So I’m coming up on my 14th year of playing drums for worship. I’ve had many different experiences during that time due to playing with various groups of people. To be completely honest, I’ve learned more about music from these people than I have through school or my previous “outside of church” bands. The one thing that I’ve learned from all these people is that playing with precision is a key to success.
In my last post we talked about Reflections and Interactions. Today we will talk about “precision”. Now the word “precision” can be used both as an adjective and a noun. I like that because of what it can represent. Here are two of my favorite definitions:
The state or quality of being precise; exactness.
The ability of a measurement to be consistently reproduced.
Now there are two ways to approach this. The physical aspect of playing and the spiritual aspect of playing. Both of these require a great deal of commitment, but I think our worship cries out for it.
I’m going to gloss over the physical aspect because we all know its about making careful decisions about timing, parts, fills, and transitions. The parts we play are a huge factor in the interaction (clapping, etc.) with God’s people.
The spiritual aspect is both a precursor and a derivative of the physical aspect. If our spirit is for and resides within Christ than our playing should reflect that. The state or quality of being precise. Are we going to the Throne with our offering of playing or are we waiting on God to come to us as a result of our works? Can you measure your consistency in being a tool of God’s work?
I can honestly say I am not always consistent. My precision needs work. I also know that I’m a work in progress and I’m hoping that by my 15th year, I’ll be far more precise for Him.
God bless!
Michael
