The Beginning

At this point in my life I find myself in an interesting position. I’m serving in a church with the youth and I’m starting a new ministry…

In a previous post I talked a little about the ministry, Anthem 3:16…the concept and vision of this ministry has grown. The current project for Anthem 3:16 is starting a blog-style website with devotionals and original music. These devotionals will be typed, audio and video. The music will be in an audio or video format. There will be multiple contributors to this site from several different churches. The idea is that we are one church body and as such we should be doing ministry together. I have a friend who is currently a Youth Pastor at another church…his youth group and the youth group I’m currently leading will do ministry and events together. This is the way the church should operate. Different ministries coming together to help each other succeed. Every ministry has a purpose and vision and every denomination has its place…but instead of neglecting brothers and sisters because of denominational differences we need to focus on the commonality that we have…Christ!

Right now the ministry consists of two people (myself included). A small beginning I must say and just looking at the surface and in the natural it can be a discouraging thing. This is where faith comes into play. The beginning is just that…the beginning…and that’s not what the primary focus should be. The focus should be on Christ first and foremost. (Have you noticed that a problem or issue doesn’t seem like that big of a deal when it’s put into perspective with Christ as the center?) The next thing should be on building a team…any great ministry has a team. Even Jesus brought together a team of people who He discipled and mentored. Later they were the leadership team of the early church.

We are in the process of buying a domain name…until that site is up and runnning we will have a blog here on wordpress. This blog will serve as a temporary site for Anthem 3:16 and when it’s up and running we’ll let you know. With all that being said if you or someone you know might be interested in being a contributor to Anthem 3:16 let us know. Or if you think you might be able to assist Anthem 3:16 in any other way again let us know.

2010
02/08
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Made


Check out this other video I posted on youtube not too long ago.

2010
02/06
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Less of Me

Check out the new video that I posted on Youtube.

2010
02/06
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10 Things in Twenty-Ten

I found the below blog post and found it to be very applicable for even the most seasoned musician…the post is focused on musicians/worship teams but it can apply to every Christian’s walk.

10 Things in Twenty-Ten
January 21st 2010 11:10 am

The beginning of a new year is often a time for personal evaluation and setting goals for the year ahead. Not a bad idea when you consider the old saying, “Those who fail to plan, plan to fail.” With that in mind, I’ve compiled a list of ten things we, as Christians/Musicians/Worship Leaders, should plan to do in the year ahead.

I left some obvious things off the main list that apply to all of us, whether we are in music ministry or not—read God’s Word daily, pray daily, fellowship regularly, give of our time, and give of our finances. I think we can all agree that we should be doing those things in the year 2010 and beyond.

For this list of 10 things, there’s a “musical” application and a “spiritual” application. The musical application will be somewhat obvious. For the spiritual application, I have added bold italics for the point of emphasis from each passage.

With all of that, let’s dive into the list of Ten Things in Twenty Ten for Christian Musicians:

1. Practice (You are never so accomplished that you don’t need to practice)

“Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.” (1 Timothy 4:13-16)

2. Learn something (new instrument, new technique, how to read music, etc.)

“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)

3. Relearn something you used to know (go back and revisit past musical ideas)

“Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (1 Timothy 4:6-7)

4. Encourage someone else (you never know when your words will be the difference)

“But command Joshua, and encourage him and strengthen him; for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to inherit the land which you will see.” (Deuteronomy 3:28)
“Then Moses called Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and of good courage, for you must go with this people to the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall cause them to inherit it.” (Deuteronomy 31:7)

5. Come alongside someone else (for the purpose of instruction, mentoring, and serving)

“The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.”(Philippians 4:9)

6. Be teachable (a meek and gentle spirit goes a long way)

“Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.” (James 1:21)
“Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.” (1 Peter 5:5)

7. Defer to others (a person who doesn’t always want to get their way is invaluable)

“Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.” (Philippians 2:3)

8. Practice listening (so you can play better with other people)

“So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” (James 1:19)

9. Resolve to be a peacemaker (create harmony, musically and relationally)

“Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.” (Matthew 5:9)

10. Be a leader, be a servant (if you are doing points 1–9, then this describes you!)

Titus 2:1-8 says:

“You must teach what is in accord with sound doctrine. Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love and in endurance. Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God. Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled. In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.”

Blessings,

Hanz Ives

You can see the original post here: http://blog.harvest.org/?p=2456

2010
02/03
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Leadership…Is It In You?

To start this off let me define leadership…

According to the US Army “Leadership” is defined as: “The process of influencing others to accomplish the mission by providing purpose, direction, and motivation.”

The Webster’s Dictionary defines a “Leader” as ” a person who has commanding authority or influence.”

I want to focus on the commonality of these two definitions…influence.

According to the Webster’s Dictionary:
Influence: the act or power of producing an effect without apparent exertion of force or direct exercise of command.

In other words having the ability to sway someone or something to do an act without directly forcing or commanding them.

We all have influence on different people in our lives. I have an old friend that would always say the phrase “That’s funny” instead of actually laughing at something. And after hanging out with him for a long time I started to use that phrase and I still use it today. He influenced me to say the phrase without forcing me to say it. My son watches and learns how to act…I influence what he says and does because he wants to be like me.

A common form of influence is motivation. If you want a person or a group of people to accomplish a task give them a reason…a motivation. In the military the motivation might be time off of work…the task may save lives. In the church the motivation may be salvation for yourself and/others…it might be a bigger church body…it may be a common goal that the church needs or wants.

You can influence people to do something without even mentioning anything. I have a friend that I had the pleasure of serving with on a worship team and she motivated me to record my music again. She always had a positive spirit and she always edified people around her. Her name is Aubrey you can see her be taking a look at my post titled “Blessed” or go to youtube and look her up Aubrey Shirshac. And what’s awesome about this example…I was the worship leader…she was on my worship team and she influenced me. Even those following…not officially leading…can be leaders.

Another thing to look at…influence is directly related to relationship. There are some people that don’t care what you know until they know that you care. In other words no relationship = no influence.

In closing all Christians are leaders…we all have influence on those around us and our motivation for spreading the Gospel to the people we know if nothing else can and should be salvation. Leadership…is it in you? If you have Christ in your life then the answer is without a doubt yes!!

2010
02/02
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Church…a Community of Believers

Today there are many Christians who look at church as a place to gather once or twice a week. The only time they see most of the people that they meet with is at church. Is this the model of the early church? I would say no…it’s not…here are my thoughts on the matter…

“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”
-Acts 2:42-47

If we look at this portion of Scripture we see that the believers in the early church met more than just once or twice a week and then went their separate ways. In verse 42 we can see four specific activities that they participated in…teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread (they ate together) and prayer. In my opinion these four activities were place in this order for a reason.

1. Teaching: This is vital in any Christian’s walk. When someone comes to Christ, that’s the beginning of a life long journey that must entail teaching. Imagine if you had a baby and then you left it at that…never teaching him/her anything. What would happen? Odds are without someone to take care of the baby and teach the baby the fundamental skills he/she needs to live a successful life the baby won’t survive. It’s the same thing when someone comes to Christ. Without someone to help and teach that person how to live a spiritually successful life odds are they won’t survive spiritually.

2. Fellowship: This one can be summed up in a single phrase “They don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” This activity can make strangers become acquaintances, acquaintances to friends and friends to family.

3. Breaking of Bread: In my opinion you don’t really know someone until you share a meal with them. People reveal a lot about themselves when they’re eating. In the early months of my marriage my wife learned some things about me while we were eating…I couldn’t stand it when people let a fork or spoon grind on their teeth while they were eating. It’s like nails on a chalkboard for me. To this day it really bothers me when people do that around me but I keep my composure whenever it does happen. I use to work with someone several years back that when he chewed food his jaw would crack. Like someone cracking their knuckles every time they chewed. At first I couldn’t bear it but over time as we ate more meals together I didn’t even notice the sound. Breaking of bread is another way to get even closer to a brother or sister in Christ.

4. Prayer: It might go without saying but this is a very important activity he church should do together. But why was it the last of the four activities verse 42 mentions? I believe that it’s because if you do all of the first three you will be more comfortable in your prayer. Your prayers will have more passion and meaning because the people that you are praying for and with are not just people you see twice a week but they are your community…your family.

What are some of the attributes that they early Christians had that helped enable them to create a community of believers?

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” -Matthew 5:3-10

If you look at the above attributes and you see what I see you’ll find that according to the world (non-Christians) these are the opposite of what you want to have. But as Christians these are important characteristics to have to help ensure a successful Christian walk as individuals and a successful Christian community as a body of believers.

Jumping back to the book of Acts we see that the early church took care of each other. Not just in terms of prayer and spiritual living but they came together forming a true community and financially supported one another.

“All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.
Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means Son of Encouragement), sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.” -Acts 4:32-37

There were no needy persons among them…they shared everything they had with the church…even to the point of selling their possessions to give. How awesome is that? If someone I knew sold something to help me in my time of need it would blow me away.

So looking at the model of the early church in the book of Acts we see a community, a family a body of believers that went out of their way to ensure the needs of the body were met.

Later in the book of Acts, in chapter eight, the church in Jerusalem scattered throughout the known world because a persecution broke out. The point I want to make here is that after they scattered they didn’t stop what they were doing. They had built each other up to the point where they went out boldly proclaiming the Gospel. They went out and established other churches and communities. And they stayed in contact with each other. A majority of the New Testament are letters from people to churches. Even in a world without the internet, MySpace, blogs, twitter, radio and TV’s they maintained contact with other believers within the body. Yet today when a brother or sister leaves a church it almost feels like they are cut off from everyone in that body. Even if it’s not intentional it happens far too often. We are all one body of Christ and we should feel comfortable speaking to one another and helping each other even if we attend different church services. Where and when did the church loose its community and become a competition between multiple separate bodies?

In closing let’s do our part and look to the early church as a model to follow. We aren’t just people meeting once or twice a week…we are a community…we are a body and we are a family.

2010
01/29
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Amazing

God is amazing…that might go without saying for a lot of people but there are some that need and want statistics and facts…and sometimes we need a little reminder. Here are a few facts about the Bible that seem to point to a God breathed Word that is nothing but truth.

The Bible consists of 66 books.

It was written on 3 different continents

It was written in 3 different languages

With about 40 different authors from all walks of life and whose education/background varied.

It was written over a period of about 1,500 years.

It addresses the most controversial subjects.

And yet the 66 books maintain harmony with each other.

How awesome is that? If that’s not enough here’s some more…

The Center of the Bible:

The shortest chapter in the Bible is Psalm 117

The longest chapter is Psalm 119

The chapter in the middle of the Bible…
Psalm 118

There are 594 chapters before Psalm 118

There are 594 chapters after Psalm 118

Add these two numbers together you get 1188

The verse that’s at the center of the Bible is Psalm 118:8

What does the center of the Bible have to say?

“It is better to trust in the LORD
Than to put confidence in man.”
Psalm 118:8(NKJV)

For people who may have doubts about the Bible or about God take this verse to heart…it’s better to trust God than man. Even the most seasoned follower of Christ can find themselves trusting man more than God. It’s easy in today’s society to get in contact with a man (or woman) instead of turning to God. Especially in a world with cell phones, the internet, texts, IM’s, twitter, facebook and myspace, to name a few…it’s easy to rely on someone else. I find myself going straight to my wife when an issue rises. I know that God should be the first place I turn; but often He is the second place I turn. Who do you go to when you’re unsure about something? A brother or sister? A wife or husband? A boyfriend or girlfriend? Or do you trust in God? As we continue on our way today let’s remember that it’s better to trust in God than man…and that God should be the first place we run to when we are in need.

2010
01/28
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Language of the Gospel

I’ve recently started attending a church that has its services in Spanish. My wife knows Spanish but I don’t…at least not yet. Most of the adults speak a little English but there are some that don’t’ speak the language at all. My wife and I have been asked come in and help this two year old ministry and after some prayer we are sure that this is where God wants us. I have mentioned being out on the water and out of my comfort zone. Both my wife and I are out there on the water now…still. I say this with joy and excitement. What I love about the situation that I find myself in is that it proves that the Gospel isn’t bound by the structure of language. God’s Word and the message of the cross are universal. During worship I find myself finding God in that place despite the fact that I don’t know what most of the songs are saying. During the preaching they have someone translate for me so I can understand the message…but during worship it’s me and God. We come together under the common banner of Christ and we find ourselves standing together with the common vision of spreading the Gospel to people of all languages.

2010
01/26
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Jet Plane

I’m leaving on a jet plane, don’t know when I’ll be back again…well I do know when I’ll be back but it sounds so much better in a song if I don’t :)

Sitting at the airport at 4:30 in the morning…gotta love it! Though I said that my blogs are to be continued until I get back I have time, a laptop and the internet for the time being so I wanted to get in one last post.

God is God no matter where we go or what we do. He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow and nothing that we say or do will change that. Before I continue I know that the above statement is obvious to many people…if it is then consider this a reminder…if it’s not then you just learned something new.

I think that many christians today forget to get a firm grasp on the biblical foundations that make up their faith. It’s important for us to be reminded from time to time and to remember the little things that we know and probably even quote to people but over time for some people things can seem watered down.

For the next two weeks while I’m away and you aren’t reading this blog make a point to take another look at the biblical foundations that build your faith. If someone asked you “What do you believe?” Can you give an answer? what if they asked what you believe about a certain topic? (ie. drugs, divorce, sexual immoralities, telling the truth, money/tithes/offerings) The Word of God tells us to be ready in season and out of season always ready…we should have these answers. If you don’t know, dive into the Word these next two weeks make it a point as we go into the new year to get into the Word and to seek a deeper relationship with Him. That’s my plan this year…to be more Christ-like…is it your’s?

2010
01/08
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To Be Continued…

For those that don’t already know I’m leaving town for two weeks starting tomorrow and I won’t have access to a computer. So far this year I’ve been pretty consistant with my posts and I really enjoy blogging. Though the amount of readers isn’t very high at the moment…we can’t despise humble beginnings. Even if my blog doesn’t break the 20 readers mark I will still blog because it’s almost therapeutic to me at times. I hope and pray as we continue in this new decade that God keeps revealing Himself to us in an awesome way and that the Holy Spirit will guide every step we take. So until I return in two weeks my blog posts are…to be continued…

2010
01/07
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