Does the Devil Have All the Best Tunes?

I love music. Always have done and always will. Ideally turned up loud and with me dancing with wild abandon, although I do have my more chilled moments where I am soothed by an exquisite classical concerto, or quietly get on with tasks around the house with jazz playing in the background. Rather like food, music features in all cultures; and plays a central role in many life events. From the dance-athons that are most wedding receptions to the funeral dirges sung at our earthly departures, music punctuates it all.

Once, whilst putting together a playlist, I was challenged by a friend, who is new to the Christo game who said I wasn’t honouring God as I listened to secular music. In fact a stronger term was used; the devil’s music. Okay, I conceded most of the love songs did not have as their starting premise a happily married in church couple who were both virgins on their wedding night. And true, a lot of the hiphop tracks that had made my selection didn’t depict peaceful tableaux where group hugs were the order of the day. But to label everything, and I am including the Contemporary Christian and Gospel music tracks in my list a non-starter seemed a tad fundamentalist. However, as I researched their points, I found loads of blogs and websites agreeing with their opinion; that music could only be enjoyed and consumed if it was worship in its purest sense. And furthermore, any modern worship songs that sounded similar to whatever was topping the iTunes charts were also to be treated with suspicion, as they were guilty of mimicking the very same genres that were not Christ centred and were in fact Team Red’s aiders and abetters.

Not willing to be defeated I rooted round my bible for a passage that was entirely focused on worship matters and found a whole psalm instead:

“Praise the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens. Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness. Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with timbrel and dancing, praise him with the strings and pipe, praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.” Psalm 150

The first and last verse immediately brought to mind two classic tracks: Kurt Carrs’  We Lift Our Hands In The Sanctuary and Matt Redman’s Let Everything That Has Breath, but moreover the whole point of worship as an expression of gratitude, wonder and joy for all that God has done and continues to do in our lives. The psalmist pretty much lists all the instruments of the time from trumpets to harps to lyres to cymbals. Would it be too much to not consider that just as all of the Ancient orchestra is included that every single current genre out there could be used to create music for God’s glory too? Furthermore considering content both in terms of inclusion or omission, isn’t music like all art, a reflection to a greater or lesser degree of who and what we are, and thus to remove our humanity, in all its messiness and frailty would be disingenuous when communicating with God?  Loving and following God doesn’t preclude feelings of sorrow or doubt or desperation. In fact, the Psalms, the original worship songs if you like, run the gamut of human emotions, with entreaties of death and destruction for enemies also getting a hearing! And as we return to Psalm 150 with its mention of dancing, one can’t help but think that the whole passage has an open tone to it, and that’s at the heart of worship – a willingness to meet with God as you are.

I feel that decrying contemporary Christian music misses its purpose. It sounds like everything else, because like Jesus it is meant to meet people where they’re at and give them a glimpse of what’s to come. The magic or rather the mission comes in the lyrics, all focused on Jesus, the one who surpasses and easily meets all of our human needs.  So, if you like early Mumford and Sons you’ll love Tim Hughes, if you love the Afro-Pop of Chidinma then check out Sinach and who can’t resist Michelle Williams’ Say Yes which featured her former Destiny’s Child band-mates Beyoncé and Kelly Rowland and sounds as good in a church as it does a club? As the 19^th Century English Non-Conformist Reverend Rowland Hill said in his most quoted sermon; “The Devil should not have all the best tunes.” God, the author and perfector wins every time.

Bad Luck Comes in Threes or So They Say

Wow, my September has had some random curve balls! Just before my last post, I was all packed, primped and ready to go loco in the ultimate CCC way at one of my best girl’s weddings. For reasons too bore snore to relay in this post, I didn’t get to go. Disappointment and shock didn’t cover it; she was one of a small circle of ride or die chums, where we had prayed through the heartbreaks and hot dates, usually with a never ending pot of tea on the go. Well, it isn’t called tea and sympathy for nothing?

Also occurring this month another gathering, which I thought by rights I would be invited to. Again, for reasons too dull to recount and not in the least bit spiritually edifying, I found my name had not made the guest list. I was dumbfounded. In a similar way as with the wedding I had missed, I felt blind-sided by what was occurring. But occurring it most definitely was. These were not things that happened to the prayerful, poso and pretty frock wearing sorts. Especially when in both instances I wanted to be there as said prayerful, poso and pretty frock wearing presence.  And finally yesterday, a day filled with the usual challenges one has to navigate living in the hustle and bustle of Lagos, I assessed the fridge only to realise that I hadn’t really paid to attention to what was in it or the larder and there were elements but not quite a coherent recipe of ingredients and leftovers to make a soothe-my-soul supper with. Whoever said bad luck comes in three’s might have been onto something I mused.

So how does one deal with disappointments, bucket of vino imbibing, shoe shopping sprees and pity party attending aside? All of which may distract but don’t diminish the pain. Well, one opens up a bible, gets reading and prays that something will resonate. As ever with the living Jesus, I was not disappointed and two verses in the Psalms jumped out and spoke to me.

“Weeping may last for the night, but joy comes in the morning.” Psalm30:5

“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24

In the instance of the wedding, I allowed myself a cry a la Psalm 30:5 the night before, knowing that tomorrow would be a better day, and then on the day itself went full throttle Psalm 118:24. God bless technology for this one, as I was treated to WhatsApp updates from friends throughout the day, and with comments, emojis and the rest I was able to participate as a virtual wedding guest. Heck, I was even throwing shapes that very evening in the sky high Miu Miu stilettos that were going to form part of my ensemble. I didn’t have to actually be there, to thank God for this most amazing and joyous occasion, and celebrate I did, right to the last snap and video footage sent.

   

I have employed the same approach with the other event too. There is nothing in the bible that says one needs to be in the same location to thank the Lord for its occurrence. Nor is it helpful to wallow in the pain of not making the invitation cut. One could still, Psalmist style, rejoice in the day that the Lord has made and all those gathered to witness it. One could also choose to focus on the joy that comes anew with each day on God’s green earth rather than any hurt that might  have preceded the day itself.

As for the grub situation, God had given me everything I needed. I love cooking and I saw the ingredients as a challenge; and furthermore, I needed to be thankful, especially living in a country where so many go to bed hungry, that I even had food to be sniffy about. The result was a beyond delicious lentils, fish and coconut soup, People are loving it on Instagram too, so it can’t be that bad at all!

So does bad luck come in threes? I say a resounding no. Because every disappointment is one where God’s grace can come rushing in, not just making you stronger but also closer to him. Not only that, there is something far more powerful that comes in three, and that’s the Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They are truly all one needs when life gives you an almighty punch in the stomach. And if the disappointment still has you on the ropes, remember the other event with ‘three’ front and centre, Jesus’ resurrection. On the third day he rose again! One can stand in that most certain victory every time and know that it is ours too.

Evangelism 2.0

I was sitting in traffic. Anyone who is reading this in or having ever been to Lagos will know how epic an affair that can be: a short journey could take hours, and add super selfish sometimes downright dangerous driving into the mix and one’s mood can plummet quicker than the proverbial lead balloon. But on this particular journey I was struck by a noise. It wasn’t the usual chorus of irate horning, but it was a familiar worship song, being played at top volume. I looked behind me and there was a little three wheeler car,  one normally sees yellow ones operating as taxis,  painted pristine white and decked out with megaphones and bearing the legend ‘JESUS’. I couldn’t help but smile, and of course snap, and then sing along to the song. Traffic just got interesting.

But it wasn’t just about brightening up commuters’ days; the driver and whoever helped him decorate the car was hoping to do something far more dramatic; he was hoping to win souls for Jesus. Get people giving God the glory before they opted for anything else: themselves, their possessions, and their position, maybe all three put together and instead see him as the source of every good thing in their lives. Not only that, he was doing exactly what Jesus called us to do:

“He said to them, “Go into the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” Mark16:15

Evangelism can sometimes feel like such an embarrassing word: with associations of earnest holier than thou sorts knocking on people’s doors and bombarding them with factoids about why what they believe is best. However, it needn’t be that heavy handed. One friend used to operate a ‘flirt to convert’ concept, where she would chat up guys and then suggest church as their first date. On one level it was quite hilarious how the most hardened atheist would agree, probably on account of her model good looks and mile long legs, but let’s just say that committed conversions were few and far between!

So how does one do the Evangelism thing and avoid a cringe situation? The key is seeing how Jesus called the original disciples: there was a lot of calling out to people and saying ‘follow me’ (for more fulsome accounts check out Matthew 4:19-22 and Mark 1:16-20), but then this begs the question why did people with homes, jobs, loved ones and maybe chocka social lives, just take off on this altogether different direction?  Put simply it was Jesus. Even right at the beginning, before they had seen miracles galore, mega crowds coming to listen to his preaching, or met with the risen Lord after Good Friday, the disciples were convinced. They sensed there was something tangibly better to be found in a life in him. The details were revealed to them in due course, but for now, that feeling sufficed.

Which brings it back to us contemporary evangelists, operating in a world where there is so much information and not enough time to take it all in, we need only show the Jesus in us to evangelise. And that doesn’t necessarily mean talking in super spiritual terms, or boring some poor person who happens to be in the queue behind you in a shop or standing next to you at a party. Just giving off the vibe of one who truly possesses the peace that passes all understanding, who most definitely has compassion and care for all creation, who doesn’t judge and doesn’t condemn. Who just, you know, imbues a room with positive energy and a sense of possibility. Do this, and people will probably flock to you, not necessarily Sermon on the Mount styles, but they will come and they will ask questions and they will want to know more, and if you see it going in that direction, you can probably ask them to church. What happens next is in his most able hands.

Are You A Church B****?

It’s 9.45 am. Service starts at 10.00 and you have given yourself an internal pat on the back for not only resisting swearing your way through traffic to get to church on time, but also singing worship songs all the way and having general thanksgiving type thoughts for the week just passed. Plus you have managed to save seats for your closest friends and there’s brunch to look forward to as well, perhaps you will try that new place that just opened and everyone is talking about, you muse to yourself, smoothing down  your new outfit, which thankfully is church compliant too. Midway through this gentle revelry, you are interrupted by a tap on the shoulder;

“Can I take a seat?” says a smiley stranger, you certainly have never seen in church. Do you:

A)     Smile sweetly and say, ‘I’m terribly sorry but these seats are taken’, before directing the newbie to other spare seats in the church.

B)      Look the newbie up and down, before saying quietly but firmly, ‘No these seats are not free’ throwing a scarf, handbag, mobile and anything else you have onto your reserved seats.

C)      Sigh audibly, let the newbie sit, but when your friends come make a song and dance of all squeezing into the allotted space, maybe the newbie will get the message and shift.

D)     Let the newbie sit, you and your friends still squeeze into the space anyway, but make absolutely no attempt to engage the newcomer, bar a weak handshake during the Peace.

If you are nodding to any of the above, or have done even a slightly ‘kinder’ modified-for-your-environment of any of the above, or done something, not quite the same but vaguely reminiscent, and felt bad about it, but justified your actions anyway (it’s all in the context darling), then you are officially a Church B****. That’s right, you may have turned up on time, be filled with ‘By God’s Grace’ and ‘Thank you Lord’ lyrics, and be wearing an outfit that screams ‘Holy Stylish’ but you are a meanie in the house of the Lord, and you are probably the cause of a lot of pain, shame and in the worst instances, abandonment altogether of not only the pews, but also the Good News.

Christos are meant to be in this world, but not of this world, and the moment we get into the cliquey, excluding zone, we reflect some of the worst aspects of human nature, rather than the God breathed one, given to us by his unending grace. Answer A is faux helpful, but let’s be real, there is no real welcome. Answer B, is outright rude and with the spreading of items, confrontational. Answer C is the worst sort of passive aggressive behaviour, although I applaud the thick-skinned newcomer who endures  and sings loudly for added measure, and Answer D, would have any vulnerable individual convinced that they are not welcome and may not be worthy of the love and care of God or his people.

When we find ourselves getting into a bit of a social routine at church, it is probably a sign to shake things up. Whilst yes, we are a family, and inevitably we will get closer to some parishioners  more than others, we should also be mindful that by being in Christ, we are part of one body that has many parts and are thus all of equal import and value. As Paul succinctly states:

“If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it.”

1 Corinthians `12:26

So, if church has become a bit like a member’s club for you, with your ‘set’ firmly in place, remember, that your ‘set’ is just one tiny part of the body of Christ. And that individual that you either inadvertently or intentionally freeze out is also part of Christ’s body. Be kind to them and Christ himself rejoices, push them out and you wound Jesus himself with your frosty, ice-queen attitude.  And for those wanting to banish the Mean Girls tendencies for good, maybe invite the newcomer to brunch, we are after all one big, messy but happy family. And God loves us all the more for it.

A Wrong Turn Isn't A Dead End

Sally, (not her real name) was wailing uncontrollably on the line to me. Without going into the lurid details, she was convinced her life was essentially a waste. That she was a fool, and the world and it's cat, now in possession of some of the salient tit-bits thought so too. Not only that, she was now officially past-it; too old for new beginnings, re-inventions, re-locations or the cool pair of Acne jeans she had spotted online. As I listened silently and compassionately to her plight I was struck by the root cause of her melancholy. It wasn't only the events themselves, but also what she felt they indicated, her life was officially one that had been defined by a calamity and would remain calamity-chocka, always.

We live in a fear and shame driven culture. It is very easy for one's inner voice to tune into the radio station, I like to call it Team Red FM, that will have you either frozen into inactivity when faced with a negative situation or deciding worse is to follow and we innately deserve it. And when we do make a bad call, as all of us will at some point or another; trust the wrong person, spend too long in the wrong job, study the wrong course or even  post the wrong picture, it is all too easy to be governed by the negative repercussions and become scared of making new decisions or entertaining the thought that better can still follow. 'This is clearly my lot' we say to ourselves ,After all, look around at everyone else, living their if not perfect lives, ones that are certainly without the monster sized errors of my own, which now have me languishing in the pit. But that's the dirty trick with Team Red FM, the same crappy song with lyrics such as 'failure' futile' and 'foolish' making up both the chorus and refrain and keeping people believing they've reached the proverbial end of the road.

I directed Sally to one of my favourite verses for the self-loathing, wrong turn heavy season, and one that I have returned to often  during my own difficult patches:

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

Paul is very explicitly reminding all of us, whether you are full-on believer, fledgling faith warrior, or sometimes in and sometimes out member, that every thing in our lives is used by God for our ultimate benefit. Sometimes, it will not be obvious how this will be the case, but it will always be so, and this is made clearer  in the second part of the verse 'who have been called according to his purpose'. The wrong turns, mistakes and,mishaps are actually part of our calling, and are used for divine purposes. Divine purposes being just that, not fully understood by our mortal minds and oftentimes seemingly nebulous, might feel unbearably painful in the immediate moment, but eventually when all is fully revealed they will be more than worth it.

Furthermore, it is when you make the wrong turn, find yourself lost in the wilderness of poor choices, that one can and indeed should lean on God more for strength, direction and comfort. More often than not, these are lonely times as people by and large are not necessarily the best at rallying round for long during that wrong turn season. But God is. If one reminds oneself, that not only leaning on him but also trusting him for a solution is the way forward then clouds really do begin to lift. Finally, here's the golden thread to cling onto for all it's worth, this is not the end but actually the beginning of an even better season. Suddenly, the wrong turn doesn't feel so wrong after all.

Saints and Sinners

As a card carrying Christo I have always been happy to worship in any space where Jesus is front and centre and am struck by the variance and beauty in how we all believers testify to the everlasting truth of his message. Since moving to Lagos, much of my corporate worship has been happening in the local Catholic Church. However, one of the marked differences is the commemoration and veneration of saints and today is the feast day commemorating one my personal favourite, John the Baptist, whose feast day is today.

Oftentimes John is diminished to the role of ultimate warm up act. After all, he may have been baptising people in the River Jordan, but he wasn’t the main event, the promised and expected messiah, and admitted as much himself:

“I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire” Matthew 3:11

However, what I love about John the Baptist most, apart from the freestyle wild hair he is often portrayed with in paintings, his minimalist fashion choices of camel tunic and equally singular diet of locusts and wild honey (grasshoppers are a delicacy in Uganda where I am from), is his fearlessness coupled with purposefulness. Here was a man who was quite happy to be the contrarian. The voice calling out in the wilderness, the one who could have kept quiet or chosen to blend in with the crowd in spite of having received the revelation of Jesus’ imminent arrival. But he didn’t as he knew much was at stake than his own personal safety or comfort and instead:

“He came as a witness to testify concerning the light, so that through him all men might believe.” John1:7

Whilst believers today might not have Jesus turning up to see us in action and ask to be baptised by us, we do have the same opportunity as John to testify and be a witness to the light. Being a witness isn’t just about conventional evangelism, it is about others, particularly those beyond the comfort of our church communities seeing the Holy Spirit and Fire baptism that John so vividly evokes living in us. It is what we see when the congregation members at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, return to worship and praise God after the tragedy of the massacre last week, or when we choose to do what is difficult but marks out the transformation and new life that resides in us as followers of Christ.

It is only when we do the extraordinary, when we go against the grain that others can see what is tangibly different about a life led with Christ at its centre. The sinful nature doesn’t go away, and we are probably likely do something off-key pretty soon after. However, in this world that can so often be steeped in darkness, jaded by cynicism and seek to quickly explain away the good that there is, testifying to the light, being unafraid of having a splash of the wild-man about you, is the most compelling and powerful thing you will do in your Christian walk. Try it, honey roast ham baguettes an optional extra!

Confessions From A Mediocre Lent

With less than two weeks to go to the end of Lent and less than a week to the Christo crescendo that is Holy Week, I have a confession to make: I have had possibly the most mediocre Lent ever. In years past, I have gone full throttle, prayed, fasted, sung psalms, albeit badly and generally got into the zone of preparing for Easter with its central story of life anew. So what happened this year and how does one get one’s mojo back pronto in time for Palm Sunday cross waving and general merriment the Sunday after?

It is often considered seriously bad form to admit to feelings of lassitude in one’s faith walk. Everything, particularly in the modern Christian scene is very much geared to the ‘it is well’ and ‘JC gives a gold-star’ way of speaking and feeling. In Lent, we are meant to be strengthening our spiritual muscles, contemplating all that God has done for us, reviewing all of the stuff that we might do well to put aside or stop doing. The inventory of thought life, home life and work life is meant to have been taken with items carefully checked off, if not all, at least some. But what happens when it hasn’t been that way? When life’s myriad of distractions, desires or even disasters have landed slap bang in the middle of this season and rendered attendance at church or even a mumbled prayer at the beginning and close of the day as good as it gets? Perhaps, the best place to head is to the words of Jesus himself:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and heavily burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28

As always, it all begins and ends and begins again with Jesus. When things whether spiritual, physical, emotional or financial start to feel like an enormous weight that is not getting any lighter, it is time to stumble to the Lord and hand it all over. The invitation is not only to those who are ‘heavily burdened’ but also open to those who are ‘weary’; whether from circumstances or anything else. What is interesting to note is that there is no further qualifier in Jesus’ statement. He doesn’t say ‘Come to me, all you who are always shiny-happy believers’ or ‘all who have never had moments of doubt, fear, frustration or anger’ or ‘all you who are front and centre doing good works’. Also worth noting is that sometimes we and not God are the impediment. I for one, realise my insistence on rating my Lent experience is endemic of the age we live in where every experience can be ‘Liked’ or ‘Unliked’.  

Whilst admission that Lent 2015 has so far not been a sparkling Christian affair, it does not mean that all is lost, or that there cannot be a grand turnaround every bit as dramatic as that of Easter Sunday. So roll on the last few days, and in the interim, perhaps more time spent unloading the burdens and having a good long nap in bosom of the Lord is the way forward.

Made For You

Six months and counting is a long time to leave a blog a post-free zone. In this age of constant communiqués, such a casual sabbatical is pretty much social-media suicide. You are what you tweet as it were. But I have a fairly good reason for having been under the radar: being knee deep in finishing up a manuscript and getting married.

Yes, pop the champagne! Or rather the champagne was well and truly popped as me and my best beloved were witnessed by family and friends enter into a covenant agreement with God a fortnight ago. Yup, there are definitely three people in this marriage; me, him and my favourite-favourite, JC. Much is made of getting married and the preparation around the happy day and I purposely chose to not blog about either. Until today of course, oops, ma bad. Churches have often created a sense of panic around the subject of love and marriage; with singletons being made to feel that the wedding day, is some sort of spiritual finish line. Praise God! You are married! You have become one of the ‘bones of my bones and flesh of my flesh’ elite! No more chilling on the margins of church life, the horrendous lot reserved especially for those still single post their thirtieth birthday. No need to ponder about guilt-free sex, because you can do as much of the horizontal lambada as you please, without the raised eyebrow of judgment from some in the pews with you.  Sometimes, with all the hoop-la around the topic you could be mistaken into thinking that this is the whole point of the whole point. But of course it is not.

Marriage is one of the many blessings that God gives to us. Because by its very nature it is relational, we often long for it, and fairy-tales, movies and literature have been pretty good at over-egging the pudding in regard to this particular happy=ever=after!  If we look at the first instance in the bible of a couple getting together, it was God’s idea to begin with:

“It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” Genesis 2:18

The first part of this verse often gets more of the airtime. We focus on singleness not being the ideal. The verse seemingly goes one further:  it is not good to be alone!  Things are not cheer-worthy until one has had a Tom Cruise in Jerry Maguire ‘You Complete Me’ moment, either as the recipient or indeed the deliverer of the speech. And in the interim there is whatever distraction you shove in its place. But this is not the case as is seen in the second part of the verse, in which God states ‘I will make a helper suitable for him.’ As an incurable romantic, the phrase ‘I will make a helper’ warms my heart; God makes a promise, he will definitely make someone. So if this Valentine’s Day is one where you are flying solo, know that there is definitely someone, should it be your heart’s desire of course, as we do not serve a bullying God, and not everyone is called to marriage, who is in the works. 

The next part of the sentence is even more exciting ‘suitable for him’. One is drawn to the various connotations of the word ‘suitable’. I like to think of it in clothing terms. Some items just do not suit you. They might look great on a hanger or incredible in a magazine editorial, but all wrong on your body. Sometimes, things may suit you for a season, you wear them to death and then one day, you put it on, and you just know that you are sick of that look, and off to the charity shop it goes. In some instances, you think something suits you, rock it and look back at pictures of you in said item, usually courtesy of someone uploading it on Throwback Thursday and think: “what on earth was I thinking?!” I know, I certainly think that with stuff I’ve worn and if I am being truly honest, some of the people I have dated.  So my message to those still on the dating journey, think investment pieces all the way. 

As for my darling husband; to use the clothing analogy, he is the perfect LBD, effortlessly stylish, flattering yet comfortable, guaranteed to make me feel sensational when worn, and most definitely a timeless, forever piece in my wardrobe. I am sure there are many others who feel exactly the same way about their special person too, so let us all give thanks to God, today and always for the person made just for you.