Do you remember when the first time you started serving as a production volunteer at your church? We all were all so excited about being there and we were so excited to learn everything we could.
Before long, we realize that working in a church can have so many challenges for tech people that it can wear on our drive to learn. We can get so overwhelmed that we begin to focus all of our attention on just getting through the service, rather than getting better every week. There are two mentalities that keep us from learning:
I Am Too Busy To Learn
Many of us look at our schedules and think, “I am too busy to take the time to learn new stuff. I can barely handle what I know right now.” In spending time with dozens, maybe hundreds of church tech volunteers I have realized that we are not too busy to learn, we are too busy not to learn. Part of the reason I think most church production volunteers are stressed out and frustrated on Sunday morning is because they stop learning how to do their job better. So when something new is added to our ministry (a new video source, moving lights, more audio channels...) we get stressed because we are adding something we are not qualified to handle. However, if we become disciplined and habitual learners we can get out in front of these situations so we're better prepared and equipped to take on the additional load. We're also prepared to train others, and potentially consolidate what we are doing to make the load easier.
Like any other discipline, you need to do it consistently in order to make it a habit.
I Know Enough
One of the great lies with church production people is that they feel like they know enough. If anyone excels at church production it is easy to struggle with this. This is because if you are any good you are probably the best in your church. So it is easy to say well I am good enough. The truth is that this is pride and we need to work through it. Why? Because no matter how good you are you can get better. You can still learn new tricks and techniques. So get over yourself and don't give up learning.
How do I discipline myself to learn?
Make a decision to learn something new every week. It may take a conscious effort, but you shouldn't have to go too far out of your way to make this happen. You just have to learn one new thing a week. By being consistent you will soon realize what you don't know, and you'll be pleasantly surprised at how much better you get.
“I am too busy to learn new stuff. I can barely handle what I know right now.”
Learn What Your Pastor's Vision
When it comes to sound, video and lighting there are thousands of things you could learn. For example, you could learn how to mix punk rock, heavy metal or country. They're all different, and have different requirements.The same could be said of lighting and video. There are endless new approaches and techniques to learn.
However, the goal of any production person in the church should not be to execute your own vision. Instead you need to learn and continually develop the ability to grab the pastor's vision and support it with the tools you have available.
Any type of learning takes a tenacity. Like any other discipline, you need to do it consistently in order to make it a habit. When you learn to do it consistently it honors God, it will also inspire those around you, and help make your job more fulfilling.
