How many of us have ever had someone make a promise to us, only to have them break it? How did it make you feel? How many of us have made a promise to someone, only to break it? How about New Years resolutions? How many New Years resolutions have we started, only to break them within a month?
What about a promise to God or a resolution to be more committed to God? How many of us have made a promise to God, or made a resolution to be more committed to God in someway, only to not come through on what we said we would do? How did it make you feel? Did you get that little thought in your head that told you were no good, that you let God down? Maybe you made a promise to God in someway hoping it would keep something bad from happening to you. But, even though you tried really hard you couldn't keep your end of the promise, and now you fear that what you feared would happen to you, will happen to you.
Though making a promise to God is noble, often it's not required. In fact, the promises we make to God are things that even though they are good, they can often be things that God would never ask us to make a promise about.
Another challenge when we make a promise to God is that often we try to fulfill it with our own self-will. You see, our self-will can only take us so far, but when we are empowered by God's Spirit, the action we were hoping to start or stop will be accomplished.
Though making a promise to God sounds very religious, often it produces results that we don't desire. If we don't keep the promise we will feel guilty. We will begin to feel that we are not good enough for God. We may feel that the spiritual life is not for us. On the other hand, if we keep the promise, this can lead to feelings of self righteousness. When we start going down that road, we begin to think we are accomplishing the action we desired in our own power and strength. So we begin to trust in ourselves and our strength more than God's power and strength.
Well if you have ever made a promise to God, only to break it, or made a resolution to do more for God only to not do it, I have good news for you. God still loves you. He loved you before you made the promise. He loved you while you made the promise, and He still loves you after you break the promise.
Now if God is wanting to bring about some change in your lifestyle, I'm not encouraging you not to do it. By all means get closer to God, do what you feel God is asking of you. But what I am trying to tell you, is that you don't have to make a promise. As I mentioned earlier, often a promise can set us up for failure. Instead, ask God to empower you to be able to do what He has laid upon your heart. That's right, that desire to get closer to God in some way is from Him. You didn't come up with the idea on your own, He put the idea in you. The problem is that we try to accomplish it in our own strength instead of His.
What we need to remember is that our standing with God is not based upon our keeping our promise to Him, but in Him keeping His promise to us. His Word shows us that He remains faithful to His Word.
If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.
2 Timothy 2:13
Troy
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
What Does God Want From Me? (Phase One)
Lately I have been reading a wonderful book by James Bryan Smith entitled,"The Good And Beautiful God". It is part of a three book series on spiritual formation. In the book he states that, "Our thinking about life with God inevitably confronts us with this crucial question: What does God want from me?"
I bet that if we polled 100 people and asked them that question, I bet we would get a broad range of answers. But I think that there would be a thought that would be consistent in all of the answers. James Bryan Smith says,"If you ask the average person, What must you do to get God to like, favor and bless you? the answer would be clear and consistent: Well, I think I would have to go to church, read my Bible, give some money, serve on committees and serve the needy. Oh, and God does not want me to sin-or at least keep it at a minimum."
It sounds reasonable doesn't it? In fact, all of the things mentioned are good things to do. I think the answer if I were to try to simplify it has two phases. What is mentioned above is phase two. What we do is we try to do phase two without phase one. Have you ever had to assemble something? Well then you know the frustration when you try to put something together without reading the directions and it doesn't turn out right. You try and try to make it work, but it doesn't. To you, it just makes sense that you would put it together the way you did. But, after all the frustration, you finally go back and read the directions and you notice you missed a step.
Before we look at phase one let me just say something about sin. God isn't a kill joy. God isn't out to make our lives unenjoyable. God doesn't want us to sin because it harms us. He is actually looking out for us. If you were honest enough to examine your life, you would admit that not much good comes out of sinning.
When we try to live our lives for Jesus, if we focus on phase two without phase one we will get frustrated just as in the example of assembling something. So what is phase one? To know Him and love Him.
The Westminister Larger Catechism, written in 1648, opens with a question and an answer:
Question: What is the chief and highest end of man?
Answer: Man's chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy Him forever.
What I love about that statement is to fully enjoy God forever. Most of us don't think of fully enjoying God. If we aren't in love with God and fully enjoying Him then how can we enjoy church, the Bible, serving others, etc...? You see, it's the classic example of phase two without phase one. You will feel obligated to do phase two instead of, desiring to do phase two. I remember not enjoying going to High School. I would skip school very often. But every now and then there would be a class or a teacher that I enjoyed very much. Guess what? Because I enjoyed that class I couldn't wait to get to that class. In your spiritual life, if you try to do phase two without phase one, usually you will get frustrated, then you will stop trying, or think there is nothing to God.
Now if we stop trying to do the things that we think that God wants us to do this leads us to believe- that God is mad at us. We believe He's mad because we aren't doing what we know we should do. Then what can happen is that we try again, except this time we do it out of guilt. Guess what? Having guilt as a motivator never leads to lasting change. So after we try the guilt route, we get frustrated again and quit again. Which leads us to think that God is mad at us again.You can imagine what this thought process leads to: Whenever something doesn't go good in our lives we think God is punishing us.
What if God isn't mad at you? What if He loves us irregardless of our religious performance? Wouldn't this lead to "delighting" in Him? If God loves me regardless of my performance, then my response is to love Him.
His love for me first led me to love Him. That then led me to want to do phase two.To quote James Bryan Smith again," The narrative that God loves us and longs for us to love Him in return provides a genuine and lasting incentive to change."
1 John 4:10-11 are two verses that bring this thought out:
10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
The Message which is a paraphrase of the Bible puts it like this:
10 This is the kind of love we are talking about - not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they've done to our relationship with God. 11 My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other.
You see, our love for God does not determine His love for us. God loves us first. In fact Jesus went to the cross and was willing to die for us before we loved Him.
7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man ; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:7-8
This verse from Romans shows us again God not only loving us first, but being willing to die for us before we were "cleaned up" and loving Him.
That type of love is what leads us to loving Him. That is phase one. This will eventually lead to a desire to do phase two (go to church, read the Bible, etc...).
I'll close with another quote from James Bryan Smith,"The primary thing God wants from us is not improved moral behavior (which will come), but to love God because He first loves us.
Troy
I bet that if we polled 100 people and asked them that question, I bet we would get a broad range of answers. But I think that there would be a thought that would be consistent in all of the answers. James Bryan Smith says,"If you ask the average person, What must you do to get God to like, favor and bless you? the answer would be clear and consistent: Well, I think I would have to go to church, read my Bible, give some money, serve on committees and serve the needy. Oh, and God does not want me to sin-or at least keep it at a minimum."
It sounds reasonable doesn't it? In fact, all of the things mentioned are good things to do. I think the answer if I were to try to simplify it has two phases. What is mentioned above is phase two. What we do is we try to do phase two without phase one. Have you ever had to assemble something? Well then you know the frustration when you try to put something together without reading the directions and it doesn't turn out right. You try and try to make it work, but it doesn't. To you, it just makes sense that you would put it together the way you did. But, after all the frustration, you finally go back and read the directions and you notice you missed a step.
Before we look at phase one let me just say something about sin. God isn't a kill joy. God isn't out to make our lives unenjoyable. God doesn't want us to sin because it harms us. He is actually looking out for us. If you were honest enough to examine your life, you would admit that not much good comes out of sinning.
When we try to live our lives for Jesus, if we focus on phase two without phase one we will get frustrated just as in the example of assembling something. So what is phase one? To know Him and love Him.
The Westminister Larger Catechism, written in 1648, opens with a question and an answer:
Question: What is the chief and highest end of man?
Answer: Man's chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy Him forever.
What I love about that statement is to fully enjoy God forever. Most of us don't think of fully enjoying God. If we aren't in love with God and fully enjoying Him then how can we enjoy church, the Bible, serving others, etc...? You see, it's the classic example of phase two without phase one. You will feel obligated to do phase two instead of, desiring to do phase two. I remember not enjoying going to High School. I would skip school very often. But every now and then there would be a class or a teacher that I enjoyed very much. Guess what? Because I enjoyed that class I couldn't wait to get to that class. In your spiritual life, if you try to do phase two without phase one, usually you will get frustrated, then you will stop trying, or think there is nothing to God.
Now if we stop trying to do the things that we think that God wants us to do this leads us to believe- that God is mad at us. We believe He's mad because we aren't doing what we know we should do. Then what can happen is that we try again, except this time we do it out of guilt. Guess what? Having guilt as a motivator never leads to lasting change. So after we try the guilt route, we get frustrated again and quit again. Which leads us to think that God is mad at us again.You can imagine what this thought process leads to: Whenever something doesn't go good in our lives we think God is punishing us.
What if God isn't mad at you? What if He loves us irregardless of our religious performance? Wouldn't this lead to "delighting" in Him? If God loves me regardless of my performance, then my response is to love Him.
His love for me first led me to love Him. That then led me to want to do phase two.To quote James Bryan Smith again," The narrative that God loves us and longs for us to love Him in return provides a genuine and lasting incentive to change."
1 John 4:10-11 are two verses that bring this thought out:
10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
The Message which is a paraphrase of the Bible puts it like this:
10 This is the kind of love we are talking about - not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they've done to our relationship with God. 11 My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other.
You see, our love for God does not determine His love for us. God loves us first. In fact Jesus went to the cross and was willing to die for us before we loved Him.
7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man ; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:7-8
This verse from Romans shows us again God not only loving us first, but being willing to die for us before we were "cleaned up" and loving Him.
That type of love is what leads us to loving Him. That is phase one. This will eventually lead to a desire to do phase two (go to church, read the Bible, etc...).
I'll close with another quote from James Bryan Smith,"The primary thing God wants from us is not improved moral behavior (which will come), but to love God because He first loves us.
Troy
Monday, January 10, 2011
Graceland Church-Why the name Graceland?
One of the challenges of having a new church, is thinking of a name. Names can define, or categorize you. I have always been amazed by the grace of God. I have experienced so much of His grace in my life. I want for others to experience His grace. I also have desired for people to experience the grace of God through other people. I know I have been blessed by so many other people. Grace can be hard to explain, but you know when you are experiencing it.
So I had a few different names in mind. But as I talked with people about how I thought God was building this part of His body (Church). Others thought that Graceland was the best description. The challenge? Most people think of Elvis. Surprisingly younger people didn't automatically think of Elvis.
Well since Elvis is the pink elephant(no offense to Elvis or any of his fans) I thought that we could try to find fun ways to incorporate Elvis at various times. Any suggestions?
Below is just a little explanation that will be on our website.
Troy
Why the name Graceland?
We did not set out to call our church by a name that is very familiar
to most people. But after putting some thought into what we desire for
people to experience at church and in life, the name makes perfect
sense.
Sadly, some people have not experienced grace when they have gone to
church or even when they have encountered people who call themselves
Christians. Though we admit we are from perfect, Graceland church
believes we should extend to others the same grace that God has
extended to us. We think church should be a "land of grace".
At Graceland church it is ok to:
Not have all the answers to life.
To be broken.
To have a past that you are not proud of.
Why is this ok? Because often these are the pathways to recognizing
God's grace and extending it to others.
So come and experience Graceland Church. Don't worry about having to
have your act together. God takes us the way we are.
Though we can't guarantee that you will see Elvis, we believe you will
experience Jesus and a group of people who have not only experienced
His grace, but who are also growing in His grace.
So I had a few different names in mind. But as I talked with people about how I thought God was building this part of His body (Church). Others thought that Graceland was the best description. The challenge? Most people think of Elvis. Surprisingly younger people didn't automatically think of Elvis.
Well since Elvis is the pink elephant(no offense to Elvis or any of his fans) I thought that we could try to find fun ways to incorporate Elvis at various times. Any suggestions?
Below is just a little explanation that will be on our website.
Troy
Why the name Graceland?
We did not set out to call our church by a name that is very familiar
to most people. But after putting some thought into what we desire for
people to experience at church and in life, the name makes perfect
sense.
Sadly, some people have not experienced grace when they have gone to
church or even when they have encountered people who call themselves
Christians. Though we admit we are from perfect, Graceland church
believes we should extend to others the same grace that God has
extended to us. We think church should be a "land of grace".
At Graceland church it is ok to:
Not have all the answers to life.
To be broken.
To have a past that you are not proud of.
Why is this ok? Because often these are the pathways to recognizing
God's grace and extending it to others.
So come and experience Graceland Church. Don't worry about having to
have your act together. God takes us the way we are.
Though we can't guarantee that you will see Elvis, we believe you will
experience Jesus and a group of people who have not only experienced
His grace, but who are also growing in His grace.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Graceland Church-Who We Are
For about the past two years I have been praying about starting a new church in the Quad Cities. Last summer I felt led to begin the process. Well as 2011 begins the plan is to have the first gathering Sunday April 10th, from 9:30-10:30 a.m. We are in talks right now with the Great Escape Theaters in Moline to see about renting their theater.
One of my reasons for wanting to start a new church is because I have found a lot of people who have been discouraged by what they have experienced at church, and on the other hand I have met people who feel they are not good enough for church. So the idea was that if I could be used to help people encounter God's grace they could get beyond their discouragement or their feelings of inadequacy. We desire to be a place of love, acceptance, grace and community.
So my desire was to have a church that would be a land of grace. A place where no matter where you are in life, and no matter what you have done, you will be reminded that God still loves you and has a plan for you. My desire has been to have a church where people are accepted the way they are. A place where people are free to investigate the claims of Jesus without being looked down upon. A church for people who don't necessarily attend church. A place for people who want Jesus, but not the "church culture" that has nothing to do with living for Jesus, that some well meaning people try to impose on us.
So I will keep you updated as to the progress of Graceland Church. We are in the middle of putting the website together. Below is just a short description about who we are. Below that you will find a link to a two minute video description about the type of church we want to be.
If you are interested in helping out in some way once or twice a month let me know. You can email me or inbox me. Remember NO RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE REQUIRED!!! troy.rangel@mchsi.com
We are excited about getting this church going and look forward to serving the Quad Cities.
Graceland Church was started to reach out to two groups of people - people who don’t attend church and people who go to church but have grown tired of “church as usual.”
We have found that some think church is boring, intimidating and even irrelevant to their lives. In an attempt to combat this, Graceland Church uses biblical teaching and messages that deal with everyday challenges, hopes and heartbreaks. We communicate these messages in ways that people are familiar with - music, movies, drama and media.
Maybe you’ve never attended church or maybe you’re just tired of church. Maybe you’re on top of the world or maybe you’re completely broken. Whatever your circumstance and no matter where you’ve been or what you’ve done, you matter to God and you will experience His grace and love here at Graceland Church.
http://media.preachingtoday.com/mini-movies/8784/Welcome-To-Our-Church
Troy
Thursday, December 23, 2010
I Read The News Today Oh Boy
Anyone who know really knows me, knows that I am a Beatle nut. I have been since I was about 10 years old. Any other Beatle nuts know that my title to this blog was taken from the first line to "A Day In The Life'". I was thinking of all that we hear in the news today. Economy, wars, murders, local crime, sports, a feel good story here and there. Then my brain wandered to, what was the news in Bethlehem when Jesus was born? I was also thinking of how did God choose to announce the birth of His Son?
Although I really don't know what the news was in Bethlehem when Jesus was born. I am often puzzled as to how God chose to announce the birth of His Son. Today when you have a big announcement you have a press conference, you try to get as many people as you can to be informed about the news you have. But God didn't do that. He could have done anything to get the world's attention. He could have made to where the whole world would have known that His Son was born, but He didn't.
The only ones who knew were, Mary and Joseph, and basically it was only announced to some men who weren't even from the country who had to follow a star and some shepherds in a field.
Isn't that just like God though? We often want Him to make a big splash." Do something that will make us believe" is what the people of Jesus' day said. Yet basically God tells us there is enough evidence already.
When I think of Mary and Joseph, the wise men, and the shepherds and what was common for each of them. I realize that they each had to exercise faith with the information they were given. They each had to choose to believe that the information that they were told was true.
One example would be Mary and Joseph. Wouldn't you think that if you were carrying God's Son, that God would make sure He was born in the best place possible, that there would be no obstacles to overcome? Yet it was the complete opposite for them. They couldn't find a place to stay. They wind up in a manger. Although it makes for a nice Nativity scene and a nice Christmas song, how many of you would like to have your child born outside in a manger? Especially if you thought God was on your side.
Yet, this is how it is for us. We often think a life of following God means easy street, but it doesn't. We still have obstacles, but He is with us in the midst of the obstacles. During this season although there is much to make people happy, this is also a time when we get discouraged or feel down. Let's remember that God is with us. Through the good times and the bad. You may be right in the middle of God's will and yet still experiencing obstacles. Just remember the same was true for Mary and Joseph.
Finally I would like us to think about the person who was in control of the inn. The Bible tells us that there was no room at the inn for them. Think of how the person who was in charge of the inn could have had the Son of God at his inn. Now let's realize he didn't know at the time that the woman who was about to give birth was going to give birth to the Son of God. But just good will should have made him let a pregnant woman come in to give birth to her baby.
I see again another way in which God acts. He often gives us an opportunity to do the right thing. Our part is to recognize the situation. We need to take time to think when those situations come around (which usually aren't convenient) "maybe God is in this?" Maybe He is giving us an opportunity to be blessed by Him.
When we think of Mary and Joseph, the shepherds, and the wise men, let's remember God was blessing ordinary, everyday people like you and me. They hadn't done anything to earn God's favor. God just blessed them.
Was there any news announced when Jesus was born? Just Angels announcing it to shepherds. Wise men from another country. It is interesting that the Angel uses the word news to the shepherds. Shepherds,once again God going against what we would think. God announcing this news to common people.In fact they were thought of low class people. Yet it was to them who God announced this great news to.
8 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. 10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid ; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people ; 11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 "This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." 13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."
Luke 2:8-14
Had the angels written a song about the news they may have said," We heard the news today oh boy."
So let's celebrate the birth of Jesus this Christmas. Let's remember that He has come to bless, and is blessing, ordinary people like you and me. Let's remember that He came to live among everyday, ordinary people like you and me. Let's remember that He offers eternal life to everyday ordinary people like you and me.
Troy
Although I really don't know what the news was in Bethlehem when Jesus was born. I am often puzzled as to how God chose to announce the birth of His Son. Today when you have a big announcement you have a press conference, you try to get as many people as you can to be informed about the news you have. But God didn't do that. He could have done anything to get the world's attention. He could have made to where the whole world would have known that His Son was born, but He didn't.
The only ones who knew were, Mary and Joseph, and basically it was only announced to some men who weren't even from the country who had to follow a star and some shepherds in a field.
Isn't that just like God though? We often want Him to make a big splash." Do something that will make us believe" is what the people of Jesus' day said. Yet basically God tells us there is enough evidence already.
When I think of Mary and Joseph, the wise men, and the shepherds and what was common for each of them. I realize that they each had to exercise faith with the information they were given. They each had to choose to believe that the information that they were told was true.
One example would be Mary and Joseph. Wouldn't you think that if you were carrying God's Son, that God would make sure He was born in the best place possible, that there would be no obstacles to overcome? Yet it was the complete opposite for them. They couldn't find a place to stay. They wind up in a manger. Although it makes for a nice Nativity scene and a nice Christmas song, how many of you would like to have your child born outside in a manger? Especially if you thought God was on your side.
Yet, this is how it is for us. We often think a life of following God means easy street, but it doesn't. We still have obstacles, but He is with us in the midst of the obstacles. During this season although there is much to make people happy, this is also a time when we get discouraged or feel down. Let's remember that God is with us. Through the good times and the bad. You may be right in the middle of God's will and yet still experiencing obstacles. Just remember the same was true for Mary and Joseph.
Finally I would like us to think about the person who was in control of the inn. The Bible tells us that there was no room at the inn for them. Think of how the person who was in charge of the inn could have had the Son of God at his inn. Now let's realize he didn't know at the time that the woman who was about to give birth was going to give birth to the Son of God. But just good will should have made him let a pregnant woman come in to give birth to her baby.
I see again another way in which God acts. He often gives us an opportunity to do the right thing. Our part is to recognize the situation. We need to take time to think when those situations come around (which usually aren't convenient) "maybe God is in this?" Maybe He is giving us an opportunity to be blessed by Him.
When we think of Mary and Joseph, the shepherds, and the wise men, let's remember God was blessing ordinary, everyday people like you and me. They hadn't done anything to earn God's favor. God just blessed them.
Was there any news announced when Jesus was born? Just Angels announcing it to shepherds. Wise men from another country. It is interesting that the Angel uses the word news to the shepherds. Shepherds,once again God going against what we would think. God announcing this news to common people.In fact they were thought of low class people. Yet it was to them who God announced this great news to.
8 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. 10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid ; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people ; 11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 "This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." 13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."
Luke 2:8-14
Had the angels written a song about the news they may have said," We heard the news today oh boy."
So let's celebrate the birth of Jesus this Christmas. Let's remember that He has come to bless, and is blessing, ordinary people like you and me. Let's remember that He came to live among everyday, ordinary people like you and me. Let's remember that He offers eternal life to everyday ordinary people like you and me.
Troy
Monday, December 20, 2010
Christmas Music
I love Christmas. No, I mean it, I love Christmas. With this love of Christmas comes a love of Christmas music. I love Christmas and the music associated it with it so much that I start listening to Christmas music the day after halloween. Yep, if you see me on November 1st sometime during that day I have probably started listening to Christmas music.
I would like to share with you some of my favorite Christmas Cd's. These are cd's that I can listen to each track on the cd from start to finish. There are many great Christmas songs. There are many enjoyable Christmas cd's. But some of the cd's have songs that I'll skip over. The cd's on my list are cd's that I can listen to all the way through without skipping a track. I would also like to add that I am just listing cd's that I enjoy. I'm not making the list based on some artistic level. Just pure enjoyment. I have provided YouTube links where available.
So here we go in no particular order:
1. Tommy Walker: This Is What Christmas Means To Me.
Tommy has some really good arrangements of some Christmas classics. Songs like Silent Night and Go Tell It On The Mountain. On many of the songs he has added little parts to each song. He also has some originals on this collection. If you were looking for some songs to sing at church nearly every song on this collection would work.
2. James Taylor: At Christmas.
This cd came out a couple of years ago and I have constantly listened to it. Some Monk harmonies thrown in on Santa Claus Is Comin To Town, Joni Mitchell's River and Winter Wonderland are all enjoyable. But my favorite tracks are Some Children See Him, Who Comes This Night and In The Bleak Midwinter. They have great chord progressions.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWQkhMGejLc In The Bleak Midwinter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cg929aqfmy4 Santa Claus Is Comin To Town
3. Israel Houghton: A Timeless Christmas.
His version of The Nutcracker is worth the price of the cd. This cd is mixed well and funky from start to finish. Marcus Miller plays the bass clarinet on a track, Cc Winans makes a guest appearance as does her brother Marvin. Great musicianship all the way through this cd.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4YqVwcdLoU We Wish You A Timeless Christmas
4. Jazz For Joy: Various Artists
This is a wonderful cd of jazz interpretations of some of your favorite Christmas songs. Some of the artists on this cd include: Roy Hargrove, Shirley Horn, Betty Carter, Mark Whitfield and Nicholas Payton. This cd is more straight ahead jazz. If you are looking for some contemporary jazz I would recommend any of the Grp Christmas cd's.
5. Nicole C. Mullen: Christmas In Black And White
This is a cd that has some traditional Christmas songs (The Christmas Song which she does a duet with her father). It has some Christmas songs that you are familiar with that she has rearranged. (Away In The Manger becomes Sacred Night with a nice chord progression and a new chorus with a latin feel). There are also a few original songs. This cd also has my favorite version of O Come O Come Emmanuel. Nicole can get funky when she wants to and she can play it straight. This is very enjoyable listening.
6. Michael McDonald: In The Spirit
This cd has a few classic Christmas songs such as, White Christmas. It also has a duet with James Ingram on One Gift. It is typical Michael McDonald. If you have enjoyed his music over the years then you will enjoy the cd.
7. The Brooklyn Tabernacle: Christmas At The Brooklyn Tabernacle
The BTC has released four Christmas cd's. All of them are very enjoyable if you enjoy choir music. Their first Christmas cd was their weakest. They just released their fourth Christmas cd this year. The cd that I have named was their 2nd Christmas cd. There is a medley of familiar Christmas songs. There is also a bunch of original music. Many of these songs have become a part of my Christmas tradition.
8. Chris Isaak: Christmas
This is a cd for those of you who enjoy early rock and roll. He does Rudolph, Pretty Paper and others with that 1950's early 60's rock and roll sound. Of course he also does Blue Christmas.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41wtUbOo8ZI Chris Isaak Christmas
9. Bryan Duncan: Christmas Is Jesus
Bryan has an incredible voice. This is a cd that includes Please Come Home For Christmas, Grown Up Christmas List as well standards like I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day and Angels We Have Heard On High.
10. Kenny Loggins: December
Typical Kenny Loggins. He does favorites like, White Christmas and Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas. Newer Christmas songs, like Angels In The Snow and On Christmas Morning as well as the old classic, Coventry Carol
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFMM1cNDvPs
Here is a list of other Christmas Cd's that I enjoy:
Jazz:
Fourplay: Snowbound http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fo7EG_iTkk0
Oscar Peterson: An Oscar Peterson Christmas http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X__UUGK58-g&feature=related
Dave Koz: Dave Koz And Friends A Smooth Jazz Christmas http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4yHeptg5Gs
Cyrus Chestnut: A Charlie Brown Christmas
The Yellow Jackets: Peace Round http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97ChKilZy6k
Take 6: They have 3 Christmas Cd's all enjoyable http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9N1IMoV0VE
Blues
B.B. King: A Christmas Celebration Of Hope http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t467LmaVF58
Country:
Dwight Yoakam: Come On Christmas http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8jjwu0z81s&feature=related
B. J. Thomas: Christmas Is Coming Home
Others:
Casting Crowns: Peace On Earth http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7670CXvPX0
Natalie Grant: Believe http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UB3rZI73Zg
Fernando Ortega: Christmas Songs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciA2pMkvInQ
Chris Tomlin: Glory In The Highest http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPwNO9RtLJA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L_X10hy1x0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gy29mQfiavg
Al Green: Feels Like Christmas http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFeY_ZLARZM
Jars Of Clay: Christmas Songs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5Fm-uZxMD4
Yolanda Adams: Christmas With Yolanda http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdEjLvQWfQk
This is just a short list. I didn't even mention some of my favorite Christmas songs that may be on a cd that I didn't mention. I would be interested in hearing from you as to what your favorite Christmas CD's are.
I hope you get a chance to listen to your Christmas favorites this year.
Troy
I would like to share with you some of my favorite Christmas Cd's. These are cd's that I can listen to each track on the cd from start to finish. There are many great Christmas songs. There are many enjoyable Christmas cd's. But some of the cd's have songs that I'll skip over. The cd's on my list are cd's that I can listen to all the way through without skipping a track. I would also like to add that I am just listing cd's that I enjoy. I'm not making the list based on some artistic level. Just pure enjoyment. I have provided YouTube links where available.
So here we go in no particular order:
1. Tommy Walker: This Is What Christmas Means To Me.
Tommy has some really good arrangements of some Christmas classics. Songs like Silent Night and Go Tell It On The Mountain. On many of the songs he has added little parts to each song. He also has some originals on this collection. If you were looking for some songs to sing at church nearly every song on this collection would work.
2. James Taylor: At Christmas.
This cd came out a couple of years ago and I have constantly listened to it. Some Monk harmonies thrown in on Santa Claus Is Comin To Town, Joni Mitchell's River and Winter Wonderland are all enjoyable. But my favorite tracks are Some Children See Him, Who Comes This Night and In The Bleak Midwinter. They have great chord progressions.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWQkhMGejLc In The Bleak Midwinter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cg929aqfmy4 Santa Claus Is Comin To Town
3. Israel Houghton: A Timeless Christmas.
His version of The Nutcracker is worth the price of the cd. This cd is mixed well and funky from start to finish. Marcus Miller plays the bass clarinet on a track, Cc Winans makes a guest appearance as does her brother Marvin. Great musicianship all the way through this cd.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4YqVwcdLoU We Wish You A Timeless Christmas
4. Jazz For Joy: Various Artists
This is a wonderful cd of jazz interpretations of some of your favorite Christmas songs. Some of the artists on this cd include: Roy Hargrove, Shirley Horn, Betty Carter, Mark Whitfield and Nicholas Payton. This cd is more straight ahead jazz. If you are looking for some contemporary jazz I would recommend any of the Grp Christmas cd's.
5. Nicole C. Mullen: Christmas In Black And White
This is a cd that has some traditional Christmas songs (The Christmas Song which she does a duet with her father). It has some Christmas songs that you are familiar with that she has rearranged. (Away In The Manger becomes Sacred Night with a nice chord progression and a new chorus with a latin feel). There are also a few original songs. This cd also has my favorite version of O Come O Come Emmanuel. Nicole can get funky when she wants to and she can play it straight. This is very enjoyable listening.
6. Michael McDonald: In The Spirit
This cd has a few classic Christmas songs such as, White Christmas. It also has a duet with James Ingram on One Gift. It is typical Michael McDonald. If you have enjoyed his music over the years then you will enjoy the cd.
7. The Brooklyn Tabernacle: Christmas At The Brooklyn Tabernacle
The BTC has released four Christmas cd's. All of them are very enjoyable if you enjoy choir music. Their first Christmas cd was their weakest. They just released their fourth Christmas cd this year. The cd that I have named was their 2nd Christmas cd. There is a medley of familiar Christmas songs. There is also a bunch of original music. Many of these songs have become a part of my Christmas tradition.
8. Chris Isaak: Christmas
This is a cd for those of you who enjoy early rock and roll. He does Rudolph, Pretty Paper and others with that 1950's early 60's rock and roll sound. Of course he also does Blue Christmas.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41wtUbOo8ZI Chris Isaak Christmas
9. Bryan Duncan: Christmas Is Jesus
Bryan has an incredible voice. This is a cd that includes Please Come Home For Christmas, Grown Up Christmas List as well standards like I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day and Angels We Have Heard On High.
10. Kenny Loggins: December
Typical Kenny Loggins. He does favorites like, White Christmas and Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas. Newer Christmas songs, like Angels In The Snow and On Christmas Morning as well as the old classic, Coventry Carol
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFMM1cNDvPs
Here is a list of other Christmas Cd's that I enjoy:
Jazz:
Fourplay: Snowbound http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fo7EG_iTkk0
Oscar Peterson: An Oscar Peterson Christmas http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X__UUGK58-g&feature=related
Dave Koz: Dave Koz And Friends A Smooth Jazz Christmas http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4yHeptg5Gs
Cyrus Chestnut: A Charlie Brown Christmas
The Yellow Jackets: Peace Round http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97ChKilZy6k
Take 6: They have 3 Christmas Cd's all enjoyable http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9N1IMoV0VE
Blues
B.B. King: A Christmas Celebration Of Hope http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t467LmaVF58
Country:
Dwight Yoakam: Come On Christmas http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8jjwu0z81s&feature=related
B. J. Thomas: Christmas Is Coming Home
Others:
Casting Crowns: Peace On Earth http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7670CXvPX0
Natalie Grant: Believe http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UB3rZI73Zg
Fernando Ortega: Christmas Songs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciA2pMkvInQ
Chris Tomlin: Glory In The Highest http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPwNO9RtLJA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L_X10hy1x0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gy29mQfiavg
Al Green: Feels Like Christmas http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFeY_ZLARZM
Jars Of Clay: Christmas Songs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5Fm-uZxMD4
Yolanda Adams: Christmas With Yolanda http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdEjLvQWfQk
This is just a short list. I didn't even mention some of my favorite Christmas songs that may be on a cd that I didn't mention. I would be interested in hearing from you as to what your favorite Christmas CD's are.
I hope you get a chance to listen to your Christmas favorites this year.
Troy
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Hope Is Dangerous
Have you ever hoped for something? Have you ever hoped for something, only to have it not turn out how you had hoped? What was your reaction? Has it happened more than once? Sadly after a few times of having hope in something and not having it turn out people begin to lose hope, or even eventually give up on hope. We don't enjoy being disappointed over and over. My heart goes out to those who have experienced disappointment after disappointment.
Many like to go through life without having to hope in something, or someone. When you live this way, you don't have to worry about being disappointed. But on the other hand, think of those who live with hope. Think of the endless possibilities for them just by having hope. Sure risk is involved. You may get disappointed, but you may also get what you desired. The Message translation of the Bible says," Unrelenting disappointment leaves you heartsick, but a sudden good break can turn life around." (Proverbs 13:12)
You can see why hope is dangerous. If you want to exercise it, the outcome may lead to disappointment or fulfillment. We like a sure thing. But life doesn't usually work that way.
Think back on some of the best things that have happened in your life. For many of them a risk was involved. And in that risk you exercised hope.
God is wanting us to have hope while the devil is wanting to take away our hope. The choice is ours as to which way we live. Hope is dangerous because it leaves us open to the possibility to disappointment, but it also the way to realizing your dreams. No matter how discouraged we may get at times, it is important to cling to hope. Our Heavenly Father is known as the God of hope.
I would like to end with some verses from the Bible on hope.
For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
Romans 15:4
Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
Proverbs 13:12
This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. The LORD'S lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail.
Lamentations 3:21,22
For I hope in You, O LORD; You will answer, O Lord my God.
Psalm 38:15
Troy
Many like to go through life without having to hope in something, or someone. When you live this way, you don't have to worry about being disappointed. But on the other hand, think of those who live with hope. Think of the endless possibilities for them just by having hope. Sure risk is involved. You may get disappointed, but you may also get what you desired. The Message translation of the Bible says," Unrelenting disappointment leaves you heartsick, but a sudden good break can turn life around." (Proverbs 13:12)
You can see why hope is dangerous. If you want to exercise it, the outcome may lead to disappointment or fulfillment. We like a sure thing. But life doesn't usually work that way.
Think back on some of the best things that have happened in your life. For many of them a risk was involved. And in that risk you exercised hope.
God is wanting us to have hope while the devil is wanting to take away our hope. The choice is ours as to which way we live. Hope is dangerous because it leaves us open to the possibility to disappointment, but it also the way to realizing your dreams. No matter how discouraged we may get at times, it is important to cling to hope. Our Heavenly Father is known as the God of hope.
I would like to end with some verses from the Bible on hope.
For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
Romans 15:4
Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
Proverbs 13:12
This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. The LORD'S lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail.
Lamentations 3:21,22
For I hope in You, O LORD; You will answer, O Lord my God.
Psalm 38:15
Troy
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