The Gift of Touch

Last year a dear elderly couple could be seen strolling into our church on Sunday mornings using high tech bright colored walkers, smiles on their faces and still in love. But declining health forced them both into a local nursing home. And as time passed, her beloved husband went on to his reward. She was alone without her groom for the first time in many, many years. I sat by the bedside of this dear saint. She recognized me and nodded when I asked if I could pray for her. Taking her hand, I prayed, but when I finished she didn't let go. I sat there for a substantial period of time, just holding her hand. The gift of touch is a powerful thing and I was very moved. This blessed me probably more than I blessed her. Words were not spoken, just one person holding the hand of another. One person in mid-life the other close to the end of her journey on earth. There is something powerful in that I can't explain. The truth is, touch is not always physical. We talk about the presence of God and an ability to touch people with music. I know this touch is just as real. They are both gone now. They worshiped God in our sanctuary as the sounds of modern instrumentation flowing from our sound system at 90dB. Always a smile on their face. Always the encouragers. They are in my heart and I'm certain if anything can be heard from earth by those who have gone on, it's our praise joining theirs.


Make sure music ministry touches people.


God is good,
Tim Covert

Tags: Christian Music, Devotional, Worship

Lighten Up!

Last week my daughter Amy and I were traveling together listening to a message I preached earlier in the week. During the message I started to say one word but realized mid-syllable it was a mistake and ended with a different syllable of a different word. What resulted was unintelligible gibberish. Honestly, I didn't even remember making the mistake until I heard the cd. During the message I moved on without missing a beat, saying what I intended. But when my daughter heard that, she couldn't help herself. She played it over and over and over. And every time she played it, she laughed harder. She kept saying, through her tears of laughter, "wait, wait, here it is". And when I'd say the gibberish we'd start all over again. How humbling. To make matters worse, she recorded it on her cell phone and said she was going to use it as a ring tone. Now that's low! I asked her if she remembered what the sermon was about. She said, "Yeah, I got it last Sunday Dad"! I've personally had a variety of responses to messing up. Laughter is not always one of them. Who can relate? In our church, as we practice the worship sets for services each week, my tendency is to be very focused. The last thing I want is a melt down due to lack of preparation. But when I catch myself getting too serious - I can tell and so can you - I try to stop and force myself to lighten up. You have to. I'm not always successful, but I do know what God's word says, "a merry heart (laughter) is like a good medicine". I've seen very difficult circumstances move forward because someone chose to step out and look at the lighter side of things. Taking the mask off and laughing at ourselves is not always easy, but at the appropriate moment it can be refreshing for everyone. Maybe we should stop and laugh a little more often. My daughter's laughter was contagious. Ours will be too... if we'll allow it.

God is good!
Tim Covert

Tags: Christian Music, Devotional, Worship

How Are You Doing?

I recently read something by Dr. Mark Roberts that struck a chord in my heart. He writes in the July / August 2007 issue of Worship Leader magazine, "...if I had to isolate one thing that is most important for all worship leaders, it would be tending to our souls. Nothing matters more for our worship leadership than the quality of our relationship with God." There is an unseen wrestling each minister faces. Forces are identified by the Apostle Paul in Ephesians Chapter 6 capable of effecting our personal and professional life. Romans 12:2 tells us how to overcome. The New Living Translation reads this way, "Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you which is good and pleasing and perfect." God desires a continual pursuit of His transforming renewal. The result is personal and professional stability. How are you doing with this? It's not difficult to lose our bearings and get consumed with tasks. We all have long prioritized to-do lists. Time is limited and results are neccessary. But, nothing takes the place of stable God-inspired leadership. Stay healthy, minister well.


God is good,
Tim Covert

Tags: Christian Music, Devotional, Worship

Raise Them Up

Every once in a while my wife tells me I have "man eyes". She is from the south so this phrase is not to be confused with the sandwich spread. What she means is, I have the ability to look directly at something and not see it! I think that's a man trait. I have this problem when I'm trying to find my keys... in her purse. Of course everyone does this occasionally I hope. Yeah, I'm going somewhere with this. I can say with all confidence, someone could have looked right at me when I was 20 and completely overlooked the undeveloped potential God had placed in my life. But thank God there were those who didn't - my wife being the primary visionary. Pastor's be on the look out. There is probably undeveloped talent right under your nose. I say this to those currently searching for musicians in pursuit of developing worship within the local church. If your church cannot pay for a full time worship leader then what about raising someone up? Give a kid an encouraging word and you will have a friend. Give him or her a guitar and you may have given someone a past time. But give someone a guitar and train this person... you may end up with a worship leader. Who will you invest in? Who will you train? You say, "if I knew about music I'd lead myself". That may not be necessary. I was talking with someone recently who told me, they would be very interested in training someone to lead worship within the local church. This gives me hope that there are options in all this that have gone untapped. The Lord will help us connect people with needs. I believe that.

Hang in there!
Tim Covert

Tags: Christian Music, Devotional, Worship

Little Things Can Mean Alot

There's probably not a successful organization anywhere that wouldn't agree, attention to detail is not only an acquired skill, but a very necessary one as well. It's usually many small details that make up the bigger picture of accomplishment. Part of the job description of a music minister includes becoming an observer of people and surroundings - NOT just during the worship portion of the service. We must become aware of our surroundings physically, personally, socially, spiritually, in every way possible. If we can't see what's going on and we're not trained to even look, how can we serve anyone properly? Being locked into the idea that we exist for the purpose of "doing" the vision exclusively is a questionable path. The powers of observation are also necessary. "Seeing" the vision through is absolutely necessary. What is going on in the hearts and minds of people with respect to the vision? For those convinced that effective ministry is what happens during the up front time, a rude awakening is coming your way with a full head of steam. A tremendous amount of work goes into every up front time which seems to transpire without a hitch. Looking to get by with the minimum is not a mind set the servant of God should snuggle up to. Generally speaking success is not associated with this kind of thinking. Because one small overlooked detail can trip us up. Over time, skills are honed and the awareness of our surroundings becomes more obvious. But not at first. Learn to look around you! Be prepared to see, learn to be accountable for, and teach what must be done behind the scene for ministry to be effective. Save yourself and others from unnecessary trouble. Do these things well and God will increase your effectiveness.

Tim Covert

Tags: Christian Music, Devotional, Worship

Just Worship

As the snow disappears and spring begins to sneak up on the northern United States, it's amazing how quickly this transition takes place. October and April are very transitional months in Michigan. It's possible to experience snow in April and jump from a boat into 72 degree water on a Michigan inland lake the next month! I did that last year. Transition happens faster than we care to admit, particularly with respect to music personnel. One year two qualified bass guitarists rotate on the worship team, the next, no one is available to play. Fill in the variation of transitional blanks for your church. Worship leaders scratch their heads and wonder, what happened? How can "this" or "that" be played without a bass? I can't say my overall ministry focus has changed dramatically over the course of the last 9 years I've been a music minister, but I can say my understanding of how to accomplish goals and approach frustrating circumstances has been enlightened over that period of time. Whether going from feast to famine, or the other way around, seemingly overnight, certain constants become wonderful friends. For those of you who feel like you've been in a famine camping on Mount Everest for the last few years, it's time to get a new perspective! First of all, every church goes through cycles - people move, things change, transition happens. You're not alone. Work through, and continue to work through, and continue to work through your transition with this thought. Psalm 22:3; "Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel." (NLT) One thing is constant in all of this - the biblical mandate to worship and the corresponding promise that God inhabits the praise of His people. That's an open ended promise. We worship, God says He'll show up to do what He wants to do, with or without a bass. Praise God! I read recently in Tom Kraeuter's book "The Worship Leader's Handbook" (published 1997 by Emerald Books) of a worship leader who was concerned about the fullness of sound his/her worship band was able to develop. More information is available than ever before, enabling us to experience through CD and DVD what others are doing in the area of worship. Naturally, what sounds good is something others desire to pursue, like this concerned worship leader. Music ministers make what seem to be legitimate comparisons on a never ending struggle to develop "the full sound". You're not alone in that pursuit. The obvious concern is that no matter what a church sounds like musically, it's hard (on a very modest budget) for any church to develop "the full sound" of very experienced worship musicians ministering through a multi-million dollar sound system. And this can be discouraging. I by no means roll over and stop trying to improve! Don't misunderstand what's being said. However, Music Ministers must be careful they don't let themselves become discouraged or allow their focus to stray from the mandate that comes from scripture - to facilitate worship first and foremost. Then, it's possible to develop people and improve sound as time goes on. The good news is, that's possible. Make sure worship is happening first, then figure out the most effect use of funds (if available) and use them to make the best noticeable improvements possible. Next, who can improve on dedicated unified musicians providing the best they can offer to God in their local church? Unselfish, motivated, unified worship team players are able to accomplish much with little. These are attributes that should describe every worship team. The question is not, who is better (comparing worship bands or programs), but, are we facilitating worship? What do you think?

Tim Covert

Tags: Christian Music, Devotional, Worship

Patiently building, and thankful!

It's been several months since my last post. It's good to be back. I mentioned last time that our church experienced a fire - that was last November. Slowly, repairs continue to be made. Even though the flames were contained in one classroom, smoke traveled room to room through ductword and caused a tremendous amount of damage, displacing Sunday School, Children's Ministry and Youth Ministry. Ouch! In the first month following the fire, restoration crews worked to identify, inventory and box what could be cleaned and salvaged. The inventory list was very long, compiled in a spiral bound notebook and dropped on the Christian Education director's desk - almost crushing it! Boxes of salvaged "stuff" were stacked in containers located on our property. We have to call someone to find something. The whole thing is rather inconvenient. Ha! I'm sure when the restoration is complete, there will be many happy people. Some have lost more than others. It's interesting that appreciation is directly proportional to loss. Unfortunately, we often fail to appreciate the value of something until it is lost. Things can be replaced. Yeah, I'm going somewhere with this. Things are most easily replaced. Relationships on the other hand, our most valueable of possesions, are often taken for granted. As we move further into 2007, don't forget to show your appreciation for your loved ones. And for those you work with closely. Praise God for that worship drummer who has a tough time locking in rhythmically with the worship band. Although it's very annoying, your patience will pay off in the long run. Praise God for the worship musician challenged by new musical styles you've selected. Your patience and empowerment will reap results for the future if you continue to empower and believe in people. There's a price to be paid now for what will be good later. Praise God for an occasional fizzled dream or goal - we'll regroup, rebuild. Do that together.... patiently building, and thankful.

Tim Covert

Tags: Christian Music, Devotional, Worship