Catching Up

Thank goodness for Monday... how often do you hear that? Not very often, at least not out of my mouth. Tonight, however, happens to be a different story. Allow me to explain:

Whoever decided that Finals Week at Otterbein should be the same as Holy Week obviously wanted me dead. Taking finals Monday-Wednesday, then having extra rehearsals and services Thursday-Sunday is probably not a good idea, but I got through it, and everything went well. Now I'm at "home" (my parents house) enjoying a couple of days off before heading to New York later this week for our Wind Ensemble tour. A few highlights:

I actually got to get out front and lead at our Good Friday service. Normally I'm tied to the keyboard the whole time, but I was fortunate enough to have Bryce Bell sitting in with the band for that service. Bryce has played with some really top-notch folks, including Petra and Rebecca St. James, so not only did he give me a break from keys, he also played them much better than I would have. All in all a winning deal for me.

Sunday we inaugurated our new in-ear monitor system. I was a little nervous to do that on Easter, of all the weeks of the year, but the timing just worked out for it, and everything worked well. No major technical glitches, which was nice. Beyond that (and far more importantly), both of the aforementioned services went very well. Everything worked, the band played well, dramas went off without a hitch, and the folks in the congregation really seemed to make a connection... which is why we worry about all the other things in the first place.

I was thinking about that idea on the way home yesterday (2 hour drive allows some time for thought). My official title at Centerpoint is "Worship Arts Director" - I know that jobs like that have been around for a long time, but it almost seems a little pretentious... to think that I could (much less should) "direct" the worship of others, as if it was a play or a movie. In the end, though, I don't think that's what it really comes down to. The way I see it, I really have two major responsibilities in my job. The first (and more important) is to be a leader by example. If the people up front are worshiping honestly and passionately, I believe that it relaxes the folks in the crowd a little bit. The other is to help create an environment which facilitates the worship of others. The more I think about it, that's really what I do. More than actually leading the group, I think about things like what kind of lighting and music and atmosphere will help people let their guard down and open up to God. Granted, I'm utterly unqualified to do that (aren't we all!) but I'm really amazed by what God is doing at Centerpoint. People are experiencing God's presence and they're responding with genuine worship. I can't take any credit for that, but I'm still humbled and blessed to be a part of it.

Well, that's enough for tonight... time for a good night's sleep and no responsibilities again tomorrow... sometimes a break is just what the doctor ordered.