In the Bible—in both the Hebrew Scripture and the New Testament—the name Asaph appears over 30 times. Often an unsung hero, our scripture for today points to his significance for the Hebrew people and their faith. Listen now to this reading from 1 Chronicles 16: 2-13:
When David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the offerings of well-being, he blessed the people in the name of Yahweh; and he distributed to every person in Israel—man and woman alike—to each a loaf of bread, a portion of meat, and a cake of raisins.
He appointed certain of the Levites as ministers before the ark of Yahweh, to invoke, to thank, and to praise Yahweh, the God of Israel. Asaph was the chief, and second to him Zechariah, Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel, with harps and lyres; Asaph was to sound the cymbals, and the priests Benaiah and Jahaziel were to blow trumpets regularly, before the ark of the covenant of God. Then on that day David first appointed the singing of praises to Yahweh by Asaph and his kindred. O give thanks to Yahweh, call on God’s name, proclaim God’s deeds among the peoples. Sing to God, sing praise, and tell of all God’s wonderful works. Glory in God’s holy name; let the hearts of those who seek Yahweh rejoice. Turn to Yahweh, to God’s strength, and seek God’s presence constantly. Remember the marvels God has done, the miracles performed and the judgments pronounced, O offspring of God’s servant Israel, children of Leah, Rachel, and Jacob, God’s chosen.
A quick show of hands? How many of you like me feel like this morning’s scripture with all its names and ancient rituals doesn’t completely connect with you? Maybe the rest of you heard more in it than I did initially. When I first read it, I thought, “Burnt-offerings, not something I do.” “Levites, don’t see those guys around any more?” “The ark of Yahweh—pretty important at one time but it no longer exists unless you believe in Indiana Jones.” But then I thought about Asaph, and well even though Asaph is no longer with us, I began to think about who might be our Asaph today, and all of the sudden I had a burst of inspiration and before I knew it, I was writing my own translation of 1 Chronicles 16, so let me try the reading once again. Beginning with verse two:
When the church had finished their worship service, they gathered for a potluck. Every member of the church—man, woman, and child alike—each received bread, a meat or vegetarian dish, and a piece of pie full of apples and raisins. In the church, people took on different roles and responsibilities. Some were called to serve as ministers of music. They sang to invoke God, to thank God, to praise God. Their leader was Asaph—no, no, re-write that—Their leader was Virginia, and Virginia was assisted by Zechariah, no I mean Christopher, the organist, and a lengthy list of musicians and singers who you will find in the insert. Continuing with verse six: Virginia was to direct the singing of the choir so that there might be wondrous music for the church each week. From that first day 20 years ago when Virginia was called by God through the church to lead the music program, the choir began to sing the most melodious of harmonies. They sang to give thanks to God, to call on God’s name, to proclaim God’s deeds among the peoples. They sang to God with praises and told of God’s wonderful works. There was a deep feeling of the sacred in the church. Those who came to seek God found their hearts rejoicing. In the church, they turned to God, to God’s strength, and sought God’s presence continually. Together in song they remembered the marvels God had done, the miracles performed, and the justice invoked. Together, they remembered the long line of God’s servants in whose footsteps they followed. For all this, they had one person to thank: the incomparable Virginia for she had given 20 years of outstanding service to the church. There ends our new and revised scripture reading for this morning.
Now, how many of you feel like you can connect with this modernized translation of 1 Chronicles? Good, good, but I am not finished yet. (Virginia, be prepared to blush for the next 15 minutes). With this new translation in hand, I wanted to learn more about how someone like Asaph or rather Virginia is able to achieve so much and receive so much acclaim and admiration. In order to get to the bottom of this, I knew I had to do some investigating, and so I contacted as many choir members as I could by email or by phone, and I asked them one simple question: what makes Virginia an outstanding music director? Into my inbox poured emails and letters extolling the many virtues of Virginia. One email began, “What makes Virginia an outstanding [music] director? As the poet said, “How can I count the ways…” With all the data I was given, I then thought about what insights would be most important to share with you this morning. As I reflected, it occurred to me that on the one hand, great music directors like Virginia typically have talents and abilities that the rest of us will never have. They have a vast array of knowledge about musical skill and technique. They have a good ear for pitch and knowing what adjustments to make. With attention to nuance, they know how to interpret a song in its singing. Furthermore, they are often excellent musicians and singers in their own right. All of these qualities the rest of us in the pews can appreciate but likely never possess ourselves. Yet, on the other hand, there are qualities that great music directors possess that almost all of us would do well to emulate in our own lives, even if in very different venues.
Perhaps, the most important skill that an outstanding music director possesses is the ability to make others shine. For this reason, an outstanding music director is a model of service and humility for each one of us. Thanks to our choir members I have accumulated a helpful list of tips for helping to make others shine. I will call them the seven habits of highly successful servant-leaders:
1) Encourage others. Send them thank you notes. Give them praise, even if they are not always “perfect angels” and occasionally even give “rations of static,” as one choir member with a bit of reputation confesses.
2) Balance challenge and discipline with fun. Continually strive for growth and improvement but don’t always be so serious. I didn’t know until I read one of the emails that Virginia often begins choir practice with a couple of jokes to loosen them up. Yet, I am told Virginia still knows how to get her imperfect angels back into line. One member comments that while the choir can sometimes behave “worse than kindergarteners,” Virginia seems to have “eyes in the back of her head” when it comes to catching those who should be listening instead of talking. From the emails I received, I sometimes felt like I learned almost as much about the choir as I did Virginia.
3) Be generous and giving. Occasionally you may even want to bribe people into extra practice with desserts, as does Virginia. I think I need to join the choir now.
4) Dedicate time and energy to helping others improve. Some of us might wonder if Virginia is almost too dedicated with the many hours she sets aside to help soloists, small groups, and sections outside of choir practice, often at her own home. More than one choir member additionally commented on how Virginia will make tape recordings to help individuals learn their parts. As a result of all her hard work, one member avers that Virginia is the most dedicated person she knows, while yet another says, “I have never seen a choir director who puts so much into planning, rehearsing, and performing.”
5) Have a passion for what you do. One choir member notes that Virginia “has a passion for her work that inspires” the entire choir. She has a deep love of music and that love is contagious. In other words, one of the keys to Virginia’s success is that she has followed her calling and when someone does that all of us benefit.
6) Coach others in a positive, patient, and gentle manner. Be sensitive to what others are experiencing and seek ways to enhance their experience. In keeping with this, one choir member notes that Virginia is skilled at instructing with “great tact and diplomacy so as to not hurt anyone’s feelings.” Another adds that Virginia “relates to us in a way that draws our respect and our affection.” The results of such coaching can be seen in both the performance of individuals and the performance of the choir as a whole. Regarding individual performance, one member observes that under Virginia’s tutelage “several reluctant soloists have really blossomed.” Regarding the choir as a whole, one member marvels at how Virginia “brings out the best in us.” Yet another member is astounded by how Virginia takes “a ragtag collection of amateurs” and consistently guides them in producing wonderful “musical contributions” Sunday after Sunday. In a similar vein, still another choir member praises Virginia for taking a group of largely untrained singers and continually inspiring them “to learn, to grow, to dig deep within [themselves] and to turn [their] bodies into musical instruments, all to the glory of God.”
7) If one were to sum up all of these habits mentioned thus far into one overarching key habit for being a successful servant-leader, one would say that such a leader must live with a spirit of love. As one member says, “Virginia is a wonderful musician and a great teacher but I think her greatest asset is that she just loves people and her choir in particular. She will do anything for her church and its members.”
It is ultimately this self-giving, underlying love for others that runs throughout Virginia’s ministry and allows others to shine or in the words of one choir member, “[Virginia] makes us better than we really are.” It’s Virginia’s love of people and love of music that causes one member to “sit in I-5 traffic for an hour or more every Wednesday” in order to come to practice. It’s Virginia’s love that leads a number of choir members to say that Virginia can count on them for limitless love and affection in return. It’s Virginia’s love that causes a choir member to declare that her saintly nature and pure genius as a music director have earned her the title Saint Virgenius. It’s Virginia’s love that leads another choir member to say that Virginia is “our Musical Blessing” while still another declares that Virginia is “a true gift from God.”
This morning to celebrate this gift from God and her 20 years of service to this church Cory has baked a special cake for Virginia along with a batch of delicious cupcakes for coffee hour. Moreover, the choir has some roses for Virginia. Virginia I am also giving you a copy of the reflections choir members sent to me about what makes you such an outstanding music director. And, now, in celebration of Saint Virgenius, let’s all give her a standing ovation!