Doug Doppler
- As Christians, we have to have Faith that God speaks to each of us about our gifting and how it should be used to further the Kingdom. If we were all made the same, then one size would fit all, which it certainly doesn't (thank God)...
- We are by God's grace all walking with him, but no two people walk at the exactly same pace, much less groups of bands. There is only one U2 (all brothers in the Lord for those not in the know) and so on...
- God uses each of us in His own divine fashion, sometimes when we don't realize it. His hand is in and upon everything...
- "Lead us not into temptation" - To criticize is to judge. To praise and pray is God's way. If we wish a band might use their anointing differently, we might would be better off praying for clarity in our own minds as to the reasons, and not to judge, which is by our flesh our first instinct. Fortunately through Christ Jesus, we have been reborn NOT by the flesh, but by the Spirit. I am sure that Jesus loves each member of each of these bands just as much as the next, and for us to put our judgement before his love is dangerous territory to move in...
- Then there is the business. Be conscious of the decisions you make and insure that God is at the helm, and not your ego. If you decide to move in the secular with your Faith "hidden" be prepared for the enemy to attack you in the places he attacks secular bands - evilof all forms of seductions. When you sing songs of praise, you are carrying the Ark in an obvious way and in that bodlness comes a covering that is Divine. When opearting in the secular, that covering is in my opinion quite different. You are God's messenger in a way that opens you up to attack by virtue of the kind of audience you seek. The enemy will use those who surround you to inflate your ego, and the business will tell you it is about the "you" and not about HIM. This is a dangerous space for man/woman to operate in. That said, we have to work outside of the Church to reach the unsaved and bring them into the body. Paul had to be sent out. Just be sure that when God chooses you to send out, you do so in Faith that He has chosen you for your capacity for humility in the face of an industry that is about everything but that...
- There are Strat players and there are Les Paul players. If we play, write, sing, and worship with Jesus and gratifying him in our hearts, not matter how or where, we are fighting FOR and not against the Kingdom, and he will Bless your life for doing so with a clean heart. By giving us flesh, we know when our flesh is operating outside of that paradigm, and through and by the Glory of God we will be (and are) forgiven for the times when we forget it is about Him and not us - if we truly repent. Not to contradict myself totally, there is one size that fits all in this regard. We are all made of flesh, and as such our temptation to honor ourselves and not Him will always give us the need to find our way back to the Lord when we fall short in these areas. Praise be to God and his Divine nature of Forgiveness and through our flesh having created our need to seek Him and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
Jade Sholty
Hmmm, that's a tough one. My initial instinct would be to say that the very name "Christian" in "Christian band" says their lyrics, whether veiled or not, support Christ and His mission. How up front they want to be with that is up to them, whether it's in all their songs or just some of them. If I purchased a CD from a band who labeled themselves as a "Christian" band though I'd expect to be hearing about Christ somewhere in those lyrics.Then there are the mainstream bands who have Christian members. Their lyrics might be about anything without mentioning Christ specifically. However, if they really are "Christ" followers, I suspect their beliefs sneak out in places throughout their lyrics, whether they mean for them to or not. After all, we all write and talk about the things that excite us. Music is no different.
I believe God needs and uses all these different avenues to reach a greater audience. Some people practically 'preach' with their songs, others just plant small seeds to get people thinking. God made us all different and uses it all for His purpose in the end. We need to leave room for all the differences and be careful that we don't start playing judge, trying to decide if one type is better than another.
...Jade
