Carlsberg

Bear with me just for a moment.

I want to yield to one of the things I intensely hate about the blogs of worship leaders: I want to start this article with the phrase ‘I have just come back from a conference and….’.

I know it’s unforgivable, but I just can’t see any other way of introducing this blog post. So please, try and indulge me this time, and I promise not to use the phrase again ever. Well at least until June when I go to the next one….

Anyway…

I have just come back from a conference, and during one of the sessions, I was reminded of what is probably the most beautiful sound in the world. Voices spontaneously worshiping God. In this case, some 2000 voices. (Of course, this last comment is also mandatory worship-leader-blog fodder, because it gives an indication of how big the conference was, and so just how important and famous and anointed I must be to have been there).

It had been a strange conference in many ways - one in which my theology had been tested and my mind stretched. Lots of things I need to think about. And some I don't think I will think about too much! But on this last night I was leading worship with my great friend Eoghan Heaslip. The band played really well, and the congregation were really ‘up’ for worship. It was quite easy in one sense.

But I have to admit that it was long after Eoghan and I had left the stage that this beautiful moment occurred. It was nearing the end of the ministry time that the speaker/leader struck up a very simple note, and encouraged the 2000 voices to sing out. And boy did they. And it went on for what seemed like ages. Amazing harmonies, rising waves of colourful heart cries, all meshing together in a Holy Spirit sustained cacophony of sound, where any imperfections in individual voices somehow offset themselves and created this wonderful, glorious symphony of worship.

And it all happened without a band.

Rats.

So I am not indispensable then.

OK, so this wasn’t church. It wasn’t even close. For a start it was in this amazing conference centre where the acoustics were great - were you could really hear the combined voices around you without them disappearing into the vaulted ceiling of some cathedralesque monstrosity that most Anglican churches seem to be like. And the conference was made up of people who had paid good money to be there, who were church leaders and so understood (at least in part I hope) what makes good worship. And it was the final evening, so everyone had gained momentum. And of course we had all left our children at home with our parents, friends, baby sitters etc. And of course there were so many of us.

Nothing like real church.

But still this was a beautiful moment, one to be cherished, one that illustrates a lot of what worship should be. Holy Spirit inspired and sustained; no individual or band or worship leader playing any more than a bit-part role. And of course nothing going on that would generate a song royalty.

What a beautiful sound it was. One that will stay with me for a very long time.

In fact, I recon that if Carlsberg made worship, then...

Indian Food

This week I’m taking some time out with the family. We’re staying in a lovely cottage in the town of Beer in Devon. The cottage is owned by some friends of ours and we’ve been here a number of times. We love the tranquility, the open fire, the views of this charming fishing villiage, the deli and the beech. And joy upon joy, this year an Indian restaurant has opened just 100 yards from the cottage - just opposite the Italian and the fish and chip shop. And another great addition is a coffee shop that sells great take away coffees. Everything you could dream of all so close by. I am in heaven. I told my wife that I would like to buy a house here. She wasn’t overly impressed, but my negotiation skills are legendary, so watch this space.

Anyway, as I have has a little time to reflect on life so far, there are a number of things that have come into my thoughts again and again.

The first is that I need to get fitter. I have put a few pounds on over the last few months and I can tell. I am huffing and puffing too much, and my trousers are feeling slightly too tight around the waist. As I look at my diary over the next six months, I don’t think I will be able to do what I have to do well if I’m not in better shape. The usual stuff at Trinity, which still gets the vast amount of my energies, is challenging enough: but on top of that over the coming months I have: a couple of trips abroad - New Wine in Sweden and a Mission camp in India; leading worship at a couple of conferences; half a dozen talks; a couple of worship team training days; a women’s conference (!!); another racecourse celebration; and of course New Wine in Shepton Mallet. The thing is that I know I need to be physically up to it, as well as spiritually up to it. It means when I get back from this holiday I will need to be on strict food rations, and down the gym at least three times a week. My aim is losing half a stone. I’ll let you know how I get on.

Another thing that I have had to learn recently is that I need far more time on my own, preparing for all that I do. The office is no good, because it’s too busy. Home is no good because it’s too noisy. I have now found the perfect spot in Cheltenham where I can run off to most mornings. It’s a great coffee shop. And it’s not Starbucks! It’s very quiet until around 10.30 in the morning so I head off there for the first couple of hours of my day. I know that I need to keep that commitment up for my own sanity. The old saying that you can’t give out unless you first take in is true. And actually I am an activist (workaholic, some people call it) so find this sort of discipline hard. OK so the coffee helps, but I have resolved to more regular preparation time.

Another thing I have been reflecting on is the whole area of legacy. I had a great hour with a friend of mine from the States - Andy Booth. He was passing through on his way to lead worship at Spring Harvest in Skegness. He is someone who I have a lot of time for - he is a great worship leader, and leads regularly at Spring Harvest, but you never feel anything goes to his head. He is humble and thoughtful and God-centered. He even manages to report on his travels on his blog without giving you the feeling that he’s bigging himself up. Check out his blog - it's www.gadjesty.blogspot.com. Anyway, he said a number of things that I found personally very encouraging. One of those was about legacy: what our own legacy in the kingdom is. He was encouraging about some of the worship leaders that have emerged from Cheltenham and gone on to be people who raised up others themselves. We talked about how one of the great tests of legacy is how those you invest in go on to invest in others. It’s as though the greatest fruit is in the generation after the next! I guess in the same way is that one of the ways that my parenting skills will be judged is not just about how my children turn out, but how they in turn raise their own children.

So there you are. Three thoughts for the week.

Must go now. The smell of Indian Food is wafting up the street and I have 6 days to go before I have to start my diet.

promotion

promotion: advancement in rank or position, furtherance, something devised to publicize or advertise a product, cause, institution,

Ok, so admit it. How many of you have typed your name into google to see how often you get a mention?

I did it.

And I got 1,680 entries.

My 1680 entries are, unsurprisingly, far less than the 31,900,000 for Jesus Christ, but, rather pleasingly, significantly more than the 302 for the rev Mark Bailey. Rather disappointingly there are 2,040 entries for Keith Hitchman, but I think there must be another person with the same name as my friend and co-pastor, unless he is living a secret second-life as the chairman of the Snake Lane allotments committee in Feltham near Staines.

In the good old days it was very hard to get press coverage. You either had to be very rich to buy some advertising space in the newspapers or on television. Or you had to be truly news-worthy and attract the attention of reporters or publishers. OK, you could stand on the street corner and shout loudly, but that had limited market penetration. But these days, with the world wide web, you only need a few minutes, and a laptop (preferably a mac of course) and off you go. In fact, it has never been easier than it is now to promote yourself.

The very clever, also know how to manipulate their websites and blogs so they get to the top of a google search. (How do they do that? I mean I can’t even get my blog to appear in the results of a google search - even if i type in the blog name and my name in the search engine box - and let’s face it, if i know that then why would i need to google it anyway…)

The concept of promotion is not a completely unknown in the bible. Joseph got promoted, and so did Shadrach Michach and Abednigo. These were promotions in the workplace, the context of which we are probably familiar and understand. And that’s no bad thing. I used to celebrate the times that I got promoted in my days in the insurance industry. And even in the church ‘workplace’ there are promotions where people rise to levels of increased responsibility and influence within the church community. I understand that this has to happen. And I also realise that in the Christian marketplace there needs to be a way of providing information about products so that people can make informed decisions as to what they buy. I do understand.

But just recently I have found myself being very very disappointed as I look at various blogs and web-sites of worship leaders and see the level of self-promotion that is going on.

Very probably, much of it is unintentional. Some may even be a misguided attempt to celebrate what God is doing in their lives. But generally, I read most of this stuff and my heart just sinks. As a breed, we worship leaders are far, far too concerned with making public our own influence, our own impact on the Kingdom than we should be. And we are far too unconcerned with the way that our self-promotion - intentional or not - is robbing the King of His glory.

Call me old fashioned, but what possible benefit is there in having a worship leader tell me on their blog how many people are being blessed by their songs in countries around the world, or how well their album is selling, or what award they have recently been given, or how many people attended their latest 'concert', or even how much of their future royalties they are giving up to the poor.

I would say that I’m totally “not bothered”.

But actually I am.

Very bothered.

Because we’ve all got so much to lose.

And one sure fire way of losing something in the Kingdom is to put out a hand and grab some glory for ourselves.

So, in the immortal words of Blackadder in the 'concert party' episode: please please stop.

lifeblood

lifeblood - life-giving, vital, or animating element

Creativity is the lifeblood of progress.

Creativity is the first-fruit of redemption: when a soul becomes born again, it aligns itself with the most potent, far-reaching creative person in the universe.

Creativity precedes consensus: it steps out in advance of the comfortable masses, forging a way through mediocrity, building a pathway that will one day become the norm.

Creativity flies in the face of traditional business models and measures of profit: it confounds their wisdom and redraws their landscapes.

Creativity took the Sovereign King to the cross and opened up a way to the Father.

Creativity releases potential: it allows us to breath, inspires us to run, propels us to flight.

Creativity is the perfect antidote to criticism, defying the insecurities of the world that surround it.

Creativity demands commitment: it engages the will and the purse in the pursuit of it’s objectives.

Creativity is light, revealing the nature of God to the world: it is the light that shines light on The Light.

Creativity expunges toxins that left untreated, lead to death: it renews, reforms, refreshes.

Creativity is the fuel of the dreamer: it paints in colours never seen before, carves out textures never felt before, produces harmonies never heard before.

Creativity is risk that flows out of hope: it says ‘things don’t have to be this way’.

Creativity is the lifeblood of progress.

Leading Worship COE style - Preparation

preparation: any proceeding, experience, or the like considered as a mode of preparing for the future

Ok, so all you worship leaders out there, be honest with me, be really honest this time.

How much time do you spend preparing to lead worship?

Because, let’s face it, the more we do this worship leading thing, the more we get pretty sick and tired of choosing songs. We all look down our song list and our hearts sink. there just seems to be nothing new, nothing fresh, nothing that really grabs us.

Then you try and think through new ways of playing those songs, and we maybe start to see a glimmer of creative hope. But then you realise that your drummer, Hit-Spray Simon, only knows one rhythm - 4/4 - and he plays exactly the same rhythm for every song, even the 6/8 songs, and when that doesn’t work he looks at you and scowles like it’s your fault, moans about the quality of his foldback, and then tries to cover up his inadequacies with the drum fill from hell. Finally he always speeds up so that even though the song started out as ‘purify my heart’ it ends up more like ‘the happy song’.

And so in the midst of your preparation, you start to feel a bit more depressed.

And then you remember the bass player, One-Note Nigel, who should be playing with you that week. I say ‘should’ because you are never sure if he’ll turn up, and even if he does he will always be four minutes late. To the dot. And you know that when he comes in he’ll be wearing that tee-shirt that says ‘bass players don’t need music’ and wearing that silly beenie. And then of course you’ll have to have that conversation about why tuning the bass is really quite important after all. And you long for him to smile, but know it will never happen as it’s a genetic malfunction that requires surgury, deep prayer ministry, or in the last resort, death, to rectify,

And the clouds descend.

Then you remember your electric guitarist, Thrasher Thomas, only has one volume - ear bleed - and also has that common electric guitarist syndrome - noisy-jack-lead-itus. The combination of the ear-bleed volume and the noisy-jack-lead last week caused Auntie Phylls and Great-grandmother Silvia to convulse, and the amp to blow. Although the blown amp didn’t seem to worry the guitarist who just turned up the volume and now calls the sound it produces as ‘quite grungy’.

And your shoulders slump.

Then of course there is your keyboard player, Bumble Hands Harry, who has twenty fingers. At least you think so given the number of notes he seems to be able to press all at once, covering the entire frequency range with one swoop. And then there’s that rack of sound modules that seems to try an emulate the national philharmonic orchestra, whale music, and the Irish international pan pipers all at once. And of course, even if all of these are turned off, there will always be the continual, never ending, drone of the special ‘worship pad’ that is used with astounding regularity because the keyboardist thinks it actually generates the anointing of the Holy Spirit in the services.

And if things couldn’t get any worse.

You remember which Pastor it is leading the service with you. Mr Warble-Voice. He thinks he has the gift of prophetic singing and regularly gets up to the mike in times of worship and presents his most recent offering. The said pastor keeps telling you that ‘God has given him a song’, and all you end up concluding is that ‘God only gave him that song because God didn’t want it himself’.

Then just as you are about to get started on that song list again you remember who is on the sound desk: yes it’s Feedback Fred. Feedback Fred has two main inadequacies when it comes to mixing the sound. First, he doesn’t know how to mix. And second he doesn’t understand sound. So you know that this service the congregation will have to go through the entire morning with a sound mix consisting of one of the floor toms combined with the low hum of feedback from the backing vocalists. Nothing else. Just floor tom and feedback. All the way through. Still, at least the one glimmer of hope is that it will mean that no one will be able to hear Mr Warble Voice.

Your preparation is ruined.

‘Leading Worship C of E style’ recommends a significant amount of preparation for worship. But what is the best preparation that any of us can do?

And in my mind it’s this: preparation that increases our ability to hear the voice of God; preparation that tenders our hearts to sense the presence of God; preparation that fires our souls to worship God. You see as I look around the modern church and modern worship scene at the moment I see many many people who are very good at what they do. They know the chords, they know the rhythms, they’ve got the beats. But what I think the church is crying out for is not so much people who are very good at what they do, but people who allow God to do what he is very good at doing. And so any preparation that increases our dependence on God is probably preparation well spent.

And actually, Hit-Spray Simon, One-Note Nigel, Thrasher Thomas, Bumble-Hands Harry, Mr Warble Voice, and Feedback Fred may well need to work harder, and pursue excellence in their ministry. But if, through all of that, the voice of God is lost, then they will have failed. Miserably.

Because excellence at the cost of encounter is pure folly.


[all these characters are entirely fictional and any similarity to any worship team member I have worked with, present or past is purely co-incidental. Except Hit-Spray Simon. He is real]

Leading Worship COE style: Liturgy

I have a couple of things in common with the Bishop of Gloucester (who wrote the note that I have called ‘leading worship CofE style’). One of those is that we both belong to the Church of England, and have pursued a calling within that church which has taken a huge amount of commitment and service and devotion to duty. OK so he’s ended up with the bigger house and sexier job title, but I’m in no way bitter about that.

The other thing we both have in common is that we are both liturgists.

Yes really.

I am a self confessed, card carrying liturgust. I have the T shirt, the DVD, the car sticker, I am part of the facebook group. Everything.

I am a liturgist because I write songs for people to sing in church.

And I recon the type of liturgy writing that I am involved with is probably the fasted growing, increasingly influential liturgy in the modern day church today. Far more influential than anything that is in the Anglican prayer book or book of common worship. You don’t believe me? Well, if you ask most worship leaders these days to recite the ‘prayer of humble access’ they will look at you as though you need counselling. Ask them to play ‘heart of worship’ by Matt Redman and they will be able to sing and play it word and note perfect, in the right key, with all the same arrangements and dynamics as any other worship leader in virtually any other country in the world.

Ok so my songs aren’t quite as influential as Matt Redman’s. But then his are pretty good.

But it does lead me to ask this question: what makes good liturgy?

Well let me suggest a few things.

Good liturgy has it’s inspiration in the work of the Holy Spirit, who is always looking to glorify God. He is a creative Spirit and a sign of His activity is in the newness of the things He creates though His people. When liturgy isn’t inspired and anointed by the Holy Spirit, however technically good it is, it will not be full of life and will tend to point to people or things other than the One it is meant to point towards.

Our churches and songbooks are full of liturgy that shouldn’t be there because they were born of man and not the Spirit. One worship leader friend recounts the time when a songwriter came up to him, played some dreadful worship song that he had written, and then declared ‘God has given me this song’. My worship leader friend says how he had this thought: ‘well, if God gave that to you, it was probably because he didn’t want it!’ Yet another time, a songwriter came and played him a song and said, with a hint of false humility ‘it’s not me that wrote this song, but God’. My friend said that his initial reaction was ‘well it’s not that good!’

Joking aside, though, it is very probably true that too much of our liturgy has a little too much of the inspiration of man in it, and probably not enough of the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in it. ‘Good and clever’ just doesn’t cut the mustard when it comes to liturgy. In fact ‘good and clever’ on it’s own is probably more annoying than anointed.

Good liturgy is full of truth. It draws together the truth of God’s gloriousness and the mystery that surrounds Him and entwines itself around the heart of the worshipper, compelling it to praise. Like it or not, liturgy sinks deep into people’s hearts and stays there, stoking passions and driving activity. That’s why any writer of liturgy needs a strong theological framework and preferably a few other theological brains around them to check things out.

Good liturgy gathers a whole bunch of people and voices and hearts into an expression of unity. And as the church recites it’s liturgy it finds a common ground and declares to God and to any human ear that is listening that it is better off being together than apart.

Good liturgy serves the church and it’s mission, packaging the things of God into a form that the world can relate to. It can't sit outside culture, it has to be part of it. Once our liturgy has ceased to be accessible to the outsider, it needs to be revisited, refreshed, enlivened, or discarded. Liturgy is never sacred.

But above all.

Way above all.

Liturgy should sweep up the worshipper into an encounter with God, and then should fade away into the background as a truly divine exchange unravels. Heart to Heart. Deep to Deep. Because the real feast begins where the liturgy ends.

Leading Worship COE style

I was given a copy of a note that has been circulated by the Bishop of Gloucester to all the clergy in this diocese. It was entitled 'Leading Worship'. I found it really interesting, and thought it was worth sharing. Of course you need to get into more traditional anglican mode, which is of a vicar, with an organist playing the hymns (maybe now and then with a music group playing some songs).

I think it may be worth looking at some of this again in future posts?

1. What is the task of the leader in worship?
- to work with the Spirit to bring the worshippers through Christ to the Father.
- to draw the liturgy into unity and the congregation into community
- to ensure that there is a sense of welcome and inclusion
- to be sensitive to those who may be lost, confused or on the margin

2. What is required of the leader of worship?
- prayerfulness
- openness
- a handful of confidence and a pinch of reticence- but just sometimes a pinch of confidence and a handful of reticence
- preparation - including familiarity with the text
- being at ease in one's body
- serious intent - a desire to draw into the mystery of God
- sensitive antennae
- warmth, joy, more warmth, more joy
- love of the Lord and love of liturgy

3. Some first questions early in preparation
- for whom is this service principally intended
- what is the nature of this community
- in what season is it set
- what is it's particular emphasis or theme?
- how long should it be
- how confident will the congregation be about it's worship
- does it need high or low profile leadership

4. Some questions as the service order comes together
- does this service feel like a joyful celebration of the people of God
- will the service have a sense of wonder and reverence
- what will be the balance between my leadership and the input of others and between what an individual speaks and what the congregation says, sings or does
- will the elements of penetence, intercession, thanksgiving and praise be present
- will the gospel of Christ be proclaimed
- what will be the teaching element in the service
- what expression will there be of welcome and of fellowship

5. Some final questions
- are there any 'stage directions' i need to have given
- will questions about standing, kneeling, sitting be clear
- are there any questions about visibility, furnishings, sound that need attention
- where do I need to stand! and to sit
- will my one-liners help draw the worship together or destroy the flow?
- have I allowed time to pray before people arrive and to stand at the door and greet people before we begin

6. A rogue question
-how much of this applies in a very informal service, perhaps not even in a church

input - big

big: of major concern, importance, gravity, or the like

I was having coffee with a friend recently who has just moved to Cheltenham having previously been on the staff of a church in London. He said that his boss at that church had, during one particular discussion on the way forward on something, had once said to him: “Yes, I do believe in democracy in all of this. I am convinced about the one man one vote philosophy. And I have to tell you, that I am that one man, and I have that one vote.’

And I have to say that something resonates with me on this. It is far far easier to work with people who just do what you say all the time and don’t complain. You may remember me saying this before, but in my last job in the Insurance industry I was given the nickname ‘the bulldozer’ by some of my colleagues. Maybe not the best recommendation on my people skills, but one I was kind of proud of in a sad sort of way! Of course, I mean, I like the creative process and the brainstorm as much as the next man, but at the end of the day, I very quickly want to move from discussion to decision, and often my natural instinct is to say to my team: ‘look: the deal is this - you do what I say and I will still pay your salary.’

Some people tell me it’s not the best way to win friends and influence people.

But now you know what I’m really like. Deep down.

There is a point in bearing my soul in this way, though.

And the point is this.

How do you raise up big leaders - leaders who will do big and significant things in the kingdom - without losing any sense of unity and direction and purpose and vision?

And I would like to suggest a few things that I have found important in the team I work with. Not that in any way I have been great at this, but they are my thoughts!

The heart of it

Volunteer or paid staff, young or old, experienced or rooky, the first thing is always character. Choices about leaders rest on this probably more than anything. Good character underpins trust, which is vital if you are going to be able to release big bits of stuff to other leaders. Good character results in an otherliness that promotes unity rather than self-promotion that tends to be divisive. And the bigger the responsibilities, the greater the strength of character required. Almost without fail, significant character issues come back to bite you.

I have the teeth marks.

The big and the small of it

I remember one of my worship pastor friends asking one of his younger worship leaders to help put chairs out for a meeting once, only to get the younger worship leader square up to him and say ‘I don’t do chairs!!’. I remember hearing another story where a pastor in a large church stuck his head out of his office and called into the open-plan section outside his door ‘anyone making me a cup of tea then?’ He tells me how he was marched up to the office kitchen and ‘encouraged’ to make the whole of the rest of the office tea himself!

Big leaders seem to take on the small things with as much enthusiasm as the big things. My boss expects me to lead worship at new wine for 4000 people and also expects me to turn up on a Saturday morning to turn the pa on for the Trinity Women’s event.

And to smile through both (which, actually I do!).

So when we look for people who could take on big responsibilities, I think we need to look for those who are happy to do the chairs and make the tea.

And smile a lot.

Running with it

In my mind, there is a big difference between ownership and freedom when it comes to responsibilities. I think it’s far easier to release things to people if they know what their boundaries are, and can operate effectively within them. So often you hear people say things like ‘I can’t own this unless I have freedom to do exactly what I want’. Unfortunately, where you operate within a team of any nature, complete freedom is never an option. Or to coin a phrase of a well known TV advert at the moment ‘It doesn’t work like that’.

Just do it

Sometimes in ministry you have to be able to say to people ‘Just do it’. Sometimes things just can’t be fully explained or justified - sometimes because of confidentiality, sometimes because of time, sometimes because of wider pastoral or leadership considerations. It’s not the norm, but sometimes you need to be able call on your equity with people and ask them to ‘Just do it’.

Occasionally I have to say to younger worship leaders - actually, just change that song, just use that person in your band, just turn up at that prayer meeting and lead. It is such a huge relief when they just say ‘ok then’. One guiding principle in my role is this: I choose to be uncomplicated. It maybe that my Pastor wants a particular song, or wants to intervene in a dispute between staff members. My choice is to be uncomplicated. Doesn’t mean I don’t share my views! It just means that now and then, I choose just to do it. I choose to accept that occasionally the deal is 'You do what I say and I will still pay your salary!'

So input number 5: people who understand the heart of it, people who appreciate the big and the small of it, people who run with it, and occasionally people who are happy just do it.

input - rejoicing in the success of others

This is an article I wrote some time ago, but in our current look into the way we can invest in others, it seemed the right moment to give it a new airing!

One Christmas I went and watched my daughter take part in her school’s nativity play. She was playing the lesser-known character from the biblical text of ‘snatcher the thief’! It was a proud moment to watch my daughter act well, remember her lines, and get laughs in all the right places. Right at the end for the big final song, she found herself at the front of stage, lights on her, cameras flashing, singing her heart out. It was fantastic. I’ve even got it all on home video.

I’ve been reflecting a little bit on what it means to truly rejoice in the success of others. And as I remember that Christmas play, and watch the video, I realise that as her father, I was desperate for her to succeed - it was natural. And when it all went right, as it did this time, it was easy to rejoice in that success. But equally I realise that this is not naturally the way of the world. When I worked in the finance industry some years ago it seemed that success seemed more reliant on making sure other people failed as individuals crept up the corporate ladder. Even, dare I say it, in Christian ministry there can be an unhealthy competitiveness, if not outright jealousy when others do well. Worship leaders (and i speak as one!) can be the worse, especially now so much of the worship industry has a commercial aspect to it.

When I started heading up the worship ministry for New Wine, I sensed that I should be using the platform I had been given to raise up other leaders - and I vowed to the Lord that I would! I remember the very next year giving a young worship leader a chance to lead for a week. And I have to say he did very, very well. In fact I remember being on the font row as he lead worship thinking - ‘I thought it would be good, but i didn’t think it would be this good’. And in some ways, I was struggling a little with it - the worship was going so well, and I was not leading it!. And God spoke to me in that moment - it was as though he said ‘If you mean what you say about raising others up, this is what it will feel like’.

There’s that time when David had slain Goliath, and as he and Saul and the army travelled back, the people of Israel were chanting ‘Saul kills in his thousands, but David kills in his ten thousands’. And we see how badly Saul reacted to that - he couldn’t cope with the new guy doing well and getting so much adulation. And this reminded me a little of how I had reacted that evening at New Wine. And I also recall how I very quickly got to the stage where I realised that I didn’t want to feel the way I did. And in fact that the words the God spoke to me that time were more of a challenge to sort it out rather than a life sentence to feeling rubbish every time someone else succeeded! And so I’ve done a little work trying to articulate what I think we need to grow in if we are to be people who truly rejoice in the success of those we are raising up.

Wisdom

Comparing Saul and David, we get some idea of the root of wisdom. When things started to look like they were going pear-shaped for Saul, he started to take things into his own hands (1 Sam 13). When things got tough for David, he looked to God (1 Sam 17). As someone once said ‘A person who approached each decision with a trust in God, and acknowledges Him rather than lean on his own understanding, is wise.

If we are to see others succeed, and rejoice in that, we need incredible wisdom in choice of person. It is actually quite easy to put people on a platform. It’s actually quite hard to get the right person. Putting the wrong person on a platform, how ever well intentioned, is not a wise thing. Putting someone up on a big platform at the wrong time, could destroy them if things go badly. In my role here at Trinity, despite being the worship pastor for 11 years, I have only really invested significantly in 5 or 6 other worship leaders: I have seen potentially hundreds of hopefuls though! We need huge amounts of wisdom in who we invest in.

Generosity

We need to develop a generous attitude. Some time ago I read a book by Gordan McDonald called ‘secrets of the generous life’ and it’s really been a huge challenge to me. If I am to see others succeed, I need to be generous, not only with my time, my affection and praise or my money, but in giving them the great places to serve and work where they have chance of success.

Loyalty

Loyalty is not an ‘in thing’ these days, except maybe in terms of financial loyalty through store cards and the like. But relational loyalty is often hard to come by these days. As I reflected on my own journey in ministry, I realise in many ways I am the product of the loyalty of others around me. Much of my success is down to people with the guts to stand by me, especially when things go wrong, and i’ve made bad decisions.

Now of course, or first loyalty is to the Lord, and I’m not saying we need to blindly follow others and never disagree. But actually, I think we are all too ready to disown people when things go a little astray, rather than stay loyal. As someone who has had experience of people laying into me when things have seemed hard (a long time ago!) and experience of people being loyal when things are tough - I know first hand how important this has been. As people intent on raising others up, we should be intent on standing by them through thick and thin!

Bounce-back-ability

This probably isn’t a proper word, but it should be. What I mean by this, is the ability to get back up, after falling flat on your face, and start again.

An invitation to invest in the success of others is an invitation to fail. There will be times when those you choose let you down, sometimes very very badly. Look at Samuel. He put a lot of effort into Saul. But Saul let him down. And Samuel grieved long and hard (1 Sam 15). BUt God said to him ‘How long are you going to mope over Saul. Fill your flask with anointing oil and get going’.

Here is the call to leadership: fill your flask with anointing oil and get going. There will be times when others - even those who we invest hugely in - let us down. The key to leadership is getting back up and starting again. Or as Churchill put it: ‘leadership is about moving from one failure to the next without loosing enthusiasm.’

Wisdom, Generosity, Loyalty and Bouncebackability. Four things we need to grow in if we are to truly see others succeed, and for us to rejoice in it.

input: mr grumpy

grumpy: surly or ill-tempered; discontentedly or sullenly irritable; grouchy

I recon that on my death bed, one of the things I would most regret about life would be if I hadn’t had a whole bucket load of fun along the way. And even now, if I could re-write bits of my worship leading journey, the thing I would put in the script would be a whole lot of laughter.

You will know by now that from time to time, my team call me Mr grumpy. And let’s face it, I can be very grumpy from time to time. And even as I write this, I feel a little convicted about my miserableness. Whether it’s because my three shot latte isn’t quite hot enough, or that my pannini was only cooked for the standard three minutes rather than the four minutes that I prefer. I get especially grumpy when my in-ear monitors don’t work properly, (Although let’s face it, in-ear monitors are designed specifically to not work properly), and I get grumpy when my bass player turns up the usual 4 minutes late on a Sunday morning (what is it about bass players that they are always 4 minutes late. to the second!).

Every so often our church makes the local press. Especially at things like the carol service. And I have noticed that there is never a picture of me in the paper. It’s always someone like Melody Ball or Hitchman or Bailey. And that really annoys me. I do all the hard work and slog my guts out for months then right at the end, Hitchman or Bailey turn up and steal the glory. It’s so hurtful.

But maybe it’s because I just look to miserable.

I have now spotted this permanent little groove on my face between my eyes that I recon isn’t a laughter line, but a grumpiness line. How sad.

And I know the effect that grumpiness in others has on me. The thing that causes me most sleepless nights: winging and critical emails. The thing that causes me to want to avoid coming into the office each day: the possibility that I may have to have a conversation with a grumpy person. The thing that drains the life out of me the most: the miserable egit who can always see the problem in what I do.

Barry Kissell is a great friend of our church, and recently he talked about the fact that he didn’t have new year’s resolutions, but new year’s intentions. So here is one of mine: to have as much fun as possible without breaking the ten commandments.

And when I look back at some of the most enjoyable and fruitful times in my worship leading journey, they seem to have come when I have had a bunch of happy smiling faces around me. I look back to New Wine when I have had Melody, Laura, Jules and Nae (the original ‘diamonds’) and Jake and Kev and Stu and Pete and Dave playing with me. It was awesome fun. I think about the time that our team of pastors here at Trinity go for our bi-weekly ‘pastors meeting’ at a little local Italian and share dodgy jokes or take the rise out of Hitchman. I think about the times that at worship team practice we abandon our instruments and plug in ‘guitar heros 2’ onto the big video screens in church.

The people that seem to sustain me in ministry (apart from Jesus of course) seem to be the fun people, the people that bring laughter, the people who smile. So one of the things I would encourage others to do is seek out people who inject fun into their lives and ministry. Learn to laugh at others and yourself without getting insecure. And maybe when that grumpy person starts to head towards you on the street in town - why not just cross over and walk by on the other side.

Certainly this is definitely my intention:

No more Mr Grumpy.