The Church Triumphant - A Great Song That Still Moves Me

When I was a kid my dad would play gospel music albums. (Often he played them very loud on Sunday mornings to wake everyone up for church.) This song, “The Church Triumphant,” for which I am providing a link, is one of the recordings from his many albums. The artists are the Bill Gaither Trio.

                 Click here to listen to "The Church Triumphant."

Bill Gaither was—and still is—one of the most prolific, successful and influential of all gospel music artists. (He makes those “Homecoming” videos that can frequently be seen on various cable channels. In addition to writing many classic gospel songs, he’s an incredibly savvy businessman.)

The original album on which this was recorded was released in 1973. I haven’t listened to this song in probably 35+ years. But as I was listening to it again today two things struck me:

1. The bluesy piano playing is outstanding. If you take a moment to listen to the recording listen to the piano player, particularly at the very beginning and at the ending. The stuff he plays is truly awesome. (There’s some pretty nice guitar work, too, although most of the time it is fairly low in the mix.)

2. There are two spoken word moments during the song. One is delivered by Gloria Gaither (Bill’s wife) and the other is delivered toward the end by Bill.

What they say about the church during these spoken moments is so relevant that it could easily have been written yesterday.

In 1973, when my dad purchased this album and began playing it I was 15 years old. Approximately 6 years later I had the privilege of playing in Danny Gaither’s band, Danny is Bill’s brother and he was the third member of the Bill Gaither Trio. Life can be pretty cool sometimes, huh?

I remember telling Danny how much I liked this song.  And I mentioned the piano playing. Danny laughed and told me that when they were in the studio recording the song they were, initially, thrown by the piano work at the beginning. The studio player (I believe it may have been a Nashville session legend named Lari Goss) was laying down such fancy riffs that they didn’t know where to actually begin singing.

Despite my dad’s influence, I never became a huge fan of the old gospel style of music. But I will admit that I cried today when I listened to this song. Even after all these years, it still moves me powerfully.

We Were Created To Take On Life Despite The Troubles

Most of the trouble, struggles, headaches and sadness I’ve experienced in life have been brought on by my own words and actions. If you know me, this is not too difficult to imagine. I think this is probably true for most of us.

With that thought in mind, the safest thing for us would be to withdraw and to say and do as little as possible. Right?  (I realize this can be a tempting option for some of us, by the way.)

But that is not the fullest, most purposeful, most effective way to live. God created us to engage with life. We were created to get in there and mix it up. We were created to live! So, it is inevitable that we will cause ourselves some more trouble, struggles, headaches and sadness. Sorry, but this is just one of those realities we need to acknowledge. And then we need to get out there and continue to speak and act, anyhow. We need to take on this life God has given us.

And when we fall down and get hurt—with God’s help—we will just have to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, put one foot in front of the other, trust that He is with us, and get going again.

This Is A Lucky Day?

I hopped in the van this morning, turned the key, and was greeted with complete silence. Nothing happened. It didn’t whine. It didn’t sort of turnover a little bit. It didn’t look at me, roll its eyes and chuckle. The van was totally dead.

When Nadia got home we took out the cables, jumped the van and drove it to our mechanic. He quickly determined that we needed a new battery. Our current battery wasn’t really very old. But if a battery no longer works then it no longer works so, even though it wasn’t very old, we needed a new battery.

(You can tell I know a lot about mechanics from that kind of sophisticated analysis, can’t you?)

When the job was completed our mechanic walked into his waiting area and said to me, “It’s your lucky day, this is only going to cost $100!”

I laughed and said, “You and I have a different definition of what makes a lucky day.”

Then we both laughed, I paid the bill and he laughed a little bit more.

When it comes to the vehicles at our house, someone else always gets the last laugh.

Wait Upon The Lord, But In The Meantime Get Busy

In the Christian faith we often talk about “waiting on the Lord.”  I’ve heard Christians talk about not wanting to run ahead of God because we realize that if anything of genuine significance is going to happen, God needs to be in it. (As a matter of fact, now that I think of it, I’ve heard myself say those words.)

There is an awareness, among Christians, that it is important for us to act in accordance with God and be doing things based upon His leading, His strength and His power.

All of this is true.

However, this does not mean that if a Christian has not received a very specific and direct leading from God the person is essentially compelled to sit around waiting for instructions and doing nothing in life.

You see, in the normal course of life there are some things we already know we are supposed to be doing. We don’t need a further word from God regarding some of these matters. He has already spoken. For example, we are called to be kind, gracious, respectful and fair in our day-to-day interactions with everyone we encounter.

Or, whatever our current job or duties happen to be we are called to do them to the best of our abilities.

Or, we are called to be proclaiming the truth of Jesus and what He has done in our lives, basically, bringing the light of Jesus wherever we go.

Again, we don’t need to be in a waiting pattern regarding issues such as these—wondering if we should behave in these ways, or not. God has already spoken to us about these practices in our lives.

So, should we “wait upon the Lord?” Yes, absolutely!

But should we continue to be His agents in the world—being salt and light wherever we go—in the meantime? Yes, absolutely!

A Minute And A Half of God Stuff Podcast - No. 56

Followers of Jesus are His ambassadors.

                                    Click here for podcast!

At The Airport: Delayed

We sailed through the security check point without a hitch and arrived at the gate for our flight home with more than an hour to spare. There was no attendant from the airline present, however, the sign at the gate contained a word. It is a disappointing word. It has the potential to be a very irritating word. It is a word that no traveler ever wants to see.

The word? “Delayed.”

How long will we be delayed?

What is causing the delay?

Where might I find chocolate?

These are the questions that sprang to mind. But there was no one to provide answers, only random fellow-travelers poking at their phones and sighing deeply—many of them wearing flip flops even though their destination is Chicago.

So, Nadia, Rachel and I sit here enjoying the lovely *ambiance that can only be found in an airline terminal… while one is delayed.

*NOTE: I often use French words when I have spare time on my hands.

Four Ways To Improve Our Listening

One of the ways we show people we care about them is to listen. Listening is a deceptive skill because it seems easy. In fact, listening is so natural and common that we don’t even think of it as a skill.

We think, “I can listen. I do it all the time. It’s easy!”

Listening well, however, is a skill. It can be developed and improved.

I confess that sometimes I do not listen well. There have been times when I have casually listened to people and, sort of, heard the words they spoke but did not really engage in such a way that there was genuine understanding. On the other hand, here are a few points I’ve noticed about listening when it happens well:

1. There is an energy involved in listening well. Good listening requires us to be present and engaged. It is not a completely passive activity. It actually requires effort.

2. When we are listening well, our own speaking is limited and it primarily involves asking follow up questions seeking to clarify and understand what the person is saying.

3. We usually need to stop doing other things in order to offer the kind of attention that is required to listen well. Understandably, there may be times when this will not be practical, for instance, if we are driving a car and listening to someone. However, when it is possible, we typically listen more effectively when we stop doing other things and give our full attention to the one to whom we are listening.

4. When we listen well, we are authentically concerned about the other person and want to know what he/she is saying. This is probably the most fundamental issue. When we really care about a person there is a genuine curiosity that makes a difference.

We extend a wonderful gift to a person when we give him/her our full attention and really listen.

We Do Not Have To Find Fault In Others In Order To Feel Good About Ourselves

There is a strange thing we humans sometimes do. It goes like this: we point out faults in others because it makes us feel a little better about ourselves.  In fact, as we identify faults in others it might even convince us, in some odd way, that we actually have fewer faults. This, obviously, creates a strong incentive for continuing this type of behavior.

I’d like to tell you this is something I’ve read about and observed in others and that is how I know about it.  But, unfortunately, I have done this type of thing.

It is helpful and important for us to remember that intentionally setting out to find fault in others is not necessary.  We do not have to tear others down in order to prove to ourselves we are persons of dignity and worth, in spite of our faults.

God created us, on purpose.  God loves us and cares about us.  We have dignity and worth to the Creator of all things.

Does Shame Serve A Useful Purpose?

I have noticed that there are people who no longer feel shame when they’ve done something shameful.  In particular, I’ve noticed this among prominent people when they are caught doing something wrong. This inability to feel shame is not a good development.

Please understand, I am not in favor of laying guilt trips on people. I realize that guilt has been used in unfair ways to manipulate and control people.  This is not what I am advocating.

However, the feelings we experience actually serve a purpose.  Since it is genuinely possible for people to behave in shameful ways, it is not unreasonable for feelings of shame to accompany the shameful behavior.  In fact, we can even argue that feeling shame when we’ve done something wrong is normal.

Yes it’s true that feeling shame is unpleasant but, in a way, that’s the point.  It is possible for the unpleasant feeling of being ashamed to actually play a helpful role by influencing us not to repeat the shameful behavior.

If we reach a point as a society in which no one ever feels shame, even when they have behaved in shameful ways, we will find it is not going to be fun, free and wonderfully uninhibited, rather, it will be very dangerous.

The Adorable Little One In The Stroller

As I was walking the pier in this photo I saw a woman approaching, pushing a baby in a stroller. When she was close I looked down because I always like to see adorable little babies.

Only it was not a baby in the baby stroller. It was a Chihuahua swaddled in blankets and wearing a very dapper baby bonnet.

My eyes met with the woman pushing the stroller and I started to say something but -- and this is fairly rare -- I couldn't think of anything to say.

I looked back down at the dog and, not verbally but with his eyes, he said, "I've got a pretty sweet deal going, huh?"

I smiled, nodded at him, and continued walking.

Does Technology Impact Our Ability To Think And Contemplate Deeply?

This might seem like an anti-technology/anti-internet rant. It is not. I like technology and I like the internet. I recognize the internet as a communication tool and because of that I understand it to be fairly neutral. Like all communication tools it can be utilized in good ways or bad ways.

However, one of the downsides of the internet is that we tend to receive information on the internet in ways that are very superficial. Frankly, this is intentional. In order to get and keep people’s attention online most of the savvy and successful information purveyors realize they have to present the data in chunks that are quick, catchy and entertaining. (I was concerned this post may be too lengthy for a blog post. Ironic, huh?)

This shallow approach to the presentation of info is not bad except more and more of us are getting large amounts of our information—perhaps all of our information—online these days. As this happens there are smart, observant thinkers who are concerned this may negatively impact our willingness and our capacity to think and engage in deep ways, intellectually.

Nicholas Carr is a respected writer on technology and its impact on our lives. He wrote this about his own experience: “What the Net seems to be doing is chipping away at my capacity for concentration and contemplation. Whether I’m online or not, my mind now expects to take in information the way the Net distributes it: in a swiftly moving stream of particles. Once I was a scuba diver in the sea of words. Now I zip along the surface like a guy on a Jet Ski.”

Again, this is not an anti-internet rant, however, it is a word of caution to followers of Christ. Followers of Jesus are called to contemplate the important issues of life, including God and our relationship with Him. We are called to think deeply.

Jesus addressed these matters when He told us to love God with our minds. (See Luke 10:27)

I am not trying to run anyone else’s life, however, I am humbly suggesting that those of us who are serious about being people of substance (loving God with our minds) may want to make sure we unplug, pick up an actual book from time to time, and continue to set aside time for pondering thoughtful questions and contemplating the important issues of life.

Has God Given You A Dream?

God may give us a dream that corresponds with His purpose for our lives. If the dream has genuinely come from God please understand it may still be very difficult and require effort, determination and endurance. The fact that a dream has come from God does not mean it will be easy. In fact, if the dream has come from God it is likely to require courage and will probably not be possible without His help and power.

However, if the dream has come from God it is important to respond by saying, “Yes, God!” And pursue the dream.

You might say, “How do I know if the dream has come from God?” Here are a few indicators:

The dream is not in contradiction with God’s truths as found in scripture.

The dream helps other people and is not just of value to you, personally.

The dream brings glory to God.

You receive some other type of confirmation regarding the dream beyond an initial impression or leading.

Remember, if God has given you a dream this is part of God’s calling for you and it is important to pursue it.