Hey everyone, thank you so much for being a part of the community that we are building through this blog. We are still developing the framework for the site, and the topics we will build on. In the coming months, we are looking to make the blog much more of a place that gives everyone in our team a voice. We will have more columns written by other Worship Arts Team Members, as well as some of our friends in the community, as well as more behind the songs, team highlights, and some of the other topics we’ve built! That being said, what did you like the best so far that we did on the blog? What topic would you like to see more of in the coming months? Please let us know in the comments, and give a quick vote on the new poll on the right hand side of the blog!

Don’t use words too big for the subject. Don’t say “infinitely” when you mean “very”; otherwise you’ll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite. – C.S. Lewis

The pastor of the church I grew up in once spoke to us teens about our language. Not about watching our mouths or cursing, but about using words casually that are meant to describe something greater. Hyperbole, if you will. His particular pet peeve was when we would say things were ‘awesome’. That burrito was awesome! Your new shoes are awesome! As silly as it sounds, eventually those words lose their shine. Even looking at the dictionary’s definition of ‘Awesome’, I saw the following:

1) (Actual Usage) Inspring Awe; Amazing

2) (Slang usage) Very impressive.

See how dumbed down it became from one line to the next? I know this is a random rant, but if Brian’s taking back the Arts for the church, then I’m going after ‘Awesome’ . I use this word way too much, so feel free to call me out on it from now on. God is Awesome. My burrito is not.

We had a discussion recently amongst our team about the place of the Arts in worship and the church. As we were discussing this idea, Brian suggested that creativity and the arts were instilled in us by God in the first place, so why had we let them leave our doors and find a home in the world? Our God is a God of creation, it is who He is. He created beauty, and his creation shows His glory. If we are made in His image, shouldn’t we also create for His Glory? We are part of the movement that has modernized ‘worship’ and we sing and play instruments in a contemporary fashion in our corporate worship settings, but why do we think this is a new concept?

2 Chronicles 5:13 - The trumpeters and singers joined in unison, as with one voice, to give praise and thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, they raised their voices in praise to the LORD and sang: “He is good; his love endures forever.”

2 Chronicles 7:6 – The Levites had instruments of music, which David had made to praise the lord. David offered praise by their ministry.

Even in the earliest days, people were creating instruments with the sole purpose of bringing Him praise. Music is only a small portion of artistic creation, and is the probably the most common on found in our churches today. Is it just me, or does anyone else feel like when our churches bring in other arts (Dance, acting and dramas, etc.) they seem almost shoe-horned in? Why is that? I don’t mean at all that they are done poorly, it is just something that we do so little of, it feels foreign. So what do you think about this topic? Are we the only ones?

This blog is an amazing opportunity for us to develop a community within our Worship Arts Team! Cornerstone’s Worship Arts team is largely made up of volunteers who serve with their time and talent every single week. We thought we’d take the opportunity on this blog to introduce one of our Volunteers every month, starting with Trevor Spears! We asked Trevor a few questions and he sent back some great answers! Get to know Trevor a bit, and say hi next time you see him at Cornerstone!

What’s Your Name? Do you have a nickname? My name is Trevor Spears.  A nickname I was given in college is Burbick.  I got this name when I was playing college baseball, and took to the mound one game and our home field announcer bellowed ” Now pitching for the Mavericks, Trevor BURRRRBICK Spears!”

What instrument do you play at Cornerstone? I play the infamous Geddy Lee signature series Fender Jazz Bass (made in Japan).  Like any  ”real” bass player, I play a 4-string and I NEVER use a pick!  LOL

What’s your musical background? When I was about 7 years old we were attending a little church in Phx. known as Christian Life Center. One evening a well know Christian pianist played for our congregation and I was absolutely floored by his music.  I remember telling my mom that I wanted to play like that in church someday.  So I began taking piano lessons and continued playing and studying for about 5 years. Times got tough for my family and we had to cut back on some of life’s luxuries, and that meant selling the piano when I was about 13.  The musical foundation that I received from this period I believe, was paramount to aiding me in my pursuit of learning how to play bass later on.  It wasn’t until I was in my early twenties that I began to play bass, study and learn under a very gifted and talented local blues guitar player by the name of Mike Miller.

Who’s your favorite musician? Favorite band? Geddy Lee is my favorite musician and he plays for Rush, my favorite band.  I love the way he artfully crafts his basslines in both an aggressive yet melodic way.

Who are a few of your musical influences? Bach!  Just kidding.  Aside from Geddy, I’m really all over the map on this one!  Other influential bassists are Paul McCartney and Flea.  They have certainly crafted some breathtaking and interesting basslines.  But I’m also big 80′s music geek!  I love the way some of the bands like Oingo Boingo, Devo, Tears for Fears, U2 topped the charts with some of their timeless hits.

What’s your favorite verse, quote, or scripture? Ephesians 2 verse  8 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, is the gift of God.”  If there is one verse in the Word that I hold onto dearly, it is this one!  It illustrates how deep and incredible God really is.  If God wanted to, he could have made us earn salvation by physically doing something.  He could have said eat “cocoa beans” every morning or look to the east and recant a prayer fifteen hundred times.  Instead, he did something that no other religion even came close to doing. He made the notion of believing and accepting his precious son so “palatable” that anyone, everyone, including me in all my brokenness, could take it in.  It’s amazing to me.  I love it and I love our Lord Jesus with every fiber of my being. I don’t deserve it, but I’ll take it (His grace) freely just like he promises!

How long have you been involved at Cornerstone? What made you want to get involved with the Worship Arts Team? I have been attending CS with my wife Tara for 5 years now.  We started attending when services were held in now what is the Student Center.  I started playing with Kaboom a few years back.  We had a live worship team back then and we had so much fun loving on Jesus through kid-centered worship music every Tuesday night.  Those were some great times spent with my son who was attending Kaboom.  In those days I was moved by the music, the attention to detail, and the desire to play with excellence.  The desire for “excellence for His glory” was evident everywhere I went on the church campus.  I took it in.  I fell in love with the church and wanted to do more.  I talked to Brian and attended an audition, played and hung out for a few.  I just knew early on that CS was and would be “home” for myself and my family.  We are grateful for our church.

What was the best concert you have ever been to? David Crowder at the Celebrity Theater. This was truly a remarkable concert because we went as a family, and my kids know all the songs!  Great night singing out loud together!

What is your favorite song? Favorite album of all time? Working Man- Rush.  Favorite album is Moving Pictures.

What is your favorite song to play / sing at Cornerstone? Your Grace Is Enough by Matt Maher has been my favorite for a long time.  Such a great “easy-sing” and speaks an awesome message.

Thanks so much to Trevor for taking the time to answer our questions! We look forward to introducing more members of our team each month!

It’s been a while, but we’re back to stay! For those of you who have checked out this blog before, thanks for sticking around. If this is your first time, we hope that this blog will begin to flourish as a community and home for what is going on in Cornerstone’s Worship Arts team, as well as the worship arts community as a whole. We’re going to bring you a ton of new features right here every week, including everything you need to know about our Worship Arts Team, great shout outs, behind the scenes stories and viewpoints, opinions and testimonies, volunteer bios, and all the humorous videos and stories from the team you can handle! Keep an eye here and check back often to see what’s new in the Cornerstone Worship Arts community.

Let’s hear from you! What sort of things do you want to see on this blog? Let us know in the comments!