Worship Confessional – How He Loves May 18, 2008

Wow!!!!! I just got home from church and WOW!!! Yeah, I know I already said that, but WOW!!!! If you were there this morning, you know what I mean.

It all started before walking into the building. The door facings have been painted black, which really gives them a totally different look. That project actually took all week. Who knew painting door facings was such a big job? I certainly didn’t. Also, the windows have been tinted and they look really great.

And then, when you walked in, you entered a whole new world. The entire foyer was decorated like we were all on vacation. It was so incredibly cool. From the banner to the t-shirts, the purser’s desk to the mural, it was all very tropical. SO cool! Oh, and the “Are You Ready?” bulletin board was something I got to help with. Fun!

For those who don’t know, we’re going to be going on a “Journey of Change” very soon. That’s what all the new decor was for today.

And then church started. 🙂

The music was just plain fun today. I’ll go into that a bit more in a minute. Bro. Keith’s message was about something very close to my heart….reaching the lost. He’s using the fishing theme, which really resonates with our congregation. After all, Louisiana isn’t called “Sportsman’s Paradise” for nothing. The whole message spoke directly to my heart today. He even gave us homework. He encouraged us to write a “thank you” letter to the person who led us to the Lord. Why didn’t I ever think to do that?! I am totally doing that this week.

Okay, now on to the confessional……

Here’s our set list:
Let it Rise
Sing a Song
Come Thou Fount
How He Loves
No One Like You

And here’s who we had this morning:
Bryant on electric guitar & vocals
Zack on bass guitar
Adam (woohoo!) on acoustic guitar
Josh on drums
Jennifer & Shalyian on vocals
Ensemble on vocals

How fantastic was it to see Adam on acoustic guitar this morning?! He is so super talented and of course did a fantastic job. Adam, thank you so much for joining us. You are welcome back any time!

Another creative element added to our service this morning was sign language interpretation. We did that for one song last week, but this week Amy interpreted the entire music service at 11:00. I am convinced that this is something our community is in desperate need of and am so glad that Amy is ministering this way. Thank you, Amy!

In the 9:30 service, there was a horrible popping noise coming from somebody’s cable. I was convinced it was my mic cord, so I grabbed hold the cord to make it stop. I spent the entire service holding that cord and trying to stay still (I normally move around a lot). It wasn’t mine. It was the bass guitar’s chord. We ended up with no bass for the rest of the 9:30 service. Disappointing, but okay. Immediately after the service, our amazing media team fixed the problem and we were good to go for 11:00. Good thing, since we really needed that bass.

The first song was totally rockin’ and the congregation was all smiles. “Sing a Song” was a new one we introduced this week. Our congregation really seemed to like it and got involved with it. One of my favorite parts was when we sang accapella and could hear the congregation singing with us. Loved that!

For “Come Thou Fount,” we did the Gateway version which has the added chorus. Very moving.

And then we did our other new song, “How He Loves.” Ummm….WOW! If you’ve never heard this song before, go to my VodPod in the menu bar over there ——> and click the link for it. Fantastic song! So I wasn’t sure how our congregation would respond to it, because not only is it new, but it’s also very different from anything we’ve ever done before. At first, I thought I had scared them when we first went into the powerful chorus. lol But when I sang “I don’t have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way….” that’s when I knew for sure that they were worshiping. That one line resonated so deep with the congregation. It was an awesome sight the way they responded.

For my worship leader friends who read this blog, here’s how we did “How He Loves.” We actually did it almost exactly the same as the original version with only two changes. We dropped the “sloppy wet kiss” for “Heaven meets earth like no words can express.” Thank you, Fred McKinnon , for that idea! We also ended the song with the pre-chorus. That made for a smoother transition.

Then we closed with “No One Like You.” This is a happy, exciting song that makes you want to jump out of your seat to praise Him. Our congregation always has big, happy smiles when they sing that song. I love it!

So that’s about it. Overall, we just rocked out and worshiped like crazy this morning!

I realize this was incredibly long post, so thanks for sticking around to read it all. 🙂

Worship Confessional May 17, 2008

I just got home from worship team practice. All I can say is….you better get ready! Tomorrow is going to be an incredible time of worship at HOW.

Fun news! We have a guest guitarist who is super talented…and a familiar face that y’all will be thrilled to see again. So y’all be sure to give him some love tomorrow.

All our musicians and vocalists really “brought it” to practice today. We were all looking at each other with big, stupid smiles because it’s sounds so good. And the set list is a ton of fun.

You know, I love being part of the creative process, building a set list that really creates an atmosphere for worship. A lot of prayer, time, effort & love went into the service this week (from all departments) and I am thrilled to begin seeing it all come together. So, as Bro. Keith says, you better “strap on your spiritual seatbelts” ’cause we’re going on a journey tomorrow! I can hardly wait to worship with all of you!

Worship Confessional & Oh WOW! May 11, 2008

So we’re y’all totally shocked when you walked into the church this morning?!  How cool was that?!  For those who don’t go to Heart of Worship, I should probably explain.

Last week, our main auditorium was very formal.  It was filled with soft colors and beautiful architecture. 

 The chair & boxes are props that Bro. Keith used in his message.  The man loves his props.  lol

 Very pretty.  That’s what everybody saw last Sunday. 

Today they walked into a completely different room.  It has been completely remodeled and is amazing.  Y’all be sure to check back later this week, because I’m going to share some pics of the new auditorium.

So first thing this morning, everybody got their socks knocked off by the sudden remodel.  And then church started.  lol

We opened with a Mother’s Day video.  It was our first video that we made ourselves at HOW and I was so glad to have a part in it.  So fun!  And for those who don’t already know, the kid marked “mischevious”…..that was my Jack.  🙂

Here’s our set list for this week…..

Come Now is the Time to Worship

Blessed Be Your Name

Nothing But the Blood (updated hymn)

Nothing But the Blood (modern version)

Sing to the King

In the 9:30 service, all the songs seemed to me like they were dragging.  I don’t know if we weren’t completely awake yet or not, but that’s what it sounded like to me.  But we fixed that for the 11:00 service and the songs really went well.  Raymond was out of town this week, so we didn’t have a keyboard player.  Bryant did a fantastic job of leading on guitar.  Thanks, Bryant!

One major new issue we faced this morning was a change of acoustics in the building.  The new remodel completely changed the sound.  It seems that the new backdrop is absorbing all the sound from the stage, so we’re having a hard time hearing up there.  It’s impossible to sing when you can’t hear anything, so that’s something we’re working very hard to fix this week.

Okay, y’all be sure and check back later this week since I’ll be posting pics of the new remodel.  Very cool!

Bella at Church

Would y’all like to meet our newest family member?  This is Bella.

 She is a chiweenie.  1/2 chihuahua  1/2 weenie dog.

Isn’t she the cutest thing ever?!  She’s super sweet, rarely makes any racket and is very, very loving. 

So this morning, while I was on the stage singing, I saw my husband walk into the church….with the dog!  I was mortified!  He very casually stood in the back of the church holding Bella the whole time I was up there.  OMGosh!

After the music was done, I ran to the back of the church, pulled him out and asked him why on earth he thought bringing a dog to church was a good idea.  He said that Kyra (our 10yr old daughter) had told him that since Bella was brand new, I didn’t want her left at home alone.  So she said that we needed to bring her to church since that’s what Mama wanted.  And of course, since it’s Mother’s Day, Rodney didn’t want to disappoint me.  OMG!    He brought the dog back home. 

Worship Confessional April 28, 2008

Yesterday was another fine day at Heart of Worship in Pineville, LA.  Once again, the church was packed, the music went great & Bro. Keith preached a message that went straight to the heart.  Here’s our set list….

My Redeemer (opener)

No One Like Our God

No Sweeter Name

Amazing Grace

My Redeemer Lives

It was great having Jennifer & Bryant back this week!  And the ensemble really blew me away.  They did some new things, vocally, that really stood out.  The media team worked with perfection…I love it when that happens.  Everyone really put out their best yesterday.  And I believe God really loves that.

We’re working hard to get everything ready for next week.  We’ll be doing a new song and you all know how I love that.  It’s gonna be great!

Worship Pre-Fessional April 25, 2008

As usual, we had our LIFE Group before practice last night.  Gosh, it was a hard one for me.  We talked about how to love people that are difficult to love.  Considering the incident earlier this week, I was really hit hard by this lesson.  We focused on 1John 4:7-16.  I have some more thoughts on this that I’ll share later today. 

And now on to the pre-fessional…..

Of course I’m not going to tell you what songs we’re doing.  But I will tell you that I had a ton of fun at practice last night.  Most of us had a lot of energy and everyone was in a good mood.  That makes practice sooooo much easier. 

Both Jennifer and Bryant are back this week!  Woohoo!  The added vocals and guitar made an immediate impact.  Good to have you guys back!

We really got to work on vocals a good bit this week.  Raymond is ripping the keyboard up with some awesome work.  The media team really brought their A game this week.  Everything was right on target.  Every week should go so well.  🙂

Worship Confessional April 20, 2008

This morning, I stood in the lobby for a long time watching the greeters.  These people are amazing.  I was really impressed by how good they are at what they do.  Honestly, I don’t think I could do it.  I mean, I love people and I love talking to people, but I still couldn’t do what they do.  I get so wrapped up in chatting with people and I would totally miss new people walking in the building.  These greeters didn’t miss a single person that walked in.  Seriously, the didn’t miss one.  They smiled genuine smiles the whole time, happily greeting every single person that walked in the building.  I was really impressed.  Good job, greeters!!!

I’m also excited about something that my husband did today.  He volunteered in Children’s Church!  I was hoping he would eventually do that.  He’s so good with kids and really loves hanging around with them.  After church, he told me that he got to pray with two kids this morning!  I’m so happy that he’s doing this.  I think he’s really going to enjoy it.

And now on to the confessional……

We had a really great morning, musically.  I can’t think of anything that went wrong.  Bryant, our guitar player, just got married yesterday so he wasn’t there.  We missed him, but other than that everything was great.  Here’s our set list…..

You Are Good

Friend of God

I Could Sing of Your Love

How Great is Our God

You Are Good (finale)

That’s really all there is to the confessional.  When everything goes well, there’s little to confess.  lol

But I will share one fun thing with you.  I was talking to Ryan (he’s on the finance team) about how our church has tripled in size since conception.  He corrected me.  We’ve actually grown 500%!!!!  Ryan, I think that’s the happiest correction I’ve ever received.  lol  And this Sunday, not only was our 11:00 service packed, but the 9:30 service was almost full too.  God is still shaking things up at HOW and I’m still in awe at how he’s using us! 

Worship Confessional April 13, 2008

This was our first Sunday to have two services at Heart of Worship!  It was also our first Sunday to have Children’s Church for the kids.  I have to admit, even though our church has grown really fast, I was concerned that having two services would mean smaller numbers of people.  I thought we’d have all the same family, but no one new.  Boy was I wrong!!!

The 9:30 service had a nice size crowd.  I’m terrible at guesstimating numbers, so I won’t even try.  But the 11:00 service was packed!  I thought that was really funny since the whole reason we went to two services was to have room for more people…and our first Sunday was packed out.  lol  So many new people everywhere….fantastic!  Since our greatest priority is to reach people with the love of Christ, it’s wonderful to see new people coming in. 

Two of my kids are in the age range for Children’s Church.  They absolutely loved it!  They raved about it all afternoon.  The music, the lesson, everything was great for them.  To all the Children’s Church workers and volunteers….thank you.  And to all the childrens’ LIFE Group leaders….thank you.  My kids talk about their lessons all week long.  You really do make an impact on thier lives and I am forever grateful.  ***side note*** I have kids in each age group at church, so this thank you is for all the childrens’ LIFE Group leaders.  🙂  And nursery workers, I haven’t forgotten you!  Without you, there’s no way I’d ever get to attend services.  If you’ve met my Jack, you understand.  lol

Bro. Keith preached about dealing with hard time (whatever the situation).  Knowing the hard times I’ve been through and the hard times that many I love are going through now, this message really hit home with me. 

And now on the the confessional……

Our set list for this week:

All Things Are Possible (partial as opener)

You Are Worthy of My Praise

Open the Eyes of My Heart

Amazed

Holy is the Lord

All Things Are Possible

We did have a few minor issues, but overall the music was really great this morning.  We had to drop “Amazed” from the 9:30 service due to being short on time.  Also, we lost a monitor on stage.  Okay, we didn’t actually “lose” it so much as it quit working.  lol  It is really hard to sing when you can’t hear yourself.  But the media team assures us that they will have this issue fixed by next Sunday. 

The work that everybody did during the week really made an impact this morning.  The media team has moved into their upstairs room which means no more table down front.  Woohoo!  The platform was clear of everything except what was needed for our service.  Another woohoo!  And the biggest improvement for the vocalists…..we had the lyrics on the back wall this week.  Triple woohoo!!!!! 

The kids all had freshly painted classrooms, which was really nice.  One of the columns in the sanctuary has been removed.  Bro. Keith wasn’t the only one happy about that.  Everyone could see better and everyone was much happier.  The other column is structural, so it’ll take a bit longer to get that one out.  But having even one gone was an excellent thing.

There were lots more changes and improvements, but I can’t think of them all now.  Too tired.  Sorry about that.

Okay that’s all I have for tonight.  I’m fighting a sinus headache and really just want to go to bed.  Tomorrow is going to be a big day of planning for me and Raymond, so I’ve got to get some rest tonight anyway.  I hope you all have a wonderful rest of your day!

Worship Confessional March 31, 2008

I know I say this every week…..but I really mean it every week.  Yesterday was GREAT!  Bro. Keith’s message was right on about the Holy Spirit (and not grieving the Holy Spirit).  While listening to him speak, I couldn’t help but wonder why God never gave up on me.  I bet many of us were thinking the same thing.

The music was really good yesterday.  I can see where I’ve grown quite a bit as a leader over the last few months.  And of course, I can see many areas where I still need a lot of work.  I realize that we’re all our own worst critics, but isn’t that how we grow?  Even in the things that went exceptionally well yesterday, I’m thinking of ways to expound on them and make them even better.

Here’s who we had yesterday:

Raymond – piano

Bryant – electric guitar

Zack – bass guitar

Josh – drums

Vocals – Speedy, Shalyian, Becky, Bryant

Something really exciting yesterday – we introduced our new ensemble!  They were an awesome addition to the team.  Having that vocal backing really made an obvious difference even on the first day.  They sang with confidence and with excellence and I am so thankful for their willingness to serve.  I am sincerely hoping to see this ensemble continue to grow.  Any vocalists interested in joining, please contact me.  You can find my info on the back of any church bulletin or you can leave a comment here and I’ll get in touch with you.

Here’s our set list for the week:

Let It Rise

Revelation Song

How Great is Our God (Chorus)

Holy, Holy, Holy

All Things Are Possible

The transition from Revelation Song to How Great is Our God didn’t go quite like I had planned.  I came in too early and messed it up so we had to start it again.  Thankfully, I am able to laugh at myself (because I realize I can be a total dork sometimes) and didn’t get all upset.  I laughed, suggested that we try that again and the congregation had a good laugh.  Though recovery was quick and even fun, I would very much like to see that never happen again.  lol

Holy Holy Holy was done acapella.  It was VERY moving.  The congregation really opened their hearts and it was beautiful to see.  We can’t do acapella music every week, but that’s definitely something we’ll do again someday.

By far, the most fun of all was when we did the fantastic praise song “All Things Are Possible.”  The only other times I’ve seen smiles that big in the congregation is when we’ve done “No One Like You.”  Finding a really upbeat praise song is not an easy task and when you find one that your congregation likes, it’s like a precious jewel.  Well they really liked this one.  I’m so glad too, because it’s one of my favorites.  Since it was the first time we’ve done that song, people were watching the words pretty closely, but they were still really involved with it.  Hands clapping, voices singing, big happy smiles everywhere…it was great! 

I have a video to the song in my side bar over there ——->.  Check it out.  What I love about this song is not only the fun, upbeat music (and that it’s a total blast to sing!), but the lyrics really shout out praise.  I love that!  There is just something wonderful about saying to the Lord, “You are amazing” and then singing His Word back to Him.  The lyrics totally make me smile.  🙂

Okay, so that’s it for this week’s worship confessional.  Check back as the week progresses.  I’ll be sharing my heart on the importance of serving in a ministry and a few other issues that are close to my heart.  Until then, y’all have a wonderful rest of your day!

Worship PreFessional March 27, 2008

For those who haven’t noticed yet, I placed a disclaimer in my sidebar.  I felt it might be wise to go ahead and do that.  You see, just like the disclaimer says, I’m just one person with a million thoughts who chooses to share my heart with others.  Many of my posts seem almost incoherant to me, let alone profound.  But I would hate for someone to read them and get the impression that I’m speaking for all of Christendom.  lol  So to reiterate, these are only MY thoughts.  Okay, end of disclaimer.  lol

And now on to the prefessional……

Practice went really great tonight.  I was very excited to see some people come out for the new ensemble.  Not as many showed up as I had originally expected, but that’s okay.  The one’s who came are passionate about worship and that’s exactly what I was praying for.  And this is a very good beginning for our ensemble.  They already added so much to our practice & I am looking forward to seeing them in action on Sunday morning.

Our practice went very well tonight.  We learned a new song, reviewed some well known ones and even worked on a couple of new arrangements.  I was especially excited to have some time to work specifically with the vocalists tonight.  We hashed out a few parts and that’s always fun for me.  🙂

As usual, I’m not going to tell what songs we’ll be doing, but I just have to share this with you…..it’s gonna be HOPPIN!!!!  The new song we’re introducing is SO MUCH FUN!  It’s one of those praise songs that I love so much….you know, the ones where you just gotta sing to the top of your lungs.  Woohoo!  Okay, I’ll stop now.  lol

Our sweet Jennifer was at practice tonight.  She made me promise that if we were going to do her favorite song that I would let her sing.  lol  We’re doing that song this week and I was not the least bit surprised when she showed up for practice.  🙂  Of course, she’s about 10 months pregnant, so I don’t even know if she’ll make it to Sunday morning.  lol

I had to attend an important meeting before practice tonight, so while I was there with the praise team, Raymond (God bless Raymond!) was with the new ensemble, hashing out parts.  I left the meeting early and by the time I made it to practice, the new ensemble was already completely familiar with the music and ready to work on parts and arrangements.  It was great!  And by the time practice was over, we were all very confident in the music.  Sunday is gonna be awesome!