Comedian Tim Hawkins lists the top 101 church cuss words.
What Happens When Your Songs Are Too High
Jaime Brown on song keys:
I was recently watching a well-known worship leader lead worship at a church that was broadcasting its service online. His leadership was excellent, the band was playing well, and the songs were really good. There was one problem, though. The keys were all way too high.
I’ve written before about the art (it’s not really a science) of choosing the right key for your congregation, so I won’t go into all those details again. You can read this article if you’re wondering what guidelines to follow (generally) to choose congregation-friendly keys. But if you’re not convinced that it matters what key your songs are in, here are some effects that high keys have on a congregation.
They stop singing
They might not all stop singing at once, but they do start dropping off like flies pretty quickly. The brave and enthusiastic will keep on singing. But the people who are on the fence about singing (and you know that every church has them) will stop singing first. Then even the eager will start dropping out because their throats hurt.
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Elevation Church Confidentiality Agreement
Over the past few weeks a confidentiality agreement that must be signed by Elevation Church volunteers has stirred up controversy on the Internets.
Some have blasted the document:
This goes well beyond just manipulation of members. By asking volunteers to sign this document puts well-meaning members of Elevation Church at great legal peril. If the church perceives a member is violating any terms of this document by publicly criticizing the church over finances – or even publicly disclosing abuse within the walls of the church – the church will consider them to have done “irreparable damage” to “the Church”, and the church will seek a court injunction against the member.
And here’s Pastor Steven Furtick’s infamous “Hey Haters” video (editor’s note: since this article was originally published, the “Hey Haters” video has been scrubbed from the Internet except for this one instance.)
What do you think: is the confidentiality agreement prudent business or cult-like?
Church Builds 60 Foot Cross
JANESVILLE — In 2003, the leadership of New Life Assembly of God adopted a new vision statement: “To make the Janesville area Christ conscious.”
Love it or hate it, the new, 60-foot cross on the church’s grounds fits that vision.
Construction of the cross started April 29, and a crane last week lifted the top section of the cross into place, bringing it to its full height. Church Deacon Wayne Korsberg slid into a fall-restraint harness as volunteer workers from the church used a lift to fasten sections of white, corrugated steel to the cross frame.
The cross weighs an estimated 25,000 pounds, will be lit by three lights and sits in enough concrete that it should withstand winds up to 90 mph, The Janesville Gazette reported.
The community reaction to the cross has been surprising, Korsberg said.
“Everyone I’ve talked to has reacted positively so far. A lot of people from the neighborhood have come by, and some of them have actually donated to the project,” he said.
Korsberg said he hopes people of all faiths, Christian and non-Christian, will flock to the giant metal cross.
See more pictures of the cross.
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Loading ...Worship In The Aftermath Of Violence And Terror
Kristen Gilles on worship in the midst of tragedy:
Our nation was jolted last week by the tragic, civilian “war zone” created at the Boston Marathon after two terrible explosions killed 3 people and horribly wounded nearly two hundred others. The news media photos depicted bloody carnage on the streets of Massachusetts, terror rarely witnessed on U.S. soil in modern times.
These acts of violent terror against humanity happen every day around the world. No matter how it happens, or where it happens, the heart of God weeps with all who weep in the aftermath. And His righteous anger is stirred against the wicked. He is not sleeping. He is not deaf. He hears the bloody cries for justice. And He has promised to righteously judge the wicked.
How should Christians respond to the rampant evils, oppression and injustice of this world as we live to trust, obey and declare what is true about God? What should our worship of God sound like in response to such evil? Consider this Psalm of David, which he sung to the Lord as his own cry for justice in the face of great persecution and violence.
3 Lessons Your Church Can Learn from Disney Part 1
Jason Hatley compares the Disney culture to ministry:
Recently, I was asked to speak to a group of pastors in Orlando and while I was there, I was invited to go on a “behind-the-scenes” tour of Walt Disney World.
Needless to say… I was excited! Sure it was going to be fun, but the real reason I love experiences like this is because I believe that God has ministry lessons for you wherever you are, if you’re looking for them.
My ears were open and my eyes were peeled. But even I was surprised by how applicable these THREE BIG leadership lessons are to what you and I do every week in leading our churches and Worship Ministries. (I’ll cover the first one today).
Here it is:
#1 – OVER-MANAGE THE DETAILS
That is… don’t assume. Go above and beyond to ensure that every detail that can be planned and examined is… well… planned and examined.
Let me explain.
Early in our tour, we found ourselves backstage at one of Disney’s “audio-animatronic” shows. It was early that morning before the show opened to the public. If you’ve been there before, you know that these robots that depict American Presidents and other historical figures are incredibly life-like. But they’re not human… they’re robots. They run on a computer program and do the exact same thing in the exact same way at the exact same time every day (sounds like some churches I’ve been to – ha!).
The point is… they don’t have to rehearse because they always do the same show.
Yet there I stood early that morning, watching as a robot show that has played almost identically for over 30 years went through it’s daily morning test run.
No one was there to see it, but the engineers told our group, “We do this test run every morning because we want to make sure that the show that our guests see today is the very best it can be.”
To some it may seem like a waste of time, but these guys were so committed to excellence that they went above and beyond, looking for anything that might keep these robots from performing at their best.
Now – in our churches we don’t really use the terms “show” and “performance”, but the principle is right on.
- Over-manage the details. When it comes to your worship service this Sunday…
- Don’t assume that everyone the individuals on your team know they’re serving. Confirm them by phone or email to ensure it.
- Don’t assume that your band knows how you want to do the song at rehearsal. Send them some notes early in the week to inform them.
- Don’t assume that the video and lighting transitions will happen at the right time. Take some time to practice those in your cue-to-cue Sunday morning (more on this idea next week).
- Don’t assume that the broken piece of equipment from last week will work fine this week. Have it repaired and test it before Sunday.
Charles Swindoll says: “The difference between something good and something great is attention to detail.”
Let’s not settle for a “good worship experience” when, with attention to some key details, we can provide a “life-transforming worship experience”. God has already promised that He’ll do His part. Now let’s do ours!
Be fanatical about the details. Lead your team to care about the details.
Doing so (I believe) is an act of worship.
Tim Hughes Interviews Martin Smith
Worship leaders Tim Hughes (Here I Am to Worship) interviews Martin Smith (Delirious?)