Week 5: Team Make-Up (People and Purpose)
Last week we talked about developing your game plan for creative worship and figuring out what major shifts you might have to take to overcome obstacles in your way.
This week we are going to look at the make-up of the planning teams at Ginghamsburg, Summit and Jacob’s Well.
Name: Ginghamsburg Church
Location: Tipp City, OH
Attendance: 4000
Team(s): 2 (Creative Design Team, Worship Design Team)
People Involved: 7-9
Roles: Preaching Pastor, Graphic Designer, Video Producer, Creative Director, Music Director, Worship Leader(s)
Description: The Creative Design Team meets each week to brainstorm ideas for upcoming events and worship gatherings. On Wednesday the Worship Design Team meets to listen to a rough outline of the message (with scripture and main points) and then brainstorm song, video,graphic and other creative ideas. There is a smaller meeting on Fridays to hear a more polished version of the message and review the weekends creative elements. Watch Mike Slaughter share his Wednesday message outline with the team.
Advantage: Hearing almost a complete message on Wednesday minimizes the likelihood that creative elements will not line up with the message.
Disadvantage: Only having 3 days with a clear understanding of the message topic doesn’t give you much time to get a volunteer crew together for a video shoot, find actors for a drama, finding the right music, etc.
Name: Summit Church
Location: Orlando, FL
Attendance: around 1000 (I think)
Team(s): 1 (Worship Planning Team)
People Involved: about 8
Roles: Communications, Small Groups, Lead Pastor, Executive Pastor, First Impressions, Video, Music, Creative Director
Description: Summit’s planning model is unique because they not only include worship, creative and preaching people but other ministry areas as well. The whole team meets on Tuesdays for a few hours to discuss the previous weekend, talk through the upcoming weekend and then spend some time brainstorming the following weekend, the next series or other upcoming special events.
Advantage/Disadvantage: Andy Simonds discusses them in this video.
Name: Jacob’s Well
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Attendance: around 250
Team(s): 2 (Big Idea Team, Creative Arts Team)
People Involved: about 8
Roles: Pastor, Worship Leader, Children’s Ministry, Intern, Church members
Description: Watch Greg Meyer explain the planning timeline, process and team in this video. Another unique part of Jacob’s Well’s process was the fact they brought new people into the planning process every once and a while.
Advantage: The process is well defined and everyone involved is given the two things necessary to succeed: time and focus (i.e. an idea of where the message is going). New faces add different perspectives and bring fresh ideas to the table.
Disadvantage: Planning 10-12 weeks in advance can be a huge shift for many pastors and may seem undoable at first, the increased time to be creative and plan will be a huge blessing for the rest of the planning team.
Subscribe to this conversation and other Creative Worship Tour community content here.
This week we are going to look at the make-up of the planning teams at Ginghamsburg, Summit and Jacob’s Well.
Name: Ginghamsburg Church
Location: Tipp City, OH
Attendance: 4000
Team(s): 2 (Creative Design Team, Worship Design Team)
People Involved: 7-9
Roles: Preaching Pastor, Graphic Designer, Video Producer, Creative Director, Music Director, Worship Leader(s)
Description: The Creative Design Team meets each week to brainstorm ideas for upcoming events and worship gatherings. On Wednesday the Worship Design Team meets to listen to a rough outline of the message (with scripture and main points) and then brainstorm song, video,graphic and other creative ideas. There is a smaller meeting on Fridays to hear a more polished version of the message and review the weekends creative elements. Watch Mike Slaughter share his Wednesday message outline with the team.
Advantage: Hearing almost a complete message on Wednesday minimizes the likelihood that creative elements will not line up with the message.
Disadvantage: Only having 3 days with a clear understanding of the message topic doesn’t give you much time to get a volunteer crew together for a video shoot, find actors for a drama, finding the right music, etc.
Name: Summit Church
Location: Orlando, FL
Attendance: around 1000 (I think)
Team(s): 1 (Worship Planning Team)
People Involved: about 8
Roles: Communications, Small Groups, Lead Pastor, Executive Pastor, First Impressions, Video, Music, Creative Director
Description: Summit’s planning model is unique because they not only include worship, creative and preaching people but other ministry areas as well. The whole team meets on Tuesdays for a few hours to discuss the previous weekend, talk through the upcoming weekend and then spend some time brainstorming the following weekend, the next series or other upcoming special events.
Advantage/Disadvantage: Andy Simonds discusses them in this video.
Name: Jacob’s Well
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Attendance: around 250
Team(s): 2 (Big Idea Team, Creative Arts Team)
People Involved: about 8
Roles: Pastor, Worship Leader, Children’s Ministry, Intern, Church members
Description: Watch Greg Meyer explain the planning timeline, process and team in this video. Another unique part of Jacob’s Well’s process was the fact they brought new people into the planning process every once and a while.
Advantage: The process is well defined and everyone involved is given the two things necessary to succeed: time and focus (i.e. an idea of where the message is going). New faces add different perspectives and bring fresh ideas to the table.
Disadvantage: Planning 10-12 weeks in advance can be a huge shift for many pastors and may seem undoable at first, the increased time to be creative and plan will be a huge blessing for the rest of the planning team.
Subscribe to this conversation and other Creative Worship Tour community content here. Join This Conversation
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Permalink Reply by Ken Hymes on -
Here at Peace Lutheran Church in Charlottesville VA we have adapted the Big Idea book's suggestions to our own existing team design process. It has been very helpful in focusing our efforts, and planning further in advance of given series/weekends.
One suggestion which derived from Doris Kearns Goodwin's book on Lincoln called Team of Rivals: in a church with a mixed "traditional"/"contemporary" congregation, it can be helpful to bring people with diverse viewpoints into the team, provided that there is a shared positive, mission-oriented outlook working in all participants.
Good stuff, thanks for your work in disseminating this diversity of approaches.
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Permalink Reply by Josh Linman on -
Ken, thanks for sharing what happens at Peace. It's a gutsy move to bring those "rivals" together. Are there any specific things you do to prepare people to be positive and mission-oriented in the team? Btw, what is the Big Idea book?
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Permalink Reply by Ken Hymes on
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The Big Idea is a book put out by leaders from an 8 campus church, who plan a year in advance, almost like they were making cartoons or something. The book is pretty specific about how to go from offering lots of tiny unrelated messages to offering one big takeaway each weekend. We haven't adopted their process wholesale by any means, but the focus on... focus has been very helpful.
As far as bringing "rival" points of view together on a planning team in a multiple-worship-style church... I really have no good advice, except to say that sometimes it brings amazing results that you could never have planned: you might get to find out what people really think, you can often short-circuit the triangulation rumor mill, you definitely get ideas you wouldn't have had from the "usual suspects." The percentages have been great for us on the actual planning team, but it has gone south a couple of times in other areas of church life. I don't think you can get inside someone's head and know whether they are sincerely looking to build bridges, or trying to win some imaginary battle for worship purity. But I think it's a risk worth taking in the long run. I mean, peace don't come easy, no one said it would :o).
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