Christian Noise

Here Goes!

2016-05-20T00:13:00.000-04:00

So Sunday, May 22nd, 2016 my little boy turns 4. It's a big day and it's very important to him. It's an important day to all of us. It's also the day I am being licensed into ministry. It's something I have known I needed to do as it is the first step to ordination. It's a very important step that will hopefully give me the training, time and experience to be an ordained minister. If you aren't a pastor, it's hard to understand. It really is a big move and the weight of it is hitting me tonight. After taking my final exam for public speaking and doing work on my sermon prep class, the weight of what is taking place finally came down. I'm not even sure I can explain it.

It's extremely humbling to officially be recognized by a body of believers that God has called you into ministry. It is also very intimidating that you're being trusted with preaching the Word and with motivating people to fulfill the Great Commission. It is amazing though, how God has shaped my life for this. I was, and still am in certain instances, very shy. Through my employment in EMS and the fire service, I learned to talk to people of any age, race, creed, color, sex, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, marital status or socioeconomic status. I hate public speaking. Hate. It. At the same time though, I crave to preach and teach the Bible. Some people say I'm good at it, but I honestly am still figuring out what I'm doing. I'm afraid of screwing up, yet at the same time, I know I will, that God's mercies are new every morning, and that what matters is what I do after I fall. Do I stay down like Judas or do I stand up like Peter?

Ultimately though, this is the calling God has placed on my life. I will obey. I will pray however You want me to pray, I will give whatever You want me to give, I will go whenever and wherever You want me to go, no matter what it costs, knowing You are my reward.

Attitude and Worship

2016-02-17T14:45:00.001-05:00

An emotion and action that go hand in hand.

Anyone who has gone to church more than maybe a week knows what it’s like. It’s Sunday morning, and the alarm didn’t go off (or half asleep, you turned it off when it did properly function), the kids are fighting, you finally get dressed after finding a stain on the clothes you want to wear, and right as you are walking out the door, you realize no one has eaten breakfast yet. At least that’s a Sunday we have had. Every Sunday, it seems something happens to distract us from worship. And by us, I mean all of us. It doesn’t matter if you live alone or have 10 kids, something will try to distract you from worship. These things can range from a dislike of the sermon series, a “bone to pick” with the music minister, a family problem, or you just simply woke up on the wrong side of the bed. It happens and, since we’re all sin-filled humans, we should expect it. However, it’s what we do with those trying circumstances that shape how we worship. I’m speaking strictly on a Sunday morning basis, but this applies to our worship every day. Psalm 100:4 says, “Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!” That’s difficult to do when life throws you a curve ball and your focus should be on God.

That kind of sums up the whole point of worship though. When life is crazy and all around us falls apart, God remains constant and He is there. He lifted us up from our brokenness and raised us to life. Even when we didn’t deserve any of it. That’s what justifies a change of attitude. When measured up against hell, what we experience is minuscule. If we looked at the blessings God has extended to us, it will change our attitude in dealing with circumstances and our hearts will be prepared for worship prior to us arriving at church. When we’re ready to worship before the service begins, it’s an amazing freedom to worship and enjoy that sermon series that once wasn’t so interesting. Maybe there is something in there for us after all. One of my favorite scriptures that I have to constantly remind myself of is Philippians 4:8-9. They say, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”

Sometimes our attitude is that of cynicism. We look at everything through the filter of what we want and what we prefer. It happens. As a baptist minister, I see it every Sunday, and most I hear about it as well. The problem though is that we look at things through our experiences and desires, typically, it equates to what we grew up with, and our background in church. Think about it for a second, honestly, now you see that I'm correct. If someone comes from a highly liturgical background, that is their preference. If someone didn't grow up in church, but came to Christ at an age later in life, you'll see their preference relates directly back to the first church they did attend. We're creatures of habit and that shapes our attitude in worship. If something breaks that habit, it's viewed as either incorrect or not for you. We end up with the tendency to critique it under a microscope until we find something, anything wrong with it no matter how small that something is. Unfortunately, that is a huge fault, and is sin. It takes the worship God deserves and desires and we end up worshiping ourselves, our wants, our preferences and not the God who gave His life for ours so we could be blameless. Philippians 2:14-18 warns us about this saying, "Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me."

Sometimes I get the feeling that people place a high responsibility on others (ie, pastors) for their own worship, when in reality, we all have a responsibility for our worship. I believe questions we need to constantly ask ourselves is this; is my heart in the right place? Am I willing to give time to God? Do I have an attitude of praise and an openness to be challenged by the word of God? Am I a spectator or do I join in God's work?

In conclusion, I think there are three things we can do to keep our attitude in check. First, the church is the bride of Christ and we should respect it. Jesus died for the bride He adores and I'm pretty sure He cares how we talk about it. Second, we should all reject anything that resembles an "us" vs "them" mentality. Jesus was very honest about truth and spoke confidently to those who challenged it with their hypocrisy and legalism, but He did it without mocking or belittling anyone. He didn’t post open letters on the town gates and He didn’t publicly ridicule those who questioned him, nor did he get on the phone to His pew-mate. He met them with Scripture and self-control. If they felt foolish, it was because they were caught with their foot in their mouth, not from Jesus laughing at them with crowds behind Him. Finally, we should focus on what is good. As I previously shared one of my favorite scriptures, it fits nicely here. Philippians 4:8-9. In the four chapters of Philippians, Paul tells the church in Philippi to rejoice 15 times. Paul doesn't focus on why their being negative, but rather, he is very concerned with their choosing to change.

Next Sunday morning, life will go crazy. Take a deep breath, think about what the Lord has done, and enter the church with praise, joy, and thanksgiving.

Christmastime is Here

2015-12-21T18:18:00.000-05:00

It's Christmas again, the kids are so very excited. I am as well. We have been celebrating the Advent season, the anticipation of the arrival of Christ. It has been great for my family to do. I recently watched a video by comedian Michael Jr. It was a parody of sorts titled, "Mark's Birthday." The video hit home and I hope you get a chance to watch it. All kinds of people worked hard to prepare for Mark's birthday, and came with gifts and had tons of food to celebrate Mark's birthday. Their houses were thoroughly decorated and they whole town was filled with the excitement of Mark's birthday. When Mark's birthday came, everyone celebrated and had a great time. It was a grand time. However, Mark was left out of his own party. Even though everyone gathered around to celebrate Mark, Mark wasn't there.

It's a metaphor for Christmas. The season is to celebrate Christ's arrival on earth. The creator of the cosmos, star breather, life giver and Savior arrived on earth and we should celebrate that day. He's the hope of the world, the only hope. Let's not forget to invite Him to our celebrations and include Him in our celebrations this Christmas season.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Ministry Requirements

2014-05-29T16:12:00.001-04:00

Perry Noble posted in his blog earlier today, the photo below. I love this blog, so I took a screen shot so I could share that with you. As a person, called into ministry without a Master's Degree, I have come across these requirements multiple times. I hate reading these statement on post after post on a job board. It frustrates me and irritates me. I'm not saying I don't like experience or that I don't like education and marriage. I believe experience is golden, good and bad. I have this nagging desire to email these churches and ask them where people are supposed to gain experience when churches only hire folks with 5+ years of experience. I also want to ask them where all of this comes from biblically. I know it's a preference thing, but what if someone who would grow their church and lead folks to Christ wanted to apply? Their resume would assuredly be file 13'd due to a lack of experience, education, and/or marital status. I also have issue with the term accredited. Have you priced an accredited seminary lately? I sure have. They aren't cheap, at all. So, someone has to take a loan typically to attend this type of school. Ironically, the Bible speaks against being in debt. My favorite part of this blog by Pastor Noble is his attention to the detail that even the Founder, CEO, COO, and CFO of this thing called Christianity, Jesus, wasn't qualified for positions such as these. So I have to wonder, if He isn't qualified, who is? Also if He isn't running the show and sending pastors, called by Him and not us, to lead our churches, who is?

A New Commandment I Give You

2014-05-08T22:49:00.001-04:00

Those words the Rabbi spoke. The ears of the disciples perked up as they knew this would be important. Torah was the law, Torah was everything and to add a commandment took authority. Of course, they had the One with as much authority as you will find giving them this new commandment. These words are important. For me, and for you. "Love one another, as I have loved you, love one another. By doing this, the world will know that you are my followers; love one another." It seems simple and the disciples were probably shocked at how easy that commandment was. Then, they had to actually do it and I'm guessing they soon had an epiphany. It was probably easier for them to obey all of the first 10 commandments than this one.

This is a story of that scripture being lived out. I'm very proud of Isaiah, my oldest. Yesterday, he told me he gave his snack to another boy at school who didn't have a snack because he never has snacks and was hungry. This morning, while I was packing his lunch, he asked if I could put an extra snack in his lunchbox so he could give it to the boy at snack time. I told him bring me another one and he did. He was so excited that boy would have a snack again today. It reminded me that loving people is what it's all about. It may not be easy, and sometimes you would rather throat punch them. You may miss out on your own snack and it may inconvenience you. But not only does it have an impact on them, it impacts you just as much. That is why Christ gave us the commandment to love one another, just like He loves us. With mercy, compassion and grace. No strings attached, arms wide open kind of love. John 13:34

"Love Those Who Hate You" Matthew 5:44 In Action

2014-03-14T09:45:00.000-04:00

Recently on their newest tour, the band Switchfoot has been catching a lot of flack from people who seem to put their preference as commandments. In the first video, they even call them "Ditch-foot." Not an example of Christ to the world folks. Don't do that. Ever. Put the bullhorn away and never, ever call Switchfoot "heavy metal". They're not. One of my largest struggles is dealing with folks like that. I generally want to take the Bible and show them why they are wrong, and where preference goes wrong with what Christ taught us. However, I have a difficult time doing that out of love, so I typically refrain. I formerly loved the study of Apologetics, and defending my faith. I still love it, but I loved a chance to debate someone because I "named and claimed" 1 Peter 3:15 which says, "but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,". I would always miss the "gentleness and respect" part of it and I hurt people as well as hurt myself. (I apologize and ask forgiveness to any people that I may have hurt and have not personally asked forgiveness from due to location, or other reasons.) I also, ignored the scripture in it's context and the rest of the passage which reads, "Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil.

For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water." (1 Peter 3:8-20 ESV)

My goal is to now treat others through love, putting my preference aside along with my pride. My preference is to never minister and love on people who aren't like me. It isn't any of our preference. However, Christ was surrounded by people who were not like Him and He loved them to death. Literally, without condition. I read an article this morning about Switchfoot and their protesters. There are some videos within the article, which I will link to this post. Jon Foreman, the lead singer, shows an act of grace, mercy and love to these protesters who have appeared at their shows multiple times. His quote on twitter about it said "So stoked the protesters are here again-treat em with love and respect y'all! Love is the only response. #LoveAloneIsWorthTheFight" The hashtag being a reference to their newest single, which is awesome. I've always heard Switchfoot called the "nicest guys in rock". This title comes from their many crossover hits from Christian charts to rock charts. Everyone who has met them has always said they're extremely friendly and always looking out for the people at their shows, and always being very humble. Foreman also said regarding the protesters, "They're morons just like I'm a moron, but we're loved by this extravagant God and I have but one debt, which is to love them." Which leads me to Christ's teaching in Matthew 5:43-47, "“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers,i what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?"

My point and my prayer for myself is simple, love others, even the ones who hate you and wish bad ju-ju on you. Also, don't allow your preference to hold your worship back. God is our audience, not the people sitting in seats or standing in an auditorium. They are only our co-worshipers.

The article link can be found here.

Jarrid Wilson's Letter to Miley Cyrus

2013-08-28T21:09:00.000-04:00

I love the stuff Jarrid Wilson posts and his blog is just great. Following the VMA's, and the outcry about the performance of Miley Cyrus, he posted a letter to her. I totally agree with every word of the letter. The Bible tells us as Christians to not point out the speck in someone else's eye, when we have a log in our own.

Matthew 7 begins like this: “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. 3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye."

A lot of Christians have been bashing and throwing judgmental remarks at Ms. Cyrus, and to her I say, "I'm sorry". We have no idea what she has gone through in her life and what she is currently dealing with. We, as Christians, should not waste our time condemning her and everyone else present. As our example is Christ, here is what He has to say in John chapter 3: 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."

We are the hope of the world! The problem is, we don't act like it. Rather, we spend our time debating each other and debating people who don't share the same views we do. However, it is all trivial unless we are acting like the hope of the world is in us and we are sharing the Good News of the Gospel.

It pains me to see people treat others according to their mishaps and mess ups. As Christians, we should treat every person as a soul with an eternal destination. If we concerned ourselves more with that and making sure their destination was with Christ through love and grace, then we would then see a culture shift.

I leave you now with a link to Mr. Wilson's blog. I want you to read it there. I don't want to take credit for anything he has written, so here it is.

An Open Letter To Miley Cyrus

Celebrate! Recovery

2013-08-22T21:54:00.000-04:00

My wife has been helping our church start up a new ministry called Celebrate Recovery. She attended for two years prior at another church and begged me to go with her. I just didn't like it. It wasn't for me. There was very little that helped me deal with the sin in my life. Their motto and purpose is to help people with the hurts, habits and hangups. It's sin, well most of it. Some people refuse to attend because it isn't just outright called sin, but that's their hangup and eventually, just maybe they will realize that. I also have had the pleasure of meeting people who won't attend because they say they don't deal with "any of that stuff". Again, their hangup. The thing that made me start attending, other than my wife's incessant begging me to go, is the fact that we all struggle with things. I love to teach that. (It makes people squirm in their seats) It may not be an alcohol or drug addiction, it may not be a sexual addiction or a codependency. It may just be the fact that you think you have it all together and that you don't need accountability from other believers, or to work through prior or current hurts. It may even be that you meet the "standards" of a "good church going Christian" and that you're a "good person". However, that is your hangup, because you made it a habit and you will either hurt yourself or others. See what I did there?

I may be a little biased, but this program is amazing. I don't have to opportunity to go like I want to because of work, or the kids, but when I do go, it is so refreshing to see that I'm not the only person with a messed up life. You're not the only person with struggles. You're not the only person wearing a mask telling people everything is ok when in reality, your world is falling apart all around you. It's ok to admit that. It's ok to admit you're messed up and we're all messed up, but God isn't. It's all about celebrating that a perfect God loves an imperfect you so much He sent His perfect Son to save your messed up self. The Bible tells us that even though we all are messed up, Christ died for us. See, so even you belong in this journey. I encourage you to go check one out. The Celebrate! Recovery in our church will launch very soon and I would love to see you there. Plus, if you don't like ours, there are others in the area you can attend. Different churches fit different personalities, so don't be afraid to try out another location. For more information, go to this link.

Happy Birthday!

2013-08-16T23:41:00.001-04:00

Today, my oldest son, Isaiah, turns seven. I can't believe how fast these seven years have passed. I remember the day he was born, and all of the drama that accompanied his birth.

I was in Charlotte when my wife went into labor. I had left my phone charger at home here in Weaverville and my phone was charging in my car. I worked for MEDIC in Charlotte and had an apartment for the nights I worked there consecutively. So, she called MEDIC and had a unit sent to my house to wake me up. I answered the door and thought they were playing a joke on me, so I went back to bed not thinking to check my phone. I woke up about 45 minutes later in a panic and went to check my phone. Yep, I had about 100 missed calls and texts. I called Candice and she was at the hospital with her parents. I doubt anyone has ever traveled as quickly from Charlotte to Asheville as I did that night. I made it just in time. My wife's labor pain was almost unbearable and she had refused an epidural until I arrived. They came in and gave her the epidural and a short while later I held this beautiful baby boy in my arms.

I was 22 at the time and was scared out of my mind. All of the responsibilities and questions were flooding my mind. This little 6 pound baby was overly intimidating. I also had never fallen in love with anything so quickly as I did that morning. I felt so proud of my son and in an instant there came a love that I had never felt before. I also, at that moment, came to the realization of the depth of the love of God for us and the absolute sacrifices He made on our behalf because He loved us, His creation.

I since have had two more children and have come to the realization that to be a successful father means to expect the unexpected and just be there for my kids. That may mean sleeping all day on your birthday because your daughter broke her arm the night before and you spent the night in the emergency room, or sitting in the floor with them laughing and playing, or just listening to them when they want to chat your ears off or when something is bothering them. One of the most rewarding things in my life is being a father.

I feel sorry for the dads that aren't there for their kids. They miss out on so much and the chance to watch their children grow up to be amazing. They also miss out on the chance to be changed by their kids. I haven't always been a great dad and I previously worked a lot, but since have seen that all the money in the world doesn't matter if you are missing out on your kids' lives and not taking care of your marriage the way you should.

Isaiah has taught me so much, and he has been there with me and for me even when he was so little and my life was destructing. He also was there for us when Candice and I picked up the pieces and restored our marriage. He's my helper and my buddy. He has a huge heart and is always ready to serve and help out. He's matured so much lately and I can't even begin to tell you how much he has been a great big brother to Makenna and Hayden. I love watching him frolic in the yard, or play around other kids always protecting his siblings. I love to watch how his brother looks up to him. He's very intelligent and does so well in school. I'm just a proud daddy who's a little sappy right now.

Today, he is 7 and will enter the 2nd grade on Wednesday. He's grown up so quickly. He's one super cool kid.

Happy birthday buddy! I love you and I am very proud of the little dude you are!

--Daddy

Sad but True

2013-07-23T16:54:00.000-04:00

Pastor Jeremiah Steepek (pictured below) transformed himself into a homeless person and went to the 10,000 member church that he was to be introduced as the head pastor at that morning. He walked around his soon to be church for 30 minutes while it was filling with people for service, only 3 people out of the 7-10,000 people said hello to him. He asked people for change to buy food - NO ONE in the church gave him change. He went into the sanctuary to sit down in the front of the church and was asked by the ushers if he would please sit n the back. He greeted people to be greeted back with stares and dirty looks, with people looking down on him and judging him.

As he sat in the back of the church, he listened to the church announcements and such. When all that was done, the elders went up and were excited to introduce the new pastor of the church to the congregation. "We would like to introduce to you Pastor Jeremiah Steepek." The congregation looked around clapping with joy and anticipation. The homeless man sitting in the back stood up and started walking down the aisle. The clapping stopped with ALL eyes on him. He walked up the altar and took the microphone from the elders (who were in on this) and paused for a moment then he recited,

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

'The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

After he recited this, he looked towards the congregation and told them all what he had experienced that morning. Many began to cry and many heads were bowed in shame. He then said, "Today I see a gathering of people, not a church of Jesus Christ. The world has enough people, but not enough disciples. When will YOU decide to become disciples?"

He then dismissed service until next week.

Being a Christian is more than something you claim. It's something you live by and share with others.

Meaningless Words for Worship

2012-08-29T11:18:00.004-04:00

I'm not your typical Christian. I don't fit in with most popular sub-cultures of religion and that's ok, Jesus didn't either. I try to see the beauty of God in everything. Sometimes, it is a beautiful sunset, a smile on my 3 month old's face or just a beautiful picture. Even though those things are definitely beautiful, the most beautiful things can sometimes be when God sheds a tear for us. The recent shootings in Colorado, Chicago and New York or even this homeless lady named Boo who has lost the ashes of her deceased child. God has such compassion for us and often we fail to recognize it and would rather categorize the bad situations of people's lives as God's justice. God is just, but by receiving His grace and mercy every single day I came to the epiphany that God's compassion and love for us conquers all. I could go on all day about that, so I'll save that for a different time.

I began playing guitar at age 5. By the age of 16, I played 5 different instruments. I love music, it is always around me. Having grown up in church, I surrendered to Christ at an early age, so church and music kind of went hand in hand. The problem was my church was traditional. Very traditional. So the music was old and seemed to have died in the chorus somewhere. The choir sang with grim looks as the piano and organ played 4 songs with similar structures and I became bored out of my mind. I would hear things such as "Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine! Heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of His Spirit, washed in His blood. This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long; This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long." Typically, the only thing long was the faces of the people singing the song. (I really do like this song) Then, a teenager at church brought a cassette tape in of dcTalk and I loved it, it was exciting and fresh. After that came a rapper by the name of T-Bone and it was cool, but I couldn't listen to it because it was rap and that wasn't sacred. I was terribly confused because this guy was rapping about how his life was a mess and Jesus came in a took his life over and he had been made this new creation. How could that be what they called secular? On a flip side, I could listen to all the classic rock I wanted. Skynard, Zepplin, Pink Floyd and Journey were my favorite. I could listen to country music too, but I've never really been a fan of country music so I refrained. After this experience, I would eventually be allowed tapes and then cds of christian artists at the discretion of my parents. When I was 15, I joined a praise band and would travel around to churches to play and lead them with praise and worship music. Some churches we played at didn't really like our style, we were either too loud or there was no organ. Then, I met my wife and we began attending at the church she had grown up in and it was worse. The pastor would stand and preach about heathen music and how if it had a beat it was of the devil. Yeah, the evil red guy with a pitchfork and pointy tail. I found his theology and theory flawed as all music has a beat. Otherwise, it would be just a jumbled up mess.

A couple of weeks ago, my family was having lunch with another family from our church and they had just been to a concert the night before. He was talking about how great of a worship experience he had at that concert even though the band was not considered "sacred". The concert was Mumford and Sons and I already love them, so I was interested in what he had to say. He described how at church, worship feels forced and even sometimes hindered. I couldn't have agreed more. He was talking about how at the concert, he was just being himself and worshiping in a way that made sense. At this point, I almost said "Amen". As a musician, I have some great times of worship just playing something random and thinking of things God has done, or lamenting in a time of struggle even if what I'm playing isn't attached to a particular group of words or song. I have to believe that we can worship God in ways that most people wouldn't particularly approve of when the focus is taken off ourselves and is placed solely on God. Isn't that what worship is all about? I have to ask, why all the worship wars when God is the one with the opinion and His stance is He wants all of us, surrendered to Himself from our wants? Why do we try to cater to people when people are not who we are worshiping? Or are they? In a Mumford and Sons song, they ask: "Can you kneel before The King and say, ‘I’m clean’?" and later in the song they sing "Lead me to the truth, and I’ll follow you with my whole life." That's pretty awesome worship lyrics if you ask me. It is a way of people relating to God. How many times have you struggled with feeling like you're too dirty and too far away from God for Him to save you or even hear you? I know I have felt that way a lot. Too many times in Christian music today, issues that we face daily are looked over while feelings we have deep inside of us go unanswered. Another group I like which is the band Gungor tends to do a good job of relating to people and their struggles instead of just celebrating the high points of this spiritual journey.

I know if you have listened to Mumford and Sons though, you are probably thinking "they use a bad word in one of their songs." Why yes they do. Have you ever thought you blew it? That thing you did and you're hiding or it became public probably made you think "I really f---ed it up this time". Well, they just sang it. A moment experienced by the listener is one of total surrender and confession. It's a realization of the need for repentance. I do love a statement made in another song later in the album. It says "In these bodies we will live, in these bodies we will die. Where you invest your love, you invest your life. Awake, my soul. You were made to meet your maker."

Worship to me is the total eviction of me and total focus on God and His mercy and grace. It is a profound conversation between a creation and it's Creator regardless of context.

Luckily, God is so great I can come to Him with questions and He has answers. I can come to Him hurting and He has love. I can come to Him happy and we celebrate. By sending your Son to die and to carry the sin weight of the world, I'm pretty sure God understands my questions and pains. There is no need to hide that, especially in music. Those meaningless words are secular and sacred worship. What does that even mean to call something sacred and something secular?

I created this blog with a verse in mind. Psalm 33:3 "Sing unto the Lord a new song. Play skillfully with a loud noise." God wants our creativity and He wants our praise. He wants our music and apparently, He wants it to be noisy and loud!

Death Sentence

2012-08-27T10:20:00.000-04:00

It's 62 A.D., Paul is sitting in a jail cell for following Jesus. The Roman Empire is bearing down on Christians for following the Renegade rather than pledging allegiance to Caesar. Paul has been stoned (by rocks of course), shipwrecked twice (one time a snake bit him when he came ashore), beaten multiple times, as well as, suffered many other attacks. His faith does not waiver despite these indignities. He was sold on Jesus. When someone who has died shows up in front of you to confront your actions, that is a huge game changer. Paul was sold on Jesus, even though the punishment was to die. This group of people who had been taught by Paul and who considered Paul to be a father of the faith were concerned. They had nothing, yet they gave all they had and then gave more. Paul states in chapter 4 of Philippians that he had received their gift and realized the sacrifice necessary to send a gift of that magnitude. As Jay DePoy, my pastor, stated "Every act of love increases your ability to love". These Philippians loved Paul. My point though, comes at the very end of this letter from Paul to the Philippians in a very peculiar couple of sentences.

Philippians 4:21-23 "Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar's household. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit."

Those brothers in verse 21 that Paul is speaking of are fellow inmates who were either imprisoned for their faith, or were converted by Paul upon his arrival. They say "thank you". The next verse is great. "Especially those of Caesar's household." They send a big "Hey". Do you realize the implications of that? These are people who are part of the empirical domain of Rome and they greet the Christians in Philippi. The very people who were supposed to be persecuting and squashing this Jesus movement were now a part of it. I imagine Nero's bed linens being changed and them being prayed over. Or a feast for Nero's court, being blessed before it goes to be consumed. I don't think they left tracts though, no tracts. If theses folks were caught, I am sure that an example would be made of them as well as their families. They didn't care. They loved Jesus.

Is your faith strong enough to stand in the context of a death sentence?

An Event to Remember

2012-08-02T18:27:00.000-04:00

In my current occupation as a firefighter, I have to see and do things that I typically do not wish to do. On the rare occasion, I am able to see something great and even more rare, I am allowed the opportunity to just stand back and watch something amazing. Today was one of those extremely rare occasions. It's rush hour in Candler, and people are cranky. I had the opportunity to park my 24 foot long big red truck in front of an intersection and prohibit people from passing. It was anything but pretty for just a minute. "Just hold on, you will soon see." I told one lady who was very inquisitive as to the why I would not allow her to pass through. Just peaking over the horizon, I saw the red an blue flashing lights and heard the faint sound of a siren yelp. Everyone immediately stopped trying to find a way around my truck and began looking in the direction of the faint, yet familiar sound. A Chief from the City of Asheville Fire Department, high ranking officers from both the North Carolina Highway Patrol, City of Asheville and Buncombe County Sheriff's Department as well as a motorcycle officer and other police cars filed through one by one. They were immediately followed by motorcycles from The Patriot Guard and directly in the center of the 40-50 motorcycles came a white SUV. Standing out of the sunroof opening, breathing the air of home, stood Staff Sergeant Christopher Ollis from the United States Army to thank us. After serving three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, he was home. The procession was taking him to McCormick Field in Downtown Asheville not to enjoy "America's favorite pastime", but to throw ball with his son. His son had won a chance to throw out the first pitch of the game tonight. His dad would appear out of the dugout before the game dressed as the team's catcher. This excited kid would throw ball with what he presumed to be the catcher of the Tourist baseball team and then when he threw the first pitch, with the ball safely secured in the catcher's mitt, the staff sergeant would remove the catcher's mask revealing to the ecstatic child that his father had returned home safely. In the above picture, the staff sergeant embraces his children much like he caught the baseball, wrapping them up tightly, safe and secure. This day, I will remember for a long time. Welcome home Staff Sergeant Ollis.

The Intentional Gospel

2012-06-14T14:07:00.001-04:00

What I am writing about is scandalous. It is so controversial people have been killed for spreading its message. I'm sure there are people who dislike or even hate me because of my stance, but it's ok, I know the risks involved. See, we have this epidemic spreading throughout churches of America. There is an epidemic of omission spreading from our pulpits and street corners. We have people on this "special agenda" from god. It's the agenda of comfort. People love their comforts, that's why we have churches growing stagnate at an alarming rate. Being born into sin, we have this want and a catchy motto to accompany it: "If it feels good, do it." Good church folks refuse to acknowledge such a motto, however the evidence is irrefutable. In a recent survey, the number one reason behind church controversy is the style of worship. Really? Did I read that correctly? How we worship God creates controversy. Someone call a doctor, this thing is broken! High on that list is the translation of Bible used in a congregation. I'm not saying that all translations are inspired or even accurate, but I do know the King James Version of the Bible isn't the original, nor did it fall out of heaven to the early church. By the way, those are two examples of why I have been given regarding my heathenism of carrying an ESV Bible. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying the KJV is incorrect or shouldn't be used, I have one I use. However, my point is we have strayed so far from grace, we are blinded to it. We have this comfort and we take everything out of the equation as long as our comfort is securely in place. So I ask, why not be more concerned with the wants of God? I refer to the verse that inspired such a blog, Psalm 33:3 "Sing unto the Lord a new song, play skillfully with a loud noise". It is my belief that God wants our creativity, He did put that within us. Evidence, look around. God was creative when He made us. People are all very different, unique and loved by God. God doesn't want to hear the same stuff over and over again coming from us. He wants us to find new ways to uplift Him. There's a reason dripping water on one's forehead in equal intervals is referred to as water torture. Think about it, you'll see the connection.

Secondary issues are placed in pulpits along with opinions and the Gospel is neglected. Having been called to pastoral ministry, my calling and what God wishes for me to do is preach the Gospel. When someone told one of the greatest preachers in history, Charles Spurgeon, his messages all sounded alike, his response was simple. He replied he read the text and made a bee-line to the cross. Our churches need more pastors with a heart for evangelism as well as a love for the lost as Mr. Spurgeon had.

The people from a certain church recently protested Billy Graham here in Asheville. They have their signs that say God hates and at the bottom they have some group of people listed. I also have had the misfortune of seeing people from other places come into Asheville and "preach" to people downtown with bullhorns and other media saying that God hates and the list is long. If these people are correct, I'm doomed. So are you. However, I know that they are incorrect and have overlooked a crucial part of who God is. His very name is Love. Even in the most quoted verse of the Bible (John 3:16), it states that "God so loved the world". It doesn't say God loves this group, but not that group, this denomination, but not them because their music is too loud. It says God loves the world. That's everybody. He loves me and He loves you. He doesn't care what you have done in your past. He knows about it, so don't be fooled, but He loves you anyhow. Even that stuff that no one knows about, He knows and He loves you.

On the other end of the spectrum are the health, wealth and prosperity people who believe that God will give you good vibes, euphoria and everything you heart desires if you follow Him. They are correct in a sense, but their timing happens to be a little off. Jesus and His followers were persecuted. Hated. They were often times homeless and hungry. They were beaten, imprisoned and left for dead. We are told though that when we have finished the race, given our lives, not 10% of our lives (just our money) to Christ, we then will receive the health, wealth and prosperity of spending eternity with our Savior.

I want to wrap this up by telling a story. Soon after the resurrection of Christ, the Jewish hierarchy was pretty ticked off. There was a group of people that just would not let this Jesus thing go. They were growing larger despite the opposition and the Roman empire breathing down their neck. The Jews were convinced that this Jesus was trying to overthrow their comfort zone (and He was). They paired up with the Romans and convinced the Romans that this Jesus movement would create an uproar to make the Romans look bad. Neither group could allow that to happen. They knew of this Jewish rabbi who had studied with the best. He was also a killer. They sent him from town to town like the Orkin man to exterminate these Christians. He was on a mission from God, or so he thought. That is until a once dead Jesus stopped him. On the road to Damascus, Jesus appeared to Saul and changed his heart and his mission. Now known as Paul, this revolutionary was key to the early church and it's growth. Paul didn't give Jesus part of his life, or part of himself. He gave it all. Everything Paul did was for the church and the message of the scandalous grace of the Gospel. In my head, I picture the Romans would approach Paul and say, "stop spreading this Jesus or we will kill you". His reply was, "to die is gain". Frustrated, they would say, "ok, we'll leave you alone". "To live is Christ", he would say. Even more frustrated with this guy having the uncanny knack for getting under their skin, they would say, "fine, we'll beat you and throw you into prison". Paul would laugh and calmly say, "that's fine, just give me a song book and I'll sing then lead your guards to Jesus". He was unstoppable! You have to love Paul. But Paul's life was about Jesus. He lived out what it meant to take up your cross and follow Jesus.

I leave you stating that I have made some big mistakes in my life. Even on my best days, I still come short of the standard of Christ. But, so do you and that puts us in the same place of emptiness. God works on a pass/fail grading scale. We all start with a failing grade. This guy Jesus that I've been talking about, He's our ticket to pass. Christ lived a perfect life to be the blameless replacement for us. It's kind of like that report we did in school. We received an F on it, but when Jesus was on the cross, he put His name on our paper and gave us His paper. Jesus, on the cross, took all of the mistakes I made and all of the areas where we don't make the grade, and exchanged them for His perfection. He only asks that we do one thing, we surrender. We give up our hopes, dreams and well, everything to Him. We get rid of our plan for life that in the end would be ridiculous and messed up leaving us in a pile of hopelessness and we embrace His plan. It won't be easy, and we will still mess up, but He knows. We will still have daily struggles and issues, but He loves us regardless. People will hate our message and hate us, but that's ok too. They hated Jesus, but He overcame them. The Good News about this is we don't have to change ourselves first. We just have to surrender. Daily. In the end, if we surrender, His love for us wins. It conquers our anxiety, addictions, bad habits and imperfections. If we don't surrender to Christ, we keep our F and we are doomed. However, with His love, it is never too late. You can never be too far from Him to receive His grace. He's looking for you and pursuing you relentlessly. He is waiting on you and waiting to place that passing grade on your permanent record. His grace covers us, His love for us never fails and it is so sweet. Love wins.

It's not over...

2012-04-07T11:44:00.000-04:00

Mary missed her Lord, she wanted nothing more than for Him to still be there. Mary Magdalene, and another friend went with her early that morning to anoint Jesus. They had no idea how they were going to get into the tomb, but it was irrelevant. The stone was gone. All the emotions of just a few days ago were rolling up inside them again. Panic was running through their veins and fear was written on their faces. As they rush in to confirm their fears they see some guy sitting there. Wondering who this guy was and what he was doing there, they were scared. The guy told them to not be afraid, that Jesus of Nazareth, the very person they were looking for was not there. I think Mary M probably gave him a "duh" right there. He wasn't finished though, he told them He was risen and to tell the disciples and Peter what they had seen. That was some amazing grace at it's finest. Peter who had denied Christ just days ago was dealing with some heavy stuff. He thought he could never be forgiven. Could you imagine having denied Christ only to hear that He wanted you to know personally that He was alive and everything was better than ok? The ladies rush away from the tomb, scared out of their minds and they told no one.

Jesus showed up to Mary M's house one morning and performed yet another miracle. She rushed to the disciples and told them but they did not believe her. Then Jesus appeared to two of the disciples and they told the others with excitement, but again they didn't believe. I think Jesus chuckled as He showed up in front of all of them. "Really? I showed up to 3 of you. I even told you I would rise from the dead before I died and you still didn't believe." That's Nateaphrased...

Fear turned to hope, anxiety turned to passion as He spoke. He told them to go into every nation and every nook and cranny of those nations proclaiming this hope. So they did go to many nations preaching Jesus through love. Jesus had sent the Holy Spirit to guide them and us as we proclaim that

He is ALIVE!!!!!

It is finished...

2012-04-06T22:39:00.001-04:00

It happened, just how He said it would. He was arrested, tried and falsely convicted. They saw Him beaten, forced to carry a cross and nailed to the cross. They saw Him raised up, mocked and forsaken by God. He took the sin of the world on Himself and died. Jesus is dead. They carried Him to a borrowed tomb and watched as the Romans rolled a stone to seal them out, posting guards by the door. There's confusion and chaos everywhere. It seems that no one knows what to do. So they go back to the last place, the last place they met and they pray. They pray for wisdom, for peace, for understanding but mostly they pray for their Rabbi whom they had followed giving up everything. They followed Him homeless, hungry and in doubt, but He always had a plan and their needs were always met. Already they miss His teaching and His way of pulling things together. Judas is hanging from a tree, Peter is in disbelief that he actually denied His Lord and thinks He's doomed. The only thing "good" about today was that the prophecies had been fulfilled. There was no doubt in the mind of these 11 radicals that Jesus was the Messiah. They had witnessed history be changed forever. History was no longer customs and traditions, it was now His story and they were going to change the world.
It's not over...

The Silent One

2012-03-16T18:51:00.003-04:00

Have you ever seen a speech delivered by Adolph Hitler? Being of German descent, I have to admit I have no idea what he's saying. However, due to history, I know that it isn't good. That isn't really the point though. The point is Hitler moved people. What he said and how he said it had a way of connecting and moving the people into following him by the masses. Ghandi, Churchill, Lincoln, Stalin as well as a few other political and religious leaders could move people as well in this magnitude. Let's face the music though, we all can't deliver a speech to such a mass amount of people such as these people. We can, however, have a huge impact. I want to look at the life of who I consider to be an often overlooked disciple. I give you none other than Andrew.

He was formerly a follower of John the Baptist. He met Jesus before actually being called by Christ. In Luke we read that he brought his brother Cephas (Peter) to meet the Messiah. This played a crucial part in Peter's later announcement to Christ that he was the Messiah. He returned to being a fisherman and it is believed that almost a year passed before Christ came to the shore side and told Peter and Andrew to follow Him and He would make them fishers of men. I believe that Jesus to these two because he knew what Peter would do in the future of establishing the church and reaching countless people. He also saw that Andrew was the one who would bring people to Him. We don't see a lot of Andrew throughout the Gospels, but his small appearances make a huge impact.

The next time we see this quiet apostle is at the Sea of Tiberias among a multitude of hungry people who were following Jesus. Phillip, when asked by Christ how to feed such a large amount of people, was frightened and even said it was simply impossible. Then Andrew spoke up and begin asking what sort of provisions there were. He then led the boy with five loaves and two fishes stating that it wasn't much, but it was all the boy had to provide for all these people. If you're unaware of the remainder of this story, Jesus performed a miracle by using those five loaves and two fishes to feed the large crowd of people.

Next, when Andrew shows up, the disciples and Jesus are on the side of the Jordan. There were some pagan converts who were in Jerusalem to worship God during the Passover. They approached Phillip asking to see Jesus and Phillip delegated the task to Andrew. Andrew took the request to Christ, and though it was not said if Christ met with these converts, I believe that Christ would not have turned them away. However, they received a tremendous surprise. Jesus responded in John 12:23-29, and it reads: 23 Jesus replied to them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 “I assure you: Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains by itself. But if it dies, it produces a large crop.[g] 25 The one who loves his life will lose it, and the one who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me. Where I am, there My servant also will be. If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him. 27 “Now My soul is troubled. What should I say—Father, save Me from this hour? But that is why I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify Your name!”[h] Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again!” 29 The crowd standing there heard it and said it was thunder. Others said that an angel had spoken to Him. (HCSB)

While sitting on the Mount of Olives, Jesus, Peter, James, John and Andrew took part in an event with Christ that upset every Jew tremendously when Jesus prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem. In Mark 13, we read that Jesus was asked to reveal when this will take place and what will be the sign. Jesus' reply proceeded the question, and you can read that for yourself.

The next time you hear of Andrew occurs after the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. The disciples met in the upper room, full of anxiety about what was coming next, to pray.

It's neat to look at the other disciples and their personalities contrasted to the personality of Andrew. He wasn't outspoken like Peter, he didn't ask for special status such as James and John. But more curious and unusual is the fact that our Lord Himself let Andrew stand by in silence. Jesus had not called him to a place of superiority among His disciples; it was his brother Simon, who owed his acquaintance with Jesus to Andrew, whom our Lord had called to be the leader of the apostles. But would not Peter's brother also have been capable of holding the keys of the kingdom of heaven, even more fit than the impetuous Peter? And it was not Andrew whom our Lord permitted to rest on His bosom, but John. Did Andrew therefore love his Master less than John? No. He too experienced with John the joy of the "tenth hour."

Andrew simply did not belong to the circle of the entrusted three whom our Lord especially had chosed to witness the most important hours of his life; at least not directly as did Peter, James, and John. When Christ was raising the daughter of Jairus to life, certainly this apostle was waiting with the other eight outside the small room. With them he remained behind also when our Lord took Peter, James, and his brother John and ascended Mount Tabor for the Transfiguration. Even in the Garden of Olives, Andrew had to remained with the other apostles; he was not permitted to go off a distance with our Lord and the privileged three-although he might have been the only one to keep a watch and pray and not fall asleep.

The fact that Andrew was sometimes with the three "elite" apostles and sometimes with the other eight is clearly shown to us throughout the Gospels. Jesus didn't consider Andrew less important than the first three apostles. Think about it though, what seems to be an oversight on the part of Christ is a great act of trust and confidence I believe. Andrew was the first one to be called. Between Jesus and him there was an understanding. He is loved even when there are no special favors. This, it can be rightly judged, was the relationship between Jesus and Andrew, a silent understanding and love, a real happiness.

One of the lessons we are taught through Andrew is that the one who holds a place of honor must not always be the one to speak; and if he is the first, he should also be as the last. It is easier to fall from a high place than from a low place. Andrew showed that it is possible, though difficult, for a great person to practice true humility.

Another lesson I believe, is that we may not be our brother (Peter) and reach thousands upon thousands of people, many at the same time. However, if you look at Andrew, he was constantly bringing one, two, three people to Christ. My point is, we may not be the next Dr. Graham, we may not be the next Peter or Paul. We may, however, be the next Andrew and a constant, steady flow of people to Christ. The church of today should have this picture and hang on to it. While it's great to bring in thousands and thousands of people to Christ at one time (I might add that there's absolutely nothing wrong with that, it's completely Biblical), however I can't help to think that most of us don't have that spiritual gift. Most of us will be bringing the one person, the two people and so on. If you are part of a church that has say 100 people, your fellow Christians as well as yourself should have no problem reaching thousands of people.

The moral of the story: instead of being a mega star, be humble, brave and silent while leading people one at a time to the Rock Star. (That's JESUS)

I'm a Saint

2012-02-16T23:05:00.002-05:00

I hope you like the new look. I really liked the idea of making my own banner for the site, so I made one. It's right up there, yep above this. I hope you like it!

I'm a saint. There, I said it. Saint Nate is my name and well, my game is pretty lame. Sometimes rhyming gets on my nerves so I'll stop for the sake of you as well. If I had to choose my saint name though, it would definitely be Saint Liechtensteiner or something cool like that. Nate will suffice though. So I know I talk a lot on here about Christian hip-hop, but I am very impressed with these men and their influence on urban culture. The subject of this is really based off a song by Christian artist Tedashii titled "I'm a Saint". These guys have recently released an album entitled Man Up. This album by a group of these guys called the 116 Clique is a great charge to urban men and even includes a Bible study and ways for men to "Man Up".

Back to the scheduled program, I am a saint. No, sainthood has not been granted to me by a church, religious organization or country, but by Christ who gave His life for me. When He came to earth for me, he saved me from my filth. It doesn't stop there, and that act wasn't a free ticket to heaven and eternal cloud surfing. I had to reach a place in my life where I realized that without Christ's forgiveness, I would be eternally doomed. When I reached that place, I had no idea about the work but joy that came next. A lot of people and even pastors think that saying a little prayer will get you riding the clouds. Wrong! The key to salvation, which is a far cry from cloud surfing, is repentance. When Christ died, He became an atonement for our sins. What is atonement you might ask? The best way I've ever heard it defined is like this: at|one|ment. When we turn away (repent) of our sins, filth, bad habits, etc. we become at one with God. We don't become God, but Children of God. The key there is we have to die, yes die. We have to die to all our wants, dreams and selfishness and totally give ourselves to God. We have to want His will and we have to give up sin. That's the only way to go to heaven and eternally give praise to God who sacrificed paradise to come down to earth and suffer, be beaten, mocked, humiliated and die to raise from the dead and defeat death for our sins. So, being a child of God, this has put me into the status of sainthood. Not so I can boast, but that Christ can get all of the glory and praise. I am second...

Check this out!

2012-02-08T12:20:00.001-05:00

I 1000000% support this movement. http://Www.thewhosoevers.com Shared via TweetCaster

Business vs Ministry

2012-02-07T11:19:00.001-05:00

I think I'll take on the area of churches operating as businesses. I've seen a lot of things that even my own church has done that, while making perfect sense as a business practice, have absolutely no logic to it ministry-wise. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that we should be bad stewards of what we have been given, or that we shouldn't try to bring money in. I'm saying that the money we bring in as a church, should go back out and invested in the eternal lives of people.

When we look at our church finances and begin to make cuts because we are worried that the money may not come, we have essentially taken God out of the picture. There isn't any faith in that, so what are we teaching our congregations? Again, great business decision and a poor ministry decision.

I recently read an article about a band who were beginning to set up a live recording of one of their concerts live. I love live recordings, they are artistry at their best. However, when creating a set list they were faced with omitting a song that their church worshipped to in a remarkable way because it wasn't really a record selling song. They had to ask themselves if their purpose was to sell records or facilitate worship. They chose to worship, but how easy would it have been to sell more and essentially make more abandoning their call and purpose? How easy is it for us as believers to forget our call and purpose?

I was taught as a child to never question your elders, pastors, or church staff. I didn't listen very well and I will do my best to never teach that. Even in the Bible we are told to have discernment, and to test spirits. So, I encourage you to test everything. Your pastor, Sunday school teacher, myself, the bands you listen to, everything. If nothing else, you will learn more about God's word and additionally, your own faith.

A Bedtime Snack

2011-07-06T23:23:00.001-04:00

Hey everyone! I hope it's been a great week.

I'be talked to a lot of people recently about culture and how it relates to the church. Some believe cultural relevancy does not belong in the church. Some believe it has everything to do with the church. What do you think? Here's Nate's opinion....

I believe that the church must be culturally relevant to be effective. Jesus talked to people in their culture and in a way they understood. Don't believe me? Read the stories of Jesus ministering and see how He presented Himself in regards to where He was. Do I think most churches are effective? No. We've become fat sheep that will either fall over or be eaten by the wolves. After studying Acts and the early church and studying the ministry of Jesus, I see that we're doing things pretty opposite. Church today is referred to as an empty building most of the time. In Acts, the church was the people, regardless of their location. The early church moved and didn't wait for people to come to them while they were getting fat. They went out looking for people to bring in, give their story to, build a relationship with and lead to Christ. Then they discipled them and send them out. We do that as a church body maybe twice a year. Look at the Great Commission. It says "go" there isn't a maybe or wait, but it says for us to go. When was the last time you went and followed God? When the disciples were called, they had to drop everything right then and there and follow Christ no knowing where they were going, what would happen to them, or when and if they would come back. The church should follow Christ in the same way. We should sit around and constantly be fed. We should be going out into our communities and seek out the lost. We should meet for discipleship, but that's it! The Bible says we should watch for the Lord's return and when we watch, there's an urgent sense and so we should be urgently trying to get all the people we can to go to paradise with us forever. I know this isn't popular, mostly because we are comfortable, but Jesus was anything but comfortable here on earth. Also, we should be building relationships with lost people and eating and hanging out with then. The pharisees criticized Jesus for doing that, but He is our example. Jesus did this so they would listen to Him as a teacher and friend. He didn't come in and yell at them and tell them they were condemned. He instead talked to them and then shared the Good News that He was the Messiah.

My question is are we fat sheep or are we sheep that are ready to travel?

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A few minutes to talk

2011-06-21T20:58:00.000-04:00

Hello all, I hope you are having a fantastic week. I had a great father's day this past Sunday as I spent all day with my wife and kids and after church, just enjoyed them. My band Restored just finished a fundraiser concert with some local and not so local artists and it was great, but I am very glad it is over. Along with us was Sarah McCoy, Winston Holder, and Katy Kinard. Katy came from Nashville, Winston from Charlotte and Sarah is a hometown girl. I want to talk about some local options for hearing and being exposed to local bands and venues to see such bands within the contemporary Christian genre. First, is probably my favorite place to spend a Friday or Saturday evening in downtown Asheville, strategically situated between two bars and that is Creature's Cafe. It's a great and family friendly place to go hang out, meet people and listen to some great music. Bands from all over the area come and play there, and their windows are huge and swing open so anyone walking between bars are likely to hear some great Christian music. They offer "mocktails" which are non-alcoholic drinks, coffee and the likes as well as some amazing cheesecake. Go check them out, they are right off of Patton Ave. in downtown Asheville beside Tupelo Honey Cafe. Also in the area is Rodney's Auto on Main St. in Weaverville. While it is not a typical concert venue as through the week it is a functioning auto repair shop, it is great for the family to enjoy some outdoor music while cruising along Main St. in Weaverville. Every third Thursday night is bike night I believe, and so you can hang out, look at cool bikes and hear great music! I might add that Restored and Relentless Flood will be playing there August 13th!

Now for some local musicians/bands that I love. Mainly because I know them and I know their heart, but also because they have some great music! First of course, is my band Restored. We play mostly praise and worship music with some southern classic rock influenced in there. You can check us out at www.reverbnation.com/restoredband Second, is a band called Relentless Flood, they are from the Spruce Pine/Newland area and are some great friends of mine. They tend to play more rock music, so if that isn't your thing, I have told you. You can check them out at www.reverbnation.com/relentlessflood Third is the lovely yet hard rocking band Bestowed. They are a little more heavy than the previous, but their message is awesome. You can check them out at www.reverbnation.com/bestowed

There are tons more that I could talk about, but it is that time yet again...time to get the kids ready for bed. Maybe I'll make a part 2 soon!

Nate

In case it doesn't show up.

2011-04-26T16:37:00.001-04:00

http://vimeo.com/9944669'>Nate Johnson shared the clip "SKILLET's story" with you

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Greetings to all!

2011-04-26T16:07:00.001-04:00

Hey everyone, Happy Easter!!! He's alive! So I got a new phone and now I can blog from the phone. Before I talk about music, I have a couple of things I would love for you all to pray about with me. First, I have surgery tomorrow to fix my rotator cuff and that will be a long process of recovery. Second, I am trying to save up to go to Honduras this July on a medical mission trip.

I am excited about what's going on in music right now, particularly. Contemporary Christian music. The Dove Awards were last week as well and I can't wait to see it. I was able to see Tobymac at Biltmore Baptist a few weeks ago and see the side projects his band are involved with. I am impressed at their testimonies and their lives. I even got to see some friends from back home which was nice as well!

I want to invite everyone of you to listen to all kinds of Christian music and not limit yourself to one kind. I have an oarray from bluegrass to Christian hip hop (lecrae is my favorite). But let God lead you to the music you like. If you don't think that God would approve of the music, challenge the words of the song to the words of God. If you don't think the beat is appropriate, David danced naked because of God's greatness, don't become self righteous and see what moves your heart. One piece of advice though, I see a lot of people disapprove what they think God will not like. Just a friendly reminder that we are not God and "our thoughts are not His thoughts, our ways are not His ways". I know God uses all kinds of music with a gospel message to reach people that may not hear it otherwise. People will go to a Christian rock or rap concert before they'll go to church. That's why I am passionate for any kind of music that portrays the Gospel in a great way.

That's all for now! See you when the anesthesia wears off!

In Christ,

Nate

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Test

2011-04-25T23:16:00.001-04:00

Hi. Test run from the new Droid! Is anyone out there?