Allie's nursery
6 years ago
A band is banded together...
The ride back from Warner Robins yesterday may have been one of the best rides from my home to Athens ever...
It didn't seem to take nearly the two hours that usually lull me to sleep when driving it myself. And this is mostly because I spent the time with some great guys that have made this last year of college so worthwhile...
I can say with confidence that I would gladly have stuck around an extra year in Athens just to play music with these bandos. They are so extraordinarily talented, and not only have they continued to play with this immense talent that God's given them, but they've also strived to get better every step of the way...
If we never play another gig together, I know that while we played we were one of the tightest-knit groups I've ever seen when it comes to playing worship music...
Too often in this new scene of praise and worship churches have begun to hire out on a weekly basis for professional musicians...
And don't get me wrong...
They're absolutely getting what they pay for. They're getting a quality set every Sunday, and people certainly respond to it from a worship standpoint, which I would think in the end is the true goal, but...
One of the greatest things about doing worship music over the past 8 years or so of my life hasn't been so much the leading on the stage, but the growing with the band backstage...
More life change and growth has happened for me as a musician from growing with a set group of people pursuing a missional goal than anything else...
We push each other. And argue with each other. And create together. And love one another...
There's no way to create that kind of relationship playing together once every couple of weeks with random people...
Again, let me reiterate. I'm not knocking the current model. It absolutely works and works well for the congregations each week...
But, I worry for the musicians...
Are they being truly challenged in a way that they can respond to?
Growth is a personal endeavor for sure. If I'm not attempting to grow myself then no one's going to grow me...
I'm pretty confident that the musicians selected are striving for personal growth on their own time. These churches wouldn't use them if they didn't think that they could confidently put these individuals on stage if they didn't represent Christ in our world...
But there is something to be said for the growth of musicians surrounded by musicians...
A musician forced to work on his craft and his life around people that truly know what he's capable of and going through...
It's vulnerability...
And it's life-changing...
And it's just the type of small group that we should strive for regarding all our attenders...
So, why have we chosen to break this up?
For the quality of worship?
For the guarantee of yet another flawless Sunday?
Yes and yes... But let's consider this...
Doing something with excellence should mean doing what's best for all those involved...
The people on stage as well as off it...
Explosions in the Sky...
I'm currently listening to Explosions in the Sky...
The band...
Hence, the use of capitalization... It lets the reader know I mean the band...
Not literal explosions in the sky...
Although, real explosions in the sky would probably require some serious capitalization...
And, yes, I really do get that off track that quickly...
Explosions in the Sky could possibly be one of the greatest bands ever. Most of you would recognize their music from the movie and TV show, "Friday Night Lights". (Which, by the way, is one of the best shows on television, but that's a discussion for another time.) Their music has no lyrics or vocalization. They create their music with only their instruments... and... it... is... so... good...
You can focus in on it, and really listen and analyze it, or you can do what I'm doing now and allow it to be the background noise/awesomeness, while you do something else. Either way works perfectly fine, and I'm highly recommending it as blogging music.
The funny thing is that I'm writing all this with the firm realization, that my last blog was epic in depth and breadth and thought, and I'm hoping that backing away from that kind of writing is simply OK.
I'm sure it's not the greatest piece of writing any of you have ever read, but it left me with some serious thoughts to ponder, and from some of your responses it seemed to resonate at least a little. And this isn't pride talking. This is realization setting in...
Writing a blog like that is hard work.
And I'm not smart enough or old enough or maybe even mature enough to be trying to act like I know what I'm talking about all the time...
Besides... I'm new to this whole blogging thing again, and I don't want to feel nailed down to produce mind-blowing/mind-numbing bits of prose every time I take a minute to share my thoughts... It could mean something really terrible... Like you thinking that I live my life thinking that deep and profound all the time.
I don't...
Sometimes, I think as simple as...
Explosions in the Sky is really awesome.
And I wanted to share that with you.
Because I really like them
And also, I want you to know something else.
And this is way out of left field, but it's where my head is tonight...
It's where I'm struggling to not be too dramatic and deep but feeling like this is way more important than telling you about an awesome band.
This is the quote/unquote, "important part".
It really is OK to have doubts about your faith.
No one should hate you for that. No one should expect you to be secure all the time with the idea that God sent His Son to die for your sins, and that you don't deserve it, but He did it anyway because He loves you, and this thing is called grace, and you had pretty much nothing to do with it, and all you're suppose to do is accept it no questions asked...
Questions should be asked.
And this is not the mindset of a lot of people in church.
But there are some places where people do believe this. Where it's easy to ask the tough questions, and to not have to know it all. Where you could have gone to church your whole life or never at all, and there's a place for you to fit in.
Where, you ask...
Well... If you don't know this, I'm in the process of helping to plant a church in Warner Robins, GA called Longleaf Church. It will be an amazing place for relationships and music and truth and love, and hopefully, one day, it will be very full of people asking really hard questions about all of these things, and relationships will be built to help people through those questions.
This place should be and will be a place where having doubts means your growing and learning, and where your building relationships... Not only with the people around you, but with a God who loves you because as those hard questions get answered your faith grows.
And, maybe you find a loving God on the other side of those doubts.
Hopefully, you do...
We think it's what He intended.
If we were all born knowing innately all of the truths this world holds then I don't think there would have been much of a purpose for Jesus in the first place.
But Jesus is one awesome guy.
And I think he might would've liked Explosions in the Sky...
And I know He loved you.
With or without doubts.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
