Austin Stone Morning Service (Part 1)

Oof, I don’t know who designed the Austin highway system with all of its bewildering service roads and access ramps, but this place is a nightmare to navigate for an outsider.  I got lost on my way to Austin Stone’s St. John campus this morning, and then I was almost late to Hill Country after getting lost yet again.  I think there’s some kind of GPS-jamming signal here or something; this is just kind of absurd.  It was only by sheer luck that I managed to notice a policeman directing traffic and found my way to the Hill Country parking lot, but I’m getting a little ahead of myself.  This is the first time that I’ve sandwiched my worship services like this, so I’m not exactly sure how that’s going to affect my writing/posting, not to mention the unusual spiritual impact that this worship parfait had on me personally.

Austin Stone (St. John) – Hill Country (main campus) – Austin Stone (main campus)

It certainly made for an interesting and eventful day with quite a bit of variety, so maybe I’ll just start at the beginning.  Let the gushing over Austin Stone commence . . .

Instantly at Home

Stephen had driven me by the For the City building where Austin Stone’s St. John campus meets, but I still managed to get lost on my way there this morning.  Don’t ask me how.  Perhaps my GPS is just getting jealous of the amount of time I’m spending with my other electronic devices.  Oh well.  I rolled into the parking lot at about 8:50, so I figured I was cutting it close, especially since I normally like to give myself a good solid thirty minutes to look around a church and talk to people before worship.  I had parked in the rear of the building, meaning that I walked past the outside of the worship center on my way to the main entrance, and I could hear the bass and drums pumping from within as the band fine-tuned a few songs for the upcoming service.  I was surprised to find myself a little unfazed by this normally-exhilarating noise; I was neither excited nor concerned.  Stephen had told me that Austin Stone makes a point of providing earplugs at their services to help people with the volume, but this service never seemed especially loud to me.  Of course, as a bass player who used to stand right next to the drummer on a regular basis, I have a much higher standard for loudness than the average worshiper, so my assessment of decibels really can’t be trusted.

I entered the foyer to find the sanctuary doors closed with a sign in front of them informing me that the room was not yet open for seating (probably since the band was still preparing inside).  The foyer had a couple of coffee pots and several couches and high tables so that people could relax and talk to one another as we waited for the service to begin.  (Oh, a quick note of correction about some of my previous posts.  I recently realized that I’ve been using the term “church member” to describe people attending worship at a lot of these churches, but the concept of “church membership” isn’t a universal one and means different things to different denominations, so I’m going to try to steer away from that nomenclature from here on out.  I may slip up from time to time, but I’m making an effort.)  I milled around a bit and just sort of observed the place and the people there, all of whom seemed very friendly, perhaps lending support to my theory that an early morning crowd is usually a more dedicated crowd and will typically be friendlier.  I noticed a rack with promotional material by the welcome desk, so I went over to check it out.  It was nothing that you couldn’t find just as easily on the website, but thankfully, a greeter not much older than myself noticed me and asked if it was my first time at Austin Stone.

The greeter’s name was Joey, and he was a young attorney in the area who had been involved with both Hill Country Bible Church and Austin Stone.  In other words: Joey knew exactly what I would be experiencing on this full day of worship.  Joey was glad to hear that I would also be visiting the other Austin Stone campus at Austin High School, and he seemed impressed when I recounted my travels thus far.  Of course, there were a few experiences that I decided to leave off the list since they would’ve taken too much time to explain (Westboro, Ted Haggard, The Haight, etc.), but the other stuff has been plenty interesting, so we didn’t lack for conversation.  Joey did two things that really impressed me: he asked for the address to the blog, and he asked if I needed a place to stay.  He took an interest in what I had to say, and he took an interest in my wellbeing-- those two things should probably be recorded somewhere as the golden rules of Christian hospitality, and every member of every church needs to show this attention to the people who walk through their doors.  In addition to being hospitable, Joey and his wife Stephanie (who had come over to join the conversation) were also great sources of information about the church.  Of course, since I had really read up on the church this time around, the conversation was a lot more informative, and I was able to learn a lot of specifics I might not have otherwise.

I asked a lot about their building and its tenants.  While the nonprofits housed in the For the City Center --Capital Area Food Bank, Austin LifeGuard (which I actually have some issues with, but is that ever a post for another day), Caring Family Network, and Communities in Schools-- are not directly affiliated with the church, they are given a discount rate on the office space.  When Austin Stone purchased the facility (which had been an old abandoned retirement home before), they decided that they wanted their building to be a hub of local ministries, even if those ministries were not directly connected to the church.  I was impressed by that spirit of cooperation, not domination.  I’ve seen some churches get awfully picky about what nonprofits they interact with, and many churches just insist on doing their own thing entirely, so it was nice to see Austin Stone keeping such an open attitude toward area nonprofits and regarding them as partners in their ministry, not competitors.  Joey and Stephanie also told me that, when Austin Stone first purchased the building, it had been long abandoned and had become a favorite hangout spot for prostitutes and drug users.  Joey and Stephanie explained that, for several months, they participated in weekly teams that came out to the center to fix the place up, not just cleaning and repainting, but also removing old mattresses and used hypodermic needles.  Stephen had told me a few days before, “Austin doesn’t really have any truly bad neighborhoods-- well, not by Memphis standards at least.  There’s no place where I wouldn’t feel safe, but there are still plenty of places where you do need to be a bit careful.”  From the sound of it, this Austin Stone campus might be right in the middle of one such neighborhood-- sounds like a great place to headquarter a group of nonprofits.

By this point, Stephanie had gone on to another conversation to welcome a few new people to the church, and as Joey continued to answer my questions, I became wary of the time.  It was 9:05.  Why hadn’t the service started?  I asked Joey, and he explained, “The service actually doesn’t start until 9:15.”  Confused by this explanation, I countered, “But the website says 9:00.”  Joey shrugged, so I was left to draw my own conclusion: Perhaps the church website tells people an earlier time so that they will arrive by 9:15-- sort of like how my alma mater (Kenyon College) had an unwritten rule that any program or class actually began ten minutes after the listed time.  We called it “Kenyon Time,” and it sounds like “Austin Stone Time” might be just as real a phenomenon.  After all, as Joey informed me, the church has a thriving college ministry.  “In fact, our attendance plummets in the summer since half our church goes home for break.”  I glanced around the foyer.  It really was a young church, with almost everyone in the room being in their 20s or early 30s.  The entire time I was in that building, I think the only gray hairs I saw were on guest preacher Paul Tripp, and he was actually being broadcast in from the other campus, so I don’t think that should even count.  Of course, there were also a handful of fashionably shaved heads, so who knows how old a few of those guys were.

I mentioned to Joey that I was Baptist, and he told me that Austin Stone is Southern Baptist, “but we don’t really broadcast that, so a lot of people don’t even realize it.”  “Sort of like Mosaic?” I asked.  Joey looked stunned, “Wait, Mosaic is Baptist?”  “Yeah, Southern Baptist even.  It’s a well-kept secret.”  Shock seemed to have set in for Joey, and it was at about this point that I noticed the worship center doors had opened, so I decided to leave Joey with his revelation.  I thanked him for the highly informative conversation, gave him the requested blog address, and headed in to find a seat.  He was definitely one of the friendlier greeters I’ve encountered so far this summer, and I’m not just saying that because he has the address of my blog and can read any nasty thing I write about him.

I walked through the wooden double doors, and-- oh thank heaven; it’s another big box.  Yes, I’ve finally come to terms with it: I love big box contemporary.  Maybe it’s my inner Puritan rejoicing at a totally plain, utilitarian worship space, or maybe it’s my inner musician excited by a group of well-rehearsed worshiper-performers, or maybe it’s my inner thespian overjoyed with speakers and readers who never stutter or trip over a word, or maybe I’m just a closet hipster who feels at home in trendy environments.  Whatever it is, I like it.  The worship center floor was a weathered concrete slab with drains in the center of the room.  The walls were totally bare except for a few acoustical tiles here and there.  There were garage doors at the back of the sanctuary, exposed rafters and pipes along the ceiling, and perfectly visible illuminated exit signs over the doors on the far wall.  We sat in black plastic folding chairs.  The stage was black and draped in black curtains.  There was a single screen at the back of the stage that advertised various church activities.  Even the lighting (which is normally the token flourish in these churches) was simple and bare-bones here at Austin Stone.  I issued a contented sigh that was still audible over the standard contemporary music that was being piped in.  Oh sweet big box, envelop me in your cold, black, industrial embrace.  Soothe me with your dancy tom-heavy drum beats and your effects-laden electric guitar riffs.  Bring on the seamless transitions, 30-minute sermons, and lifted hands.  I like it.  Again, I couldn’t do big box contemporary every Sunday, and I’m sure I’d get sick of it after long enough.  Ideally, I like a blend of some kind, but if I had to go one way or the other, I will fess up to finding big box contemporary more relaxing and comforting than small-church traditional, so here we go again.

I will say that I found it a little funny that the worship center sought very much for that converted warehouse vibe since this room was actually the newest construction in the building.  The existing retirement home wings had been adapted and refurbished to serve as office space for the nonprofits, but this sanctuary was an entirely new construction that had been added onto the existing structure, yet it was intentionally built to look like they had just recently gutted and repurposed the place.  Having now taken a seat about halfway back on the right side, I was still trying to figure out exactly how I felt about the building when I got distracted by the announcements on the screen:

Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit- August 11-12

Connect to The City (“The City” is Austin Stone’s online platform to keep people updated on mission opportunities in the area.)

Get Trained Summer Movie Series- a viewing and discussion of “Captain America”- Alamo Draft House, July 22nd at 6:30PM- $8.  (It turns out that Alamo Draft House is really just a movie theater.  Based on the name, I had kind of assumed it was a bar, and since I know that churches’ meeting in bars is sort of a hot button issue for the SBC at the moment, I was excited to see Austin Stone defying convention so flagrantly.  Again, it turns out that Alamo Draft House is just a movie theater, but still, good for the church for encouraging religion-in-film dialogue, even if it’s not the authority-spiting blow I thought it was at first.)

Like the song you heard last week but can’t remember the name?  Check out the “Sunday Set List” on The City.  (Okay, that’s just awesome, and it makes my job so much easier!)

There were also slides about the children’s program and its need for volunteers, a promo for For the City, a way to get updates on the church via text, and a camp called “Switch” that I would learn more about later.  The lights dimmed, and Area Minister Jon Dansby came on stage attired in a polo shirt and jeans and delivered an enthusiastic welcome.  “Paul Tripp will be speaking to us, so we’re grateful to have both him and his mustache with us today . . . well, not actually here, but down at the high school.  You’ll be seeing him though.”  We were encouraged to turn and greet our neighbors, and then it was time for worship.

Worship

The band came onto the stage and started playing.  It was a music setup pretty similar to . . . well, the standard big box contemporary.  Caution- music equipment jargon ahead.  There were two electric guitarists, both of them with a bevy of effects pedals laid out in front of them to give their instruments a wide range of tones beyond the simple sound of a plastic pick against steel strings.  There was a drummer who was using the snare mostly just for the occasional accent and relying much more on the toms for keeping the rhythm, creating a deeper and more resonating beat behind the music, rather than the higher pitched percussive snare sound (which was substituted with heavy use of ride cymbals).  I find the contrast between these two instruments more and more striking with each service; while the drums function as a sort of grounded and human earthly prophet (something almost tribal), the guitar balances it with that ethereal heavenly choir effect.  The interplay between the two seems to unite the earthly and heavenly like the beams of a cross-- it’s really pretty cool when you think about it like that.  There was also a bassist in the background, communicating very closely with the drummer as the two of them bobbed in place together and threw smiles and cues each other’s way throughout the songs.

The singing was the responsibility of two individuals.  There was Jimmy McNeal, a black bari-tenor who was a bit heavier set (or maybe he just seemed that way by contrast to the predominantly skinny congregation), and there was also a white female singer attired very much in traditional hipster garb (scarf, leggings, etc.).  I’m not completely sure, but I think she was actually there through a music residency program of some kind.  She raised her hands often throughout the service.  As people continued to enter and greet one another, Jimmy led us in singing,

Lost are saved, find their way, at the sound of Your great name

All condemned feel no shame at the sound of Your great name

Every fear has no place at the sound of Your great name

The enemy, he has to leave, at the sound of Your great name

Jesus, worthy is the Lamb that was

Slain for us, Son of God and Man,

You are high and lifted up, and all the world will praise

Your great name

It was a song that I had heard several times before, and I was impressed with the singers’ ability to sing with the congregation.  The female singer had an excellent voice, but what really impressed me was the deep reverence with which Jimmy sang, and he frequently glanced up to a specific rafter somewhere above my head as if God’s throne were located in that exact spot.  While it’s easy to look up to the ceiling in a self-glorifying manner, there was a certain humility about how Jimmy went about it that I found really moving.  Even more impressive, at one point, Jimmy dropped out for a bit, and I realized that the whole congregation was singing.  This wasn’t solely a performance; it was communal worship.  There was clapping at the end of the song, and Jimmy got a little choked up as he delivered a prayer, behind which the music continued to play.  I typically get pretty skeptical when I hear pastors or worship leaders getting choked up or bravely fighting back tears in a prayer like that, but I decided to give Jimmy the benefit of the doubt since he just had such an impressive voice and presence.  Jimmy then led us in a new song:

Men will try to rule the world You made

But we know power is Yours alone to give and take

A day will come when every knee will bow

And every tongue confess that You are Lord both now and forever

Day after day, our God is reigning

He’s never shaken, my hope is in the Lord

Time after time, our God is faithful

Trustworthy Savior, my hope is in the Lord

I looked around the room and noticed that the attire was fairly typical: polo shirts, casual button-ups, a few t-shirts here and there and pretty much everyone in jeans with the occasional sundress floating around in the mix.  The service definitely had that same sort of transcendent vibe that so many of the big box worship services have had, and there were quite a few people raising their hands and getting into it.  I even found myself bobbing around and tapping my foot a lot, which was slightly disruptive to my note-taking, but I make a point of allowing myself to worship in these spaces.  Jimmy’s voice was really facilitating that feeling of worship in me; the guy has a gift.  One of the guitarists kicked on some of his effects pedals as the band entered an instrumental breakdown that transitioned them into their next song.  Oof, it was a Hillsong tune, but at least this one had its moments of profundity.  Stephen would later inform me that a lot of thought and theological reflection goes into the Austin Stone music selection, and today was no exception.

I see the King of Glory coming on the clouds with fire

The whole earth shakes, the whole earth shakes

I see His love and mercy washing over all our sin

The people sing, the people sing

Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest

I see a generation rising up to take their place

With selfless faith, with selfless faith

I see a near revival stirring as we pray and seek

We’re on our knees, we’re on our knees

Heal my heart and make it clean

Open up my eyes to the things unseen

Show me how to love like you have loved me

Break my heart for what breaks Yours

Everything I am for Your Kingdoms cause

As I go from nothing to eternity

I liked the emphasis on calling a whole generation to revival, even if it might have been catering a bit to the specific age range at Austin Stone.  Also, that line about “Break my heart for what breaks Yours” really struck a chord with me-- had a great missional flair to it.  There was clapping and an “amen,” and then the guitarist brought us into the next song with a choppy eighth note pattern that was then supplemented by the standard ethereal second guitar and heavy drums.

We will keep our eyes on You

A mighty fortress is our God

A sacred refuge is Your name

Your Kingdom is unshakeable

With You forever we will reign

Our God is jealous for His own

None could comprehend His love and His mercy

Our God is exalted on His throne

High above the heavens forever He’s worthy

At first I wondered if this was some new take on “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” but I never heard the line about “a bulwark never failing,” so I guess not.  I have to admit that I was a little disappointed by that since I really enjoy old hymn lyrics, but oh well.  During an instrumental interlude in the middle of the song, a number of Scripture references popped up on the screen:

The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. (Psalm 46:7)

You are indeed my rock and my fortress; for your name’s sake lead me and guide me. (Psalm 31:3)

He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. (Psalm 62:6)

It’s always great to see Scripture being incorporated into worship, even if it’s just little snippets to show where a song draws its language.  We repeated the “With you forever we will reign” refrain a few more times before Jon returned to the front of the room to deliver another prayer as the guitar continued to play in the background.  Jon talked about the strength in God and how all else is weakness, and as he did, a screen lowered behind him, and when the congregation opened their eyes, it appeared as though a new figure had walked up on stage.