Filed under: Culture, Faith and Faith Life, Home Life, Music, Politics, Random | Tags: blog, christian music, computers, Faith, iMac, Music, pc, Politics, powerbook, sacred, secular, technology, youcanknowgod
I’ve got a cold, so this may be random. But hey, what can you do with a cloudy braid but write a blog about everything?
I just read a blog entitled “The Music Debate” about the place of “secular” music in the church. Interesting. It got me thinking about the calling card of so many mid-90’s bands: “We’re not a ‘christian’ band; we’re christians IN a band.” I remember MXPX going on about it – mostly cause they were being hounded by Christians who didn’t appreciate their not-all-about-God music. I guess I didn’t really have a problem with it. What I had a problem with were the people who said, “I’m a musician who happens to be a Christian.” Cause that’s backward, to me.
Here’s why: Whatever I am, and whatever I do, I am identified by and with Christ. His blood runs in my veins; His DNA is imprinted on my genes; His priorities are my priorities, His values are my values; His new law of love and service and self-sacrifice are written on my heart. God is growing Christ in me to make me who I really am. At my very core, by definition, I belong to Christ and am identified as His.
So really, my faith is not just another part of who I am. It is the filter through which every other identifying factor is sifted. My belief system is a product of my faith. My politics are a product of my faith. My songs are all tempered – or salted, as it were – by my faith. The way I relate to people is filtered by Him who lives at my center. Indeed, whether I’m singing about my husband, hurting because of a broken relationship, angry about work, or overjoyed by an opportunity, I am doing so as a Believer, just as I’m doing so as a ‘Courts.’ Just as my family DNA has an effect on everything I do and say, so does Christ’s. It’s who I am…not just what I’m about.
So, in the end, I’m not an artist who happens to be a Christian. I am a Christian who happens to be an artist, a wife, a friend, a sister, a dog owner, a writer, a thinker. Whatever I am is primarily identified by Christ in me.
It’s just an interesting thread to follow.
Here’s another thread to follow: I’m a little bit obsessed with ebay and craigslist right now. Since our desktop PC crashed and now lives, unplugged and utterly useless, in our closet, I have been scouring tax-free sales lists for sweet deals on iMacs. Indeed, when I decided to buy my first laptop two years ago, I bought an Apple iBook G3 which solidified my committment to Macs. Then, when its screen started acting funny, I bought my second mac, a PowerBook G4 which I’ve upgraded to the max (it runs on Leopard with a 1.5gHz processor – the best of its kind – and at 1.25gb, is maxed out Ram) and am currently typing on. I love it. It’s given me some trouble for sure – not two months after I bought it, I had to get a new hard drive and dc-in…but I blame that entirely on an evil ebay seller who neglected to tell me the facts about the machine. Still, it’s a dream.
And so, as I peruse the cybersales looking for an iMac desktop, I inevitably get sidetracked by the oh-so-cheap $85 350gb external hard drive, and the $400 Dell gaming pc which Paul would love, Love, LOVE but about which I’m understandably wary, since our now-dead PC was a dream machine when we bought it, but which failed to make it through one itty bitty viral attack. So while I like the “cheap” factor, I hate the “PC” factor.
The worst part about our PC dying is the fact that I cannot access our 10gb of iTunes music, and can’t transfer what’s currently on the iPod to my de-lovely powerbook. Why? Because my iPod is formatted for PC, not mac, and because apple is totally anal about people not sharing music. So I’ve spent the last few sick days importing all our CDs onto my powerbook. I’m currently importing Fleetwood Mac’s “Say You Will.” Good music, for sure.
I think that’s all I’ve got for right now.
Except one more thing: I really can’t wait for next Wednesday when voting will be over, the campaigns done, and we won’t have to listen to any more drivel from either side. At this point, I don’t really care who wins; I just want to get on with life.
Can I get an AMEN!
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amy courts: en route 
purchased itunes music should be available for re-download! i’ve had to do that before. hmm. still, pain in the ars.
if you weren’t so anti-pcs, you could get an aspire one. though they do have them available to run on linux. and they’re cheaper than ibook’s and super-portable. they’re almost annoyingly small. but worth it. and you can get up to a 160g hd, and i’ve read reviews that say the speed is better than their gaming desktops. sooo idk. i want one.
Comment by leanna jackson October 31, 2008 @ 8:52 pmOh, the purchased ones transfer no problem. It’s the ones I imported before that won’t move…ugh!
Comment by amycourts November 1, 2008 @ 3:32 amI swear I’m not trying to make this about politics because I know we’re really all over it. But what you wrote above, “So really, my faith is not just another part of who I am. It is the filter through which every other identifying factor is sifted,” is the very reason why I can’t quite jump behind the idea of “separation of church and state.” Not that religious organizations should control government, but rather that politicians shouldn’t be required to check their faith at the door or set their religious beliefs aside when making legislative decisions.
I may have to check out the Music Debate blog, but maybe I shouldn’t because I get pretty worked up over that. I do like the MXPX quote above, because while people are Christians, I get really leery of attaching the label of “Christian” to things like music, literature or other art.
Comment by Rob in Gallup November 2, 2008 @ 12:42 amYou’re right that politicians ought not check their faith at the door; faith inevitably does (and arguably should) inform policy.
I am on the separation of church and state because the principle, as presented and valued by founding fathers, was not meant to preserve an a-religious or un-faithed nation, but to preserve the autonomy of the church and of individuals to practice whatever faith they desire. I think the monster has bared its teeth in our nation’s recent history during which the church’s ideals and values have been exploited, even purchased at times, for the sake of winning votes. It is completely unforgivable to me that such exploitation should be accepted, especially among the church. My values are based in Scripture, and various policies of BOTH parties reflect (and fail to reflect) those values. That one party has been so blatant about using my values to win votes – often setting Christian against Christian – is disgusting. And that’s why, to me, separation of church and state is so paramount. 🙂
On the music…I stand by what I said, mostly because while I certainly don’t identify myself as a “Christian Artist” in the sense that my music falls into the “Christian” category (I think any truly good music should defy categorization and appeal to the broader spectrum of people among all categories), I am a musician who is first and foremost, by identity and definition, Christian. So everything I do – musically and otherwise – bears the markings of my faith, if it is indeed authentic faith. (Even my songs that don’t mention God in the slightest way…)
I do, however, defy the label and all it implies, especially in the context of contemporary and fundamental christianity.
Comment by amycourts November 3, 2008 @ 12:05 amKeep up the good work, bookmarked and referred a few mates.
Comment by rockwell sonicrafter May 16, 2010 @ 8:36 pm