the congregation fostered an atmosphere where the community could offer mutual support and care.

4. PHYSICALLY CONGRUENT Several key findings emerged from the interviews. Worship leaders described how they used bodily signals to facilitate interpersonal engagement. These signals could include hand signals to unify the worship team during transitions of verse to verse or song to song.

Worship leaders also emphasized the importance of authentic bodily expressions of worship. Facilitation in this way included modeling worship expressions such as hand raising or kneeling or verbally encouraging congregants to worship freely.

5. INTIMATE & RESPONSIVE Another key finding was an emphasis on intimacy with God in the worship experience and in the preparatory work. Worship leaders stressed that worship is about and for God. Therefore, songs about the nature of God or adoration of God were important in engaging the congregation in a God-centered way. Additionally, worship leaders acknowledged that they also needed to make room for God’s action or presence in worship. While preparation is certainly important to the development of a worship service, the worship leaders emphasized that they wanted their diligent planning to prepare the hearts and minds of congregants for the move of God. Their preparation allowed worship leaders to move flexibly in spontaneous and unplanned ways. In this way, the worship leaders saw themselves as facilitators of the worship experience. Through their preparation, worship leaders would engage worship towards God so that they could facilitate a community of worship-

riences of renewal in which they and their congregations felt the restorative move of God in worship in emotional ways.

7. HUMBLE Finally, humility emerged as an essential component. Worship leaders would confess that they knew that they could not sustain the demands of their work without the assistance of God. Many described moments, especially during times of personal spiritual struggle, when they had little strength during worship and they knew that God had done the transformative work in worship services. Seeing God carry them and their congregations was freeing—by acknowledging the limits of their own humanity and using it to present a context of worship for God to be present and active.

So what does all of this mean for a worship leader? How does a worship leader engage with a congregation? There are varied views on the purpose of worship leading: controlling, manufacturing, priming,

where worship and life intersect

worship go o l h c walk 1 in Revised edition

“THE WORSHIP LEADER DOES HIS/HER DUE DILIGENCE IN PREPARATION, BUT ULTIMATELY, THE WORSHIP LEADER HUMBLY PRESENTS HIS/HER GIFTS IN WORSHIP TO GOD WHO EMPOWERS OUR WORSHIP …” pers to experience the presence of God rather than force a manufactured experience upon a congregation.

6. EMOTIONALLY ENGAGED The worship leader’s engagement with emotions was another key finding from this study. Again, worship leaders stressed that emotional engagement must be authentic. Our participants commented that emotions are a gift from God and as such should not be manipulated, but rather recognized as ways that God moves in the lives of worshippers. Our participants humbly told stories of times when they felt that their spiritual tank was on empty and they attempted to manufacture emotions. However, when they authentically engaged in worship, even from a position of exhaustion, many worship leaders reported expe

etc. Our participants highlighted the role of the worship leader as facilitator. The worship leader does his/her due diligence in preparation, but ultimately, the worship leader humbly presents his/her gifts in worship to God who empowers our worship and helps worship leaders to facilitate the experience of congregations to interact with God in an authentic and present way-bodily, emotionally, and cognitively. W Alexis Abernethy is a researcher, Clinical Psychologist, and Professor of Psychology at Fuller’s School of Psychology as well as serving on the faculty of the Brehm Center. One of her recurring areas of research is the scientific study of worship. Kevin Kurian is Weyerhauser Research Fellow and Doctoral Graduate Student in Clinical Psychology.This study was funded by the Dean’s Office of Fuller’s Graduate School of Psychology.

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.625 i

worship is so much more than a 20 minute set of music...

True worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. They are the kind of worshipers the Father is looking for. John 4:23

worship walk is a practical guide to worship 24/7...

A great book for study groups!

(Also available in Spanish)

NEw!

To order go to www.makeusholy.org (Also available on Amazon)47 W OR S H IP LE A D E R

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SHAREFAITH:

SOLUTIONS TO PROPEL YOUR MINISTRY

BY ANDREA HUNTER

The Sharefaith team reflects the servant-heart and kingdom vision and values that are essential if the business-side of ministry is going to truly represent Christ and serve the needs of the Church. Here CEO and President Hein van Wyk gives insight into the passion that propels this valuable ministry that to date has served over 100,000 ministries.

WORSHIP LEADER:

TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT

YOUR PERSONAL HISTORY.

HEIN VAN WYK: I grew up in a small town called Upington, in the Kalahari dessert next to the Namibian border (in the southern part of Africa). My parents were devoted Christians and very active in the Gideons. Together, we visited a lot of churches, and I was exposed to a variety of denominations and worship styles. I always wanted to be a pastor, though after high school I seemed to temporarily loose direction. I decided to study photography and design not knowing its ministry possibilities at the time, and years later I was able to fulfill my ministry passion and completed seminary. I took a month to go to Jerusalem, Israel, to fast and spend time

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in prayer with the Lord, to deepen my relationship with him and ended up staying there for four years, working for an incredible humanitarian organization. That’s where I met my wife and then eventually transitioned to the United States.

WL: CAN YOU TELL US THE IMPETUS FOR AND CREATIVE PATH TO FOUNDING SHAREFAITH? WHAT IS AT THE CORE OF YOUR VISION AND MISSION?

HVW: Sharefaith was formerly known as Faithclipart, and was birthed 10 years ago long before I joined the team. I entered an untapped platform where I saw a ton of potential and value for ministries. Our aim has always been to provide Christ-centered solutions that enable churches to proclaim the gospel with creativity and excellence. I did not see that goal as being met by only one solution, but a combination of integrated solutions serving every aspect of

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the church ministry. We believe in building phenomenal products, building a phenomenal team, and entering into a great relationship with every ministry we serve.

WL:

TELL US HOW SHAREFAITH HAS EXPANDED OVER TIME AND ABOUT YOUR UNIQUE CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE SUNDAY SERVICE OF WORSHIP AND THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH.

HVW: The Sunday service—whatever form it takes in whatever denomination—has evolved so much, but it must always be centered on equipping believers to proclaim the gospel. We have built solutions to enable this, whilst simultaneously avoiding the temptation to create solutions for the sake of relevance. Relevance is important but dangerous territory. There is a very fine balance when creating a business in the church-industry. It’s sacred, and so every-time we launch a new product we ask ourselves this same question:

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“CHURCH MUST NEVER BECOME TOO CORPORATE AND RELEVANCE MUST NEVER REPLACE TRUTH.” Jesus does not need a worship background, a fancy PowerPoint slide, a color bulletin or a church website. His Word spoken, changes and never returns void. Is what we are doing today equipping, enabling, and uplifting believers to become Good News bearers, or is it to enhance the brand of the church?

It should always be the first! Gospel-centered, Christ-centered all the way.

WL:

DO YOU HAVE ANY RECENT OR UPCOMING ADDITIONS TO YOUR SERVICES AND PRODUCTS THAT THOSE INVOLVED IN WORSHIP OUGHT TO KNOW ABOUT?

HVW: Our biggest and most exciting launch for 2014 is Sharefaith Kids, our cloud-based, 52-week Sunday school curriculum, which we have been passionately working on for three years. We also have a big lineup of Web and mobile-related products coming this year including mobile apps integrated into Sharefaith Church Websites—online tithing, a church directory, just to name a few. All targeted at helping the local church build its community and the kingdom.

WL:

TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT SHAREFAITH PRESENTER?

HVW: Sharefaith Presenter, formerly ExaltNow, is one of those products that we ended up creating, because we could not find a solution that worked optimally for us. Instead of reinventing the wheel and creating yet another presentation software, we decided to focus on what churches like and dislike most about their current presentation solutions. With 79 percent of

churches still using PowerPoint, it became apparent that we needed to build an integrated app that works within PowerPoint and does all the good things a church expects and needs from a presentation software. There’s nothing like it!

It integrates with Sharefaith Media, CCLI SongSelect, has an incredible worship database, and comes with NLT, ESV, and a Spanish translation. Most important of all, it fits the budget perfectly and does everything 99 percent of churches need.

WL:

TELL US ABOUT YOUR BLOG AND THOSE WHO CONTRIBUTE TO IT.

HVW: Our blog went from being sales driven communication, to a digital magazine now read by 72,000 subscribers. An incredible mouthpiece to proclaim the gospel and contributed to by financial experts, pastoral leadership, tech-directors, counselors and worship leaders, it’s packed with interviews, advice and new releases every week.

WL: WHO MAKES UP THE SHAREFAITH TEAM. HVW: Sharefaith is successful because it has an incredible team—a team with deep integrity, loyalty, and passion. We’re made up of a group of talented developers, dynamic marketers, skilled designers, with exceptional support teams. Our headquar-

ters are in Medford, Oregon, yet we also work with a variety of freelancers across the nation.

WL: AS YOU LOOK INTO THE NEXT DECADE, WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE EMERGING NEEDS OF THE CHURCH AND SHAREFAITH’S ROLE IN ADDRESSING AND FILLING THEM?

HVW: We should never forget our calling. All these incredible things we do as the Church or as a company should never overshadow our Christian mandate to serve Christ and to serve others. Church must never become too corporate and relevance must never replace truth. My prayer is that with God’s faithful assistance, Sharefaith will stay true in its vision in partnering with ministries to spread the gospel using exciting and new creative avenues. W M A R C H /A P R I L 2 0 1 4

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BY BRIAN STECKLER

3 PURCHASES WITH NO REGRETS

Q: A:

Did you add any amazing new gear to your recording setup last year?

I know I’m a little late to the “2013’s 17 Best Synths With Pretty Blue Lights on Them” list party, but early in the year is as good a time as any to take a look at my purchases over the last 12 months and see which cash outlay was really worth it. The basic infrastructure of my studio stayed pretty much the same: computer, speakers, mics, and even my DAW (Pro Tools) didn’t get a major upgrade, even though there’s a new version available. That’s ok though, I can do what I need to do with the “old” technology just fine. I did buy a plug-in that’s making a subtle but positive improvement on my mixes and some virtual instruments that have really opened up some new options for instrumental production.

DEEP, WIDE & GLUED The mix plug-in is the Slate Digital Virtual Buss Compressors (VBC). Let me start by saying, unless you’re mixing records you probably don’t need to spend the money on this one. There are lots of compressor plug-ins and lots of them sound pretty good as mix buss compressors (a compressor that your entire mix runs through). So, what makes VBC stand out above all the others? It adds a little glue, depth, and width to your mix that is typically only heard from hardware or console buss compressors. Again, it’s subtle,

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but, when I carefully match the levels of the mix with and without it, it is pretty obvious that the mix feels closer and more intense, and yet more controlled at the same time.

VBC gives you three flavors of compression. One is like the famous buss compressor built into the 4000 series SSL consoles, another is like the Focusrite RED compressor, and the last is a compressor similar to the vintage tube sound of the Fairchild 670.

How does this magic happen? Beats me, but the info on their website says that the key is in the modeling of the “nonlinear dynamic artifacts.” Basically, I think that means that the real hardware does something imperfect in its circuit that varies depending on the level of the signal you put through it. That imperfection is the “magic.” The important part is that it really sounds like the analog gear that helps make your mixes sound great.

THE UPSCALE KITCHEN SINK Now to something a little more useful to more of us: if you’re a keyboard player or songwriter that records their own music, you should take a close look at the virtual instrument bundle from Native Instruments called Komplete 9 Ultimate. It’s a huge number of different instruments, from strings and pianos (a great Yamaha C7 sample called Alicia’s Keys) to tons of drums (from vintage to modern) and drum machines (battery is the best drum sample player I’ve ever used). It has a set of great sounding electric basses, vintage keyboards, B3s, and some amazing modeled analog and digital synthesizers. Need that wub-wub dubstep bass sound? Massive and Reactor both have great sounds that will tear your head off, if that’s what your new worship tune calls for (only slightly sarcastic). It’s not cheap, but if you’re feeling limited by your DAW’s included instruments, Komplete gives you high quality, great sounding versions of all those sounds you need. I could produce a really nice sounding record using only sounds from Komplete. Load Alicia’s Keys, the Vintage Keys Rhodes, and a Massive pad or two into

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MainStage on your laptop and you’d have a solid, great-sounding live keyboard rig. Even guitar players will enjoy NI’s great Guitar Rig and a host of really nice sounding processing plug-ins included. Overall, it’s well worth the price of admission.

FAKING IT BEAUTIFULLY My other big purchase was Audiobro’s LA Scoring Strings. If you’re a keyboard player that layers in strings with a pad for your worship sets, this set of samples isn’t for you.

If you write for full orchestra and need to create realistic backing tracks or recordings, LASS should be high on your list of considerations for your string sections. The level of detail that’s available to you with this library is amazing, from the many articulations to the incredible repeated note generator, to the ability to detune and randomize the attacks of players in each section for more or less realism. Needless to say, if you need to fake the real thing, it’s doable with LASS. So, that’s what’s new for me. Take a look back at last year. What was your best studio purchase? W BRIAN STECKLER (thestickhouse.com, @stickhouse) is a producer, engineer, mixer, songwriter, composer, and the worship music director at Crossroads Church, CA.

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PRODUCTION

BY KENT MORRIS

GOING PORTABLE AGAIN SITUATION

A new church launch by a seasoned team in a movie theater Keith Norman spent his seminary years in Chicago rooming with a friend who would later pastor Plum Creek Community Church in Castle Rock, Colorado. When Keith launched The Factory, a community church focused on young adults, Plum Creek donated equipment from their recent move into a permanent facility to The Factory. With a head start on gear and cases, The Factory was able to allocate additional resources into flyers, brochures, and social media coverage of the new church. However, integrating the donated equipment with new gear already purchased prior to the donation and keyed specifically to the movie theater environment The Factory occupied became a challenge. Two separately located storage facilities also added to the difficulty of getting all the equipment in one place at one time.

SOLUTION

Determine the application specifics with multiple dry-run services Portable churches are accustomed to limited access to their worship facilities during the week. However, with movie theaters, the restrictions are exacerbated by extended weekend hours including film start times of noon on Sundays. This situation makes it even more difficult to set up the equipment and test the systems prior to the event.

TEST DRIVE IT FIRST One solution is to stage a complete set-up and tear-down without an actual service.

This “dry-run” gives the logistics and tech teams the experience necessary to smooth rough spots in the process and to eliminate hum bars and buzzes without the pressure of an impending service start time. Once 52

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the gear is hooked up and working, the worship team can run a rehearsal to acclimate themselves to the room and give the tech team a chance to dial in monitor mixers and lighting cues. Typically, the first dryrun is sans-band; the tech crew is free to experiment with different cable routing paths, two or three speaker locations, and several lit stage looks. The second dry-run includes the band and speaking pastor to allow entry and exit practice, backstage arrangements and developments of cues for segues.

Using this strategy, once the bugs were worked out, the systems performed as intended and The Factory’s opening service flowed perfectly implementing the following equipment.

• A Presonus SL16.4.2AI digital console was selected for mixing chores due to its familiar analog-type layout, handy iOS remote functionality and extensive recording capabilities. A pair of JBL PRX635 powered mains and a PRX718XLF subwoofer handle audience sound delivery duty • Two JBL PRX712 powered monitors cover the needs of the on-stage vocalists.

• A complete Elite Core PM-16 personal mixing system with four mix stations, plus a DM8 distribution module and an IM-16 input module give the band complete control of their monitors without asking the FOH engineer for anything.

• A quartet of Shure’s new BLX24/58 handhelds provides wireless freedom for vocals with the company’s onetouch QuickScan frequency selection system, while a Samson SE50B ear-set mic mated to a Shure BLX14 wireless insures pastor Keith can move about the room and still be heard clearly.

While movie theaters offer excellent seating for the congregation, ample restroom facili-

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ties, easy access and good acoustics, they do not have proper lighting for a church service, offering only dim pre-movie lighting or harsh fluorescent work lights. The Factory was able to overcome these challenges.

• LED Cool-White, Warm-White (CWWW) lighting fixtures. A dozen American DJ Flat PAR CWWW18X variable white lights are mounted on mic stands and aimed at the ceiling to give a smooth, full light over the audience area for Bible reading and fellowship.

The movie theater’s sloping floor also presented a challenge to safely hoisting the stage lights high enough to be useful. Fortunately, there was an alcove on either side of the room with flat flooring large enough to accommodate the LTS-2 lighting trees.

After all the decision making, procurement and dry-runs, The Factory is now operating on a regular schedule without drama or missteps. Pastor Keith is excited to see the vitality of the church community grow each time The Factory opens its movie theater doors.

PRODUCTION

SPECS Audio (1) Presonus StudioLive 16.4.2AI digital mixing console (2) JBL PRX635 powered mains (1) JBL PRX718XLF powered sub (2) JBL PRX712 powered floor monitors (4) Shure BLX24/58 wireless mic systems (4) Elite Core PM-16 personal mixer Video: (3) Hitachi CP-WX3030WN video projectors (1) HRT SC-1080H HDMI scaler/switcher

KENT MORRIS has mixed with Paul Baloche, Tommy Walker, Israel Houghton, and many more.

Lighting: (12) ADJ FP CWWW18X white LED (4) ADJ FP 18X RGB LED (2) ADJ UltraBar 12 strip lights (1) ADJ Scene Setter 24 DMX controller Staging: (6) Applied / Staging Dimensions SD5000 stage sections (6) Applied Trussing 8� triangular truss sections

Grammy and Dove Award winner Laura Story plays Kawai. Experience the difference our instruments will make in your music.

Available now at laurastorymusic.com

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kawaius.com

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BY ANDY TOY

WHAT’S NEW: IN GEAR FOR MUSICIANS, SOUND TECH, AND MEDIA TECH

Arturia MicroBrute

Gibson 2014 Les Paul Melody Maker

FOR THE MUSICIAN Gibson 2014 Les Paul Melody Maker

Function: Electric Guitar Price: $569 Church Use: Clean/slightly overdriven electric tone What’s New: It’s 2014 and Gibson has unveiled a whole new line of new electrics including the new Les Paul Melody Maker. Set in a thin Mahogany body, Gibson’s new and improved P90 pickups sound great combined with the maple top and neck. Best of all, the price is just $569, making it the lowest priced Les Paul on the market!

Arturia MicroBrute

Function: Analog Synthesizer Price: $299 Church Use: Big synth leads and bass What’s New: Little brother to the MiniBrute, the MicroBrute brings the sound and power of the all analog MiniBrute into a compact, mini-key version. CV ins and outs plus MIDI give you plenty of control over the step sequencer, which stores up to 8 sequences even after power-down. At just $299, it’s a killer deal and the best analog synth you can buy for the money.

Fender ’65 Deluxe Reverb® Head

Function: Tube Guitar Amp Head Price: $999 Church Use: Thick and growly electric guitar tone.

What’s New: The ’65 Fender Deluxe Reverb is one of the most revered amps in history for its great touch response and terrific breakup. This year Fender is reissuing the ’65 Deluxe Reverb in both combo and head configurations, making it a perfect choice for church guitarists who want to leave their head on stage to make adjustments while they leave the cab backstage to lower stage volume.

Leap Motion

FOR THE MEDIA TEAM Leap Motion

Function: Motion-Sensing Control Device for Mac or PC Price: $79 Church Use: Easily control software with simple hand gestures What’s New: One of the coolest new gadgets to come out last year, Leap Motion is a USB powered motion detector for Mac or PC. Using this device, it’s possible to control basic functions on your computer without using a mouse, but by waving your hand, and it works really well. App developers are already developing new ways to use this technology and it probably won’t be too long before we see presentation software, recording software, and even lighting controlled with the wave of a hand.

ADJ Dotz TPar System

Function: LED Lighting System Price: $399 Church Use: Mobile LED lighting system for portable staging What’s New: The Dotz TPar System is a brand new, all-in-one LED wash system for mobile and stage lighting. Perfect for the mobile church, the Dotz TPar features a 4-head T-bar system each with one 30-watt LED (RGB). Included in the package are a stand, foot controller, bag and case for the whole system.

Cubase iC Air

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Function: Motion-detection Software for Controlling Cubase Price: Free Church Use: Control Cubase using just your hands What’s New: So you have your Leap Motion, now what do you use it for? The Cubase iC Air would make a perfect first app. Available as a free download for all Cubase users, iC Air allows you to use a set of predetermined hand gestures to control almost any part of Cubase you’d like, or you can make your own!

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Apogee MiC 96k

CD+DVD

FOR THE TECH TEAM

ENDLESS PRAISE

Apogee MiC 96k

Function: USB Microphone Price: $229 Church Use: Record demos or background tracks directly to your iPad or Mac What’s New: Remember the cute little Apogee MiC from last year? Well, it’s back revamped and upgraded. The MiC 96k allows recording up to 96kHz directly to your iPad, iPhone, or Mac. While the MiC still fits in the palm of your hand, the sound is surprisingly huge.

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Slate Digital Trigger 2.0 EX

Function: Drum Replacement Software Price: $99 Church Use: Easy, great-sounding drum replacement software for recording What’s New: Ever wished your snare drum was just a little fatter for that one song you recorded last month, and now it is mix time and you can’t go back and change it? Trigger 2.0 offers a great solution to drum replacement by transferring the audio files to MIDI and triggering high quality samples of your choosing. Blend in, replace, or double all of your drum parts using a new technology that will only trigger the drum you specify, even if there is a lot of bleed between drums.

Positive Grid BT-4

Function: Bluetooth MIDI Foot Controller Price: TBA Church Use: Control iPad or iPhone tracks or effects wirelessly What’s New: Technology continues to make leaps and bounds, and 2014 brings us yet another innovative design: the Bluetooth MIDI controller. Designed specifically with iOS in mind, the Positive Grid BT-4 is a programmable MIDI controller that connects wirelessly via Bluetooth to your iPhone or iPad and sends signals to change patches or go to the next track. Running off two AA batteries, the BT-4 features sturdy metal housing, four buttons, an expression jack, and is completely wireless.

Positive Grid BT-4 ALBUM PREVIEW & TOUR INFO @ PLANETSHAKERS.COM/ENDLESSPRAISE

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PRODUCTION

BY ANDY TOY

GEAR REVIEWS LIVE SOUND myMix Monitoring Church Use: Personal monitoring system Features: One of the most helpful technological advancements for musicians in the last 10 years, personal monitoring has become a staple in many churches around the country. myMix breaks the mold of traditional personal monitors and has quickly become one of the most powerful, versatile personal monitoring systems on the market. Featuring a system that can host up to 500 channels with 250 devices, the possibilities are almost endless.

Application: myMix can act as a simple monitor mixer for each band member or be a self-contained sound system for rehearsal or the whole worship service! At the heart of the system is the myMix-Mixer, which acts as the 16-channel personal mixer for each musician as well as the input source for 2 microphone or line sources. As each band member plugs into their myMixMixer, their channel appears on the myMix network for everyone using myMix to see. Each band member can then select from all the instruments and vocals to create their own mix. Have more inputs than 16? No problem, just create a submix for background vocals or drums. This is a great option for rehearsals or smaller venues because it eliminates the need for monitor sends or direct outs from the mixing console, or any confusing routing options. Like other personal monitoring systems, presets can be saved and recalled each week. Stereo imaging is fantastic on the myMix mixers, and the low end is particularly impressive, especially when compared to Aviom or Roland systems. The possibilities are almost endless with myMix and it’s a fantastic bargain for the price.

More: Great connectivity options and routing; best sound in its price range.

Less: Not much Price: $679.00

KEYBOARDS Yamaha MOXF6 Church Use: Synth, MIDI controller and audio interface all in one Features: The Yamaha MOXF6 is the newest in a long and highly regarded line of MOTIF family of keyboards. The MOXF6 aims to be the center of your studio as a USB audio interface, MIDI controller, DAW controller, and the sound of the MOTIF XF synth all in one. With 61 semiweighted keys, the MOXF6 is lightweight and highly portable for use on stage and in the studio.

Application: Drawing on the legendary sound library of the MOTIF XF series, the MOXF6 adds more sounds and effects and utilizes seamless integration with DAW software to create the ultimate keyboard/controller hybrid. The MOXF6 even has an open slot for Flash memory to expand the sounds using flash cards. One of the best features of the MOXF6 is the built-in 4-in, 2-out audio interface, allowing recording and playback without the use of an additional audio interface, making it perfect for live use with a computer. Included with each MOXF is the Cubase AI 7 recording software to get you started recording right away.

More: Great all-in-one package, more portable than any other MOTIF Less: Weighted keys only available on the 88-key version Price: $1199.99

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GUITARS & EFFECTS

PAU L B A LO C H E

Moog Minifooger Pedals Church Use: Guitar analog effects pedals Features: The Minifoogers are the newest addition to the Moog effect pedal family, adding 5 new stomp boxes in a smaller footprint than the usual Moog size. Using an all-analog signal path, the Minifoogers bring the legendary sound of Moog effects to a size that won’t take up half your pedalboard and won’t break your bank account either. The new effects pedals include MF Drive, MF Delay, MF Trem, MF Ring, and MF Boost.

Application: As expected, the new Minifoogers sound great. The analog warmth of the Delay, Trem and Ring shine through when compared to other digital modeling effects of the same kind. While not as detailed and comprehensively controllable as the original Moogerfooger pedals, each one brings something special and unique to the table. The MF Drive is an analog overdrive with a Moog ladder filter built in, making for some unique drive tones for guitar or keyboards. The MF Delay is an analog delay with a drive control for dirty, lo-fi delays. Featuring an expression I/O, the MF Trem uses a VCO to control modulation and shape of the waveform. Two signal paths on the MF Boost give the option of a clean VCA and colored OTA paths. The MF Ring is a compact ring mod with a CV input for modulation based on the original MF-102.

More: Great, analog sound at a great price.

Less: Sounds are highly stylized which makes for less versatility Price: $139-$199

RECORDING PreSonus StudioLive 16.4.2AI Church Use: Powerful and affordable live/studio mixing console Features: It’s rare to see a quality digital mixer under $2000 and even rarer to find one as powerful and versatile as the StudioLive 16.4.2AI. For use in both the studio and as a live mixer, the Studiolive AI features a combination of software and hardware to make it a perfect option for any application. 16 ins, 6 aux sends, 4 FX sends, and stereo main outputs give plenty of I/O options and the ability to use digital gate, EQ, compression, and effects on each track makes the mixer extremely powerful in a live setting.

Application: One of the best features of the Presonus StudioLive AI is the software/ hardware integration. FOH engineers can mix wirelessly on an iPad without using a computer at all, while musicians can mix their own monitors wirelessly from a user-friendly iPhone app. StudioLive AI connects to a computer via firewire for use with almost any DAW for playback and recording, and allows access to included software StudioOne, Capture, and Smaart Measurement Technology. Easy-touse, musician-friendly, and controllable via wireless network, we loved the workflow and power of the StudioLive 16.4.2AI. More: Incredible value for the money, wireless control Less: 16 channels may not be quite enough for bigger stages Price: $1999.95

CD+DVD AVA I L A B L E WORLDWIDE

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An open letter in the

SPIRIT OF PAUL

BY CONSTANCE CHERRY

Dear Professor,

I hope your summer is going well and that you are finding time for renewal. I just thought I’d write to let you know that I won’t be returning to campus this fall. I’ve learned a lot about worship in your classes. You have a real passion for equipping future worship leaders and that passion is contagious. But I’m anxious to get started now in worship ministry. I am contacting churches in my area to see if there is an opening for a young worship leader. I know that worship education is important, but I figure I can pick that up as I go along by reading books, finding some mentors, attending conferences, and real on-the-job training. Besides, my pastor told me that the main thing needed for full-time ministry is the “call.” As long as God has called me, he’ll give me all I need to succeed. Thanks so much for pouring yourself into the lives of all of your students including me.

Sincerely, Mark

Dear Mark,

Thanks so much for taking the time to write. It means a lot.

If we were on campus together today I’d invite you to coffee, and we’d have a long conversation because I really care about you. But since we are many miles apart, please hear my heart in this letter.

First, you’re right. Worship education is important—really important. In fact, it’s so important that I want to urge you to reconsider your decision by contemplating the words of a great teacher, Paul, to his young protégé, Timothy. Paul boldly challenged Timothy with these words: “…continue in what you have learned … because you know those from whom you learned it” (2 Tim 3:14). You are off to a great start in your educational preparation for ministry. But that’s what it is: a start. Your introductory courses in worship ministry opened up a whole new world to you of the big picture of worship studies and leadership. Now continue on this academic journey, for there are more riches to be discovered.

Your professors, including me, want not only to start you on this journey, but to also accompany you to the end of your program. Like Paul, we want you to “know from whom you 58

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have learned it.” Our desire is that you not only gain information but also to grow in spiritual formation. All of this takes time.

The truth is, Christ’s church deserves leaders who are called and educated. A call without an education does not honor the trust God has placed in you. That is exactly why Paul commanded the young leader, Timothy, to “study to [show yourself] approved unto God” (2 Tim 2:15); then there will be no need to be ashamed. An education without a call may provide you with knowledge but leave you without the passion and power you need for fruitful ministry. That is why Paul urged Timothy to “fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands” (2 Tim 1:6).

Mark, education comes in many forms. Take advantage of them all in the proper time. But remember that these good resources will mean even more if you will take full advantage of this moment in your life to continue in what you have learned because you know those from whom you learned it.

I hope to see you on campus this fall.

Your loving professor

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FANNING YOUR CALL

INTO FLAME INDEX

WORSHIP LEADER’S GUIDE TO COLLEGES & CONFERENCES 60 Cedarville University Cedarville, Ohio

70 North Central University Minneapolis, Minnesota

80 Sterling College Sterling, Kansas

61 The Community School of Worship Anchorage, Alaska

72 Ocean’s Edge School of Worship Fort Lauderdale, Florida

81 Trevecca Nazarene University Nashville, Tennessee

62 Unite Worship @ WFX 2014 Dallas, Texas *Conference

74 Ohio Christian University Circleville, Ohio

82 University of Northwestern – St. Paul St. Paul, Minnesota

63 Fuller Theological Seminary 75 Regent University School Pasadena, California of Divinity 83 WATS: Worship Arts Virginia Beach, Virginia Technology Summit 64 Grace Bible College Various locations *Conference Grand Rapids, Michigan 76 The Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies 84 West Coast Bible College 66 Lee University Orange Park, Florida and Seminary Cleveland, Tennessee Online 77 Southwestern Baptist 68 LeTourneau University Theological Seminary 86 WorshipU Longview, Texas Fort Worth, Texas Online 69 Lincoln Christian University Lincoln, Illinois

78 WorshipGod: Triune Santa Ana, CA *Conference

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SCHOOL: Cedarville University LOCATION: Cedarville, Ohio WEBSITE: cedarville.edu/worship

zations, student government, intramural sports, music ensembles, ministry teams, and more. As well, over 60 ministry teams serve in area churches, schools, social agencies, inner-city outreaches, and community programs. Worship students may be interested in the touring music teams that minister in churches, schools, and camps across the nation. We also have chapel bands, worship department bands, and musical ensembles (choirs, symphonic band, and orchestra).

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS / OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? There are hundreds of ways to get involved: social and service organi-

HOW DO YOU AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? The worship and music programs have awards that are talent-based awards that are stackable awards on top of any merit scholarships. There

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HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Cedarville University is a Christ-centered learning community equipping students for lifelong leadership and service through an education marked by excellence and grounded in biblical truth. We are known for: • Unwavering commitment to the inerrancy and authority of Scripture • Required Bible minor a part of all academic programs • Daily chapels with relevant biblical teaching and authentic praise • Missions and study abroad opportunities that reach nearly every corner of the world

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WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER? Undergrad STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 16:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION: Baptist WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

5/1/2014 WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 3,400 THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 4,000 YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM?

78 in music/53 in worship ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

800.233.2784 WEBSITE: cedarville.edu/worship are also scholarships for those whose parents are in full-time ministry.

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? $26,420 per year for 2014-15

SPECIAL ADVERTISING

HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? The Community School of Worship’s major distinctive is that it lies in the middle of some of God’s most beautiful creation. This landscape is the perfect environment to seek the Lord in one’s calling into the worship ministry. “The Community” also has the distinct privilege of being the only certified worship program within the state, the largest in the union. God is doing big things here!

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Never before have students seen such opportunities in Alaska to grow and plug in as leaders, not only in a local thriving church community, but the larger body as well. Based out of Faith Christian Community, the

students regularly serve within the body there. With the school’s faculty comprised of leaders from across the city, there are always opportunities to serve within the larger body as well.

QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: The Community School of Worship LOCATION: Anchorage, Alaska WEBSITE: faithak.com/thecommunitysow

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Being a self-sufficient school, scholarships are discussed on a per case basis. In order to help all students, a payment plan is offered to help spread the funds out. As needed for housing, students can be placed with select families within the body at Faith Christian Community.

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Tuition is $2,000/year. This includes a $200 technology/book fee to provide iPads and materials for each student. Online courses and a two year program coming soon.

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER? Certificate STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 1/15 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Non-Denominational WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

8/1/14 WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 10-20 students THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 300,000 YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM?

Pastoral worship leadership ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

907.243.1777 WEBSITE: faithak.com/thecommunitysow “More like a family than a school, ‘The Community’ offered me a safe environment where I could discover the gifts God gave me, and who He made me to be as a leader in His church.”

- ANDREA FUSTOLO, STUDENT 2012/13

SCHOOL OF WORSHIP

passione

Act on your Let us help you answer the call to lead.

Photo Credit: Amanda Ingels

faithak.com/thecommunitysow |

907.243.1777, ext 32

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EVENT: Unite Worship @ WFX 2014 LOCATION: Dallas, Texas WEBSITE: cedarville.edu/worship

WHAT MAKES THE CONFERENCE DISTINCTIVE? WFX is the largest conference and expo for churches looking for education, services, and products to help grow ministries. Unite Worship attendees can select from nearly 100 educational sessions and 225 exhibiting companies while attending WFX 2014. Unite Worship digs deep and will connect you and your team with new skills, perspectives, and each other in ways you can’t find anywhere else. Talented and accomplished leaders understand the unique needs and challenges you face every day. Invest in yourself and invest in your team at

Unite Worship at WFX 2014, October 1-3, 2014 in Dallas, Texas.

NUMBER OF YEARS FOR THE CONFERENCE: 3 DATES: October 1-3; 2.5 days PRICE POINT: $125 NEXT PRICING DEADLINE? June 1

QUICK STATS:

WHO IS THE CONFERENCE FOR? The Unite Worship training at WFX 2014 is created for worship leaders and the entire worship team.

CONFERENCE FOCUS: • Improving Your Worship Rehearsal • Building a Better Worship Band • The Power of Transitions • Working Effectively with Your Tech Team • Keeping the Heart for Worship Leading • Successfully Implementing Ableton into Your Team • Your Vocal Technique, Worship Expression and Lifestyle • Guitars Techniques for Worship • Planning Your Worship Service • Piano and Keys in Worship • Leading Your Volunteer Teams Effectively • Living Out a Lifestyle of Worship • Q&A Sessions for Leaders, Vocalist, Musicians • Extensive Hands-On Training on the Latest Worship Technologies

NUMBER OF: GENERAL SESSIONS: 4 WORKSHOP/BREAKOUT SESSIONS: 25 NIGHTS OF WORSHIP: 1 CONFERENCE EXTRAS:

Streaming REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

800.598.6031 WEBSITE: wfxweb.com/2014 WHO ARE THE KEYNOTE SPEAKERS AND ARTISTS? The full faculty will be announced in May 2014.

October 1-3, 2014 Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, TX

30 Educational Sessions Taught by Worship Leaders Who Understand You! • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 62

Improving Your Worship Rehearsal Building a Better Worship Band The Power of Transitions Working Effectively with Your Tech Team Keeping the Heart for Worship Leading Successfully Implementing Ableton into Your Team Your Vocal Technique, Worship Expression and Lifestyle Guitars Techniques for Worship Planning Your Worship Service Piano and Keys in Worship Leading Your Volunteer Teams Effectively Living Out a Lifestyle of Worship Q&A Sessions for Leaders, Vocalist, Musicians Extensive Hands-On Training on the Latest Worship Technologies

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Featuring the Unite Worship Track God-Centered, Implementable, CostEffective Training for Every Church

PLUS Learn alongside your tech and creative arts team at the largest technology conference for churches, with 100 additional educational sessions and 225 exhibiting companies.

Register for just $125 per person until May 30.

Use promo code WLMAG

wfxweb.com/2014

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HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? At Fuller Seminary, we see every believer as the presence of Jesus in the world. And we believe that all we do is an act of worship.

Our goal, therefore, is to empower all work as worship and to see the faith of every woman and man as deserving of a scholarship that deepens and expands it. If you’re a worship leader, that scholarship means giving you the tools you need—through our forward-looking Brehm Center for Worship, Theology, and the Arts—to lead in ways that are empowering to those you serve.

Grow and sharpen your worship leadership through our flexible programs.

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Cultural Spiritual Formation groups, All-Seminary Chapel, other worship opportunities throughout the week, and more. Additionally, many students complete an internship or practicum as part of their degree.

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SCHOOL: Fuller Theological Seminary LOCATION: Pasadena, California WEBSITE: fuller.edu

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Fuller Theological Seminary is committed to equipping men and women for ministry and provides over four million dollars in need-based and merit-based student scholarships and fellowships each year. We also participate in Federal Workstudy and the low-interest Federal Loan programs.

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Tuition and registration costs vary depending on

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Graduate, PhD, Certificate, Online Programs DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Multidenominational WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

Information can be found at fuller.edu/admissions WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 3,382 THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? Approx. 137,000 ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

800.238.5537 WEBSITE: fuller.edu

the program that a student is enrolled in. Find more detailed information here: fuller.edu/ Admissions/Tuition_and_Fees/.

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TRANSFORM POTENTIAL INTO EXPONENTIAL 800.2FULLER | FULLER.EDU

Fuller Theological Seminary not only inspires you with renowned scholarship and pioneering programs like the Brehm Center for Worship, Theology, and the Arts. We empower you with the practical tools to radically live out your faith in any career or context—and make an exponential difference. Find out how at exponential-difference.org M A R C H /A P R I L 2 0 1 4 W OR S H IP LE A D E R 63

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HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Grace Bible College seeks to develop passionate servants of Jesus Christ by personally educating students in an educational program that emphasizes the integration of biblical truth, ministry experience, and character transformation. This emphasis pervades the entire campus as the College strives to cultivate a caring learning community where Jesus Christ is exalted and students are equipped for serving the needs of church and society.

Each degree program at Grace Bible College consists of three major components: general education courses, biblical and theological studies, and a vocational major.

We embrace the idea that our instructors are “the living curriculum.” As such, these men and women are committed to the following core beliefs: • We will serve as personal role models to students and others of a growing example of our learning outcomes.

• We will creatively engage the minds, hearts and lives of students in active learning and the appropriate application of this learning to life, work and service.

• We will demonstrate as a team of master teachers a commitment to excellence in instruction and practice.

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? • Ministry Trips • 5 Ensemble opportunities WORSHIP ARTS CAREER OPTIONS IN: • Worship Leader • Director of Worship Arts • Director of Worship Media and Technology • Professional Touring Musician • Studio Recording Artist • Professional Singer/Songwriter • Minister of Music • Music and Worship Evangelist • Worship Pastor

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• Private Lesson Instructor • Music and Worship Leader on the Mission Field • Director of Worship and Drama • Director of Worship for Women’s Conferences • Teaching Pastor of Worship • Worship Support Personnel (in large church worship ministry) • Associate Director of Worship Programming • Worship Arts Facilitator • Further graduate study in music and/or worship

QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: Grace Bible College LOCATION: Grand Rapids, Michigan WEBSITE: gbcol.edu

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Need based Academic Awards Worship Arts Scholarships Descriptions: Award Amounts: $4,800 ($1,200/ year for student in the four-year Worship Arts program =$600/semester) OR $6,400 ($1,600/year for student in the 4-year Worship Arts program =$800/semester).

The Worship Arts scholarship is based on the performance of a live, DVD, or online music audition for the Worship Arts faculty along with the completion of a Worship Arts Scholarship application and essay. The scholarship is contingent upon maintaining a cumulative G.P.A. of 2.5 or higher within your worship arts courses.

In addition, the college requires the recipient to be enrolled as a fulltime student (12 or more credit hours earned/semester at GBC).

Scholarships may only be applied to GBC Worship Arts program.

MARCH/APRIL 2014

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Undergrad STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 20:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Non-denominational WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

August 1st WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 308 THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 190,000 YOUR MUSIC / WORSHIP PROGRAM? 60 ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

800.968.1887 WEBSITE: gbcol.edu WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? $555 per credit hour $3,650 Room and Board per semester

LEARN, CREATE, THRIVE. Whether your calling is to travel with a band or lead at a local church, Grace Bible College’s Worship Arts degree will help you achieve your goals, as both a musician and worship leader.

Watch the video at GBCWorship.com Write worship songs Lead a band Record in the studio Produce an album Lead congregations Tour opportunities Run rehearsals Prepare song sets Master presentations Gain practical experience

Smaller, personal campus Personal mentoring Worship theology Music theory Ear training Arranging Video production iMac MIDI lab Affordable Scholarships available

800.968.1887 | GBCWORSHIP.COM

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HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Lee is a private, comprehensive university located in Cleveland, Tennessee with a current enrollment of just under 5,000.

Lee is continuously ranked in the “Top Tier” of Regional Universities in the South

by U.S. News & World Report. Students are encouraged to embrace their Christian faith in every aspect of living, developing lifestyles of service to the world in the name of Christ.

The Lee University School of Music offers the following programs: bachelor’s degrees in church music, music education, performance, and music business; minors in general music, church music, and jazz studies; and master’s degrees in church music, music education, performance, and conducting. The Lee University School of Music is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM). NASM has been recognized by the United States Department of Education as the agency responsible for the accreditation of all music curricula. Each student in the School of Music receives expert instruction in music theory, history, literature, and performance, with extensive performance opportunities.

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SCHOOL: Lee University LOCATION: Cleveland, Tennessee WEBSITE: leeuniversity.edu/academics/music WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/ OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Lee offers more than 100 student clubs and organizations and more than 30 study abroad trips. For those interested in music ministry, valuable training is provided through involvement in chapel services and outstanding traveling musical groups like Voices of Lee, Lee Singers, Campus Choir and Symphonic Band. Church Music degrees feature an internship component.

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Music scholarships are awarded through the required music major entrance audition and through ensemble auditions. Major academic scholarships are awarded to qualifying students based on ACT/SAT scores or GPA, with significant scholarships beginning at the following thresholds: NEW STUDENTS: ACT score of 24 or SAT score of 1130 RETURNING STUDENTS: Full time, 3.7 cumulative GPA, and 30 credit hours

MARCH/APRIL 2014

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Undergrad, Graduate, Online STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 17 to 1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Church of God in Cleveland, Tennessee WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

Rolling WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 4,954 (Fall 2012 Enrollment) THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 42,386

(2012 Census Estimate) YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM?

Over 300 music majors ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

423.614.8500 WEBSITE:

leeuniversity.edu/academics/music

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? The estimated average cost per semester for a full-time student with on-campus room and board is $10,700. The estimated average cost per semester for a full-time student without room and board is $6,875.

Both these figures include registration and other fees. Music majors occasionally have additional fees that are applied to the student’s school bill.

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SCHOOL: LeTourneau University LOCATION: Longview, Texas WEBSITE: letu.edu/worshiparts

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? There are honor societies, internships, international student organization (Mu Kappa), international academic trips, mission events and trips, and off-campus ministry opportunities. (And don’t forget the intramural competitions!)

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Over 90 percent of LeTourneau University traditional undergraduate students receive some form of financial aid. Freshman students new to LETU may qualify for one of our prestigious merit awards. For more information, check out our Financial Aid Web pages.

QUICK STATS:

HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Want something more than just sitting in class and taking notes? LeTourneau University’s vision is for every student to impact the world for Christ in every workplace and every nation. Academic programs provide students with real-life, problemsolving opportunities through internships, co-ops, and design projects. LETU students travel the world each year on mission projects that are life changing. LeTourneau University is a Christ-centered, dynamic, interdenominational school.

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Tuition: 12,625/semester (flat rate:12-18 hours) There is no fee to register/apply.

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MARCH/APRIL 2014

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Undergrad, Graduate, Online Programs STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 17:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Interdenominational WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

We do not have a specific date prior to the beginning of each semester by which you must submit your application but the earlier the better. Applications for Fall 2014 are now being received and will be taken through to August 2014.

WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? Residential Students: 1300+ THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? Longview is

over 80,000.

YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM? Students

in the worship arts degree: 8. Students involved in music teams on campus: 60.

ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

800.759.8811 WEBSITE: letu.edu/worshiparts

Longview, Texas 1-800-759-8811 www.letu.edu/worshiparts

SPECIAL ADVERTISING

HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Lincoln Christian University offers undergraduate and graduate degrees that are taught from a biblical worldview. Service learning is an integral part of all bachelor’s degree programs, providing opportunities for practical learning in addition to theological understanding and artistic skills. The seminary’s MA in Ministry with a concentration in Worship Studies will help satisfy the hunger that many music ministers have for a better understanding of worship in all its dimensions.

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Like other colleges and universities, LCU offers a variety of student organizations and events throughout the year. Additionally, Worship program students are active in various ministry/service opportunities and projects such as: volunteer

worship ministry at LCU and local churches, the LCU Chorale’s annual holiday production, Restoration Week Chorale and service tour, and a required 6-hour internship.

QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: Lincoln Christian University LOCATION: Lincoln, Illinois WEBSITE: LincolnChristian.edu

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Financial assistance is available through federal, state, private, and LCU funds. Approximately 80 percent of our students receive scholarships, grants, loans, and work opportunities. Scholarships and financial aid are awarded based on FASFA applications and admissions information.

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Undergraduate Tuition, Room & Board (academic year): $23,890 plus approximately $415 fees Seminary Tuition: $399 per credit hour

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Undergrad, Graduate, Online Programs STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 11:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION: Independent Christian Church/Church of Christ WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

Rolling WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? Approx. 1,000 THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 15,000 YOUR MUSIC / WORSHIP PROGRAM?

Approx. 50 ADMISSIONS / REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

888.522.5228 WEBSITE:

LincolnChristian.edu

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SCHOOL: North Central University: College of Fine Arts LOCATION: Minneapolis, Minnesota WEBSITE: northcentral.edu WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Undergrad, Graduate, Certificate, Online STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 19:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Assembly of God WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

June 1 WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 1,200 students THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? Minneapolis

is a large/diverse city of about 400,000 people. North Central is right in the heart of downtown.

YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM? 250 students NCU College of Fine Arts’ McPherson Studio HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? The College of Fine Arts at North Central University houses the School of Music and Theater, and the School of Worship Arts.

With nine majors represented in the two schools, students have the opportunity to become excellent in their chosen field and receive a breadth in their education that will allow them to be successful for a lifetime. The School of Worship Arts produces 1-2 recordings each year with original songs from our students. College of Fine Arts graduates are sought after by churches from all over the nation.

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? There are many ensembles that students have the opportunity to be apart of including: One Accord, Worship Live, Chorale, Women’s Chorus, Festival Orchestra, Jazz Ensemble, Mixed Chorus, Soulful Prayze, Guitar Ensemble, Rhythm Section Ensemble, Acting Ensemble, and other student-led worship teams. There is a fall musical and spring play that takes place at North Central as well as two drama groups that travel throughout the semester called NCU Crew and Intermission.

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HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? There are both need-based and meritbased scholarships available ranging from 1,000 dollars per year to full tuition. Each year the College of Fine Arts gives $100,000 in merit scholarships.

Anyone interested in a College of Fine Arts scholarship must audition.

ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

612.343.4460 WEBSITE: northcentral.edu

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? The cost of tuition before scholarships and financial aid are applied is $19,540. There is an application fee of $25.

Recording the new NCU Worship Live CD, Glory To God

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HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Ocean’s Edge is more than a school; it’s a life-changing experience. A school that has quickly become a nationally recognized institution for training the next generation of worship leaders. Our 10-month training program is structured to give students the opportunity to focus their education in one of four areas: Worship Track, Artist Development, Performance, or Production.

We provide a hands-on, practical approach to ministry training. The combination of classroom, community, and experience create an environment that encourages students to grow spiritually, build relationships, discover their leadership capabilities, and invest in their gifts.

Our goal is to strengthen and equip students by focusing our curriculum on three core areas: Musicianship, Leadership, and Discipleship.

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SCHOOL: Ocean’s Edge School of Worship LOCATION: Fort Lauderdale, Florida WEBSITE: oceansedgeschool.com WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/ OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Our school is a ministry of Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale, which ministers to over 25,000 people each week under the leadership of Pastor Bob Coy. With over 10 different campus locations, our students are provided plenty of opportunities to get involved and learn by “doing.” In addition, we have a partnership with Calvary Chapel University where students can continue their education to acquire a bachelor’s degree. Combining practical and educational opportunities, our students are prepared for a bright future in full-time ministry.

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Our school awards scholarships based on financial needs and level of musicianship. You can apply and find more information about scholariships on our website oceansedgeschool.com.

MARCH/APRIL 2014

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Certificate STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 4:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION: Calvary Chapel WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

8/1/14 WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 50+ THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 175,000 YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM?

Our only focus is worship: Worship Track, Artist Development, Performance, or Production ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

954.556.4301 WEBSITE: oceansedgeschool.com

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Application Fee: $30 Tuition: Starting at $7,200 for 1 year

TRAINING MUSICIANS. CHANGING CULTURE.

WORSHIP TRACK, ARTIST DEVELOPMENT, PERFORMANCE OR PRODUCTION OCEAN’S EDGE SCHOOL OF WORSHIP • FORT LAUDERDALE, FL • OCEANSEDGESCHOOL.COM

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HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Ohio Christian University, one of the fastest growing universities in the nation, is committed to offering a complete education that develops students intellectually, professionally, and spiritually. Students on campus experience a safe Christian community environment where small class sizes allow for students to build close relationships with their professors and receive personalized attention. They are also a part of a growing campus with new facilities for athletics, studying, dining, and living, including a new student center.

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Students in the Worship Leadership program will gain the musical skills, biblical foundations, servant leadership abilities, and practical experience needed to be fully equipped for worship ministry.

Megan

QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: Ohio Christian University LOCATION: Circleville, Ohio WEBSITE: OhioChristian.edu WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Undergrad, Graduate, Certificate, Online STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 15:1 DENOMINATION/AFFILIATION:

Church of Christ in Christian Union WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

Rolling admission They will have opportunities to refine their skills through hands-on experiences including traveling worship ministry teams, praise teams, internships, and worship leadership conferences and clinics. Students can also participate in various organizations including the chorale and musical ensembles, as well as events such as chapel, concerts, and coffee shop performances.

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Financial aid is awarded through the application process and is based on academic qualifications, need and certain affiliations.

WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 600 Traditional on-campus

students (3,800 total) THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 13,500 YOUR MUSIC / WORSHIP PROGRAM?

24 students in music programs ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

877.762.8669 WEBSITE: OhioChristian.edu WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Full time year tuition is $16,470.

Worship Leadership

"The professors have been very impactful in my life.in They have NEW Programs challenged me to become a better musician and a better vocalist."

-Megan, Worship Leadership Student

Matt

"Since my freshman year, I have been a part of a worship band. It's been a real blessing to be able to minister through music."

-Matt, Worship Leadership Student

Worship Leadership

Apply Today l OhioChristian.edu/Undergrad Apply today at

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OhioChristian.edu

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SCHOOL: Regent University LOCATION: Virginia Beach, Virginia WEBSITE: go.wlmag.com/regent-SOD

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Regent School of Divinity houses several vital centers that emphasize global missions, urban outreach, scholarship, and community service. Through its work with Regent’s International Center for

Worship, Regent provides worldclass courses, seminars, and worship events. Just a short drive from campus, the Virginia Beach waterfront offers a welcome respite to students.

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Divinity financial awards criteria includes: Academic Quality, Reasonable Need, Ministry Potential, Commitment to Completion, and Financial Initiative & Responsibility. To apply for a financial award, students must submit the School of Divinity Financial Award Application, and will then be considered for any available scholarships. To learn more, visit go.wlmag.com/regent-aid.

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Annual tuition and fees range from $9,455 to $12,475 for full-time students.

go.wlmag.com/ regent-SOD

QUICK STATS:

HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Regent University equips Christian leaders to change the world, keeping academic excellence rooted in a solid biblical foundation at the center of every program. Our School of Divinity is fully accredited by the Association of Theological Schools, offering master’s and doctoral degrees online and on campus, welcoming students from a broad range of denominations and cultural backgrounds. The seminary operates from a renewal perspective that emphasizes the vital role of the Holy Spirit in transforming lives.

Undergrad, Graduate, PhD, Certificate, Online and On-campus Programs STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 18:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Transdenominational, Evangelical WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

July 15, 2014 WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 5,953 THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 447,000 ADMISSIONS/ REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

800.723.6162 WEBSITE:

Our Worship Track Helps You Create Yours Pastor David M. Edwards is an award-winning Christian songwriter and recording artist. His critically acclaimed book, WORSHIP 365, is fast becoming the definitive text on the power of music to engage contemporary culture and transform the worship experience. David’s classes are part of Regent’s pioneering Worship and Renewal concentration, a groundbreaking course of study featuring practical, hands-on projects designed to help you create a worship experience that speaks to today’s church.

Ready to bring your talents into your calling?

MASTER’S & DOCTORAL DEGREES ON CAMPUS | ONLINE 800.723.6162 | REGENT.EDU/DIVINITY

David M. Edwards Instructor, School of Divinity

The School of Divinity is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools (ATS), with approval for a Comprehensive Distance Education Program.

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HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? IWS is the only school dedicated to graduate education in the biblical foundations, theological reflections, historical development, and cultural analysis of worship. Its mission is to form leaders in worship renewal, with the perspective that “the way to the future runs through the past.” Students study with a superior faculty of worship scholars holding full-time positions in colleges, seminaries and/or churches. The IWS education is designed to fit the student’s schedule and budget, combining distance education with on-campus classes focused on building an intentional learning community.

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Since IWS is a low residency graduate program, this is not directly applicable. The AGNUSDEI.pdf 1 9/12/13 9:37 AM MWS program has a 300 hour internship as its capstone course. Students must have

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QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies (IWS) LOCATION: Orange Park, Florida WEBSITE: iws.edu

a context (e.g., church, educational institution, mission organization, nonprofit, etc.) in which to apply their IWS education.

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Financial aid programs are available. Contact the Admissions Office for more information: admissions@iws.edu.

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Cost: MWS: $340 per credit hour; DWS: $370 per credit hour. Most classes are 6 credit hours. The MWS program is 30 credit hours

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WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Graduate STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 10:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Non-denominational WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

Rolling deadlines—class cohorts start twice each year in the first week of January or second week of June.

WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 180 students THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 1.3 million YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM?

Our only focus is worship ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

800.282.2977 WEBSITE: iws.edu over two years, and the DWS program is 34 credit hours over three years.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING

SCHOOL: Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary LOCATION: Fort Worth, Texas WEBSITE: swbts.edu

QUICK STATS:

HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Southwestern Seminary’s School of Church Music leads the nation in church music education, according to 2011 survey results reported by the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM). In contrast to other institutions, Southwestern offers the greatest variety of specializations and the most degrees in church music.

Nationally, Southwestern trains almost 25 percent of all students who study in mission trips, music missions trips, and loprograms related to worship and church cal church internships. music and is the only accredited institution to the offer a Ph.D. in church music. HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/OPPORTU- Financial aid is awarded on a merit-based NITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? system, seeking to reward students for exStudents not only train in the class- cellence in the classroom and in service. room but also perform on campus and The office of financial aid offers thirteen in prestigious venues such as New York’s Impact Scholarships for students in addiLincoln Center. Students can also get tion to the general scholarship and other involved in on campus student groups, scholarship opportunities.

classical training.

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Undergrad, Graduate, PhD STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 28:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Southern Baptist Convention WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

8/1/2014 WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 3,000 THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 750,000 YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM? 110 ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

817.923.1921 WEBSITE: swbts.edu WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Bachelor’s $235/hour $470/hour* School of Church Music Tuition $215/ hour $430/hour* *SBC/Non-SBC

conteMporary application.

The School of Church Music trains musicians to use their craft for the glory of God. Develop foundational skills in music in an atmosphere of spiritual and evangelistic fervor so you can lead others to worship God in any setting.

Bachelor of arts in Music

Master of arts in Worship

A bedrock program where you will strengthen your

A specialized degree designed to provide the biblical,

understanding of the Bible while also mastering music skills

technological, philosophical, and practical tools needed to

to use in a multitude of venues.

enable a worship leader to be effective in the local church.

Learn more at sWBts.edu/churchMusic or call 1.800.sWBts.01

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WHO IS THE CONFERENCE FOR? WorshipGod: Triune is designed to serve pastors, worship leaders, musicians, vocalists, songwriters, tech teams, and anyone interested in growing in their understanding and practice of worshiping God as Father, Son, and Spirit.

WHAT MAKES THE CONFERENCE DISTINCTIVE? WorshipGod conferences feature musicians, main sessions, and seminars that are rich in theology, the gospel, and practical application. Put on by church musicians for church musicians, the conference addresses issues related to doctrine, our hearts, leadership, and music

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skills. Attendees can expect a multitude of giveaways and resources at the conference.

QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: WorshipGod 2014: Triune LOCATION: Santa Ana, California WEBSITE: WorshipGod14.com

CONFERENCE FOCUS: Often the Trinity is seen as an intellectual or academic pursuit with little or no effect on our emotions and relationship with God. At WorshipGod14 you’ll be equipped to understand better how worshiping God as Father, Son, and Spirit is not only biblical but life-transforming and delightful.

NUMBER OF YEARS FOR THE CONFERENCE: 12 DATES: July 16-19 (4 days) PRICE POINT: $100-$200 NUMBER OF GENERAL SESSIONS: 6 NUMBER OF WORKSHOP / BREAKOUT SESSIONS: 4 NUMBER OF NIGHTS OF WORSHIP:

All general sessions will offer both music and preaching.

CONFERENCE EXTRAS:

Day pass options WEBSITE: WorshipGod14.com

WHO ARE THE KEYNOTE SPEAKERS AND ARTISTS? This year’s speakers include Craig Cabaniss, Bob Kauflin, Michael Reeves, Bruce Ware, and Don Whitney. Music will be led by Matt Boswell, Enfield, and Devon Kauflin.

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QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: Sterling College LOCATION: Sterling, Kansas WEBSITE: sterling.edu HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? We are a Christ-centered four-year college located in Sterling, Kansas, with a mission to “develop creative and thoughtful leaders who understand a maturing Christian faith.” Whether you’re looking to join us on campus or online, we have rigorous academic programs and a variety of activities to help you become the HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD servant leader God created you to be.

SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Academic scholarships are determined by a stuWHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS / dent’s academic record (cumulative GPA and OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS ACT or SAT score). Activity awards are available GET INVOLVED IN? for the arts (theatre, music, art, communicaSterling College offers several short- tions) as well as leadership and athletics. In adterm service opportunities each sum- dition to the student’s academic scholarship, a mer. Come with us to love on orphans student may get up to two activity awards. and work in earthquake-stricken parts of Asia. Or give up Christmas-as-usual to WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND serve on a medical mission to the Middle REGISTRATION FEES? East. Or give your testimony to eager Sterling College tuition for the 13-14 academic school children in an African village. year is $20,950. Room, board and fees total ap-

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Undergrad, Online Programs STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 14/1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Non-denominational WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

3/10/14 WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 650 THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 2,500 YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM? 100 ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

800.346.1017 WEBSITE: sterling.edu proximately $7,000 per year. Sterling College Online is offering discounted summer courses at only $135 per credit hour. Visit: sterling.edu/summerspecial to learn more and register.

BACHELOR OF ARTS IN CHRISTIAN MINISTRIES A study that prepares you to assume leadership in churches, Christian schools, camps, para-church ministries, missionary organizations, and Christian publishing companies, as well as to pursue various avenues of graduate study.

BACHELOR OF ARTS IN THEOLOGICAL STUDIES

Christian Ministries and Theological Studies Online Degree Programs

Apply online at WWW.STERLING.EDU/ONLINE/THEOLOGY

A study that provides you with a broad-based understanding of biblical, theological, and philosophical truth. This program prepares you for leadership in Christian education, college, teaching, pastoral ministry, community development, chaplaincy, seminary, as well as graduate school in various disciplines.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING

HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Trevecca Nazarene University is a school where great stories begin. It is a place that is committed to helping students hear, discover, and live out their calling. Students in our Worship Arts programs are taught in both the classroom and through hands-on experience leading, directing, and participating in worship. Located in the heart of Nashville, students are in the midst of a world-class city with access to amazing resources in the arts.

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/ OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Each of our Worship Arts students have two (or more) internships where they are learning about the life of a worship arts pastor through observation and handson experiences in the local church.

QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: Trevecca Nazarene University LOCATION: Nashville, Tennessee WEBSITE: trevecca.edu/worship Undergrad, Certificate, Online Programs STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 16:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Church of the Nazarene WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

June 1, 2014 WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 2,500 THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 1.4 Million YOUR MUSIC / WORSHIP PROGRAM? 40 tradi-

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Scholarships and financial aid are awarded through the Financial Aid office and are based on a student’s academic qualifications and family need.

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Tuition for undergraduate students in wor-

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Trevecca’s Center for Worship Arts has a program to meet your need: · Face-to-face classes in a four-year degree program for undergraduates and · Online education for church leaders who want new insights about ministry and the foundations of worship

WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

tional undergrads, 15 in certificate program ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

615.248.1585 WEBSITE: trevecca.edu/worship ship arts is just over $20,000 per year.

Our online certificate program in Worship Arts is incredibly affordable, costing $1,200 for the entire program.

The Center For

WORSHIP ARTS Shaping the next generation of worship leaders

Contact: Heather Daugherty P: 615-248-1585 E: hdaugherty@trevecca.edu A: 333 Murfreesboro Road, Nashville, TN 37210 W: trevecca.edu M A R C H /A P R I L 2 0 1 4

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HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? Northwestern’s fusion of rigorous, Christcentered academics prepares students to think critically and address challenges in the real world. A unique biblical worldview curriculum incorporates 30 credits of Bible into every major. Daily chapel includes well-known speakers and regular opportunities for praise and worship in a strong community-oriented setting.

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS/ OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Northwestern students get involved on campus in music ensembles, intramural athletics, student government, clubs, and activities. Academic departments and the Center for Calling & Career assist students in finding meaningful internships, plus there are many on-campus jobs and jobs in the community. Students serve

QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: University of Northwestern – St. Paul LOCATION: St. Paul, Minnesota WEBSITE: unwsp.edu/music WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Undergrad, Graduate, Certificate, Online STUDENT TO TEACHER RATIO: 14:1 DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Non-denominational WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

March 12, 2014

off campus in outreach to the homeless, supporting human trafficking victims, cross-cultural evangelism and more.

WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 1,800 Undergrad THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? 300,000 YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM? 85 ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLAR- 800.827.6827 WEBSITE: unwsp.edu/music SHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? The Music Department holds music auditions and awards scholarships to both music majors WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION and ensemble participants. Merit-based schol- AND REGISTRATION FEES? arships are available to qualified incoming stu- Tuition $27,790 dents and the Financial Aid Office offers competitive need-based financial aid packages.

The Bachelor of Science in Music with an emphasis in music ministry offers a dynamic study of theology of worship, theory and practice of music, and foundations for effective ministry.

Learn more at unwsp.edu/worship.

This program is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM).

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING

QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: WATS – Worship Arts Technology Summit WEBSITE: gotowats.com WHO IS THE CONFERENCE FOR? WATS is for the entire worship team offering extensive hands on training on the technology that is becoming more and more a component of contemporary worship.

WHAT MAKES THE CONFERENCE DISTINCTIVE? Most conferences are made up of separate one-hour classes that stand completely on their own. The WATS event is two days of curriculum-based training with classes that build upon each other, allowing for more intensive training.

In addition, the hands-on nature of the training makes for a training experience unlike any other event.

CONFERENCE FOCUS: Many of technologies currently available to the local church simply did not exist

10 years ago or were simply too expensive for smaller churches to employ. We expose attendees to a wide variety of technologies in audio, music, media, and lighting that can help them create the worship experience they desire in their home churches. WATS is sponsored by Yamaha, Shure, Yamaha Commercial Audio Systems, and Elation Lighting.

WHO ARE THE KEYNOTE SPEAKERS AND ARTISTS? In addition to the expert training staff provided by each of the sponsoring manufacturers, we are joined by amazing artists like Ed Kerr

NUMBER OF YEARS FOR THE CONFERENCE: 6 DATES: Various dates (2-day confernces)

Price point: $99 - $149 NEXT PRICING DEADLINE? Early bird pricing

available 30 days out from event NUMBER OF: GENERAL SESSIONS: 2 WORKSHOP/BREAKOUT SESSIONS:10 NIGHTS OF WORSHIP: 1 CONFERENCE EXTRAS:

Day pass options REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER: see website WEBSITE: gotowats.com

(keyboards), Michael Hodge and Tom Lane (guitars), Carl Albrecht and Sean McCurley (drums), as well as Lee Fields and Scott Ragsdale at front of house.

Worship Arts Technology Summit

Traverse City MI Ridgecrest NC San Antonio TX

Jun 28-29 Sept 19-20 Fall

www.gotowats.com

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HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? An innovator in online Christian education.

An “innovator” is “a person who introduces new methods, ideas, or products.”

Since their founding in 2006, West Coast Bible College & Seminary has dared to do 100-percent online education differently—developing unique teaching methods and models, advancing simplistic content delivery, and utilizing technology to create a community, a family, of thousands of students from all around the world with one common goal: to make God’s name known to the nations!

West Coast has assembled a phenomenal team of real-world leaders to train you. At West Coast you can take a speech class from the 2003 World Champion of Public Speaking, learn English from the actual author of the textbook, or get practical skills and training for worship taught by worship leaders currently leading in local churches. You might even take a class with a former college president or two, be educated regarding eating disorders from a teacher who has spoken in public schools and in front of Congress, gain knowledge about missions from a missionary who served in Africa for 37 years, or receive youth ministry training from a leader who has spoken to millions.

You will learn from their experience.

QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: West Coast Bible College & Seminary LOCATION: 100% Online WEBSITE: myWC.me

can finish your degree without spending the rest of your life paying for it. West Coast is creating disciples of Christ, not disciples of debt.

For more information about West Coast Bible College & Seminary, go to www. myWC.me, call 800-921-4561, email them at info@westcoastbible.org, or download their free app.

WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS / OPPORTUNITIES CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED IN? Mission trips, Master’s Commission (mcin.org).

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Our low tuition cost takes the place of financial aid, although we do accept private scholarship winners.

WHY ATTEND? West Coast is committed to giving you a great educational experience. First, you will receive a quality, practical education you can implement immediately. West Coast students love the fact they can learn something through the week and use it in ministry on the weekend.

Secondly, you’ll discover the cost of tuition is less for the entire program than other colleges charge for one class. You

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WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Undergrad, Graduate, Online Programs DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Non-denominational WHAT IS THE NEXT APPLICATION DEADLINE?

Open Enrollment WHAT IS THE SIZE OF: YOUR SCHOOL? 2,000 students THE CITY YOUR SCHOOL IS IN? Online YOUR MUSIC/WORSHIP PROGRAM? 500 ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER

800.921.4561 WEBSITE: myWC.me

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? $75 application fee $700 for associate degree $1,500 for bachelor’s degree $1,250 for master’s degree $1,250 for doctoral degree

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HOW IS YOUR SCHOOL DISTINCTIVE? WorshipU is distinct in that it gives students the ability to apply their education into their daily lives, immediately. Because the program is online and comes with an extensive archive of lessons readily available, worship leaders and musicians can seamlessly implement what they learn into their daily lives.

The online platform is a powerful combination of leadership, songwriting, music, and worship fundamentals training.

Whether someone is a beginner or highly experienced, the variety of topics within WorshipU make it a wealth of knowledge for anyone.

Alongside the life-changing messages delivered in HD quality, students also inherit a diverse community of new friends and passionate worshipers spanning the globe.

Discussion boards make conversations with peers and WorshipU designated mentors easy to engage.

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QUICK STATS:

SCHOOL: WorshipU LOCATION: Online WEBSITE: worshipu.com The instructors in WorshipU provide a baseline of worship understanding that reaches beyond denominational boundaries and theological disagreements. Teachers such as Brian and Jenn Johnson, Martin Smith, Jeremy Riddle, Paul Baloche, and Dan McCollum represent many backgrounds and impart biblically based teaching on worship topics.

Ultimately, WorshipU wants to see more than just knowledge transferred from one person to another; their desire is to see worshipers everywhere so moved and touched by the presence God that their students go out and transform their communities for the kingdom.

HOW DOES YOUR SCHOOL AWARD SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID? Financial assistance is rewarded on a discretionary basis to students in need. But Wor-

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WHAT PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?

Certificate DENOMINATION AFFILIATION:

Bethel Music ADMISSIONS/REGISTRATION PHONE NUMBER:

855.939.6774 WEBSITE:

worshipu.com

shipU is focused on providing an education that is affordable to anyone who wants to sign up.

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF TUITION AND REGISTRATION FEES? Follow WorshipU at facebook.com/worshipuniversity or twitter.com/worshipuni to get the latest enrollment and pricing updates. They will be taking on new students beginning May, 2014.

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FEATURE REVIEW

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FEATURE REVIEW

RENDCOLLECTIVE.COM | INTEGRITY MUSIC

REND COLLECTIVE THE ART OF CELEBRATION

D

espite the absolute listenability and the sure commercial viability of this new release from the Northern Irish outfit that has taken the National Worship Leader Conference by storm multiple times, The Art of Celebration is destined to make its biggest impact in the sung voices of the global Church. This collection of 11 songs (plus a remix and a live version) are spiritual odes, songs to unite the body of Christ in voice and prayer—these are worship songs. Listening to The Art of Celebration, one gets the sense that this release is engulfed in prayer and composed by contrite worshipful hearts with no other desire than to musically convey those prayers and hearts.

And more good news? The band formally known as the Rend Collective Experiment pull it off. … No, more than pull it off, they get the perfect score.

What does it take to deserve that kind of seeming hyperbole? First off, Rend Collective seem obsessed with Scripture. Obsessed! Its everywhere in this powerful release: we are invited to boldly approach the throne of God (Heb 4:16), we sacrifice everything for the pearl of great price (Mt 13), God is our protection and deliverer (Isa 41:10; Ps 27:1), and so many more.

And though The Art of Celebration is primarily concerned with … celebration, it is a biblical celebration infused with life and pain and doubt. For instance in the song “Joy” we sing out, “Though I’m broken I’m running into your arms of love.” It is a lament and a song of celebration in one, and its brilliant worship art. It’s also a celebration that can boast in nothing but

the finished work of Jesus Christ. And it invites him to continue the work in us as we earnestly seek him in our lives and in our gathered times of worship for the redemption of the world.

“Burn Like a Star” is a romping backporch banjo-tinged deal with a lyrical focus that inspires awe and even a touch of self-aware fear of what it means to invite Christ into our lives. “Boldly I Approach” has a plucked-guitar almost dirge-like opening but eventually volcanoes into a full realization of the aforementioned true celebration that we have in Jesus’ outstretched arms and his nail-pierced hands—the one who “fights for me, and shields my soul eternally.” The most immediate track, “Simplicity” is a stripped down worship tune asking God to strip away everything that doesn’t matter. Form and function align, displaying the depth and acuity of this release. Everything matters in music designed for worship, and Rend Collective is not just aware of this, they deftly reveal the art of it.

Passion meets emotion in this wonderful example of a scripturally rich, highly affecting collection of worship anthems that will serve churches around the globe. It is going to be exciting to see what the community of worship leaders do with The Art of Celebration as every song is completely singable and will help ignite hearts in worship of our saving Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Sounds Like: The English folk sound popularized by the Mumford boys is certainly present, it

could be considered the album’s only flaw. But in all fairness, Rend sounded like this before the release of Sigh No More. One could argue that Marcus Mumford borrowed from this collective of multi-instrumentalists. Indeed roots-rock with twang and kick drum certainly isn’t new. It’s popularity in pop/rock music is. As well, The Art of Celebration is one of the most aptly titled worship releases of all time. Life, love, joy; dance, banjo, kick drum, mandolin, bag pipes, guitars, penny whistles, accordions, all add to the joyous musical atmosphere of the release. There is a melodic assurance in this band that eludes so many, each melody is so perfectly structured as a mechanism by which we propel our voices. Each song can be and should be sung in churches everywhere. In a wonderful twist of reverse accessibility, Rend even offers a disco-synth version of their congregation ready “Joy,” … you know … for the kids.

TOP SONGS: Most Singable: “Finally Free” Strongest Biblical Content: “More than Conquerors” (Rom 8:31-39); “Create in Me” (Ps 51:10); “Troubled Sea” (Isa 41:10; Job 29:3; Ps 27:1,3) The Whole Package: “Joy” Resources: Free chords for all their records (rendcollective.com) JEREMY ARMSTRONG

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MUSIC FOR LEADING The Whole Package: “Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)” Resources Available: Chord charts and sheet music available for purchase at hillsong.com/en/ store/products/music/musicianresources/zion/ JAY AKINS

HILLSONG UNITED ian theology, there is no telling what this team could offer up to the global Church. That said, Elevation Worship is releasing the most consistent, highquality congregational music in the American sonic landscape.

Only King Forever is the first must-have of 2014.

ELEVATION WORSHIP Only King Forever Essential Worship elevationworship.com

Anthems are the only appropriate term for the music that flows from the vibrant worshiping community at Elevation Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. Within that leaning you find solid emotive songs with lyrics that support the overall theme of the Kingship of our God. Complementing that vision, individual songs are hopeful (“I Will Look Up”); proclaim the victory of Christ over death (“Mighty Warrior”); and lift high the power in the name of Jesus (“Unto Your Name”). Despite the strong Christocentricity of Only King Forever, mention of the Holy Spirit is notably absent. With a little more intentionality on Trinitar-

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Sounds like: Crescendo artrock ala Jónsi and Sigur Rós meeting anthemic pop such as Coldplay and Snow Patrol.

There is a heavy guitar drive with a nice touch of synth and creative atmospheric tones.

TOP SONGS Most Singable: “Glory Is Yours” Strongest Biblical Content: “Last Word” (Themed on remembrance and the victory of Christ among us, wonderful communion song) The Whole Package: “Only King Forever” Resources: Free chord charts and lyrics, loops, and multiple video tutorials at elevationworship.com. The resources available really bring this worship album to the next level JEREMY ARMSTRONG

Zion Acoustic Sessions Hillsong/Capitol hillsong.com/en/united

The beauty and strength found in this quiet acoustic approach to the songs of Zion is stunning.

The worship leader will find that the acoustic arrangements on this record are much more accessible to leading congregational worship than the first Zion studio release.

As always Hillsong United does a wonderful job of keeping the songs we love interesting with fresh instrumentation and vocal approaches to the music.

Joel Houston, worship leader and songwriter says, “God, I want to be a part of what it is you’re doing, if that means write a song, we’ll do our best to write the best songs we can.” Zion Acoustic Sessions is most definitely an example of that passion to write great songs that declare Jesus to the world.

Sounds like: An organic Hillsong Chapel with a touch of Future of Forestry, and elements of John Mark McMillan.

TOP SONGS Most Singable: “King of Heaven” Strongest Biblical Content: “Scandal of Grace” (Eph 2:4-5)

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JONATHAN & EMILY MARTIN Set Your Eyes jonathanandemilymartin.com

Jonathan & Emily Martin really epitomize one of the benefits of the explosion in independent music and specifically worship which opens the door to sub-genres that represent both niche projects

and regional influences. Jonathan & Emily Martin offer both well-written and performed songs. Duet-focused ballads “As the Watchman” and “Set Your Eyes” are especially suitable for the sanctuary. This five-song collection is part of a four-part series.

Drenched in Scripture and vocal harmonies. Set Your Eyes is an enjoyable experience from start to finish.

Sounds like: Set Your Eyes embodies contemporary adult/pop worship using diverse arrangements that are both guitar and piano-driven with a hint of Nashville. “Two Becoming One” is a fresh tune for weddings with a gorgeous string arrangement.

TOP SONGS Most Singable: “As the Watchmen” Strongest Biblical Content: “Two Becoming One” (Eph 5:25-33, Mt 19:6, Gen 2:24) The Whole Package: “With Joy” Resources Available: Free downloadable PDF chord charts and free music streaming on an easy to navigate website (jonathanandemilymartin.com) DARRYL BRYANT

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ON THE WORSHIP RADAR:

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My true joy is to write music for God’s people. – Josh Lavender With two generations of pastors before him on both sides of the family and a mother who is a lifelong worship leader, Josh Lavender has worship in his DNA. His father Russ Lavender is a pastor/theologian, who with his father (Josh’s grandfather) is finishing a fresh translation of the New Testament this year. Josh grew up in an environment where Scripture was dessert at yearly holidays: “a wonderful time of talking about the Lord, and sharing insights into the Bible.” This proved a good training ground for his tenure at Indiana Wesleyan University, where he graduated with a degree in Church Music (vocal emphasis).

“My Junior year I was asked to lead worship for spiritual emphasis week on campus: ‘Summit.’ The speaker wanted to use the hymn ‘May the Mind of Christ’ as a focus topic and requested we sing it. I remember thinking: ‘I wonder if I can take these incredible words and make something new and modern.’ That was where my love of hymn writing started.” Josh not only renewed a classic song, but his fresh take on it became a campus favorite.

Baptized in the Word and worship, “New Song” is flowing out of this young man with a heart for God and the Church. With a solid understanding of worship’s history, and a passionate commitment to communicating in the present, Josh shines in a new company of worship leaders that combine both lyrical depth and contemporary accessibility with creative and musical excellence.

The result of often praying that God would “lead him,” is that he now leads others in worship of Almighty God all across the country. “By remem-

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bering God’s place, we are able to find our own,” he declares.

Sounds like. Jon McLaughlin meets Travis Cottrell … sort of … Piano-based compositions adaptable to guitar, passionate and richly hued, each word caressed and expressed with heartfelt intensity. Both modern-hymn-like and worshipful pop/rock songs—dynamic range and melodic beauty abound.

A little more: Josh was encouraged to enter a songwriting contest that the Wesleyan Church was hosting and won first prize with the evocative “Nothing Between”: Nothing from Thee will I withhold My heart shall be my Savior’s throne Won is the fight of self and sin And Jesus reigns within He collaborates across centuries with writers of the past as well as co-writing with some of today’s brightest and best congregational writers and worship artists, including Travis Ryan, Mia Fieldes, Stu G, Jeremiah Carlson, and Sarah Hart, among others. Josh’s debut EP The One My Soul Loves, inspired by Song of Solomon 3:4, was released in May of 2013 and beautifully expresses an intimate relationship with God. He is currently working on a full-length release for 2014 amidst a bevy of label/publishing interest and difficult decisions.

ANDREA HUNTER

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IN REVIEW were lacking, but overall this is a solid project. This is Kristen’s first full-length worship album, after releasing two earlier EPs. Kristen serves as worship leader at Sojourn Community Church in Louisville, Kentucky.

Sounds like: Mostly piano driven ballads sprinkled with some rock ‘n roll flavored songs with full band.

KRISTEN GILLES

Parker’s Mercy Brigade mysonginthenight.com Kristen Gilles’ vocals are prominently featured in this collection of both personal songs of testimony and songs written for the church.

Her passion for the Lord comes through in her songs, co-written with her husband Bobby, rich with both intense and personal lyrics. The production quality and melodic choices at times

TOP SONGS Most Singable: “No More Fear” Strongest Biblical Content: “Bless the Lord Who Gives and Takes” (Job 1:21) The Whole Package: “Awesome Is Your Power” Resources Available: Chord charts and insightful writing for worship leaders (mysonginthenight.com) BARRY WESTMAN

ELLIE HOLCOMB As Sure As the Sun Full Heart Music ellieholcomb.com

Ellie Holcomb desires to sing truth into the darkness through her first full-length project, As Sure As the Sun. This album includes 10 brand new songs, born out of her time in God’s Word, written and recorded with the hope of sharing God’s truths—encouraging, refreshing, and blessing those

who listen. Although this is Ellie’s first full-length album of her own, she has been an integral member of her husband’s band, Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors, for over seven years. Her musical experience and expertise, combined with the timeless truth of God’s Word, have created a beautiful, stirring debut. Ellie Holcomb reminds her listeners through her highly successful Kickstarter campaign that “God’s Word revives the soul and it doesn’t come back void.”

Sounds like: As Sure As the Sun has an uplifting, light-hearted acoustic feel, gently blurring the lines between light pop and country styles. This brand new album features hope-filled vocals, a hint of country/bluegrass instrumentation, and pop-styled piano riffs.

Hardbou nd Hymnal also availa ble!

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IN REVIEW TOP SONGS Most Singable: “Marvelous Light” Strongest Biblical Content: “Love Never Fails” (1 Cor12:8) The Whole Package: “As Sure As the Sun” Resources: Music streams and free chord charts (ellieholcomb.com) AMANDA FURBECK

THE FALLS CHURCH ANGLICAN We Will Proclaim Falls Church Anglican tfcamusic.org

Falls Church, Virginia is home to history. The Anglican Church from which the city derives its name, can trace its roots prior to the establishment of the United States and includes founding father George Mason and President George Washington both as for-

mer members. You would expect intense worship from a church so steeped in history and tradition.

We Will Proclaim is just such an album. Filled with a good mixture of spoken word elements, classic hymns, Falls Church originals, and new radio hits, you feel the renewed spirit of the Falls Church congregation as they celebrate a move to a new location (after losing their historical building to the ECUSA) and the renewed opportunities to serve Jesus at this site.

When listening to We Will Proclaim it is quickly evident that the goal of Falls Church Worship department was to catch the spirit of a new birth of ministry. They achieve this by recording every aspect of their service. Some of the spoken word elements are a bit murky and the musical mix could have used tweaking to en-

hance clarity. These idiosyncratic components add to the charm and instantaneous ability of most worshipers to relate to the overall project.

Sounds like: Worship leader with praise team and backup choir and praise band, celebrating in their inaugural service at a new location.

TOP SONGS Most singable: “Jesus, Only Jesus” Strongest Biblical Content: “Call to Worship” The Whole Package: “How Great Is Your Faithfulness” RANDY CROSS

InScrIbed: leading women to not just survive but thrive, encouraging them to immerse themselves in the person of Jesus christ.

AvAilAble Now

ComiNg fAll 2014

Stay focused; do not lose sight of mercy and truth; engrave them on a pendant, and hang it around your neck; meditate on them so they are written upon your heart.

Proverbs 3:3 (The Voice)

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Sounds Like: R&B, soulful vocals, funky electronic pop, with hip-hop underpinnings.

SETH & NIRVA I Need You Ready Music sethandnirva.com

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Sounds like: A great afternoon listening to Air 1 or K-Love.

TOP SONGS Most Singable: “Come Like the Dawn” Strongest Biblical Content: “When the Stars Burn Down” The Whole Package: “God’s Great Dance Floor” (Martin Smith’s version with horn section) Resources available: As this is an iWorship product, you can find a variety of supplemental resources at integritymusic.com RANDY CROSS

life cranked all the way up to 11.

This sophomore follow-up record is packed full of catchy fun-pop, pounding kick, tobyMac-esque signature rap BGVs, and just a sprinkling of country from the Atlanta-based singer.

JAMIE GRACE VARIOUS ARTISTS

Ready to Fly Gotee Records jamiegrace.com

The artists of Integrity Music continue to blaze the trail for the next songs of the church.

Jamie Grace, discovered on YouTube by tobyMac just a few years ago, returns with Ready to Fly, a coming of age record themed with the desire to wait on the Lord, but all the while preparing to do

iWorship Now/Next 2014 Integrity Music integritymusic.com

a church similar to Lakewood or Hillsong. Smaller worship environments may find this collection just what they are looking for to provide challenges for their team.

PERSONAL PLAYLIST

MIKE PUESCHELL

An inspiring collection of songs from the debut offering of this husband and wife duo. Seth and Nirva met on the road while touring individually as background vocalists for various CCM artists.

Their combined touring experience includes tobyMac, Mandisa, Natalie Grant, Chris Tomlin, Cece Winans, and many more. I Need You features a guest appearance from tobyMac and showcases seven pop, R&B, and worshiporiented cuts. This eclectic mix is packed full of Jesus-centered lyrics that cry out both in adoration of a holy God and need for his restoration.

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TOP SONGS Most Singable: “Found a Love” Strong Biblical Content: “All Praise” (Isa 60:1) The Whole Package: “Praise Him”

iWorship Now/Next 2014 is the most recent in the annual look at what is becoming popular in worship circles as well as what will probably be the songs of the next couple of years. It features a plethora of artists from worship elder statesmen Paul Baloche and Darlene Zschech to newcomers All Sons & Daughters and The City Harmonic. Reduced to just 15 tracks from the 28-track forerunner, this year’s adaptation features live performances on 10 of the songs—thus providing worship teams with a performance line benchmark. The remaining tracks on the compilation will most likely be worship standards in the near future.

This is a great album for large congregations or megachurches.

It could easily be the setlist for

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Sounds Like: Power-pop funk, acoustic driven, head-bobbing bass beats, tobyMac-esque.

TOP SONGS Most Singable: “Beautiful Day” Strong Biblical Content: “My First Love” (1 Jn 4:19) The Whole Package: “Fighter”(featuring Jason Crabb) MIKE PUESCHELL

The songs “come from a desire to know Christ and to make Christ known to the world around.” This Nashville-based duo is definitely one to watch.

s

CITY HARBOR

Sounds like: Male/female duo with acoustic/pop feel. Some songs are reminiscent of Glee duets (in a good way!).

TOP SONGS Most Singable: “Lift It Up” Strongest Biblical Content: “I Will Rest” (Ps 23:6) The Whole Package: “Come However You Are”

Your Source For Congregational Worship Resources

New Release From the Writer of Days of Elijah Presents the

BARRY WESTMAN

LIBERATION PRAISE

City Harbor Sparrow Records cityharbormusic.com

by

Robin Mark

This debut album by dynamic duo City Harbor sounds like it could be their 5th! The production quality is superior, the harmonies are ever so tight, very singable melodies, lyrics that draw you into worship—an all around exceptional debut album. Molly and Robby both have excellent voices, and their blend is spot on.

Recorded Live at Christian Fellowship Church Belfast

RESOURCES LOUIE GIGLIO

Boy Meets Girl Passion City Church passioncitychurch.com Boy Meets Girl gets to the heart of successful relationships God’s way as Louie Giglio, pastor of Passion City Church in Atlanta, shares in this six-part, multiseries DVD set on dating. Giglio’s series is based on the premise that: “Relationships succeed when an awareness of God and a connectivity to God are foremost in our thinking. God is the originator of life; relationships started with God. If you miss the fact that God is at the heart of it all, you

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key: CHANGE CHARTS • CHORD CHARTS • LYRIC FILES

miss it all.” Beginning at the beginning, with Adam and Eve, Giglio looks at the very first marriage as an example of how God created relationships to be. Giglio uses Scripture, stories, and humor to share his hope-filled messages on beginning new dating relationships and restoring broken ones. In a straightforward manner, he covers God’s design for marriage relationships, challenges that can inhibit relationships, and how to overcome them to lay the groundwork for a fulfilling, God-honoring marriage.

This set is appropriate and encouraging for those dating, thinking about dating, and even those who are

Available at

FairHopeWorship.com/robinmark or 866-WORSHIP

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IN REVIEW already married. It is easily applicable for small group meetings, families, and individuals.

Giglio, founder of the Passion Movement, is also an author and songwriter. He has written several books, including Wired for a Life of Worship, as well as cowriting such popular worship songs as “Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone)” and “Holy is the Lord.”

THE

BOOKSHELF

AMANDA FURBECK

TOM KRAEUTER Worship: Our Highest Calling Training Resources training-resources.org

Tom Kraeuter provides a balanced DVD and participant’s guide on worship. The content includes an easy to follow participant’s guide that takes the audience from a “Biblical Understanding.” and “Expressing Worship” to “Motivation for Worship and God’s Grace” The lessons are concise, annotated, and documented throughout with Scripture and biblical references.

Tom delivers seminar-based lessons with an evenhanded delivery of Old and New Testament references. The presentation is not a hightech affair but is divided into knowledgeable vignettes that should spark deeper discussion. The audience for Worship: Our Highest Calling would lean toward small groups and individuals looking for a basic foundation in worship.

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JOHN PIPER A Godward Heart Multnomah Books

MINDY CALIGUIRE STIR Zondervan

With 50 bite-size reflections that have an amazingly expansive scope, author, pastor, and theologian John Piper offers a catalyst for reflection and contemplation of and about God, his ways, and our response.

In A Godward Heart, Piper worships, teaches, confronts, comforts, and explores difficult questions and controversial topics. He presents his view of child-rearing, hell, political engagement, the goodness and sovereignty of God, and everything in-between. These are Piper’s thoughts, and not all will concur with every perspective. But it’s well worth a read and time offered to weigh the topics prayerfully.

The Christian walk is not intended to be a solitary journey, but instead should involve relationships with other believers for mutual support and encouragement. In STIR: Spiritual Transformation in Relationships, Mindy Caliguire details three stages of spiritual development—learning together, journeying together, and following together. She not only describes each phase, but offers guidance in how leaders and laity can effectively nurture and interact with those believers in each stage and transition them to the next phase.

prayer, Pastor Nigel Morris paints a picture of a God who relentlessly “seeks” us even when we make every effort to hide from him. A story of being found by love, again and again, inspired by Morris’ granddaughter, Nigel’s tale is told with sweet simplicity and profound honesty.

It is in fact the story of every man and woman and Papa God’s relationship with them. Whether the book becomes your pickup when you’re down, lost, feeling shame, or abandonment; a recurring read to catalyze joy and thanksgiving; or adornment for your coffee table (photographs serve as illustrations), it’s a great gift of love to yourself or someone you cherish.

JIM BELCHER In Search of Deep Faith InterVarsity Press

DR. JIM ALTIZER The Making of a Worship Leader Sound & Light Publishing NIGEL MORRIS Papa, Find Me Again In this lovely gift book that is a parable and also a

JEFF FRIEND

ANDREA HUNTER

JEFF FRIEND

ANDREA HUNTER

Azusa Pacific University, offers thought-provoking and valuable insights into topics such as a philosophy of corporate worship, becoming a worship leader, understanding symbolic action, and understanding sacred time. The 19 appendices include information about microphones, vocalist tryouts, website resources, and much more. This should be required reading for all worship leaders.

The role of a worship leader involves so much more than singing a few songs on Sunday morning.

Dr. Jim Altizer, a professor of Worship Leadership at

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Jim Belcher’s one-year pilgrimage with his family through Europe renewed his appreciation for the spiritual fullness and beauty of Christianity and reaffirmed its relevance for today’s world.

Comprised of elements of memoir, historical nonfiction, and theological teaching, In Search of Deep Faith is an engaging, informative journey into the lives, times, and significance of heroes of

the Christian faith. Their stories of sacrifices and devotion to God will inspire worship leaders to more passionately lead others in worship.

JEFF FRIEND

DALLAS WILLARD Living in Christ’s Presence IVP One of the Church Fathers of our age, Dallas Willard has influenced people toward deep relationship with God, teaching them how to cultivate a listening ear, a disciplined spirit, and a living faith. These “Final Words on Heaven and the Kingdom of God,” are taken from lectures that he and John Ortberg shared at the “Knowing Christ Today” conference, just three months before Willard transitioned to heaven. Each talk is followed by an enlightening conversation between Willard and Ortberg. Dallas once again blesses our true identity and reminds us of our call as those who are indwelt by the Spirit and dwelling in the kingdom. Filled with prayer, wisdom, kindness, and

radiant love, each page resonates with the kind of originality and imagination that ignites hope. Willard exalts play… creativity; and gently, but unequivocally dismantles legalism, control, and ceaseless evaluation. Ortberg contributes an amazing chapter on “Experiential Knowledge of the Trinity,” introducing a conversation with Willard who asserts we count on the “Practical presence of the Trinity” more than the rightness of our doctrine. “If we lose touch with reality and life, we’ll never find our way with the Trinity.”

Touching on many topics—living well, living into what Jesus taught, the trouble of leading with emotions, humility, stepping into the kingdom, understanding the person, guilt, spiritual discipline, the power of blessing, among myriad others—Willard and Ortberg’s collaboration here is devotional gift. It is also a compass for finding one’s way through the shadows to a life lived in the kingdom with God. An essential for your library, liberally furnishing inspiration for pastors, teachers, and songwriters.

ANDREA HUNTER

TIM TOWNSEND Mission at Nuremberg HarperCollins Townsend’s book chronicles the interactions of Army Chaplain Henry Gerecke with some of the most infamous Nazi leaders imprisoned at Nuremberg (Hermann Goering, Albert Speer, Wilhelm Keitel, Joachim von Ribbentrop, among others) during the trials there following World War II. Mission at Nuremberg confronts us with the deeper meaning of evil and of good and puts flesh and blood on concepts like mercy, justice, forgiveness, and repentance.

Beyond being a wellwritten view of a hidden chapter in World War II history, it also dramatically demonstrates the heart of a pastor, and the transforming power of a life well lived, centered on faith in Christ and belief in his Word.

ANDREA HUNTER

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IN REVIEW passionate, empathetic style helps to calm and encourage readers who are facing tough circumstances. Church leaders can confidently recommend The Storm Inside as a valuable resource for hurting women.

SHEILA WALSH The Storm Inside Nelson Books

JEFF FRIEND

Intense storms, whether spiritual or in nature, can develop quickly and cause considerable damage.

Sheila Walsh uses biblical accounts and personal experiences to reassure women that God is always present and in control of every situation, even when life’s raging storms and swirling chaos seem to be overwhelming. Her com-

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MARK HALL WITH TIM LUKE Thrive Zondervan Mark Hall’s heart for min-

istry is obvious in Thrive, an invitation into God’s destiny for you. A perfect tome for youngsters of all ages, Hall tells parables to nudge his readers into higher expectations and greater openness to God’s plan for their life. He tells stories to turn them away from the way they have been named and misdirected, the ways they have come to see themselves shadowed by the enemy’s lies. He encourages us to take our lead from the One who made us and his inspired Word. Hall models reaching out to those who need some extra care, and noticing the lives of others.

He maps out pitfalls and describes the strategies of the enemy against our souls. Hall also shows us

how to let God out of the box we’ve placed him in and experience him as he truly is. Amply sprinkled with Scripture, the book leans toward bandaging and encouraging one to relational wholeness, rather than battering one into correct behavior with biblical truth. For those in

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leadership and those who need some, this is an accessible, easy to understand discipleship manual, made for personal reading and/or group discussions.

Especially useful for youth ministries as a catalyst for conversation.

ANDREA HUNTER

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PROGRAMMING RESOURCES Work with me here. I know Thanksgiving is eight months down the road, but we’re going to look at Thanksgiving pieces this month. Why? Because as we focus on vertical and horizontal worship in this issue, it is appropriate to note that offering thanks is one of the excellent ways to accomplish both these facets of worship at once. Obviously, offering thanks to God directs worship vertically. Psalm 100 shows the connection well, as the people of God are exhorted to “enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise.”

But expressing our thankfulness for all the many gifts we have received also works horizontally to bless those around us. It’s why those of us who lead Thanksgiving Eve services love the time of corporate sharing, where we hear story after story of God’s provision, testimonies that strengthen and encourage our faith. Indeed, the congregation is propelled into a spirit of worship by the sharing of its individual members.So here are a handful of recent Thanksgiving choral offerings for your consideration—for November, of course, but for any time when giving thanks is appropriate.

(And when is it not?)

ARR. VICKI TUCKER COURTNEY “Give Thanks” GlorySound If you need a slice of old-school blended worship, this is your anthem. Arranger Vicki Courtney begins with one pass through Henry Smith’s classic praise song, but as she lands on the opening strains of the A section following the bridge, she tastefully launches into the Doxology (“Praise God, From Whom All Blessings Flow”), sung in unison to facilitate the recommended congregational participation. Included with the choral score is a flute (or other C-instrument) obbligato, which enhances the musicality nicely.

SHAWNEEPRESS.COM

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ARR. EUGENE BUTLER “Hymn of Abundance” Hope One of the true giants of 20thcentury evangelical choral music arranging, Dr. Eugene Butler has published over 1,000 compositions with over 50 publishers.

Hope Publishing has been one of his go-to companies over the years, and their continued support of Butler’s 21st-century efforts remains warranted, as this simple but moving 2013 composition attests. The traditional Welsh melody was set in 1970 to the text of Fred Pratt Green (while we’re on the subjects of giants of 20th-century music), lyrics that perfectly inform the vertical/ horizontal worship discussion: “In the just reward of labor, God’s will is done. /In the help we give our

neighbor, God’s will is done.”

HOPEPUBLISHING.COM

DAVID MOFFITT Thanks Be to Our God Benson Looking for a slightly longer Thanksgiving treatment? Consider this 15-minute work from the pen of David Moffitt, who weaves three of his original compositions around Scripture and an optional congregational responsive reading for a package that can be used in a number of settings. All three songs are solid and stylistically diverse, but the culminating number, the title anthem (a co-write with frequent collaborators Travis Cottrell and Sue C. Smith), is especially powerful—a litany of earthly circumstances for which the people of God can be thank-

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ful, including some that wouldn’t be so obvious, ending with lyrically sophisticated thanks for our eternal home and the “peace that opens with our closing breath.”

BRENTWOODBENSON.COM

LLOYD LARSON “We Thank You, Lord” Lorenz The music of Finnish composer Jean Sibelius’ gorgeous Finlandia Hymn has been used in the Church numerous times in the past 100 years, most notably for the hymn “So Send I You” and for Gloria Gaither’s “I Then Shall Live.” Add veteran composer Lloyd Larson’s arrangement of this Susan H. Peterson text now to the ranks. The verses build and build, with a high-voice descant option for the final, third verse,

the lyrics celebrating our justification in Christ and citizenship in heaven. Churches with orchestral players will want to download the free trumpet part or purchase the entire brass quintet score.

Visit ShoutPraisesKids.com to preview albums & download fun extras!

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VD Include Videos wsitLyric Based Split Trax hV Stereo & ersions

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MARTY PARKS “What Language Shall I Borrow?”

Alpha Praise The hymn text for “O Sacred Head, Now Wounded” is set here in a gently flowing minorkey melody that brings new life to great lyrics such as “What language shall I borrow to thank Thee, dearest Friend,/For this, Thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end?” Marty Parks, who always writes with a good ear for the skill level of the average volunteer choir, incorporates lots of unison and easy two-part writing, making this a piece that can be learned quickly in the event you need a last-minute Holy Week anthem this year.

PRAISEGATHERING.COM

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All Pro Sound............................................................................................99 Audix.......................................................................................................105 Avoim........................................................................................................93 Capitol Christian Music Group....................................................................9 CCLI........................................................................................................107 Cedarville University.................................................................................60 Christian Copyright Solutions.....................................................................7 Community School of Worship.................................................................61 Digital Audio Labs.....................................................................................39 EH Publishing...........................................................................................62 Essential Worship.....................................................................................41 FairHope Direct.........................................................................................97 FairTrade Services...................................................................................101 Flexstage...................................................................................................91 Full Compass..........................................................................................104 Fuller Theological Seminary......................................................................63 Go Global Entertainment.........................................................................100 Grace Bible College...................................................................................65 Igniter Media.............................................................................................23 Integrity Music.................................................................2, 13, 55, 57, 103 Kawai........................................................................................................53 Lee University...........................................................................................67 LeTourneau University..............................................................................68 Lincoln Christian University......................................................................69 Loop Community......................................................................................15

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Make Us Holy.........................................................................................47 MediaShout............................................................................................11 North Central University ........................................................................71 Ocean’s Edge School of Worship...........................................................73 Ohio Christian University.......................................................................74 Oregon Catholic Press ..........................................................................94 Planning Center Online.........................................................................108 Praise Charts............................................................................................3 PreSonus...............................................................................................45 Regent University...................................................................................75 Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies....................................76 Sharefaith...........................................................................................5, 37 Sojourn Community Church...................................................................43 Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary..........................................77 Sovereign Grace Ministries....................................................................79 Sterling College Online...........................................................................80 Sweetwater............................................................................................27 Thomas Nelson......................................................................................95 Trevecca Nazarene University.................................................................81 University of Northwestern - St. Paul.....................................................82 Visual Sound..........................................................................................51 WATS.....................................................................................................83 West Coast Bible College & Seminary....................................................85 Worship U..............................................................................................87 WorshipPlanning.com............................................................................29

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LISTENING TO THE SONG OF OTHERS …

BY CHUCK FROMM

WITH THANKSGIVING

R

ecently, I was blessed by our Lord to be able to visit with my long time friend, brother, and fellow servant of the Lord, Ted Bleymaier at his home near Franklin Tennessee. Ted and I were called into ministry together in Yuba City many years ago. He was the tireless manager, and I was the connector/promoter developer of the Maranatha! concert circuit, which served as a youth outreach ministry all over the West Coast north of Bakersfield.

At the time, he was serving as an officer in the Air Force, and I was in city management. The day I left Yuba City to become the director of Maranatha! Music, Ted received orders to go to Lakenheath— the largest US Air Force base in England— where he met his beautiful wife Anne. It seems like only yesterday that Ted and I were driving up the M1 motorway on our way to their wedding in Chester near the Welsh border.

SAME SONG, NEW BATTLE Today Ted is battling a different kind of enemy: ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease). His body is very weak, but his spirit is very strong.

Ted is like a brother to me. Through several ministries as well as through his foundational leadership and service in Maranatha! Music, he has always been a strong and courageous ambassador for Christ.

When we pray for Ted, we are asking God for a miracle to reverse this horrible disease, and at the same time thanking him for the wonderful grace he has poured out through his servants Ted and his wife Anne. They were the first to take the new song (praise music) born from the Jesus Movement revival and spread it through distribution and licensing agreements all over the world. And now from his bed he is still singing “the old, old story of Jesus and his love,” but with a fresh heart and voice. And as is written in Psalm 40, many have heard his life’s song and 106

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have “put their trust in the Lord”—many are still hearing the new song of Ted’s life.

LISTENING FOR THE SONG NEXT TO YOU This year Worship Leader has taken on Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs as our missional theme. In both of the references (and the verses surrounding them)—Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16—Paul does a couple of things that are very important. First he commissions us to speak to one another, or address one another, when we sing to the Lord. This is something we feel the modern church has become a bit lax in. We have gotten very good at creating environments where people are able to pour their hearts out to God, but these same environments often make worshipers feel awkward when

songs in worship to God and also listen to and join in the songs of those around us; where we speak to one another, discover

“LET US MAKE OUR CHURCHES TRUE HOUSES OF PRAYER—PLACES WHERE WE POUR OUT OUR SONGS IN WORSHIP TO GOD AND ALSO LISTEN TO AND JOIN IN THE SONGS OF THOSE AROUND US…” any eye contact is made with the people on their left or right. But looking around us is vital in worship; it is vital in life. I would never have been blessed to hear the new song of my friend Ted’s life unless I listened for it—unless I looked to my left and my right in the body of Christ and found a lifelong ministry partner and fellow soldier for Christ.

Paul also commissions us in our worship to give thanks from the heart. When I was recently addressing my brother Ted, I was filled with agony at seeing his pain.

But I had thankfulness in my heart for his life—that God graced my life with the presence of Ted and his wife.

Let us make our churches true houses of prayer—places where we pour out our

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each other, and pray for one another in the unity we have in Christ … with thankfulness in our hearts. …Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 5: 18b-20 W

CHUCK FROMM is CEO/Publisher of Worship Leader magazine.

Covering You. Over 158,000 churches across North America count on CCLI for license coverage and worship resources—each and every week.

See how CCLI can help cover you.

Music Licensing and Resources

Covers the copying activities that assist with your congregational singing. Over 3,000 publishers/ copyright owners & over 300,000 worship songs are covered.

Song lyrics, audio samples and transposable chord sheets, lead sheets and vocal sheets. Choose the version that best suits your needs.

Allows your worship teams and choirs to legally copy and share commercial audio recordings for rehearsal purposes.

Allows you to stream or podcast your live-recorded worship music on your church’s website or other streaming service.

Movie/Video Licensing and Resources

Movie clips and ideas to use for your sermon/teaching illustrations.

If your church uses movies for any ministry-related activities, you’ll likely need the legal permission that the Church Video License provides.

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