Musical Rejuvenation by Richard Hickam

When I was younger, some of the best times of my life were spent participating in various music festivals. 

It always felt so good to get together with young people from other schools and work on pieces of music as one cohesive group.  There were certainly challenges with those scenarios.  Pulling off a concert with so many moving pieces presents more variables than one could imagine if they’d never done it before.

Thanks to amazing cooperation, though, we always pulled it off, and the shows were nearly always outstanding.  More important than the music itself was the interaction between kids who, most likely, didn’t see each other very often, if ever. 

Getting together with like-minded youths always breathed a breath of life into my musical drive.  Those kinds of events also boosted my social demeanor, at least for a while. 

Above all that, music festivals always gave my spiritual life a recharging that was, at times, sorely needed even if I didn’t always know it.  Whenever I left those events, I felt like I had been blessed in some way, as if - for a short while - I could feel the presence of God.

It is no coincidence that this feeling occurred.  I found an interesting verse a few months back that I believe explains this sort of inner feeling of spiritual bliss. 

Matthew 18:20 says, “Anywhere two or more are gathered in my name, there am I with them.”

I have no doubt that every time I felt that inner feeling of peace and blessing during and after a music festival, that was what had happened.  Christ had been there with us.   I believe Christ’s promise to be with those who gather in His name – regardless of what the occasion might be.

I had the privilege of directing the band at this year’s Southern Union Music Festival at Forest Lake Academy.  This weekend’s music festival was no different, and I couldn’t be prouder of the young people who worked so hard to pull off a spectacular show.  And once again, it feels so good to have that feeling of peace and blessing wash over us. 

Richard Hickam

In The Beginning God by John Monday

“In the beginning God.”  These have become some of my favorite words in scripture.  They bring comfort, stability, and assurance - although that hasn’t always been the case.  For too long, these four words have been nothing more than a throw-away introduction, a lead into real and important biblical stories and principles.  While they used to be a thoughtless statement of an obvious fact, they have become the words that echo in and undergird the universe. 

The story that follows that ominous introduction, is a beautiful depiction of the power of God in creation.  It’s filled with rhyme and repetition, with nuanced language and cultural imagery, but most importantly, it’s filled with God.  The first chapter of Genesis places God squarely in the midst of the story.  It leaves no doubt that God is the author and finisher of creation and that he is intimately and inextricably intertwined with every facet of his creation.  It is the account of love’s beginning. 

Unfortunately, those words, that story, have become some of the most divisive words both inside and outside the church.  Rather than hearing the story, we’ve begun to focus on the “facts.”  Rather than being awed by the God, we’ve become lost in the details.  But does it have to be that way?

Can we accept others with different views on these facts? Can we view the Bible and Genesis as a book about who and why, rather than about how and when? Can we accept that "In the Beginning God" is the abiding truth, and exactly how and when are secondary issues?  Can we trust that God also speaks through nature ("look to the birds and they will tell you") and that, for many, nature points to a very old and long creation process? Can we accept that someone who believes that God has been in this process for 14,000,000,000 years rather than 7,000 years can be a God follower?  Can we accept that time and creation methodologies are not the issues and that God and redemption are?

This isn’t an argument for one scientific version of creation or another.  The question is, does it matter?  God followers should be the most flexible of all people, not the most rigid.  If it turns out that God took 14 billion years to create the world, then let’s be awed by his incredibly long vision and planning, if it turns out that he spoke everything into existence yesterday complete with memories and history, then so be it.  Let’s praise and thank the geologists, biologists, astronomers, and physicists that are studying God’s creation.  It’s through their efforts that the majesty of God’s handiwork is revealed.  If a new scientific discovery is made next year that indicates the previous dating methodologies were flawed and the world is actually 7,000 years old, well great!

The Gospel of Christ is extraordinarily resilient.  The truth of Jesus and the good news of his love and salvation have and will continue to adapt to all cultures, realities, peoples, times and sciences.  As long as we remain focused on the point - God - then we will remain malleable, and God will use us for his purpose.  But if we insist on dogma, if we assert that we know it all and there is nothing more to learn, if we refuse to adapt our religion to the mission of Christ, and the realities of the world, then God will find someone else.  God will be there.  Whether or not we will is up to us.

I'm tired. I’m tired of a faith that is forever dying on meaningless hills.  Tired of a faith that dies from religious dogma.  I'm tired of having to apologize for christians before being able to tell those seeking God about his love, his forgiveness, his grace, his story.

So help me out. Is this an acceptable outline of faith?:

• God created us.
• God loved us more than we can possibly imagine.
• We wanted to become our own authority, so we walked away from God.
• We screwed up.
• Having chosen imperfection, rebellion, and disease, we can never attain the perfect love of God.
• God has pursued us ever since the day we walked away.
• We really screwed up.
• Since we are now fatally flawed and completely incapable of restoring a relationship with God, he provided a way back.
• Jesus is God’s way back.  Jesus came and earned what he did not need to attain (redemption and unity with God), and attained what he did not earn (death for our rebellion).
• Jesus demonstrated by his life of flawless obedience, his death for crimes he did not commit, and his resurrection from the dead, that he is indeed holy, God, and the world's way to restoration.
• Jesus freely gives what only he has earned to all who will accept.
• God re-creates us in Christ.

Is this gospel okay? Or do people have to accede to our peculiarities? 

If someone hears this and says, "YES, that's what I've always wanted!" can we say welcome to the family of God? Or do they have to agree that the earth is 6938 years old before Jesus will accept them?

Maybe there are other specifics they have to agree to?  Maybe they have to agree to never dance again.  Maybe they have to be immersed in water, or tithe, or avoid alcohol, or accept a prophet, or go to church school, or sell their TV, or genuflect, or avoid eating certain foods, or eat certain foods, or throw away all their jewelry, or put on certain jewelry, or regard a certain day as holy, or regard all days as the same, or or or . . .

Or maybe Jesus meant what he said:  Believe in the Son, and have eternal life.

Can we really live lives of generosity, grace and acceptance?  Can we really love without fear?  Give without expectation? Help without strings?  Can we just go into all the world, love them into a life-long friendship with God, and let Him worry about guarding the gate? Could it really be that simple?

John Monday

Thank You, Harrison! by Tami Cinquemani

This morning I woke up in a charming apartment in Savannah, Georgia. My husband, Jeff, and I met our daughter, Brittany, and son-in-law, Josh, for a little mini-vacation. As our kids were preparing for the day’s adventures and I was doing a quick check of my e-mail, Jeff took a book and went outside to read. The apartment we rented is on Crawford Square, one of the lovely community squares common in Historical Savannah, and Jeff chose a shaded bench to enjoy the cool morning.

As Jeff sat reading, he heard a distressed cry in the distance. The cries came closer, and soon he saw a young woman coming around the corner trying desperately to stop the horse that was pulling her carriage. Jeff said the poor woman was screaming, “Stop, Harrison! You have to stop!” but Harrison the horse seemed completely oblivious to her pleading and trotted along on his merry way.

Now you have to understand something about my husband. He grew up in the country and knows how to handle a horse. Needless to say, his cowboy instincts kicked in, and realizing the direction Harrison was taking the carriage, he ran into the street, grabbed the horse by the bridle, and using all his strength on this massive animal, was able to turn his head to the side until he came to a complete stop.

After taking a quick look at the horse, Jeff realized that, when hooking up his harness that morning, someone had failed to attach the horse’s reins to his bit. Harrison was simply following the route he was used to, oblivious to the fact that he was in any kind of danger by careening through the intersections on his way. He was having a good time, picking up speed, and since he never felt the familiar pull on his bit, he thought he was in good shape.

Needless to say, I was pretty impressed with my husband – as were Brittany and Josh. Had it been any of the three of us, the poor woman would have continued her wild ride through the streets of Savannah. This experience made me consider several things in my own life.

First of all, I’m very thankful that God has blessed each one of us with unique talents, and I hope I am as attentive and aware as Jeff was when the opportunity to use these gifts is presented.

Secondly, the woman whose rescue my husband came to was overwhelmingly relieved. However, as grateful as she was, she had nothing to offer my husband but a handshake of gratitude, and Jeff wouldn’t have accepted anything anyway. I have a Savior who has stepped in and saved me from certain destruction. He did this because he loves me, knowing I have nothing to offer in return.

Finally, the one in this story I most closely relate to is Harrison. There are so many times that I neglect getting properly “hooked up” to the One I count on to guide me. I careen through my life, oblivious to the very real dangers that I am unprepared to face alone. I am so thankful for those people and situations God puts in my path to help me realize how desperately I need that connection. Today my reminder came through a runaway horse . . . thank you, Harrison!

Tami Cinquemani

A Good Friday by Chad Hess

Last year, I had the pleasure of attending my first Tenebrae service. Tenebrae is a service typically held on Maundy Thursday or Good Friday. It's a dark service with mournful songs, readings, and the gradual extinction of candles as the betrayal and death of Christ is described. That is how the service ended – in darkness, in silence, in contemplation. There were no joyous songs of the resurrection; those would come on Easter Sunday. The service ended with the mournful sadness that was Friday.

In our Western culture, we're not very fond of pain and sadness. We have lots of medication specifically designed to fight those feelings. We like quick fixes as much as we like fast food. When someone is going through a very difficult time, they are told to accept that God has a plan (a not so subtle attempt to shut up their sadness). However, this Tenebrae service reminded me of the value of mourning.

You cannot appreciate the joy of Easter Sunday without the pain and sadness of Good Friday. The power is found in the juxtaposition of the two. If you really want to celebrate the resurrection, you must feel the sadness of the crucifixion. Sit there in the mourning, the shattered dreams, the brokenness. Dwell in the sadness. Remember that the disciples didn't know that Jesus was going to rise again on Sunday. Only then can you feel the joy that the disciples felt on Easter Sunday.

We live our lives in the period of Good Friday. We have pain and heartache and sadness. We have the hope that Sunday is coming. We know that one day God will make everything right. But we can't see it. For now, we still live in the brokenness. Let yourself feel the pain of Friday, and rest in the hope that Sunday is coming.

Chad Hess

Destination Location by Greg Creek

Living in Orlando has lots of perks, one of them being the fact that lots of people come to visit. We were told by many locals that people would be coming all the time to visit. I’ve heard that before living close to Chicago, living in Kansas City, and living at Andrews University, but nothing has really prepared me for how much people actually come to visit Orlando! I’ve probably seen more people in the last few months than ever came to visit me at any of the other places I’ve lived combined!

Lots of people come for the attractions. SeaWorld, Disney, Universal, Busch Gardens, and a host of others bring in loads of people, but the weather plays a big part of that as well. Sunny skies and ocean beaches are definitely inviting when you’ve been shoveling snow and fighting blizzards for the last few months.

Vacation. Whether it’s the attractions or the weather, family or friends, people come here to decompress, to vacation, and to experience something out of the ordinary. In pondering all the great people that I’ve seen and their reasons for visiting, I wondered, if my personality was a physical address, would I be a destination location?

It seems like a silly thought, but I think it’s one we should all ponder. Do our demeanors look like sunny beaches, or do they resemble cold and icy snow banks? Are we a reprieve for people, or do they need a vacation from our climate? Does our experience with Jesus offer something out of the ordinary?

The real estate mantra is “location, location, location.” So again I ask, if your personality were a physical address, would it be a desirable location? Would people come to visit? Would they leave refreshed? Would they want to come back?

Greg Creek