Tips On Preparation

Something to think about...When do you start preparing for the next worship session? For some, the answer would be on the night or morning of the service. To be honest, sometimes you are put in that position and you should work at having enough ability to walk in and "fake it." In these instances, staying as basic as possible and watching the leader intently will be your only saving graces.

However, for those who know that you have a few days before the next worship set, let me suggest a few things that I have found helpful with regards to releasing me from obsessing over notes to being freed to worship, and thus, providing an example to my fellow band mates and to the congregation.

I start by getting the list as soon as possible. After a while, you will grow quite a vocabulary of tunes that you already know. Keep a mental file of these tunes, if not a physical file filled with chord sheets and CD recording if possible. Once you have the list, ask your worship leader to send you any songs that you do not already have.

Once you have those songs, put them on a CD or your iPod in the order that they will be played on the given day. Take a day and listen to these tunes. Let the words soak into your spirit and the phrasing of the words become your song unto the Lord. I personally listen to the list over and over again, for the sake of time memorization and song map.

Finally, the last day before the worship session, physically play the songs along with your CD or iPod playlist. I do this on a practice pad, but I physically try to approximate the moves and fills that I want to attempt. This gets my body into a position where some muscle memory can be employed as well.

Once these things are done, I am ready to move beyond the physical and mental aspects of drumming, and move more into the spiritual nature of worshipping/worship leading. When I do not have this process behind me, I find that I am preoccupied with playing the right things and remembering the song map. This cuts into my enjoyment of the Lord and really keeps me from worshipping as I would like.

One final note to those who have a large vocabulary of songs "under their fingers." To the ones who have a select few songs to choose from, I give a warning: Don't let the words lose their impact. For you, I would suggest a more mental study. For example, how about writing out the words to the worship songs that you are going to play on the next session. Take those thoughts and study them, think them through. The saying that familiarity breeds contempt is a true one. And because I believe the drummer to be the emotional center of the band, I think it CRITICAL for a drummer to believe in his heart that which he is playing.

"Remember it does'nt take time, as much as it takes commitment."

Blessings,
Frank