Comments on: “Playing the ministry card”

By: Ricky Cole

Ricky Cole — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 20:53:11 +0000

#50. Tell me that is your REAL name!

By: quartet-man

quartet-man — Tue, 27 May 2008 03:53:08 +0000

#51 God is all knowing and could easily know what was needed on the following Sunday morning in time to put in the bulletin. Too many times people try to put God in a box and think if they just show up and wing it they are being sensitive to the spirit. I think it is laziness at times, lack of planning, or misunderstanding. I would much rather ask God to direct me in decisions while planning the service, but be open enough and flexible enough to sense being prompted to do something other than planned if He so desires and to give me the skill and give everyone who needs to know the same knowledge to sense His leading. You see, God is more than capable of taking things a different direction if we make plans and He has others.

To take your idea further. Why plan on having a particular service time or at a particular church. Why not wait for the Spirit’s leading in what time for everyone to meet and where? So, see, some idea of what is going on is a good thing as long as we don’t stand in God’s way should he want to take it another direction.

By: cdguy

cdguy — Wed, 21 May 2008 21:40:11 +0000

I know a guy who owns a Christian music store, and only sells “live” recordings, because, he says, “they are annointed.” I guess he thinks God can’t annoint singers in the studio.

Little does he know the only thing you hear that was really recorded live is the audience.

I’ve been in some recording sessions where I definately felt the Holy Spirit’s presence. And others where it was all craft. (Or at least I felt it was just craft. It could have been that my heart was not in tune with the Spirit at that time.)

We used to have a minister of music who appeared to have the attitude that the Holy Spirit needed to tell him by Thursday morning, if He was going to move on Sunday morning, so it would be printed in the bulletin.

By: Harry Peters

Harry Peters — Wed, 21 May 2008 19:24:29 +0000

To number 37 (Thom) Here’s what I say. I believe a well planned program is essential. The Holy Spirit can also lead while they are planning it. As far as a “filling of the holy spirit” having to be spontaneous? I doubt it. Of course, I don’t believe in preachers who just “wind ‘er up and let’r fly,” either. Too many times that is just a cop-out for not studying and planning.

By: thom

thom — Wed, 21 May 2008 13:34:02 +0000

wow - you #47 - you are really showing your ignorance now. thom is my real name and I don’t argue with dimwits just for the sake of arguing. you seem to have some agenda other than posting comments about southern gospel music which is what this blog is about - in case you haven’t noticed. you may say i have my head in the sand, but you need to get your head out of the prison of ignorance - - i could say something else, but, i’ll leave it at that.

By: Jim2

Jim2 — Wed, 21 May 2008 03:07:06 +0000

Uh,
Anybody who’s been reading this blog for more than a week knows who “thom” is. My question to “my question to thom” is where do you draw the line on deciding which parts of the bible are true and which parts we “fundies” are fools for believing? Seems like an awful convenient type of faith IMHO where I get to stand in judgement of God’s motive for including certain passages.
That thing about adultery? Figure of speech. Man after God’s own heart? Anthropomorphism. Literal flood? Worldwide legend. 10 Commandments? Outdated legalism.
C’mon, It’s all true or we are wasting our time and lives believing ANY of it.

(in case that isn’t clear, yes, I believe in a literal 7 day creation)

By: My Question for Thom

My Question for Thom — Wed, 21 May 2008 01:14:06 +0000

So, Thom, (or whatever moniker YOU are hiding behind. I’ll bet you also believe that men are superrior to women and that the earth was created in seven 24 hour days. You, sir, have your head in the sand.

By: CLN

CLN — Mon, 19 May 2008 17:11:13 +0000

#43….Southern Gospel for me is more than a temporary escape, it’s a part of life to me. It’s a consistent peace and I don’t need preaching in a program to have it. I watched a group the other night that literally demanded 3 times that their crowd of 50-60 let out a holy shout at the top of their lungs. Awkward. After the 3rd time, I believe the folks shouted just to shut him up. Is that the spirit moving? I don’t know.

If we don’t expect the Holy Spirit to move in a concert, then we’re underestimating His power. There wasn’t one lick of preaching on the Greater Vision Quartets dvd, and tears were flowing and the emotions ran high. Nothing was forced whatsoever. Trust me, just singing and a good time in a nice, relaxed, Christian atmosphere can do a lot of things.

By: thom

thom — Mon, 19 May 2008 14:25:21 +0000

to #38 - whoever you are hiding behind your anonymous monicker - you are way off base, way off. Yes, Jesus was Male, God is the Father, also male, and the Holy Spirit is the Jesus present with us in spirit form. All Male - according to the Bible, God’s Holy, Inerrant, Infallible Word. I believe it all from Genesis to Revelation.

If you want to believe something else, that’s up to you.

By: FormerDJ

FormerDJ — Mon, 19 May 2008 13:04:09 +0000

Spot on Jonathan! Can the Holy Spirit not reach people any way He pleases? Can He not reach them as easily through a well written song as He can through an overly-rehearsed sermonette? If you are called to preach, go preach. If you are not and you are truly called to sing about Christ, please SHUT UP AND SING.

By: Brian

Brian — Mon, 19 May 2008 11:59:03 +0000

#41…I hear you and I think we are saying the same thing. But when you are ” having a set of ideals forced upon you”, that is not the Gospel, that is religion. Church folks in their “Ivory towers” is not Gospel, that is religion. There are folks that are dying lost everyday because of religion.
In your reply you are assuming a lot. You assume I take the same dogmatic stance and that I yell and scream from the stage / pulpit / and put on some Holier than thou attitude and nothing could be further from the truth. I can’t save anyone, the Church can’t save anyone, the Pastor can’t save, the song can’t save, the sermon can’t save, ONLY through Christ…
But all in all I think we are on the same page.

#42. Then why do we do it at all? Just to give some temporary escape from your burdens? Now, I think that is great but there is so much more. If that is all we are after then why bother. Tell them they can go to the movies and get the same thing. The problem is, when they leave the movie, they leave the same way they came in. We can offer so much more through Christ. You don’t have to leave the same way you came. Christ can take that temporary escape and make it a permanent peace. If we are just sitting back and waiting on God to move, then why bother with any of it? That is not what he has directed us to do.
Lastly, I cannot remember, ever, having a Pastor in a Church tell me, just sing a concert and don’t do an invitation. They almost always, want and require an invitation to be given. Sometimes they wish to give it, which is fine, but never have I heard one say, just forget the invitation, if God moves, then we will all be blessed by it. Bottom line and I will quit, the women at the well didn’t leave the same way she came. After an encounter with Jesus she was changed. They don’t have to leave the same way they came.

By: CLN

CLN — Sun, 18 May 2008 19:56:42 +0000

Some of you folks don’t realize what just singing and some comedy and God’s word in song will do. There’s just as much ministry to putting a smile on one’s face as there is preaching. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been uplifted by a good gospel song or good gospel concert, and I didn’t have to hear any saccharin-sweet testimonies, “this-song-is-just-for-you-and-your-trial” intros, or anything. I remember the lyrics to songs a whole lot more than I do the words from a sermon or testimony. If God moves, then God will move and we all will be blessed by it. In the meantime, I think gospel music should be more concerned about seeing smiles and people uplifted by the music itself than trying to force tears, shouts, amens, and hand-raising.

By: A. Nonemus

A. Nonemus — Sat, 17 May 2008 13:56:37 +0000

Sorry for the typos. I forgot to spell check.

By: A. Nonemus

A. Nonemus — Sat, 17 May 2008 13:54:17 +0000

RE: Brian #35,
Presenting religion/the gospel message in this context is the same thing. We’re just splitting hairs.

However, as flawed as that might be in your thinking…all I can say was that at one time I WAS lost and at one time I WAS a sinner…still am a sinner for that fact!

But I vividly remember when I was lost and someone would take what their concept of “going boldly” and I would get the feeling I was having a set of ideals forced upon me. In fact, if a lot of people would get out of their “holy ivory towers” and just try to sit and talk to people and listen to what THEY say, you’ll find a lot of people that were turned off by religion/salvation because someone was dogmatic in their views or being so holy and saying :well, you’re lost and if you don’t get saved, you’ll bust hell wide open”…we all know that you must accept Christ and ask for salvation and forgivess, but a lot of times we have the opposite effect of what we’re trying to achieve simply because of the way its presented.

Here’s a little tidbit for you: about 6 weeks ago, I was at the little doner here in my hometown sitting with a bunch of old timers drinking coffee. All of them left but one. He and I got to talking and he said that he heard I was a gospel singer. In our conversation, I learned from this man that he hadn’t been to church since he was a teen-ager and had no desire to go because the last time he did, the preacher told him to come on in, but until he hit the altar and got saved, it wasn’t gonna do him any good. And during invitation, 2 women sitting behind him told him that he needed to get down there and make thing right or he was going to hell. After that, he never darkened the door step of a church except when he got married.

Some I listened to his story. And we talked some more..and more…for about 2 hours. We left together and in the parking lot, I shared with him how I had felt the same way, but how one day I met a very humble and loving preacher that showed me that God didn’t want to banish us to hell, but how He loved us so much that He gave up His only Son, and that if we asked, in simple child like faith, that He loved us enough that he would save us to spare us from an awful place called Hell.

And you know what? Right there in the parking lot, I asked this man if He wanted to accept Christ, in child-like faith. YOU KNOW WHAT HE SAID? He said he always perceived God as this big bold authority that had the attitude that He would only love us if we were all saved and that he never realized that His love and compassion was for everyone, not just “His select few”…and right there in the parking lot, He and I prayed the sinner’s prayer and that man accepted Christ!

And all I did was listen and not judge him. That’s my 2 cents(and then some).

DOUG-SORRY THIS WAS SO LONG. BUT I HAD TO TELL IT.

By: My Question For THOM

My Question For THOM — Sat, 17 May 2008 13:16:34 +0000

Before the spelling nazis come out, I just realized that I made a typo in post 38. It was obviously “speech,” rather than “speach.”