Reminders

 I’ve had a pressing week, man, and I can’t believe it’s almost over.  I missed my deadline for this article because of the juggle, and I had to be reminded a couple of times to get it turned in. I feel like I need a lot of reminders in my life.  

 Sometimes the week can become such a “grind” that we neglect the details, and need to look closer for the reminders of our purpose as Christians.  Looking back at the last four days, I’m recognizing how many interactions I had.  The question is, on a “micro” level, did I reflect my Purpose in the context of each interaction?

 Before I break down the “micro,” I have one thought about the “macro.”  I’m aware that the Bible is clear that my body is a vessel of the Holy Spirit.  I’m very careful what enters my ear canal as a result, which is a fine line as an artist trying to stay current.  I’m trying to be more deliberate about praying for the unsaved, and particularly those who have clear talent.  That being said, I’m listening to a Lupe Fiasco play list on Pandora right now, and I was reminded to pray for him. I can’t help but think what a voice he would be for the Kingdom.  Pray for people!

 I had the privilege of running the entire church service at East Coast International Church in Lynn, Massachusetts this past weekend.  That’s my home church; the one we planted in 2001.  The pastor gave me license to put on a full concert and preach the Word.  I don’t always advertise my music aspirations at church, as I play other important roles as a lay minister.  During my concert set, however, nearly every kid ages three to eighteen jumped on stage with me and bounced around for a half hour.  It blessed me to no end.  What a reminder of why I started writing and performing in the first place!  Sub-culture can be such a bridge to reach out, as long as our intentions point in the right direction.

 I hit the road on Monday night for an event in New York, and my man Seth David came along.  He’s learning the hype-man ropes, as I’ve mentioned in past articles.  He’s also an aspiring emcee in his own right.  We did a school assembly in the morning, and I somehow managed to fill a two-hour block of time.  By the end of the assembly, I felt remarkable.  I had made a connection with the kids, and they had responded.  I felt accomplished.  That night we did another event at the same school, and again, I felt accomplished.  I rapped and spoke, they responded, they bought stuff, and we went home.  On the drive home, we were just chopping it up, listening to music, and suddenly I saw the blue and red lights flashing behind me.  My heart sank as I realized I was being pulled over by a New York State Trooper.  What a bubble-burst.  All I could think about was my honorarium and merch dollars now going to the state of New York for driving too fast!  Thankfully, I got away without a speeding ticket because I was polite to the officer, and admitted my mistake.  All of my false-sense of self-accomplishment was put into perspective after that, so I’m confident God was reminding me to rejoice in the right things.  Rejoicing in a crowd’s response, or a great merchandise evening, was not “it.”

“It” should have been a feeling of peace and gratitude that kids heard God’s word that day, and we had the privilege of being a part of that, man.

 I’m staring at a pile of paperwork on my desk, which is reminding me that I am also a social worker, and need to get to it!  In the workplace today I’m trying to remember to be the same man in the office as I am on the road.  It’s tempting to be more relaxed in my language and ethics in the context of an office, but I know people are watching me and have an expectation of me as a man of integrity.    Be blessed.

I’ve been doing music for more years than I care to count, now, but I have to admit I still get giddy when I’m around other artists.  If you’re a fan, you’re a fan.  The past weeks I have had the privilege of being around some of the best.  It was great to see a lot of you in Nashville at GMA.  Down there, I performed alongside Corey Red and K-Drama.  I swapped stories with Odd Thomas and Propaganda.  I chopped it up with DJ Dust, Coffee, and Bonafide.  I had dinner with Traa Daniels (P.O.D.).  I bumped into Ambassador.  I traveled to another city, and performed alongside DJ Morph, G-Notes, Applejaxx, Young Josh, Stellar Kart, and Capital Lights.  Again, I’m a fan, so there are still those times I have to consciously stuff down my “giddiness.”

 “Giddiness” aside, I’ve grown to look beyond the stage.  These days, what impresses me the most about artists is when they show a willingness to interact with their supporters. For me, that willingness draws a definitive line between ministry and industry.  If an artist has deliberate conversations with fans and delves into their lives, then they are putting their stage performance to work.  The above-mentioned artists left that impression on me, which is why I “dropped” their names.  I like to think I’ve become a good judge of character over the years, and it was altogether encouraging to see ministry at work.

 When I arrived home from my travels, I was exhausted and admittedly relieved when I was reminded that I did not have to prepare to teach my Sunday middle-school class at church because my friend Corey Hicks was in town.  Corey is a campus missionary and rap minister in New Orleans.  He travels the country, and was in Massachusetts for the weekend.  I’d only interacted with Corey on one occasion about a year ago, as we had performed at a concert together in New Orleans.  My impression was that he had put on a great show, and it was evident that the youth in his city had real affection for him.  After that concert, I recall being introduced to about thirty kids that were under Corey’s “wing.”  He takes his mentoring seriously, and is a presence in the New Orleans public schools on a weekly basis.  I was excited to re-connect with Corey, as he is a guy that takes that “personal” ministry to another level.

 Our church rents a school building, and we are limited to certain areas of the school.  As a result, my class meets in a small corridor.  I would have preferred that Corey be able to perform some songs for my youth, but this was an impossibility.  Our corridor is small, and it is directly outside the main auditorium.  To set up a sound system would have entirely interfered with the church service, so we are limited to using our “quiet voices” in my class.  It was clear that Corey is accustomed to “guerilla-style” ministry, and has a knack for adjusting to the circumstances because this didn’t faze him at all.  He arrived to church and began introducing himself to our youth immediately.  He captured their attention with his testimony, and answered their questions willingly. He was purely a servant in the moment, and it was entirely effective.  I received several text messages that day from kids wanting his Myspace information so they could be “friends.”

After a long weekend, I figured Corey would have wanted to hit the road, but after church, he was ready to spend some time.  We ordered up some pizzas, invited over some friends and family, and watched the NBA playoffs (yes, my Celtics lost that day, but as I write this they have just wrapped up round one and are on to Orlando!)

This guy was incredibly personable, and took an interest everyone he spoke to, asking specifics about their lives and prayer requests.  His humility was astounding.  After the game, I drove Corey to his next location, and we encouraged one another and prayed some more.  It was refreshing to spend some quality time with a brother in Christ with his head “on straight.”  His presence and demeanor reminded me that the details matter.  He barely mentioned his new record.    Each interaction, to him, is obviously an opportunity to reflect Christ, and he lets the God handle the rest.  I learned and was tremendously encouraged simply by being around this brother.  Corey: thanks for spending the time and making a dent in my neighborhood.  Your approach to ministry is a reminder of Jesus’ approach to ministry: hands-on.  You’re a class-act, brother.

I was reminded of the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-30. A master gave to several of his servants money to invest. He was most pleased with the...

The past few weeks have been bananas.  I’m still juggling my nine-to-five along with
concerts on the weekends, and I really don’t recall the last day I had “off”..whatever
that means.  Tomorrow, however, is all
family.  No music, no social work, no
church events, just Jessica, Isabel, and moi. 
Actually, last night, we did go to The Ninety Nine.  If you don’t know about the Ninety Nine, next
time you come to ....Boston....,
we’ll go.  It’s just a good restaurant
and it doesn’t break your bank.  Jess and
I had a debate about chocolate sprinkles being called “Jimmies” here in ....Boston...., and how the name “Jimmies”
is better.  Isa agreed with me. 

....So a couple weeks back I was in ....Saratoga Springs.., ..NY....
for the Youth for Christ Excel conference. 
A couple thousand kids, six performances, a merch table, and plenty of
socialization made for a phenomenal four days. 
Seth David came with me, and did his thing.  I admittedly wasn’t going to bring him with
me on the main stage in front of that big crowd, but decided to throw him to
the fire anyhow.  He hasn’t quite
mastered how to control his limbs, yet, but overall he smashed it. He also won a stuffed animal in the claw machine at Denny's.  I celebrated loudly.  The kids loved Seth.  One girl loved him a little too much, so we
had to ban her from the merch area. 

We spent ample time with the Godfather of Christ-centered
rap music, the one and only Mike Peace. 
What a huge blessings learning from that guy.  I soaked it all in, believe me, I’ll be going
to ....Rochester....
soon to take it in some more!

Sev Statik payed us a visit as well.  That's a great dude.

.. ..

This past weekend we went to Philly for the One Shot event
after the 76ers game.  Man…we had a sky
box.  Lots of food.  Plus we got to meet some players on the
Sixers and the Wizards.  Just brief
interactions, but cool nonetheless.  It
was a hustle, setting up the stage, checking mics, rolling the equipment off
the stage, and then rolling it back on for the concert after the game.  The sound was a little crazy in there because
the ....Wachovia.. ..Center.... is enormous, but bigups to the
crowd that stuck around for the show with myself and The Wrecking.  Applejaxx traveled with me.  That kid is hugely supportive.  We stayed at Dennis’s house afterwards
(Chosen Records’ owner) and then got a hot breakfast with Dennis, Darren, and
Joe.  The on to Philly to meet up with my
dudes C.Luk and Ben for a movie and Larry’s cheesesteaks. 

.. ..

I got the word that between these two weekends, over 100
kids made decisions to follow Christ.  I
don’t normally think about numbers like that because relationship with God isn’t
something you can gauge with statistics, but either way it is always a blessing
to hear that people were affected by something we participated in.  That keeps me accountable, man.

Here's episode 2 of my new web series, leading up to my '09 release. My dude C.Luk helped me out on this one. If you don't know C.Luk, he's a former Lynner who moved down to Philly, and shortly thereafter got a deal with Koch Entertainment. He's really, really ill on the mic. I snuck in a preview of one of my new jams on here, too...