Worship Central posted a video today of a “horror moment” that occurred at one of their recent events when Martin Smith was wrapping up a time of corporate worship.
I wasn’t there, but from the looks of it, they’ve finished the last song and are leaving a bit of space. Martin decides to read from his bible and sets it down on the keyboard in front of him. By doing so, he accidentally hits a button that triggers a drum beat to play loudly and distractingly. By the time he realizes it’s his fault, he decides to not read from his bible, and hands it over to the emcee. Watch it here:
I’m glad that the guys at Worship Central posted this because we can learn from watching it. And I’m glad it didn’t happen to me because I can imagine it would be pretty embarrassing. Hindsight is always 20/20 – especially when it’s at someone else’s expense!
Briefly, here’s what I think Martin did well:
- He calmly looked around to see what was happening.
- He didn’t lose his composure.
- He quickly realized it was his fault and took care of it.
- He laughed at himself.
- He didn’t try to pretend no one had noticed. They had ALL noticed.
But, from my vantage point, here is how I wish this video had ended:
- He realizes it was his fault and takes care of it.
- He laughs at himself and lets everyone else enjoy the moment too.
- He lets the laughter die down naturally and then says: “what I was going to read from scripture was…”
I can imagine he was flustered. Really flustered. I would have been too. There’s no way to know if I would have handled this any differently if I had been in Martin’s shoes. I might have. Or I might not have. Who knows.
But when things like this happen (and they are bound to happen at some point when you least expect it)… consider whether “I think it’s time I hand it over” is the best thing to say, or whether it’s a better idea to get back on track, focus, and go where you had been going.
Worthily Magnify 