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January 2003
Going Contemporary
By Terry Wilhite
If you have anything to do with the worship service at your church, no doubt you know about Bessie Monday. As a boy I was first introduced to Bessie at the little church on the dirt road, where our family attended every time the doors opened. When I looked toward the front of the church, Bessie sat three rows from the front on the right side of the white, wood-framed building that only held fifty people and that's if people sat close and were willing to do a very un-Baptist thing, sit on the front benches. People watched Bessie, a gray-haired old lady, about as much as they looked at the preacher. Bessie was noticeable because she always stared at her Bible throughout the worship service and never looked up, that is until the day the preacher gave his resignation, then she not only looked up, but smiled.
I best remember Bessie for the stir she caused after a particular worship service during which the pastor did something that had never been tried before: he grabbed a stool and an acoustic guitar and commenced to sing a tune. This was the early seventies and if people called these songs "praise choruses" then, I had never heard of the term. In fact, the whole scenario was confusing. Before my mom, dad and I were able to make it from our place midway of the church to the door after the service, there was an overwhelming murmur in the center isle: "Bessie says it's sinful to have stringed instruments in the church." The whisper would zing off the church walls and around the little community for weeks. I was only six, but I had looked inside of the piano at home, and I was afraid to report my findings to Bessie or anybody else that (keep this quiet, please) inside the piano, even the one at church was - oh, my goodness - strings!
Looking back and now looking around, I can see that Bessie, like God Himself, has the ability to show up in every church in the world or at least she's always been at the churches where I've played music. For the preacher, Bessie (not her real name, of course) is the unfortunate point of eye contact that dampens his spirit at the height of his outline. For the instrumentalist, she's the one whose cheeks flinch in rhythm with the drums. For the operators in the booth, she's the one who always complains that the sound is too loud, even on the Sunday when the equipment blew and there was no amplification at all.
We can't have a discussion about contemporary music and worship without thinking of Bessie. She, after all, is in your church, too. If you're going beyond piano and organ at your church and you're scared of what Bessie might say, then pull up a chair. If Bessie has already spoken and even smiled (if you know what I mean), you'll want to sit a spell as we answer a few questions every church should ask when it comes to contemporary music. The first . . .
WHERE AM I NOW?
Our tendency is to ask "Where are we musically?" but in my estimation, the most important question of all is: "Where are we spiritually?" Put bluntly, don't expect change of any kind to be accepted, including the addition of instruments beyond piano and organ, until there's a 180 degree focus shift away from the mindset of what "we" want to "what makes God smile", in the words of Saddleback Community Church's Rick Warren, who reminds us that is our goal. On the "me" end of the spiritual thermometer are comments like: "I sure did get a lot out of the worship service today." On the God end are comments such as "We really felt the presence of God in worship today as we offered up a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving." As Warren points out in his new book, "The Purpose Driven Life" (2002 Zondervan), "bringing pleasure to God is called 'worship', worship is far more than music," and as importantly, "worship is not for your benefit." Only you and your church leadership can measure the spiritual temperature of your congregation, but brand new research by George Barna says churches do not have a fever when it comes to worship. "Church leaders foster the problem by focusing on how to please people with music or how to offer enough styles of music to meet everyone's tastes rather than dealing with the underlying issues of limited interest in, comprehension of, and investment in fervent worship of a holy, deserving God," says Barna. Research shows that "worship wars" over music style preferences have been over exaggerated. On the other hand, the importance of worship has been under estimated. As equally disturbing as the lack of emphasis churches put on worship is the fact that most are satisfied with their "me-centered" worship experience, suggesting that as leaders we have our work cut out for us to re-focus worship for God's benefit, which, of course, is done in a large part through music.
WHERE TO FROM HERE?
Bessie showed up again, this time at the third church where I've served. Although she didn't speak her mind publicly when the vote was taken at the business meeting to buy a synthesizer, after the first service where it was used, although I played it very conservatively, Bessie accosted the worship leader on Monday morning. "Where ever you bought that keyboard, you need to put it in the box and take it back," she said. He put it in the box, but didn't take it back. Weeks passed, and I eventually convinced him to let me put it out of sight on the organ bench beside me and "sneak in" some sounds. "That guy is really getting some nice sounds out of that organ. We didn't know it had chimes, trumpets and horns," they said. You see, I was the new organist and they thought, "He knows something about that organ others don't." After more than a year, I put it all on the line. I asked a new guitar player in our church to join me as I played, not a synthesizer, but an actual harmonica for an offertory. I have to confess that moment scared me to death. All of the memories of the pain that Bessie had caused me as a little boy flashed back in full living color. The Lord blessed that offertory and the boldness and to this day Bessie hasn't said a word about it. You may find it interesting that now there are two synthesizers onstage at that church. I play them. There's an organ, piano, bass, acoustic and electric guitar, and even a drum set. And Bessie is silent. Why? Maybe Bessie has adopted the motto "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em." But I am convinced that in this church she's had a change of heart. So how do you effectively add contemporary music to your worship experience? The list is surprisingly short, but I've noticed that when these points are neglected, musical change is usually in trouble every time.
Terry's Top Tips
Lead, don't push. When people know why they should do something, they'll usually follow. Begin by teaching Psalms 150 and both Old and New Testament passages about music and worship. Establish God as your Audience of one. Gently lead, don't scold or embarrass anybody for their current worship mindset, but gently refocus worshipers.
Eliminate the distractive appearance of musical equipment. Watching musicians can be disruptive, distractive and to some, even offensive. Put your musicians as out-of-sight as possible. Worship musicians aren't there for show, but to lead and for the worshipful music they create.
Create a blend. Most often we worship leaders get in trouble because some instrument obnoxiously stands out above the rest. You'll hear comments like, "We can't hear anything but that 'ratta, tat, tat of the drum' or the 'twang' of the guitar." Remember, choir members are told, "If you can hear one voice above another then that person is singing too loud." In order to have a nice blend of instruments, you may have to acquire drum and guitar amp shields, and use acoustical treatment or differing equalization or amplification. If you haven't added non-traditional instruments, when you do, please do this step right the first time. You may not get a second chance. During a period of adjustment, it's also a good idea to lower the volumes of the instruments other than piano and organ a bit low at first.
Get your pastor to lead the charge. As the one ultimately responsible for creating a worship environment, the pastor's endorsement, encouragement and excitement for additional instrumentation should be contagious!
Remember that wood-framed church on the dirt road? It's brick now and the road is graveled, and across from it are monuments to many of the people to whom I am so grateful - dear saints who gave me an unbelievable musical foundation and heritage. I take my six and two-year old there ever so often. When we walk through that cemetery, I reminisce. I ask myself silently, "What kind of musical heritage am I leaving behind?" If "where am I spiritually?" is the first question, I believe that one is a close second.
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