Theology Evolved?

I have learned a new recipe and may have jsut perfected it. Yeah right, but it does taste pretty freakin good!

I have made my very own... CAESAR SALAD DRESSING!

That's right baby, some dude made this salad famous in Tijuana about 8 decades ago (that's right not Julius Caesar) you can check out the facts about this at reluctantgourmet.com

So anyways I took their recipe and with a little help of my friend Mer Lot have made a ridiculously good dressing. Boy does it have some zing to it, mom and I are practically eating the stuff like soup. Anyways just thought I would tell you that my progress as chef extraodinaire is coming along quite well.

Email me if you want the recipe!

Okay so since I am in a time of transition and change called the "Turbulent 20's" I decided to take a risk and do the new beta version of blogger which apparently i am stuck with until I become a cool typepad person. Until then I have lost the ability to add html to my blogs so my freaking cool banner is gone. But hopefully I will be back to full Theology Evolved again soon.

So its been a pretty crazy weekend. I took off to go home so I could help photograph a wedding (which was a blast), and while I was home I found out one of our worship leaders was in the hospital, so that was a bit scary, praying that they recover quick... Then my lighting technician found out his grandmother was going in this weekend for surgery for a brain tumor, so that disheartening because well brain tumors are not good... I know captain obvious strikes again. So I spent my hour driving to Dallas, OR for the wedding working with the worship staff in Redding, CA to find a replacement lighting tech (there aren't many, my bad for not training enough) but luckily my awesome team found someone so the show could go on, the lighting tech will get to see his grandma hopefully, and I am waiting for an update on the worship leader.

Hectic times folks, so please be praying for all of these people and for us as we continue to praise God even through trials and difficult challenges.

Thanks

We have all heard the common phrases regarding christian worship "concerts" with all the big speakers, and "crazy lighting". How they are a distraction from worship and are too extravagant. All I can say to that is... I'm sorry you have a box for worship.

In my experience I have found that going to concerts, where you really like the band, and the songs, and everything else that goes with any reason you might have gone to attend a concert in general, you get caught up in the frenzy of what is going on. This is not a bad thing! This is ultimately a very healthy thing! Why you ask, should we be partaking at such an enthusiastic level during these events? Because we were designed to get excited about expressing emotions and energy. Why can't we get into the same place with worship where we allow ourselves to act ridiculous for the God who bestows such grace on us?

In my opinion one of the key features of these concerts that evoke such energy and emotions is the lighting! Especially the various colors of lighting that can happen during a set (I would sell my interns on ebay for changing colors... if I had interns). Changing colors can be used to help the participants engage emotions that may normally be locked up inside, boiling up and just waiting for a chance to be expressed. Red lighting can create an intense experience drawing out such emotions as joy, passion, or even a righteous anger. Blue lighting can help people settle down, find a sense of peace, and bring about reflection in an otherwise harried day. Green lighting can draw on energy, life, etc... The point being that lights are great! They don't even need to be colored though...

The general intensity of lighting can be a great tool for engaging participants in worship. Blacking out a room is a great way to get peoples' attention while at the same time quieting them down, it draws on a sense of confusion which can then be focused by lighting a specific area. Perhaps simply lighting a cross before worship to remind people whom they are about to interact with in worship. This is a slightly extreme version, but if one was to take a less scary approach, simply dimming the lights will have a similar effect minus the confusion, just reminding people that they are about to experience something. In the worship times at Neighborhood Church, the lighting is brought down to about 35% of maximum in the house by the second song and greeting time has passed. This allows people to not have to try and find seats in a dark room, and then also brings out the point that now is not a time to socialize but rather praise the Most high.

A third little way to utilize lighting is to use different forms of lighting. Using both colored lighting as well as candles can help facilitate a very meditative experience. We had worship set which was a mellow one, and the blue lighting combined with the candles really allowed people to have an intimate worship experience with God. Experiment with lighting... use lamps or candles, or maybe even a disco ball (I am working on that one).

Lighting is not a precise art, even with a controlled set and all the best lighting equipment possible it still requires someone who is both intuitive and flexible to adjust the lighting to help the congregation experience the corporate worship experience at its fullest. Mistakes will be made, and the lighting technician will learn. I know, I have made my fair share of mistakes including a little light show during the middle of a prayer once (Whoops!) But nonetheless there is grace abundant, even for the lighting tech. :)

So feel free to take a moment and allow yourself to be taken by the colors, the levels, the art that can be brought out in light. Let your emotions run free, get a little ridiculous for the big guy in the sky!

I have received a few concerned comments regarding how the term "worship production" seems wrong in the church context. I am going to go ahead an place my statement regarding this title, why I chose it, and why it is not going to change.

Worship Production refers to the combination of various elements in the technological field that helps facilitate the worshipers into an environment that encourages and assists in the corporate worship experience.

I chose this term because in the end the department and focus of my ministry is that of the corporate worship experience. I choose Production because it means that there is an end that I am attempting to attain or produce. Meaning that there is a product. An atmosphere that encourages and assists in worship.

The term is alright, it is very simply two words with a specific purpose in mind. It is the modern equivalent to the priests who helped make worship times an amazing experience in the ancient near east. From Worship Producer all the way to the Key Grip of the stage, we are all simply servants of the Most High. We are all attempting to produce an a product that glorifies Him.

Hope this is a clarification for anyone who may have felt confused or misled regarding the term Worship Production.

Zach

It has been a pretty turbulent couple of weeks for me. I have ran into a few issues in my daily life that not easy for a guy with not a whole lot of money to be running into.

1. My water pump in my car was broken and was spraying engine coolant across my engine and everything else except inside my engine. Not cool. Trip to mechanic and parts were $150.00 plus my $8.00 lunch at Fat Boy's Sandwiches.

2. I was planning on making some important purchases, but lo and behold, I threw away my debit card on accident at Togo's and have been left more orless unable to make necessary purchases and my already highly spent credit card is running out of room.

3. I am driving to Oregon next week to go to a wedding and take come candid pictures for friends, and my camera decided it has rejected me and no longer wants to work. So thanks to the 4 year warranty I purchsed 1 year Best Buy is shipping it off to Canon. Probably not in time for me to get it back for the wedding. So no camera as of yet, though doors are opening.

4. Trip to Oregon means 4 days off work and expensive gas. BUt those are minor in comparison to seeing long time friends and my family.

But amidst all of this God is very good. And before doors started opening, I have felt a sense of peace. 1) Good Budgeting made sure I have money to repair car; 2) New debit card arrives in the next couple of days; 3) Have a couple friends who may let me borrow their cameras, just hoping I can get the Canon one; 4)Got a photo gig using another company's equipment, will make up for a couple days of work.

So God gave me peace enough to trust him and now the door are opening, God is a God of Peace!

Perhaps the most difficult job or volunteer position in any church is that of the Sound Technician (ST). When it comes to sound, there is no one who remains out of the communication circle. The ST must deal with critiques from every side. The lead pastor will have his variety of suggestions, the music director will have a sound in their head that they will work tirelessly for, the producer will have the adjustments to make the sound correct for the congregation, and the band will want their monitors perfect. Truly one needs at the least, a very thick-skinned ST.
At Neighborhood Church of Redding (NCR) I am greatly appreciative of the ST’s who volunteer each week to make all the adjustments that need to happen. I take special privilege in being the one who takes the verbal abuse from the parties, and sends the requests in a much nicer form to the ST. We have a truly dedicated staff who are open to learning and take criticism very well.
Sound has always been something that God has sought himself to be glorified through. From the very beginning God has been praised through song with the children of Israel and the Exodus (Exodus 15:1). Outside of the human voice God has also commanded that his work be done through instrumentation. The implementation of the trumpet in Exodus and the fierce implementation of it is as a tool of God’s glory in Jericho. We have hundreds of psalms which were probably but a drop in the bucket of what was actually written, many accompanied with music. There were musicians appointed by the priests who used instruments that were to say the least, not quiet, nor subtle in praising the Lord. 1 Chronicles 15:16 says: “Then David spoke to the chiefs of the Levites to appoint their relatives the singers, with instruments of music, harps, lyres, loud-sounding cymbals, to raise sounds of joy.” (emphasis added).
When being involved with the audio production at NCR I have found that it can be difficult to make everyone happy (I actually gave up a long time ago). So I made it my job to ensure that the music director/worship leader’s goal for the sound was met. It is an ongoing process where one must take the music to a point where people feel a part of the worship without being overwhelmed by it. To find a mix that encourages participation whether silent or verbal, but strikes well with the heart. It is very possible for sound to invoke feels and emotions that lead to deep experiences. Perhaps one of the most poignant instrument songs is “Taps” played in lieu of a tragic event of military personnel. Many people have been brought to tears and memories of loved ones with this song. To this day I still get goose bumps when I hear it. I have had guitar solos have the same effect on me during a musical bridge in worship. There is something powerful about music when presented in a worship sense that evokes passionate emotions. So when the ST does their job right, the music can become a portal to the congregation for participation with God in worship. People respond to the power of music, it is simply the Sound Technician’s job to facilitate that portion of worship to the best of their ability in conjunction with a attitude of worship themselves.
It is important to remember that what the ST does is an act of worship as well. While others are raising their hands and singing loudly their worship to God, the ST stoops over a board gliding the sliders to the positions that evoke those emotions that raise the hands, concentration on their face as their ears listen and the Spirit listens for God’s guiding. Like others, they may slip up in their worship, but like others, they go back. Have grace, patience, appreciation, and love for the Sound Technician.