Technical Arts

A Tale of Two Sacrifices

~ Mike Schwiebert ~ Leave a comment

Recently, I was listening to a podcast, and something the speaker, Dr. Chris Green, said captured me. The point involved Abraham, Ishmael and Isaac within a larger discussion of the sacraments and how we approach the Lord’s Table.*

The kind of work God wants to do in your life is deeper than you can imagine. Think about Isaac and Ishmael. J. H. King** … preached this sermon about Isaac and Ishmael. You remember the story from Abraham. Abraham cannot have a child. Finally, Sarah convinces him to have child with Hagar, the servant girl. This boy, Ishmael, is born. And then later God miraculously gives them Isaac. If you’ve been around Pentecostal churches at all, you’ve heard this sermon about Isaac and Ishmael.

J. H. King says this, ‘Ishmael is an example of what it looks like when God takes out of our life what should never have been there. The sin that you brought into your life or that others forced into your life, when God takes that out, that is God ridding you of Ishmael.
But when God calls you to sacrifice Isaac, that’s God calling you to give up something God gave you.’

Lately, I have been very interested in scrutinizing the way we do church. As a technical director, I am “in the flow” of how we communicate the Gospel and very often, the forms of our ministry. Let’s apply the difference between these two sacrifices to how we do the work of the ministry.

And I should add that I really think this is applicable to all Christians. All of us are on assignment even if we do not work at a church. There is a ministry that God has given you. That’s what I’m focusing on.
Keep thinking! Continue reading.

The Anti-Artist

~ Mike Schwiebert ~ 1 Comment

MountainLake

I used to think that some people just didn’t get it. I now realize they are actively hostile.

Some of us have a creative impulse, a muse that whispers to our souls, telling us to make, paint, write, build. We spend our lives learning how to get this thing that is burning inside us, out.

Others, like a crab in a boiling pot of water (thwarting any who dare try and escape a slow death), watch to mock, critique and reject.

There is another War of Art than the internal battle that Steven Pressfield so masterfully exposes.
It is a war with the anti-artist.

  • That’s too expensive
  • What a waste of time
  • That extra stuff doesn’t matter
  • No one can tell the difference

Keep thinking! Continue reading.

Church Technical Leaders: Jobs-to-be-done

~ Mike Schwiebert ~ 2 Comments

Recently, I had the privilege of contributing an article for the Church Technical Leaders website where I discussed jobs-to-be-done theory and how it relates to the local church tech team, “What Motivates Your Team?“.

“As technical directors, we usually think in terms of what the church hires the tech team to do: run audio for live events, make videos, maintain infrastructure, etc. Have you ever considered what your volunteers are hiring your team to do for them? In other words, what is motivating them to serve in technical arts? If technical arts was a product, why would they be your customers?” From my article.

Keep thinking! Continue reading.

Video Directing 101: Camera Placement

~ Mike Schwiebert ~ 9 Comments

VideoDirecting101

The goal of video directing is to tell a story (Actually, I think that may be the goal of all art). If you are going to be an effective story teller as a live service director, you must learn to position your cameras properly. Last time, I focused on storytelling to set a solid foundation. In this post we’ll get to the nitty gritty of camera placement.

I have strong opinions and preferences for what I am doing, but there is room for exploration and adaption to my ideas. The most important thing is that you capture the event and tell a compelling, effective story, even if you do it in a different way.

The focus of this post will be on directing a church service, but I believe the principles can be applied to any live event. There won’t be too much explanation here–just the facts, ma’am.

Keep thinking! Continue reading.

Should I Stay or Should I Go?

~ Mike Schwiebert ~ 3 Comments

Thinking on the beach

Love these posts I’m reading over at the Church Technical Leaders website by Jacob Barbour @hdctechdirect, “Should I Even Be Here?” Pt. 1, Pt. 2, and Pt.3.

Jacob’s writing has been really good. I get energized when I see people wrestle with their calling, wrestle with their circumstances, and speak wisdom out of their disillusionment. It is a given to get disillusioned in church work. Those who say otherwise are living an unexamined life or lying. Both of which are destroyers of authentic ministry.

Let’s dig in. Jacob asks: “Should I even be here?” My answer:

Where’s here?

One of the greatest challenges I have faced in life is deciphering the riddle of the will of God. In the church tradition I grew up in, discovering God’s will for your life was the most important thing a young person could do. And although I do believe that God can call specific people to specific tasks, I question that God calls all people to specific vocations.

Keep thinking! Continue reading.