Question:
First let me tell you guys my story...
I have accepted Him when my grandfather died, it was the last week of December 2003, 2 days after X-mas. I thank Him he helped me through those hard time as it was rather unespected when my grandfather died. Everyone in the family was feeling down and all ...
I wasn't always a Christian... I mean my parents already accepted before I did... Now, as I am still not so very "known" to His Word and all, my parents asked me to join this summer-camp for Christians so that I could learn better and more.
Now during that camp I felt strongly "addicted" for doing praise&worship. I learnt a few things about instruments and I felt totally right playing guitar.
It's now november and I asked my parents if they couldn't lend me some money to buy a guitar. Thanks the Lord the money was there to afford a guitar and we eve nhave a room for bible studies and etc. I've convinced friends and family to start a worship band. It's great and we're improving very well. So we practiced every day, from the time we got from school till it was dark we stayed there.
So my parents went on vacation for a few weeks, now I'm old enough to take care of myself and all so I decided to stay home to practice more and also to prepare for my exams... I was so determined for praising and still am but... ( here it comes )
I got along very well with the pastor in the camp, he's asigned to preach in another town not so far from where I live. He's the same pastor who preaches in our praise center. Because of him we coulden't / may not started a place for Bible studies in my town.
Now he got replaced by another pastor.
It's not that I have a problem with the leaders or something. It's just the new pastor is telling us every sunday,after each praise&worship that we sounded very bad. It may be so we're only playing for 6 months , but seriously, the former pastor said we advanced so great that we didn't needed to have the praise&worship team from the other town to come (I think thats why he couldent stay with us, it was rather hard for going back and forth , so the new pastor took his place)
But back to the P&W ...
I'm still feeling so bad... as the other members are ... Everytime i see my guitar out of its case i just need to play it , but now I can't even plug it in my amp ( got an electric one ) ...
The other members are considering just handing in their instruments to the church ... its been a whole month now that we're hearing this from the pastor... i've talked to the other worshipleader from the other town and he said it could just be a way to push us to keep on practicing,practicing,practicing... but it's just we, I , cant even handle it anymore ... its not that were scared ... we know we play good , of course it could be better but we think we did enough to get to this point. But its just we cant give more ...
Maybe he dont like us because we're just newly born christians... Isn't he convinced we want to do this for the sake of the Lord ? as it is written in the Bible... Do Christians treat each other like this ...
Answer:
Wow...man...that sounds really rough. First off I want to answer your last question first because I think it is the most important part of this entire post....No, Christians do not treat others like this. Yeah, every once in awhile you will run into Christian jerks but that is just a fact of life. From what you have said I can 95% surely say that your heart is the right place, you feel called to be a worship leader so you are trying hard to use your talents. Keep practicing and listening (to praise and worship music because the more you listen the better you'll pick up songs) and praying and follow what the Lord is telling you. Also, encourage (not push) the others to do the same, don't get discouraged. Even if the place you are playing now forces you to stop playing there, it isn't the end of the world and other doors will open. Besides, even if you don't play for a congregation, just play because worship is worship weither it be on Sunday morning or just you in your room playing before the Lord. Good luck and Keep the Faith.
Answer:
Originally Posted by Jester_T It's not that I have a problem with the leaders or something. It's just the new pastor is telling us every sunday,after each praise&worship that we sounded very bad. It may be so we're only playing for 6 months , but seriously, the former pastor said we advanced so great that we didn't needed to have the praise&worship team from the other town to come (I think thats why he couldent stay with us, it was rather hard for going back and forth , so the new pastor took his place)
But back to the P&W ...
I'm still feeling so bad... as the other members are ... Everytime i see my guitar out of its case i just need to play it , but now I can't even plug it in my amp ( got an electric one ) ...
The other members are considering just handing in their instruments to the church ... its been a whole month now that we're hearing this from the pastor... i've talked to the other worshipleader from the other town and he said it could just be a way to push us to keep on practicing,practicing,practicing... but it's just we, I , cant even handle it anymore ... its not that were scared ... we know we play good , of course it could be better but we think we did enough to get to this point. But its just we cant give more ... So what did the new pastor say when you talked to him about discouraged you all are by his words?
Answer:
Originally Posted by Sean So what did the new pastor say when you talked to him about discouraged you all are by his words?
this is important information. if you haven't already talked with your pastor about this then you need to do it soon. you need to ask him about his expectations for the group etc..... make sure you've got the whole story. report back after this, good luck bro. don't let this discourage you- it's a bump in the road.
Answer:
wow. this is a tough situation. first of all things, you should pray and ask God to help you in this situation. if it's His will that you lead worship right now keep on leading worship if the pastor lets you (remember that we must submit to authority). how did the new pastor talk to you about your music? was he upfront with you and had no compassion? or was he trying to say it in a nicer way?
it sounds like you love to play the guitar. don't let this pastor get to you. keep on playing your guitar to the Lord even if you aren't leading worship. time alone in your room praising God and reading your Bible is one of the best things that you can do. God will speak to you then through His Word if you ask Him to. but you have to listen. i hope this helps you. God Bless you and may He speak to you. -Nick
Answer:
I'll be talking with him this sunday. He's a bit busy at the moment.
He didn't really came up and said we played bad ... I came to him after the lesson and asked him how he was and etc.
So he said (reports) that it sounded really bad and I need more than just what we're performing now.
Answer:
I think you should record one of your practice sessions... Sit down with your group and listen to it. Be critical of yourself, VERY critical. I easily believe you sound bad after only 6 months of playing... That is to be expected. Does the pastor know how long you have been playing? I seriously doubt anyone (in thier right mind) would expect wonderful playing from a group with 6 months experience.
The pastor should probally be more specific if he actually wants results. Ask what exactly sounds bad... Is it to loud? Does he not like the singer's voice? Do you get off tempo?
Another thing, the old pastor got to listen to you as you advanced, he might have thought that you still sound didn't that good, but he heard where you came from and where you were going. He recognized growth musicialy. My guess is give this pastor time, if you are getting better over time most likely he will notice.
Answer:
Hey, I've been playing for five years with the same people, dedicated musicians, and we still have lots of work to do to be a "top shelf" band. A brand new team is going to sound rough, and you can either take the criticism at face value and push through it and get better, or put down the plough, walk away and give up. No one ever got better by being coddled.
If you want to be awesome, learn how to take criticism, to take alot of it, even to seek it. Then use it for all it's worth and get better.
Answer:
I agree with Niangelo, although it is hard to hear, criticism will help you so much more than people telling you you are awesome every week - if nothing else it keeps you humble.
I would however talk to the pastor about how he criticises you. if he is just telling you you sound bad then that is not in the least bit helpful. ask him for constuctive criticism like "the bassist need to practice with a metronome" or "the lead guitarist needs to play less notes" (one of the best pieces of advice I ever got btw!), stuff like that. maybe you should suggest sitting down with him as a band and talking through things. it may be that he doesn't realise you've only been playing 6 months and is expecting too much from you i don't know.
most of all pray and practice - that way you will get better!
God Bless, Rich
Answer:
Originally Posted by niangelo Hey, I've been playing for five years with the same people, dedicated musicians, and we still have lots of work to do to be a "top shelf" band. A brand new team is going to sound rough, and you can either take the criticism at face value and push through it and get better, or put down the plough, walk away and give up. No one ever got better by being coddled.
If you want to be awesome, learn how to take criticism, to take alot of it, even to seek it. Then use it for all it's worth and get better.
Very well said. When you get critiqued, you have a few options: 1) Believe it and figure out how to fix it, 2) Believe it and give up because you don't want to fix it, 3) Disregard it and continue on your way, 4) Listen to it and prove them wrong. Sadly, too many people go with option #2 and #3. Many *very* successful people do #3 and #4.
Keep working on it and don't give up hope. If your new pastor never supports the band's efforts (ie: is never able to recognize the group's successes in the midst of pushing you to the next level), then it might be necessary to call a band meeting and come up with a plan to approach him about the issue as a group.
The youth group I volunteer at just went through a pastor switch. The new pastor is very demanding of our worship team and makes sure to set high expectations. He is always pushing them farther and harder. However, he also makes it a point to celebrate when they do step it up a notch.
Answer:
The pastor may also not like the music you are choosing, or it may be that what your hearing on the stage and what the congregation is hearing is two different things.. this often happens in worship teams as well... often what sounds good on stage, sounds terrible from the congregation, it could just be that the sound tech{if you have one} needs to get to know you guys better and maybe even get some training, you'd be surprised at how much a little bit can help!!
most important though, never ever give up on what you believe God has called you to do. there are people who will be coming to your church who love to hear you play, and love to be led by you guys in a time of worship...
Talk to your paster, he probably doesnt realize how much impact what he has said has had... Its a hard ministry that your in and often the support and understanding you need isnt there from leadership and congregation alike, if your finding things hard say so. Only God can read minds, and only you guys can ask for help. Im currently organising a team of people to visit churches and lead them in worship, bring them testimonies and a message, minister to the church and the church worship team and leadership {who often need ministering to just as much and are never receiving it} and where asked train members of the worship team who want some training in what they do each sunday. the one thing that always comes up {from my experience} in worship teams is that they are taken for granted by church and leadership alike, you have to tell your pastors etc whats going on... they more often than not dont know, but need to.
I hope you dont mind my rambling, but get back to us all on how you got on ok? Im praying for ya!!
Answer:
I attend a church (All Saints PCA) that has only existed for a year and a half, and it's had the same worship team since its inception. I visited there a couple times when it was first starting off, and one of the things I noticed was that the worship team was, in my opinion, pretty terrible. I joined the church after moving back to Austin two months ago, and the musicians are now excellent in my mind. I don't even know if they were new to worship leading, but it took them time to gel together as a group.
The more you play together and the more you practice, the better you will get.