A New Take on "Planking"

It's so funny how the silliest things can take wind in the world and people just jump on it so quickly. I know you all have heard of this new phenomenon called "planking". Planking or "The lying down game" is a fad which consists of people lying face down in an unusual or incongruous location. Then someone takes a picture and post it online for all to see. Believe it or not, some people have gotten seriously hurt or killed from this. Probably not something I would consider myself doing anytime soon.

The reason why I thought about this fad is that recently, I've had to experience my own form of planking. Let me explain. The other day I was in the Word and the Lord led me to Matthew 7. The first verse of the chapter was very clear: "Judge not, that ye be not judged..."v.1 I continued reading in the chapter that read:

For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. and why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to you brother, 'Let me remove the speck from your eye', and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye. Matt 7:2-5

Then I read the definition of plank and planking and found that another form of planking is gathering a bunch of planks and laying them aside in a group. And then it hit me: How often do we judge people for any reason really, and we have the same problem or the same issue? I think it's time we start removing some planks.

How does this relate to us as artists?

Many times we look at people and for whatever reason (they look better in the dress you wanted, they have your job, their not doing their job right, they can sing better or can't sing at all, they have an anointing on their life, etc. etc, etc.) we judge them, not realizing that we TOO struggle with the same issue, maybe in a different area or way. I've been to many concerts and midnight musicals where people are dressed to the nines and they only come for the purpose to see what other people are wearing, singing, sounding, dancing. The purpose of the gospel is lost when we #1-take our focus off of God and the reason we are there in the first place; and #2- focus on others and ourselves in comparing ourselves to what others have or do.

Another plank that can we can easily move is that we also judge the validity of someone's else ministry in music because it does not minister to us. Now this is a sticky one, because while there are clear signs that a song is not about God at all and even doesn't uplift Jesus, we are not in a position to judge whether it is effective or not. I'm not talking about songs that cause people to focus on themselves persay, moreso, those songs where it is clear what the message is and because it has a different sound, new beat, and we're not used to it, we say it is not anointed. Even for those who are more inspirational in nature, we cannot judge who it will reach and how. We cannot unrighteously judge the artists who make it. And we should embrace anyone who has taken up the cross to follow Christ, denied themselves, and answered the call to minister through song, despite how different the sound.

I think of some people, some of whom I have sung beside like Tye Tribbett, Jai, and Mali Music and how different their ministry is but very effective and anointed. I imagine they must have had a rough start getting people to even receive their music let alone listen to it and buy it. and now they are ministering to nations. I, too will one day joins the ranks of unashamed and unabashed artists whose main purpose is to preach the message of Christ in song to the nations.

But first, I have some planking to do...

Much Love Family,

RR

The Dangerousness of Jay-Z

I was talking with a coworker today about the song "Empire State of Mind" by Jay-Z & Alicia Keys. I mostly listen to gospel myself and never really cared for Jay-Z years ago when he called himself "J-hova" or Hova (a blatant disrespect of God). But even I must admit that the song has a great beat and seems to have a positive message. SO after looking at lyrics (not the full version), I thought it was a good song to introduce to young people I work with. My coworker admonished me to take a closer look at the full lyrics of the song and I will see why Jay-Z has become his "enemy". And after searching for the complete version, I then saw it in plain words what my coworker was talking about. With lyrics like, "the city of sin is a pity on a whim" and "Jesus can't save you, life starts when the church ends", it's a wonder why Christians haven't lined up to protest.
Why haven't we? And why does it matter?

People could easily come up with it being about freedom of speech and everyone has the right to their opinion. So why is this song so dangerous? It's clear that Jay-Z does not know, love, or care to know Jesus, so why should we be concerned about his songs?

Good questions. And I will attempt to feebly answer why it affects us as Christians, and especially as Christian and gospel artists.

-Regular Airplay: This song, because it represents the city of New York in an intimate way, has become an anthem of sorts and has warranted the amount of airplay it receives. We hear it walking down the streets, on the radio stations, on tv; it has become mainstream. And even though its talking about the NY, many people relate to it (there's even a London version of the song!) This seemingly innocent anthem subtly inserts a blatant denouncing of Christ. Despite mainstream songs having suggestive lyrics that refute the church and Christianity, I don't think we've ever had such a widely accepted song openly refute Jesus as Savior. This is indicative of the times we now live in and brings home the reality of the End Times like never before.

-The Kids: Because of its widespread airplay and acceptance, kids hear this on a regular basis. They hear this song and believe it. Why? They see church folks constantly not having the answers to life's problems. They see them being hypocrites and doubting the very God they claim to serve. On the contrary, they see Jay-Z and others like him, who have come from where they come from; been in the trenches, grew up and is very successful but also transparent. He is considered one of the nobles of hip hop. SO they begin to believe that "life starts when church ends". They start to slowly entertain that maybe Jesus can't save you because He didn't save Aunt Judy who is in church everyday of the week, talks about Jesus all the time but also talks about everybody else and treats people wrong. They take the bait of Satan in the form of one of the world's angels of light- a hip hop god who rose through the ranks of success: a few houses, a pretty wife and a few grammys.

-The Beats: This song has nice beats!! This is where it gets messy for Christian and gospel artists. There are so many songs by artists, that use beats and sounds that are frequently used in the world to convey the message of Christ. But's that not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about artists, who shall remain nameless, who mirror the world in its flagrant beats to package the message that seems like it may include Christ, but highlight things that have nothing to do with God and are contrary to the Word. Songs that focus on us, the creation, as opposed to the Creator Himself. We are no better than someone like Jay-Z when we wrap pseudo-Christ centered messages in a crazy beat. We practically prepare the way for kids and impressionable Christians to stray because we have compromised our message and compensated it with a nice beat.

I do not have anything personal against this man. I've never met him, he never slapped my momma, or anything like that. And honestly, he is free to choose what to say and who he will serve. However, I am concerned,as a Christian artist, about what message we send as Christians when we choose to actively listen to those who denounce God and when we are not cautious about the messages given to the young people intrusted to our care. I almost made that mistake. The message that Jay-Z sends through this seemingly harmless song is the same message that Satan gave to Eve in the garden: one of doubt, that questions the very nature and essance of our God. Jesus' name MEANS Savior. And to package the enemy's message in a nice beat, surrounded with personally encouraging lyrics about America's beloved and traversed city- New York, is dangerous. But what's even more dangerous is when we, as Christians, like Adam, openly accept songs that make our flesh feel good and has nice beats without thoroughly investigating what it says. Then like Eve, we pass on the fruit of carelessness and selfishness through the medium of music that was created to uplift. That my friends, is the most dangerous thing of all.

What Makes Great Gospel Music?

As I sit and contemplate what's going on in the music industry, it makes me think about what people look for. What makes great gospel music?Is it what's new and fresh or is it about the anointing? Or Both? If it is about the anointing on a song/psalmist, then why is it so hard for good anointed music to reach airplay?

Most people I'm sure would say it is the anointing- the Power of God that makes gospel music great. It's what separates most secular artists from gospel artists. Even they would have to admit that when you're listening to gospel music it makes you feel good. But so many gospel artists are consumed with a sound as opposed to the message. Anybody that knows anything about music knows that the message will eventually supercede the melody... So have today's gospel artists forgotten that?