As I submit my last blog post for my Worship & Media Internship, I reflect on all the love, knowledge, support, wisdom, and guidance I have received during my time at Identity Church. I have learned so much about what healthy spiritual leadership looks like and how to practically do things such as running sound/creating an in-house mix, cueing tracks, leading rehearsals, and more. I am excited to continue serving at Identity after my Internship has ended and continue to grow as and individual and contribute to the continual growth of the church during my gap year.  

For the rest of this blog post I will be completing a prompt that was previously assigned to me: Research and present a brief on favorite worship song(s). 

One of my all time favorite worship songs is How He Loves by John Mark McMillan released in 2005. 

How He Loves is a Christian Alternative Rock song written by McMillan after his best friend passed away in a car crash. According to him, “ the love that he sings about in ‘How He Loves’ is not a pretty, ‘Hollywood hot-pink’ love. It is a kind of love that is willing to love even when things are difficult and messy. He says, ‘This song isn’t a celebration of weakness and anger. It’s a celebration of a God who would want to hang with us through those things, who would want to be a part of our lives through those things, and, despite who we are, He would want to be a part of us, our community, and our family.’” 

What I love about this songs is the deep emotions conveyed through its rich lyricism as well as its versatility. Here is an example of the lyrics within the verse of the song: 

He is jealous for me 
Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree 
Bending beneath, the weight of His wind and mercy 
When all of a sudden 
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory 
And I realize just how you are beautiful you are 
And how great your affections are for me 

The poetic visual description and comparison of God’s love is like a hurricane, and we are bending trees so profound and creates a powerful image of just how much the Lord loves us, with intensity, passion, and incredible depth. Although it may seem as if God’s love for us is a simple truth, many believers and unbelievers alike who may be overcome with things like shame, guilt, and distrust, struggle to accept that the Lord really loves them. This song reminds us of the powerful love of God shown within the Bible, one that is sacrificial, selfless, and genuine. I also love the versatility of this song. It has permeated the world of Christian and Gospel music and has been recorded in the genre of Christian rock (ex: the David Crowder Band), Contemporary Christian worship (ex: Jesus Culture), and Contemporary Gospel (ex: Anthony Evans). The 6/8 time signature contributes to flow and feel of the song, as well as the instrumentation in the various versions I have listened to. They start with anticipation and a sense of subtly, emphasizing the lyrics of the verse at the beginning and then build to the bridge where the instrumentation fills in and increases as the vocalists exclaim ” He loves us, oh how He loves us” as like a confession from the depths of the soul. Finally, this song was originally released in 2005, almost 20 years ago, yet it is a song still sung by believers and shared in congregations today with conviction and passion revealing its value and timelessness.

In this blog post, I will be responding to a prompt/assignment given to me by Pastor Byron for completion.

Song Writing as Spiritual Leadership 

If you could write and produce a song for your current church, what would it be like? Give a brief description of the structure and type of song you would like to write and produce. List core descriptors like the tempo, musical style, subject matter, and any scriptural references you’d draw from. Consider the following questions to guide your process: 

Audience Analysis: 

• Who makes up the congregation you serve? What are their demographics, interests, and spiritual needs? 

• A good portion of the church is black (African American & Caribbean), and white, and a smaller percentage is Indian. The age range varies, there are many families with children, couples with no children, and single young adults, and few elderly. The interests also vary a lot, adding to another aspect of the diversity of the church (which is so awesome!). Some interests and spiritual needs include: work life-balance, direction for next steps (young adults graduating college: fields – engineering, chiropractic, the arts, etc.), families having new additions/children and navigating life differently, people dealing with the loss of loved ones or loved ones struggling with poverty/substance abuse/ etc. 

• What themes, struggles, or joys are prevalent within your congregation’s community? 

• See previous answer for listing of themes & struggles. Examples of joys that are prevalent within our congregation’s community: welcoming new life, new doors opening, encouraging others in need and seeing positive impact, testimony of spiritual growth. 

• How can your song address these themes in a meaningful and authentic way? 

• The song that I write can be reflective about the different aspects of life as a whole: the joys, the struggles, the victories, the losses, and how we can see God’s hand through it all protecting us, guiding us, and holding us. 

• Worship Experience: 
• How does your congregation typically engage in worship? What styles of music do they respond to? 

• The congregation typically engages in worship by singing along with us, following along with the slides. Whenever we end a song and have just the piano play with the voices, there is sometimes more spontaneity in the worship heard: more adlibbing and praises to God sung. We also worship around the Word of God (through engaging with the Sermon and studying biblical text) and taking communion. They respond to Contemporary Christian/Gospel Music, and Traditional hymns. 

• What elements of a worship song (lyrics, melody, rhythm, etc.) have been particularly impactful in past experiences? 

• I have noticed certain portions of songs with more “rich” lyricism such as hymns or the tag of a song tend to be repeated (if the room and space is created for spontaneity), and it has created some very impactful moments. 

• How can your song contribute to creating a powerful and inclusive worship experience for your congregation? 

• This song can contribute to creating a powerful and inclusive worship experience by reflecting the heart and mission of our church, while highlighting the different experiences, struggles, and emotions the wide variety of congregants may feel within this life. A song that reminds of us our humanity, and of God’s deity, power, and identity. That reminds us of the gospel and Jesus, the foundation of what we believe, the Rock we can stand on through anything. It brings us back to our first love, and the center of our belief as a body. This can be a reaffirming truth for those who are believers, and also a way to share the good news of the gospel and invite others to know God who may be unbelievers.  

Message and Biblical Foundation: 

• What message or spiritual truth do you want to convey through your song? 

• Through the experiences of all kinds that we face as humans on this earth, know that Christ understands. Keeping Christ at the center of our lives and reflecting on His sacrifice for us will be our ultimate source of strength, joy, and hope.  

• How can you ensure that the lyrics align with biblical principles and resonate with the spiritual journey of your congregation? 

• Stay attuned to the congregants sharing their experiences. This can be done by observing and listening during our Family Break Out Question and Reflection & Response portions of our services. This can also be done by engaging in conversation with members before and after church. Using scripture as a basis and reference for the song will help make sure it is aligned with biblical principles.  

• Are there specific scriptures or biblical narratives that inspire your song’s message? 

• ”And not only that, but we also boast in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope. This hope will not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.“ ‭Romans‬ ‭5‬:‭3‬-‭5‬ ‭CSB‬‬ 
• ”Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.“ ‭James‬ ‭1‬:‭2‬-‭4‬ ‭CSB‬‬ 
• ”I know how to make do with little, and I know how to make do with a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being content — whether well fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need. I am able to do all things through him who strengthens me.“ Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭CSB‬‬ 
• ”Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live. Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”“ ‭John‬ ‭11‬:‭25‬-‭26‬ ‭CSB‬‬ 
• ”The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you have suffered a little while.“ ‭1 Peter‬ ‭5‬:‭10‬ ‭CSB‬‬ 

Collaborative Process: 

• How can you involve other members of your worship team in the songwriting process? 

• We can have a songwriting session as a team! This can be very fun and engaging and can be done in a variety of ways such as doing timed brainstorming sessions, doing group writing where we bounce ides off of each other using white boards or posters around the church building. 

• What strengths and perspectives can each team member bring to the table? 

• Each member has different ways of using language to express an idea lyrically, and different life experiences that they could refer to for lyrical inspiration and connect with those in the congregation with similar experiences.  

• How will you navigate differences in musical preferences or theological perspectives within the team? 

• As a collective, we can sit down and can reevaluate the purpose and goal of the song, and refer back to scripture to assure theological views are aligned with the Word. 

Practical Considerations: 

• What logistical factors should you keep in mind when writing a song for your congregation (e.g., length, musical complexity, singability)? 

• The key of the song and melody should be simple and comfortable for someone who does not consider themselves a “singer”. The song should not be very long, most likely 1-2 minutes based on the purpose of the song. (See next question for more details on song purpose). Since it will most likely be a reflective song, it should be. slower tempo such as 65-70 bpm. 

• How will you test and refine your song to ensure it effectively connects with your congregation before incorporating it into worship services? 

• To test and refine the song and ensure its effectiveness in connecting with the church, I can introduce the song to the worship and leadership teams before the congregation for feedback and thoughts. The song can be incorporated into the communion portion of the service where people come up to get the bread and wine, then return to their seats for prayer and reflection. This makes it a song that people can either just listen to and reflect on and/or sing along with.  

For this blog post, I will be completing an assignment given to me by Pastor Byron.

Spiritual Leadership in Worship Prompt:
Compose a short reflective essay or blog entry on the role of exercising spiritual leadership within a church worship team. Draw from your experiences to explore how spiritual leadership influences team dynamics, fosters unity, and enhances the worship experience for congregants. Consider practical examples of how you’ve seen spiritual leadership manifested within the context of worship, and reflect on the personal growth and challenges you’ve encountered in your journey towards becoming a spiritual leader within your team.

________________

Exercising spiritual leadership is very important, especially in worship leading within a church. Through my experience as Worship & Media Intern at Identity Church I have come to see this in action and understand its deep impact. Exercising leadership in general is important because a leader can help create a clear direction and focus for the team, emphasize accountability in reaching goals and saying committed, observe and be aware of areas of growth and improvement as a team, and be a source of encouragement and cultivating a space that is welcoming, supportive, safe, and a team that is efficient, spiritually strong, and united. Effective leadership can help establish a strong foundation which in return helps develop stronger skillset, leading to less worry about making mistakes, less distractions, more connection to one another and goals, fluidity of service, and then these things then impact the reception of music and worship from congregation and their overall worship experience.

Exercising spiritual leadership can be executed in many ways and can help drive the impact of the practical aspects of leading a worship team. This can look like a worship team leader implementing group devotionals and/or Bible studies encouraging the team to engage in conversation about the core principles of our faith, why and how we worship, and its importance to the Body of Christ. Other examples of spiritual leadership include prayer meetings where prayer requests are taken and each member has the opportunity to go before the Lord in prayer, encouraging the team to pray privately for fellow team members, and understanding each member’s spiritual gifts and understanding how to support each person best as they serve. These spiritual practices foster connectivity, trust, and unity in spirit and in the physical amongst the worship team. By creating this strong spiritual foundation, the team can build upon it, incorporating the practical aspects of worship as well.

During my time at Identity Church I have seen examples of spiritual leadership , including those that I have mentioned above, shown by all members of the worship team in various ways such as volunteering to pray during rehearsals and service, reading the Word both in rehearsal and service, and encouraging one another in the faith and in daily life experiences different members may have. I have also seen individuals responsibly practicing and learning harmonies for their assigned voice part, and assisting team members who may have issues with finding their harmonies. The Worship Experience Coordinator leads wonderfully by organizing the weekly setlists for the team to access, as well as a monthly overview of who will be leading each week based off of the availability forms the member fill out. Doing this is important because it values the team members’ time and gives ability for rest and recover, not overworking the worship leaders. This is especially important to me since I struggled with this previously while serving elsewhere. She has also opened up the opportunity for song suggestions-welcoming input from the team, hearing their voice and opinions. Doing this creates a safe space, and incorporates their unique musical taste and experience.

I have grown a lot personally as I am learning how to be a good spiritual leader within the worship team at Identity Church and have also seen my personal challenges while doing so. In the past I have struggled with fear of confrontation which led to me not being able to effectively resolve conflict. However, if there are any concerns or thoughts that arise, I now feel that I can address issues or questions that I may have with people or how something is being done with grace, understanding, gentleness, more confidence and selflessness. I am also working to improve with creative problem solving, specifically addressing technological issues that may arise to help rehearsal and worship during service go smoother. I have struggled with comfortably praying, reading scripture, and speaking to the congregation during rehearsals and service, and that may be because I have a lot of technical things going on in my mind since there are more moving parts (cueing tracks, adjusting instruments, starting with the track on time, etc.) however, I am working on overcoming that aspect of it! Overall, I am really thankful for all that I have learned from my fellow worship leaders at Identity, and I hope to continue to grow into a strong spiritual leader.

This Sunday I had the opportunity to run the sound system live for the very first time. Below I have attached notes that I took throughout the day. 

Pre-service Mixing Practice & Prep

-I was told by one of the other sound volunteers that we switched from Wi-Fi switched to Ethernet, which is great

-I had to take time familiarize myself with the software layout again and think about adjusting the stage mix vs. the in house mix 

-I did the live mixing on iPad at back of the church 

-While mixing I noticed the tracks were a little bass heavy, but I couldn’t really adjust it or lower EQ band for the lower levels. I spoke to Pastor Byron and he said the Multi tracks internal mix tends to be very bass heavy, and they have to usually turn down bass track for each song from iPad running tracks. This is  more effective rather than doing it within the Soundcraft Ui mixer software 

-Observation: Can’t cue tracks from Soundcraft software. I thought about maybe using the feature on the iPad where you can pull up dual screen on iPad with multitracks playback app and mixer website page 

-Follow up on observation: I realized I won’t need to try that for service today, but maybe it’s something to try out during rehearsals. Creates more interaction between sound person and worship team. 

Service Notes

-Weekly in service discussion question: what is one thing you would like to see God so in you church?

-Mentioned by some members: Worship night – Pastor Byron and I have spoke about this, and may move forward in continually planning for how to make it happen with our church, especially since someone brought it up

-I focused mainly on changing levels throughout the song, especially as the tracks get louder during the chorus and bridge sections of the songs

-I also had to be changing levels between songs based on which person leads the song. May want to experiment with EQ on each mic, noticed some of them sounded a little muddier/less clear than others

-Focused on mixing in house due to there being difficulty having the ability to monitor the mix of the live stream

Preaching –

Not much to do with levels during preaching 

Overall, although I was a little nervous, I enjoyed my experience mixing live. It went smoother than I expected as there were no big problems or noticeable issues. I hope I have the opportunity to do it again! 

For my internship meeting that took place on April 12, 2024, Pastor Byron and so discussed more about the sound aspect of the media within the church.

The meeting started with Pastor Byron asking for more insight on my personal background and experience with audio production. I shared about my experience with different DAWS like Logic Pro & Pro Tools, and my understanding of audio basics like mixing, compression, etc. I did express that I had a few instances of doing live set up and mixing, but the focus was more on the stage set up and not on running the mixing board.

We reviewed the audio set up within the church so I could have a refresher, and he shared examples of the church live stream audio balance from both the YouTube and Facebook serving recording. We both gave our feedback and thoughts on the mixes (they differed between platforms which I found interesting), and discussed the issue of being unable to adjust the online mix and troubleshooting with the online streaming audio. To improve this we considered varying options such as training more people to run the set up, or changing the set up entirely.

We then discussed more about the worship experience and ways it can improve, and evaluated the skillset and musicianship of team members, and ideas for how we can move towards increased growth as a team. Ideas included: worship retreat (full day experience with a guest speaker and music skill training).

We then discussed the plan for this upcoming Sunday April 21st, where I would be running sound for the first time at Identity. We decided that I could set up one of the iPads and pull up the mixer online with the IP address and adjust the mix in realtime during the pre-service worship rehearsal, and during the service.

As we are approaching the end of the semester we will be evaluating what areas of the internship we have yet to cover and address them.

During our internship meeting on March 9th we went over Audio Engineering Fundamentals, and reviewed the equipment and set up within the church.

Here are the notes that I took during our meeting while exploring the equipment:

• interface – soundcraft Ui software
• Soundcraft 12 channel hardware as a stage box 
• Has 8 dual inputs for quarter inch or xlr 
• The first two are digitech for eq ( don’t rlly use this) 
• Other 4 are line in L R , usb 2 inputs ( 1 for media and one to record mix) (stereo to make up 16 channels) 
• Connected via WiFi network – wants a networking cable going directly into the hardware
• Outputs – 4 aux outputs , can create different mixes 
• 2 – stage mix, 3 – computer , 4 – sub , nothing in 1
• Can do an in ear mix on channel one, ran into the issue of not being to adjust personal in ear mixes 
• Master outputs go to the speakers (2) – alto ts408 
• Have to be on the same WiFi network : identity 5G
• Can access mixer on line through ip address – no physical mixer – pro , if there’s no tech person 
• Wireless unit fixes 20db boost 

• trying to figure best option !! Bring in professional for their thoughts? 

• Talked through pro presenter live stream 

• video – ATEM Mini Extreme ISO , with physical hardware used in software Ecam Live to receive and send media signal 
• up to 8 inputs can send to two places 
• Can record video 
• Individual channels 
• Could stream 
• Camera – wireless transmitter hooked into atem then to computer 
• Enable stream and enable 
• Ecam live – stream to social media platforms 

After going through the purpose and function of the equipment and the signal chain, Pastor Byron shower me how to control the live mix whenever I need. We also figured out that we can use Playback through Multi Tracks on the main computer instead of just the iPads. This experience was super beneficial for me in understanding how things operate in the church and exposed me to new equipment and softwares that I haven’t heard of or worked with. I am looking forward to learning more about live sound engineering and creative troubleshooting and solving issues that may arise.

On Saturday February 24th, 2024 I was given the opportunity to run our worship rehearsal for the first time. This rehearsal consisted mostly of vocalists, so we focused on running through the songs with Playback for MultiTracks. After opening up in prayer we worked out what keys worked best for each vocalist leading a song. Prior to this rehearsal I made song maps to guide the singers through the layout of the songs, informing them on cues, specific harmonies, and more. I noticed that creating and sending out these song maps ahead of time was very helpful for the confidence while performing and the fluidity of our rehearsal. On Sunday morning, the bass player joined us for the pre-service rehearsal, and afterwards we experimented with balancing the bass volume and tone with the tracks since the bass was connected to its own amp and seemed to be getting lost in the mix. This helped me think about what approach to take to get a good mix and balance in house with the tracks, piano, bass, and vocals. The worship portion of the service went well, and I ended up shortening the call to worship that initially wrote to fit into the context of the service. I enjoyed preparing for the rehearsal and leading it, and it taught me a lot about considering how to curate the worship rehearsal space for those involved to be healthy, supportive, strengthening, and productive. I also got to think about the importance of considering the experience of those in attendance in the audience, and how details in our worship such as transitions, calls to worship, and more impacts them.

On February 23rd, 2024 at 6:00 pm I met with Pastor Byron to review my assigned things to do for Weeks 3-4 ( Worship Leading Basics) of my internship. Prior to our meeting I planned a full worship set with liturgy for the 4th Sunday Service and sent it over to Pastor Byron and Identity’s Worship Experience Coordinator. I created two set list options and decided to go with my first set list:

1. Chasing After You by Vashawn Mitchell
2. Build My Life by Patt Barrett
3. I Give Myself Away by William McDowell

I chose these songs based on a few factors:

• Pastor Byron mentioned diversifying the genre from just Contemporary Christian music to incorporating gospel songs to be accommodating to not just the members in the church, but the residents of our local community (midtown Daytona, right by Bethune Cookman)
• The sermons for the previous weeks were based on finances and how to steward them and honor God with them. One of the things emphasized during this time was giving and stewarding finances with a right heart, a heart with genuine desire to be generous and do what pleases God. The songs chosen emphasize the need for God, the desire to live for Him, and desire to build or lives on Him. Since the upcoming Sunday was our day to volunteer in the community, I found these songs to also be motivation and encouragement as we prepare to share our love with others.
• Atleast two of the songs are fairly known or recognizable by the typical attendee in the church, which is also very important.

I created song maps for each song choice, highlighting details such as how many times we sing each section, where the lead singer starts, where background vocals come in and whether they sing in unison, harmonies, or inverted harmonies. For the call to worship I chose the verse Matthew 5:6 to accompany the setlist. This verse reads:

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

I wrote additional liturgy inspired by this verse:

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus starts off by delivering a message about the Beatitudes, a collection of His important teachings. Amongst these teachings is one where Jesus emphasizes the truth of how the Lord blesses those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. He explains how those who truly desire and yearn to know and follow in the way of Christ will be blessed. These blessings can extend beyond the material or physical aspects of our world, we can also be blessed with peace, love, joy, and His Holy presence in our lives if we desire from the depths of our hearts to trust in the Lord, the sacrifice He made for us through Christ, and the good things we shall behold by following His right path. As we enter into a time of worship this morning, I encourage you to ask yourself: have I truly recognized my need for God in my life and believe that He can satisfy me and my desires? I encourage you to surrender your will, and ask the Lord to fill you with a yearning for His righteousness so you can taste the satisfaction that only He can give. 

Prayer:

Lord, help us to understand that you are the Source of all, and only You can truly satisfy and fulfill us. Help us to surrender our personal will, motives, and desires to align with what you intend for us. Help us trust that we can build our lives upon You, our Firm Foundation, the Rock on which we stand. Father, we love You and thank You for Your many blessings. Our lives are Yours, In Jesus Name, Amen.

Due to limited time at the meeting, I did not get to present my research and brief on my favorite worship song. This will flow into Weeks 5-6 ( Audio Engineering Fundamentals), which I am very excite about. I enjoyed talking more about my preparation for the Sunday service and received positive feedback from Pastor Byron about what I shared.

On February 10th around 2:00 pm I met once again with Pastor Byron and we reviewed Weeks 3-4 (February 8-21) of my internship: Worship Leading Basics. For the next few weeks, I am to be working towards designing a worship set with liturgy for a Sunday service. This will most likely be the fourth Sunday, which is the day where we go out into the community to do a service project, and will include 3 songs for the setlist. I will also be expected to plan and lead a worship rehearsal and share a devotional with the team during our rehearsal time. Finally, I am also expected to research and present a brief on my favorite worship song, and I will share it at our meeting next week. At this meeting, I will also spend time discussing my current progress and challenges with Pastor Byron.

Review of the last couple of Sundays:

I have been put in charge of pre-mixing and arranging the tracks within PlayBack for MultiTracks to fit with our voices, structure, and specific sound we are aiming for during rehearsals, and cuing the songs in MultiTracks during service. Doing this is new and has been exercising my muscles of multitasking. I cue the tracks, lead songs by singing and playing the piano, and pray, and have messed up many times. My mistakes have taught me how to creatively, smoothly, and quickly resolve my trip ups and issues I come across. I’m learning that it is a process to familiarize myself with these new tools and operate them effectively, and perfection will not always be attainable. I am truly enjoying this environment and opportunity to grow in so many ways through my internship at Identity Church.

My first meeting with my site supervisor at Identity Church, Pastor Byron, took place on January 11th at 3:30. We started off our meeting chatting and catching up, and then reviewed the document he created that outlines what my internship will entail for this semester and the expectations.

Our January meeting was considered Orientation and Introduction. We established goals for myself that I would like to achieve through this internship centered around what I would like to: 1. Learn, 2. Grow in, and 3. Do. After some thoughtful discussion, I shared that I would like to learn more about the technical aspects of the worship experience, grow in playing along with the music tracks, spiritual leadership, and directing, and try out songwriting and doing a worship night with the worship team. After this, Pastor Byron asked me to complete an Assessment of Worship Experience survey, as well as a Spiritual Gifts and Leadership Assessment.

I am looking forward to our next meeting where we will conversation emote in depth about the results of my assessments, specifically reviewing my spiritual gifts of mercy, service, and exhortation. We will also be taking the time in our next meeting to begin my familiarization with worship software and media tools.

Here is an overview of what the other weeks will look like:

Weeks 3-4 (February 8-21): Worship Leading Basics

Weeks 5-6 (February 22 – March 6): Audio Engineering Fundamentals

Weeks 7-8 (March 7-20): Creative Development in Worship

Weeks 9-10 (March 21 – April 3): Songwriting and Production Basics

Weeks 11-12 (April 4-17): Integration and Refinement

Weeks 13-14 (April 18 – May 1): Project Completion and Presentation