Shoutlouder

How do we deal with this!

// August 21st, 2008 // 4 Comments » // Leadership

I’ve really wondered how to write this blog post as since yesterday the blogosphere has been fast building up with a million comments on what has happened in Australia with Mike Gugglielmucci. If you’re not aware then confirmed reports are coming out that Mike has admitted to making up his entire illness – for what gain or why no-one yet knows.

I found out yesterday and to be honest my brain didn’t believe it for about half an hour as the whole thing just seems so unreal. But the truth is out and we have to deal with it as leaders and people who have been moved and challenged by the ‘testimony’ of Mike. I was even inspired by his song and the ‘testimony’ recorded on the Hillsong DVD to preach on healing the other week in church – showing a 3min clip of Mike talking about his ordeal. It all just seems unreal…

So how do we deal with this? I found this article from Mal Fletcher really helpful because I know Mal as a senior global leader who also knows Mike personally and his family.

Mal writes:

I have known Michael since he was a little boy and have always loved him – I still do. Our hearts, of course, go out to those closest to him.

Though Michael’s is not a household name, his music gift and speaking talent, along with his very charismatic personality, have made a major impact on many young lives, in a number of nations.

I write about this here, with some discomfort, because some regular readers of this editorial will know Michael and will be trying to understand the situation.

I write also because the issues here are bigger than this individual case. From time to time, Christian ministers and leaders will fall. People of faith must be able to face the inevitable question: ‘How can this happen – and how should we respond?’

I think Mal’s comments and direction are the best comments I can find at this time because here is someone who carries the respect of tried and tested leadership mixed with the emotion of personal involvement.

Read the full article here – in the meantime – let’s be praying for Mike and his family – that God’s grace will move and turn all things for good and the Glory of His name!

the art of worship leading

// August 12th, 2008 // 7 Comments » // Leadership, Sunday, Worship

I’m no amazing worship leader but I am a Pastor and one of the things I need to attempt to do is ensure that whoever is leading worship in my congregation is doing a good job. So I found the latest blog at churchrelevance.com really interesting as it lists the Top 10 Peeves about Worship Leaders as compiled by an American pastor. Looking through it was quite surprising to see what was in there but made me think as to exactly what I DO like to see from our Worship leaders… so you can read the Peeves here but here’s my 10 response to those Peeves so as to explain what I’m looking for:

Peeve 1: Asking the Congregation to do Something

It was interesting to see that people disliked it when they are told to raise their hands in the air or turn to others and say hello or shake hands. Funny cause we do both! But I understand part of the sentiment as I do hate it when someone just says in the middle of a particularly charged worship moment… “oohh just raise your hands…” cause I have to ask the question that most un-churched attenders are asking.. “why?” I think if you’re going to give instruction then make it meaningful! Here’s a challenge for every worship leader to give meaningful instruction that draws people to lift hands, sing louder, appear to enter into God’s presence, whatever it be you are attempting to do… but don’t use the phrase.. “lift your hands!”

Peeve 2: Mini-Sermons & Talking

Some worship leaders don’t know when to shut up and some just seem to appear on stage, get lost in their own world and then hand on to the pastor after 30mins. Our format is generally to kick off with a great praise song then a short encouragement to worship and then that’s it apart from maybe a few ‘meaningful’ instructions later on. Key thing is to make sure you have SOMETHING FROM GOD and not just a piece of worship leader rhetoric. Plus I encourage our leaders NOT to pray for the crowd but instead to encourage them to begin to pray… after all you’re leading THEM in worship and not doing it on their behalf!

Peeve 3: Not Focusing on God

This goes without saying really – the worship leader needs to be a worshipper! So you need to be confident that they are not just on stage doing an excellent job but that they are also engaging in giving God their worship.

Peeve 4: Unprofessional

We demand a high degree of excellence from our Worship Team because when you practice well, learn the music/words, know the runsheet and can keep tight with the rest of the team – there are no distractions for the congregation and there is nothing to stop the musician/singer from really worshipping God themselves. So we don’t allow any music / music stands on stage, there’s no cue cards, no props – just musicians/singers who value worship so much that they are prepared to put the time in to practice and learn what they are doing.

Peeve 5: Bad Singing

Erm – yes – who wants to listen to a bad singer. I find that it works best when we have a good blend of a number of singers with a strong melody line. Don’t get lost in harmonies because the congregation need to know the melody – especially when doing a new song. So we have harmonies but make sure they are not overpowering or confusing.

Peeve 6: Appearance

Dress code is important and our bands adhere to a casual smart policy – we want them to look up-to-date and ‘trendy’ – but nothing distracting or too flash.

Someone makes the comment on this peeve that they don’t like Worship Leaders with their eyes closed. This is a good point – Worship leaders need to make eye contact with people. I say to my leaders – you can find value in your worship to God by seeing others really getting into it. Obviously there are times in the presence of God when it’s appropriate for the leader to close their eyes – but they should really have their eyes on what is happening around the room at all times so they can ensure the crowd is being led in the right way.

Peeve 7: Inauthentic Prayer

Like I mentioned above – don’t just pray – if you’re leading worship you should come to the meeting with 3 or 4 things that God has been stirring in your heart so that you can pluck from these what the Spirit guides you as appropriate. More often than not its more important to get the crowd to pray. So encourage them to start singing in the Spirit, praying in tongues, telling God how much they love him etc… although make sure you giving them ‘meaningful instruction!’

Peeve 8: Bad Transitions

If you’re a worship leader then you need to spend as much time on rehearsing transitions between songs and links as you do the actual songs as dynamic and atmosphere can be lost in a bad change, awkward silence or horrible chord progression. Also avoid the obvious links / puns – better to say nothing at all! Finally be careful not to rush on to the next song! Sometimes it’s good for people to linger in a place of worship – ears open to the Spirit!

Peeve 9: Improper Lifestyle

As far as I’m concerned its an absolute privilege to be a member of the worship team – even more so a leader. It has nothing to do with our need or their ability and everything to do with character. So if that means we have a guitar and congos and nothing else because there are only 2 people who have their life and motives in line to be a worship leader then fine – cause I believe we’ll have a more powerful worship time with the right people on stage, rather than a full stage with people who are upholding bad character and mindsets. Worship leaders need to be pursuing God with all their heart, mind and soul and be an incredible servant to the whole house.

Peeve 10: Not Catering to the Congregation

I guess this one comes from people who think that the worship is their own baby and they can do what they want. I like it when our songwriter comes up with a song that is directly in line with what has been preached because they are enabling the ongoing revelation of God’s word amongst the congregation. There is no point singing songs too complicated or culturally irrelevant because you need to be able to establish a culture in which the un-churched can find themselves in an atmosphere that draws them closer to the divine touch.

So there you go – what about you? What do you LIKE most about worship leaders… what would you prefer to see / hear more of or see / hear less of?

a trip to Christians Against Poverty

// August 8th, 2008 // No Comments » // Evangelism, Leadership, Missions

Had the great pleasure to visit the CAP offices this morning at the invitation of Matt Barlow – the UK Chief Executive. The main reason for the invite was due to the increasing number of my congregation who are being employed at the Head Office based in Bradford City Centre. So it was good to connect with Matt and get a chance to see first hand the place that everyone raves about… and they have good reason too..

CAP’s head quarters is an old mill that has been converted into a large open place office space keeping some of the old features. The main floor you enter onto is effectively a massive attic complete with sweeping glass windows that make up the entire wall and overlook the city centre of Bradford. You can’t help but stop and stare across the city in awe as you take in the mass of humanity that is sprawled before you – a mass of lives currently living under the weight of the ‘credit crunch’ which makes CAP’s work even more important as across the nation it seeks to help people out of the often overpowering and crushing weight of debt.

CAP won the award for the No.1 Small Business in this years Sunday Times competition. No mean feat at all – and the award sits pride of place amongst a whole heap of awards and recognitions that this incredible organisation duly deserve.

It’s amazing that it all started in the heart of just one man – a passionate John Kirkby who just wanted to make a difference. Now there are over 90 staff and even more being employed each month in a business that is funded entirely by the generosity of CAP ‘Life Changers’ who give monthly and then through the sponsorship and donations provided by businesses, banks and individuals. Plus on top of that there are now CAP centres open in churches across the nation and now – thanks to a chance meeting with Ps Phil Pringle at the last Fabulous Conference – CAP are opening up centres in Australia and elsewhere around the world.

It truly is a remarkable achievement and goes to show what can happen when someone takes a hold of the God given vision that God has placed in their heart. The untold stories are the countless thousands of lives who are being freed from debt every year through their work – plus the many who don’t just receive freedom from debt but also freedom in Christ through the witness and prayerful support of the staff and workers across all the centres.

As I sat with Matt chatting over the coffee a Bell rung in the office and I found myself experiencing first hand the gathering of the entire office staff to hear about the two people who have just become Christians through the work of CAP. As we stood there listening to the testimony and praying for the individuals you could see the faces of the staff members being refreshed and filled with a new sense of purpose and vision, realising that the job they were doing is more than just a job – its changing lives for eternity! The bell ringing is a daily occurance – even happening up to two times a day – and no one ever tires of the interuption..

It really is quite a profound thing that God has done and I count it a privilege to be connected to what is happening – not just through the members of the congregation who are staff members – but also as this week we signed up as a CAP Money church. This means we’ll have 4 trained members of the congregation who can run CAP’s new Money course with a small group of people – giving basic financial advice and support to everyone. It’s an opportunity to share with people the simple basics of how NOT to get into debt – but also a door of opportunity to share something of God’s love in people’s lives.

If you want to support CAP then make sure you visit their website at www.capuk.org – and if you’re interested as a church at getting involved then give them a call!

new blog pickup… church relevance.com

// August 4th, 2008 // 1 Comment » // Blogging, Leadership

Just picked up on a great blog that is out there called churchrelevance.com filled with some great studies, facts, figures and pick ups on what is happening in the wider church.

There’s an excellent post with some intriguing stats on what the ‘unchurched’ look for when joining a church compared with what those who have already been in a church may look for when changing for whatever reason.

The only thing I’d love is there was this kind of site working in the UK as a lot of these stats are American based – and different cultures can provide a mix of results. So if you’re aware of something similar on this side of the pond do let me know. In the meantime I’ll let churchrelevance.com give me some food for thought from time to time!

journey's into design… now my brain hurts!

// July 31st, 2008 // 1 Comment » // Inspiration, Leadership, Self-Development

I’ve just spent the best part of two days now working on the soon to be launched website for my Senior Pastor – the beige destroyer himself – Dave Gilpin. (I’ll afford a link here to the ‘not-yet-launched’ site for anyone reading this after about one week from now – otherwise you’ll currently only get the Hope City Church site).

I decided that I’d be incredibly geeky and try my hand at building the site on a Wordpress platform – as is this blog – as it seems everyone is suggesting these days that Wordpress is the latest CMS of choice.

Well for a basic novice who knows how to manipulate the odd-style sheet – I have to say its been a labour of ‘almost’ love. But really pleased at the result – even more so since Dave actually like it!

My designing days have been an interesting development of trial and error since the only design qualifications to my name is a solitary A-Level in Art and Design. It all started with a desktop PC in the church office that had a programme called Corel Draw (version 2 I think – that’s how long ago it was) and some Student Posters that needed making. Before long I was created a few flyers for the church, then a brochure for our training academy, then a website and before you know it I’m a freelance graphic designer earning my own living.

Well – maybe it wasn’t as simple as all that!

The hardest part of all this is presenting the final draft to Dave – as he’s not exactly known for the ‘pastoral put-down’. If he thinks its rubbish then he’ll say it… which I have to say has led to many frustrating and de-motivating moments in my graphic design journey. But – there’s always been a sharpening edge from Dave that doesn’t leave you gasping for air – but instead seems to propel you forward to do better, to excel where you thought you’d reached a dead end.

Most people take criticism falling down – one negative word and you’re out for the count. But I’ve chosen to accept that often my first work isn’t always my best. Whether its a website, a flyer or even a message for preaching on Sunday – my first draft is only the starting point. If you’re involved in any kind of project or task – don’t settle for just ‘winging-it’ on your first attempt. Do your best – then step back and determine to improve on what you’ve just done. 9 out of 10 times you can come up with something better!

So next time you’re feeling the sharpening edge of a mentor or leader – make a decision to allow the sharpening to proceed because it only leads to greater experience and success in your life.

why I love pixar…

// July 26th, 2008 // 2 Comments » // Inspiration, Leadership, Megacentre, Movies

I took my son Joel to see Pixar’s latest creation, the unconventionally named WALL-E – about a little robot who is the only surviving robot of a whole fleet designed to clean up the Earth after centuries of rubbish build up. As is expected from such a movie – this accidental hero happens to inadvertently save the human race from growing fat out in space. Quite the topical issue for an America growing fatter by the year.

But thought provoking and meaningful sentiments aside – the movie is quite fun and as usual Pixar stretch the bounaries of CGI having already conquered the insect world (Bugs Life), the human world (Incredibles), the Undersea world (Finding Neo) – they can now add the weightless environment of outer space to their list of clever tricks.

Pixar is to CGI animated movies (that stands for Computer Generated Imagery for all the nerd newbys) what Disney was to the old paint and draw animated movies – the best! (One reason why Disney eventually bought Pixar for their own). There’s an similar passion to break the boundaries, to do something that others haven’t done, to conquer new environments and challenges.

But my real love of Pixar came from watching one of those special features that I found on the Monsters Inc DVD which I’d bought for my son. (There are benefits to being nerdy enough to watch the special features). It was a behind the scenes look at Pixar’s home base in Emeryville, California.

The most amazing thing I saw was not a tightly run, high pressured working environment where everyone existed to meet the next deadline and then go home – but a place where people came to play and not just do all of the latter. The truth is that most of these guys probably do spend their entire lives in and out of the studio, living under the pressure of huge deadlines and big budgets – so instead of living two seperate lives, they brought their lives and their creativity with them! From scooting down the halls, to the pet monkey, to the annual Paper Plane flying competition in the entrance foyer – these studios are a creative bubble of energy and passion all working together for the joy of making new movies.

This is not just a job to these guys – its a way of life for them and they’ve decided to make it an enjoyable one as well as a productive one. I guess thirteen Academy Awards, three Golden Globes, and one Grammy goes to show that their philosophy is certainly paying off!

Right now – we’re embarking on building a Megacentre in the heart of Leeds, following on from the awesome one we have in Sheffield – and I’m determined to above all make it a place where people love to be! It’s granted that some people are going to spend an awful lot of time in the new Megacentre making everything that needs to happen – happen! So I’m given to taking a leaf out of Pixar’s book and choose to bring my life with it… and build a place where people want to be – and more importantly – a place I want to be!

Too many churches feel like dead, stuffy old people’s homes with toilets you don’t want to go near and offices that are cluttered with rubbish and administration. Even the halls are posted from floor to ceiling in random notices, posters, flyers and useless pieces of information that no-one is ever going to read. Since when did you last visit someones home and as you walked into the front lounge there was a huge pinboard up on the wall telling you about where to get a coffee, or how much had been raised in the ‘by a new double bed’ fund and you would rather hold until later than visit the festering room called a ‘bathroom’ that stands at the top of the stairs, but smells from the bottom!

We need to make churches a place where people want to come and hang out – inject something of the coffee house culture into them so that when it comes to closing, you’re having to hang around until people finish because no-one is wanting to leave!

Surely the church of all places should be the most welcoming, the most homely, the most exciting and fun filled place to be. After all – it is the Father’s house… and the Father I know ain’t no stuffy fuddy duddy! He’s the most creative, awe-inspiring, and enthusiastic God you could ever know.

So I love pixar cause it has captured something of the way we are all supposed to live. In a creative, relationship based environment that pulls together, every person doing there bit, to see something amazing done on planet earth! The only difference is that what they do is temporal – but what we do is eternal.

I found the video on You Tube (in 3 parts) so here it is! I hope it inspires you in the same way it did me!

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3