Ravings of a County Employee

I am writing today with a heavy heart. No, an irritated, incensed, massively aggravated and sad heart. The principal of the public school I work for (and have sent my children for the past seven years) has notified us of her resignation. This is the woman who has worked tirelessly for twelve years. The individual who brokered a performing arts fellowship program with Ruth Eckard Hall that brings in artists, musicians, and all types of performers to enrich our students and aid in learning. She is the individual who got us our grant to become an arts immersion school, unheard of for a non-charter publicly funded school. This is not a hoity-toity north county school with high millage and deep-pocketed parents. This is a school where 60% of the kids are minority and of that percentage 40% are still learning English. We are a Title 1 school, which means that more than half of our students receive free or reduced lunches. Despite these difficult circumstances we are consistently rated A+ in the district. Teachers are happy to be here. Children are happy and motivated to learn. But somehow district and area superintendents can't seem to leave a good thing alone. They make comparisons. They take potshots. Apparently happy people are a cause for concern.

So, are you wondering if you what you've stumbled upon? Tripping through the blogosphere you happened, not upon your beloved Notes forum where you normally find rants on all things pious, but rather something about a poor, pitiful public school of which I am employed. Are you lost little girl? No, you are not lost. Yes, this is diatribe but one with a point (hopefully).

Bubble Headed Artsy Farts

Being that my mother does NOT read this blog, I'm saying the word "fart" - outside of the context in which bar soap was involved - and I'm even bolding it! That's how mad I am that I would compromise my vocabulary.



It seems that in academia the whole concept of fusing the arts with basic curriculum is a pipe dream for the bubbled headed artsy fart. What a farce! A dream! "How could you paaaaossibly teach reading or writing or (gulp) math with silly sooooongs!" But multiple studies by entities such as New Horizons for Learning, the NEA, University of Washington stress the importance of arts integration for education. One article by Eric Oddleifson, a founding member of the Center for Arts in the Basic Curriculum (CABC), site a study that included fifty failing elementary schools and documented their improvements with fine arts implementation in a basic curriculum. Results listed incredible results with soaring test scores, grade level and higher reading scores (this from a school with 98% minority rate), and waiting lists in the hundreds.

Our principle was asked to write a report on why she should keep her job. She didn't write it. I wish she would but I respect her stance. The fact that a school two miles from us with an identical minority ratio is earning a D+ rating in the district should be explanation enough.

Alright...I'll Make a Notes-Worthy Application

Have you ever heard this?: "And now we come to the most IMPORTANT part of the service." I've heard of churches recently who have chucked the praise and worship service and just played a CD (and not because they had to honey). One church I encountered did away with the music altogether during Bible study nights because they couldn't bother with the emotionalism of a "song service." No, they are deep in the Word.

Just like there needs to be a synergy between arts and education to bridge the soul and the mind, so there needs to be an education regarding the relationship between worship that doesn't just fill a slot on the order of service, but softens the soul for encounters with the dividing word of truth. Math is obtuse (ha! I didn't mean that pun...sorry, I surprise myself sometimes). But put Math with a nifty little tune and you're learning your times tables like a rock star. The Word of God is sharper than any two edged sword, but a good praise and worship service can serve as a nice injection to ease the pain of conviction during "the surgery."

I can't seem to come up with a nice way to tie this all together. Especially since I mentioned earlier that this IS a rant after all, one possibly fuelled a little too much by adrenaline and since I start work at 6:45 am possibly by inordinate amounts of caffeine as well. I can't help but feel that I as one who has taught her children how to spell their ridiculous long name with a song, heard them sing choir songs they accidentally learned in the car, and then watched as the Holy Ghost moved upon them during a moving rendition of "Here I Am To Worship" feel the need to defend this great gift of music. I am one who does not want to limit it's perimeters to reach and edify and educate.

Should a 'secular' song ever be used in a church setting?

This is the future post that is addressing the question Laura posed last week. I am going to spout my opinions using a Gollum/Smeagol approach. I apologize for the morphed photo. I also apologize for the secular movie reference. We will use a future post to discuss movies. 

Gollum...

It is rare that I hear a preacher deliver a message containing no pop culture references or secular quotes. Paul quoted 'pagan' poets in his sermon to the philosophers at the Areopagus in Athens. These ministries have proven to be effective, and new believers have been added despite the secular references among the Gospel. 

If it is acceptable for those responsible for delivering the Word to use a non Christian illustration, why would it be wrong for a secular song to find its way into a worship set? We should evaluate any song we use by asking ourselves if it is pleasing or offensive to God. Will it edify the body of  Christ? If a secular song can make an impact and facilitate worship in any given service, I don't see any problem with adding it to a worship set. 

I have seen dramas done to the old Celine Dion song "If Only You Could See Me Now" that had the altars full at youth services. I have seen churches do the Pentecostal two step to "Celebration" in the middle of the sermon (it was the pastor that started singing). There are no lyrics in either of these songs that would offend the holiness of God, and because they were performed with a prayerful intention, they were extremely effective. 

Smeagol... 

There is a trend among the churches in my area to include a secular song in order to make a visitor/seeker feel more comfortable and connected with the worship service. I find myself at odds with fellow worship leaders with this fad. When seekers enter our services, our goal should be to facilitate their journey into the arms of a God who has been waiting for them to step towards Him. The seeker has most likely listened to music that suits his/her taste all week. We want them to "taste" and see that God is good.

We need to be careful that we aren't seeking to impress visitors with our abilities, talents, or even cultural awareness. We are at all times proclaiming the Gospel and the freedom that results from our pursuit of Jesus who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Thanks, C.S.

There are two profound quotes from C.S. Lewis that I discovered several years ago (thanks to my friend Dr. Jeffrey Garner). Both quotes have helped me to find perspective on those weighty dilemmas such as those we wrestle with here on Notes.

We are certainly not the first group of sincere believers to ask ourselves what, exactly, it is that brings a smile to the face of God. We are not unique in our strong opinions about musical preference, theological integrity in song, and all the other unanswerable questions that drive our weekly dialogues.

So, for this week, I want to share with all of you one of my favorite quotes. It presents two ways by which God can be glorified in music:

Musical Intention

It seems to me that we must define rather carefully the way, or ways, in which music can glorify God. There is … a sense in which all natural agents, even inanimate ones, glorify God continually by revealing the powers He has given them. And in that sense we, as natural agents, do the same. On that level our wicked actions, in so far as they exhibit our skill and strength, may be said to glorify God, as well as our good actions. An excellently performed piece of music, as natural operation which reveals in a very high degree the peculiar powers given to man, will thus always glorify God whatever the intention of the performers may be. But that is a kind of glorifying which we share with the ‘dragons and great deeps’, with the ‘frost and snows’.

What is looked for in us, as men, is another kind of glorifying, which depends on intention. How easy or how hard it may be for a whole choir to preserve that intention through all the discussions and decisions, all the corrections and the disappointments, all the temptations to pride, rivalry and ambition, which precede the performance of a great work, I (naturally) do not know. But it is on the intention that all depends. When it succeeds, I think the performers are the most enviable of men; privileged while mortals to honor God like angels and, for a few golden moments, to see spirit and flesh, delight and labour, skill and worship, the natural and the supernatural, all fused into that unity they would have had before the Fall.

This was taken from an essay entitled "On Church Music" by C. S. Lewis..

So how does God get glory?

These words remind me that God gets great glory regardless of me. There are things in nature (a rock, a tree, a beautiful voice) that bring glory to God simply because He created it to be. Who am I to argue and try to say that those events, things or gifts should not give Him glory? But he also receives great glory because of me. Isn’t that profound?

I love how C.S. Lewis says that we need to define carefully how music can bring glory to God, and then goes on to demonstrate that God's ability to receive glory goes so beyond our own need to "put God in a box!"

I’m going into a busy season with two big local musical events in the next 4 weeks. I am SO glad that through all of the discussions, decisions, corrections, disappointments, temptations to pride, ambition and rivalry that God examines my intentions and that I can glorify him if I work to keep my motives pure. Just like C.S. Lewis, I do love those moments where we discover “that unity” as it would have been before the Fall.

Diversity...

As I write today, we are in the midst of Unprecedented Praise, the annual music conference here at Gateway. This will surprise no one, but I’m always “re-amazed” each year at the depth of talent in the Apostolic church. Each year I find myself whispering a prayer of thanksgiving to God that these people have chosen to direct their talent God-ward. I can only imagine that God has to be pleased when we pursue and develop our gifts, try new things, and explore diverse styles, all the while keeping ourselves centered around what is important: glorifying Him, edifying the church and evangelizing the world.

Speaking of diversity…..

Back when we first started the Notes blog, several contributors wrote about the hymns/choruses debate and all the many rabbit trails that result from that discussion. I am increasingly convinced that it is not only in music, but also in drama, literature, and one that I’ve recently noticed (or should I say “paid attention to): worship/expression styles. What started me thinking about this was a sign language/drama group that gave a dramatic presentation of the song “Stand” by Donnie McClurkin during one of the night services this week. It’s a popular song with a message with which every single Christian can identify: what do you do when you can’t handle the pressure of life, when you’ve done all you know to do, when you’re at the end of the rope, and, ahem, there ain’t no knot to hang onto! That’s a very personal message, one that I don’t think we need to be ashamed to express publicly. Thinking about this further, I realized this was just further evidence how worship has become increasingly personal. Listen to any new worship song and it’s not so much about “we” or “us” as it is “me.” I don’t have a problem at all with this, but it helped me understand further why the preceding generation sometimes expresses frustration with how our worship, music, drama, etc., has changed. Listening to conversations and the differing opinions about the “Stand” presentation was amazing – it was nearly exactly as I thought, with a few exceptions, of course. Age dictated acceptance or rejection.

Lately, I wonder if we should really fight against what we disagree with at all– unless of course it contradicts the Word of God. We are so different. So often I tend to pre-judge someone with regards to his or her artistic/expressive taste only to ashamedly change my opinion when I get to know that person or come to understand what motivates his or her praise.

Just food for thought.

Big Country

Does this ever happen to you?

You become completely transfixed by a song? I was going to say enchanted but I don't like the overtones. I have been listening to a song over and over and over again this past week, "Big Country" by Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. It's the best song I've heard in a long while. I've probably listened to it 20 times in the last week. Maybe more.

I had borrowed some Bela Fleck tunes from a friend and decided it was time to purge the borrowed music from my iPod and replace it with some correctly licensed music. I picked this song more from its "popularity" than anything else. But after the second or third listen it became something I needed to hear time and time again. A coworker of mine described the song as "uplifting." It didn't speak that way to me. It seems to me, rather, mournful. There's a lot going on, a little country, a little Irish, a little folksy Simon & Garfunkel, a little Pat Metheny, a little Branford Marsalis.

It took me a good long while to figure out the metrical structure of the tune. I won't spoil the surprise for those that may be interested.

On a completely unrelated note, who are the Christian musicians, singers, groups that you gravitate toward when needing to listen to music with a message? Or simply music with some pleasant complexity, a welcome respite from the I-IV-V-I?

Ann shared her fondness for Babbie Mason with me and I have been hooked.

I would like to see 20 or 30 "top 10 lists" from the greater N&N readership. I will start with my own. Feel free to argue with me.

1) Kirk Franklin
2) Mickey Mangun/PoA
3) Donnie McClurkin
4) IBC
5) Israel Houghton
6) Hezekiah Walker
7) Fred Hammond
8) Brooklyn Tabernacle
9) TD Jakes
10) Murrell Ewing