Many popular music bands have become household names. Popular groups like Chicago, Journey, Bill Haley & The Comets, Johnny Cash, and Elton John immediately cause you to think of your favorite song by that group.
But for every icon in music, there are literally thousands of bands who never made the cut for radio station playlists. For every Electric Light Orchestra, there is a Diesel. For every Genesis, there is a Brand X (Phil Collins played in both bands). You probably have a favorite musical group that no one has heard of but you and your immediate friends. Hopefully, you don't take your love of that "never was" group to the Extreme.
Let's face it, if you have listened to music of any kind, you more than likely have heard a ballad that your initial impressions were "Wow! What a great song!" After the song hits #1, you then realize that due to overexposure, your "great song" has now become a little cheesy. In fact, parodies of the song begin to get as much airplay as the original and you join the ranks of those who describe the former #1 as a "used to be" favorite. Such is the case for the group Extreme. They had one #1 hit with "More Than Words". It is a song that lyrically makes a lot of sense by telling listeners that the phrase "I Love You" is hollow unless you have the actions to back up what you are saying. From 1991, here is Extreme with "More Than Words"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Believe it or not, Extreme has 6 albums to their credit. The band decided to take a hiatus in 1996 and the lead singer, Gary Cherone, joined Van Halen for Van Halen III. The Roman numeral designation would not be indicative of Van Halen's 3rd album, but their 3rd lead singer. This collaboration would last 1 album and 3 years. Dubbed "Van Extreme" by fans, Cherone, would be amicably discharged due to poor album sales and lack of attendance at concerts.
Extreme got back together in 2004 and continue to tour with the song "More Than Words" as a staple in every concert. Their latest album 2010's Take Us Alive, is a live concert album dedicated to the "club" fans who have continued to follow Extreme. Due to the influence Extreme's music has had on their lives, these fans have shown how they feel by the way they act and their dedication.
It has been said that you can tell the intellect of a person by the language they use. When your particular choice of words has been on the coarse side, you may have been told by parents to "talk like you have an education!". Using education as a standard you would think that most television actors and even some political types have very little educational background. Perhaps the words we use are more indicative of our character than our education. The apostle Paul went so far as to say that we would put "filthy language" away from us when we became Christians. This seems to indicate that as we continue to work out our salvation we will transition our vocabulary to primarily use the four-letter word LOVE. In Colossians 3, Paul touches on the new life in Christ. Eugene Peterson's paraphrase of this passage in The Message is exquisite:
Colossians 3
He Is Your Life
1-2 So if you're serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don't shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that's where the action is. See things from his perspective.
3-4Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life—even though invisible to spectators—is with Christ in God. He is your life. When
Christ (your real life, remember) shows up again on this earth, you'll show up, too—the real you, the glorious you. Meanwhile, be content with obscurity, like Christ.
5-8And
that means killing off everything connected with that way of death:
sexual promiscuity, impurity, lust, doing whatever you feel like whenever you feel like it, and grabbing whatever attracts your fancy.
That's a life shaped by things and feelings instead of by God. It's because of this kind of thing that God is about to explode in anger. It wasn't long ago that you were doing all that stuff and not knowing any better. But you know better now, so make sure it's all gone for good:
bad temper, irritability, meanness, profanity, dirty talk.
9-11Don't
lie to one another. You're done with that old life. It's like a filthy set of ill-fitting clothes you've stripped off and put in the fire. Now you're dressed in a new wardrobe. Every item of your new way of life is custom-made by the Creator, with his label on it. All the old fashions are now obsolete. Words like Jewish and non-Jewish, religious and irreligious, insider and outsider, uncivilized and uncouth, slave and free, mean nothing. From now on everyone is defined by Christ, everyone is included in Christ.
12-14So,
chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength,
discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It's your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.
15-17Let
the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing. And cultivate thankfulness. Let the Word of Christ—the Message—have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. And sing, sing your hearts out to God!
Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.
The
Bible eludes to the fact that Paul was a passionate man. His writings indicate his frustration with specific individuals and collective churches, yet he never lets loose with a profane tirade regarding his frustrations. He has put those things behind him so he can strain toward the high calling of Christ. Would that we would become as
disciplined.
Profanity is a habit. One that the Bible speaks against consistently.
As we are challenged each day to become more like Christ, let our language reflect our new nature. Allow God to direct the words that you use each day to actively demonstrate your dedication to Him. By doing
that people will see your life change as "More Than Words."
'Til Tuesday,
Loving HIM by loving you,
Randy
No comments:
Post a Comment