We had a pretty special Sunday service this week at Gospel Light. We had a baby dedication, a promotion, and our founding planting pastor returning for the first time to preach since he left earlier this year. It was also (of course) the first Sunday of Advent, so we are eagerly anticipating the coming of Christmas.
Here's this week's setlist:
Opening Song:
We Cry Out (Johnson/Johnson)(C)
Main Set:
All Because of Jesus (Fee)(C) God of Wonders (Byrd/Hindalong)(G) Healer (Guglielmucci)(B) How Great is Our God (Tomlin/Reeves/Cash)(C)
Offering
Eres Todopoderoso (Salinas)(D)
Things really went very well today during the set. Daniel used a second keyboard, which is more a professional stage piano than our Yamaha. He was doing pads and bass-lines on it, and using the Yamaha for piano, and it really added a richness and fullness to the sound. I also played some higher voicings than usual on the two slower songs, and that really filled up some nice sonic space. The last two songs both lasted a long time, and everyone was responding totally to them, which was awesome.
We also had a packed house today because of all the things going on, even using our overflow area a little, so the impact of that many people singing was really amazing, especially on the Tomlin song.
We also led at Lighthouse Fellowship Church, as we do twice a month. Our set there:
We Cry Out God of Wonders How Great is Our God Amazing Grace
That last was something Pastor Hector requested as we finished the normal three-song set, and we were happy to oblige.
A few weeks ago, I got an email inviting me to an advance "pastors only" screening of the upcoming film, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. I was pretty excited; I'm a big Narnia fan, and the idea of a private screening of an unreleased film in the heart of Times Square was pretty cool.
So after a short adventure of our own (but that's another post) Jill and I made it down to the Regent E-Walk 13 in Manhattan. We had missed the first forty minutes, but that was alright - we were still let in. We had to surrender our cellphones at the entrance to the theater, which added to the mystique of the event.
Warning! There be spoilers here!!
I was not a huge fan of the Prince Caspian film. I thought it kind of long and drawn out, trying to be too much of a The Lord of the Rings kind of film. Certainly, the effects were amazing, but the story wandered a bit. Caspian is one of the least popular of the Narnia books. Dawn Treader, on the other hand, is one of the most popular, and with good reason. The book is fast-paced, and interesting, with a lot of interesting twists, including a huge one at the end. (I will assume the reader is familiar with the book, so proceed at your own risk.)
Dawn Treader takes us back to the cinematic roots of the series. It is much closer in scope, pacing, editing and effects to The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Whether it was from financial necessity after Disney pulled out of the project, or director Michael Apted's British sensibilities, or the poor performance of Prince Caspian (or, more likely, a combination of all of that) the film is tightly paced and slightly scaled-back in its effects - only slightly - which makes for some great storytelling. Many of the sequences in the film were Digital 3D, although we sat too far up front to really get the full effect.
The story follows the two youngest Pevensie children, Lucy and Edmund as they are once again drawn into the world of Narnia, this time with their cousin Eustace. Now a young man and a young woman, Lucy and Edmund have lost some of their childlike qualities, replaced by a sense of responsibility, and indeed, a regal manner. They have been summoned by Caspian X, now king for three years, to help on a voyage to the end of the world, to find the lost Lords of Narnia. Along the way they encounter a mysterious evil mist, mer-people, a sea monster that the Kracken would swim away from screaming, and one brilliantly rendered digital dragon.
Of course, there are also the usual centaurs, minotaurs, and fawns, as well as the swashbuckling mouse Reepacheep, this time voiced by Simon Pegg. I must admit, that stupid mouse had me almost tearing up at the end of the film.
Speaking of the end of the film, I will say that the end of the Dawn Treader book is one of the key moments in the entire series, especially if you understand the Christian subtext of Narnia. In fact, it is at this point where Lewis takes it from subtext to text. I was very interested to see how Apted would handle this delicate and important moment. I think he gets mixed marks; positive for including the sequence in the first place in a mainstream film, negative for leaving out a key part.
There are, in fact, several differences from the book in the film, notably toward the ending. Lewis deliberately left Caspian out of the the final leg of the voyage; Apted took him along. The film is also more clear on what happens to Reepacheep than the book. Some other aspects were changed around a bit, but not too seriously, and mainly (I would guess) done for story economy.
All in all, an excellent film, and well worth seeing. I would be careful about the youngest children, not for the violence (which is less than Prince Caspian) but because some of the suspenseful sequences might be a bit scary. Other then that, this is great family fare, and will leave you with something to talk about. I'm looking forward to seeing it again with my own kids.
Today we have an extra-special service recap. In addition to our regular service at Gospel Light Community Church, Aquim and I went to New York City to help lead at a special event at one of our church plants, Good News Christian Church in the Bronx.
At Gospel Light, our set looked like this:
Opening:
Give Thanks (Smith)(D)
Main Set:
Friend of God (Gungor/Houghton)(D) Your Grace is Enough (Maher)(G) Here I Am to Worship/I Love the King (Hughes)(G) How He Loves (McMillan)(C)
Offering:
Say So (Gungor/Houghton)
Service went really well, especially the "Here I Am to Worship/I Love the King" into "How He Loves." We're only recently putting HHL into rotation, and our congregation seems to love it, sloppy wet kisses and all.
After we finished playing, we had to jump in a car and head down to New York City. Our church plant down there, Good News Christian Church, was holding an "International Friendship Day," and we were tasked with helping the GNCC team come up with a multi-cultural set for the service. Here's what we all came up with:
The combined team
Shout to the North (Mark)(G) You Reign (Witt/Salinas/Espinosa/Barr)(Gm) Cuan Bello es el Senor (Morris)(G) Majesty (Smith/Gerrard)(G) Because of Who You Are (Munizzi)(Eb)
Offering:
You Are Good (Houghton/Lindsey)(E)
Invitation:
I Give Myself Away (McDowell)(C) Agnes Dei (Smith)(G)
This service was incredible. Even though the plant is still new, there is a growing group there. We were happy to see the hall they are renting fill up. "Shout to the North" was my contribution to the set. (I was asked to give them something Irish.) The combination of the popularity of this song, and the Celtic feel to it made it a natural. (plus Robin Mark is from Northern Ireland.) "You Reign" is a spicy Latin number, popularized by Marcos Witt, which came out sounding waaay better than it had any right to. "Cuan Bello" is a slow Spanish song that we do at Gospel Light, although Jason Morris is American, the son of missionaries.
Believe it or not, I've never played "Majesty," even though I love the song, written by, of course, Brit Martin Smith. It fit so well coming out of "Cuan Bello" and I was so glad it was in the set. "Because of Who You Are" is a contemporary Gospel song, written by Florida native Martha Munizzi.
The two invitation songs were neither planned nor rehearsed, they just kind of spontaneously happened. I had never even heard the William McDowell tune, and just played along by ear. "Agnes Dei" is a favorite of the guest speaker, Pastor Stanley, who hails from Sierra Leone in West Africa. He usually sings it a cappella, but we gave him a little Third Day action to sing with.
Bainbridge Avenue
Following the service, we had a ridiculous meal - the kind you could only get in New York. Imagine a plate loaded with cod, shrimp and avocado salad, rice and beans, roti, rice and beans, stuffed shells, pernil, pasteles, and corned beef and cabbage. YUM!!!
Anyway, I'm tired, but excited. The church plant is going well and making a lot of headway in that neighborhood. I'm looking forward to going down there again soon.
Wow... what a busy weekend. I did a ton of driving Saturday, two churches and three services today. We had a youth encounter weekend this weekend, in upstate New York, about two hours from home. I drove up yesterday morning to teach one of the sessions, then had to go the other direction to pick up my oldest daughter at college to come home for the weekend.
With the encounter, we were again shorthanded this morning. Daniel and Laura were both away. Fortunately, we had some help from one of our choir members, Marisol, who stepped in and helped out in the vocal department. Here's the setlist:
Opening:
Only By Grace (Gustafson)(D)
Main Set:
Happy Day (Cantelon/Hughes) (C) Turn it Around (Houghton/Lindsey)(D) From the Inside Out (Houston)(C) Revelation Song (Riddle)(D)
Offering Trading My Sorrows (Evans)(G)
Let's get this out of the way: rehearsal was a train wreck. My tone was off, the vocalists had a hard time finding keys, we couldn't stay focused. Pretty much none of us were happy. The service, on the other hand, was ridiculous. Everything sounded dialed in, Aquim and I were in the pocket, the vocalists were hitting keys and cues. I played the first couple on electric, and switched to acoustic for "Inside Out" and "Revelation Song." It sounded great, and everyone was really responding well. We kept both songs going longer than we planned, everything was just really going well.
We had a little spontaneousness prayer interlude after the worship set. I'd been working on "People Get Ready" (Mayfield)(D) all week, and it seemed to fit perfectly as a musical interlude.
So, I really love it when we say "We stink" and God says "No you don't." Today was one of those days.
We also led at Lighthouse Fellowship Church today. The set was:
Blessed Be Your Name (Redman)(C) Trading My Sorrows (Evans)(G) Mighty to Save (Morgan)(G)
This week the joint gives you a one-two knockout from the land of my birth, the Great White North, Canukistan, otherwise known as Canada. Since the two projects are closely related, I will just suggest you head on over to the joint and check out Joshua Seller and Worship Rises by clicking on the banners below.
We had a busy weekend at Gospel Light this weekend. We had a men's encounter, which is a three-day getaway for men, mainly those who are new believers. Between the men who were going for the encounter and the guides who taught at it, we had a large percentage of the men out of church Sunday morning, along with Daniel and Aquim. (I was teaching at the encounter, but came home Saturday night so I could be in church on Sunday.)
We did another acoustic set, this time just an acoustic guitar and three female vocalists. Here's the set:
Opening:
I Offer My Life (Moen)(E)
Main Set:
God of Wonders (Byrd/Hindalong)(G) Blessed Be Your Name (Redman)(C) Happy Day (Cantelon/Hughes)(C) Came to My Rescue (Davies/Sampson/Thomas) Healer (Guglielmucci)(B)
Offering:
Trading My Sorrows (Evans)(G)
We haven't done "I Offer My Life" in forever, and I kind of wish we hadn't done it today. I wasn't really happy with it. The vocals were great, I just didn't like my playing on it. "God of Wonders" on the other hand, is one of my favorite tunes to do on acoustic, so I quickly forgot my woes.
the joint continues it's fall madness with yet another review, this time going traditional with Hymns I & II from Page CXVI.
KLAMPERT: I Love these two CD’s and can’t wait for hymns 3 and 4 to come out. They have become an Epic band. Rating:
BYRD: I think there’s some great music here and the fact that they lyrics are hymns makes it pretty special. It’s not Passion. It’s not Hillsong. And yet again, it’s really good stuff and that makes it special as well. Not everything hits on all cylinders for me here but I really respect these two projects and am anxious for the upcoming releases. Rating:
MAHONEY: A great, modern approach to classic hymns, with one or two klunkers. Rating:
VANCE: I love when old hymns are revived and get to live again. Page CXVI are doing a good job of classic hymn revival and I will be keeping an eye on them. Rating:
the joint is going to be flooding the interwebs with reviews this week, just in time for you to start building your Christmas wish-lists. So far, we've released two reviews of brand new music from Hillsong Chapel and Lincoln Brewster.
For those unfamiliar, the joint is a collaborative review, specifically from the point of view of the worship leader - not only reviewing the music, but how it potentially could be used in your church.
KLAMPERT: A fantastic reworking and stripped down version of many great Hillsong songs. I would have loved to have heard “Like incense” on this one. Rating:
BYRD: 13 tracks is nothing to scoff at! While a more “raw” recording and acoustic session can feel like a plug for money from the worship consumer, I believe Hillsong has actually accomplished their goal by getting these songs out in an intimate and devotional setting. This is a must have for worship leaders and worshippers. Rating:
MAHONEY: If you like Hillsong music, and are trying to find way to introduce it at your church, this album is for you. If you already do it, and want some new ideas, this album is for you. If you like intimate, acoustic worship, this album is for you. (Seeing a pattern here?) Rating:
VANCE: A nice wee mellow album, perfect for chilling out to. Rating:
KLAMPERT: It is an ok CD with 2 really stand out worshipful slow songs, but I could not get into the rest. Praying for a new LIVE CD from him. Rating:
BYRD: I think it’s his most firm and solid release since Live to Worship. Just amazing! If So Good isn’t the next single played in every church I don’t know what will be? And there are some true gems in here as well. Did I mention the song writing that’s stepped up several notches!?! Yeah, get it!Rating:
MAHONEY: I)Fan’s of Lincoln Brewster will love it. Energetic, and tight. Rating:
VANCE: Two or three really fantastic songs on this album. Rating:
So check out the complete reviews in the links above.
