"What'd ya get for Christmas?"
That's probably the most asked question on Christmas Day and Boxing Day. When you're put on the spot like that, you can never really remember everything you got. So, don't ask, just read:
Sony Handycam
The Dark Knight DVD
WALL-E DVD
Snakes on a Plane DVD (this was a joke gift because I have a fear of snakes. It was wrapped nicely with fake ribber rattlesnakes that Noah has been happily chewing on)
NHL2K9 for Wii
Guitar Hero: World Tour for Wii
Socks
PJ bottoms
Cash for clothes (I love Dec. 27th @ the mall)
Greco Certificate
Boston Pizza Gift Certificate
Empire Theater passes
Blockbuster gift cards
"Muffler" Scarf
Calgary Flames fleece sweater
candy
Who I am
- JamCam
- Moncton, NB, Canada
- Christ-follower. Husband. Dad. Worship Leader. Pastor. Musician.
Friday, December 26, 2008
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
A Swift Kick in the Pants...
I had a very interesting weekend.
My friend's Eric and Brad and I were going to Halifax for the weekend to play with singer/song-writer, Matt Brouwer. Matt (an old JSB friend and Truro, NS native) is home for the holidays (by way of Houston, TX) and will be playing some shows in Atlantic Canada during his stay. Brad, Eric, and I were his musicians for the weekend; a 3-service concert-series (Sat. @ 6:30pm, and Sun. @ 9am & 11am) at Stoneridge Community Church in Lower Sackville, NS (whose vibrancy, kindness, and passion deserve a blog of its own). Anywho…
Minutes before the three of us were leaving Moncton for Halifax, I got a frantic call from Matt's manager informing me that Matt was stuck in New Jersey (where he had played the night before) at the airport because all flights were cancelled to the big storm they had. In a last-minute decision, Matt decided to rent a car and drive 15 hours from New Jersey to Halifax to be able to make the 9:00am service. This, of course, meant he would not be able to make Saturday evening's service. Matt's manager asked me if I could put something together to fill Matt's empty slot as the church had no back-up plan for Matt's absence. Matt’s manager seemed no longer frantic, but certainly it passed onto me. So, I threw 10 or so powerpoint slides on a CD, we packed the cars with our gear, and hopped on the road. On the way down, I called our friend Tammy and asked if she was busy that night. Luckily, she was able to help us out and she came and played some acoustic & sang with me.
Although I got us lost in Sackville twice, forgot to bring cash for the Cobequit Toll, and drove in Nova Scotia while talking on my cell phone (which is illegal there) we finally made it to the church about 1.25 hours later than expected. Regardless, Carl & Brad (our sound/PPT techs for the weekend), welcomed us with open arms and made our setup/soundcheck experience very easy and thorough. After choosing a few songs and barely rehearsing them, we met briefly with the leadership staff before the service began and they were very appreciative and encouraging with our “hurried” situation. My nerves began to physically show as I started to worry whether everything would work out. We prayed and went on stage...
When we were introduced as not being Matt Brouwer, you could tell there was a little bit of disappointment in the room. Not because of who we were, but who we were not. Also, I think there were some friends of family of Matt’s in the audience who were hoping to see him. When I got up to the mic, I was sure to try and break the “unfamiliarity barrier” as soon as I could. Luckily, they didn’t hiss or boo.
Without getting into a lot of detail about how the service went, all I can say that God is gracious and compassionate. The congregation accepted us immediately and (without invitation) were standing, clapping, and singing aloud with us. They even clapped after a few songs which is seldom heard during a worship set. Just when I thought my humble offerings of worship would be meaningless and serve only to fill Matt’s absence, God used my/our abilities to lead a group of people into a place of honest worship. Maybe our musicianship & arrangements didn’t blow any minds, but He used our small group of 4 and whole-heartedly lead some people into a holy moment. I can’t thank God enough for teaching me a big lessons here.
Despite my frantic efforts to make something like that work and make it memorable, he made the simplicity and sincerity of it to bless me. While I’m sure he blessed others through it as well, it truly blessed me like I had never been blessed before. It also served as a swift kick in the pants for me to put a bit more trust in him than I did on my drive to Halifax. I took my own abilities for granted and left little room for God to take care of the small stuff. But, when push came to shove, I believe God worked a tough situation into a holy moment for me (& the band).
My friend's Eric and Brad and I were going to Halifax for the weekend to play with singer/song-writer, Matt Brouwer. Matt (an old JSB friend and Truro, NS native) is home for the holidays (by way of Houston, TX) and will be playing some shows in Atlantic Canada during his stay. Brad, Eric, and I were his musicians for the weekend; a 3-service concert-series (Sat. @ 6:30pm, and Sun. @ 9am & 11am) at Stoneridge Community Church in Lower Sackville, NS (whose vibrancy, kindness, and passion deserve a blog of its own). Anywho…
Minutes before the three of us were leaving Moncton for Halifax, I got a frantic call from Matt's manager informing me that Matt was stuck in New Jersey (where he had played the night before) at the airport because all flights were cancelled to the big storm they had. In a last-minute decision, Matt decided to rent a car and drive 15 hours from New Jersey to Halifax to be able to make the 9:00am service. This, of course, meant he would not be able to make Saturday evening's service. Matt's manager asked me if I could put something together to fill Matt's empty slot as the church had no back-up plan for Matt's absence. Matt’s manager seemed no longer frantic, but certainly it passed onto me. So, I threw 10 or so powerpoint slides on a CD, we packed the cars with our gear, and hopped on the road. On the way down, I called our friend Tammy and asked if she was busy that night. Luckily, she was able to help us out and she came and played some acoustic & sang with me.
Although I got us lost in Sackville twice, forgot to bring cash for the Cobequit Toll, and drove in Nova Scotia while talking on my cell phone (which is illegal there) we finally made it to the church about 1.25 hours later than expected. Regardless, Carl & Brad (our sound/PPT techs for the weekend), welcomed us with open arms and made our setup/soundcheck experience very easy and thorough. After choosing a few songs and barely rehearsing them, we met briefly with the leadership staff before the service began and they were very appreciative and encouraging with our “hurried” situation. My nerves began to physically show as I started to worry whether everything would work out. We prayed and went on stage...
When we were introduced as not being Matt Brouwer, you could tell there was a little bit of disappointment in the room. Not because of who we were, but who we were not. Also, I think there were some friends of family of Matt’s in the audience who were hoping to see him. When I got up to the mic, I was sure to try and break the “unfamiliarity barrier” as soon as I could. Luckily, they didn’t hiss or boo.
Without getting into a lot of detail about how the service went, all I can say that God is gracious and compassionate. The congregation accepted us immediately and (without invitation) were standing, clapping, and singing aloud with us. They even clapped after a few songs which is seldom heard during a worship set. Just when I thought my humble offerings of worship would be meaningless and serve only to fill Matt’s absence, God used my/our abilities to lead a group of people into a place of honest worship. Maybe our musicianship & arrangements didn’t blow any minds, but He used our small group of 4 and whole-heartedly lead some people into a holy moment. I can’t thank God enough for teaching me a big lessons here.
Despite my frantic efforts to make something like that work and make it memorable, he made the simplicity and sincerity of it to bless me. While I’m sure he blessed others through it as well, it truly blessed me like I had never been blessed before. It also served as a swift kick in the pants for me to put a bit more trust in him than I did on my drive to Halifax. I took my own abilities for granted and left little room for God to take care of the small stuff. But, when push came to shove, I believe God worked a tough situation into a holy moment for me (& the band).
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Top 5's of 2008
New Year has never been anything particularly special to me in the past, but the one thing I consistently love each year is watching "Top-10" or "Best Of..." lists. Whether it's the best in the years' sports clip, plays, music, movies, or car accidents, I love to see how certain things are categorized. It's probably because I've got a knack for things that're organized and listed. So, as I do every year, here is my Top 5 albums, movies, and websites of the year. Enjoy.
“With Arrows, With Poise” by The Myriad – about half the songs from this album are on my iPod’s “Most Played” playlist. I saw them open for David Crowder in New York and they blew me away and stole the show (imo). Fantastic sound and some great grooves & textures.
“The Alchemy Index: Vol. I-IV (Fire, Water, Air, Earth)” by Thrice – this 4-volume manifesto explores music that reflects the four elements; fire, water, air, and earth. Each elements uniquely defines and shapes teh music. In Volume I (Fire), Thrice burn it up and show where they’ve come from with some heavy/loud/fiery songs while Volume II (Water) shows Thrice’s penchant for the digital & organic side of music. (“Digital Sea” may be one of my favorite songs in a long time). Vol. III (Air) takes you on a musical flight and takes your breath away with textured sound-scapes while Earth sees the band get down-to-earth with an acoustic and scaled-down audiophoria.
“New Surrender” by Anberlin – although Anberlin has become less hard-rock, lyrically and musically they’ve become much more defined and exploratory while keeping a lot of their post-punk/post-hardcore beginnings. This is a great follow-up to their previous album, “Cities”.
“Where the Light Is: Live in L.A.” by John Mayer – I’ve never been shy to promote my love for John’s music. Although I think he’s a bit full of himself in reality, this live show gives him a million reasons to be. He does 3 different sets in this concert (acoustic, blues trio, and full-band) and there’re gems in each one. John’s virtuoso tag takes off with plenty of solos & band jams, as well as some great renditions of his Grammy-award winning songs like Daughters (which, sounds fantastic with Robbie McIntosh’s slide/resonator guitar playing).
“Hello Love” by Chris Tomlin – there weren’t many fantastic worship albums that came out this year, but Tomlin’s Hello Love topped them all on my list. Yes, most songs are carbon copies of Tomlin’s previous church anthems, but there are a few songs on this album that really have hymn-like and traditional vibes to them. I feel Tomlin turned it up a bit on this album and it pays off.
On the bubble:
“The Bright Sadness” by Charlie Hall – not worshippy, but great writing, arranging, and producing
“Play: The Guitar Album” by Brad Paisley – I don’t like country enough to fully enjoy this album, but some of the best guitar work I’ve seen ina long time.
“Viva La Vida (Death and All His Friends)” by Coldplay – this might have made my Top 5 list if Coldplay hadn’t ripped off Joe Satriani’s song “If I could Fly” for their hit-single “Vida la Vida”. Satriani is now suing Coldplay for their stealing his art & creativity. Click here to read more about the lawsuit. Also, click here to hear the difference/similarities in the two songs.
Disappointed:
“Kingdom of Comfort” by Delirious – not their worst effort, but what’s most disappointing about this album was that it was their last record before officially disbanding.
“Death Magnetic” by Metallica – yes, it was an improvement from “t Anger”, but it’s obvious that ‘tallica tried far too hard to go back to their metal roots.
“Drastic Fantastic” by KT Tunstall – there’re some great songs on the album, but aren’t as strong as the songs from her folk-rock gem “Eye to the Telescope”
The Dark Knight – everybody and their dog loved this movie. Heath Ledger’s posthumous role aside, the directing, cinematography, and writing are all fantastic. It was a non-stop roller-coaster ride leaving you wanting more. The only down-side of this movie is Christian Bale’s “voice” as Batman; he sounds like he has throat cancer.
Iron Man – even as comic-geek when I was growing up, I’m surprised my top 2 movies of the year are both super-hero movies. Iron Man far exceeded my expectations and I liked this movie a lot. Lots of action, great story (with enough background and pre-text to dismiss any terrible prequels), and great casting.
Wall-E – when I went to the theater to see The Dark Knight for the third time, the only seats that were left were front row. I can’t watch a movie from the front-row, I don’t care how good it is. So, when we decided to go see something else, the Pixar-animated “Wall-E” was the only thing yet to play. Surprisingly, I absolutely loved it and thought Pixar’s take on global warming & materialism in a child’s animated feature was outstanding. This is a buyer for me and will go beside “The Incredibles” on my DVD shelf.
Cloverfield – I may get some flack from some, but since I was a faithful follower of all the Internet hoopla & build-up for this movie, so it made it all the more special for me. I loved Monster movies growing up, and this is a well-crafted take on a Godzilla movie taking place in NYC. The constantly-moving camera took some getting used to, but the large movie screen helped. I loved this movie and bought it the day it came out on DVD. Sure, the acting wasn’t fantastic, but the story and efx were great and it’s really entertaining.
Street Kings – ok, so this is a Keanu Reeves movie, but although it wasn’t a block-buster in the theaters, it made for a great rental and kept me really entertained. It wasn’t the caliber of Scorsese’s “The Departed”, but it was a great dirty-cop/internal affairs movie that kept you guessing.
On the Bubble:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – I haven’t seen this yet, but I imagine it’ll be great and garner some Oscar nods.
Step Brothers – because of it’s crass & tasteless jokes, constant innuendo, and dirty language, I couldn’t put myself up to putting this on my Top 5 list. But, it was freakin’ hilarious. Funnier than most recent Farrell movies, but the story was kinda weak. But funny.
Disappointed:
007: Quantum of Solace – this wasn’t a bad movie at all, but it was a bit disappointing since it didn’t live up to Casino Royale’s hype. It was a bit confusing, especially if you don’t recap Casino Royale before-hand. Less gadgets, less girls, and less cars makes James a dull boy.
www.stuffchristianslike.net - Jon is a fantastic wirter and blogger. He's got something interesting, funny, and spirtually fulfilling everyday.
www.hockeybuzz.com - the internet's best place for hockey rumors and stories
www.facebook.com - Facebook overpowers MySpace now. Although, I'm sure, Facebook will fizzle out in 2009, I will create the next best networking site: FaceSpace.
www.blogger.com - I raelly got into blogging this past year. Ienjoy reading them as much as I do writing them.
www.tsn.ca/nhl - I've become particularly enthralled with hockey these past two years. This is where I go for all my scores, news, and highlights.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Video of the Week: "Digital Sea" by Thrice
So, I skipped the "guitar solo of the week" and I'm exchanging it for the "music video of the week".
I like the song more-so than I do this particular video, but the concept is really cool and the song is, well.. fan-friggin'-tastic. Notice how some of the beats/instruments/programing correspond to items on the shelves like meters on a sound-board; teh lights react as well. Cool. The groove is fantastic and the "1's and 0's" ending is pretty rad. I saw a video of them doing it live and, even though they're considered a "post-hardcore" band that is usually pretty loud/heavy, this song (from the Volume ii: Water part of the THE ALCHEMY INDEX) was done with a Rhodes, a Nord Electro, and a harmonica mic running through some kind of small vocoder/keyboard (the the live drummer playing drums and controlling the drum triggers).
Thrice are one of my favorite bands and their last studio effort, "The Alchemy Index: Volumes i, ii, iii, & iv" is absolutely amazing.
I like the song more-so than I do this particular video, but the concept is really cool and the song is, well.. fan-friggin'-tastic. Notice how some of the beats/instruments/programing correspond to items on the shelves like meters on a sound-board; teh lights react as well. Cool. The groove is fantastic and the "1's and 0's" ending is pretty rad. I saw a video of them doing it live and, even though they're considered a "post-hardcore" band that is usually pretty loud/heavy, this song (from the Volume ii: Water part of the THE ALCHEMY INDEX) was done with a Rhodes, a Nord Electro, and a harmonica mic running through some kind of small vocoder/keyboard (the the live drummer playing drums and controlling the drum triggers).
Thrice are one of my favorite bands and their last studio effort, "The Alchemy Index: Volumes i, ii, iii, & iv" is absolutely amazing.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Trading comfort for human life; that's not just murder, it's suicide.
I called this blog "an inward audio" because I believe in this innate sound that we all have inside of us. I'm not necessarily talking about our "conscience" (although, I believe that's probably a part of it) but there's a sound that is found in us that only we can hear. It's universal to us yet sounds differently to each of us. Consequently, this inward audio has the same denouement for everyone; the same ending and means to an end. What makes it different to each of us is how often we listen to it, what it says/sings to us, and how much white noise masks the correct sound. I long to hear an inward audio that speaks/sings louder than all the other noise in my heart, soul, or whatever else is contained in your upper thorax.
There's a fella named Derek Webb who, for lack of better definition, is one of the most controversial Christian artists/writers ever. I also believe that alone propels him to the upper-echelon of Christian artists. You may know him as part of the folk-rock band Caedmon’s Call, but his solo work is what really defines him as being an exceptional writer. I believe Derek Webb has a unique sense of listening to that inward audio I speak of. While I'm sure, like many of us, he has to discern between the inward audio and the noise that surrounds it, but I believe Webb is one of the most disgustingly honest and potent writers out there. That's a good thing. In fact, that's a great thing.
He writes songs of all kinds, from comedic to truth that makes you cringe, but I find he particularly excels in writing songs of social commentary and social justice. On one hand, he pens great phrases like the ones seen here in the song “I Wanna Marry You All Over Again” which recounts the story of meeting and falling in love with his wife:
I wanna marry you all over again/I’ll meet your parents at the airport bar/I’ll take you out in my rental car/I wanna court you on the record label’s dime
I wanna buy you an old upright/I wanna accidentally stay all night/I wanna read the Bible and I wanna make out.
Then, just as quickly, he can move into something much more serious and thought-provoking like the disparaging (but poignant) remarks made in “Rich Young Ruler”:
Poverty/ is so hard to see/ when it’s only on your TV/ or 20 miles across town/Where we’re all living so good since we moved out of Jesus’ neighborhood/ where He’s hungry and not feeling so good from going through our trash
He says “More than just your cash and coin/I want your time, I want your voice/I want the things you just can’t give me”
So come on and follow me/Sell your house, sell your SUV/Sell your stocks, sell your security/ and give it to the poor
I was listening to Webb’s latest release called “The Ringing Bell” at work this morning. I honestly can’t say I’ve consciously made it through the whole album (that is, really pay attention to the lyrics), but there's a song called “This Too Shall Be Made Right” which talks a bit about the way we treat each other, ourselves, and the earth. I believe it also speaks a bit to the exclusion of things like oppression and poverty in Heaven. It’s a short song, but is totally worth a read (let alone a great, simple melody). Check it out here.
I really encourage you to take a listen to Derek Webb’s stuff. In fact you can download “The Ringing Bell” FREE @ noisetrade.com. It’s a site that Derek highly supports which distributes free digital downloads of music from independent artists. It’s an important site as it doesn’t necessarily promote the “anti-download” side of the spectrum, but encourages a way for seldom-heard artists to get their great music and important messages out to listeners... for free.
All this to say… Sometimes our inward audio isn’t always rainbows & butterflies. Our inward audio wants to direct us on a path that is righteous and holy… and brutally honest. Webb’s inward audio informs us that we, as Christians, aren’t doing a good enough job exemplifying the life of Christ in our actions. I know I’m not. Not just socially, but personally. There’re always changes that need to be made. Thus, there will always be “that sound” inside of us and listening is really just the beginning. What’s it saying to you?
There's a fella named Derek Webb who, for lack of better definition, is one of the most controversial Christian artists/writers ever. I also believe that alone propels him to the upper-echelon of Christian artists. You may know him as part of the folk-rock band Caedmon’s Call, but his solo work is what really defines him as being an exceptional writer. I believe Derek Webb has a unique sense of listening to that inward audio I speak of. While I'm sure, like many of us, he has to discern between the inward audio and the noise that surrounds it, but I believe Webb is one of the most disgustingly honest and potent writers out there. That's a good thing. In fact, that's a great thing.
He writes songs of all kinds, from comedic to truth that makes you cringe, but I find he particularly excels in writing songs of social commentary and social justice. On one hand, he pens great phrases like the ones seen here in the song “I Wanna Marry You All Over Again” which recounts the story of meeting and falling in love with his wife:
Then, just as quickly, he can move into something much more serious and thought-provoking like the disparaging (but poignant) remarks made in “Rich Young Ruler”:
I was listening to Webb’s latest release called “The Ringing Bell” at work this morning. I honestly can’t say I’ve consciously made it through the whole album (that is, really pay attention to the lyrics), but there's a song called “This Too Shall Be Made Right” which talks a bit about the way we treat each other, ourselves, and the earth. I believe it also speaks a bit to the exclusion of things like oppression and poverty in Heaven. It’s a short song, but is totally worth a read (let alone a great, simple melody). Check it out here.
I really encourage you to take a listen to Derek Webb’s stuff. In fact you can download “The Ringing Bell” FREE @ noisetrade.com. It’s a site that Derek highly supports which distributes free digital downloads of music from independent artists. It’s an important site as it doesn’t necessarily promote the “anti-download” side of the spectrum, but encourages a way for seldom-heard artists to get their great music and important messages out to listeners... for free.
All this to say… Sometimes our inward audio isn’t always rainbows & butterflies. Our inward audio wants to direct us on a path that is righteous and holy… and brutally honest. Webb’s inward audio informs us that we, as Christians, aren’t doing a good enough job exemplifying the life of Christ in our actions. I know I’m not. Not just socially, but personally. There’re always changes that need to be made. Thus, there will always be “that sound” inside of us and listening is really just the beginning. What’s it saying to you?
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Art vs. Ministry: Part 3
My last few blogs haven’t really been much about music and the “inward audio” I often speak of, so I had some thoughts today I had to get off my chest and would appreciate some feedback. So, I bring to you…
Art vs. Ministry: Part 3
Deuteronomy 31:19-22
19 “Now therefore, write down this song for yourselves, and teach it to the children of Israel; put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for Me against the children of Israel. 20 When I have brought them to the land flowing with milk and honey, of which I swore to their fathers, and they have eaten and filled themselves oand grown fat, then they will turn to other gods and serve them; and they will provoke Me and break My covenant. 21 Then it shall be, when many evils and troubles have come upon them, that this song will testify against them as a witness; for it will not be forgotten in the mouths of their descendants, for I know the inclination of their behavior today, even before I have brought them to the land of which I swore to give them.” 22 Therefore Moses wrote this song the same day, and taught it to the children of Israel.
We have a very creative God. Music was one of the many “arts” that was created under Him. There are over 1100 references of music, instruments, and/or singing between Gen: 31-:27 and Rev: 18:22-23. In the bible, there are all sorts of reason for singing: marriage, praise, bereavement, merriment, worship. I’m sure that with the various kinds of instruments (flute, harp, lyre, cymbals, etc.), there were also different styles of music. It’s important to note that God created not only music as a whole but different sounds & kinds of music.
I think that one of the biggest mistakes any one person who enjoys music can make is being exclusive to one or two genres of music. I grew up on metal and anything loud. Metallica, Finger 11, and Nirvana were my bread and butter as a wee young’n. I even had a major Marilyn Manson phase, if you can believe it. But, as I’ve grown older my tastes have changed quite a bit. I’m now listening to rock, pop-rock, blues, (self-coined term) ”computer-rock”, alt-rock, worship, world music, singer/song-writer stuff, new-school jazz, and even some post-hardcore. I think it’s important for any musician to explore as much music as possible. There's no better way to expand a musicians abilities and gifts than to expose themselves to music that they would not normally listen to. Steve Vai, guitar virtuoso, emerses himself in all kinds of music (like Hungarian wedding music and Indian tabla/sitar songs) that heavily make its way into his own music. Vai is one of the most influential, accomplished, and versatile guitar players in teh world. I'm sure that if I hadn’t been introduced to John Mayer’s acoustic version of “Neon” I’d still be stuck with Dream Theater in my headphones and playing old Metallica riffs. Listening to Mayer’s great song-writing and smooth guitar playing also introduced me to bands like The Police and Marvin Gaye as well as re-igniting my love for Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan. And, through my years with JSB, Jay and Sunny introduced to other bands like Copeland, Future of Forestry, and even Coldplay that really made me think outside my musical box.
So where does this all fit in the “Art vs. Music” dilemma I’ve been exploring? I thought about it this afternoon, and you don’t find many “ministries” that are making art (bare with me here before you get all puffed-up). Sure, worship music is still “art” and worship leaders/song-writers are “artists”. I won’t dispute that; God made music which is an “art”. And while I like a lot of worship music available, there aren’t too many song-writers willing to push the envelope of worship-music with (in my opinion) the exception of people like David Crowder and Charlie Hall who are using on-stage sequencing/loop programs like Ableton & Reason run and instruments like turn-tables, Guitar Hero controllers, and toy Xylophones to push their musical sound-scapes. All that, and their focus is on leading a large group of people to a place of communicating with God through music. However…
Then there’re the bands, artists, and musicians who are always reinventing what people think of music. Sufjan Stevens, Radiohead, and Feist are a few names that come to mind that I believe are redefining the art of music. Yet, while I do not necessarily love all of their music, claim to be ½ as talented as those individuals, nor inspire to make similar music, I long to follow their footsteps and be artistic and create. I don’t quite understand how to make “ministry” out of a form of art that isn’t necessarily meant to spiritually rejuvenate a specific group of people.
I could define Christian Ministry as a definite profession that serves the specific function of meeting people's needs with love and humility on Christ's behalf. Christians are to minister to others out of their devotion to Christ and their love for others, whether the other people are believers or unbelievers. Ministry to others should be impartial and unconditional, always seeking to help others as Jesus would. So, can ones profession of being an “artist” still meet these specific needs? There are plenty of artists out there who are Christians, write/sing about Christian things, yet don’t consider themselves a ministry. Moreover, they’re introducing Christ (whether obvious or not) through their music. Is that still ministry or does ministry have to have the purpose of teaching/leading other into a better understanding of Christ or introducing others to the person of Christ? There’s a question for some discussion. I’d like to hear some different opinions.
Deuteronomy 31:19-22
19 “Now therefore, write down this song for yourselves, and teach it to the children of Israel; put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for Me against the children of Israel. 20 When I have brought them to the land flowing with milk and honey, of which I swore to their fathers, and they have eaten and filled themselves oand grown fat, then they will turn to other gods and serve them; and they will provoke Me and break My covenant. 21 Then it shall be, when many evils and troubles have come upon them, that this song will testify against them as a witness; for it will not be forgotten in the mouths of their descendants, for I know the inclination of their behavior today, even before I have brought them to the land of which I swore to give them.” 22 Therefore Moses wrote this song the same day, and taught it to the children of Israel.
We have a very creative God. Music was one of the many “arts” that was created under Him. There are over 1100 references of music, instruments, and/or singing between Gen: 31-:27 and Rev: 18:22-23. In the bible, there are all sorts of reason for singing: marriage, praise, bereavement, merriment, worship. I’m sure that with the various kinds of instruments (flute, harp, lyre, cymbals, etc.), there were also different styles of music. It’s important to note that God created not only music as a whole but different sounds & kinds of music.
I think that one of the biggest mistakes any one person who enjoys music can make is being exclusive to one or two genres of music. I grew up on metal and anything loud. Metallica, Finger 11, and Nirvana were my bread and butter as a wee young’n. I even had a major Marilyn Manson phase, if you can believe it. But, as I’ve grown older my tastes have changed quite a bit. I’m now listening to rock, pop-rock, blues, (self-coined term) ”computer-rock”, alt-rock, worship, world music, singer/song-writer stuff, new-school jazz, and even some post-hardcore. I think it’s important for any musician to explore as much music as possible. There's no better way to expand a musicians abilities and gifts than to expose themselves to music that they would not normally listen to. Steve Vai, guitar virtuoso, emerses himself in all kinds of music (like Hungarian wedding music and Indian tabla/sitar songs) that heavily make its way into his own music. Vai is one of the most influential, accomplished, and versatile guitar players in teh world. I'm sure that if I hadn’t been introduced to John Mayer’s acoustic version of “Neon” I’d still be stuck with Dream Theater in my headphones and playing old Metallica riffs. Listening to Mayer’s great song-writing and smooth guitar playing also introduced me to bands like The Police and Marvin Gaye as well as re-igniting my love for Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan. And, through my years with JSB, Jay and Sunny introduced to other bands like Copeland, Future of Forestry, and even Coldplay that really made me think outside my musical box.
So where does this all fit in the “Art vs. Music” dilemma I’ve been exploring? I thought about it this afternoon, and you don’t find many “ministries” that are making art (bare with me here before you get all puffed-up). Sure, worship music is still “art” and worship leaders/song-writers are “artists”. I won’t dispute that; God made music which is an “art”. And while I like a lot of worship music available, there aren’t too many song-writers willing to push the envelope of worship-music with (in my opinion) the exception of people like David Crowder and Charlie Hall who are using on-stage sequencing/loop programs like Ableton & Reason run and instruments like turn-tables, Guitar Hero controllers, and toy Xylophones to push their musical sound-scapes. All that, and their focus is on leading a large group of people to a place of communicating with God through music. However…
Then there’re the bands, artists, and musicians who are always reinventing what people think of music. Sufjan Stevens, Radiohead, and Feist are a few names that come to mind that I believe are redefining the art of music. Yet, while I do not necessarily love all of their music, claim to be ½ as talented as those individuals, nor inspire to make similar music, I long to follow their footsteps and be artistic and create. I don’t quite understand how to make “ministry” out of a form of art that isn’t necessarily meant to spiritually rejuvenate a specific group of people.
I could define Christian Ministry as a definite profession that serves the specific function of meeting people's needs with love and humility on Christ's behalf. Christians are to minister to others out of their devotion to Christ and their love for others, whether the other people are believers or unbelievers. Ministry to others should be impartial and unconditional, always seeking to help others as Jesus would. So, can ones profession of being an “artist” still meet these specific needs? There are plenty of artists out there who are Christians, write/sing about Christian things, yet don’t consider themselves a ministry. Moreover, they’re introducing Christ (whether obvious or not) through their music. Is that still ministry or does ministry have to have the purpose of teaching/leading other into a better understanding of Christ or introducing others to the person of Christ? There’s a question for some discussion. I’d like to hear some different opinions.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Super-Preachers: my picks
I made a new friend through this whole blogging experience. His name is Matt, he's from Kansas City (home of everything Nazarene) and he has a blog called the Church of no people. I read an interesting blog of his today called "5 Super-preachers we need" which include figures that would make fantastic preachers if they were Christian; who knows, maybe some of them are, but Matt's list included Guy Fieri, Jim Cramer, and Cesar Millian to name a few... all valid choices. So, I decided to hi-jack his idea and make my own list of eccentric characters that may make good praechers. Voila...
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Bono - this may be an obvious one. Beyond his superstar rock empire, Bono single-handedly put Africa on the map of one of the most financially desolate and poverished countries in the world. Thus, he got people from all over the world to donate millions of dollars into medical supplies, food, educaiton, and clean drinking water for Africa and AIDS orphans. Oh yeah, he also does work with organizations like the ONE campaign, DATA, (Red), World Vision, and Amnesty International. But, beyond that, he can also get more people worshipping than most worship leaders can. When singing songs like "40" or "Streets", everybody seems to be singing high God's praises; even the folks who have no idea what they're singing about.
Macho-Man" Randy Savage - What's sad about Macho-Man is that after a few years of living a particular chracter on WWF payperviews for years, that character started making its way into his real life. While always challenging Hulk Hogan to a fight whenever he had the chance and even attempting his own hip-hop career, Randy's outfits are reminiscent to that of John the Baptist which were always getting attention. But, let's face it, when Macho Man spoke, everyone listened, he always got his girl, and was always heard saying "Oh, Yeah!" as if to be agreeing from the back pew as well as referring to everyone as "Brother" like the elders do.
Don Cherry - because Don wears big & loud suits like T.D. Jakes, he's almost a shoe-in to be a super-pracher. Because of his imfamous celebrity, strong opinion, and the way everyone tunes in to his "sermon" every Saturday night around 8:45pm, he basically is a preacher. Don may even have the upper-hand on most of these preacher nominees because his sermons are only about 6 minutes long.
Ty Pennington - Ty is probably the closest thing to Jesus since, well... Jesus. Get this: he's a carpenter, has a massive following, is ruggedly handsome and white (just like all the depictions of Jesus we see) and he's also helping the impoverished, homeless, widows, and orphans. Sound familiar? His already loud-and-obnoxious voice doesn't call for the use of a bullhorn, but he uses one anyway. How could you not listen to him rant about the coming of Christ?
Jo Frost - The SuperNanny is halfway there; she's already "super". Meanwhile, her expertise lies in manipulating people to do what is right and good. That just about fits the bill to be a "super-preacher". She'd make a perfect evangelist; she travels around and helps families with their issues and in-house affairs. Plus, she's intimdating and is not afraid to use an umbrella.
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Bono - this may be an obvious one. Beyond his superstar rock empire, Bono single-handedly put Africa on the map of one of the most financially desolate and poverished countries in the world. Thus, he got people from all over the world to donate millions of dollars into medical supplies, food, educaiton, and clean drinking water for Africa and AIDS orphans. Oh yeah, he also does work with organizations like the ONE campaign, DATA, (Red), World Vision, and Amnesty International. But, beyond that, he can also get more people worshipping than most worship leaders can. When singing songs like "40" or "Streets", everybody seems to be singing high God's praises; even the folks who have no idea what they're singing about.
Macho-Man" Randy Savage - What's sad about Macho-Man is that after a few years of living a particular chracter on WWF payperviews for years, that character started making its way into his real life. While always challenging Hulk Hogan to a fight whenever he had the chance and even attempting his own hip-hop career, Randy's outfits are reminiscent to that of John the Baptist which were always getting attention. But, let's face it, when Macho Man spoke, everyone listened, he always got his girl, and was always heard saying "Oh, Yeah!" as if to be agreeing from the back pew as well as referring to everyone as "Brother" like the elders do. 
Don Cherry - because Don wears big & loud suits like T.D. Jakes, he's almost a shoe-in to be a super-pracher. Because of his imfamous celebrity, strong opinion, and the way everyone tunes in to his "sermon" every Saturday night around 8:45pm, he basically is a preacher. Don may even have the upper-hand on most of these preacher nominees because his sermons are only about 6 minutes long.
Ty Pennington - Ty is probably the closest thing to Jesus since, well... Jesus. Get this: he's a carpenter, has a massive following, is ruggedly handsome and white (just like all the depictions of Jesus we see) and he's also helping the impoverished, homeless, widows, and orphans. Sound familiar? His already loud-and-obnoxious voice doesn't call for the use of a bullhorn, but he uses one anyway. How could you not listen to him rant about the coming of Christ?Jo Frost - The SuperNanny is halfway there; she's already "super". Meanwhile, her expertise lies in manipulating people to do what is right and good. That just about fits the bill to be a "super-preacher". She'd make a perfect evangelist; she travels around and helps families with their issues and in-house affairs. Plus, she's intimdating and is not afraid to use an umbrella.
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