From Tornado to Gentle Breeze

Have you ever felt like you were standing in the middle of a tornado and the only reason you knew you weren’t  is that there’s no wind? Well that’s pretty much the way I felt one particular Sunday morning. Now, if we’re being honest with each other I think we can all agree that Sunday mornings can be a whirlwind by themselves. I don’t really understand why but sometimes it seems impossible to get everything done and just get to church on time, much less do it with a Christ-like attitude.

The Worship team I work with has rehearsal before church on Sunday mornings so we have to get there quite early. We all come in right on time, our rehearsal and sound check always goes smoothly without any problems and everyone is always patient and loving with each other. HA! If you’ve ever worked with a group of any size then you know that’s not true. Group dynamics are an interesting thing and there’s much to be learned when you work with a group of people. There’s even more to be learned when you work with a group of people that are all musicians. We are our own species! Does anybody know what I’m saying?  The Bible has something to say about group dynamics. Ephesians 4:2 says “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.”

On this particular Sunday morning we weren’t following Ephesians 4:2. No, the group dynamics had turned into a tornado and I was standing in the middle of it; or at least that’s how it felt. Almost everyone had come in late and I had received a couple of calls saying others weren’t going to make it. The songs that were planned weren’t coming together. The sound system had apparently taken on its own life form and was making more noise than the band. We tried and tried to rehearse and pull things together but the harder we tried, the worse things got. Frustration and impatience began to breed and grow.  The force of the tornado was increasing.

We finally decided to stop and just spend some time praying. Now there’s a thought. Why is it often our last resort instead of our first line of defense? Well we gathered together in a circle, stilled our hearts and minds and began to talk to our heavenly Father. We laid our concerns over the sound system at His Throne. We talked to Him about all the issues we were having, confessing our sin and humbling ourselves in His Presence.  We began to sing together and worship the Lord. What sweet fellowship and worship it was. God reminded us to be humble and gentle with each other; to be patient, loving and forgiving.

We ended our prayer time and went out on the stage to begin the church service, trusting the Holy Spirit to lead worship. We could sense the Lord’s Presence. The music flowed beautifully and the sound system worked perfectly. The Lord had answered our prayers.

If you’re in a musical group, put into practice what we learned that day. Pray together as a group and commit your rehearsal time to Him. The tornado of group dynamics will turn into the gentle breeze of His Spirit among you.

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