Drumming for Fun and Profit, part deux

Today is the last day of Oz, and for this I'm grateful. It's been a fun show but I'm generally tired (and specifically tired of all these Oz songs playing repeatedly in my head--seriously, do you know what it's like to be trying to fall to sleep with the sound of Munchkins singing in your head???).

Drumming has been one of the true delights of my life. I began playing when I was eight, and other than the years when we were on the road I have found opportunities to play everywhere we have been. For a long time I was convinced it was my destiny to be the drummer for Led Zeppelin. In high school I flirted with Christianity and then determined that what God wanted was for me to play drums with Petra. I know--that makes me very old.

I have enjoyed the opportunities opened up to me by playing in the pits of a lot of different shows--from Little Shop of Horros to A Chorus Line to Evita as well as many other shows, I have enjoyed the chance to play, meet different people, and be part of the creation of something that takes a lot of people to put together.

I am faced with a dilemma about this, however, for several reasons. First of all--every time I go and play it takes me away from other things, and I have to often sit back and evaluate whether or not this is a good thing. With my compulsive need to always be busy and my workaholic tendencies, I know that to be busy all the time is not a good thing. I also realize that ministry takes a LOT of my time already, taking me away from my family and many other pursuits because of its very nature. Can I really afford to have one more thing distract me? I have decided that, for now, drumming is my hobby. Some people play golf--I play my drums, and so I resolve this issue by seeing ways that drumming makes me more developed and well-rounded.

Then there is the issue of the morality of so many of the shows I have played. Needless to say, most of them have little resonance with my belief systems and some portray values that are antithetical to my own. And yet I have found that in every show I have played there has been something I have taken away from it that has given me a greater understanding of God, human nature, and redemption. I may not always like the way the lesson is conveyed, but it's always my hope and prayer that those who are at the show will see some of God's prevenient grace at work.

I think that ultimately, however, I play these shows becuase, for me, playing my drums is an act of worship, and that means that the pit is somewhere I can worship and use my talent for God's glory. I have finally realized that church is not the only place we use our talents to worship. Very few of the people I know get the opportunity I have to worship at church all the time--most of them worship at the shop or at the school or at the office. Those of us who follow the way of Jesus are called to worship all the time, which means that we have to find ways of using the talents and gifts and skills that God has given us wherever we are and whatever we are doing.

Drumming is good practice for me as I am learning how to worship all the time.