By Lenny LeBlanc
This past year I began to feel a stirring in my heart. At first I didn't really understand what was happening but in God's time things began to unfold. My senior pastor, Henry Melton, had been feeling the need to step back after 42 years of ministry in our fellowship. In May of 2001, Eddie Lawrence came on staff as associate pastor and after a year of transition he would be stepping into the role of senior pastor. One day Eddie and I were eating lunch and he asked me if I had ever given thought to serving on a church staff as worship leader. After waiting a moment I responded "that someday in the future" I would be open to taking such a position but that I would best serve the church if I were not required to keep office hours. (Whoops! .....worship leaders please don't print this article and accidentally leave on your pastor's desk.....ha! ha!) I said it would be great if I didn't have to lead a choir, and could just work with the band and singers, introduce new songs, and help mentor the younger worship leaders and musicians as well as have some freedom to travel (sounds too good to be true, right?). Eddie just looked at me and said, "Hmm."
In the days that followed, my desire to be more involved at home in our local church began to grow stronger and stronger. A few months later Eddie took the position as senior pastor and soon after called me and asked me if I would pray about coming on staff. I had been leading worship during the times I was home along with several other volunteers, but now I felt as though the Lord was calling me to a deeper commitment. In my heart I remember telling the Lord, "Yes, God, I want to be more involved but I've got to do all these other things like make CD's and travel overseas with my buddy Don Moen." The Lord kept saying, "I want you to do this." My wife Sherrie and I prayed for about two weeks and I said 'yes' to the call. Little did I know Sherrie had been praying for a year that I would be able to stay home more!
I assumed the position of Worship Leader in March of this year and it has been one of the most wonderful times in my Christian walk. It has given me a
more solid foundation and has brought me to a place of deeper
accountability.
My pastor and I share the same vision and desire for the church and God is knitting us together like only He can. The Lord has begun such an awesome work at our fellowship. I've seen the hearts of the people rise to a level of worship I had only dreamed about in the past. In our meetings we've had healings by the scores, salvations, and many people have been set free from various kinds of bondage. There is such unity on our staff and in the body of believers that sometimes I just have to pinch myself to make sure it's real. Don't get me wrong, we're not the perfect church but we've just begun to focus on Jesus, not on building our church or coming up with the right programs.
Since we began glorifying the Lord it seems like people are coming from everywhere hungry to experience His presence, not to hear me lead worship or to hear Eddie speak, but to behold His beauty and wonder. We don't watch the clock much anymore but we do our best to watch Him. These times are so precious that I don't want to miss any of the services. I do still travel some and when I'm away I find my self calling home more often to see what's happening at church. God is so good and it's such an honor to be a part of what He is doing in North Alabama.
This year I'll be traveling some with a small band that will include some of the guys on our worship team. It thrills my heart to see people pouring themselves out to the Lord and worshipping Him for who He is. My desire is to see that happen wherever I go this next year.
For His Glory,
Lenny LeBlanc
www.lennyleblanc.com
Used by permission.
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