Songs from Yesterday

Back in the day this would be a Thank God For … article, but I can’t be bothered tonight. Tonight is the Sabbath evening and I’ve got back from a prayer meeting that was excellent, exhilarating and ultimately exhausting. I have to confess sometimes in my tiredness I can be somewhat irritable, so it took everything in me to listen to Kevaughn go on about some peace initiative. I endeavoured to hear as patiently as possible to yet another noble commendable effort by some bloke to bring peace into the world. Don’t want to be too cynical because as a peacemaker I genuinely hope to see the world experience peace wherever it can. It’s just that when that peace is sought with no reference to God through Jesus Christ then I always know how it ends up – but don’t take my word for it, go check what God says peace is and compare it to life – wherever – and you’ll get where I’m coming from.

Anyhow, so I’m there listening to my son and responding as honestly, succinctly but sensitively as I can not to make out that what he’s saying was a complete waste of my listening time. It was then that I remembered a song by the dude who’s the inspiration of this blog. In the track called ‘The End’ Brother Gibson – for he indeed claims Jesus as his Lord and Saviour – highlights the futility of man’s plans when the script is more or less set and culminates in the real Prince of Peace returning to usher in the end and eternal peace.

I first came across Jon Gibson in 2000 – hence the reference to songs of yesterday. I had moved to Stoke-on-Trent in the hope of getting some work in Christian Broadcast Media and my dear friend and mentor Hughie (who turns 45 tomorrow – too many birthdays in September and August were my opinion required) worked for UCB/Cross Rhythms. So I stayed on the grounds helping a brilliant man of God – Dr. Victor Pearce – with his ministry in a voluntary administrative capacity. One of the perks meant I could browse through the not inconsiderable record collection of Cross Rhythms. As I heard a particular track my ears perked up to the tune – melody structure, chord structure and vocals. Sure there were some hints of Stevie Wonder but still distinct enough for me to enjoy for himself. Jon Gibson is the only person I know to actually get me feeling favourable to the sentiments of Christmas with his song ‘Christmas Song’. Other than that my doctrinal position on the pagan festival remains as it is. This song, though, really brought out the family feel of the time in a style that I found infectious and every now and then – almost always nowhere near the season in question – I sing the song with lungs bursting forth about the joys of everybody singing a Christmas Song. Since then I’ve come across several other songs from this guy that is just awesome. I wish I had all of his albums – not because everything he does is music gold, far from it, some of the stuff is absolute pop contemporary Christian dross – but when he strikes gold it more than dispels any of the less noble efforts.

The one track that will always remain in my mind was one that I was used for the one and only video I’ve put together on Windows Movie Maker and posted onto me DailyMotion account. You can check the track with the video. Obviously the quality is not to the highest standards, but hopefully you’ll stick with it and taste some of this guy’s quality. The track itself ‘You’ve Gotta Love Somebody’ helps me root everything I do in the fact that sooner or later for all the doctrine I imbibe and worship songs I enjoy singing there’s got to come a time when I actually express God’s love for someone who needs it – maybe in a word, perhaps in a gift, sometimes with a meal, often in a laugh, occasionally by listening, now and then by sharing my life. Whichever way it is this song reminds me of that sentiment and it’s got to be among my favourite pieces that Mr. Gibson has produced thus far in his career.

For whatever reason he never made it as a big artist for long – although he did have his time in the sun for a brief season. Credit to him, though, he’s evidently gone to do things his way, which is fair enough and he’s still about doing this and that. It’s definitely worth checking his web-site out and his MySpace page has some decent full tracks of the kind of work he does.

So if you’re feeling generous and you want to know what will really make my day, beyond a shadow of doubt it would be purchasing a Best Of … compilation of Jon’s best tracks as a tribute to those great songs of yesterday. Now that’s what I call a great way to enjoy the day (or night) of rest.

For His Name’s Sake
Shalom
da man cd

Songs from my Father

I actually love writing.

Unlike the painter/artist who finds their delight with a canvas or piece of paper and crayons, paint brushes or whatever, I get my thrills from expressing my thoughts on paper in the written word. When I think about it on a roll there are so many thoughts actually worth writing that I could happily spend half my time in waking hours just doing that. Of course there’s more to life than writing, so I’ll have to discipline myself in this fashion. Perhaps the real gig is to discipline myself to write regularly in a format that can be published.

Anyhow. Today’s blog entry (or tonight for this is being typed after 11pm) is another tribute for my father. What do I mean another? Read this and get back to me. After you’ve checked that then you can go on to check a tribute to me sister who turns 31 today.

My family is one that’s heavily influenced by music. All five members of the immediate family enjoy nothing better than a good sing-song now and then. David is undoubtedly the most gifted singer of us all. Mum is undoubtedly the most passionate singer of us all. Ruth is undoubtedly the most disciplined singer of us all. I am undoubtedly the most likely person to write about us singing. That leaves our father.

There’s something whimsical about remembering my dad singing and just humming a tune as he goes about daily routine activities. Not interested in the telly, he’d go to his room and hum a tune, or more accurately relate the tune to the timeless lyrics of ‘dee dah dah, dee, dah, dah, dah, dum, dah, dah, dah, dah, dee, dah’ which of course are applicable to any song in one combination or another. Tonight whilst taking the time to look after the children then treat myself to an awesome dinner I recalled a song my dad used to hum/dah, Praise to the Lord, the Almighty. I went to the effort of researching the song and on actually reading the lyrics (not my dad’s dum-dah-dee version) I was blown away by just how awesome the song is.

All these years my dad had sown the praise of God into the psyche of his son so that years after leaving the home I still remember clearly the song and can go back and find out why the Lord is worthy my praise – king of creation; my health and salvation; shelters me; sustains me; grants the real needs of my life; created me; enables me to work; loves me; helps me overcome life’s issues from without and within; stills the storms of life; persists even when things look to be going wrong.

Considering all of this I can see why my dad hummed this tune all those years ago. Having experienced the reality of these different aspects in my life along this 14 year journey with God so far I can now sing the song with real personal investment. So thank God for my dad, who celebrated his 74th birthday last Saturday. As a beneficiary of his legacy, I only hope I can live such a life that my children will likewise be able to look back in years to come and remember their father devoted this Lord worthy of praise because He is the Almighty, the King of Creation.

For His Name’s Sake
Shalom
da man cd

Da Nu Man CD (kinda)

I don't hate my image, as in the photo you see at the side when you access the blog, but I have for a while considered a change. My friend recently took this photo of me and it was just right. I don't know how to change the photo from the image that it's on at the moment, but when I do I'll change it. A change will do me good!

My other mate Hughie (I don't only have two, but I'm sure the others don't want to be associated cos of the humour ... 'what humour?' I hear you ask, 'exactly' comes the ever so helpful reply) noted that it's great getting to look up me nostrils. That's just the kind of friend he is, though.

Annie, I still like the photo!

For His Name's Sake

Shalom

da man cd

Intransigence and Tony Green

Intransigent. What a word. Apparently it means refusal to budge or as the wordnet.princeton dudes put it adamant: impervious to pleas, persuasion, requests, reason;

I was thinking about that word and its relation to God. I live in a society that wants things its own way. We want to watch our own kind of programmes whenever we want them; we want to consume whatever we want, whenever we want; it may not be possible all the time but we’re moving in that direction with every passing day.

Unsurprisingly we want to worship a god in that kind of way as well. I’ve heard on a number of occasions recently people saying ‘I don’t want to worship a god like that’ in relation to different aspects of His character. The response to that in some areas has been to appeal to a god who fits our comfortable views of ‘loving and good’ god. I had the thought that it was almost like after we’ve crafted god in our favourable image like John Travolta to Olivia Newton-John we sing you’re the god that I want. (Ooh, ooh, ooooooh, honey.)

Yet there is something about the nature of God that is intransigent – as in that’s just the way He is. You can plea, persuade, cajole, reason all you want and it does absolutely nothing – He’s God and that’s just the way it is. That’s not to say I know everything about Him – hey that’s part of the point of the journey in getting to know Him. That’s not even to say that I necessarily like every aspect of that which I learn about Him. At the end of the day, that’s just the way He is. He is not subject to my whims and ideals. He is not pandering to my views and thoughts on what He would and would not do. The whole point is for me to change my ideals, thoughts, views and whims to be conformed into who He actually is – whether I like it or not. Then the deal will be that when I realise just who He is not only will I get to like it, I’ll get to love Him for it.

Either way though – He being the absolute ideal of perfection and me not I think it’s fair that I don’t make any demands on how He must be. That’s just a thought.

For His Name Sake
Shalom
da man cd

ps. Apparently this is blog entry number … 180 – so I dedicate this one to the one and only Tony Green – undoubtedly one of the most influential personalities ever … on Bullseye. And I loved Bullseye. I may not like the updated version that much, but at least Tony Green’s still on it. As well as that Bullseye is undoubtedly (sloppy writing I know to repeat an adjective in the same paragraph with no sense of emphasis or irony, but I’m allowed a sloppy paragraph every now and then) one of the most effective quiz shows with which to define the whole concept of sin. So thanks Jim Bowen, thanks Bully, but most of all thank you Tony ‘And Bully’s Special Prize’ Green. For those unfamiliar with the gospel according to Bully check this website to read all about it.

That Human Race Issue

So I subscribe to the bi-monthly 9Marks Newsletter and find it a stimulating read. I’d be interested to see if there’s an equivalent from the UK perspective as with due respect to the current magazines available it’s fair to say there’s not anything similar to church life from the British perspective.

It would be particularly interesting to see such an outlet addressing the issue that this bi-month’s edition of the newsletter looks at – race. Whenever I consider the issue I’m always thinking of things like our culture versus Kingdom culture – as expressed through the values that are laid out in scripture to do with what Christian ‘new man’ living is all about.

I’m not convinced that church from my perspective has begun to grapple with that especially in the light of contending with the type of multi-cultural society Britain is in a lot of areas. One of the dreams of my life is to be part of a truly multi-cultural church – reflecting the community not just with token gestures or quota filling occupants but a genuine community of believers from different backgrounds – social, ethnic, generational, economic and cultural. Getting there is part of the challenge of the gospel and I’m not necessarily going as far as to say it is a fundamental aspect of biblical mandate for the church. Yet I do believe it’s important, especially viewed in the light of Peter’s realisation on the roof-top and the make-up of the radical Antioch church as well as Paul’s comments and the underlying commitment to agape love which transcends cultural and ethnic barriers.

I’d love to know what the response would be to the questions asked in the Pastors’ forum from a British perspective

Is there a race problem in the British church? Are whites missing it? Why? What implications does this have for the church’s proclamation of the gospel?

For His Name’s Sake
Shalom
da man cd