In music there is a concept called COMPING.
I think it teaches us something about life.

Comping (short for 'accompanying') is where an instrument like a piano or guitar plays a simple pattern that fills out the background of a song.  Like many things we all do, its a necessary thing that will never be fully appreciated by those who listen.  

Over that comping pattern, a singer can sing or lead guitar can rip an amazing solo.  But that singer and that lead guitar would not sound so amazing without someone comping for them.

Life Lessons Learned:
-Life's not all about you (or me).
-Life is a team sport, and everyone has a time to shine.
-Who can you support in their efforts today?
-How can you help them have a moment to shine?
-What if you spent more of your time supporting others in this way?

Enjoy this video from our archive, we'll be making more videos for you to enjoy every week!

Listening to our favorite worship songs on recording.  We sing along, join in as though we’re there being led by these world-class artists. The problem comes on Sunday morning, when those same songs don’t always translate effectively to sing at church.  Here are 3 reasons why you should think about changing the key of your worship songs.

1. Pros like Chris Tomlin often sing really HIGH.  
Singers like Chris Tomlin are recording artists with professionally trained voices and extended ranges.  They need to sing their songs higher for the purpose of the recording featuring their best notes.  Generally you will move the key DOWN from the recording.

When congregations sing with a virtuoso, like Tomlin, they will often sing an octave lower.   This is one strategy for those of you who truly have an INSANE range.

2. Church-goers usually CAN’T sing that high.
Don’t confuse and frustrate them with Chris Tomlin’s version.  Set the singing somewhere between A-below-middle-C, and C-Above-middle-C is a good starting point for congregational singing.

3. You (or your lead singer) have a UNIQUE range where YOU sound good.
The goal is not to blindly copy, but take the opportunity to make your own voice its best.  Set the song to a range where you (or your lead singer) can hit the notes with a bright and confident sound.  Also remember to observe #2 at the same time.

Finally, realise that the congregation is a MIXTURE of ALL TYPES of voices.  So any range you sing in will be somewhat of a compromise.  

With a little tweaking, the song can go from recording to Sunday morning effectively.

Many times in a modern band, like a worship band, you're presented with a piece of paper to play from.  But it's often not sheet music.  It's just lyrics with "Chord Symbols" over the words!

For example:

 G                                Am7
Here are the lyrics to the song
F                              C
They are going on and on
Am                                                   G
You're supposed to make up your own part
F
From the chords above

This is called a "Chord Sheet".  It's one form of a music "Chart". It has the chords, but every member of the band has to create their own parts to play.

This presents MANY problems when you're not used to it.  Just one of the problems is that it provides NO KEY SIGNATURE. Knowing the key is helpful to embellishing the chords and creating beautiful sounding parts.  And you can do it yourself.

Here's a simple check to find the key of any song using only the CHORDS. **Note: This particular trick will work for MAJOR KEYS ONLY. But that is most songs, so it's a very useful trick to know.

Step 1:
Find all the MAJOR CHORDS used in the song. Sometimes they may HIDE as other names.  Here are some examples:

• Major Chords: C, F, G
  
• "Hiding as other chords": Cadd2, F2, Gsus

Ignore chords like: Dm, Eminor, Adim7, Dm7, Em7(4) and others that have m, dim, º, or minor in them.

CREATIVITY is the garden that is all too often left untended. We put off until tomorrow those unique God-given expressions of ourself. We call it busy, we call it duty, but laziness and fear are usually the culprits hiding behind the excuses.

What unique way can you express your God-given creativity today?

Take a small step:

1. IDEAS ARE IMPORTANT. Capture an idea, write it down, record it, sketch it, email it to yourself, leave it on your own voicemail. Create a system for where you regularly collect your wonderful, but ill-timed ideas when they happen. It usually takes less than 1 minute to catch one.

2. GIVE YOUR IDEAS A HOME. A place where you sort them, reorganize them and process them when you have time. Nurture them like a garden, giving them time to reach a full expression.

3. SHARE THEM. Your creativity is a gift that is given to you for others. It is neither humble nor kind to hide your expressions away from the world benefiting from them.

When you start treating your ideas with care, you'll find you have more of them, and better ones too. In the Bible, this parable about 3 men being given responsibility charges us to use what we've been given, and challenge us to not let fear and laziness be our excuses. You can read it in the bible at Matthew 25:14-30.

Please excuse me now, I have an important call to make (to my own voicemail).