It recently dawned on me that it
had been some time since we’d shared with regard to the church music ministry.
It’s definitely one of my core ministries here in the church and demands
significant time and effort during the week and particularly at the weekend. At
times, it’s all too easy to allow the forest to become obscured by the trees.
But when I stop and reflect on what God has done over the past three years, as
I’ve done this week, I am encouraged no end.
When we arrived in Trinidad and
first attended El Jireh church, the
music ministry consisted of two guys and a guitar. One sang, one strummed. Furthermore,
the range of songs was extremely limited, with the same two or three tunes
being sung every week. Recognising their need for support in an area where I
had experience, I got involved right away, playing my guitar and writing out
new music. And it was here that I was to learn some important early lessons in
missionary work in laid-back Bolivian culture. Where I had initially offered
support, within a few months, I had become the de facto leader of the ministry, as I discovered that the ‘band’
were all too happy to devolve the key responsibilities to me. Subtly, and
without seeking it, I had become the music guy. There’s no doubt I added polish
and a more professional attitude to proceedings but whether it did anything for
church growth is another matter; indeed, as my two co-workers slipped out of
the church fold for personal reasons, the music ministry for the remainder of
2010 consisted of a missionary and his guitar. In terms of encouraging growth
in the local body, this represented a definite backward step.
In early 2011, a new family began
attending the church (in itself cause for celebration in a church which has, at
times, lacked a familial backbone) and, out of the blue, their two
early-teenage sons approached me at the end of a service, expressing their
desire to learn guitar and keyboards and play in the church band. Around the
same time, one of FT’s administrative workers, Wilson Menacho, also shared his
interest in learning the guitar. We began rehearsing together once a week,
while I met individually with the three to teach them their instruments. By the
time Amanda I left for my sister-in-law’s wedding in Canada in August, we had
been playing together in church for several months and I was able to leave
Wilson in charge of the music ministry in my absence.
I was to return, in October,
with, to paraphrase Paul Simon, my suitcase and bass guitar in hand (a victim
of American Airlines’ draconian luggage policy back in January 2010). Some,
rhythm, then, was added to the mix, as well as a growing range of new songs –
some translated from English, some contemporary Spanish-language, some old
Spanish-language favourites. At Christmas we shared carols for the first time
ever with the congregation.
In 2012 we’ve seen continued
growth, in musical ability, in the range of songs at our fingertips, and in
number, in what has been an amazing example of the grace of God. While we were
leading the church in singing Christmas carols, a talented musician of years
gone by was simply moving on to his next bottle. Carlos had been a band-member
of the church I attended during my first stint here as a volunteer, back in
2000-2001. He was a vivacious, charismatic young man, with a powerful voice and
bags of confidence. He was set to become a mainstay of the church music scene
for years to come. So it was a shock to us all, and an early insight for me
into the fragility of Bolivian society, when it was discovered he had fathered
a child out of wedlock. Several more children with various mothers were to
follow and Carlos wouldn’t darken a church door for over a decade.
So I was as flabbergasted as
anyone when Carlos, stone-cold sober, turned up at El Jireh earlier this year and repented before the church for his
past misdemeanours. With his haggard features and swollen stomach, he had aged
in appearance well beyond his years. But the old fire had been re-kindled. As
far as I’m concerned, ‘miraculous’ is the only appropriate adjective.
And now he is back in the church
music fold. With several years of experience in local radio behind him, he has
the gift of the gab in spades, and leads the times of musical worship with
aplomb. That means there are now three of us capable of chairing the music
slots in church, two of them Bolivian, which takes a big burden off my
shoulders, and, more importantly, has allowed the church to see ‘one of their
own’ up at the front on two out of every three Sundays.
Please continue to pray for the
music ministry, especially for maturity and unity for Carlos, Wilson, Diego and
Daniel. Though it’s some time away, our upcoming furlough year in 2014 presents
a golden opportunity for the band to break free of missionary dependence.
Please pray that the guys would rise to the occasion over the coming months and
that, control-freak that I am, I would be given the discernment to know when to
take a backward-step.
Here are a few more prayer items for this
week:
Prayer
- For the youth group’s social evening, taking place tonight, particularly for Amanda, who has been working around the clock all week to organise everything.
- Craig is responsible for
overseeing the church’s Christmas service, which is by far the biggest opportunity we have to reach our community every year and requires detailed
advance planning. Tomorrow, the main parties involved will be meeting together
for the first time to decide on the direction it should take. Please pray for
wisdom.
Praise
- Huge progress has been made over the last couple of weeks in registering the land we bought over a year ago in our name. Fully acquiring these, and selling them, will be a great help to us as we build our house. Give thanks.
- More students at the local secondary school where Craig has been teaching the gospel of John have come to faith over the last week. PTL and all that.
¡Que Dios les bendiga!
Craig & Amanda
