Regionally, the South still qualifies as the most Bible-minded. The top ranking cities, where at least half of the population qualifies as Bible-minded, are all Southern cities. This includes the media markets for Knoxville, TN (52% of the population are Bible-minded), Shreveport, LA (52%), Chattanooga, TN (52%), Birmingham, AL (50%), and Jackson, MS (50%). Other markets in the top 10 include Springfield, MO (49%), Charlotte, NC (48%), Lynchburg, VA (48%), Huntsville-Decatur, AL (48%), and Charleston, WV (47%).
The Endangered Electric Guitarist
Today over lunch, I had a conversation with a fellow worship leader that has become recurring. If I’ve had it once over the last year, I’ve had it at least ten times: why is it so hard to find good electric guitar players?
As a worship and arts ministry leader, this is an issue I’ve pondered at length. I became even more glaringly aware of its significance when I became an adjunct college instructor and started to notice an increasing scarcity in actual electric guitar players. Even more alarming, I’ve experienced an astonishing lack of interest to learn.
Why?
Not surprisingly, I do have an opinion.
Researchers Rank Most, Least Megachurch-Oriented Cities in U.S.
A new study reveals which U.S. cities have the highest and lowest concentration of megachurch attenders among the Christian population.
Only 10 percent of self-identified Christians in the United States attend megachurches – defined in the new Barna Group study as congregations of 1,000 people or more – though the concentration of megachurch attenders varies from city to city.
Las Vegas has the highest percentage of megachurch attenders, with 29 percent of Christians in the market attending these large churches. Baton Rouge, La., is second on the list (27 percent) and Tampa-St. Petersburg, Fla. (21 percent) is third.
Why Theology Matters to Musicians
Bob Kauflin on theology:
When Christian musicians get together, we tend to assume we all have our theology down and we can focus on honing our chops, discovering new gear, and improving our techniques and methodologies. Or maybe we think that theology isn’t that important. Whatever the reason, I wanted to make clear that even at the Christian Musician Summit, theology matters.
Theology is literally the “study of God,” particularly as he has revealed himself in Scripture. It includes not only studying the Bible, but understanding how the different parts of the Bible fit together. Christian musicians need to know theology. But before I explain why, here are four potential objections people might have.
1. People just argue about theology. Yes. Partly because we’re sinful. But mostly because there are some truths that are worth defending and fighting for. Even dying for.
2. Theology just makes life complicated. It depends on what you mean by complicated. If you think that knowing how to play your instrument makes it complicated, then yes, theology makes life complicated. Theology doesn’t make like complicated. It actually makes life simpler. It protects us from reading verses out of context or reading only our favorite passages. Theology tells us what words like glory, gospel, salvation, and love mean. Theology helps us understand what we’re actually doing every Sunday. What complicates life is not theology but ignorance of theology.
New Worship Training
A few weeks ago I had the chance to visit the new National Praise and Worship Institute (I’ll be teaching a few classes for them this summer.) It will be based in Nashville at Trevecca Nazarene University.
What’s unique is that they’re using a conservatory approach… for praise bands! Evidently in big name music schools a freshman string player will be placed in a string quartet with other freshman string players, and they’ll continue together as a group throughout their university career (and in some cases, beyond.)
At NPWI every student will be placed in a praise band and will continue through the 2 year program together. A growing trend is for megachurches to hire bands, not worship leaders, and a NPWI praise band may have the chance to be hired right out of college (NPWI will be using the Slingshot Group to place students into ministry jobs.)
Can you imagine having a drummer who can read music, write charts and direct a rehearsal if the worship leader is sick? That’s who will come out of NPWI – as each band member will have a full palette of courses to round out their worship training – theory, conducting and theology as well as concentrated studies on their instrument with top Nashville talent.
If you have a college-bound teen interested in worship ministry as a career, or are interested in furthering your own training, check out the National Praise and Worship Institute.
Take a virtual tour of Trevecca Nazarene University:
[fbalbum url=https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151190237412653.440251.176060742652&type=1]Chris Tomlin Makes History With New Album
Accumulating the biggest first-week sales numbers of his history-making career, Grammy winner and multi-platinum recording artist Chris Tomlin’s latest album, Burning Lights, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart.
With more than 72,000 units sold, Burning Lights marks Tomlin’s first trip to the top of the Billboard 200 and only the fourth time in history that a Christian music album has entered that chart at No. 1. The scans for Burning Lights, released via sixstepsrecords, reflect a 60 percent increase over first-week sales of Tomlin’s last studio album, 2011’s And If Our God Is For Us…, which moved 45,000 units.
Mars Hill Church Downtown Seattle Relocates to Historic Place of Worship
Mars Hill Church Downtown Seattle, one of 14 churches that have sprouted from the teachings and ministry of founding pastor Mark Driscoll, opened this past Sunday at its new location, a historic 1910 place of worship that once included some of Seattle’s early families.
“There’s a new chapter in Seattle’s history tonight with the salvation of a downtown Seattle building that is over 100 years old,” a local TV news anchor shared last week, Mars Hill reported. “The new tenant, a church, is preserving the building and restoring it to its original use.”
Holding church services at out-of-the ordinary locations is not something new for Mars Hill. The Downtown Seattle church is using the building most recently known as Daniels Recital Hall after selling its Belltown location, the former building of the “notorious” Tabella Nightclub.
Time to Leave Your Church?
Once after a holiday I talked to a worship leader who told me he was planning on leaving his ministry. It’s typical for holiday times – worship leaders have come off a stressful period of rehearsals and multiple services and many are just plain in shock. Shock and stress alone are no reasons to leave a ministry. Over the years I’ve found two major indicators of when I should expect to see a change.
1. Restlessness. I have a cousin who was a pastor in a fairly well known, affluent historic church in a major city. Things were going great and he was happy as can be. But restless. He said he felt change was coming. His church was wonderful, but my cousin had taken it as far as he could and things had plateaued. Sure enough, a few months later he took the call to another church across the country where he’s been happily ministering.
Some people in ministry take the Apostle Paul approach – their gift is to help struggling ministries get healthy. Then when the church has stabilized they move on to another struggling ministry.
Or maybe it’s as simple as a worship leader growing in his or her own faith, realizing there’s more to life than trying to politically please a stagnant leadership, and yearning for a church on fire where they can get busy for God.
2. Frustration. I had been working in one church for a few years and was as happy as a clam. A friend asked me “why are you still here at this church?” and I replied that I was having the time of my life and had no plans of leaving.
Two weeks later a new elder was elected who had an obvious vendetta against me (I would guess it stemmed from the fact I wouldn’t let his off-pitch wife sing on the praise team.) I suddenly went from doing everything right to being constantly “in trouble” – everything was wrong, from the songs to the style to the flow. I received another offer and was gone in 6 months (the same elder then proceeded to chase off the youth pastor and assistant pastor.)
There are two morals to this story. First of all, a message to the congregation: if things are going great in your church, keep an eye out for pesky elders and deacons who are looking for trouble where there is none. Many of them are unfortunately chosen because they are simply successful businessmen and not Spirit-led. Encourage and defend your staff because they are probably under constant attack and criticism to the point where they wonder “why bother.” That, may I add, is why churches are desperate to find good worship leaders – most have quit! I had three emails last week alone from churches looking to fill music positions.
Second of all, notice that I didn’t go out looking for something else – I was given an opportunity. When I’m called to a ministry I assume I’ll be there for the rest of my life. I typically do not make a move until God makes it for me or opens a door – I’ve only once looked for a church job. This is a major confirmation as to whether I should endure a situation (and try to improve it) or leave.
If I were ever to see this elder again, I’d thank him for running me off. As Joseph said in Genesis 50:20, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good.” Is that not the truth! If I hadn’t left that ministry I would never have gone to Seacoast Church, would never have met Chris Sligh, would never have driven him to all his American Idol auditions, would never have had the exciting, wild ride of a lifetime with the hoopla of Season 6 and would never have had the chance to work with legendary producer Brown Bannister who crafted Chris’s debut recording. Whenever my clock radio wakes me up to my string arrangement on one of Chris Sligh’s songs playing on the local Christian station I have to chuckle – I could never have planned anything this incredible on my own so I’m just fine with letting God handle it.
Bottom Line: Ministry frustrations? My advice is this: life is way too complicated to figure it out on your own – let God lead you. Jeremiah 29:11, Psalm 25:4-5.
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