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Saturday, September 27, 2008

Taking Your Music Ministry One Step Higher

This is an article I took from southerngospelnews.com that was written by vocal coach "Bill Baize" He has got some incredible things to say. I know it's long read, but it is worth it!
This month I feel that I am writing about one of the most important elements of quality performance of songs before an audience. That is the element of INTERPRETATION such as how we express ourselves in front of the audience. We all know that we need to sing our songs so that the audience enjoys them. In turn, if the audience is enjoying what they are hearing, they are more likely to receive the message that is being conveyed by the words of the song. HOW WE EXPRESS OURSELVES IN FRONT OF THE AUDIENCE IS A COMBINATION OF SEVERAL THINGS SUCH AS: STYLE - The pronunciation of words, the way we stand and move on the stage. the way we react to the audience applause, the way we enter and exit the stage. the way we dress for the concert, the obvious respect that we show for our audience in our talking between songs and IN the GOSPEL MUSIC ministry, THE ABSOLUTE RESPECT WE DISPLAY FOR OUR LORD.
A. We should always work on pronouncing our words clearly enough that everyone in the audience is able to understand what we are saying.
B. We should stand erect when we are singing , most of the time, except for the times that we might alter our stance in an expressive action to emphasize a certain word or phrase in interpretation during a solo performance or, in the case of a group performance, moving around some and perhaps altering your physical stance to a degree is very acceptable for the featured singer on a song.
One of my pet peeves, is when a quartet is singing and there is one person featured , some joker behind him or her is moving around, fidgeting, buttoning and unbuttoning a coat, grabbing a drink of water or doing one of many other inane activities which distract from the featured message being delivered about Jesus. If you have to be the center of attention that much, then you don’t belong singing in a gospel group. You need to start your own solo show! Because that is what you are doing trying to draw the attention to yourself and away from the group , which in turn draws attention away from the message being delivered in song. After all, isn’t Gospel Music all about the message? I hate to break it to you, but it is not all about you! (Or me) When one singer is featured on a song, then the rest of the group should stand in an orderly respectful manner with their eyes on that singer, not because that singer is all that good looking, but because he or she is delivering the message at that particular time, and if you are distracting from that then you are doing just what the old devil wanted. You are taking people’s attention off of the message being delivered. Then when that feature is finished the group needs to move into some orderly, respectable , stance as a group to sing whatever parts the group is going to sing. One of the best ways this situation can be worked out, in a pleasing manner to the group and the Lord, is to practice this (what I call staging) in front of some of the groups family members who can give an unbiased opinion about what the group looks like on the stage. You might also ask a mature singer, who has been working in a group for many years, to watch your group and help you to eliminate the distractions from your message. You can have one of the best songs, and a great voice, but if you don’t understand how to deliver your message, then you will miss a real good opportunity to really minister to people in a way that will draw attention to JESUS and help them find their way to HIM. Singing Gospel Music is not just a GIG, as singing is called in most other kinds of music. Singing Gospel music is a ministry to be done to the very best of one’s ability, because he or she is doing it for the Lord, and to be done in a manner that represents the absolute AWE that we should have for our Jehovah God.
C. Thirdly, in the effort to bring honorable interpretation and expression to our singing in front of a crowd, we should understand how to react to audience applause. I know that I am older and really from a different era, but when I grew up the only place that there was applause was in an auditorium. Today we clap for the Lord in almost every church that I go into, and much of the applause really seems to be for the worship band and not the Lord. (That is another subject). If you are singing a concert in an auditorium, then you should react to the applause that your singing receives in a mutually respectful way to your audience. They are respecting your ability to perform music and showing their appreciation for your performance by applauding. In this setting it is very appropriate to take a bow. Don’t overdo it or under do it . The bow needs to be done in a classy and humble way, that makes people understand that you are grateful for their kindness and appreciation of your singing. If you are using a church auditorium for a concert venue, then the same rules apply.
However, if you are in a worship service and sing a song that elicits applause, I believe it is very acceptable to slightly bow your head only and wait until the applause subsides, then tell the people thanks for their kindness to you. Find a place to sit down and do it immediately so the rest of the service can continue. The only exemption to this should be if the minister of the church where you are singing feels led of the Lord to have you sing that song again or another song.
You must remember when you are a guest singer in a church , during a regularly scheduled service, that you are to always respect what the leader of the service feels is right to do, and we should always be cooperative with that. I have heard some singers complain because they thought their singing was so important that they should have been able to sing more songs or give more testimony etc. in a church service where they were invited to sing as a part of the regular service. Get over yourself, you nor I neither one are that important. God has many workers, and we as singers are just some of them. We must respect other people’s callings, if we are ever to be successful in ministering in music for our precious Lord.
D. Fourthly, entering and exiting the stage or platform is a very important part of our expression and interpretation of music. In the first few seconds of your appearance on the stage or platform, people will make a decision about whether you are worthy of listening to or not. How you do this, is extremely important. I should do an entire column on this, and I may later, but for now I will hit a couple of high points. 1. Enter the stage or come to the platform, when it is time for you to sing , in a respectfully enthusiastic manner. This will vary from an auditorium, where things are a little more relaxed, to a church service, where things are generally a little more formal. Both venues need the respectful enthusiasm, however the church needs to see it more in your body language in how you approach the area where you are going to sing, which needs to necessarily be more respectfully done. In the auditorium the approach, when entering the stage, can still be respectful, but can have a bit more of enthusiastic body language especially when the auditorium is very large and there is a large crowd.
Most of your entrance, and performance in a large auditorium, can make use of larger motions physically than what you can use in a church, even a large church, and especially a smaller one.
Most of what I am trying to say is that to minister to everybody, we must understand that different venues should be handled in a somewhat different manner. They all have the basic need to be approached with respectful enthusiasm, but each one needs different levels of respectfulness, and enthusiasm. It is your job to pray about, and to use good logic about, what you need to act like on each occasion.
E. Fifthly and lastly, I want to approach the topic of RESPECT YOUR AUDIENCE.
1. Don’t prate on about a lot of inane things. When you talk, say something intelligent or don’t talk at all. Just sing your songs and let them minister to the people. This is especially important in a large concert, whether it is in a large church or a large auditorium. Not everybody wants to hear all the problems you had in the past week. They have come to be lifted up in spirit. God sent you with a message in song to do that. If you defeat that by lingering on negatives, and talking on an on about things that matter only to you, then you will ruin your opportunity to actually minister to the people who are in the audience. BEFORE YOU GO OUT TO SING, PRAY THAT GOD WILL HELP YOU TO DISCERN WHAT IS REALLY NEEDED IN THE PARTICULAR SITUATION THAT YOU ARE IN AT THAT MOMENT IN TIME. I believe that more singers, especially groups, are hindered in their ministry by trying to talk when they need to just sing. IF YOU ARE EVER IN DOUBT at all about whether what you are going to say is relevant to the situation you are in, then DON’T SAY IT. There is much more that needs to be said about this topic, but I will have to leave it for a later time.
Remember: Psalm 118:6 “The Lord is on your side” Until next time God bless you and keep you in the “Shelter of His Arms”
In His Service,
Bill Baize

I GOT POST-IT NOTED!!!!

I woke up this morning and found my truck has about a thousand post it notes stuck all over it. It was one of the girls in the church's birthday party last night and they went crazy I guess. O well it puts me that much closer to actually having to wash it! :).........revenge is sweet.

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Incredibly Busy

It's a beautiful night here in Citrus Heights. About 55 degrees and very clear. I am about to go jogging. The diet goes well. I have lost a total of .0000001 lbs. Incredible. All the rumors I heard about peanut butter speeding up your metabolism are true. I have been very busy lately and have hardly had a chance to do anything else but work and get stuff at the church done. The carpet people called today and said the carpet wouldn't be laid until next Tuesday so everyone was kind of bummed. You know how it is when you are waiting for something to be done and you want it done NOW!! Its just incredible how the church looks and everything is going great. I got back home this weekend from San Diego at about 5:30 am Monday morning. Needless to say, I was kind of wiped out from driving all night. I went to bed and got up at 7:30 and went and taught school till 3. It was a rough day, but I got through it. Went back home about 2 and crashed until 7 that night and then crashed again about an hour later. I am intrigued by the Presidential race. What is going to happen? This weekend down South, Bro Art Hodges, the Southern Districts Superintendent, talked about the latest on all of the bills being passed in CA. Some are pretty scary. He made the comparison about having a leader with a rumored Muslim background and a leader with a Pentecostal background. It was kind of reassuring to once again hear that God is in control. I used to get all into forums and debates, but if I can just remember that God is in control no matter what we go through or the country goes through, everything will be alright. I stopped worrying. I get to stay home for a couple of weekends (I think). I have been home for a total 2 weekends in the last 4 months so its going to be nice. I walked into the church a couple of weekends ago and there were people there that I didn't even recognize. I am looking forward to it. This last weekend, freeWAY had the opportunity to sing down at the Anchor Church pastored by Bro and Sis James Larson. While there I had the pleasure of meeting Hugh Mclellen. Hugh is a bass singer and an incredible guy. So humble and yet so great with vocals. Anyway, just thought I would drop a line. Have a good one!!

Monday, September 15, 2008

Random Thoughts

So I am sitting here on my couch right now eating a Dryers Strawberry ice cream fruit juice bar. These things are good. Real fruit and everything. I am kind of tired and getting ready to hit the sack. Last night me and Lawrence Trump got in about 2:30 AM from Delano so needless to say, as soon as my head hit the pillow I was out. 7:30 came too early but the bills still seem to come on time so I got up and went to work. Our church remodel is going great. We just got the chairs in and the pews out. The whole place looks incredible. So much bigger. Painting and carpet comes in the next 2 weeks so it is nearing the end of the project. I haven't been as involved in it as I want to be but then again I have only been home for 2 weekends these last 4 months. Things are keepin busy and I am thankful. I just got back from jogging (yes I know some of you are laughing) and I am trying to lose the weight. I figure if I want to live past the age of 30 I better drop some. It's not the question of "can I lose it", but its the question of "why do I want to?" It's a matter of discipline. I live within walking distance of Hometown Buffet. If that's not a temptation I don't know what is. They are building a Coolhand Lukes right next to it and that's not going to help any. Hometown in its idea is pretty neat....its the only place where you can get chocolate milk on tap!! I remember my fellow co-worker used to say that "if a place has chocolate milk on tap, something is wrong with it." Don't get me wrong, its ok every now and then but not all the time. I have been thinking lately, about trying to organize myself more. I walked into my office the other day and there was a coffee cup that had mold in it. Gross!! I guess it was just over to the side where I couldn't see it. But I really am getting more organized. I organized about 400 random papers the other night that were in my desk and I feel alot better about it. I had lost some things and my problem is I am just always in such a hurry to get things done so I just throw it somewhere. Things are going great! Have a good one! TS

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Examining Palins Pentecostal Background

"This was an interesting article which I thought was very intriguing. Thought I would share it."
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin dropped in on the Wasilla Assembly of God, the church she and her family attended until 2002. During the service, she addressed a group of young missionaries and said she had a "word" from the Lord for them. She prayed that Jesus would give them a spirit of wisdom and revelation.
"That spirit of revelation also including the spirit of prophecy that God's going to tell you what is going on, and what is going to go on, and you guys are going to have that within you, and it's just going to bubble up and bubble over and it's going to pour out throughout the state of Alaska," Palin said at the time.
Margaret Poloma, at the University of Akron, has written several books on Pentecostalism and is herself a Pentacostal Christian.
Poloma has listened to the tape of the governor's Assembly of God address and says of Palin's faith: "It seems to me that she's the real McCoy."
Poloma says faith in divine revelation, prophecy and an outpouring of the Holy Spirit are hallmarks of the Pentecostal faith.
Palin now goes to a nondenominational Bible church when she's in Wasilla, but her years attending Pentecostal churches, including the one she currently attends in Juneau, have no doubt shaped her faith and, possibly, her view of world events.
For example, at the same service, Palin talks about the war in Iraq.
"Pray our military men and women who are striving to do what is right also for this country — that our national leaders are sending them out on a task that is from God," Palin said. "That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that plan is God's plan."
Poloma says some people might hear that and say Palin believes this is a holy war, or that Pentecostals think this is a holy war.
"I would think it's fair to say. Yes," Poloma says.
One reason, Poloma says, is that most Pentecostals believe Islam is a false religion. "Many times you hear it referred to as a kind of diabolical religion, and that comes from the idea of Christianity being the true religion, but also their support for Israel, because they contend that Israel [represents] God's chosen people and you dare not touch them."
She says this points to a central belief that there is a cosmic battle between the forces of good and evil. It was language Palin used when accepting the nomination on Wednesday night when she spoke of the war on terrorism and it was language used by Palin's current pastor, Mike Rose, at Juneau Christian Center.
"Have you ever felt that way about devil, the ultimate terrorist?" he asked.
Pentecostals believe God routinely intervenes in human affairs and Palin sounded like a Pentecostal when she asked people at Wasilla Assembly of God to pray about building a gas pipeline through Alaska.
"I think God's will has to be done in unifying people and companies to get that gas line built, so pray for that," she said.
Darrell Bock, a New Testament scholar at Dallas Theological Seminary, says some Pentecostals hold to their convictions in the face of opposition because they believe they are in tune with the will of God.
"What faith does in this case is fuel a sense of mission and direction," Bock says. "It can also produce a little bit of element of certainty about that direction."
Bock, however, warns against drawing conclusions about anyone's policies from his or her faith. "Trying to figure out what the link is between a person's faith and their politics is very, very difficult business because there is so much pragmatically and ideologically that's also driving what's going on," he says. "There's not just the faith element."
Bock says President Bush and Democratic nominee Barack Obama have already been through this sort of spiritual vetting. Now it's Palin's turn.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Fun Weekend

When I was up in Oregon two weekends ago I got to spend some time with my friends Holly Sue and Jeremy Mullings and Pastor Ted and Georgia Graves. Bro and Sis Graves have pastored in Greshem OR for over two years and are doing incredible. When we were in Paradise, they would come preach and sing for us quite a bit. Great people.
It was good to see them again and just hang out for a couple of days. They took me to one of the best barbecue places I have ever been in my life. Cant remember what its called though. Then we went to a ball game and unfortunately the home team was about as energetic as me when I'm on a diet driving past Hometown.
Oregon is beautiful this time of year and the weather is about 75 degrees.

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Sarah Palin tears it up at convention

Sarah Palin made an outastanding speech tonight at the Republican Convention. She had nerve, confidence and did a tremendous job at delivering. This is just an excerpt from tonight, but it got better as it went on. They have my vote.

Monday, September 1, 2008

Gustav

An estimated 95 percent of Louisiana's 2 million coastal residents had fled ahead of Hurricane Gustav by Sunday evening in the largest evacuation in state history, Louisiana's governor said. The streets of the French Quarter in New Orleans clear out as residents evacuate in anticipation of Hurricane Gustav. More than 200,000 people have left New Orleans, leaving an estimated 10,000 people in the city Sunday night, Gov. Bobby Jindal said, citing New Orleans' police chief.
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin had demanded an evacuation of the city, which still is recovering from 2005's Hurricane Katrina. Forecasters warned Gustav -- a Category 3 storm Sunday night -- could hit Louisiana with devastating effect late Monday morning or early Monday afternoon. Jindal said New Orleans' levees should "barely hold or barely be overtopped" if the storm, as predicted Sunday evening, hit southwest of the city.
But even a slight shift to the east could bring "very significant flooding in these areas," he said.

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