{"id":6251,"date":"2011-08-30T05:58:20","date_gmt":"2011-08-30T05:58:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.musicademy.com\/?p=6251"},"modified":"2021-03-25T13:20:11","modified_gmt":"2021-03-25T13:20:11","slug":"practical-help-for-band-rehearsals-part-5-acne-shark-jumping-and-team-devotionals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.musicademy.com\/blog\/practical-help-for-band-rehearsals-part-5-acne-shark-jumping-and-team-devotionals\/","title":{"rendered":"Practical help for band rehearsals – part 5"},"content":{"rendered":"
Practice is personal. Rehearsal is relational. We\u2019ve been focusing on the practice side of the coin, so let\u2019s \u00a0flip it and talk about rehearsals. Unfortunately the first thing that comes to mind when it comes to making rehearsals \u201crelational\u201d is the dreaded team devotional.<\/div>\n
OK, maybe yours are great. But for the rest of us, devotionals seem degenerate into a mini-version of the Wednesday-night prayer meeting. And ever notice how the \u201cdegrees of separation\u201d theory gets stretched at prayer meeting:<\/div>\n
\u201cSo we\u2019re praying for your cousin\u2019s friend\u2019s aunt\u2019s former college-roommate\u2019s sister\u2019s mom\u2019s best friend\u2019s pharmacist\u2019s wife? And what was wrong with her again? Chronic gastritis? Thanks. Who\u2019d like to pray for Jeannie\u2019s cousin\u2019s, um\u2026person?\u201d (It\u2019s kinda like the Christian version of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon \u2013 only we connect to people with gastrointestinal issues.)<\/div>\n
I can guarantee that if one of your vocalists starts throwing out prayer requests like that, your ADHD drummer is 14 seconds away from climbing the walls of his Plexiglas cage.<\/div>\n
If the worship team devotional doesn\u2019t by some fluke go that direction, there\u2019s a good chance it\u2019ll be shanghaied into another. Call them what your theology allows\u2013high maintenance, EGR (extra grace required), \u201cOh-dear-God-not-him-again\u201d\u2014but there are those people who will turn any gathering of the saints into a support group. It\u2019s no wonder most worship leaders have ditched the devotional time and just go with an opening prayer (which we announce so quickly that no requests can sneak in).<\/div>\n
I\u2019ll be honest. I hear the word devotional and my 10th grade acne comes back. There\u2019s too much baggage there to unpack in this article (plus I\u2019ll start breaking out), but I like to use the concept of centering instead. That\u2019s the whole point of the worship team devotional \u2013 to center ourselves on the glory of the Triune God. And that\u2019s the ultimate of \u201crelational.\u201d If we as a team can reaffirm the truth and reality of our place in Christ, that will set the stage for the rest of rehearsal to be relationally-driven. So I\u2019m ready to give the team devotional \u2013 centering time for the sake of my complexion \u2013 another shot. Here are some practical ideas to make this time work:<\/div>\n
Be clear with your team that this isn\u2019t a Bible study, prayer meeting or support group, but a time to center our focus on God\u2019s glory.<\/div>\n
Be concise with only one point to chew on.<\/div>\n
Be prepared with that one point \u2013 nail down your scripture, questions, and takeaway\/wrap-up.<\/div>\n
Be ruthless about keeping on point. Not rude. But if someone starts to shanghai, gently interrupt her, thank her, and let her know that you\u2019d be happy to talk\/pray with her after the rehearsal. (And then sneak out the back when rehearsal\u2019s over. OK, my mansion in heaven just got smaller for that one.)<\/div>\n
Be the one who prays, or assign that to another person.<\/div>\n
Be aware of the clock. End at the allotted time. If discussion is going great, even better. Finish on a high note and leave your team wanting more. It\u2019s better to go out like Seinfeld than like Happy Days. (Don\u2019t let your devotional jump the shark.)<\/div>\n
Be open to left-turns that are truly from the Holy Spirit. If one of your team members lost his job that week, forget the devotional. Gather around him to support him and pray. If that\u2019s not relational, I\u2019m not sure what is.<\/div>\n
We\u2019ll finish up this series next week with some other ideas to make our rehearsals relational. (OK, maybe we\u2019ll finish up. I tend wrap-up a series like a fresh-out-of-seminary pastor closes his sermons\u2026)<\/div>\n

Acne, shark jumping and team devotionals<\/h2>\n

Practice is personal. Rehearsal is relational. We\u2019ve been focusing on the practice side of the coin, so let\u2019s \u00a0flip it and talk about rehearsals. Unfortunately the first thing that comes to mind when it comes to making rehearsals \u201crelational\u201d is the dreaded team devotional.<\/p>\n

OK, maybe yours are great. But for the rest of us, devotionals seem degenerate into a mini-version of the Wednesday-night prayer meeting. And ever notice how the \u201cdegrees of separation\u201d theory gets stretched at prayer meeting:<\/p>\n

\u201cSo we\u2019re praying for your cousin\u2019s friend\u2019s aunt\u2019s former college-roommate\u2019s sister\u2019s mom\u2019s best friend\u2019s pharmacist\u2019s wife? And what was wrong with her again? Chronic gastritis? Thanks. Who\u2019d like to pray for Jeannie\u2019s cousin\u2019s, um\u2026person?\u201d (It\u2019s kinda like the Christian version of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon \u2013 only we connect to people with gastrointestinal issues.)<\/p>\n

I can guarantee that if one of your vocalists starts throwing out prayer requests like that, your ADHD drummer is 14 seconds away from climbing the walls of his Plexiglas cage.<\/p>\n

If the worship team devotional doesn\u2019t by some fluke go that direction, there\u2019s a good chance it\u2019ll be shanghaied into another. Call them what your theology allows\u2013high maintenance, EGR (extra grace required), \u201cOh-dear-God-not-him-again\u201d\u2014but there are those people who will turn any gathering of the saints into a support group. It\u2019s no wonder most worship leaders have ditched the devotional time and just go with an opening prayer (which we announce so quickly that no requests can sneak in).<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll be honest. I hear the word devotional and my 10th grade acne comes back. There\u2019s too much baggage there to unpack in this article (plus I\u2019ll start breaking out), but I like to use the concept of centering instead. That\u2019s the whole point of the worship team devotional \u2013 to center ourselves on the glory of the Triune God. And that\u2019s the ultimate of \u201crelational.\u201d If we as a team can reaffirm the truth and reality of our place in Christ, that will set the stage for the rest of rehearsal to be relationally-driven. So I\u2019m ready to give the team devotional \u2013 centering time for the sake of my complexion \u2013 another shot. Here are some practical ideas to make this time work:<\/p>\n