Some congregations have a lot of singers and they form a choir. Some have several folks who play guitar and they form a praise band. Some even have enough instrumentalists to make an orchestra. Here at Lord of Life, we have a lot of drummers. They’re everywhere. We have drummers who are kids of all ages and drummers who are adults. I played in the percussion pit for marching band in high school, and Pastor Lowell would rather use his vacation time to go drum with his band, Echelon, than go sit on the beach somewhere. After a few years of working with all these talented drum beaters, we finally decided to get some of them in the same room to drum together.
For the past few weeks, we’ve been rehearsing a new Percussion Ensemble to lead worship once in a while. So far, we have six drummers and instruments ranging from small hand drums to vibraphones and big steel drum pans. As we’ve expanded into the world of percussion, several folks have talked about the therapeutic power of drumming and suggested that we host a healing drum circle.
I’ve always seen percussion as a means to an end – someone has to keep the beat, help build the energy, and be the animal filling in all the crazy grooves. While I’ve known several people who have been active members of drum circles, I’ve never experienced them closely enough to see their usefulness.
Until a couple weeks ago …
During a Percussion Ensemble rehearsal, we were grooving on a communion tune – “Come Let Us Eat for Now the Feast is Spread.” It repeats over and over again until we decide to finish it. As we continued to embellish it, I found the “thinking” part of my brain turn off and suddenly I was in this other place, feeling the rhythm instead of trying to get it right. It was like this narrow tunnel of the notes on the page opened up to a giant cavern of expression and feeling.
Bingo. That’s what a drum circle is for. The rhythm helps us meditate and pray, and it lifts us to another mental state. Research has shown a correlation between therapeutic rhythm and drumming with increased physical, mental, and spiritual health. World religions have used drumming for thousands of years as an integral part of their worship. It can reduce tension, anxiety, and stress. It releases endorphins to help control chronic pain. It uses the entire brain and produces deeper self-awareness.
This Sunday, our new Percussion Ensemble will lead worship at 9:30 and 11 am. You’ll know several of the tunes, and there will be a couple new ones, too.
Then at 6:30 pm, everyone is invited to bring a drum or borrow one of ours to experience what I’ll loosely call a Lutheran-style drum circle. Think of it as a healing vespers service with drumming instead of singing. For about an hour, we’ll drum together, pray together, hear words from scripture, and hopefully find our center as we begin our new week.
I hope to see you there!
Rhythmically yours,
John Johns