Sunday Recap

It's not often that I have the opportunity to be a participant in a worship service. For any worship leader, it is a rare and treasured experience. I planned the service, scheduled the team, created the video elements..no surprises here. In light of that, I was truly attending my church yesterday as a worshiper...and I truly worshiped.

I discovered several things that happened yesterday that I needed to truly connect with God, with others, and to leave the service ready for the day and week.

1. I needed Time to get comfortable. The first 20 minutes as we were singing, I needed that time to get settled in. The music and welcome time gave me the opportunity to speak with several people, to sing, to get my focus on the reason I was there.

2. I needed Time to be quiet. There was an opportunity between two songs and at the end of the song before the video transition to the message. I was able to quiet my thoughts before the message began.

3. I needed to hear Biblical teaching that encouraged me evaluate where I am with God. Todd's message was something I truly needed to hear. Although I may be married to the Pastor, I do not know everything about his sermons each week. This was one of those weeks I had the general idea, but the Holy Spirit definitely spoke through Him in a very real way to me.

4. It was long enough. The service was about 68 minutes. I didn't get distracted. I didn't feel that it was rushed. I was actually wanting more, which is exactly how I wanted to leave...wanting more of God.

It goes without saying that as the Worship Director I listened to the mix, evaluated the screens, the flow of the service...yeah, it was awesome. I do believe that because those things were so excellent and God-focused, it gave such an open door to the worship experience being free of distraction. Thank you, team, for doing just that!

Sunday Recap

The Sunday after Easter can be a tough Sunday to plan.  If you plan services, you probably put it "all out on the field" the week before which leaves a lot less energy and creativity left for "the Sunday after." I've realized this about myself and this year, I made a strategic effort to creatively plan together the series before AND after Easter at the same time. This allowed me to not lose any steam from one week to the next.

Our new series, "Highly Unlikely" started off great last week! It's a four-week series on the life of Moses and how God used him despite everything in his life.

Here was our setlist...

Glory To God Forever

WELCOME/ANNOUNCEMENTS

Marvelous Light

God Is Able

Message Bumper

Message -Todd - "Desperate Beginnings"

Give Me Faith

Closing - Todd

"Give Me Faith" is our theme chorus for this series on Moses. I truly believe it could have been his own personal worship song throughout his life! Christine did an amazing job on it!

I'm so proud of our team. We have gone away from a weekly Thursday rehearsal due to scheduling issues and availability of our team with work and family. We are a volunteer-driven ministry and it is ALWAYS my desire that ministry complement every other aspect of my team's life and not be a burden or obligation that fights the other areas.  This is the first community that I have lived in that work schedules are not the typical 8-5 deal. To have a "required Thursday rehearsal" would eliminate most of my amazing musicians and singers.

However, everybody is really coming in knowing the material and executing at such a high level. There's no doubt that having everything clearly laid out in Planning Center for the team is the ONLY way this could happen. Sure, we have some weeks that we are not as tight as others, but I truly believe the team is doing such a great job and making every effort on the personal preparation side before Sunday. My drummer last week said it's the fear of NOT having the weekly rehearsal before Sunday morning that drives him to know his stuff!

Check out other great recaps of services all over the world here.

Easter Week Recap

I've realized after being a part of almost 20 Easter Week preparations for churches that the key to it NOT being some overwhelming is a word I already mentioned...preparation. Of course, that goes without saying on the programming side of things, but I'm speaking primarily of myself...personal preparation. I made a huge effort this year to prepare myself spiritually from the start of Lent through Easter Weekend. I really enjoyed the YOUVERSION reading plans for Lent and for Easter Week. I'm so thankful for my Bible app! When Sydney saw me reading the Bible on my phone, she asked me when she could have an iPhone to read her Bible...nice try :)

I also did a much better of job of pacing myself with the preparation so that I enjoyed it emotionally and physically. With that said, it paid off. This was one of my FAVORITE Easter week's in my ministry life!

You can check out my service plans here:

Palm Sunday - https://www.planningcenteronline.com/plans/3638187/public

Maundy Thursday - https://www.planningcenteronline.com/plans/3958510/public

• I have not done a piano/vocal worship leading experience since we started HHICC almost five years ago. Since we decided to move our Maundy Thursday experience to a night service and make it a corporate time instead of a self-led time, I felt it was a great opportunity to do something very simple. I truly enjoyed it and I think it was refreshing for our Christ-followers to have that time to relfect on the suffering of Christ.

Community Good Friday 

•   This service is held at  St. Luke's and several other Island churches come together to reflect on the seven last words of Christ over a three hour span. People come and go as needed during this time.  Each Pastor takes a word and then a musician complements that teaching with a song selection. Todd's word was "Today, you will be with me in Paradise." I sang "I Can Only Imagine" as I knew that would be something very familiar to most people. St. Luke's has a beautiful sanctuary and I realy enjoying singing and playing on their beautiful black grand piano. It has become a family tradition for Easter Weekend to be a part of this service.

Easter Weekend Set-up

• We had Classic Party Rentals set-up a tent and chairs on Friday. BP's company, Innavation, provided all the production set-up and got going on Saturday morning. Sound check was at 3. It was a great process!

Soundcheck on Saturday

Easter Sunday - https://www.planningcenteronline.com/plans/3744827/public

• I was so proud of our Guest Services Team on Easter. They REALLY stepped it up. Our new GSD, Dani, is doing such a great job! She had the oppportunity to go to Unleash with me in March and I totally saw the fingerprints of that experience all over our Guest Services Team!

• I can't say enough about our musicians and production team. They make it SUCH a privilege to sing and play every week.  The best part is that we are friends in community together. I feel very blessed to have the team I have here at HHICC. Special shout out to my TD, BP. He's an amazing musician and production leader. He MADE it happen this weekend!

• We saw 15 people become Christ-followers from Palm Sunday to Easter and our attendance was off the charts of 444 adults and kids. Our weather for Easter was TRULY perfect. Cool and breezy - no bugs and it NEVER even felt warm for our "covered environment."

  2nd Service

Family Reflections - Todd and I had some great time with Syd and Sean talking about the entire Easter Week experience.  Sydney became a Christ-follower a couple of years ago, but her faith has started to take root as she matures and understands how God has created her for a purpose and that He loves her so much. We read the entire Easter story from Luke 22-24 on Friday night. She had never heard the story of the couple on the road to Emmaus and thought that was unbelievable that Jesus disappeared right in front of them!

I pray your Easter experience was truly amazing and that you were able to focus your heart and mind around the wonder of the cross and the power of Christ's Resurrection for you!