LOOKING NO LONGER BACK AT '22 BUT FORWARD TO '23 (PART 5 OF 6)

 

Cumberland Mountain State Park, Crossville, TN

So what am I looking forward to in '23? 

Well, for one thing Becky and I will be celebrating our 40th Anniversary. I'm also looking forward to judging at the NCFCA (National Christian Forensics and Communication Association) Regional touRnament in May. And you could say in October I'm celebrating my Sgt. Pepper Birthday. 

What about music? Can I dream here? My dream concert would be to hear a festival including Divine Martyr, Worhol, True Revival, Reclaim the Day, Daniel Band, Undefeated, and Theody. Now, some (or all) of them might be at the Kingdom Come Festival. Or should I form my own festival? Though at the Senior apartments I'm in, my taste might be a little too high decibel. But I am watching to see who will be at Kingdom Come this year! Or maybe the cooler Pitt Fest (cooler because it's in October rather than June). 

How about books? I'm at the point where I'll still keep my non-fiction goal I had the last two years: one book a month. Currently, I've not been spending as much time with fiction, so I'll go conservative and also set it at 12. Can I have permission to re-evaluate and possible increase it in June?

One other thing I'm considering is strengthening some Facebook groups I've started but are mostly dormant. These are, in alphabetic order (you expect something different?) with links to the group included:

1. Colossians 3:16 Musicians Exhorting And Teaching Through Song. I started this to discuss music and encourage, especially artists that wanted to use their musical talents to not just reach the lost but also build up the believers. 33 members. But I haven't posted, and the only activity is one artist promoting his program on occasion. 
2. Holding Up The Song Leader's Arms - Prayer For Christian Musicians. Started so we can regularly  pray for musicians. It has 11 members. Haven't taken the time to keep it up - the most recent post was May, 2020.  
3. Jeff's Christian Book Reading Challenge. 29 members in this one, but the most active, thanks to yours truly. I post my reviews and my fiction and non-fiction lists there. I also do post on occassion. One author also sometimes posts deals on her books. The purpose was to be an encouragement to read and maybe to get discussion going on certain books.
   

This past year I've been considering the future of this blog. The main issue was wondering if God has called me to keep this up or if I'm wasting too much time I should be doing other things. Conclusion? I do not have indication to not continue this blog. So I will keep up my normal schedule of trying to post each Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday, and occasionally more. I'll also keep up with book reviews, interviews, and other topical blogs (sometimes a series, sometimes a stand alone). I am going to try something new for some of my interviews that I hope would be easier on the interviewees. Additionally, I'll be setting the time to post the blogs from 6AM to 9AM starting Jan. 1. Why? Because I think when I set it for 6AM it posts at 3AM. (If you prefer me keeping it the way it is, could you let me know?)

May I make the following requests?

• PLEASE pray for me this blog, and the above Facebook groups.  I need God's guidance. Sometimes, I'll need His encouragement. No, God doesn't need this blog. But there are times I could be discouraged and wonder if I should continue.
  
• If anybody is at all interested in doing guest blogs, please let me know. I have a couple of times suggested it. So far, there's only been one guest blog, and that's because I posted something Becky wrote. I'd love to have guest blogs.
• Going back up to the Facebook groups, I would welcome other administrators/moderators. On the prayer group, I'd love for someone to volunteer to post weekly and suggest artists they know for prayer.

Thanks for reading. I have one more blog left for tomorrow.

INTERVIEW WITH MORGAN TROTTER

Today, I'm honored to interview Morgan Trotter from Huntsville, Alabama. I became acquainted with Morgan by being in a couple of Facebook groups he was in dealing with Christian music. He's since started a third dealing with current events and culture. I have enjoyed sharing conversations with him on-line for the past several years.

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JR: Thank you for your time, Morgan. I know you're a fan of Jesus music from the '70's and '80's (and probably since as well), are a singer song-writer as well, and also served as a pastor in the '90's. Which musicians had an impact on you?

MT: The musicians who influenced me the most are Randy Stonehill, Phil Keaggy, Keith Green, Steve Camp, and The 2^nd Chapter of Acts. Randy Stonehill and Phil Keaggy influenced my songwriting. Keith Green and Steve Camp influenced my outlook through their high levels of personal commitment, encouraging me to be more dedicated to Christ. The 2^nd Chapter of Acts encouraged me to be more open to the work of the Holy Spirit in my life and also taught me to listen to God and for God with my heart as opposed to just with my mind.

JR: I believe Christian music has a potential to be used to make disciples and give an answer for faith, but it also has the ability to conform to the world and may actually lead people from the faith. Is there anyone in music you consider examples of being faithful ministers in proclaiming the truth in the ways I mentioned?

MT: Some of the ones I think have been great examples to this day are Keith Green (who sadly left us way too soon), Scott Wesley Brown, Bob Hartman of Petra, the members of the 2^nd Chapter of Acts, and DeGarmo and Key (Dana Key left us too soon, too).

JR: One ministry you currently have is being a moderator for a pair of groups on Jesus Music and one on Contemporary Culture. How do you feel those groups are helping us grow in the faith?

MT: I sure hope they’re helping people grow in faith in some way. Of course, the medium of social media is limited in terms of personal connection. I feel one reason our nation is currently so divided politically and ideologically is because people are having discussions online rather than in person. This breeds misunderstanding and hostility. I doubt many people have changed their minds because of something someone said on Facebook. In light of this I’m very aware of the limitations of trying to minister or witness via social media. In the Jesus Music groups you mentioned sharing the gospel is complicated by the fact that the topic under discussion is primarily the music and only secondarily the gospel. And in fact, in one of those groups the rules prohibit theological discussions, so the amount of in-depth witnessing one can do in that group is limited. In the other Jesus music group, I’ve tried to create more of an atmosphere of openness in which spiritual and theological issues may be discussed more thoroughly. My hope and prayer is that something that’s shared there might positively influence someone’s life. I also hope those with spiritual or theological questions will feel free to ask them there.

As for the Contemporary Culture group, I created that group as a place for Bible-believing Christians to be able to discuss current events from a biblical perspective. Social media tends to create “echo chambers” in which like-minded people get together and share their views, and I’m sure that group is like that to some extent as well. But the desire was to have a place where Christians can find answers in the Bible’s truth and authority. We try to stay away from purely political discussions, but when politics intersects with matters of faith then the group is a place to discuss those things as well. I hope people in the group who are struggling with their faith or with certain issues will find it a place to ask questions and find biblical answers.

JR: Thank you for your time, Morgan, and may the Lord Jesus Christ richly

MT: And you as well. Thank you for having me, Jeffrey.

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What musicians and ministers have been an influence to you?