February 2020 – Brandon Morrell

Here we are, the day after Valentine’s Day. The day that many people set aside to honor the one they love. How coincidental that I feel led to write about not being alone.

But don’t worry – it has nothing to do with Valentine’s Day.

Two days ago, I was reading from the book of Joshua about Joshua’s interaction with Gibeon in Chapter 9. The inhabitants of Gibeon had heard of how Israel conquered both Jericho & Ai. They were worried that they were next.

So they devised a plan.

The representatives of Gibeon came to Joshua and convinced Joshua to make a league with them, saying they were from a far country and were sent to make a league with these mighty men. Joshua’s decision is recorded in verse 15:

And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them.
Joshua 9:15

Within a few days, the people of Israel realized that these men were in fact from a neighboring land and not from a far country. Joshua had made a pact with a group of people of whom they were originally meant to conquer. How could they have been so easily deceived?

The answer is found in verse 14:

And the men took of their victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LORD.
Joshua 9:14

You see, Joshua had just come out of a great victory. They were on the mountaintop. They just spoke to the Lord, perhaps, the day before… or even that morning. Surely they were spiritual enough to know what to do… without asking. This was a simple thing, right? They knew what to do.

How may times are we guilty of going at it alone?

How many times have we made a decision without asking the Lord, the giver of all wisdom?

How many times do we have to go through hard times to realize that including Jesus in life decisions will help us prevent major heartache?

How many times?

And let’s apply it to our efforts in leading God’s people in worship.

God desires to move among His people. He knows exactly what an entire congregation needs. He knows every individual need and the criticality of those needs.

Why would we want to try to plan a worship service without His counsel? I’m not talking about a perfunctory prayer. “Lord, we need your anointing.” “Lord, what would you have for us today.” Hear me – I’m not criticizing, and I am not judging your sincere efforts. I have been guilty of going through the motions.

But we can’t afford to go through the motions.

We must have the anointing of the Holy Ghost upon every service. Upon every song.

But, you say, last week you told us to know what to play to create the atmosphere. Yes, I did.

And we are guilty of sin if we create the atmosphere without consulting the Lord with what He wants in a service. Could the atmosphere our flesh creates be contradictory to what facilitates the move that God wants?

It’s very dangerous if I play that progression… you know the one… Bbm/G – F/A – Bbm6 – F/C… the one that “really gets people going,” if I don’t feel the Spirit of God moving us in that direction.

But oh what joy when we allow the Lord to work with us. He desires to be in our midst. When we lift His praises, and we look across the congregation as the Spirit of the Lord settles on the faces of His people! When the Spirit of God begins moving during our worship service and people step out in faith for healing or salvation. There’s nothing better than that experience. To know that God has directed the service, and we just allowed Him to flow through us!

I’m reminded of a story that I heard about a well known Apostolic music director. She was used in a mighty way. Anointed to sing, play, write & direct. Yet, she took the road that many have taken, and to the surprise of many, she fell into sin. She left the Truth.

A close acquaintance asked her, what happened? What changed?

Her response: I just stopped praying. I learned how to do it. I learned how to play it just right. I learned how to move people.

As we prepare for our worship services tomorrow, let us be reminded to ask counsel at the mouth of the Lord.

Lord, what do your people need to hear and feel in this service? What songs will take us there? Is it slow? Is it fast? Is it faith? Is it consecration? Ask, and ye shall receive. He wants to tell you, but He wants you to want Him.

Don’t go at it alone.

Pre-service prayer had just wrapped up, and everyone was making their way back to their seats. I walked to the platform with excitement & faith for what God was going to do in this service.

As the worship leader, I want to take my responsibility just as serious as I would expect the preacher to take theirs. It could be someone’s last service. Did I do all I could do to make it count?

Yes, that’s heavy.

But if we take a casual attitude towards the work of God, then we will get casual results. We see a principle throughout Scripture in our approach to the things of God. All of your heart. All of your soul. All of your might. All of your strength.

So, I want to give every service my best.

Now, let’s balance that out for a minute. God uses imperfect humanity. Sometimes we miss it. I know I have plenty of times. And there’s grace for that.

But it’s wrong to justify our lack of effort and preparation because we know that God extends grace. That’s dangerous territory that I don’t want to tread.

Okay… so, I walk to the platform, I hand my song list to the the piano player. The song list has up-tempo songs like Did You Come to Give the Lord the Praise? and Look What the Lord Has Done.

The musician looks down at the song list and begins to play. Sounds something like In the Presence of Jehovah.

I turn to the piano player:Do you realize that you are in control of what everyone is feeling?

What do you mean?

As the piano player, you are in control. You are creating the atmosphere with how you are playing. Is it in line with those songs?

Oh.

Instructional moment. Lesson learned. Quick adjustment. And we were off.

Music is a powerful tool. God made it that way. It is an absolute honor to be chosen to help facilitate the move of God that He wants to have in our services.

But THAT is the key.

We MUST realize that we are responsible for how we use that powerful tool. We must be sensitive enough to know what God wants. And then we must be knowledgeable enough to know how to implement what we are feeling.

Enter dynamics. Oh yes, it’s one of my favorite topics when it comes to music. Dynamics are exactly what they sound like. They make the song dynamic! And oh how it ties to Spirit-directed services. They are likewise dynamic!

Here are a few tips that might help you know how to follow what you are feeling:

If you’re feeling slow & worshipful, then simplify what you’re playing. If you’re directing choir, keep your hand movements small and close to your body. Vocalists should sing softer. Well, it’s hard to sing high and soft. Yes, it is. So practice that.
Some people only have two volumes: loud and soft. And those same people only have two tempos: fast and slow. But there’s an entire spectrum of dynamics & tempos. Allow for variety in your services.
When it’s time to move, move. Don’t let fear prevent you from following the leading of the Spirit. If it’s time to change songs, change. If the Spirit and the song requires emphasis on the vocals or on the keyboard, don’t hold back.
Follow your playing with the vocals, whether worship leader, choir soloist, special singer… if they’re pushing, push with them! You can push a slow song without changing the tempo. You can increase your volume by how hard you play the keys and you can create a stronger feel by the rhythmic pattern you play.

Don’t forget this. There is a difference between creating a feeling that is orchestrated by our human will and allowing the Spirit to lead you. We want the Spirit to be in control, but we have to know HOW to work as the Spirit is leading.

We cannot justify our lack of learning and practicing by saying, I just use what the Lord gave me. He gives people many gifts. But He expects us to invest and increase those gifts.

That’s why you’re here… and I want to help!

In my experience with church musicians and especially keyboard players, a common missing piece to their musical knowledge is the area of rhythm. This is CRITICAL to several of my recommendations above.

As a result, I am going to be providing ongoing mini-lessons on rhythm over the next week. If you are a musician and you don’t know basic rhythmic concepts like time signature, measures, beat and note/rest values – please stay tuned!

This information will help you in your desire to be know how to effectively facilitate the move of God that you are feeling. It’s such a great feeling to know you were a help – we’ve all been there. I’m hopeful that these tools will help you find that place a little more often!