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posted by James on 09/17/09

Let the Word of God, amplified by His spectacular creation, rejuvenate your spirit and inspire your soul every time you sit down at your computer! Only yesterday, Living The Journey posted three unparalleled desktop backgrounds with inspirational verses and breathtaking photography featuring the beauty of Michigan’s wilderness! We know that God will bless you as you keep His Scripture before your eyes.

Visit LivingTheJourney.com now to download your free
desktop background!

3 Comments » | posted in Photography, Tidbits

posted by Donald on 09/17/09

Fall has arrived in the Mountain State. One thing from summer that I regret not having is a picture of our Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. They have left for the winter.

So now I must select a different subject. Yellow Jackets. Believe it or not, the hay stack in the picture is surrounded with them. During one of our morning raking times we inadvertently piled grass over an entrance to their nest–without even knowing it.

Why weren’t we stung? How could we nearly turn their world upside down without getting a reaction? The answer is that our raking took place early in the morning. Like most insects, yellow-jackets are helplessly “asleep” before being roused by the warmth of the morning sun’s rays.

Isn’t it the same with us? Often we are not bold to do the simple things  we know to do because we don’t feel it’s the right time–It’s “too cold” (Proverbs 20:4) I’ll add here too that the hummingbird, bolder than most other birds, and most definitely bolder than the Eagle, has a peculiar trait in that it, too, becomes torpid in cold weather.

May the warmth of Christ awaken us! I remember once, sitting in the car at Wal-Mart, hesitating to witness to the cart-collector continuing on my Chinese study until I looked at that young man through the eyes of Christ. That made the difference. Unlike the yellow jackets and the hummingbirds, may God bless us, in season and out, with …

BOLDNESS

Confidence that what I have to say or do

is true and right and just

in the sight of God

4 Comments » | posted in Tidbits

posted by Michael on 09/15/09

Part 1: How music communicates a moral or immoral message

Part 2: The importance of rejecting wrong music

Part 3: Rejoice in the Lord ye righteous!

I was excited to discover why I had been hindered from getting these posts posted for so long: the opportunity to experience and comment on the singing of the house churches in China! After hearing a couple years ago about the supernatural explosion of God’s light, life, and love in China and the fervency of their worship, I had always wondered what kind of singing and music resulted from the influence of the Holy Spirit with very little interference from western culture. When our family watched a documentary about Christianity in China, it showed a lot of their house Church worship and singing. I was nothing short of astounded. It was just what Christian singing should be. It was beautiful! They sang with all their hearts. They sang with all their emotion. They sang with all their might! They clapped their hands (Ps. 47:1) – always on the down-beat and not on the back-beat by the way – all in perfect order and decency without the slightest hint of any chaotic, rebellious or sensual feeling. There was no syncopation and no sensual body movement. It was the new song of a transformed life; not only of transformed actions, but of transformed character. God had indeed heard their cry, brought them out of a horrible pit, set their feet on a rock, and put a new song in their mouths, “even praise unto God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.” Psalm 40:1-3

I was even more amazed when the final episode of the documentary detailed the story of how God had given them the “Canaan Hymns“. There was indeed no western influence, yet their sound was unmistakably hymn-like! Rather than gathering together to be pumped up with an emotional high, their singing was more like a bubbling spring of pure water that overflowed from their dynamic and continuing relationship with their Redeemer.

Once in the documentary there was a short clip of a (more modern-looking) worship service where the people were singing with music that accented the off-beat. I also noticed that the singing in a village that did not experience persecution had less fervency and more of an entertainment atmosphere. This is a sign of vulnerability. I offer an urgent warning to my brothers and sisters in China: you will face an attack from Satan to infect and corrupt your music with “new techniques”. It always starts very slight, and will be hard to reject, but it never stays still. It always gets more and more augmented and overt. Remember, there is no relationship between entertainment and praise to God, and when God’s people fail to strive for holiness “in all manner of conversation” (1 Peter 1:15-16), the first thing to go will be the music.

In the early 1970s two sisters brought the new Christian music, which was the “in thing” in America, to Kalimantan in Karat, Indonesia where their parents were missionaries. One evening an older, converted national who had left the heathen practices of calling on evil spirits, heard the “Christian music” they were listening to. He came to the door and immediately asked, “Why are you playing the witch doctors’ music and calling on Satan?” So even though the rhythms of rebellion (“rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft” – 1 Sam. 15:23) had moved from demon worship in Africa to the jazz and blues of New Orleans to rock ‘n’ roll and on to “Christian rock” – they were still easily identified by the tribal people of Indonesia. So the evil one gives his sounds to his people in unrelated cultures around the world and they are independently alike. And the Holy Spirit gives His sounds to His people in unrelated cultures around the world, and they are independently alike. So why would we want to be “mingled among the heathen and learn their works”? Psalm 106:35-37

So let us be zealous for the holiness of God’s house (John 2:13-17 and Neh. 13). Let us walk in the Spirit. Let us abide in Christ so that the music that flows from our lips is beautiful in His sight: “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual [vs. carnal] songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord” Eph. 5:15-19

“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises [or, "virtues" - get that!] of Him Who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” 1 Peter 2:9. Hallelujah! Let us sing unto the Lord a new song, and His praise in the congregation of saints. Let Israel rejoice in Him that made him: let the children of Zion be joyful in their King. For the Lord taketh pleasure in His people: He will beautify the meek with salvation. …Let the high praises of God be in our mouth, and a two-edged sword in our hand; to execute vengeance… (Psalm 149) “Ye that love the Lord, hate evil… rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness.” (Ps. 97:10-12) Not only in song “on Sunday” but in all of our lives, with music or without, let us praise the Lord with our “whole heart” (Ps. 9:1-2 and 111:1) “from the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same” (Ps. 113:3)! “Sing aloud unto God our strength: make a joyful noise [burst out, shout] unto the God of Jacob. Take a psalm, and bring hither the timbrel, the pleasant harp withe the psaltery.” (Ps. 81:1-2) “It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto Thy name, O most High: to show forth thy lovingkindness in the morning and thy faithfulness every night, upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound. For Thou, Lord, hast made me glad through Thy work: I will triumph in the works of Thy hands.” (Ps. 92:1-4) While we live, let us praise the Lord (Ps. 146:2). Let us sing forth the honor of His name and make His praise glorious! (Ps. 66:2)

For those who love music, let us make it our priority to cater to the Spirit rather than the flesh, encouraging propriety of conduct as God has directed, for “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” 2 Corinthians 5:10

If you are looking for music, here is some that immediately stands out in my mind as being true to a high standard:

Recordings by Billy Ray Hearn and Tom Fettke, Linda McKechnie, Tracy Ann Collins, Melinda K. Wickam, and Rudy Atwood

On the radio you might be able to find In Balance Music.

…And the best music you could have is what you sing yourself, all day long. Get to know the melodies and get a good hymnal to learn the words. Or memorize and sing or quote the Psalms! Don’t worry about how you sound to people; after all, everyone is instructed to praise our God (Ps. 148:11-12 and 150:6) and out of the mouth of babes and sucklings God has perfected praise! – Mat. 21:16

7 Comments » | posted in Making Melody

posted by Donald on 09/11/09

Saturday, August 29–the time had gone by so fast.

We had been true co-laborers in Mongolia during the 2004-2005 school year. Stateside, our families met at the Training Conference in Big Sandy, Texas, near our friend’s home town. Now he was passing through our home town in West Virginia on the way to a new place of service and study along with his wife and two dear children.

What an encouragement. The children responded to their parents in a way that we had rarely witnessed before and overall their family was gifted with contagious enthusiasm. We were blessed by their example and it was a happy reunion to say the least.

On Friday night we had a surprise after-dinner-game and saw pictures from the place where they were going to live. On Saturday we had the Wisdom Search, Breakfast, then a tour of the property all interspersed with news from old friends and flash-back memories of Mongolia: the snow and the language and the food, not to mention musical instruments and throat-singing (which sounds more like a cicada than a human voice). And he could still sing the first verse of Jesus Loves Me in Mongolian.

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Now, after lunch and before our farewell, we were surprised that it had gone so quickly. At the same time we were grateful that our short reunion had been possible and, as we reflected one more time we were also grateful in a way that despite the years and so many changes we were still the same! Christ, in each of us, was the life of our very-different personalities just as He always had been!

So, “Once a king in Narnia, always a king in Narnia …” (C.S. Lewis). This is usually quoted to illustrate that eternal life is eternally secure but I would like to take it further and say that “Once a king in the kingdom of heaven, always a king in the kingdom of heaven–and you never know when and where you may meet up again with those with whom you have served before!”

2 Comments » | posted in Family News

posted by Michael on 09/8/09

Based on the foundation explained in Part 1 we will now look at the importance of purity in music used for Christian worship. There is a raging battle in the Christian life between the Spirit and the flesh (Romans 6-8). Paul stressed that Christian liberty is no license to gratify the flesh (Gal. 5:13) and made it clear that “they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” (Gal. 5:24) Wrong music is centered on the fulfillment of carnal passions (through techniques described in Part 1) and gives the emotional message of “do whatever you want to do” rather than helping to “put off concerning the former conversation… which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind” (Eph. 4:22-23). It is no accident that certain styles of music originated in certain cultures for the purpose of cultivating the depraved nature. According to Little Richard, “My true belief about Rock ‘n’ Roll – and there have been a lot of phrases attributed to me over the years – is this: I believe this kind of music is demonic…. A lot of the beats in music today are taken from voodoo, from the voodoo drums. If you study music in rhythms, like I have, you’ll see that is true.” (Little Richard; Quoted in Jeff Goodwin, Dancing with Demons, pp 126-128.) To take the disordered beats and sensual vocal techniques that we enjoyed in the flesh, and change the words so we can justify it as “Christian”, is to “turn the grace of God into lasciviousness” (Jude 1:4) and imply that the character, or name of Christ Himself is violent or erotic. An assault on the name of God is serious, “for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain.” (Ex. 20:7 and Deut. 5:11) Quite simply, music is a form of communication, just like language and art, which can essentially be used for both good and bad. “Be not deceived. Evil communications corrupt good manners.” 1 Cor. 15:33 According to William Kilpatrick, Professor of Education, Boston College, “Rock can’t be made respectable…. The music will simply subvert the words…. No matter how many reforms are attempted, rock and rap will always gravitate in the direction of violence and uncommitted sex. The beat says ‘Do what you want to do’” (from Why Johnny Can’t Tell Right From Wrong, pp. 178, 182). The more counter-rhythm and syncopation there is, the stronger the impulsive feelings of the “flesh” become. The amount of disorder is a minor issue because “a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.” Leaven represents moral compromise in 1 Cor. 5:6-8 and failure to focus on circumcision of the heart in Gal. 5:5-9/Rom. 2:29.

As Fanny Crosby (1820-1915) said, “Sometimes I need to reject the music proposed for my songs because the musicians misunderstand that the Fanny Crosby who once wrote for the people in the saloons has merely changed the lyrics. Oh my no. The church must never sing it’s songs to the melodies of the world.”

I am quite sure that the melodies she rejected would be considered the mildest of worldly music by today’s standards. What fits in a saloon does not fit in the sanctuary of God. That’s why the sanctuary exists – a place set apart only for holiness. Obviously, it is a shame for immoral music to be included on otherwise good recordings just because “that’s what makes it sell”.

And that brings me to my original motivation for writing this whole post. It occurred to me while I was working in the garden not long ago that if my motivation for performing music is to please people, I am doomed to eventually perform music that is displeasing to God because “if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ” Gal. 1:10. The nature of God and the godless nature of people are irreconcilable (Rom. 8:5-8). If music is beautiful in the eyes of God, those who love what He loves will love it, while those who dislike what He likes will dislike it. Since we cannot solidly base anything on the ever-changing preferences of people, we would do better to walk as children of light in the fruit of the Spirit, “proving what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” Eph. 5:8-11. What really matters to me in an artistic message is how well it helps me to crucify the flesh with the affections and lusts (Gal. 5:16-25) while putting on the “new man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness” Eph. 4:24.

I suppose one reason, among others, that religious leaders are sometimes afraid to reject carnal musical styles is for fear of seeming to be too pious and “holier-than-thou” (click there to read why this is actually a self-contradictory concept). Also unfounded is the fear that music will be boring if it’s not “livened up with a little beat”. Just as there is infinite room for dynamic expression of God’s love within the bounds of holiness, there is also infinite room for Godly expression in music within the bounds of order. In fact, you cannot express God’s love outside of His holiness, and you cannot express God’s holy name in music without “decency and order” (1 Cor. 14:40). The goal is to display the powerful, dynamic love of God without mixing it with anything counterfeit. Love is not lust. Joy is not foolishness. Peace is not depression. Longsuffering is not compromise. Knowing God makes the distinction clear.

“…for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? …And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1.

This post has focused on the wrong kind of music and the importance of separation from the evil of the world for the sake of sanctification and holiness (John 17:15-17). Part 3 will focus more on the right kind of music.

9 Comments » | posted in Making Melody