The day after our church hosted Shane and Shane (btw - a great experience for our church all around), I awoke thinking to myself, "why can't we get our drum kit to sound that good?" It did not take long for me to realize that I was making an unhealthy and unhelpful comparison between the weekly sound of our worship team and audio system and the touring group. There are all kinds of comparisons that those serving small churches in the area of technology simply should not make. Here are a few; complete with reasons they are both unhealthy and unnatural.
Another Church
While all churches should have the same Biblical mission, they each set out to accomplish it in different ways. They are in different contexts, have different budgets, differently gifted leaders and members, different needs, and especially different visions. We can certainly learn much from one another and strive to cooperate whenever possible. However, when we begin to evaluate our tech ministry success by how our equipment, team size, sound quality, or other elements compare with those of other churches, we have opened the door for improper motivations (keeping up with other churches) and discouragement (because Satan wants us to believe everyone else is doing better).
The Huge Church
This type of comparison is especially difficult for small churches. In addition to the reasons mentioned above, small church tech folks should be wary of comparing themselves to very large churches for some important and unique reasons. The effects of size upon a congregation's structures make these comparisons completely unhelpful. For example, most large churches have multiple staff members for technology (IT and Production) who are professionals in their areas of service while smaller churches often rely on volunteers who serve with little or no professional training. Does this mean that the volunteers who serve smaller churches cannot have as big an impact in the fulfillment of their church's mission? Another example might be room size and equipment comparisons. Smaller churches usually worship in much smaller rooms than do their larger counterparts. As a result, their audio, video, and lighting needs are much less complex - making comparisons between the two most unhelpful. In the end, many small churches have the unfortunate idea that they will be successful, with the tech team playing a role, as soon as they become big (often with a certain attendance number in mind). However, perhaps it is more helpful to evaluate success in technology ministry in by faithfulness to serve in the context and with the people and equipment that God has ordained.
A Concert Environment
There is something infinitely frustrating about hearing audio in your room sound great in a concert beyond what you seem to be able to achieve on Sundays. There are important differences between touring acts and the weekly sound ministry that make this comparison both unhealthy and unhelpful. The most striking element is usually volume. For example, most smaller churches have volume limitations that are either spoken or unspoken. While most touring acts (especially of the Christian variety) are reasonable in their volume levels, they mix louder than the sound engineers that do it every week in that room. The increased volume ceiling allows for greater dynamic range (although louder is definitely NOT automatically better) making it easier to achieve great sound. Another example is the use of video, which in a one-night concert can be setup without regard for the aesthetics of the room. These considerations have a huge bearing on where permanent screens can be placed and the size of screen. The light pollution that plagues some worship spaces on Sunday mornings is not a factor for night concerts either. While mixing techniques and other tidbits can be gleaned from the tour that makes a stop at your church, direct comparisons with your tech ministry are likely unhelpful.
What thoughts do you have on the subject of comparisons? Leave a comment below and join the conversation!
