“The capo is my best friend, but sometimes it betrays me…”
Sometimes an acoustic rendition of a revered hymn is a nice choice in a worship set… and sometimes it is a bit out of place, like when it was not planned.
I've been part of the worship team at my church for a few years now, and it has been both a fun and stretching experience. I still get a little nervous when I have to get in front of all those people, most of whom I know a little better now, and hopefully they know me better now too, and not just for the regular unscripted mishaps that visit our church every Sunday. Yeah, in case you were wondering why those suddenly started happening regularly approximately a year ago… my bad.
For instance, recently we did an acoustic rendition of Amazing Grace, and it was.. pretty good, considering. As a guitar player, the capo is my best friend, but sometimes it betrays me. I mean, I guess it really comes down to simple reading and math. The music said capo 4, The guitar even has these handy little dots on the neck to see which frets are where. At some point in the process I placed the capo on the third fret. We usually start the song with just the acoustic guitar anyways, so nothing seemed wrong at first. It wasn’t until about half way through the first verse that we realized something was wrong. Our pianist (bless her heart, as they say in the south), tried multiple times to come in, but with no avail, she had become very confused, and from the look on the other band members’ faces, she was not alone. “What’s their problem,” I thought to myself every time the bass tried to enter into the song. “Can’t they see I’m stealing the show here?”
Of course, when it finally hit me that I was playing in the wrong key, I was a tad embarrassed. But all in all, we partook in some good worship that week!
I learned a valuable lesson that day too… If I ever want to do an impromptu acoustic set, all I need to do is change the key at the last minute, and although it didn't sound quite as nice as the way we had practiced, it made for a good story to share.
No really though, sometimes I find that it’s those worship bloopers that enable me to worship God more fully. Regularly looking like an idiot on stage in front of a congregation can be a humbling experience, and humility is something that we often forget about when we come before God. As long as my own mishaps, or even intentional actions as a worship leader don’t distract others from worshiping God, I will take the regular reminders.
Anyone one else either partake in, or regularly notice worship bloopers at their church?
Sometimes an acoustic rendition of a revered hymn is a nice choice in a worship set… and sometimes it is a bit out of place, like when it was not planned.
I've been part of the worship team at my church for a few years now, and it has been both a fun and stretching experience. I still get a little nervous when I have to get in front of all those people, most of whom I know a little better now, and hopefully they know me better now too, and not just for the regular unscripted mishaps that visit our church every Sunday. Yeah, in case you were wondering why those suddenly started happening regularly approximately a year ago… my bad.
For instance, recently we did an acoustic rendition of Amazing Grace, and it was.. pretty good, considering. As a guitar player, the capo is my best friend, but sometimes it betrays me. I mean, I guess it really comes down to simple reading and math. The music said capo 4, The guitar even has these handy little dots on the neck to see which frets are where. At some point in the process I placed the capo on the third fret. We usually start the song with just the acoustic guitar anyways, so nothing seemed wrong at first. It wasn’t until about half way through the first verse that we realized something was wrong. Our pianist (bless her heart, as they say in the south), tried multiple times to come in, but with no avail, she had become very confused, and from the look on the other band members’ faces, she was not alone. “What’s their problem,” I thought to myself every time the bass tried to enter into the song. “Can’t they see I’m stealing the show here?”
Of course, when it finally hit me that I was playing in the wrong key, I was a tad embarrassed. But all in all, we partook in some good worship that week!
I learned a valuable lesson that day too… If I ever want to do an impromptu acoustic set, all I need to do is change the key at the last minute, and although it didn't sound quite as nice as the way we had practiced, it made for a good story to share.
No really though, sometimes I find that it’s those worship bloopers that enable me to worship God more fully. Regularly looking like an idiot on stage in front of a congregation can be a humbling experience, and humility is something that we often forget about when we come before God. As long as my own mishaps, or even intentional actions as a worship leader don’t distract others from worshiping God, I will take the regular reminders.
Anyone one else either partake in, or regularly notice worship bloopers at their church?
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