Inspiration

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Six Things I Wish I'd Known When I Started in Ministry

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Six Things I Wish I'd Known When I Started in Ministry

Hindsight is 20/20, right?

If we knew then what we know now, we probably would have done things differently, handled that situation another way, said “yes” instead of “no” (or vice versa).

But the thing about life is we can only live going forward. We can’t go back and edit our choices later on, though hopefully, we take the time to reflect and learn from our experiences as we go along.

I’ve been doing that lately with ministry. What have I learned over the years? How have I grown and changed? What would I tell my younger self? We all have different answers to those questions, but they’re important to think about and perhaps even voice from time to time. This is how we learn. This is how we grow.

In the spirit of all that, here are six things I wish I’d known when I first started in music ministry:

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An Inside Look at My Creative Process

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An Inside Look at My Creative Process

Creativity is one of those elusive things that’s hard to wrap your mind around sometimes. What is it? Does everyone have it? Can it be developed?

One of the big things I’ve learned about creativity over the past few years is that, more than anything else, creativity is a way of thinking. It’s a way of looking at the world, interacting with it, challenging it; studying things, testing things, and a relentless desire to explore new territory.

Some people naturally tend to think this way, but that doesn’t mean creativity is limited to certain individuals. Creative thinking is a strategy; it’s a skill that can be developed.

Let’s delve into theory for just a minute:

Creative thinking (in any context) has four main components: Flexibility, Fluency, Originality, and Elaboration (source).

2017 Book List

2017 Book List

One of my favorite things about this time of year is reading everyone's book lists. I love seeing what other people are reading, hearing about new releases, and connecting with others over shared interests.

Over the past few years, I've built a little time for reading into my daily routine (usually in the evening as we wind down from the day).

As I've shared before, I like to have variety in what I read, so I tend to choose books that cover all of these categories:

Health/Lifestyle
Spiritual
Pleasure/Personal
Business

Here are the books I plan to read (or re-read) this year:

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Eight Festive Advent Calendars

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Eight Festive Advent Calendars

Advent is just a few short weeks away (it begins the Sunday after Thanksgiving this year). It's a season of hope, patience, expectation, waiting. The people were walking in darkness. They knew the Light would come one day, but they didn't know when. Instead, they walked in faith, believing that redemption was near.

Every year, we remember (in some small way) the waiting - the walking-by-faith part of the story. This is why I love Advent calendars - a tangible way to count the days, to journey through Advent with a spirit of hope and expectation.

When I was growing up, we had a large felt Advent calendar shaped like a tree with a small ornament for each day. We also had an array of paper calendars with doors to open and Scripture verses to read (some even had chocolate inside!). For the past few years, SD and I have displayed this lovely Scripture card Advent calendar by Oh My Deer (included in the list below).

In the Face of Violence

In the Face of Violence

I had another post scheduled for today, but given the tragic events of yesterday, it just didn't seem appropriate. It's easy to stand by quietly, to be sad in our hearts but keep our thoughts to ourselves. But in the face of violence, we need to be bold. We need to stand up. We need to say something. --

Another day. Another mass shooting. More fear. More hatred. More confusion.

Can I be honest with you? My first reaction to the tragedy yesterday was polite sympathy - sadness for all who are hurting, but only from a distance. When did that become okay? When did acts of violence become so commonplace that we stopped feeling their weight? When did the shock and daze and heartsickness wear off?

I'm tired of mass shootings becoming one-day news cycles. I'm tired of feeling helpless and numb and indifferent. 

I'm afraid that violence is becoming more and more the norm. That tomorrow we'll go back to our normal lives, eating our normal breakfast, reading normal headlines about the election and the Tony Awards, thinking about our normal (crazy) week ahead. I'm afraid that hate is growing stronger. That the world is growing numb to it

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This Is My Story, This Is My Song

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This Is My Story, This Is My Song

A few weeks ago, the youth led worship. They planned skits and a children's message, wrote prayers, made T-shirts, wrote testimonials, and chose music. They poured their hearts into this service. And it showed.

The overall theme was packing for a long journey - carrying extra baggage through life and trying to do it all on their own until Jesus revealed himself to them and offered to carry their burdens. But instead of playing fictional characters, the youth assumed their own identities - they were themselves and the baggage they carried were real things they struggle with in their own lives.

One high schooler shared her struggle with depression and anxiety.

Another about grief and loss.

One talked about turning her back on God, the way He sought her, and the joy she's found in returning to Him.

A 6th grader spoke about taking a stand and choosing to believe in God even when her friends and teachers try to tell her He doesn't exist. 

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Getting Perspective 30,000 Feet In the Air

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Getting Perspective 30,000 Feet In the Air

Sometimes, I need a little perspective. Because when I'm immersed in the details of planning, creating, teaching, and making music, it's easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. And sometimes, it takes getting to 30,000 feet above the earth to get the perspective I crave.

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A few weeks ago, SD and I flew south to sunny FL. He had a composition residency (rehearsals, presentation, and two premieres), I had a visit with church music friends (choir rehearsal, duet practice, and three services). 

We packed our bathing suits, new books, and clothes we haven't worn since last summer, and left our new home nestled in two feet of fluffy white snow.

The airport was quiet as we navigated to our gate, sandwiches from Au Bon Pain in hand. We nestled into our seats and I looked out the window (because SD always lets me have the window seat) at the grey morning sky.

2016 Book List

2016 Book List

Over the past few years, and particularly in the last few months, I’ve really come to love reading. One of my goals for December was to make time for reading every day - I’m proud to say I made that happen! It’s a habit I plan to continue in the New Year.

Reading has become something I look forward during the day - a time to be quiet, rest, and be re-filled. I enjoy reading books that inspire and encourage me to live a life of faith, books that challenge me and make me think, books that teach me something new about managing money, running a business, or being creative. 

I try to balance my reading list by choosing books that fall into these five categories:

Business
Relationships
Health/Lifestyle
Personal/Intellectual
Spiritual

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These Wonderful Things

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These Wonderful Things

Newspaper for gift-wrapping.
Charlie Brown stamps.
Extra rehearsals.
(Endless) to-do lists.
Christmas concerts.
Amazon packages.
Bulletin drafts.
Doxology Press orders.
Shipping deadlines.
Various versions of Jingle Bells in lessons every week.

These are the things our December days are made of (especially if you're a musician!). As much as we long for a slower pace at this time of the year, the truth is this is one of the busiest seasons of all.

25 Random Acts of (Musical) Kindness

25 Random Acts of (Musical) Kindness

We see lots of posts this time of year with ideas for random acts of kindness:

"Smile at someone on the street"
"Say thank you to our service men and women"
"Tape change to a vending machine"
"Pay for the person behind you in the drive-through" 

Treating each other with kindness and being intentional about the ways we serve others is important all year round, but the holidays are a good excuse to do a little something extra.

As musicians, we have the opportunity to treat people with kindness and spread a little holiday cheer by sharing the gift of music. After all, as Buddy the Elf says, "The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear!"

Today, I'm sharing 25 ideas for random acts of (musical) kindness. Some are easy enough to do on your own, others would work well with the help of a few friends, and others would be perfect group projects for your choir or studio!

Follow along with my creative work and daily adventures: @ashleydanyew

Halloween 2024… …The Lion King 🦁 Swipe to see the outtakes, including lion-wrangling and the 20th photo we took before we realized Rafiki had his mask on upside-down. 😂
The October Musician & Co. Book Club pick is… 📘 Hidden Genius: The Secret Ways of Thinking That Power the World’s Most Successful People This book is a collection of stories, insights, and lessons learned from top performers, entr
Meet Jessie Ning - pianist, graphic designer, and founder of @opushaus, a lifestyle brand for musicians. A former Creative Director at TikTok, Jessie combines her extensive background in graphic design and scenic design with her musical talents. I