Born and raised in Zimbabwe

I knew God existed but never factored him much in my day to day life, you could say I was religious but did not have a personal conviction about God. My parents split when I was three but they still continued to take care of my brother and I. We would get the latest clothes and toys so you could say we had everything a child desired. My brother and I were well known in school because of my Dads profession as a radio and TV personality which meant genuine friendships where hard to come by. I remember being told about Jesus back in school but responded saying “I don’t think I need Jesus in my life”.

The British Dream

We were heavily influenced by British and American culture primarily through MTV, BET and other media programmes. I heard how great england was and had the opportunity to visit every summer holiday so I had a taste of the life there and could not wait to move to England.  I got into music in my last year of school, my friend Ian and I put out a song which got airplay on national radio, we even managed to get  a spot at a Channel O festival.

So we had our sights set on fame but it would seem the lord had other plans for me, I moved to London in 2001 where I studied media production. During my time in college I was one of the top students in my class,  student union president and pursuing a “promising” career in music but hollow inside.

Searching for something

I remember breaking down one day, telling my mother how I was so empty despite my outward success.  I remember talking on the phone to my friends back in Harare who spoke of how well I had been doing, but I was never satisfied with my achievements. I had every electronic gadget I dreamed of having, living in the city I had always dreamed of living in but all this did not complete my happiness, I was searching for more.  While at a student conference in Blackpool I was befriended by a Christian who also lived in London.  A few weeks after I returned to London he invited me to church. My experience was like the story Jesus told in Luke 8:12 “The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved.” There was so much going on in my life at this point that after the service I got swept up in the busyness of life .  But this point in my life marked a three year journey that would eventually lead me to become a Christian.

My second experience was in 2003 when I met Brandon a pastor who invited me to a bible study where I began to learn more about Jesus. I didn’t realize what I was learning was having an effect on me until one day my mother mentioned to me that I seemed different since I started going to the bible study. I remember going to my first gospel hiphop concert where I heard the testimony of Mista Taylor, after the concert he came to speak to me about living a fully committed life to God. In Luke 8:13 Jesus said “The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation.” I knew God wanted me to respond to his call and live completely for him but I was tempted and compromised as I continued to find satisfaction in music, cannabis, money and the pursuit of fame.

The Thorny path

In 2004 I was at my lowest point since moving to England I considered going back home but spoke to friend (Ian, back in Harare) who encouraged me to fight on. That week I went to see the Passion of Christ at the cinema,  I didnt think any of my friends would go with me so I went alone because I felt I had to watch it.  That night I watched Jesus let people crucify him and yet through the process he had nothing but love for them, he even prayed for them then rose from the dead a few days later. That experience had a tremendous impact on my view of God and what it meant to be a Christian. I then forgave the people in my life who I was angry with. I was determined to live like Christ but like the third seed the following was my experience, Luke 8:14 “The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity.”

I reached a season in my life where the lure of record deals and fame were no longer attractive to me so I was content making music as an independent artist.  I got more passionate about social issues like Make Poverty History and would write songs that reflected my views. I thought I found a niche where I was free from compromising for the fame or recording deals but my I was still unsatisfied, something was missing, I had no peace inside.

Stuck in the same zone

Every venture I took started great but ended really badly for me, it felt like I was stuck in a vicious circle.  At this point I was tired of all the sin I committed, failed relationships, business ventures and so I thought to myself, “Maybe its time I just stop ignoring the call.” It didnt seem like I was a bad person from the outside but in my heart I knew God was breaking the selfish pride in me and convicting me of sin so I could turn to him.  I didn’t want to fully compromise but equally I didn’t want to give my whole life to God and so I was stuck in a rut for a long time.

The final seed is described in Luke 8:15 “But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” I remember over the summer of 2005 I went to a series of church meetings where I heard the gospel being preached. One particular memory was when the guest preacher said “There are some people here who live double lives”, I was so angry and was making excuses in my head, the ironic thing was that I was high while sitting in church and I knew it was wrong.

The night before I was to get baptised I was so scared and thought it was something bad, I read through the bible (while smoking a joint, what a contradiction, I know..lol) trying to find a reason not to get baptised but It suddenly dawned on me that this was all real and I dedicated my life to God in summer 2005.  I did not understand all the theological reasons but that summer I believe something changed in me and I can only attribute it to God.

Reflections on my journey

In essence there really is nothing wrong with the desire to enjoy life, make music, be famous or move to a new country, after all these are gifts given to us by God for our enjoyment and his glory, the problem  is the motive in the heart, it occurs when we desire these things more than we desire God. This desire ends up becoming worship,  sometimes as artists or (Fill in the blank) our hearts can meditate on the following thoughts, “Music or (Fill in the blank) will deliver me from obscurity by helping me gain exposure and prestige, it will deliver me from a sense of worthlessness by giving me an identity, music will deliver me from poverty by helping me make a living, music will be my God” – Source Unknown. Romans 1:25 speaks of this behaviour as mankind try to replace God with things and people, “they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself”

My dream’s and ambitions may have seemed innocent from the surface but when we dig deeper into the root of these desires we see how these dreams and pursuits were inspired by a covetous heart.  The bible describes  covetousness as idolatry,  at the root of covetousness is envy…

Envy is defined as “A feeling of discontent and resentment aroused by and in conjunction with desire for the possessions or qualities of another.” Dictionary

“It can turn into resentment against God and questioning Him: “Why can’t I have what he has, Lord? Don’t you love me enough to give me what I want?” ,  ”At its very core, envy is love of self “ Source

It starts with the dreams that are sold to us through friends, family or media then our already sinful prone hearts respond with envy as we desire other peoples lives. We become continuously dissatisfied with what we already have and who we are as we compare ourselves to others then misery and depression follow. To remedy the problem we selfishly pursue what we think is needed with the hope that it will satisfy our discontentment but its just a vicious circle.  Even If I got to a level where I thought I have “made it”, I am convinced that I would not be satisfied. Here are the words from one of the richest men that ever lived.

“So I became greater than all who had lived in Jerusalem before me, and my wisdom never failed me. Anything I wanted, I would take. I denied myself no pleasure. I even found great pleasure in hard work, a reward for all my labors. But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere.” Ecclesiastes 2:9-11

Just like the writer of Ecclesiastes who achieved what we all desire and more,  I learned that everything we achieve on this earth is meaningless without God.

Jesus once said “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

“In the end, envy and covetousness are Satan’s tools to distract us from pursuing the only thing that will ever make us happy and content—God Himself” – Source

I realised that God broke me down because I was so prideful,  those trials I went through broke me  so he could rebuild me through his holy spirit. God desires that we would find our satisfaction in knowing him and using our lives to help those around us.

Jesus said the most important commandment is to Love God and Love others as yourself, when you pursue God above money, sex, ministry, relationships etc you will become content, you will nolonger be selfish, you will be selfless, you will find your identity in him, you will receive the fruit of the Spirit which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, self-control etc. He may or may not change your situation but he will certainly change you for the better.

The Christian life is a daily process of learning who God is as we constantly resist sin and enjoy his presence in our lives, it’s not about doing Christian activities or social actions to be made right with God but its about putting our faith in Jesus alone for the salvation of our souls. I leave you with some scriptures to meditate on fromPhilippians  3:7-14 and Romans 3:23-27

When Jesus sent out his disciples to preach the gospel he gave them a strong warning that they would experience great trials and persecution. Among other statements, he did this not to scare them but to prepare them so when persecution came they where not surprised and it also confirmed that they where making an impact.

What kind of trials can I expect?
Those who are close to you may disown you, criticise you or do things to hurt you because of your faith, you will experience ridicule from your friends and co-workers, some may even count down the days until you backslide, you will go through times when you feel alone in your struggle. You may even find those you love get sick or go through various trials too, Some of you will be arrested or fired for sharing your faith, some will even hate you because you follow Jesus with no compromise.

Jesus Our Example
Before the soldiers came to get Jesus in the garden he prayed “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”, when Peter tried to fight the soldiers he was stopped by Jesus who said, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?” Jesus knew what was to happen to him and he willingly submitted to the will of the father and decided to go the hard road and drink the cup of Gods wrath in order to pay for our sins.

Jesus did not hate those who crucified him, in fact he prayed “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”. He said this because he knew they where being used by Satan for evil but God already had a plan to use the death as a payment for our sins. If it was not for Jesus we would all receive the cup of Gods wrath on judgement day but Jesus sacrificed his life for us!!! He did not run away he faced his trial head on. The bible says “Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

Our Trials
When you start making a stand like Jesus, you will definitely come under fiery trials. This can be the point when you get tempted to give up and pray for your cup of suffering to pass but we must not see trials as a reason to give up, instead we must see it as an opportunity for God to work something for Good.

I am not saying we are to pray for suffering to come upon us, but I am saying we should not be afraid of going through our trials. We should embrace trials and rejoice because its a blessing even though it does not look like a blessing. We are to trust God will look after us and work it all for good.

Jesus says “God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.” Matthew 5:10-12

What is to come?
“For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendour of his coming. The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.”

This will be a great time of trial for every Christian in the world as Christianity will become illegal. (you can find out more in the “setting the stage series” coming soon) But ultimately Jesus will win so we should not fear what is to come.

In Jesus last words before sending his disciples out he said “Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell. What is the price of two sparrows—one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.” Matthew 10:28-29

So fear not and have faith that you will not die unless its Gods will that he takes you home [heaven].

Why Rejoice?
Jesus rose from the dead and paid the cost for our souls so we WILL have a living hope that can never be stolen, get corrupted or fade away.

“Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” 1 Peter 8

“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.” Romans 5:1-6.

So in the time of trials find a song and sing in inexpressible Joy with all your heart mind and soul! I recommend searching for the song “His eye is on the Sparrow” It has been a help for me as I struggled to find words to sing to the lord.

No More Drama?
So this is the end of the revolution series and I want to say that yes you will still go through drama in the form of trials as I said in this post but the drama will end. When Jesus returns and defeats the enemy, there will be a new heaven and earth and the corruption will be gone forever, our bodies will be incorruptible we will never die or get sick, here is a portion of scripture that describes what it will be like.

Revelations 21:1-7
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”

And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.

I trust that you have done some heart surgery this past week and no doubt God would have shown you the area’s in your life that are corrupt and given you direction to restore the damage. If this is all news to you, I recommend reading last week’s blog called “corruption” which is part of the Revolution series. Now that we have dealt with the planks in our hearts with regard to corruption the next step would be to question how we deal with the specks in our society.

Do you realize that no matter what we do to try and end poverty or make this world right we will lose, the pain will increase; no politician or leader can put an end to the worlds suffering. Yes we will see things like slavery get abolished but then it takes another form as we now see with women being sold as sex slaves in Europe. In fact the cycle will continue with no light at the end of the tunnel. All our efforts no matter how noble will be as good as punching the wind until we realize who we are fighting! The scriptures tell us “We are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12. Satan and his legion of demons are behind all the atrocities we see in this world, he influences the corrupted hearts of man to fulfil his goals.

In realizing that we are fighting what seems a losing battle, Do we give up? When we hear the loud screeching cry of the lost souls, depressed, oppressed, hungry, poor and sick do we ignore it all? When preaching the gospel becomes illegal (which it will, stay tuned for the “Setting the stage” blog series for more) do we stop preaching? do we compromise ? On the Contrary, We keep fighting till the day we are gone!, Why because “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” 1 John 4:4.

Jesus already won the battle when he rose from the dead. He has sent his Holy Spirit to dwell in us to help us complete the race. When we finish the race, the lord has prepared a new heaven and a new earth where there will be no more pain (Next weeks blog for more) but until then we are hear for those who are not saved, for those with no hope; we are here to be agents of justice and a source of hope so people will turn to the lord. We need the involvement of God, who is the creator of all things, we need to live under his command because he is running things in this world, he knows the enemies plans and he has the ultimate plan to win this race and unless we join his team we will end up losing the race by running aimlessly or fighting the wind. The apostle Paul says ” I do not run like a man running aimlessly. I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I my self will not be qualified for the prize.” 1Corrinthians 9:24-27

Running aimlessly?
Free running is a sport where the basic aim is to run then jump over an obstacle, back-flip or somersault high into the air and land safely on the ground. These runners run with no particular end goal except to create an artistic expression, they basically run randomly and jump randomly too. I use this sport to illustrate that the Christian walk is not a free running event, nor is it a sprint, the Christian walk is a marathon. If we get caught up sprinting to every campaign to end poverty or go backfliping into every Christian Concert with no thought to what God’s plan is we will be running randomly and will soon get fed up and give up as we begin to see a lack of fruit in our lives. We need to run steadily in our lane with a clear direction from God, this direction comes from the Holy Spirit and we need to remain faithful and not get caught up in the latest thing!

Fighting the wind?
Mohammad Ali used a method of boxing called “the rope-a-dope” where he would use a protective stance as he leaned on the ropes of the boxing ring. So Ali’s opponent would punch Ali with all of his energy, round after round thinking he was making an impact, then towards the end of the last round Ali’s opponent grew tired. That is the point when Ali gets off the ropes and knocks out his opponent and wins the match. This is exactly how we as Christians are attempting to beat the enemy. We spend our whole lives fighting in the wrong place and we eventually get tired and the strong enemy beats us to the ground. This happens when we don’t allow God into the decision process, we just make our own plans as to which battle we are to take then the enemy just leans back and lets you get tired fighting the wrong kind of battles. We are to ask God for wisdom and he will direct us as to where he wants us to battle it out and when we are prayerful about every outreach and every campaign that’s when God will move, that’s when God will move the enemy off the ropes and knock him out.

Spiritual Power!
“Unless the Lord builds a house, the work of the builders is wasted. Unless the Lord protects a city, guarding it with sentries will do no good. It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones.” Psalms 127, we must remember that if God is not put first in prayer all the things we do are useless.

When Philip was spreading the gospel we read in the book of Acts 8:26-40 that he was led by the spirit about which area he needed to be at to the point where he was able to help the Ethiopian Eunuch become a Christian. Paul also in the book of Acts was directed to the point where they had near death experiences but where saved due to the direction of the Holy Spirit. Moses depended on God and helped save the Hebrew people from slavery in Egypt.

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”Ephesians 6:10-18

How do we win?
Endurance! We will win this race but we have to endure every trial that will come against the work we do. The enemy will not give up without a fight and he will cause trials to come on your life so we are to stand firm. “Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened. But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.” 1 Peter 1:13-16

The Holy spirit is the power within us that helps us to fight and win! Yes there are some battles that we will loose but the War is ours we have the Victory!!!!……..Selah..

This world is daily seeing suffering at the hands of corrupt people. Where did this corruption start? and who is to blame? This weeks blog is going to look at the root cause as to why corruption continues to corrode our society and what we can do about it.

Withholding the cure.
I read a story of a man who had compassion towards peoples suffering and went on a mission to take inexpensive medication for dying populations in the developing world. The medication costs about 20p per bottle to make and each bottle had enough for 200 doses. The medication reduces a babies chance of contracting HIV by 90% as long as they get the dose within 48hours of birth. The man donates this medication to doctors in developing countries that are badly affected. But major brand name pharmaceutical companies have tried to stop him from distributing the medication because it would violate the companies intellectual property rights, In other words the company would not make big profits. In their defence the pharmaceutical companies say that they need the profit to reinvest for more scientific research and the money they loose from developing countries would hinder their efforts.

There have been a few laws passed within the international community that have made it possible to provide medication for people who are helplessly suffering. Sadly these laws have been hindered by the pharmaceuticals with countless law suits. Now we have a situation where millions are dying, not because there is no cure but because people do not want to loose money even though these companies make more than enough to sustain themselves in the western world.

So who is to blame?
Some might say, well its the governments fault or the greedy corporations fault, others would question why God does not intervene, is it his fault? To find the answer we have to go back to Genesis chapter 3. Adam and eve where influenced by Satan to disobey Gods commandment. As a result of rebelling against God and following Satan they became corrupted by sin.

This sinful nature has now been passed down from generation to generation meaning that everyone is born sinful. We don’t start out as good then become bad, we actually start out corrupted. Like a snake has venom in its system that’s how we have sin in our system. Psalms 51:5 says “I was born a sinner – yes from the moment my mother conceived me”

What is sin?
Sin is the deliberate disobedience to the known will of God and we are all guilty of going against Gods will. We find God’s will by looking into the word, Jesus says, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”Matthew 22:34. So when we love God we do our best to please him by trying to follow his commandments, we don’t steal, lie, hate, lust after woman, etc. When we love our neighbor as we love our selves, we don’t hurt our neighbors by our actions. We don’t let innocent people die because of our greed.

But I am not as bad as those corrupt politicians.
According to Psalms 14:3 “All have turned away; all have become corrupt. No one does good, not a single one!”. If we are faithful at committing sin in the small things we will be faithful at committing sin in the big things too. In God’s eye’s sin is sin and he judges accordingly, Jeremiah 17:9-10 “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”

The story of the pharmaceuticals is an example a broken system caused by a broken people. Before we all begin to pass blame or complain we need to realise we are also broken people contributing to a broken world, we need to deal with the root cause before we can start to influence real change. The root of the corruption is in the heart. Jesus says in Luke 6:45 “A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.”

Jesus says “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” Matthew 7:3-5.

My plank
I recently borrowed money from a close friend and he has not asked for the money back, but I know I have the money and can pay him back but I have not paid him back. If it was the other way around I would be so upset If I didn’t get my money back. Most of the reason I have not paid them back is not because I have no money or I’m struggling but Its procrastination and greed. If I was the pharmaceutical company would I withhold help from others ? Over time I would say yes because as I continue to ignore my concious I will become even more corrupt and greedy to the point where I would not care about people who die. It is possible, so many people become corrupt through rebellion to Gods still small voice speaking. As a result of my actions my friend would probably not borrow money to anyone else again. (notice the cycle?)

How do we change ?
How often have we with held good from those whom we have the power to help ? This could be due to jealousy, un-forgiveness, greed etc. How many times have we borrowed money and when it came to paying it back we didn’t do so? Proverbs 3:27-28 tells us “Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act. Do not say to your neighbour, “Come back later; I’ll give it tomorrow” when you now have it with you.”

Heart Surgery
If you are a not a Christian it starts with committing your life to God and he promises to give you a new heart and a new mind and from that new heart you will be guided by his spirit to the right way. Now as Christians we are not excluded from sin, though we don’t have a sinful nature anymore we still sin and so we need to do a regular heart check. Ask God to search your heart, Psalms 139:23-24 says “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” Psalms 19:13-14 “Keep your servant from deliberate sins! Don’t let them control me. Then I will be free of guilt and innocent of great sin. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you”

Ask your self, Have I been guilty of corruption in my life, this could include greed or waste? Have I had the ability to help someone but decided not to? Do I blame others when things go wrong ? Do I hold things in my heart that God would be offended by eg: bitterness, lust etc. As Christians we need to continually have a repentant nature and seek God to clean our hearts but this will involve spending time in the quiet of the day and contemplating. Tune in next week, Friday 6th March for part 3 in the Revolution series titled “Fighting the wind!”, I will be speaking about how we can fight against corruption in our society with an eternal perspective. If you have any comments about these blogs please contact me……………Selah.

This world is dying; you don’t have to watch the news about how people are suffering any more. Open your door, take a walk down your street, look carefully and maybe speak to a few people and you will begin to find out that there is so much sorrow in this world today. People are loosing family members because they can’t afford health care, the homeless freeze to Death in 1st world countries, babies are killed in the womb and mothers are left alone to grieve.

And what are Christians doing about it…..talking……a lot of us are talking about it, identifying what needs to be done but are we actually doing something about it…Nope. I have found that we spend more time criticizing those that are actually hard at work on the front line more than actually being on the front line or praying for those on the front line. In the mean time we are investing our time and money in ourselves exclusively and spending little or no time serving our local church, no time to missions, no time to social action…and then we wonder why we get depressed and feel unfulfilled at times.

When challenging Christians to action some argue that only certain people are called to do certain works for the kingdom of God. So as a result they will not do anything and say “I am Waiting for God to show me what I need to do”. But God commands us to action! We need to do what God has already called us to do and stop waiting for more signs. We need to be faithful with the little God has called us to do. The bible says we are to share our faith with the those who don’t know, it’s the great commission and we are all called to this work in what ever form it takes. You don’t need to be specially gifted to get involved in sharing your faith or getting involved in social action, you simply need to make your self available.

Some Christians believe we should only be involved in preaching the gospel, while others believe we should only be concerned with social action, I would say we miss the point if we see it as one or the other. There is enough common sense and scriptural evidence in the bible that point us to play a part in both. From following the great commission to being a Good Samaritan, wisdom calls for us to find a healthy balance.

Before we can have a revolution in the world we need to each have a personal revolution in our hearts and repent of the sin in our lives. We need a move of God in our hearts that will transform our selfish nature into a selfless one. It’s not enough to keep saying I am struggling with my relationship in God, look at Isaiah who said “ whoa is me for I am a man with unclean lips” the man was sinful and God took away the sin that ensnared his life and sent him out to reach the lost. Lets not be like the lazy man in the book of proverbs, “The lazy person claims, “There’s a lion on the road! Yes, I’m sure there’s a lion out there!” As a door swings back and forth on its hinges, so the lazy person turns over in bed. Lazy people take food in their hand but don’t even lift it to their mouth.” Proverbs 26:13

Reaching our culture may involve sacrificing things we enjoy to free up time in our lives for others. Don’t be afraid to stand for the truth, even if it means no one likes you after, for example, Gossip is a Sin, if people are gossiping say you don’t want to take part, even if you get looked at as a goodie goodie its okay. Its not enough to just attend church and complain that the church is not doing anything for your community, make a plan and approach your leaders, there are many avenues to get involved. Look around your community and fill a need that is clearly not being met, it may be volunteering at your local homeless centre, starting a prayer group or helping those who are less fortunate in your church.

“What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well” but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?

So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless. Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”

You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God.Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?”James 2

A revolution will be hard but we have to go harder than ever especially in this day and age, Will you start a Revolution?

I was guilty of buying into the “American Dream”, I followed the worlds patterns of promoting music, this included false hype [Lying], focusing too much time and energy on CD sales and all sorts. I had started out with good intentions, to make positive music to make money to help my friends, family and fellow country men but was lured in by the patterns of the modern world as we know it, all of this while I was a professing Christian.

I had wondered from true Christianity, How do I know this? Well, 1 John 2:3 says “we know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.”

So I was what you would call, “The reason why people mock God” but thankfully I had people praying for me. During this time one of the things that God used to get my attention was a song called “Millionaire” by Andre 3000 and Kelis. At this point in my life I was still trying and struggling and this song helped me see that its not all good at the top as portrayed by world. I wrote some lyrics to the same song that expressed my feelings at the time

[click the mp3 icon below to listen & you can also read the lyrics]

“I’m just trying to get by, trying to make a record so yall can buy, I need my first million bucks coz working really sucks, I really need this cash gotta make it real fast,I’m getting old, its getting cold, I’m awake on the grind looking so i can find, a richer place a happy place, Living under strings up and down like i was a clown, Living in debt, 20 percent 30 percent, Wheres all the money going? and why am i working if i never see my son?Am i never having fun on a Sunday afternoon? Maybe go to the park? no, I will be working till dark! This life is crazy, I’m trying to be a millionaire so i can help my people, Help my brothers help my sisters,Why am i sad, is it the end ? is it the end ? is it the end ? I’m just a I’m just a sad wannabe millionaire!!”

Looking back at these lyrics and remembering what I was going through when I wrote this, I realize that God was allowing a lot of things to go wrong in my life to break me down. I was trying to do it all on my own. I was prideful, arrogant but in desperate need of help.

I remember some of my last days in this state, one particular morning when my friends found me in my room with vomit on my bed. I had been out the night before trying to drown my sorrows with alcohol and drugs thankfully a few weeks after that incident I allowed God to take me out of that lifestyle. I committed my life to God, got plugged into a church and kept God as my first love and everything else took second place. Now four years later God is using me and my music in an amazing way all because I allowed God to strip me of my self dependence and pride. No I am not rich or famous but I am content. [Not complacent]

What happened with me can happen in any industry, its not exclusive to the music. It could take many forms of the same thing so even If you are a doctor, Pastor, lawyer or teacher you can till be tempted to leave God for money no matter how noble your intentions. I gave my life as an example and I urge you to look at your life and ask yourself, A) Is God included in your life decisions? B) What are your motives? C) Are they selfish or selfless?

And always remember Paul’s Advice to Timothy,
“True godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it. So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content.

But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.

But you, Timothy, are a man of God; so run from all these evil things. Pursue righteousness and a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. Fight the good fight for the true faith. Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you have confessed so well before many witnesses”

I remember in October 2004 when I heard the new release “Millionaire” by Kelis and Andree 3000, being a fan of electro beats this tune was explosive for me. As I began to listen to the lyrics I laughed because I actually woke up mad early that morning…but as the song progressed I took interest to the main message which was like a word to me. Now four years later I listened to the same song and thought about the lyrics, so have a listen to the song than read my thoughts from a few of the highlighted lyrics.

Mama I’m a Millionaire but I feel like a bum. [Andre 3000]
Many people who are not rich feel that when they get money they will feel great because they can get what they want, but here Andre 3000 expresses that he feels less than great. In fact it seems like he’s feeling the same as someone who wakes up with no job or hope of ever feeling better.

I woke up early this morning, but i still ain’t seen the sun. [Andre 3000]
I don’t know what this meant but I thought as a Christian my mood would be the same as this song when I wake up and I don’t see the son aka Jesus in prayer and meditation for long periods of time. The piano keys in the song would best describe the mood and feeling of myself when I’m away from God for long periods of time.

I’m a Millionaire but i ain’t movin in the right direction, [Andre 3000]
Its so deep how she expresses feeling out of place in a world where affection isn’t real and how she can feel something is not right in her life. I think back to when I was trying to make it big in the music industry and how there was something niggling in my conscious about me not going in the right direction, at face value my life seemed great I was on the way up but inside was a different story.

Some times we have noble motives for wanting to get money and fame but as we walk along the long road and listen to the promises money can bring we get excited then over time we see its not going to fulfill its promise and we then get overwhelmed by a feeling of entrapment, of slavery, of hopelessness because we have compromised for money and it has become our God and this God aka mammon is ruining our lives.

If you got riches,you got glitches. [Andre 3000]
I thought this was quite self explanatory but well worth highlighting, money does not get rid of problems, in fact the glitches continue and here Andree 3000 a rich and famous person confirms it.

What’s a girl to do when she just has dimes no time just play-yay-yay-yay. [Kelis]
The last bit of the song is the bit that hit me the most because as “normal everyday people” we are quick to say how we work so hard with no time to enjoy the fruits of life. We then buy into celebrity infested magazines that lie to us about how great celebrity lives are but here Kelis tells us different. In fact she says “whats a girl to do when she’s lost her long term friends? when she works with no time to play” when at the end of it all… “that is life”…and how she feels sad..

What’s a girl to do in a world of greed but kneel and pray-yay-yay-yay. [Kelis]
Kelis really brought the point home here, its a greedy world, and its a struggle to live in this world, we are helpless to do anything except to call on God through prayer.

Conclusion
This song really refreshed my awareness of the state of the world we live in, it reminds me of how sad it is for those who continue chasing the lies of this world , I don’t think Kelis and Andre 3000 can solve the worlds problems. I don’t approve of all the music that Kelis or Outkast produce but this particular song has touched on some real truths of life and God surely used this song to help me get closer to him at a point in my life when I was following the worlds lies….In my part 2 of this blog I will take you through how I followed the pattens of this world……Read part two here