Lessons from the Dog…

I try to get through to him. He just doesn’t listen. Sometimes I could snap his neck.I feed him, I take him out, I play with him,  I offer treats, I talk in the nicest voice possible, just like Ashley, but at the very hint of her voice, those ears perk up and he’s at her beckoned call. I really do try hard. I’ve eavesdropped on obedience training classes while walking through Petsmart. By “eavesdropping”, I mean I took twenty minutes to get down one aisle. It wasn’t even a dog aisle. It was for the parrot lovers (no offense). I’ve perused Barnes and Noble and looked through a book called “What’s My Dog Thinking?”. I got a couple answers from that one; either my dog is deaf, or he thinks I’m a moron. 

Bottom line: I just don’t understand the thing. He’s a nice dog, he rarely has accidents (knock on wood/carpet). He just doesn’t listen. I tell him to come to me, he runs into the bedroom. I tell him it’s time to go outside to do business, and he hides under a chair. But every now and then, just every now and then, he’ll do whatever I say. For just a few minutes at a time, he’s putty in my hands. One of those times is at night when he wants to just chill. He’ll just come lay on me and want me to scratch his ears. That’s when I’m the king.

Ok, ok, you’re tired of me ranting…get to the point, Baker. Ok. I realized that I’m the exact way sometimes with the Lord. He speaks, He leads, He provides, He gives mercy when we don’t deserve it. Yet when He speaks to us, or the Word is given to us, and we don’t listen or adhere, we are no better. And when I’m at my point of wanting to set him out on the side of the road sometimes, I realize the stinging truth that I could stand to learn a lesson from the poor dog. God used a donkey to speak, you know. Just be glad Christ doesn’t deal with us in the way we deserve. We would have been done for a long time ago. Lord help me listen and obey…the first time.

 

By the way, I love my dog.  I just don’t always like him. He’s being pretty cool now. Wait, no he’s not.

And So It Begins!!!

Well…here we are…at home today. I started packing some today and it feels so good to get part of that out of the way. It’s definitely going to be a new beginning for us! I can hardly wait to get back to my NC mountains!  Ash is doing well, and she’s preparing for an “imminent” arrival! There’s a theology term for ya! It really could be any day now, and the suspense is killing me. All I can do is be as prepared as possible and ready to roll at the drop of a hat.

I haven’t been singing as much because of it being so close to being the due date, so there’s not much news in that department! But along those lines, I did confirm a really great date for August! Details will follow later on as I get them. In other music news, The Martins released their latest album, New Day, this week. It is incredible!!!! I haven’t heard a CD recently where I never skipped through any songs. Every song is wonderful, and they did not disappoint this time around! We’ve always come to expect a certain “sound” and style from the Martins, and they have a way of pushing the limits, while also raising the musical bar. I could talk about this album for hours, but I won’t ;)…

So for now, we’re just kinda sittin’ pretty until we bring home a beatiful little girl. Then it’s off to NC we go ASAP after the baby’s here!  I hope all of you have an incredible weekend!

Matt

My First Father’s Day

Well, this is going to be my first Father’s Day. And to that I give a hearty WOW. I can’t believe I’m (well, Ash is) bringing a baby into this world. I used to think it would be a ridiculous thing to bring a child into this generation. Why would I want someone else to deal with all the things we deal with in this world that pull us and draw us from Christ? And by the time my daughter gets to the age to feel those pressures, no doubt they will be much worse. But this phrase from Scripture kept ringing in my ear: “children are an heritage from the Lord”. When I hear that I realize the gift I’m being given. This little girl is a chance to continue my family. Only the Lord knows if she will have a love for music (like Daddy-please, please, please, Lord), or if she will have the smarts of her mommy. But whatever traits and characterisitcs she takes, the responsibility lies on me to lead her the direction she should go. It’s an overwhelming feeling, and a bit stressful to boot. 

So here we are, 5 weeks from her due date. And as the day gets closer and closer, I become one huge ball of emotion. And I realize that being a Daddy won’t be a job. It will be a joy.

I never grew up with my Dad around all the time like a lot of people. My dad left when I was 1. He still loved me and provided where he could, and even though that relationship is different thatn most father/son relationships, I know my Dad cares, and I’m thankful for the chance to have him around. You see, his dad, my grandfather, passed away December 30, 2010. He doesn’t have the opportunity to tell him Happy Father’s Day. So I’ll be making every effort to get on the phone to tell my Dad, my grandfather, and my wonderful stepdad Happy Father’s Day. You do the same…we aren’t promised tomorrow, you know. Today is our gift; it’s the present.  I already know about my Father’s Day present. It’s the new Martins CD, New Day. So get your dad something nice, hug your kids, enjoy the day of being king of the castle; because come Monday, there’s something that’s bound to need fixin’ 😉

 

Happy Father’s Day, all.

Matt

Revisiting the Truth: The Mission of Christian Music

I’ve been faced with this subject and I’ve always had strong feelings about it. So today, I’ll talk about it. When all is said and done, what’s the purpose of Christian Music, whether it be Gospel, Bluegrass, or CCM?

In Short Answer form: I believe the purpose is to show Christ to the lost,  and to uplift and encourage the Christian.

Let’s dig a little into these two areas…

1. To show Christ to the Lost

As we know and have already been taught, each Christian is given a gift by which they can minister to the church, the body of Christ. Some preach, some teach, and others labor manually. Some have the gift of music. I believe music is a gift that God uses greatly. I mean think about this situation: We walk into church Sunday Morning. The pastor walks up at 11:00am sharp and begins his opening statements from that morning’s sermon. We all know the most important part of the service is the preaching of God’s Word, but the music..what about the music? Martin Luther put it like this: “Preaching is God’s chance to speak to His people; but music is the people’s chance to speak to their God”. Well said, sir. Think about the hymns that often say what we can’t. The songs in church we hear that DRAW us to Him. We have a lady in our church at home who often sings one of my favorite songs, “The Alabaster Box” by Cece Winans. There’s usually not a dry eye in the church by the end of the song. Why? because it says what we can’t. God gave someone the gift to write that, and another the gift to sing it.  Now, it gets sung all over the country and God uses it different ways each time. Now that we’ve established that Music is a gift we can use, why would we not use it to bring people to Christ? It’s just another way of giving what is already God’s back to Him. Music is one of those things that naturally draw people. Classical music, country music, dare I say pop music, all types of music generate billions of dollars in revenue each year. Think about the influence Justin Bieber has, Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Carrie Underwood, and others…now plug that influence into someone sold out to serving Christ, and has no other purpose than pointing people toward Him? That’s a bit of an excessive example, but when we stand up in churches, or at a concert to sing about the Lord, that’s the chance we have. So why not use that gift each time we stand up to sing, to give our best effort for Christ, to communicate the Love of God to someone who might not know Him?

2. To uplift and encourage the Christian

This is a given in my eyes. We’ve talked about the power of music, and how we can use that influence to bring people to Christ. But what about the people who are already saved? They need to be encouraged, too. Ultimately, our main source of encouragement and growth is the Word of God. But we are also encouraged by testimony. That’s what Gospel Music is: one person’s testimony to another.  It may not be their story to a tee, but it’s somebody’s story, and we relate to it. I can go to my phone right now, and turn the music back on, and I’ll tell you exactly what song is on there: “Like I Wish I’d Lived” from Greater Vision’s new CD, The Only Way. It’s a prayer that simply asks God to help them live like they wish they’d lived in the past. God uses songs like this. Think about your 5 favorite songs. Now think about WHY they are your 5 favorite songs. I would guess they are reasons like “I love the message”, or “the harmony is great”, or “I remember this song way back when”, but I think most of us would say in our heart that we relate to it. That’s how it encourages us. We relate ourselves to a lyric or to the entire song, and it sticks with us. Being a music guy, there’s not a minute that goes by in a day when there’s not a song or a lyric in my head. Yesterday, the song was “I Call You Faithful”, sung by Donnie McClurkin, but most recently redone by the Hoppers. It’s just a worshipful song that describes names we use for the Lord. You know why I had that song in my head? Because God met a need in my family yesterday. He’s a faithful God. It’s good to know we have songs like that to refer back to.

So here’s my message to groups today: Please, PLEASE, don’t deviate from the mission. Sell all the CD’s you can. I know there’s business aspects to the field, and conduct that business for the glory of God! But, whatever you do, reach out to the lost, and encourage the brothers and sisters in Christ. Otherwise, why do what you do?