Worship Arts Team

About a year ago, I was invited to be on the worship committee at church and I have to say, I was very flattered. I love our minister, Lynn, and it was a chance to be with her at least once a month in a small group setting. About once a month, I’m responsible for setting up the sound/lights/candles/glasses of water which I’m OK with because it’s easy and non-confrontational.

The meetings for this group started in September and it slowly dawned on me that the main point of the Worship Arts Committee was to basically pick up the slack for the services (mainly during the summer) that the minister would generally miss. So in volunteering to be on this committee, I essentially volunteered to do a service which was a little bit more daunting than lighting candles.

So this past Sunday was my big debut. Of course, I had 2 months notice to do the ten-minute sermon, but nothing got written until the few days before Sunday. Jeremy and I spend almost all of Saturday writing and editing the service together. The sermon was about “Earth Centered Landscapes” and I talked about so much of my shared life with Jeremy and our families, all living in different places.

I wasn’t sure I wanted Jeremy and the kids to come, I get a little embarrassed about these things sometimes. But in the end, everyone came and watched me give the sermon. Edda, in the midst of such an unhappy week for her, was relatively quiet and well behaved in the main sanctuary – although I have to say that during pauses and the silent meditation, I could hear her teeth grinding from all the way in the back of the room.

I had a partner – Cynthia – who was responsible for another 10 minute homily, so together we had a 20 minute sermon which is what the regular minister usually has prepared. We also put together all the hymns, readings and music. So nice!