Prosperity - The Challenge

This passage has been on my heart recently.

Psalm 118:22-26 (NKJV) – The stone which the builders rejected
has become the chief cornerstone.
This was the LORD’s doing; It is marvelous in our eyes.
This is the day the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.
Save now, I pray, O LORD; O LORD, I pray, send now prosperity.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD!
We have blessed you from the house of the LORD.

The Hebrew word for prosperity in this passage is Tsalach (Strongs #06743). It has a wide range of meaning, including to advance, prosper, to make successful and profitable. In fact, the NIV translates verse 25 as “grant us success”. In this passage we see that the Scripture exhorts us to pray to God for prosperity and success in our undertakings.

In my own Christian life I have swung between extremes. Sometimes I have been the typical Word-of-Faith person, declaring by faith success in everything. Sometimes I have been more passive, just getting along with my activities and trusting God to prosper whatever he chose to. This isn’t wrong, by the way, we see this kind of attitude displayed in Ecclesiastes 11:6.

But this season, I’ve gone back to plain old asking. God, prosper the work of my hands, and grant me success! Driving this consistent prayer are two realizations:

1) We cannot afford to NOT prosper

When can you afford to not prosper? I cannot imagine. If you are a parent, prosperity means raising your children well. If you are a pastor, prosperity means taking good care of the congregation God has entrusted to your care. If you are a doctor, prosperity means your patients get better, not worse. If you are an employee, prosperity means you succeed at the tasks entrusted to you. If you are a worship minister, prosperity means you led the people into a powerful and life-changing encounter with the God of the universe, instead of wasting the time and the opportunity.

So when can you afford not to prosper? If your life is meaningfully occupied, you have no room in your life for not prospering!

2) We are called to prosper

New Testament believers are called to a priestly ministry…

1 Peter 2:9 (NKJV) - But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

… and the priestly tribe, Levi, had a special calling to prosperity and success. We see that from the blessing Moses spoke over Levi.
If we take this prayer and apply it to our New Testament priesthood, it tells us that we are to pray that our skills (work, music or others) be blessed (successful) and that our works are pleasing to the LORD. We are called to prosper, but we have the obligation to seek God for it.

Deuteronomy 33:11 (NIV) – “Bless all his skills, O LORD, and be pleased with the work of his hands. Smite the loins of those who rise up against him; strike his foes till they rise no more.”

And how will we know if we have it?

Consider the example of Joseph in Genesis 39.

Genesis 39:2-5 (NIV) - The LORD was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD gave him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the LORD blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the LORD was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field.

In the above passage, both “prospered” and “success” are the same Hebrew word, Tsalach, again. God’s prosperity leads to blessings with tangible evidence in our work, ministry and family. If we are truly walking in the prosperity of God, the people of the world can tell. It’s as obvious to them as it was to Potiphar in Joseph’s time.

Are you feeling uncomfortable yet? I am. I know that my life isn’t anywhere near that standard yet. And if God wants me to prosper in all to which I set my hand, and there is a spiritual calling upon my life for success, then it’s MY responsibility if it’s not happening. It’s MY responsibility to seek God for wisdom and direction, and then to take action as he directs.

And that is why praying for success is so important. Praying means an active communication and communion with God. When I pray, rather than just speak the success over my life or let God prosper whichever area he chooses to, I am putting myself in a position and frame of mind to hear God on the areas of my life he wants me to work on, to see the results he wants me to have.

Conclusion:

Of course there is a lot more to Biblical prosperity than just asking God for it. There is the meditation on the Word of God (Joshua 1:8, Psalm 1:3), the presence of God (Genesis 39:2), seeking the LORD (2 Chronicles 26:5) and other areas I probably haven’t realized yet. But I share this with you first to invite you to join me on this journey. Let’s grow in wisdom and understanding in the prosperity God desires for us, shall we?

Don't Entertain Fear

It's both amusing and sad at the same time.

I come from a Word-of-Faith background, and I get to fellowship with people who believe in biblical wealth and divine health. So they do not put up with financial lack or sickness; they will immediately pray for money or healing, as the case may be.

But I personally know many in the worship ministry who would tolerate and entertain the spirit of fear. Why???

2 Tim 1:7 (NKJV) - For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

Sometimes the fear is obvious.

One worship leader I work with regularly ALWAYS puts her songs in keys that are too low for the congregation. And she does that even though she can reach ALL the higher notes she needs, even if she puts the songs in my key.

I'll remind her to use the best key for the congregation, and I always get a snap, unthinking reaction. "No, cannot, too high for me!" She would say that every time, as if I was one of those dabblers and wannabes who don't really know music, or as if I am just a musician and not a fellow worship leader trying to help. I get tired of having to remind her that I already KNOW her vocal range, and that I'm not out to embarrass her or mess up her singing!

Sometimes it's not so obvious.

I remember once being a guest worship leader (at another church), and facing a musician who told me he does not read chord charts. I remembered thinking to myself "what's he going to do on the keyboards then? Doodle all over the place and call it playing by the spirit?"

You can guess how irritated I was by that, until I realized he would rather keep his playing random (doodling) so that he could deny responsibility for his note choices and "inspiration". Basically, he was afraid of people judging his choice of notes and thinking they were lousy.

(They were, by the way. His note choices were quite random, but consistently lousy. They'd clash with the chords, rhythms and the rest of the band. The music sounded better whenever he stopped playing...)

And that was why he refused to learn how to read chord charts or write down the notes he needed to play to fit the rest of the band. Ironic, to 'protect' his note choices from being judged he ended up with totally lousy ones.

Fear has a way of messing up everything, I noticed...

The point of what I'm saying is this: many people, including myself, have areas in our daily lives where we need to face up to our fears. Whether those areas are music-related (sight-reading, singing or strumming) or not (writing in proper English, public speaking or making conversation with strangers) does not matter. We should not entertain or tolerate fear in our lives. We should face up to them instead.

How should we do that? Get the support and prayers of our friends, get coaching from someone who knows what he or she is doing, and just get on with it. God has given us a measure of faith (Rom 12:3) and we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us (Phil 4:13), so let's throw off fear and live the life of faith he wants us to live!

Be blessed!

Commitment

A subscriber to my emails asked for my thoughts about commitment in ministry. It's a big topic, so i took a while to think about it. Three points came to mind

1) Commitment is a key to experiencing God's presence

In Psalm 15, we see what God looks for in a person who lives in God's presence. In other words, this is a person God is comfortable having near him; God enjoys this person's company!

Psalm 15 (NIV): LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary?
Who may live on your holy hill?
He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous,
who speaks the truth from his heart and has no slander on his tongue,
who does his neighbour no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman,
who despises a vile man but honours those who fear the LORD,
who keeps his oath even when it hurts,
who lends his money without usury
and does not accept a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things will never be shaken.

"Who keeps his oath even when it hurts" is the best definition of commitment I can think of. It is when it hurts that you see how committed someone is. Sometimes the hurt is not even actual pain but boredom. Are you the sort of person who chooses to exercise daily, who chooses to eat and drink healthily, who feeds your spirit and mind with the word of God, even when it gets boring?

One thing that worries me is how few people can endure boredom. Growing in knowledge and skills (including music and singing skill) means sticking with something even when it is boring. Serving in ministry may not always be exciting and fresh. Are you willing to make your decisions (gaining new skills, serving God, taking good care of your physical health) a habit?

That is when you start to enjoy the benefits of commitment!

2) Commit only what you are willing to commit

One reason some people break their commitments is because they are too ambitious when they start. For example, if you are just starting to learn the guitar, committing yourself to practicing for an hour a day is not too smart, because many people take time for their fingers to get used to the guitar. If you are new to exercising, doing an hour a day of intense gym work is not wise.

When I start something, I start with what I know I can do the day after tomorrow. So if I am starting a new exercise, I take it easy on the first day, keep it up the second day and see if I can add a bit more on the third. Doing it like this helps to make it a habit.

When it comes to ministry, be very clear about how much time and effort you are able to commit. Do not let the needs of others compel you into doing more than you are willing to do.

2 Cor 9:6-8 (NIV) – Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

The above passage talks about money. We see God's heart in this area, that he wants our giving to be generous and cheerful. He does NOT want it to be grudging or forced. If we give money cheerfully, we enjoy the benefits of giving, having all that we need and abounding in good works.

I personally take that as a principle and apply it to time and effort. Give as much time and effort as you are cheerful to give. The needs of God's house will ALWAYS be great, because many people who are supposed to serve either do not want to or are unable to serve effectively. And that means that there is a heavier burden on us who are serving.

If you let that need and burden drive and compel you to serve more than you are cheerful to serve, you will burn out and get bitter sooner or later. Don't let that happen to you!

3) Honour the commitment you receive

One big problem with commitment is that it is so unassuming. When a server keeps turning up week after week after week, he or she usually fades into the background in many people's eyes. We tend to take that person for granted, and pay attention to that server only when things go wrong!

Don't do that.

It's easy to forget the good someone has done when things go wrong. After a worship session that went badly, for example, it's easy to blame the drummer that played too slow so he could do the synocopated kick-drum pattern you hated. It's not easy to remember that this drummer served faithfully even through the past few worship ministry crisis, when everyone else quit and he didn't.

That's why you MUST make yourself remember. Especially if you are a leader in your ministry. When you serve alongside the same people week after week, you have more chances for conflicts, disagreements and misunderstandings to happen. As you deal with them, remember that you are trying to resolve problems with someone you can count on, who has proven himself or herself faithful, and is therefore honoured in God's eyes because of that.

Romans 12:7 (NIV) – Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honour, then honour.

Conclusion:

In this post we have looked at the importance of commitment, how much commitment to give and how to receive it. Out of these three areas, which challenges you the most? Pray about it!

Like Beasts That Perish

I've got a confession to make.

 

This season, I've been quite unbalanced in my Bible consumption. The only passages I am studying this season are from the Psalms (because I want to make sure I stay in the Psalmic flow in my worship ministry) and on the good stuff, like health, wealth and protection.

So you can guess I was quite taken aback when out of nowhere, the words "like beasts that perish" keep ringing in my spirit. When it stayed for more than a couple of days, I flipped over to the Psalm where it came from, Psalm 49. And I found something interesting.

 

First, this phrase is used to describe all men.

Psalm 49:12 (NIV) - People, despite their wealth, do not endure; they are like the beasts that perish.

Psalm 49:16-20 (NIV) - Do not be overawed when others grow rich, when the splendor of their houses increases; for they will take nothing with them when they die, their splendor will not descend with them. 

Which leads us to the question: who are those who have no understanding?

Psalm 73:21-22 (NIV) - When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.

In the New Testament, we see that false teachers too are like the beasts that perish. Why?

2 Peter 2:10-12 (NIV) - This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the flesh and despise authority. Bold and arrogant, they are not afraid to heap abuse on celestial beings; yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not heap abuse on such beings when bringing judgment on them from the Lord. But these people blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like unreasoning animals, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like animals they too will perish.

They follow the cravings of their fleshly nature and despise (make light) of authority. The telling sign is that they blaspheme (Strong's #987, Blasphemeo, to rail at, revile, to speak evil of) in matters they do not understand. In other words, they don't hesitate to talk trash even when they don't know the people or the issues involved.
They are also ill-disciplined, in fact, Peter refers to them as slaves of depravity (2 Peter 2:19) because depravity rules over them. I know it is fully possible for believers to be caught in the entanglement of sin and addiction. That does not automatically mean that they are like the beasts that perish. If they are humble, and are wise enough to hold their peace when they do not understand a matter, that means that they still have hope, because of the wisdom that still remains and is still working within them.

 

But if their lives are messed up and they are STILL arrogant, we have a problem here!

 

When Jude talks about people who are like beasts, the words are strikingly similar to Peter's:

Jude 8-10 (NIV) - In the very same way, on the strength of their dreams these ungodly people pollute their own bodies, reject authority and heap abuse on celestial beings. But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” Yet these people slander whatever they do not understand, and the very things they do understand by instinct—as irrational animals do—will destroy them.

In this day and age, I come across a number of children who are both ill-disciplined (no habit of delayed gratification) and quick to revile, condemn and insult. A few weeks ago, I saw a little girl, who could have been no older than five or six years old, arguing with and insulting her mother in public. That girl even went as far to as to actually strike her mother on the arm a few times, at least until she noticed my furious glare from a few metres away.

God is my witness, I was only seconds away from shouting at her hard enough to probably traumatize her for life. It was only the presence of the mother that kept me from exploding, since I knew It would be a horrible loss of face for the mother should I act as if she was incapable of disciplining her daughter and I (a total stranger) have to take over.

(by the way, I was just talking with Jess last night about facing demon-possessed people. He said I was fierce enough to frighten away demons … face-palm moment!)

After a while, the mother noticed me and remarked "Hey, aren't you the keyboardist from [my old] church?" That was more than ten years ago. And that meant that this lady was also a believer. Yet her daughter turned out like that…

Ill-disciplined and blasphemous people are on the rise in today's society. It is therefore the responsibility on us Christians to:

 

• Pray for our children 
• Model the right behavior (to be self-controlled and respectful) for them

… lest they, like too many I've seen, end up like the beasts that perish. The Bible does hold out hope for them, since we are told to:

 

Jude 23 (NIV) - … save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.

But won't it be a lot easier to keep them from descending to such depths in the first place?
Just some food for thought...

 

 All this brings me to my point:  As we have already seen from the last post, we have no understanding, we end up grieved and embittered, when we allow ourselves to envy the prosperity of the wicked.Though while they live they count themselves blessed— and people praise you when you prosper— they will join those who have gone before them, who will never again see the light of life.

 

People who have wealth but lack understanding are like the beasts that perish. Then, it is used to describe those who have no understanding, to tell us not to be intimidated when such people prosper (You listening in, Asaph?).

Spiritual Denseness and Dullness

One thing I struggle with this season is this sense of being spiritually dense, as if I am not hearing God as well as I ought to. Because I believe God is still planning good in my life, I'm trying not to let myself get too frustrated over it. But it does make me curious about being spiritually dense. What are some of the reasons people cannot hear clearly from him?

Asaph, one of the psalmists, had a struggle with this too.

Psalm 73:1 - Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.

Amen, brother! Preach it!

Psalm 73:2-3 - But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

Huh? I don't think I understand…

Psalm 73:4-5 - They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong.
They are free from common human burdens; they are not plagued by human ills.

Are you sure?

Psalm 73:6-12 – Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence.
From their callous hearts comes iniquity; their evil imaginations have no limits.
They scoff, and speak with malice; with arrogance they threaten oppression.
Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth.
Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance.
They say, “How would God know? Does the Most High know anything?”
This is what the wicked are like— always free of care, they go on amassing wealth.

Hold it there, Asaph. I'm getting the feeling that you are just generalizing here. You might see a few wicked prospering here and there, no denying that, but you make it sound like they ALL prosper. Are you sure that is what you really mean?

Psalm 73:13-14 - Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence. All day long I have been afflicted, and every morning brings new punishments.

What I always thought was that we keep our hearts pure and our hands clean so that we may ascend the mountain of the LORD (Psa 24:4) and be in his presence. What does the prosperity of the wicked have to do with it? Were you thinking that keeping a pure heart and clean hands would ensure the speedy downfall of the wicked? I don't think it works like that!

I can see that you are troubled, Asaph. It looks to me like it's coming more from holding on to your expectations, that the world has to immediately confirm to YOUR idea of justice and reality, rather than what it actually is…

Psalm 73:15-16 - If I had spoken out like that, I would have betrayed your children.
When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply

It's good that you restrain your words in front of the children of Israel, so that you do not stumble them. What I suspect is that you are trying to 'understand' all this based on your perspective, rather than the Word of God. And personally, I sometimes find that even the Word of God doesn't get through my thick skull when my emotions run amok. I think the best thing to do is…

Psalm 73:17 - till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.

Oh never mind, Asaph! I see you figured it out yourself.

Psalm 73:18-20 - Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin.
How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors!
They are like a dream when one awakes; when you arise, Lord, you will despise them as fantasies.

Notice a 180 degree change in perspective after entering the presence of God?

Psalm 73:21-24 - When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered,
I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.
Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand.
You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.

This is one of my favourite promises in the Bible. It humbles me and exalts the goodness of God at the same time. It humbles me by reminding me that no matter how spiritual I think I am, I can easily fall back into being a senseless and ignorant beast before God. And yet even then God is still with me, he still holds me and guides me. His faithfulness and patience humbles me, moves my heart and brings me to repentance.

And let's not forget the later glory he has waiting for us!

Psalm 73:25-26 - Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

I've seen people quote this verse and try using it to preach people into desiring and longing for God above the things of this world. But I seldom see them preach it in its context. "Earth has nothing I desire besides you" is NOT a command from God. It’s a statement from Asaph AFTER he has entered the sanctuary of God. In other words, you can fulfil this verse ONLY when you are in the presence of God.

Final Observations:

First, envying the wicked and becoming spiritually dense seem to come together. I discovered this when I recently went through it myself. Which comes first and causes the other? I can't say for sure. But what I CAN say is that if you find yourself envying the wicked, check to see if your spiritual senses are dulled also.

And quickly run into the sanctuary of God before the bitterness that follows (Psa 73:21) has enough time to take root and defile you (Heb 12:15)!

Second, this entire Psalm, coming from someone as spiritually mature as Asaph, is a reminder that I will need to regularly enter the sanctuary of God to restore my vision and sensitivity towards God. Therefore, I have to guard that very jealously. I cannot let condemnation keep me from seeking God when I am by myself, and I cannot let offences with others keep me from seeking God when I am in the congregation of his people. To let being offended (or "disappointed", as the pseudo-spiritual would say) with other people keep me from the presence of God is foolishness and childishness to the highest degree.

Anyway, these are my thoughts and impressions from this Psalm. I hope that something from this would edify you and encourage you in the Lord. Be blessed!

A Few Nights Back

I was just praying a couple of nights back, and this verse caught my attention.

Psalm 65: 4 (NIV) - Blessed are those you choose and bring near to live in your courts!
We are filled with the good things of your house, of your holy temple.

This is the question: what ARE the good things of God's holy temple?

I have to admit, I couldn't think of anything offhand. I looked at the rest of the psalm to see if there were any answers or clues. It continues to talk about God's character and power over the elements of nature (Psa 65:5-7). Then it describes how God gives blesses his people with abundant harvests.

If you know me long enough, you'll know that I have no objections to tangible and concrete blessings, such as wealth and health. And in this psalm, wealth is given in its most primal form, not gold, silver or precious stones, but in the form of food. In times of famine, what is the point of having money if there is no food for you to buy?

But I personally don't believe these tangible blessings are the good things the Psalmist refers to in verse 4. Those are depicted as outside of the temple, how God nourishes the land to give a bountiful harvest. What about the blessings within?

Another passage that came to mind as I mused on this,

Ephesians 1:3-9 – Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to son-ship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ…

This passage, I suspect, tells us the blessings within God's holy temple.

1. Being chosen for a destiny – vs 4-5
2. An adoption to son-ship (being an heir of God) – vs 5
3. Redemption and forgiveness – vs 7
4. Revelation of God's purpose – vs 8-9

Notice that forgiveness and being chosen also comes out early in Psalm 65?

Psalm 65:3 (NIV) - When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions.

And in the next verse:

Psalm 65:4 (NIV) – Blessed are those you choose and bring near…

Of course, Paul explains everything a lot more clearly in his letter to the Ephesians.

But there's a problem I realized I have fallen into. When I look at Ephesians 1:3-9, I know the words. But do I get the reality of the words? I don't think so. I think truly grasping these truths require revelation from the Holy Spirit of God.

1 Cor 2:9-10 (NIV) – As it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived" — the things God has prepared for those who love him — these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.

That is why even in Ephesians 1 Paul prays:

Eph 1:17-19 (NIV) – I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.

Right now, I find that I need to go back to that same prayer. All the prayer, study and meditation on that passage I have done before does not count for much in the now. It's not about how closely you followed the Lord and sought him in the days, months and years past; it's about how closely you follow him NOW. I used to take the Ephesians prayer and pray it over myself, another sibling-in-Christ and my pastor, and whenever I made that my regular practice my heart and mind was set on things above, not things below (Col 3:1-2). But once I stop I start to drift away.

I guess that is why Paul says "I KEEP asking"!

How about you? Is your heart set on things above? Are you enjoying and delighting in the good things of God's house, his holy temple?

Be blessed!

Add an Ad, Anyone?

If you are interested in making money via the Internet, there are three main ways.

1. You use your blog or website to promote your products and services
   
2. You use your blog or website to promote the products of other people, and when a sale is made through your site you get paid a commission
   
3. You have a blog or site that has very high traffic, and businesses who want to get the attention of those who pay attention to you pay you to feature their ads on your site.

As you can guess, I chose the first option, to promote my worship ministry e-training material. I didn't expect other people to want to advertise their stuff on my site, so I was pleasantly surprised when I was asked if I'd be willing to host an ad for Louie Giglio's products on my site. Being a fan of Louie Giglio's work, I of course agreed!

So my site has only ONE ad. At the other extreme, there's another worship leader's blog that has ads galore. What he did was that he signed up for those ad programs that allow Google or the blog host to allocate ads to your site based on what their systems think is relevant. Problem is, their systems decide based on keywords, and if advertisers of wrong products chose keywords poorly, the wrong kind of ads can appear on your site.

This has resulted in all kinds of products being displayed at his worship ministry site. One ad clicked over to a "Free Develop-Your-Psychic-Powers DVD program", another to "Witchcraft Exposed", which promises to teach you witchcraft secrets and spells that others will not teach you. To be frank, I sometimes head over to his site JUST to see what kind of ads will turn up THIS time!

On one hand it's funny, and on the other, it's sad. Because I know about the quirks of the ad program he signed up for, and having been online for a longer period of time than he was, I once emailed him some time back to tell him the ad program was featuring yoga products on his worship ministry site. I was expecting him to either:

1. Ignore me, since I am a stranger to him and him to me
   
2. Thank me profusely for pointing out something he didn't know and was embarrassing him behind his back. Then deal with it.
   
3. Tell me that he has investigated yoga and thinks it's OK. And if that was his personal conviction, I can respect that.

But can you believe it? He actually emailed me, saying "The ads are beyond my control…" No, they are not! He chose to allow ads on his blog. He could have decided to use a free blog that wouldn't charge him anything for hosting his site, or he could have just trusted in God to provide the less than US$10 each month to host his site.

Nope, he decided he needed the few-cents-per-click income from his site more than the respect of fellow believers and the need to follow his own convictions. * fumes *

Anyway…

In case you are thinking about making money via the Internet, I sincerely believe that the Internet, as a market, has matured. Gone are the days of making mindlessly easy money online. Making money online now takes wisdom, hard work and a willingness to grow way beyond the average person's comfort zone.

I am not very much help in this area, since I am only a worship musician. But I'd like to remind urge you to remember: whatever you do online, especially when it comes to making money, please remember:

1. The God you one day have to answer to;
   
2. Your own convictions, your personal beliefs on what is right and what is wrong; AND
   
3. Your spiritual family, the rest of the Body of Christ.

Don't do things that you'd be ashamed to acknowledge before anyone, such as using automatic article spinners to produce and submit many different versions of an article for the sake of tricking Google's search engines. If I'd be ashamed to admit that to Google, how much worse would it be to admit it before the Judge of all the earth, right?

Thanks for putting up with my rant. I just needed to get this off my chest. Be blessed!

How to Change Your Spiritual Wardrobe

For those of us who like everything listed out neatly, here are the two lists in Colossians 3.

What To Take Off

• sexual immorality
• impurity
• lust
• evil desires
• greed (= idolatry)
• anger
• rage
• malice
• slander
• filthy language
• lying

What To Put On

• compassion
• kindness
• humility
• gentleness
• patience
• forgiveness
• love

The driven, task-oriented amongst us will probably print out the lists, put them up somewhere they would see every day and make them their New Year Resolutions. From experience, only the very disciplined amongst us can make it work. And for the rest of us, we will find it very frustrating, because we are not doing things the way God wants us to do them.

How ARE We Supposed to Change?

1) Think About Godly Things

Colossians 3:1-3 – Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. (NIV)

I remember the days I so wanted to live a God-pleasing life. I had been a believer for years before that, but because I was not in fellowship with other brethren and didn't have a proper devotional life, I was convinced that it was unrealistic and unattainable. But I still wanted to try anyway.

I wasn't too sure I could follow the instructions in the Bible, but I decided that the least I could was KNOW what the instructions were. So I just made it a point to read the Bible daily. At that time I didn't know the power of reading the Bible aloud, but even then the 15-20 minutes each time, done 2-3 times a day, was enough to start changing my mind into thinking that obeying God wasn't that unrealistic and unattainable after all.

And let's face it, that was a very necessary first step!

2) Know God

Colossians 3:10 - … and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator (NIV)

In verses 9-10, Paul tells us since you have take off our old self (and its habits) and put on the new self by being renewed in knowledge in the image of our Creator. This tells me that I ought to put less attention less on changing my lifestyle and more on knowing the God who created the new me.

Consider the following:

Lev 20:26 - You are to be holy to me because I, the LORD, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own. (NIV)

Knowing the holiness of God will spur us into holy living. Notice how God uses himself as an example for us to follow?

Deut 10:18-19 - He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt. (NIV)

And in the New Testament, we are told to imitate God:

Eph 5:1-2 - Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. (NKJV)

But how can we imitate God unless we deeply and intimately know him? We need to meditate on his wonders and his deeds (Psa 77:12). When we do, and realize that we are his children and thus carry his DNA in our spirit, we then begin to find ourselves living as his children would.

3) Recognize that we are the chosen, holy and dearly loved

Colossians 3:12-14 - Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. (NIV)

This is the earlier step, Knowing God, and carries it a step further. When we know God and how much he loves us, it becomes easy to clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and so on. Why? Because we know God is like that, and he has treated us thus. And that makes it reasonable for us to do likewise.

Conclusion:

All these steps may seem simple. They are. But don't let the simplicity deceive you. They require us to put in consistent and regular effort to renew our minds. We used to live in the ways of the world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air (Eph 2:2) and so it will take time and deliberate effort to change our thought patterns and emotional habits.

It's not an easy journey. But I can assure you that you will find joy and delight in it as you know you please God in your thoughts, words and deeds. Shall we continue this journey together?

Be blessed!

My Old Clothes

I gave away a large stack of my old clothes recently.

It took a number of trips, lugging heavy bags, taking Singapore public transport and then doing a 'heave'-offering into the Salvation Army collection centre. And from the looks of things I'll still have to make a couple more trips over the next few weeks.

We Chinese usually do loads of spring-cleaning and housekeeping before the Chinese New Year. That makes it an appropriate time to look through the wardrobe and decide if you REALLY want to wear that crazy shirt you bought the last holiday…

After totally forgetting to do this for years, I finally buckled myself down and forced myself to start on seriously evaluating my wardrobe and the clothes therein. And it started me thinking about my spiritual dress sense also. To make it very simple, our spiritual dressing is made up of:

1) What We Take Off

Colossians 3:5, 8-9 – Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry… But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. (NIV)

Why were there so many of my old clothes left in my wardrobe? Because I didn't grow physically over the past 12 or so years. Many people I know wear forced to give away their old clothes because those clothes didn't fit them anymore. But for me, my height, my arm-length and even my waistline has remained the same, so I could get away with wearing the old clothes that I used to wear 12 years back.

It's just like how some believers, when they first turn to Christ from an extremely bad background, such as drug and alcohol abuse, crime and all that, change spiritual dressing very drastically. Because what they had to get rid of was very obvious and easy to see, you could see the changes in their lives very quickly. They knew their old ways just didn’t fit their new identity in Christ (2 Cor 5:17).

It was like people whose waistlines grew a few inches. It's obvious that their old jeans don't fit anymore!

Some believers don't have horrible backgrounds when they come to Christ. Maybe they were by nature nice people already, or their parents had brought them up well, or they had really good self-discipline. Because the things they had to get rid of were not so obvious, they could actually get away with staying the same, not totally surrendering their behavior and emotions to the Lord, and people around them wouldn't notice.

It's like me keeping old clothes from 12 years back because they still fit OK!

So why I get rid of the old clothes then? Because no matter how much I washed them, they still stink. There was a moldy, stale smell that wouldn't go away no matter how many times I put those clothes in the washing machine.

Likewise for our attitudes and habits. Even though they may still fit in our lives (they don't cause us or the people around us major inconvenience or problems), after a while, as we mature in Christ we realize that they stink, we don't like them and we really ought to get rid of them.

2) What We Put On

Colossians 3:12 – Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. (NIV)

Why did I get down to evaluating my wardrobe after all these years? Because I was given lots of new clothes and I needed to make space for them in my room.

That is my primary motivation for getting rid of anger, malice, slander and other inappropriate habits from my life. Even though they were not really obvious and not causing that much problems, I needed to get rid of them to make even more room for compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

One thing I appreciate about how Paul expresses himself here – he compares those virtues to clothes. One thing that sets humans apart from animals – our clothes are NOT a part of us, and we therefore have a choice in what we choose to wear.

Jeremiah 13:23 - Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots? (NKJV)

We can't change the color of our skin, but we can choose what we wear above it. Likewise, despite our basic nature, we can choose to wear compassion, kindness and the other virtues over it. At the very beginning, when we struggle with our old emotional habits and thought-life, putting on compassion can make us feel like we are faking it, that we are pretending to be kind and humble people when we aren't. The accuser can jump in to heap condemnation upon us and discourage us from the Christian walk, or we sometimes totally discourage ourselves without his help.

As long as we know that it feels uncomfortable and unnatural at the beginning, we are not expecting it to be a miraculous change and we are not very disappointed if we slip up and make mistakes. This allows us to keep on at it for the long haul, and after time what we wear becomes an integral part of our personal identity. Gentleness, kindness and patience are not longer just clothes that we may or may not wear that day; they become vital and irreplaceable aspects of our spiritual dress code.

And by that time we cannot imagine or accept replacing them with anything less!

It's just like my current dress sense. There are colours and types of clothes I know I will NEVER wear. I don't care what other people say. I am NEVER going to wear Bermuda-pants (I think I look ridiculous in them) or the brighter, fiery colours (such as yellow, orange or red). I'm sticking to my favourite colours no matter how boring they make me look. My clothes and the colours I choose are now a vital part of my personal identity and I am sticking with them!

Of course, it helps that I am already married and am no longer spouse-hunting…

So when was the last time YOU waited before the LORD and asked him what he wanted you to change in your spiritual wardrobe?

Be blessed!

Lesson From A Loser Love-Song

I was buying groceries at a supermarket near my home one day, and they started playing one of those Loser Love-Songs over the sound system. *sigh*

Loser Love-Songs is what I call those songs in which the guy gets dumped by his girlfriend and he starts mooning over her and getting all whiney and weepy. Maybe she figured out that he was that sort and that's why she left him in the first place? I wouldn't be surprised!

You can guess I get disgusted with those songs…

But that day in the supermarket, I suddenly realized there was a Biblical truth in THIS Loser Love-Song.

It's called 不要對他說 (Don't Say This To Him) and it is the guy begging the girl not to say certain things to her new boyfriend (the one she is dumping him for). If you want to check out the song, you can hear it in the video below:


The Biblical truth I noticed came out in these words

不要對他說　夜裡會害怕
Don’t tell him you are afraid at night

別說你多睌都會等他的電話
Don't say you will stay up late just for his phone call

別說你只喜歡他送的玫瑰花
Don't say that you love only the roses that come from him

因為這些　是我僅有　殘留的夢
These are my broken dreams


What suddenly struck me was the realization that even though it was a Loser Love-Song (and was setting my teeth on edge) what the composer was asking for is actually something Biblical. He was asking for intimacy, in other words, that there be something that be kept as an exclusive experience between him and his lover.

I believe this is what we earnestly desire when it comes to our romantic lives, a sense of communicating and connecting with someone of the opposite gender so deeply and on an exclusive level. This is what is described in the following passage:

Song of Solomon 4:10-12 (NIV) - How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much more pleasing is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice!

Your lips drop sweetness as the honeycomb, my bride; milk and honey are under your tongue. The fragrance of your garments is like that of Lebanon.

You are a garden locked up, my sister, my bride; you are a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain.

Not only is this sense of exclusivity shown to be desirable in women, it is also urged upon men as well.

Proverbs 5:16-17 (NIV) - Should your springs overflow in the streets, your streams of water in the public squares? Let them be yours alone, never to be shared with strangers.

One thing about this sense of exclusivity, we hurt ourselves and the people we open ourselves to if we do it prematurely, or to the wrong people. That's why we need to give ourselves time in any romantic relationship, time to see if this person is someone who can be trusted with our secrets, especially our weaknesses or past mistakes.

Be especially cautious of people who take your weaknesses or past mistakes and use them against you when during quarrels and arguments. Cut these people out of your life immediately. You will regret getting even closer with such people, that I can promise you. These people are what I consider the thorns in the flesh, the messengers of Satan that you should avoid like the plague.

And if they can be harsh and unforgiving to you before marriage, remember, you are totally at their mercy after marriage. Either that or you be prepared to live the rest of your life putting on a false front before your spouse or wondering when any skeletons in your closet will be discovered or when your past will finally catch up with you.

It doesn't have to be like that.

But it does mean that you be very discerning about the people you share the deepest, most intimate (exclusive) secrets of your life with. It may mean waiting longer for the right person, or it may mean investing time, money and effort in getting sound Christian counseling and pastoral care for your life first, so you will be able to discern the right person when he or she arrives.

Will it be worth it? I can't answer that question for you, but would you rather be the one standing outside an ex-girlfriend or boyfriend's window singing a loser love-song?

Recognizing Arrogance

This is the question I received via email.

"Should we recruit experienced worship leaders and musicians who would like to join our worship team from another church which we know they possess arrogance and think that they are better than the leaders of our church?"

Looking at the question, I think the answer is simple: No. Have nothing to do with arrogant people, but rather avoid them. Truly arrogant people cause more damage than they are worth. But how would we recognize people who are arrogant?

What I experienced with my life is this: because I am confident in many things (or at least look confident) and can express my viewpoints strongly, insecure people find me threatening. And they therefore accuse me of being arrogant. That's OK, because it's less dangerous to me than the people who feel threatened by me and hide it until one day they just blow up at me out of nowhere.

That used to happen to me often at one of my previous day jobs. Even though I was so low in the company hierarchy that practically anyone else in the staff could get me fired, I intimidated my immediate manager unknowingly, not by arguing or threatening, but just by how I carried myself day-to-day. So my manager didn't give me the immediate feedback I needed to do better, he just held his feelings in check until he finally blew his top…

So, how do you tell if someone is confident or just arrogant? There are 3 signs to look out for.

1) How they talk to other people:

Psalm 73:6-8 (NIV) -Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. From their callous hearts comes iniquity; the evil conceits of their minds know no limits. They scoff, and speak with malice; in their arrogance they threaten oppression.

Arrogant people show their true colors in their words. Their words are threatening (as in the above passage) and boastful.

Psalm 75:4 (NIV) - To the arrogant I say, 'Boast no more,' and to the wicked, 'Do not lift up your horns.

The arrogant use their words to attack the righteous (Psalm 31:18) and mock them (Psalm 119:51). They would tell lies (Psalm 119:69) in order to falsely accuse the righteous (Psalm 119:78). In contrast, the confident feel no need to attack other people in order to make themselves look good.

2) How they treat other people:

Exodus 18:10-11 (NIV) - He said, "Praise be to the LORD, who rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh, and who rescued the people from the hand of the Egyptians. Now I know that the LORD is greater than all other gods, for he did this to those who had treated Israel arrogantly."

This passage tells us that God sees the way Pharaoh treated the Israelites as arrogance. The Israelites were subjected to forced labour (Exo 1:11) and their newborn sons were mercilessly killed (Exo 1:22). Why were they so harshly abused? Probably because Pharaoh did not think the Israelites had a God that he was angering with his behaviour (Exo 5:2).

Arrogant people see others as resources to exploit or as threats to be neutralized (Exo 1:10-11), rather than people with the same needs and wants as they have. When you see someone treating others only as resources ("he has money to give me, she can help me get my dream job") or as threats ("I better make sure the boss won't give him MY promotion") you know you have an arrogant person right there.

3) How they respond to instruction and correction

Nehemiah 9:16 (NIV) - But they, our forefathers, became arrogant and stiff-necked, and did not obey your commands.

Nehemiah 9:29 (NIV) - You warned them to return to your law, but they became arrogant and disobeyed your commands. They sinned against your ordinances, by which a man will live if he obeys them. Stubbornly they turned their backs on you, became stiff-necked and refused to listen.

Sometimes arrogant people put on a façade to get what they want from others. That's why it can be hard to recognize them at times. Here is one more sign of an arrogant person: he or she does not accept teaching or correction.

Watch how a person behaves when given teaching or correction. If he or she accepts it humbly or expresses any disagreement with you in a peaceable way, you know this person is not arrogant. However, if this person despises your words or suggestions, or totally ignores them, you know you have a problem right there.

Conclusion:

You do not need to have arrogant people in your worship team. In fact, it is better to keep them out. If you truly embrace worship ministry as participation, rather than performance (http://invisibleworshipmusician.com/article01.htm), you'll find that you do not need very musically skilled musicians to serve in your church. In my experience it is possible to prepare adults (with no music background) to play keyboards for church within 3-9 months. That's because worship music that works is not technically difficult.

But if you want to keep them out of your worship team, you'll need to be able to recognize them. You'll also need to make sure you don't reject confident people by mistake! Try these guidelines for recognizing arrogant people and let me know how they work for you?

Be blessed!

When You Meet Simon the Sorcerer

May was the month I studied the Book of Acts. And when I looked into Acts 8 one day over dinner (I was eating by myself and flipped open my Bible for fun) some thoughts came to me.

Acts 8:9-11 (NIV) - Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, "This man is the divine power known as the Great Power." They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic.

In this day and age we are likely to meet Simon the Sorcerer again, spiritually speaking.

Witchcraft and sorcery, obvious use of the occult for self-gain, is not only easily available, it is now fashionable. When I was a teenager I would see the occasional book on spells in the bookshop and think it was a joke. Now you can get detailed instructions on performing and casting spells for free. Just search online!

Because it is now so much easier for people to practice sorcery again, it is likely that we Christians will meet a real genuine sorcerer (or a Satanist or a person with occult powers) sooner or later.

Acts 8:12-13 (NIV) – But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.

When was the last time you preached to a Satanist? Or maybe a priest of some other religion, who happened to have supernatural powers? I used to assume that they would never give up the powers they had and turn to Christ, because in order to get their powers they probably sold off their souls permanently and weren't interested in getting them back.

But Satanists do turn to Christ. I know one personally. And I know two powerful evangelists who have no hesitation to declare the resurrection, love and power of Christ to Satanists, witches and priests of other religions. And they do have some success, mainly because they were gutsy enough to pray for God to show signs and miracles to others through them.

You would think that a witch who could curse people with deadly sickness or get winning lottery numbers from spirits would not be impressed when you pray for them and they get healed of headaches. But they are. I have heard of them breaking down and crying when God heals them in the name of Jesus. Of course, these two evangelists have seen God heal more than just headaches through them. But it started from them daring to pray for signs and miracles to confirm the Word they preach.

One thing though, it requires you to accept that signs and miracles are still available to the Body of Christ today. If you believe that the Book of Acts was just meant to be a fluke, a transitional period, and signs and wonders are not meant for us today, then you will have great difficulty witnessing to Simon the Sorcerer when you meet him again.

Acts 8:14-17 – When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

This was a turning point in Church history. The coming of the Holy Spirit upon the Samaritan believers was not only a reminder to the apostles that the command of Acts 1:8 (to preach the gospel in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and all the earth) was still in force, it was also a sign of reconciliation between the Jews and the Samaritans.

And yet in the midst of the Holy Spirit's demonstrated approval of the reconciliation, someone much more worldly-minded could miss or ignore the significance of this event…

Acts 8:18-19 – When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money and said, "Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit."

First, he may have been looking at the whole matter from the perspective of potential profit. If he could bring the Holy Spirit upon anyone whom he laid hands on, he may have been thinking about charging people for receiving the Holy Spirit.

But I personally don't think this is the reason, because as long as the apostles did not charge for laying on of hands, Simon the Sorcerer could not charge for it either. No one would pay him for the Holy Spirit if they could receive the Holy Spirit free of charge directly from the apostles, right?

Second, he may have assumed that the apostles themselves received this ability as a result of giving someone else money. Or that they achieved this ability at great personal sacrifice and training, and deserved to receive monetary compensation for all their efforts and dedication.

This was most probably how he himself received his powers. He either paid someone who had those powers to teach him and then practiced and trained very hard to master those powers, or he sought out spirits to teach him. And in case you do not know, those spirits would have demanded a heavy price from him in one way or another in return for giving him those powers. They may have demanded animal (or even human) sacrifices or that he perform elaborate rituals that are time-consuming and difficult.

(in a nutshell, that is what my ex-Satanist friend taught me about the nature of witchcraft and sorcery…)

So Simon probably thought that was how it was for the apostles. Look at Peter's response.
Consider Peter's rebuke. When Peter rebuked Simon for thinking he could buy the gift of imparting the Holy Spirit, Peter was implying that this gift was free of charge also. It was not given only to those who had the money to pay for it. That was not how the apostles received this gift, or the gift of working miracles. They received all their gifts from the LORD freely, and so they likewise imparted them freely too (Matt 10:8).

Acts 8:20-23 (NIV) – Peter answered: "May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin."

This is a serious matter. Once you think you have to buy the gift of God, instead of receiving it freely on the basis of faith, the above passage tells us that your heart is not right before God (vs 21), it is wickedness (vs 22) and you are full of bitterness and captive to sin (vs 23).

Does this also apply to trying to buy the gift of God with good works, piety and devotion? Think about that…

Acts 8:24 (NIV) – Simon answered, "Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me."

Now we come to the final question: was Simon the Sorcerer saved? Why did Simon the Sorcerer make this offer?

Yes, I believe so, because he believed in the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31). But he certainly had a faulty understanding of his salvation. Remember, the Apostle Paul had not yet appeared on the scene to explain in greater depth how we can freely approach God on the basis of faith in what Jesus has done for us on the cross and through the ministry of the Holy Spirit (Eph 2:18).

Notice that when Peter ordered Simon to pray to the Lord (vs 22), Simon refused and asked that Peter pray for him instead (vs 24). This tells me that Simon himself was still afraid of approaching the LORD in prayer, especially when he has sinned. His own faith was not yet established to the point that he could pray to God himself and know God will freely pardon him (Isa 55:7).

This has two implications for us that I would like us to ponder together:

1) Do we believe we have to buy from God what he has freely given us on the basis of faith?

If we believe that, and teach others the same, our hearts are not right before God. Moreover, we will find ourselves captive to bitterness and sin (vs 23) as Simon the Sorcerer was. We will find ourselves stumbling when we try to work for what God has already given us, instead of believing God's Word and trusting in his goodness.

2) People who have a background in sorcery or witchcraft usually have greater difficulty believing in the goodness and forgiveness of God.

Please be patient with them, especially in this area. They need more time and effort to be established in this aspect of the Christian faith. So if you are the one who will follow-up with them after they believe in Jesus or if you have to disciple them, pay careful attention to this area. It is very easy for them to slip up and start relating to God the same way they relate to whatever deities or spirits they served before. And we don't want that to happen!

Conclusion: I personally believe that we will encounter more people with occultic powers in this day and age. We need not be intimidated, in fact, we should be confident as we share Christ with them. The case of Simon the Sorcerer gives us some lessons and thoughts to consider, and we will do well to learn what we can from this passage of Scripture. Be blessed!

Metronome Musings

Hi, everyone!

I played drums for church for the past few Sundays.

It was a stressful experience, because of both my role in the band (the time-keeper and the mood-moderator) and my own personal standards. Yes, ego does drive me hard! How did I do? Let's just say that I have a lot more work to do, and a lot of it involving training with metronomes!

Metronomes really help a drummer keep time. Usually if a drummer has sloppy playing, it is because he/she doesn't have a good internal sense of tempo OR because he/she is unable to express the sense of tempo through his/her limbs while playing. Either way, this comes out very clearly when you train to a metronome. It shows you what it means to keep strict time as well as the areas you are sloppy in your playing, whether fills or changing the drum beats.

People who refuse to train to a metronome often have an undisciplined and individualistic spirit. They want to play at what tempo feels right to them, or what their current level of technique can manage, not what tempo the rest of the band can work with. If we are playing for church, and our effectiveness as worship drummers is very dependent on how well we keep time for the band and the rest of the congregation, this kind of attitude should not be tolerated at all. If the drummer plays inconsistently and yet refuses to train to a metronome, this person does not have the basic servant's heart to serve in the worship ministry, especially when it comes to playing drums.

(I could go on ranting about this, but I think that's enough for now. It's obvious now why I give myself so much pressure when I am behind the drum kit!)

One thing I discovered when I started training with a metronome - there are two ways you can perceive the metronome. The first is to see it as an external standard and you are trying to react to it. The second is to allow your inner sense of tempo to tune into the counts from the metronome and then play according to that. You'll still have the metronome to remind you when your inner sense of tempo goes off, but because you calibrated yourself to the metronome first it becomes a lot easier to keep yourself in time.

It's like how we believers are supposed to relate with the Bible. We can see the Word of God as something external, we refer to it when we've got questions or want to have an intellectual understanding of what God expects from us. This doesn't need much engaging with the Scriptures at all, and for many believers that is all they are willing to do.

Or we can let the Word of God tune us into God's frequency. I have two main ways of doing this: the first is to take a particular passage of Scripture and read it aloud many times a day for a few days in a row (mindless, I know, but it works for me) and the second is to do inductive Bible study, when I go through a book of the Bible a few times, looking for key themes, drawing up lists of facts, making notes and all that.

Whichever way you do it, the idea is to engage with the Word of God as much as you possibly can, and in a more active way. Make it a part of you, and you'll find that you're following it even without thinking.

And that's always good!

Training with the metronome by yourself is important, but unless you have a fantastic sense of musicality (OK, just more than I do) you'll find things slipping past your notice. And sometimes it's just easier for an outsider to pick up your mistakes. Last night a singer (a non-musician) was telling me that the part of me that keeps going out of time (lagging behind) is my snare. I tend to slow down when changing from one section of the song to another, like from the verse to chorus, for example.

You know a problem is bad when even a singer can pick out where my mistakes are!

It's like how we can read the Bible by ourselves and yet miss the parts where we fall short or need to put in some effort. We think we're doing fine, while anyone else who has lived with us for a while can easily point out that we need to correct some of our blind spots. That's why we need to live in fellowship with each other and be teachable (Pro 9:9).

Psalm 19:9-12 (NIV) The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous.
They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb.
By them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
Who can discern his errors? Forgive my hidden faults.

Notice that just after David declares how precious the Word of God is, he realizes that even with the Word of God he still needs help in discerning where he falls short and misses the mark? That's the same for us. Even when we know the Bible, we have done our inductive bible study, attended Bible Study Fellowship's entire 7-year course or just simply read the Bible cover-to-cover, we will still have blind spots we need loving siblings-in-Christ to point out to us. And we need to teach one another in all wisdom (Col 3:16), to be ready to receive wisdom from each other.

So, are you submitting your life to the Word of God and allowing some trusted siblings-in-Christ to help you work out your salvation into your life? And are you likewise committed to helping someone to do the same?

Think about that while I take out my metronome, my drumsticks and sit down and get some more practice done!

Announcement: a number of people have bought my Invisible Worship Musician but have not signed up for the updates email list yet. If you are one of them, please sign up for that email list as soon as possible. Email me about it and I'll enter your name for that list. Then watch your inbox for your confirmation email. Remember to click on the confirmation link inside! That way you'll get access to all the follow-up lessons I carefully, painstakingly prepared for you (and you already paid for...)

OK, be blessed, everyone!