Hi there
From the SP offices we know winter has finally struck when there's snow on the hills behind Upper Hutt. This week, we can confirm winter has most definitely arrived! Good for the ski season but not so good for dragging yourself out of a warm bed each morning!
What's getting us out bed at the mo is the production and design of the Winter mag (out mid-July). We're definitely excited about this one, it's got an Olympics flavour and you wouldn't believe what happens to Matt and Carla... and no, we're not telling!
Other things to get you out of bed over the next wee while are Noise (starts today! 12-14 June, Akld), Youth of the Nation (16-19 July), The Soul Purpose Support Evenings (P.Nth 4 July, New Pth. 5 July) and of course this week's e-zine!
Happy reading!
From the SP Crew.
Top 5 ways the All Blacks can get us interested in rugby again
5. Play matches in dress-up themes, including: superhero, 80s, floral frocks and Narnia.
4. Go back to using food poisoning as the excuse.
3. Grow fringes and wear eye make-up. This, combined with wearing all black, should make rugby very appealing for NZ’s large emo population.
2. Incorporate an interpretive dance routine in the national anthem.
1. Bring back Buck!
Sing a New Song
by Hayden Shearman
"I will sing a new song", says David. And write new songs is exactly what he did – in fact at least 70 of them got published in the world’s number one selling book, the Bible! When it comes to creativity, David is the prefect starting point...
For David, his faith sparked his creativity. He wasn't afraid to sing about God, because God was the very reason he sang and danced, wrote and played: "I will praise you, Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples" (Psalm 108:3). Yet at the same time David wasn't afraid to be absolutely honest with God in his songs: "Do not hide your face from your servant; answer me quickly, for I am in trouble," (Psalm 69:17).
More and more I am convinced that "Christian music" falls down on either of these two points: 1) people are too afraid to sing about God because it's un-cool or just sounds cheesy but they still come along for the ride that is the Christian music industry; or 2) they are too afraid to be honest with God in their songs resulting in watered down cookie-cutter-Christian-blah.
Now I'm not lumping all Christian music in either of these two categories – some artists I believe have struck the perfect combination of honesty and God-focus (Brooke Fraser is the classic example). But after a weekend at FUSE 08, where God-inspired creativity was well-and-truly out on display, I'm hungry to see Christians step things up in the creativity stakes and become leaders in the arts once again. With the Creator in our hearts to inspire us, you would assume this would already be the case!
At FUSE I talked about creativity and Christians with Chris Falson – the guest speaker for the weekend who is a renowned songwriter for movies and television, pastor, ex-worship leader from CCC Sydney (now based in the States) and writer of such classic worship tunes as "All Honour" and "I See the Lord."
"People don’t want to see a façade," he says about creativity, "they want to see you. They want honesty. And God wants honesty too. God tells me, 'Just be you. Lean on that thing that is your gift.'"
Chris seems to go out of his way to lay aside any facades when he talks to you: at least half the interview was him asking me questions about my own life. So I needed to encourage him to talk more about himself. And when I did he somehow brought the conversation back to talking about the talents of others.
"Yesterday I saw amazing talent and ability from Maori and Pacific Islanders, yet [on the Sunday church worship] I was disappointed because it didn't carry through to the style of worship music. True worship should sound like the culture it comes from. The rocks will cry out – and the rocks in New Zealand will sound different from the rocks in Australia."
For Chris, being honest, even in the tough times, is essential to creativity, "The best creativity comes out of bad times and pressure, like the pressure necessary to create a diamond."
Talking about his own music Chris confesses, "The [Christian] record companies didn't like the lack of Christian content and the [mainstream] labels didn't like the presence of it." He was stuck somewhere in the middle, but didn’t want to compromise his honesty nor his desire to sing about his Saviour. I think many of us are the same, sure we're not all looking for record deals but when we're just looking to create we can often think: "Oh, is this too God-focused? Maybe it needs to be more ambiguous?" Or on the other hand: "Is this me being too honest? Will people doubt my faith in God?"
So for all those out there with a creative streak, read a couple of David's Psalms today. Remind yourself that creativity can be both absolutely about God and also absolutely honest and, as a result, be absolutely moving. And go on, don't be afraid to sing a new song!
A Kiwi Girl in Africa: Almost Home
Wow, I can almost count on my hands the days I have left in Madagascar… okay, not quite, but they’re disappearing faster than a block of chocolate would if I had one here! And you know how time just fizzles a billion times more quickly when you’re so busy More »
Coldplay | Write your own review!
Thanks to our lovely friends at MySpace you can now stream Coldplay's new album in its entirety online. Titled Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, the fourth studio release by the British rock band has potentially one of the most verbose names in the history of rock music. Listen hurr and post your own review here »
