The “Why” behind Service Ready Music.

Knowing the "why" behind any cause is important for everyone involved.

Let me tell you a quick story about the "why" that is behind my desire to help others learn to play music in the church.

I was teenager who was raised in a small town in rural Ohio.  The town was what you would call a working-class community. I was raised in church but up until that point in my life I just hadn’t really taken my relationship with God very seriously.

Then something happened that changed my life forever. I received the Holy Ghost experience and was baptized in Jesus Name. This event literally changed my life forever! In that moment I devoted my life entirely unto God and there was no turning back. I went all in! From that point on everything in my life revolved around the church and ultimately reaching others with the good news of Jesus Christ.

 

I remember, as a teenager, just wanting to do something for God. I didn't care what it was, I just wanted my life to count. I felt God calling me into ministry. I was still a teenager, so I didn’t exactly know what all of that meant at the time, but I noticed that I felt a drawing toward music in the church. I saw how powerful music could be in a worship service. And I also witnessed many times where it could really drag a service down. I didn’t know how exactly I was going to learn but I just felt like that I wanted to learn music.

 

At the time, I had no idea of the impact this would have on my life, but the problem was, I had absolutely no idea how I would achieve this!  I asked some people in the church and someone told me that I should just pray for God’s anointing and let him teach me. This came from very well-meaning people whose heart was in the right place, and so I tried it.  Well, I soon discovered that if I was going to learn how to become a musician that I needed both God’s anointing and someone to teach me how to play.

There was just one problem--I didn't have access to a teacher who could show me how to play CHURCH MUSIC. There were people who knew how to play classical piano and other styles, but I didn't know anyone who could teach me how to play in church. As I would soon discover, playing in church is very different than any other type of musicianship. On Top of this, I didn’t have the money to spend on weekly lessons from an experienced teacher anyway. Needless to say, in the beginning, I was faced with a lot of obstacles. 

And then something happened that really discouraged me. Someone told me that I was too old to start learning to become a church musician. They told me that the great musicians start when they are very young, and if you don't start really young then you probably won't get it. I had also heard that rhythm was something that was "in your blood" and that some people had it and others did not, and that somehow it was passed on to you from your family. Well that definitely wasn't me. I didn't come from a "musical family." Neither of my parents are musicians.

If what they were saying was true, then this meant that it was TOO LATE from me to even try. I felt discouraged because this was something that was out of my control.

 

If I looked hard enough, I might be able to find a teacher.

If I saved enough money, I might be able to buy a few lessons.

But I can’t go back in time. Once the time is gone. It's gone forever.

And, I can’t change my genes!

This was very discouraging to me because I hate being told that I can’t do something.

That's when I visited a church about an hour and a half from where I lived. The musicians in this church were just AMAZING! It wasn’t that God was any more powerful at this church than at my home church…it was just that I was witnessing what excellence in music looked like. In that moment I realized how powerful music can be in a worship service.  It is no wonder why the Bible makes it so clear that we praise Him with instruments and with excellence.

"Then, something happened that changed everything. After service was over, I met one of the musicians. His name was Steve. Very quickly I became friends with Steve. Brother Steve was an outstanding musician who embodied the skills that were necessary for me to go to the next level. The unique thing about Steve was that he recognized something in me that I didn't see in myself.  He became my mentor and began to show me things about music that I never thought were possible. When I realized that I could become a great musician even though I started later than others, it changed the way that I approached everything.

That was THE SPARK that I needed. I became immediately refocused, re-inspired, and driven to succeed as a church musician. I knew I was on the right path.

Here's what happened next. I learned EVERYTHING I could learn from Steve. Steve did more than teach me. he made me BELIEVE that I could do it. He showed me chords. He helped me learn how to "flow" in a church service. He taught me the organ. He taught me things that a classical pianist could never have taught me. Most important, he taught me to believe in my ability to figure things out and never give up. Later I would find out that belief in myself was probably the most important ingredient of all.  He was more than a teacher. He was a mentor. It made all the difference in the world to me as a teenager.

Fast forward 5 years.

 

One day, I looked up and I was in full-time ministry. I continued to develop myself as a musician, as a leader, and as a minister as I received invitations to play at conferences and churches all across America. I could now play, lead, and minister using skills that I never thought possible before I met Bro. Steve.

I was forever changed by the fact that I could use music as a tool to minister to others and I could teach other people to do the same.  I now see myself as a mentor to others. I see other people just starting out and I remember where I was when I started. It makes me want to help them to believe that they can do amazing things if they will devote themselves to it.

 

Now I am a music minister at one of the flagship churches in the apostolic movement (The Rock Church of Elk Grove, CA). Every week I minister to thousands of people through music ministry at my local church. I am involved with teaching and empowering leaders on a daily basis. Each day I feel God pulling me and calling me into a deeper level of ministry and service.

I now hold a wealth of experience as a musician and also as a teacher of others. It's rare that a student has a problem that I cannot point them in the right direction to solve it. This makes me feel like I found my place in life. My true calling of serving others and helping them realize their full potential. As God continues to call me into deeper areas of ministry, each day I recommit myself to the cause of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.

"What I'd like you to take away from all this is this: I eventually realized that the people in that little church I was raised in were right, They told me to, "…let God lead you and he will be your teacher." He was and still is my greatest teacher. I didn’t realize it then, but He had to use others to teach me. Now, I encourage you to let God lead you and guide you and he will help you and connect you with those who can help you. Never give up on yourself.

 

This is the “why” behind why I started Service Ready Music.  My goal is to help musicians to prepare themselves for worship service each week.  One of the ways we do this is through anointed music.  Each week hurting people come to church looking for answers to life’s most daunting questions. One of the first things they hear in the church is a song. I believe that we should prepare and perform with excellence so that God is glorified music we perform each week. When God is glorified in the songs we sing and the music we play then it will create an environment where the Word of God can make a profound impact on everyone who hears. Being “service ready” is more than just knowing your notes.  It is being prepared in every part of our lives to minister to others. And this is what it’s all about.

 

Brian Williams