Archive for September, 2007

I had to post this because it was SO funny!!

I was asked a good question last week…… “Isn’t this the same model your ministry operates on?”
The answer used to be yes.

Everything changed for me early this year. After doing a show in late January, I felt unfulfilled, my spitit was restless. Worship was great, I performed my songs well, people got into it, clapped, and then bought a bunch of my CD’s. I made a few bucks, I’ll be able to pay off some medical bills from Liam’s birth I thought- great……. right?? Normally I’d be happy, but something was wrong.

As I left the church I asked myself the question, “what lasting impact has my ministry had on this church?” I couldn’t answer it, somehow my old thoughts that ‘my music blessed some people’ just didn’t ring as loud in my spirit as it once did. I thought, ‘if my ministry isn’t growing the local church……… then all I’m doing is robbing the church’, the very thing which I wholeheartedly love and believe in - the local church.

Scripture is very clear on the position of the local church, its the ‘Bride of Christ’. Precious, adored, esteemed, loved and wooed by Christ himself. I’ve grown up with the belief that the local church is the hope of the world, the vehicle God has chosen to bring harvest, nurturing and hope to a hurting world…… that belief is ingrained in my DNA. How therefore could I be in full-time ministry and not be engaged in growing her???

Over the past 6 months I have spent much time in prayer, meditation and evaluated my passion for ministry in detail. I’ve done my best to toss out the chaff that was clogging the clarity of vision God was wanting to give me, things like ego, pride and selfishness……. as an artist I’m very prone to these things. I’ve written down what I felt the Lord was saying to me, and discussed it with other friends in ministry….. mostly pastors and bounced ideas off them.

All this has culminated into a new dream, a vision so great and clear that it excites me even in my sleep. Using the gifts God has given me, music and the arts, to communicate a message which flows through my blood. Finally I feel that after years of ministry and preparation, God has revealed how it all ties in together. There really IS a way I can use music and media to help grow the local church….. its called “The GO Concert”.

More details to come…….

Today I watched a sneak peek of a documentary called “The Call of the Entrepreneur” - Some great thoughts came out:

We worship God when we use our ingenuity to create; God is a creator, and when the entrepreneur ‘creates’, usually something out of nothing, it is an act of worship.
Entrepreneurs generally have an extra portion of faith! They hope and believe even through the bleakest moments. Acting in faith is an element of worship.

Here’s a thought:

Why is it that most artists in the Christian music industry call on churches to get a ‘gig’, with the motivation to share their music and sell their product (cd’s and shirts), yet we charge the church money for them to have the ‘privilege’ of our presence in their church service??? What lasting impact does an artist leave when they visit churches? How can they use their ministries to bring lasting fruit to churches across the world? Is this model ‘busted’? Your thoughts are welcome…….. I’ll share mine soon.