A very encouraging and thought-provoking email came my way this week as a follow up to our Monday evening workshop. Thought it might lift your spirits as well. It came from a new member, who was happy with anonymity, so I will merely hint at its source. His initials might remind you of your very first rifle. And hers might bring to mind a hot roast beef sandwich. But I digress. Very special people already. Please read on…“When [the wife] and I first ‘tried’ Hope Church, it was definitely not our comfort zone. While we knew of EV Free churches, we hadn’t experienced one, and it was certainly much, much larger than our previous church homes. But, the power of the music that we heard during our first and then subsequent visits overwhelmed our initial inhibitions and literally permeated us with the message of Christ. And I’m convinced that a large part of its effectiveness is because of the homogenous nature of the large group that doesn’t call undue attention to any one individual week in and week out, and yet delivers a powerful music message that touches emotions but not in a showy, manipulative way. In other words, as is your mission, the hearers hear the message of Christ without otherwise being distracted by the personal performance aspect that often accompanies a small praise group or praise leader.
(Editor’s note: I made a comment at the workshop that the choirs wishing to impact (or even survive) this generation of worshipers will need to reinvent themselves and return to the biblical model of worship leadership. No longer will they be able to see their ministry as artistic “window dressing”, occupying a front and center position of influence, without demonstrating the passionate faith and self-effacing worship that actually helps lead God’s people to His throne. To these observations, our friend offered a very insightful illustration. Please read on :-)
I tend to see things in comparative images or analogies. For me, I can see a comparison between traditional choirs and coffee. Both have been around for centuries, both are intended to sooth and stimulate, and both can be hot, cold, old, mild, bitter, fresh, vibrant, robust, weak, or strong. And there are a ton of varieties out there. And just as coffee for many, many decades became a taken-for-granted beverage in the restaurant business, choirs seemed to follow the same path in the church. The coffee was usually prepared by people who didn’t really pay careful attention to its quality, made it without thought, and served it mindlessly refill after refill without assigning a whole lot of value to it...it was just expected for a restaurant to brew it and serve it.
But we all know what happened over the past 25 years [simply] because a guy took a very different view of coffee. Instead of seeing it as an unimportant side-beverage, he saw it as a primary beverage worthy of careful brewing, provided by attentive servers who were well trained and coached, and he insisted on elevating the quality of the product in order to garner the loyalty of its devotees. He reclaimed, and then enhanced its value, and ultimately escalated its price-per-cup beyond what anyone would have really imagined possible. And he also convinced investors to come along with him and his little start-up company, Starbucks. The guy knew that coffee could be much more than what the culture (and the traditional providers) had allowed it to become.
A choir might be a “product” that others have lost the vision for, but personally, I see Hope’s choir as being a “Starbuck’s” offering with even more potential to penetrate. When done well and with the right passion, there are no other companion ministries that I can think of that have the same ability to inspire, encourage, and move people closer to the Lord than the gospel broadcasted by a three or four dozen vocalists, infused with the Holy Spirit, who are powerfully and harmoniously proclaiming Jesus’ love.
What’d I tell you? Isn’t this inspiring?!? A great example of: The gifts of God for the people of God. The next time you have a cup of coffee, remember this: We are to be the very aroma of Christ to this world (2 Corinthians 2:15), and to help them taste and see that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8). And all God’s singers said, AMEN!
-tad
