PROMISES...

Micah 5:2
But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Juda, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is form old, from ancient days.

Matthew 2:1
Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem.

7 Things That Mac People Do That Drive PC People Crazy

I feel fortunate that I have friends in both the Mac and PC camps.
There are benefits to both forms of computing and I tend to think we can all get along.
But Mac people tend to be...
How shall we say it...
Um...
JERKS.

So, for all you Mac folks out there, I'd like to offer this list of things you might be doing that cause your PC friends to hate your guts. If you're doing these, try, you know...stopping.

1. Always argue when someone says that Macs have problems, too. Use a lot of stories about when you used PCs and all the horrible things that happened. Be prepared for an argument anytime the issue of computers is brought up.
   
   
2. Retweet, share, re-post and talk about every single Apple "unveil" that happens. (Seems like unveil some new product every two months.) Use every means necessary to make sure all your friends know that you're in the know about new Apple products. Constantly.
   
   
3. Play down how expensive Macs are. Don't acknowledge that they are ridiculously priced and that the Mac demographic is pretty predictable.
   
   
4. Use that Mac sticker. As much as possible.
   
   
5. Ignore good, clever, expertly done PC marketing.
   
   
6. Act like folks should just give up if they're trying to do music or video on a PC. (You're wrong, by the way. Some of the best things you've seen and heard in your life were made on a PC.)
   
   
7. Hide the fact that you still use PC elements. (Parallels, etc.) Behave as if Macs are perfect.

SUNDAY SETLIST 11/29/09

TODAY IS THE DAY
Even though I love-love-love Paul's new version, our team has always done the Lincoln Brewster arrangement. The song went great and locked in better than ever. The verses of this song have always been a little low for me so I had Sarah, my co-leader lead the verses on this one. It ended up giving the song some energy in those verses...I'm betting that the song definitely becomes a co-led number.

Welcome/Greeting
We normally schedule the welcome after song #2, but we had a very different service order today. Our post-Thanksgiving 'greeting' was for folks to tell each other, "You've lost weight." I thought it a fitting greeting. Get it...fitting?

YOU HAVE SAVED US
Second week to do this one. The rhythm of this song is really interesting. Coupled with the delay riff, the song has to land just right on tempo. Ours went okay...I think we're still figuring out how to find that rhythm all together. For some reason, I really noticed how great this team does in transition. The drop chorus and build came off so strong and the band did a great job.

Baby dedication
We dedicated 2 kids this morning - one in each service. Ross did a great job...always feel for those parents when the kids get so wiggly during dedication! Both families did great.

FOREVER FAITHFUL
Third or fourth time to do this one. As the writer, I'm liking that the melody seems to have caught on. I think it's easy to sing for the crowd and pretty intuitive. Don't know that I've seen it really pop off in a big way, but I think that's okay. I think writers often struggle with wanting their songs to drop everybody to the floor when they play it and that's not always (or hardly ever) the case. The concept of writing songs for your specific congregation is cumulative, in my opinion. I'm not looking for a room full of 200 people to weep and wail...but I am praying that over time these original songs would instill in us a good, reverent view of God. I'm okay with Forever Faithful where it is. (Songwriters who can't learn to be content are no fun to be around.)

GOD WITH US
Second time to do this one and it went just as great as before. In this specific setting, I really notice more engagement with the verses than before. The last time we played it the chorus and bridge seemed to be the hooks, but today was stronger as a whole. I encourage you worship leaders to try this one out!

COME THOU LONG EXPECTED JESUS
We did this Red Mountain Church tune. Sarah led it and it went great. We formed it up a little bit. Red Mountain's version is pretty spacey and ambient and we tried to meet somewhere in the middle.

Great day!

SUNDAY SETLIST 11/22/09

Because of Women's Minstry Event on Thursday night, we didn't rehearse and opted for the 8am run-through. This was a gamble as we had Bruce McMinn only on his 2nd week of drumming and Jason and Susan Hyde on their 2nd time to background vocals. (All three did a fantastic job, by the way.)

I'll the songs in order and then talk about the differences between the 9:30 and 11:00 sets.

YOU HAVE SAVED US
This is a new Baloche tune off of Glorious. When I first heard this tune, the groove didn't sit well with me. I was ready to write it off, but that delayed electric part was too powerful to ignore. I was glad to have Kirk Bozeman on one of the electrics today because Kirk dominates when it comes to delay. We did it as Song 1 while folks were walking in, so it's hard to tell what's what. We'll bring it back next week and see what happens!

A THOUSAND GENERATIONS
I'm all about Don Poythress. This tune from the Wash Away record is so strong. It amazes me that such a simple song can be so powerful in a group of people.

ALL WE NEED
We haven't done this Charlie Hall tune in months, but I personally thought it was the high point of the set. Bruce nailed the hi-hat/snare intro and tune rocked harder than it probably ever has. Dave Smith's lead break was great. Most of you know that Charlie's version usually has a pretty wet nondescript slide part. I like that slide part, but Dave's chorusy/wah lead was perfect.

PREPARE THE WAY
Second week to do this Jared Anderson tune. I let Jason and Susan carry this one and they did a great job. Both of them have wonderful voices and I'm looking forward to hearing them sing more. A few weeks ago, Elizabeth suggested we alter the order because the song really is long. I wanted to give it another full pass, but she's right. As that song gets more time, we've gotta' mix it up to keep it fresh. (...doing the song exactly like the CD nonstop-without fail is a really, really boring way to lead worship.)

YOU ARE WELCOME HERE
We had planned to do a mellow version of this Billy and Cindy Foote song. We ran out of time in both services. I'd still like to bring it back, but I didn't miss it too bad today.

The Breakdown: our first set was pretty clunky. I think nerves were a factor for some of us and it just didn't groove the way it needed to. Overall first service was still good...the band didn't tank, but I think it felt a little out-of-control for us. We didn't feel like we had command of the songs and could focus on the interplay between instruments. Second set was stronger. Transitions were better. However, I think the crowd from first service was a bit more engaged. (This tends to happen when a church begins pushing it's members to an earlier service. First service will be comprised of your faithful people who are going to jump into worship quicker and second service will be more folks just checking you out.)

I'm excited about this week. We've got a Tuesday practice and we're going to break out some Christmas music!

5 Great John Mayer Moments

Mayer's new album was released this week. It's been a unique process, as Mayer has documented many of the songs-in-process and developments on Twitter and YouTube.

It's a great record...one of Mayer's best in my opinion...but I'm enjoying some of the smaller, more subtle elements of the record and figured I'd share them to see if you feel the same.

1. The closing lead transition in "Perfectly Lonely." This track is noticeably void of John's signature riffing until John sings the bridge of the tune and segues beautifully into his solo. Dynamically perfect!
   
   
2. Closing vamp of "Half Of My Heart." Brilliant poetry comparing his heart to a "shotgun wedding" catches the attention and then lands where John sings about being a man who's "never loved anything." It's one of my favorite moments because John's taking a song that's fairly repetitive and still finding a way to surprise us - not with melody or rhythm, but with transparency.
   
   
3. No rolls. Once you've listened to this record 10 or 15 times, go back and listen again for drum rolls. Oh, you'll find some. But not many. The record has so many songs that have captured groove without overselling it. I'm surprised many of the songs on this record actually rely on vocals to transition energy. Every drummer ought to dig into the record to see a great example of "less is more."
   
   
4. Fake ending on the last track. You might think "Friends, Lovers or Nothing" is over, but you'd be wrong. John writes and records a great track that feels complete and then surprises us with this sing-song outro that tends to rattle around inside your head.
   
   
5. The Straight Stuff. We're used to John's rocking and rollicking blues-shuffle stuff, but two of the most noticeable tracks are both very straight in their feel. "Half Of My Heart" and "War Of My Life" are almost country in their attack. The record is definitely varied and these two tracks give it some nice complexity.

I love it when music surprises me. This record has surprised numerous times already and I'd love to know what you think of it. Dig it? Don't dig it? Did any of it surprise you?

Fighting For Christmas...

Yesterday, I talked about the struggle I face every Christmas - trying to enjoy an amazing holiday season in light of particular musical stresses that seem to be pretty common to worship leaders. However, over the past few years, I've done a couple of things to ease stress both personally and at home.

1. Keep my mouth shut. The worst possible thing a worship leader can do is come home and unload all of his frustration on his poor wife and kids. Granted, Kristen is my partner in all things and she knows me better than anyone in the world. But if I'm a bit more careful about how much I "bring home," it tends to help me focus more clearly once a new workday kicks off. Keeping my mouth shut creates some good boundaries that help to attack the work in a healthy way.
   
   
2. Stop worrying. Seems simple enough. But it's a hard thing. Worship leaders live and die by being aware of their congregants and working hard at analyzing what's happening. Doing that often gets you dangerously close to people-pleasing. The smartest thing I can do is work hard and keep a loose grip on the need for approval.
   
   
3. Compromise carefully. Anytime we start backing off on our God-given calling in ministry simply to honor tradition, we're in dangerous territory. For me, it's critical that I remember that I have a purpose every single Sunday and while the season may change, the job doesn't. Remembering that helps me to actually enjoy the process of trying to build a service that will honor long-lasting (and deserved) tradition while making sure that our focus is still to give God honor.

That's my list...what do YOU do to combat holiday stress?

Why I Hate Christmas

How's that for a catchy title?

The reality is that I actually love Christmas, but I don't know of a harder season to experience as a worship leader. It's strange for me, and over the past few years, I've had to work very hard at maintaining some healthy habits to make sure that I didn't ruin Christmas for my family because I couldn't turn off my stress when I got home. I don't know if other worship leaders experience the same sort of tension I do, but here's the list.

1. Too many chords. Now, listen, I can play most any chord if I've got enough time to learn it. That's not what I mean. No, I hate Christmas because many of the songs have so many chords changes that the overall flow of the song gets killed before you're out of verse 1. There are some great songs, but they are nightmares to play because your musicians are so freaked out at making 39 chord changes in one chorus that they can't focus on actually listening to one another.
   
   
2. Worship. There are quite a few Christmas songs that are worshipful, but trying to fit carols into a 'contemporary worship' setting is one of the most stressful things I've ever tried to do. There's a fine line of creativity - folks want it to still feel like a normal worship service but don't want you to jack with the classics too much.
   
   
3. Special Christmas Eve Services. People love Christmas Eve services, but let me tell you something - they are nightmares for musicians. Because folks come to Christmas Eve service wanting something great and epic and memorable, musicians often struggle with finding a way to make time to create an awesome production without alienating their family. If you have musicians that serve on Christmas Eve, give them a hug!
   
   
4. You'll Never Get The Schedule Right. A fellow worship leader said something really profound the other day. We were talking about Christmas and she said, "If you don't hit Christmas songs the Sunday after Thanksgiving, half the folks are gonna' be mad. And if you do hit it hard on that Sunday, the other half's gonna' think it's too early." The hardest part about leading worship during Christmas is the understanding that it's the one season of a church's life where you are GUARANTEED to fail at pleasing everyone. Oh, sure, we know we can't please everybody, but I don't know of any other time of the church calendar where it's quite so pronounced.

Tomorrow, I'll be sharing some of the stuff I've done of the past few years to help fix some of these issues. I hope you'll stop by!