Notes from the Field: Adam Russell
Hey Friends!
Here are three things you need to know about (two are calendar and information-oriented and one is just something that’s on my heart):
V I N E Y A R D S C H O O L O F W O R S H I P
In June Vineyard School of Worship (VSOW) is putting on two weeks of bootcamp-style training for new worship leaders. We’re calling these weeks our SUMMER SESSIONS. One week will be in Columbus and the other will be in Los Angeles. If you have a younger worship leader with promise on your team, or someone who has been leading for a while but hasn’t really been formed by Vineyard practice and values, this is the event for them! One of the things that leaders need to be thinking about and acting on is who we are raising up and how we are growing them up. This is a simple way to INVEST in the precious people that Jesus is entrusting to us. If you need more information go to http://vsow.org/summer-session/
T R A I N I N G T U E S D A Y
I hope you’ve noticed that every Tuesday a new “Training Tuesday” video drops. These videos tend towards either super practical training things or big picture worship ideas, and they come from all kinds of people from across the Vineyard! I wanted to share one idea with respect to these little videos. Why not share these with your worship community at the beginning of a rehearsal time? Most are only a couple minutes long, and they contain things that are perfect for the worship band members. It is great way to make your rehearsals go deeper and connect your local church to the wider Vineyard movement. If you go to the Vineyard Worship page on YouTube you’ll notice that there is a “playlist” tab, and in that tab you’ll find “VSOW training videos” with every video that has come out so far. Check it out and share it with your band!
H U N G E R
I’ve been thinking about spiritual hunger a lot lately, probably because a few months ago I had a rather powerful encounter with the Holy Spirit. And honestly, it had been a while since I’d had something like that happen to me. It was wonderful. And since then I’ve been hungry for God in a brand new way. Anyhow, I’ve sort of awakened to the reality that my present spiritual hunger for God isn’t really new. I’m always hungry. I’m not always aware because my hungers are not always turned towards God...or maybe sometimes I’m getting a measure of satisfaction from something else. I don’t think I’m alone here. I’m pretty much a pro at trying to extract satisfaction from people or things that are not God. The point I’m trying to make is it’s not about “trying harder” or the regular shame-oriented argument that makes us feel bad about our human fragility and tendency to be distracted. That stuff goes nowhere. Rather, I am saying this: spiritual hunger is a gift from God, and there is nothing better than having your true hunger exposed to the satisfying presence of God. He really is available. He really is the bread of life. And if you’re not hungry, don’t feel shame and don’t try to stir yourself up. Instead, simply tell God where you are and that you would like to experience the satisfaction of being near to him. Tell God that you would like to know his nearness. He loves to answer the prayer of hunger. He is the bread of life that has been, and is being multiplied, piece by piece into every hungry heart!
Peace!
Adam
Adam Russell is a husband and father of four. In addition to his role as the Director of Vineyard Worship, Adam is Lead Pastor of the Vineyard Church in Campbellsville, KY and also serves on the Vineyard USA Executive Team.