Stories are critical (as in absolutely necessary) – they represent one of the primary ways that Jesus chose to communicate with us, so there must be something about them! Last night, we hosted a concert with Matthew West. Good show. But what impressed me (besides some very good audience participation type stuff) was that he had asked people to send him stories (he received more than 10,000!), and then wrote his album based on those stories. His personal stories were good – but things went to a different, deeper level when he told these other stories.
You know, it’s REALLY important to know our own stories – and to tell them. But if those are the only stories that we ever tell (or really listen to), we’re pretty messed up. Too self-focused. That’s why we tell stories (via video, usually) from the congregation virtually every week. They only take 2-3 minutes, but they comes across as much more “real” – it’s not just the stories of the paid professionals, if you know what I’m saying. And not just testimonies – prayer stories, pain stories, family stories, life stories – almost anything, really. The stories really help people to know that they’re not alone in whatever they’re feeling or going through…
P.S. Please remember, though – our personal stories ARE important. They’re just not the ONLY ones that are…
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I'm a Christian, a husband, a dad, a son, a pastor, a consultant, a musician, a writer, and bits and pieces of a bunch of other things. My work life has followed three main phases - business to teaching to church. I was the Weekend Services Pastor for nine years at Northview Church, an awesome church in the Indianapolis suburbs. I used to work for Willow Creek, another awesome church in the Chicago area. Plus I've written for various magazines and websites, and other freelancy sorts of things... My life mission is to help the church be as excellent as it can be.
Oh yeah - the name's Greg. Greg Wallace. But not the race car driver or the major league pitcher or the British celebrity chef. Just the creative worship guy. Hi.
It's my hope that these ideas, musings, rants, raves, etc... will inspire you. They're just my opinions - but again, I hope that they'll help to inspire you. Because the church really, really needs inspired creative types. If you're a creative type (and most people are, deep-down), ask God for help. Then take any ideas that are useful to you - borrow them, nab them, use them, adapt them - and make them into something greater...
You can head over to my Instagram site for an abundance of shorter posts: creativeworshipideas. If you're looking for consulting - especially on weekend services, team leadership or multi-site strategies - I'd love to help. Just message me here, and I'll be in touch - Greg
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