FRONT OF HOUSE
BEYOND THE SCREENS | Kent Morris
Photo by Phil Hearing on Unsplash
Running FOH / MON every week in a worship setting requires focus and determination. Sunday mornings are always early events with only glorious levels of caffeine easing the transition from groggy to functional. Most church techs arrive in the dark, turn on all the gear, troubleshoot that one product with a penchant for problems, prep the wireless, adjust the cameras, run the extra lines needed for the“ special” and generally operate in isolation. Once the other techs filter in and the train leaves the station, things start humming along; that is, until the band shows up. Then cables are rerouted, extra ear monitors are dialed in, and before long the vocals wander in, replete with expensive coffee in hand and vague bags of things in tow, none of which apply directly to worship. All the settings from last week somehow no longer suffice and so, mixes are adjusted, mic elements are swapped out, and general mayhem ensues until rehearsal starts with the click pounding out its undying cadence and the guide uttering its commands. Things are now good.
But is this sequence of events the purpose of our role or is there something more in play? Being defined as the“ doer” is easy for techs. We embrace the engineering solidity of knowing what is expected and executing at a high level. More difficult to digest is the prospect we are here for more than the screens. Church tech seminars extol the virtues of connectedness and community but fail to consider most techs aren’ t wired for social interaction on the scale of worship leaders and vocalists. Content to wear black and not only stay in the shadows, but to be the shadow, techs are better served encouraged to connect with one another inside the tech bubble where trust is earned every service.
Back in the 1990s, Paul Hendrix and I started the Atlanta Audio Fellowship( AAF). He was member # 1 and I was member # 2. His idea was to bring together techs on a Monday night when nothing was happening at church and provide a safety valve setting where pressure is released in a closed environment without allowing things to devolve into a gripe session. Vendors brought in cool new gear and the host church gave a tour of their facilities. It was the perfect way to connect since it was not billed as a therapy session, but that was its purpose. Spirituality among techs varies greatly and AAF was the catalyst to improving the baseline and bringing techs back from the edge of burnout and quitting. Today, Atlanta Church Creatives, under the leadership of El Maryland, carries on this tradition of techs helping techs and El does so at a level unattainable to AAF.
Today, our tech team at First Baptist Atlanta is tight, fully connected, and focused on delivering the best AVL experience for the creative team, senior leadership, in-person attendees, and our online audience. Under the direction of Rusty Galloway, the team has gelled as never before in my 27 years of working with the church. Rusty understands the value of the person at each position. He strives to provide everything from good food, handy snacks, clear instruction, and post-problem debrief to the entire team. As mates with most tech mentalities, there are generous portions of ribbing, joshing, and lighthearted bantering among the crew, but they are met with equal measures of prayerful concern, genuine support, and Biblical encouragement. The team works and delivers world-class tech from a pure heart. Everyone on the team wants to be there, which is vital when the call time is 5:30AM.
For anyone on a tech team looking to pull back, I encourage you to reconsider. The calling is real, and the need is great. The difference between staying and going lies in your mental approach, sense of purpose, and spiritual value. If the team isn’ t meeting these goals, be the catalyst who raises the bar, sets the expectation, and connects the team.
Kent Morris Kent Morris is a 45-year veteran of the AVL arena driven by passion for excellence tempered by the knowledge all technology is in a temporal state.
114 May 2025 Subscribe for Free...