InsideOut » lisa reddy

Music … What’s the “Right” Answer?

Lisa Reddy — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:31:26 +0000

Politics … religion … music … These are all discussion topics into which people tread very lightly, knowing their potential as landmines. If your personality is particularly passionate, you understand all the brou-ha-ha. As we venture into a potentially heated debate about music, I would like to offer this disclaimer up front: In offering one Christian’s perspective on music, I will not provide a list of “shalls” and “shall-nots.” That “list” is very personal and should be between God, your parents, pastors, and you.

The volume of references to music throughout the Bible should be a clue to its significance in culture and worship. In fact, music in some form (instruments, singing, etc.) is mentioned nearly ten times as often as money. That statistic startled me. We teach, preach, and hold doctrines about finances—how to be good stewards, following the principles of tithes and offerings—and we should, to be faithful to the Bible’s teachings. While most Apostolic churches use music as a meaningful way to engage in worship, we often fail to teach our churches to think critically about our interaction with music in the same ways we emphasize financial stewardship.

At the risk of great persecution, I feel compelled to step out on a limb and share some of the “back-story” for my perspective on music. I became a Christian in ninth grade at age fourteen. I had already experienced enough of the world that I was unbelievably grateful for God’s grace in my life. I could not fathom how such an amazing God would love and accept me (I am still amazed by that)! I decided from that point forward that I would seek to live my life in a way that glorified Him in everything I did. The church where I came to God was fairly middle-of-the-road, and as one of only a few teens in the church, I did not receive a list of acceptable and unacceptable music. Our pastor instructed us to follow after the leading of the Holy Spirit when choosing music. As someone who was “escaping” from the pulls of the world, I felt that my best strategy would be to totally avoid all secular media.

Further, I decided that I would only listen to music from Apostolic artists, which was pretty challenging circa 1988 given our limited selection at that time. (Please do not send in replies to tell me that you were not even born then!) I felt that would be the only way to ensure that the music I listened to was, in fact, holy, because I could be sure that these folks were holy and were walking in truth. At that point, it never really crossed my mind that many of these songs were written by non-Apostolics, which would have put a chink in the sanctification armor for sure! When some of these artists began leaving the organization for various reasons (including personal scandal), I had nothing else to listen to; but their music still ministered to me. I was left with the realization that media could carry an anointed message that supersedes the human limitations of those sharing it. In fact, isn’t that the beauty of music? That we mortals can be transformed by the power of something beyond ourselves? It was at this moment that I began to realize a scary (albeit somewhat liberating) reality about my new life as a Spirit-filled believer—the Holy Spirit was given to me not only to save me, but to help me make the right choices on how to live a life in response to God’s saving grace.

With that knowledge, my entire landscape for living for God was revolutionized. Though my left-brain-leaning thinking would at most times prefer life to be black and white, the truth is, there is a lot of gray. Another truth is that gray can be quite messy, even muddy! The Pharisees did not like gray either. That is probably why they added layers to the existing layers of law—to be sure that no one ever made the wrong judgment call. Even a quick scan over the Old Testament illustrates the shortcomings of living by the Law instead of the Spirit. Laws point us in the right direction, but the Spirit gives us the conviction and desire to follow those laws and to properly interpret them in light of our context. Simply put, laws have limitations, but the Spirit is our direct connection to God’s guidance on a day-by-day basis.

This realization led me to an increased awareness of my responsibility as a believer. God’s Spirit was given to me so that I could glorify Him in everything I did. To borrow a favorite phrase of a dear friend, Nate Binion, “All of life is worship.” If all of my life—every day, every action, every choice, every thought—demonstrates my relationship with God and how I worship Him, then my questions are really simple:

Does ________ (fill in the blank with anything) enhance my worship or diminish my worship? Does ___________ draw me closer to God or build a wedge between us?

This “test” works for music as well. Does this song reflect God’s goodness in my life? Does it reveal that I am His—that I am bought by Jesus’ shed blood—and my life is owed to Him? Stated another way, is this music meeting my true needs (the spiritual need for God and His good things) or my felt needs at that moment (a temporary warm fuzzy or an angry rant against my life)?

To take this discussion even further, music should not only reflect my relationship with God, but it can help deepen my relationship with God and others. From that perspective, music can challenge me to newer heights of worship and to greater levels of commitment. I find myself asking if anything in my music diet ever makes me feel uncomfortable, in a good way. For a penetrating example, I think of Todd Agnew’s song entitled “My Jesus.” I must confess, folks, that there are some days I simply cannot listen to those lyrics because they are too heavy, and I feel too overwhelmed by the false views I have of Jesus and of life in general. The message of that song, however, does pierce my spirit, and speak directly to the heart of the matter—are we more interested in self-fulfillment, or in self-denial, so that He can be first in our lives?

With that perspective, I cannot be satisfied listening to music that only makes me happy or only gives me a voice for bemoaning my sad situation. In evaluating my choices in music, there is a simple, guiding question to which I return: Does my music collection turn my attention to myself, or to God and others? I pray we do not sell ourselves spirituality short, focusing only on using music as a means of self-gratification. I challenge all of us to realize the transformative power of music in our lives and to use that power wisely.

What Does the Bible Say About Death?

Lisa Reddy — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 18:57:47 +0000

Death…now that’s a great topic for an icebreaker. If you want to make other folks really uncomfortable, just bring up this topic. So why are we talking about death anyway? In a youth-zine, no less? Do you even worry about death? A recent study conducted by researchers at the University of Minnesota reveals that death is a common concern for young people, with fifteen percent of all youth surveyed confirming they believed they would die young. www.foxnews.com/story/0.2933.529364.00.html This generation is experienced enough to know that death is not kind, and death does not respect whether you’re young or old, rich, or poor. The current youth culture seems to think about the eternal much more than previous generations. This generation is asking questions like; what will matter when we’re all dead and gone? For that reason, death is a timely topic to discuss.

What does the Bible say about death? As one who has faced the sorrowful journey of death more than I would wish, my question has more to do with what the Bible doesn’t say about death than what it does. For instance, why do we have to die at all? The Bible says that it is appointed to every human to die at some time (see Hebrews 9:27). Appointed, like I have a blind date with something that scares the liver out of me—a personal meeting with something I want no part of whatsoever! And the Bible also tells us that death is the result of sin, when rebellion entered the human race (see Romans 5:12). I guess the Bible tells us why we have to die; it’s just not the answers I’d like to have.

There are other questions about death that the Bible doesn’t really say much about, like, why do good people suffer, struggle, and die prematurely? Oh, wait a minute … the Bible says something about the rain falling on the just and the unjust (see Matthew 5:44-46). I guess that kind of helps me understand that life on earth will not seem fair to us, and from our perspective, things may not make sense. I faced that question in a very personal way at the age of twenty-seven, when one of my dearest friends from high school was killed in a tragic plane crash. I had lots of questions—and still do. In the end, you just come to grips with not knowing all the whys, and you find peace in that reality. I think the following statement made by Reverend T.F. Tenney (at the funeral of Reverend Billy Cole) eloquently gives us a way to wrap our minds around such struggles:

I have no answers to all your questions, because God knows that, a lot of times, it’s easier for us to live with the questions than with the answers. And when we can’t track God, we trust God. He just doesn’t come down and explain himself; He just comes down and says trust Me.

I must confess to you, that for everything we fail to understand about death, the Bible clarifies so many questions about death and what comes after. First of all, the Bible describes death on a number of levels. In its most basic sense, death is separation from God and His creation. The very first death took place in the Garden of Eden; the spiritual death of Adam and Eve (see Genesis 2:17) occurred as a result of their disobedience, and God ceased to walk and talk with them each evening. That same spiritual death continues today as our sin creates a wall of separation between our holy God and us (see Isaiah 59:2). Ironically, it was spiritual death that also resulted in physical death. Because sin had entered the earth, God did not want us to live in this realm eternally. At that point, human life on earth, as we knew it, became more like a “dressing room” for our truly eternal existence. Physical death ended life on earth, but the spirit would live on forever, in heaven or in hell (see I Corinthians 15:51-56; Revelation 20:10-15; Revelation 21:8). From that perspective, physical death is really not the end; rather, it is the beginning.

I would also propose something that might sound a little shocking—spiritual death doesn’t have to be the end either. While we’re all thoroughly disgusted with Adam and Eve for what they “did to us” in the garden, I’m not so convinced that I hate them for it. Yes, I get that there is so much garbage we would not have to deal with had sin not entered the picture. But the element of free choice probably means that each of us (even you, holier-than-thou-reader) would have ended up in the same boat as them. So rather than focusing on what didn’t happen, I choose to meditate on the goodness of God’s grace in spite of our rebellion. If sin had never entered the garden, could I truly have known the depths of God’s love for me? If spiritual death had not come to all of humanity, would abundant life in Jesus Christ feel as abundant? For that matter, would I even be talking about Jesus today, as there wouldn’t be a need for His ultimate sacrifice? Coming to grips with my own spiritual death isn’t very pleasant. Death is always ugly, always painful. But I am convinced that when lost love is regained, it is so much sweeter, because we can more fully appreciate it. That’s how I feel about my spirituality—I once was lost, but now I’m found. I once faced spiritual death, but now I live in the freedom of the Holy Spirit. And even though physical death may always be bewildering or frightening to me, I know in my heart that, really, it’s just the beginning of my story. For at the resurrection, my God will wipe away every tear from my eye, and heaven will be the existence that God always intended for me (see Isaiah 25:8; Revelation 7:17; Revelation 21:4). It will be the moment when I hear the most important words of my life: “Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matthew 25:34). That will also be the moment when death—both physical and spiritual—will no longer exist, because there will never again be separation from our beloved Savior.