This blog examines, reviews and discusses how worship is being lived out in culture and in the church. We tackle everything from songwriting techniques in corporate worship, to interviewing worship leaders and pastors, to reviewing the last big rock concert.
I got sent a brilliant story of a visiting, wasted, couple getting it on to our friend John Mark McMillan’s “How He Loves” during service. I don’t think this is what John Mark had in mind with his crossover ability. I’m guessing things heated up substantially on the “sloppy wet kiss” line.
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I continue my discussion with John Mark on his songwriting technique and John gives us a little teaser on his upcoming album. Make sure to catch part 1 if you haven’t already. Once we release all the parts (there will be 4 I think) I’ll collect them into a single post. The free John Mark album giveaway applies for all post on the interview. So refer to part 1 giveaway rules and link up on this post.
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sim·i·le
A figure of speech in which two essentially unlike things are compared, often in a phrase introduced by like or as, as in “How like the winter hath my absence been” or “So are you to my thoughts as food to life” (Shakespeare).
A powerful tool of writing and one not much used in modern worship is simile. Metaphor is more commonly uses in modern worship songwriting and we’ll discuss that later, but for now I want to focus on simile. Psalms is full of simile which is no surprise since much of it was originally written as music. Simile helps us associate an abstract idea or theological view with a concrete illustration which helps us define and explain the abstract. Quite simply, an effective simile helps us understand a big idea by comparing it to an idea we all are very familiar with. Simile can also be purely poetic where the object being compared doesn’t require further explanation but the writer chooses to for lyrical clarity, imagery, style and/or conformity. Ideally both should be accomplished.
Let’s summarize things a simile should accomplish and then we’ll look at some examples.
Things a simile should not accomplish:
Let’s look at an intriguing example in Psalms 39:11Psalms 39:11
English: American Standard Version (1901) - ASV
11 When thou with rebukes dost correct man for iniquity, Thou makest his beauty to consume away like a moth: Surely every man is vanity. [Selah
.
You rebuke and discipline men for their sin; you consume their wealth(beauty) like a moth– each man is but a breath(vanity). Selah
This is great usage because it paints such a vivid picture of how the wicked’s beauty and wealth are consumed. A moth eats bit by bit, leaving holes as it eats. David is a little preoccupied with his enemies not being crushed and dealt with as he’d like. So David talks a lot about this topic and this line does a lot to describe how God is working through David and helps describe an abstract idea of God consuming wealth with a concrete idea of how a moth consumes.
It was really challenging finding modern examples of good simile but I found some great ones after the jump.
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As many of you know John Mark McMillan performed at our church, Life Connection Church in April. He was nice enough to sit down with us for a good long conversation. This video is just part 1 of our conversation. John Mark is an amazing guy and had a lot of great insight into music and worship. You don’t want to miss any part of the interview so make sure you subscribe to the rss feed to keep up to date when we release the other portions of the interview.
Also We’ll be doing a little giveaway here. The prize is John Mark McMillan’s cd “The Songs Inside the Sounds of Breaking Down” on iTunes. So you will get the album gifted to you over iTunes. To enter into the giveaway you need to so 2 simple things:
That’s all you have to do. I’ll let the competition run for 2 weeks. Now onto the video…
See also Part 2.
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Below are a few pics from the John Mark McMillan concert, you can see the entire Flickr set here. What a night it was.
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It’s here folks! We will be selling tickets at the door if you’ve slacked and haven’t already bought your tickets. There are a few VIP tickets left, just a few. VIP Q&A session starts at 5pm, doors open at 6pm, concert starts at 7pm. Go here for full ticket information.
See you tonight!
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Life In Stereo has just been added to the John Mark McMillan ticket on April 25th. They are an awesome band from right here in Phoenix playing their newly released cd The Shape of Things to Come. So now that little $10 ticket gets you in to see not 1 but 2 incredible bands. I must be crazy folks, these deals won’t last, get your TICKETS NOW!
Check them out at their website www.lifeinstereomusic.com or on myspace.
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It has been confirmed! April 25th at Life Connection Church in Phoenix, AZ, John Mark McMillan will perform live with special guest Life In Stereo! Tickets are available online. Concert starts at 7pm, doors open at 6pm. We have 30 (only 30!) VIP tickets available which include:
- priority, stage front seating
- exclusive access to band Q&A session prior to concert (5pm)
- John Mark McMillan cd “The Songs Inside the Sounds of Breaking Down”
- Main Squeeze smoothie at event
Childcare tickets are SOLD OUT!. If you want to bring your child into the concert then they need a General Admission ticket unless they are under 3, in which case they can enter the concert free.
Space is limited so make sure you get your tickets early.
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