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January 5, 2009

creator@creatormagazine.com — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 17:39:00 GMT

Good Morning.

Welcome back! For those of you who can and/or did take the past week or so away from your church ministry responsibilities, I'm sure you have returned to a full desk. Here at the Creator office, we spent some time browsing the internet because we had some extra time due to the holidays, and we found some interesting things.

● First, you may want to check out what one church's Christmas special services were like. Just reading about them made me tired thinking about all the planning that had to go into making the services happen. Go here and search for the entry entitled Sunday Summary - Music: December 21, 2008.

● And I personally found this research to be fascinating. It concerns how visual stimulus affects auditory perception. If you are doing any kind of live projection you need to read this. Go here and see for yourself.

● Just before New Year's, I was honored to participate, along with Reverend Jennifer Lord and visual artist Ted Lyddon Hatten, as an panelist for Marcia McFee's Worship Design Studio. The four of us had a wonderful time brainstorming and suggesting creative ideas for the upcoming lenten season. If you are interestred, you'll want to go to Marcia's website to sign up--the Worship Design Studio "plans ahead" for each liturgical season so that you might benefit from some expert insight into themes and resources. Just click here.

● And I was supposed to tell you all about this before New Year's, but dropped the ball. The reason I was supposed to tell you will be apparent when I mention the tune "Same Old Lang Syne" by Dan Fogelberg. Fred Migliore, host of FM Odyssey, the long-running nationally syndicated radio show, is releasing a two CD interview retrospective with Fogelberg, who passed away from advanced prostate cancer on December 16th, 2007 at the age of 56. During that interview, Fred engaged Dan in a wonderful, animated conversation about Dan’s first 25 years in the music business. You will hear 13 full-length songs, including "Same Old Lang Syne," "Nether Lands," "The Last Nail," and "Mountains To The Sea," as well as Dan's thoughts on many of those songs. This 2 CD Collector’s Edition is available for $29.95 at http://www.fmodyssey.com Three dollars from each CD sold will go to the Prostate Cancer Foundation in Dan’s name.

Before we get to this week's Monday Morning Email, we have a few things we want to catch you up on as well:

● As promised, we have added a new survey on the home page. This time we are asking about your Library/Bookstore ministry. Go here to take the survey.

● If you missed reading the past couple of week's emails, we have a batch of new articles available. Just go here.

● And, one last time, we'd like you all to have a copy of our latest issue of Creator in print--The Call. As a member of CLN (which you are if you are reading this in your email) you can start or renew your subscription to Creator at the best possible rates. You must log in to get your special CLN rate, which you can find by looking in the left hand column after clicking here. Not sure you want to subscribe, but want to see a copy of this issue? Just look for the Free Sample Issue offer on our home page.

● In this week's MME, Bob Burroughs presents a great batch of useful information and resources. To read this week's MME, click here.

This week, pray for new beginnings...and please tell your friends and colleagues about Creator and MME too.

Blessings,

Vern Sanders
Publisher
Creator Magazine

December 29, 2008

creator@creatormagazine.com — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 16:57:00 GMT

Good Morning and Happy New Year.

Wow! Another year gone. We'd like to thank all of you for your support in 2008. We appreciate the feedback (we're human...we especially appreciate the positive feedback) you've given us during the last twelve months on how to help you do your ministry better. We love being able to help members of the Creator Leadership Network by providing timely and helpful information, and we look forward to continuing to do so in 2009. Stay tuned...we have some wonderful things coming, including new ways that CLN can help you, and they are just over the horizon.

Before we get to this week's Monday Morning Email, let's wrap up this year by reminding you:

● We continue to add new articles to the Creator knowledge base every week, and you can see them all by clicking here. This week we've added a large number of articles centered around instrumental music ministry, including a wonderful article by Camp Kirkland. While you are at our site, please take the survey on the home page. This is positively the last week for the current survey question about children's music ministry.

● If you are a conductor, don't forget Doug Lawrence's weekly MasterClass sessions on aspects of conducting. So far, Doug has done 22 of these little gems, and you can listen to them all by clicking here.

● Because we know that not everyone reads everything this time of year, we want to repeat that we'd like you all to have a copy of our latest issue of Creator in print--The Call. When was the last time you thought about your Call to ministry? As a member of CLN (which you are if you are reading this in your email) you can start or renew your subscription to Creator at the best possible rates. You must log in to get your special CLN rate, which you can find by looking in the left hand column after clicking here. Not sure you want to subscribe, but want to see a copy of this issue? Just look for the Free Sample Issue offer on our home page.

● This week's MME looks ahead to 2009, with helpful information that will allow you to work smarter, not harder. We also give you some tips on how to evaluate the effectiveness of your church's website...you do have one, right? To read this week's MME, click here.

This week, pray that our collective plans and dreams for 2009 will be for good, and that our burdens during the coming year will not be more than we can bear...and please tell your friends and colleagues about Creator and MME too.

Blessings,

Vern Sanders
Publisher
Creator Magazine

December 22, 2008

creator@creatormagazine.com — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 16:24:00 GMT

Good Morning and Merry Christmas.

It is almost Christmas. Are you ready? From all of us here at Creator and Monday Morning Email to all of you who bring your gifts to the service of the new-born King, we wish you to best of all Christmases, and the most wonderful New Year of ministry.

Just a couple of bits of information before we let you get back to those last minute preparations and time with your family:

● Last week we held our second Fantastic Friday, and I want to congratulate the following Creator Leadership Network members who will each get a free copy of the newly released After the Chase album Make Me New:

Dan Blankenship of Georgia
Paul Christiansen of Michigan
Larry Henderson of Alabama
Donna Kinsey of West Virginia
Jan McNair of Tennessee

If your name is on the above list, your CD will go out to you in the next week or so. Please contact us if your address has changed since you signed up for CLN.

● We want you all to have a copy of our latest issue of Creator in print--The Call. As a member of CLN (which you are if you are reading this in your email) you can start or renew your subscription to Creator at the best possible rates. You must log in to get your special CLN rate, which you can find by looking in the left hand column after clicking here. Not sure you want to subscribe, but want to see a copy of this issue? Just look for the Free Sample Issue offer on our home page (hint: it is #5 in the rotating box).

● This week's MME is a heart-warming story about the world's favorite Christmas carol. It is a great story, and I'm sure you'll all enjoy it, even those who are feeling a bit grinch-like at this point in the season. To read this week's MME, click here.

This week, pray for all those who will visit our collective Christmas eve services, especially those who are searching for the reason for the season. Pray that we can collectively reach out and touch those who need to hear the Christmas story...really hear it...perhaps for the first time...and please tell your friends and colleagues about Creator and MME too.

Blessings,

Vern Sanders
Publisher
Creator Magazine

December 19, 2008

creator@creatormagazine.com — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 17:20:00 GMT

Don't miss Randy Vader's Christmas Meditation for 2008, now on the Thinking on These Things page. Click here to see it.

December 15, 2008

creator@creatormagazine.com — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 16:57:00 GMT

Good Morning.

I am reminded by my staff that I keep forgetting to celebrate things--like the fact that over the past couple of weeks we have again surpassed a milestone in Creator Leadership Network membership. We are now over 2400 strong, and counting. Won't you please tell your friends about CLN and Monday Morning Email? I think it would be great to get to 2500 before the end of the year.

Two things...read to the end of this paragraph to see how they tie together. First, last week I was talking with a friend of mine about the state of...well, the media in this particular instance, but, almost everything connected with the notion of opinion. Have I told you all about how I've been (in my head) working on a little "checkout" book for years? It is "The world is divided into..." You know, like foreign and domestic, cat and dog, etc. In any event, I said to him, it seems to me that you have to decide whether you want to be Andy Rooney, Garrison Keillor, or Martin Luther King, Jr. Do you want to be the person who walks down the street and says "Look at that car. It's got a dent, and a rust spot, and a broken headlight." Or the person that says: "You know, seeing that car reminds me of the time that..." Or the person that says: "You know, that car has its flaws. But it is a car. It is a great car, and the person that has that car can use it as a tool to achieve great things." Think about it... Second, in this season of music, music, and more music, aren't you, as a musician and leader, always looking for some way to be positive about what you have just heard? Particularly when the presentation involves children and/or amateurs? We all know that you have to apply a different set of standards then, not the same ones you would apply after hearing a performance of the NY Philharmonic. Try this one: It wasn't perfect, but it was very impressive. You can even leave out the first half of the compliment if you'd like. My gift to you this season.

And, speaking of gifts...this week we will also celebrate our second Fantastic Friday. For those of you that have joined CLN in the last couple of weeks, here's how that works. This Friday, December 19, we are going to give away FREE 5 copies of the newly released After the Chase album Make Me New. This is great music, and you'll want to get a copy of the album...which you can...here's how:

One winner will be chosen at random from all new members of the Creator Leadership Network who join between during the 24 hour period (Pacific Time) of Friday, December 19, 2008. Anyone who has been a member of CLN at any time within the last year is not eligible for this portion of the drawing.

Two winners will be chosen at random from all current members of the Creator Leadership Network as of 11:59 pm (Pacific Time) on Friday, December 19, 2008. That's anyone. Currently there are 2387 members of CLN, so the odds of winning one of these two items are, as of this writing, 2 in 2387.

Two winners will be chosen at random from every order of at least $10 at the Creator Online Store between during the 24 hour period (Pacific Time) of Friday, December 19, 2008. Each order of at least $10 will generate a separate entry for this portion of the drawing.

To see some of the other rules, just click here.

● In this week's MME, Doug Lawrence talks about being a leader by being a "Follower," particularly at Christmas time. Doug probably won't tell you this (well, he might, if you ask the right question...) but the church at which he served was literally famous in the region where it was located for Christmas eve services. People literally lined up (you know, like all day before the release of a new Batman or Star Wars film?) to assure themselves a seat (or at least a place in the video feed overflow room). A significant piece of the church's worship budget was allocated just to Christmas Eve, because the church's leadership felt that it was one of the best outreach events of the year (in tech-speak, it had a great capture rate...it was very sticky).

● Doug also mentions our latest issue of Creator in print--The Call--which you do not want to miss. Remember that as a member of the Creator Leadership Network (which you are if you are reading this in your email) you can start or renew your subscription to Creator at the best possible rates. You must log in to get our special CLN rate, which you can find by looking in the left hand column after clicking here. While you are logged in, check out all of the Select 20 anthem reviews on our site. We've added many new ones since I last mentioned it to you. Just click here after you've logged in.

● We've also added several new articles over the last week, including a wonderful article by Milburn Price entitled Easing Tensions in Church Music. Now I know this is the season for tensions, so get Milburn's article to help you relax a bit. Just go here and look in the left column.

● To read this week's MME, click here.

This week, pray for all those who are out in the cold this time of year, that they may find the warmth and peace which passes all understanding this Christmas season...and please tell your friends and colleagues about Creator and MME too.

Blessings,

Vern Sanders
Publisher
Creator Magazine

December 8, 2008

creator@creatormagazine.com — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 18:08:00 GMT

Good Morning.

Thanks for all your responses to my book excerpt. I am pleased to know that so many of you are interested in purchasing the book. I've responded to all of your personally, but if you are reading this and did not send me an email over the past week or two, and are interesting in buying the book, just let me know by clicking here. I'll make sure that we get the information to you as soon as it is available.

Our next issue of the print version of Creator is at the printer and should ship in the next few days. This particular issue may "strike a few chords" with you, because it is about The Call to ministry--something that we all struggle with from time to time. Don't miss this issue. Be sure to subscribe or renew (see below) so that you can have this timely information. Not sure if you want to subscribe? Try our free trial subscription plan by clicking here and looking for the offer in our rotating content box.

This week I, as many of you are, am on Sunday, leading our choir and orchestra in our Christmas music presentation. We're doing two settings of the Magnificat -- one each by Mark Hayes (very celebrative) and Canadian composer Rupert Lang (this one is very dramatic, is in manuscript, and was originally set for men's choir and soprano soloist). It was wonderful to have our pastor "set up" this presentation by preaching about Mary last Sunday. I pray that all of your musical offerings will be life changing this season, and if you could pray for ours I would appreciate it.

· This week's Monday Morning Email features Hugh Ballou's timely, topical interview with CJ Scarlet regarding The Kindness Cure campaign. In it CJ reminds us who do ministry to take care of ourselves so that we are able to take care of others. Remember to take care of yourself by subscribing or renewing your subscription to Creator at the best possible rates. You must log in to get our special CLN rate, which you can find by looking in the left hand column after clicking here. While you are there, check out the other great offers which are only available to you as a CLN member, like free or reduced rate consulting opportunities, discount coupons, and more.

· Please take our survey about children's music programs by clicking here. While you are there, follow the links to read the Worship Quote of the Week by Robert Webber and Chip Stam.

· In this season of giving, I want to remind you that our advertisers help us help you do ministry better. Our advertisers help to make our website available to you. Won't you consider exploring our advertisers when it comes to your gift list this year? We particularly want to highlight Pine Lake Music, Shawnee Press, Word Music, and Beckenhorst Press, who have been long-time supporters of our print magazine as well.

· To read this week's MME, click here.

This week, pray for all those who are involved in all of our collective special Christmas musical presentations, that everyone is able to offer their first fruits in the process...and please tell your friends and colleagues about Creator and MME too.

Blessings,

Vern Sanders
Publisher
Creator Magazine

December 1, 2008

creator@creatormagazine.com — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 17:23:00 GMT

Good Morning.

First, an apology...The response to my book excerpt generated so much email traffic last Monday, that my e-mailbox couldn't handle it. Part of the problem was that I was also being bombarded with spam, which happens periodically. If I responded to you personally, I got your email feedback. However, I know I missed a number of emails, and I really do want to hear what you thought. Perhaps you were sending me your own story. In any event, I don't want to miss what you had to say, so here are the email options again:

Click on one of the response possibilities, please. Then, if you can and will, click on the I've got a story link to share your own tale.

Quit wasting your efforts and get back to giving me Practical Tools

I like it; I'd read it

I really like it and I'd like to buy it

I've got a story to tell you

Didn't read my Monday Morning Email last week? Read it and respond right from the MME itself. Just click here.

OK, I know this is the busy season, so let's get right to the rest of the story...

· Have you been good this year? You can gift yourself by subscribing or renewing your subscription to Creator at the best possible rates. You must be a Creator Leadership Network member and log in to get our special CLN rate, which you can find by looking in the left hand column after clicking here. While you are there, check out the other great offers which are only available to you as a CLN member, like free or reduced rate consulting opportunities, discount coupons, and more. Not a CLN member? Just Register on any page of the site.

· Our survey about children's music programs will not be up much longer. Haven't taken the survey? Just click here.

· We've added Select 20 anthem reviews for the years 1994 and 2000 to our site, with more on the way. You must be a registered CLN member and log in to see these, so go here and log in to see them.

· Are you taking advantage of Doug Lawrence's conducting tips each week on the MasterClass page of our website? Don't miss a single one! Improve your conducting skills here.

· In this week's MME, Bob Burroughs has a Christmas treat of his own, with a jam-packed bag of goodies that includes Handbell reviews for the first time! And don't miss the Leadership section which focuses on the topic: Character is Not Made in Crisis...It is only Exhibited, which is something to keep in mind during this hectic, stressful season. Start your reading here.

This week, pray for all those who will attend all of our collective special Christmas musical presentations, for individually and together we have the opportunity to change the world, for individuals, congregations, and communities...and please tell your friends and colleagues about Creator and MME too.

Blessings,

Vern Sanders
Publisher
Creator Magazine

November 24, 2008 - Fantastic Friday Contest Update

creator@creatormagazine.com — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:21:00 GMT

And the winners are:

Marty Cole of Washington

Mike McClurg of Ohio

Lyndsay Naranjo of Florida

Margaret Quezada of Kansas

Duane Toole of Virginia

Congratulations to all of you. Your DVD of Noelle will be on its way to you in the next couple of days.

Blessings,

Vern Sanders

Publisher

Creator Magazine

November 24, 2008

creator@creatormagazine.com — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:18:00 GMT

Good Morning.

Happy Thanksgiving week. I have always found this to be an odd two Sundays to plan, from a worship standpoint. Do you celebrate Thanksgiving on the Sunday before, or the Sunday after the actual day? Neither, for me, is entirely satisfactory. And, when you consider that most of the time the church at which I serve has been in or at the end of a stewardship campaign, it gets complicated. I think our Canadian friends have it much easier, since their Thanksgiving comes on a Monday (for our American readers, just look at the Monday closest to Columbus Day and you'll have an idea), so celebrating on the day before seems much more obvious. By the way, as long as we are having gratuitous Canadian references, American Thanksgiving weekend is also celebrated in Canada as one of the biggest holidays of the year--it's called Grey Cup (inside joke...don't worry if you don't get it). Anyway, since my wedding anniversary is such that it normally takes place on or about Thanksgiving, I solve the problem by taking one of my vacation weeks, and letting my assistant deal with making the worship design decisions. I'd be interested to know what you all do. Email me by clicking here, if you don't mind, and let me know.

On to business...Thanks to all of you who participated in our first Fantastic Friday. Congratulations to the CLN members who were randomly selected in each of the categories to win a copy of the new Gener8xion Entertainment, Dove Family-Approved holiday film: Noëlle. The winners have already been notified by email, so if you haven't checked your email, just look for a separate entry in this Blog to see the list of the winners. We're going to do it again next month, so watch this space for more details.

Before I talk about this week's Monday Morning Email, let's get some new information and reminders out of the way [just want the new information? read the "this week's reminder" bullet, and discover some great new articles that are available).

· Remember that all of our Select 20 anthem reviews since 2004 are on our site, with more on the way. You must log in to see these, so log in and go here.

· This week's reminder about the many things available at our website to help you do your ministry better: You'll want to bookmark our articles page. We continue to add more of the over 1200 articles from Creator's print publishing history to our website, and you are sure to find things that will assist you in your ministry. Just select the topical category or categories that interest you to see what is there. Among the new titles this week are several intriguing and thought provoking ones, including a discussion of how to deal with the problem of a congregation's willingness to accept "new"music or art, one entitled Taste Wars, and How to End Them (anybody dealing with that?), some hints for singers and accompanists, a couple of things on congregational worship, and a wonderful article by noted conductor Max Ulbrich, on conducting. Click here for these and other articles.

· Thanks for taking our survey about children's music programs. I find the results fascinating...particularly that most of you do all this great work on less than $500 per year. Haven't taken the survey? Just click here.

· One last reminder about our helpful financial resource offered by guest MME contributor Angie Hollerich. Financial worries are on everybody's mind right now, and Angie has made it possible for us to offer her book Money: Is Not the Root of All Evil as an instant download. Just click here to get this wonderful resource now.

· OK...on to this week's MME. Doug Lawrence let the cat out of the bag last week about my book, and I am still not sure if that's a good thing. So all week, people have been contacting me, asking, basically "what's in the book?" Now I'm the kind of creative person that has what might be termed the "usual" mix of artistic sensitivities and control issues about anything I present for public consumption. What, you thought these sterling, funny, MME emails just typed themselves with no thought? (don't answer that!) The book is in what might be called the draft stage, with only a working title. The topic -- pastor/musician relations (not relationships--that's for someone else to write) -- is a contentious one, filled with heat and light. So is the...let's see...discussion...right, discussion, about worship wars.

[Pardon the interruption...Just typing that reminds me of a conversation I had around 1990 with three other choir directors, all from the San Francisco Bay Area. We had formed a covenant group, and were away for a weekend retreat when the subject of worship and the unsettled nature of the future direction thereof was broached. We came to the consensus--rightly or wrongly--that those of us in California were dealing with things that the rest of the country had not begun to even hear about. I remember distinctly that the conversation came to a screeching halt when one of us said: "Wait until it gets to the midwest...then it will get really bloody." Memories...]

So I've been talked into printing the draft of my book's introduction for this week's email. In some ways, I'd much rather talk about Thanksgiving. Since what you are going to read is a draft, I've given you a chance to give me feedback, and even, perhaps, help me by telling your story. Check this week's MME page for your chance to tell me what you think. Start your reading here.

This week, pray for all those who are celebrating Thanksgiving, particularly those who are having trouble finding things for which to be grateful, and please tell your friends and colleagues about Creator and MME (and my book!--sorry...shameless plug) too.

Blessings,

Vern Sanders
Publisher
Creator Magazine

November 23 2008 - The Contest has Closed

creator@creatormagazine.com — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 23:18:00 GMT

We have our winners. Thanks, everyone, for your participation. Look for our next Fantastic Friday coming in December. We'll announce who won tomorrow in this space...