Band, Leaders, Ministry Leadership, Players, Singers, Vocal Team, Worship Leading
Playing Through the Mistakes (Show #47)
#ClosenessOfGod
3.5 min read
What scares you into making mistakes?
As a musician, singer and worship leader, there is nothing worse than making mistakes. They can be caused by a multitude of things that can distract a service.In our times of worship and leading, God desires us to be close and our praise to be unbroken. So how do you handle the mistakes before they come, and what can you do about them?
This post comes from our theme #ClosenessOfGod as we will not only discuss how to musically work through the mistakes, we will also use the song “Close” by Aodhan King, Dean Ussher (Hillsong Young and Free). Keep reading to learn more about how you can get today’s free track and chart!
Stop Telling Yourself Not to Make A Mistake
Everything I’ve learned is by making mistakes. Even when it comes to worship leading, especially music, God has used my mistakes to become a great teacher. Did you know that Thomas Edison made 10,000 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb? So we ask the question: Why are mistakes so threatening? Number 1: They show our weaknesses. Everyone likes to be seen as strong; but when things fail, we become shy or embarrassed.
Number 2: Your mistakes do not identify you, God is your Maker and formed you in the identity and image of Christ.
Number 3: Stop blaming yourself about your failure. Kicking yourself does not accomplish anything. What you need to do is turn that obstacle into an opportunity. “Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises!” #-Psalm 98.4s Never be afraid of making a mistake and you will not fear being successful.
How do you move through the music?
Good musicians/singers make mistakes, good leaders allow them to make mistakes. When moving through a song, here are a few things you can do to help head-off and handle the mistakes when the come.- Perfect your practice: Prepare. Spend time at home (not rehearsal) to go through the music and learn it well. Make notes and mark trouble spots.
- Stop the mistake: when it happens – stop the music and fix it. If you do not address the music immediately, it will just be rehearsed. In other words, correct the problem and do not gloss over it or you will repeat it again.
- Go over the parts slowly: Take the tempo down and re-play/re-sing the trouble spot.
- Learn how to get out of it: Add one measure after the mistake / play both together.
- Learn how to get in it: Add another measure before the mistake / play these together.
- Tie everything together: play the entire section of before / during / after the mistake measure(s). Keep playing/singing the section slowly and back up to tempo. Once it’ in your head, then you got it down.
“If you’re not making mistakes, then you’re not making music. A great musician makes great music out of mistakes.” @BranonDempsey
Let your worship and music be more about God
Worship has less it has to do with us. The more we maximize our joy in worship and our joy in playing/singing, we minimize the insignificances. Psalm 108.1 says: “My heart, O God, is steadfast; I will sing and make music with all my soul.” When our hearts are low, God brings us close. He restores our confidence and strength in times of weakness. Even when things seem dark, His light illuminates our hearts. Therefore, we can also say: “My heart, O God, is steadfast.” We make music from a steadfast and contrite heart. It’s the music of the Holy Spirit that God desires. A song of mercy, not of sacrifice.
Theme of the week:
#ClosenessWithGod
Handle the mistakes before they handle you
Don’t give the mistake attention. When you are leading/playing/singing music in the service, keep your focus straight ahead. If you make a mistake, artistically shape it and play it like you mean it. The best musicians in the world will tell you: never stop the music. This is musicianship 101. Avoid making the long faces or deer-in-the-headlights look. I’m serious. The more you draw attention to the problem, the more it becomes obvious to the church. Also, never look at the individual on stage, point fingers or draw attention to them. There’s no need for negative focus – even in joking. It’s not professional and not edifying to the team. This same goes for working with the audio media-tech. DO NOT point out A/V issues from the stage. Let the tech-leader handle it, you focus back on your music and leading worship.
It only takes 10,000 mistakes
Before Thomas Edison created the first lightbulb, people thought he was a failure in making so many unsuccessful attempts. There were times that he wanted to give up. Surprisingly, after he successfully invented the first fully functioning lightbulb: “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” How much more does God not only care about our mistakes, but desires to work through them for His glory? How much more does He want to use you in the moment to help others as well?
Learning from mistakes is part of learning about who God is making you to be. “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.” – Rom 15.4 Get the Free Track of the Month, brought to you by the providers of today’s post: GuideTracks
@BranonDempsey @worshiptt
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