Christmas Communication

"You have so many Christmas cards!"  I have heard this several times as guests enter my home and see the card display on the foyer wall.  I sometimes take for granted the friends God has given to me because of the great church and ministry where I serve.  The music ministry connects people.  It forges friendships of a lifetime because of the common goal of serving the Lord.
I was never a great talker as a child so Mom thought that piano lessons would help me with my shyness and lack of people skills. The ability of playing the piano opened so many other doors for me to work with some of the greatest people in the world...church musicians.  Friendships, wonderful memories, and life lessons have been learned at each rehearsal, church service, and performance time.
Christmas time especially brings these people to mind.  Musicians from the present and past have always made this time special with meaning.

Men's Chorus - "O Holy Night"
Jo Hovind - piano/organ duet, "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"
Paul Duckett, Jr. - solo with trumpet, "O Holy Child"
LBT Choir - "Messiah Medley" with Dr. Duckett singing the "Hallelujah Chorus" alone
Paul and Martha Ducket - duet, "No Room"
Alvin Martinez/Dr. Paul Duckett, Sr. - "How Great Thou Art"
Joy Trio - "Lion of Judah"
Victory Trio - "What Child is This?"
Myself playing "The First Noel" as a sixth grader in Miss Beverly Rainey's class
Men's Quartet - "O Come Emmanuel"
Teen Ladies' Ensemble - "Happy Birthday, Jesus"
Amy Robinson - piano/organ duet - "O Come All Ye Faithful"
Voice of Triumph - "Underneath the Tree"
Ladies' Ensemble - "One Small Child"
Teen Ladies' Quintet - "Gesu Bambino"
Teen Choir - "Wise Men Still Seek Him"

These are just a few of musical memories I have each Christmas.  People from the past also are remembered as our Christmas cards are exchanged.  It is such a blessing to receive photo cards of young married couples, who were once my students, serving the Lord with their own families.
I hope you take some time during this holiday time to thank the Lord for family, friends, and special memories of serving the Lord.
Merry Christmas and a blessed and happy 2012 to You!

"Enthusiastic Service"

Psalm 100

A Psalm of praise.

¹      Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.

²      Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presencewith singing.

"Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm!"  Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Success is going from failure to failure without lack of enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill


Wherever you are in your service for the Lord, whether you're on your first year or in your golden years of service keep your ENTHUSIASM!


This fall in the music ministry the Lord has blessed with a fresh breeze of enthusiasm!  Maybe it's my perception or just anticipation of our Homecoming Revival, either way, I enjoy enthusiastic service for God.  :)
What difference does enthusiasm make?
1. Anticipation instead of dread...
2. Enjoyment instead of drudgery...
3. Productivity instead of boredom...
4. Faithful service instead of hit and miss half-hearted attendance...
5. A smile and a lilt instead of stiff jaw and slow-paced entrance
6. Whole-hearted singing instead of mechanical, dead singing
7. A "let's sing" attitude instead of "let's put it off" attitude


We all go through times that are tough emotionally and physically, but that should not take away all of our enthusiasm in every area of our lives.  We can create an oasis of joyful service for the Lord when you walk into the doors of your church, practice area, bus, Sunday school classroom, etc...
I have the great privilege of working with some of the most enthusiastic young people I have ever met.  I can't afford to set the wrong example by dragging into a rehearsal or classroom. I have to realize the gift of working with these young people is priceless.  This fuels my enthusiasm.
Enthusiasm comes from looking at something at a different angle.  It's a perception problem.  
If you are always totally enthusiastic, Praise the Lord!  If you need a little help in this area and you realize it, that's a great first step toward enthusiastic, joyful, glad service for our Lord.

Music Sources

Happy Summer!
It's 110 degrees here in Longview and doesn't look like it's going to cool down soon.  We just returned from vacation to the Northeast, where it also was hot!!!  One thing I enjoy about vacation is hearing/watching/experiencing other church's music ministries.
We attended church with our family in Lebanon, Pennsylvania.  I heard several beautiful songs and want to list them here.
"Glorious, Indescribable" - Cindy Berry, Sheetmusic plus (my niece and nephew sang this with the youth ensemble)
"I Surrender All" - James Koerts, for two violins and piano (my nephew's girlfriend and her friend played this for offertory) - FREE arrangement download, PDF - http://koertsmusic.com/piano-music/
"Everlasting Love" - SATB, the wilds.org - beautiful choir arrangement

Other songs that I heard that never lose their message and appeal - "Our Great Saviour" and "Great is Thy Faithfulness".  We heard these while we were in Colonial Williamsburg at the Bruton Parish Church.
Returning to our home church after vacation and knowing that all of the music ministry was doing well was a great blessing.  My hands did have time to rest for several weeks but I was glad to be able to play for the service.  I am encouraged and energized to start something new and get some new music and arrangements together.
The main thought that I brought with me from vacation was that our Lord deserves only the best from us in every area.  My best may not be as advanced as another, but it must be my best.  The same goes for each group.  If a song hasn't reached the quality level of "best" for that group, it should be replaced with one of their "best" songs.
While achieving our best, we must be patient with musicians working on their best.  Their best may not be up to our "best", but they must continue to work for the future, or their will not be a future in the music ministry.
I have many ideas that I want to share with our musicians, then I'll put them into this blog in the near future.  Let's get to work on our best for our Saviour.

"Don't Holler "Uncle!""

To quit? or not to quit?  To disband a group or not to disband?  These are some questions that can come to mind in the music ministry. When there are years of investment in an ensemble or group and a repertoire sheet as big as a phone book you shouldn't throw it into the garbage pile in a quick reflex of the moment.
Sometimes we want to make a quick decision to eliminate a singing group based on three months of bad feelings or anger.  If a group has worked well for ten years, that's 520 weeks of good.  I have learned that we can put a group on "hold"for a personality conflict or spiritual adjustment time just like we do when there's a physical illness.  Our God is a problem-solving God, not a trasher.  Evil things should be thrown out but not our Christian brothers and sisters.  Maybe the group needs a fresh start with a different rehearsal time, new songs, and a new pianist.  There are lots of options to be explored.
We have several groups at our church that have been together for twenty-plus years.  Don't you think there have been times when we wanted to "hammer the nails into the coffin" and put them in the ground?  Yes! Nothing went right for several months: rehearsals with low attendance, or none, outfit problems, sickness, even death.  Humanly there is nothing we can do to quickly fix a problem.  It takes time, patience, and God's wisdom and power.  Just check the group's file into "rehab" and let the Lord do His work!
When problems arise and God irons them out, they are permanent press as far as He's concerned.  The problem is that we have memories like elephants when it comes to other people not measuring up to our expectations, or we react quickly to one or two negative personalities surrounding us.  It helps to have a great spirit and attitude when doing anything for the Lord Jesus.  Expecting perfection, though, is not realistic.  I have group members skip to practice, walk to practice, and some drag to practice - but I'm thankful for them all.  Every person has a bad day, let them have one or two, or how many it takes to get right.  To be willing to be faithful to church, tithe, go soul winning, follow the dress code, and come to rehearsals is a BIG DEAL!  Be thankful for those attributes.  Maybe they don't like your song selections, keep trying and be positive. Pray and ask God for wisdom.  Thank each group member as they come to rehearsal and as they leave rehearsal, before they sing and after they sing, whenever!
Yes "tribulation worketh patience", which we all will eventually have... Let's learn as much as we can from each trial so the tribulation will ease up a little!  Don't holler "UNCLE" too soon!

Teen Convention 2011

Singing from the heart makes such a difference!  We are blessed to have singers who actually love to practice and sing for the Lord.  It is a joy to work with people who sing with this attitude.
We just finished our Teen Convention and the LBT Teen choir and Enduring Praise teen ensemble sang during each service.  They worked very hard to memorize each piece.  We didn't have to chase people down to sing or look for missing singers.  Each person was in their place.  That is a blessing.
Each evening the Texas Baptist College Chorale sang.  I have to tell you that I was surprised just to have them here in Longview for the meeting.  All of the on-campus students went home for the summer.  Out of nineteen chorale members sixteen were present each evening.  One of our three members who were missing was home in....Australia, so we'll forgive her for that!  It had been over six weeks since our last rehearsal but they came together right away. Praise the Lord!  Even our newlywed chorale members, Josh and DeAnna Doyle joined us on Wednesday evening to sing "Somebody Prayed for Me" and "Candle in the Darkness", bringing our ensemble up to eighteen singers.  I thought about the group.  We had singers who had driven from the following states: Nebraska, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Tennessee, and South Texas (that's a drive!).
Spiritually, mentally, and emotionally they were excited and prepared to sing.  Was it perfect? - probably not.  Are they the best-looking chorale we've ever had? - maybe.  Were they used of the Lord to bless? Definitely!  Practicing with this type of group is definitely more fun, too.
I have learned to praise the Lord and thank Him repeatedly when I notice a servant's heart attitude with young people.  I can't wait to see how the Lord will continue to use their lives!!
Thank you teens and college students.  God bless you this summer!

Youth Music Ministry

We have been preparing for our Longview Baptist Temple Teen Convention and are looking forward to an uplifting and encouraging time.  Bro. and Mrs. John Robinson work with the Teen Choir and the Enduring Praise Teen Ensemble.  It is such a blessing to have them oversee the youth music ministry.
Maybe you're going in many different directions.  You find yourself speaking to the adults like you do the fourth graders or perhaps you have an "adult" atmosphere in the jr. choir.  Having the Robinsons oversee the youth music helps us keep our energies and brain power focused on a major area.  We do overlap which keeps us "in tune" with the entire picture.  Mrs. Robinson oversees a ladies' ensemble and a mixed ensemble and I play the piano for our teen church.
The Robinsons also oversee the junior choirs by helping the directors with helpers, pianists, music, and scheduling.   Any questions or problems go to the Robinsons and if they have any major questions they'll refer to me or to our pastor.
You may believe that your music ministry is too small to delegate but the best time to delegate is when you have someone who has the potential for growth.  This way they will grow along with the ministry attendance and maturing of the singers. If you don't have someone who is ready start thinking about a person who has a deep love for the Lord and who has a heart for helping people.  These people will learn the skills needed to do any job - even music.
This is an area that can be applied to any ministry.  If the children in your church are all in the nursery, maybe your church needs a senior citizen's music ministry, or a young couples' music ministry, it all depends upon the needs of your church members!
We have some ideas and plans that we want to start...but let's focus on the teen convention this week!!!

"A Summer Boost"

Happy Summer to you!
Maybe you've already experienced changing schedules for vacations, low rehearsal attendance or no attendance to rehearsal, or a very full schedule of additional summertime activities.  All these can be discouraging as you think about an entire summer of special music "slots" that need to be filled.  I don't know why I can't get my "zest" up, but sometimes you can just be physically tired.  We had a music recital, wedding, bridal shower, graduation, graduation parties, Spring campaign, finals, etc.... I can't think of all we had in May!!!  No wonder!
I posted the new music church schedule for June/July a few weeks ago and I've already updated it three times!  I have had to email these changes to our website manager, Bro. Jonathan Wells...he probably thinks I'm disorganized and can't make up my mind.  After the updates, I had two different schedules in front of me and typed the old listings into last week's order of service and reminders.  Now I'm more confused than ever!  So are the musicians, who've been coming up to me, emailing, and calling with their vacation dates!
I know that if I've been confused, we all must be going through some similar problems. This past week I remembered that God is in control, even during the summer.   I can only do my best.
Let's take advantage of our disadvantages. There are some things we can accomplish during the summer that we might not have time for during the regular school year.
1. Make practice cd's for your singing groups - if rehearsal attendance is low or it is difficult to find a time to meet.  These would not replace your rehearsal and any additional practice time will help!
2. Look for new music and fill your groups' files for their next rehearsal.
3. Start a new group! Maybe just a summertime group - learn 2 songs and see if the group will work out as a regular group.
4. If attendance is low to rehearsal go ahead and practice with those that show up.  They may have problem measures on some songs and you will have time to work them out without the whole group waiting and wasting time.
5. Practice on your own skills.  Take out stacks of choir music, the hymnal, offertories you've been meaning to practice, and when you feel "low", start practicing.  If your skills are sharpened you'll be ready to fill in when the scheduled specials fall through.
6. Make sure your July 4th weekend is extra-special and start choosing your Thanksgiving and Christmas Holiday music.
There's always something that needs attention.  Maybe things aren't "status quo", but God is still on the throne and there's a great work to do for Him!
I think I'll go to the music store in the morning....

Growing Pains

Remember the first time you sang in church?  It might be safe to say that it wasn't your best performance...it may have been a real "bomb"!  I can honestly say that after the first time I played in church I wanted to hide for a week, or two!
Any time you have a "first" attempt it is usually not your best.  The first time you make a new recipe you figure out a thing or two you might need to change for next time, or maybe there just won't be a next time...ha!  Sometimes we can get used to a level of "performance" in the church service that doesn't allow for anyone to experience a "first".  Anytime there is a "first", as music coordinator, I practice extra hard, go over every detail, and sweat it out with the new musicians, but there will always be some "pain".  Someone didn't hold the mic right, someone lost their "part", the pianist lost the rhythm, etc... you can go on and on.   But there is something GREAT accomplished - a FIRST!  Someone did something for the Lord for the first time, it is now behind them and they can look on to the next time, and the next time, and then a lifetime of serving the Lord, and hopefully improving as they go, with the Lord's help and blessings.
If you are a mature Christian, get in on the attitude of enjoying someone else's "first time"!  There are enough grouches that will criticize and find fault, let's be the cheerleaders and find the good to encourage.  Maybe it was the time spent, the spirit of the performance, or just the willingness to put themselves out there in front of the congregation.  Praise the Lord for willing servants who put forth the effort!
Encourage yourself and the new musicians with Philippians 3:13, 14 - "Brethren, I count not myself tohave apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, ¹⁴I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."

"Brighten the Corner"

Have you heard the song, "Brighten the Corner Where You Are"?  Here's the first verse:
Do not wait until some deed of greatness you may do
Do not wait to spread your light afar
To the many duties ever near you now be true,
Brighten the corner, where you are!
Being in the ministry is a different kind of life.  You would like for every effort to be a big effort with big results when God has another economy for living.  It is the day-by-day, unseen, seemingly small tasks that face us every minute.   I love a quote that one of my friends places at the bottom of every email -  “The smallest deed is better than the greatest intention.” - John Burroughs.
We may have ideas of great big tasks for God when God might have a series of a million small ones for us to do for His glory.
Thinking this way will make every thing we do a happy event.  We can accomplish much in small increments, rather than the epic project that never seems to end.  Here are some ways to "brighten your corner":

• pray for your family, church friends, co-labourers in the ministry
• send an email to a missionary or someone serving the Lord who lives far away
• send a birthday card
• send an encouraging note to a shut-in or the caregiver of a shut-in
• cook a great meal for your family
• bake cookies for your kids
• practice your music skills for His glory
• think of someone in your church specifically when choosing a song, special, or offertory - let them know the song is for them
• smile and greet people you don't know
• welcome a new church member or new Christian - remember their name! Ask them what their favorite church song is and try to include it in the prelude or church service.

We musicians can be hard on ourselves.  The group may just not "get it just right", the microphones just aren't perfect, our hands and voices don't cooperate with our brains, sickness sweeps through the music department one singer at a time over a period of three months, etc....  Our big dreams of being the best for God go through the meat grinder.  God doesn't want that, He wants the daily devotion, the sacrifice of giving the best we can possibly do, and our trusting hearts when the schedules have to be changed.
"Brighten the Corner" where you are, when you're there, in every way you can!!!!