Since our son Dan has moved out (August 2009; he’s now living in Wales, UK) Marcia & I have been busy pressing ahead with our vision & mission. I have done a lot of study & writing, learning lines (by heart) &  location hunting, filming & editing. As a result the first DVD of Psalms Alive has been released through Vision Video the Christian distribution company that has also distributed Jacob’s Ladder.

Psalms Alive, part 1 has 22 Psalms, every one of them filmed on a separate outside location. The DVD also has an Introduction Piece, as well as a teaching piece on ‘how to learn Scripture by-heart’.  The response to the DVD has been positive & encouraging. For more info see: www.entertainingangels.us and look up the Billy Angel page.

I’ve already written the text for the next 22 Psalms (a rewrite from the King James Version), and we have filmed & edited 9 Psalms so far. I expect & plan to film the rest of the Psalms (another 13 or 14) later this year, as well as film a couple of extra pieces. Lord willing Psalms Alive, part 2 will be released toward the end of this year (2010) or early 2011.

On the performing front, I have done lots of work in many Retirement Homes, and have begun to go into Prisons. This Story Telling & Singing work continues to be an amazing adventure (in the Spirit); a blessing to many, including myself. I see this work as my spiritual discipline; it keeps me walking close with God daily. This work is also a celebration of God’s WORD, of His amazing stories which are part of our spiritual inheritance. In a society where (dead) religion treats these stories as ancient history, while secularism is taking much ground ongoing, and is, like the oil-spil in the Gulf, penetrating society everywhere, in this kind of society the STORIES of SCRIPTURE need to be TOLD, over & over again, and celebrated. These stories happened then, and in the telling, they are happening AGAIN. THE HOLY SPIRIT MOVES THROUGH THE TELLING OF THESE STORIES OF FAITH, and inspired people to greater levels of faith!

I can see a ministry emerging of an ARMY OF STORY-TELLERS/ SINGERS presenting the God given stories in all kinds of places, especially the stories of the fathers of faith, the story of Jesus, and the stories of the early church emerging. This ministry could be called: STRONG, which is a combination of the words STORY & SONG. For more information go to Billy’s blog page on his web-site: www.billyangel.com

We continue our daily struggle to make ends meet, let alone raise funds to equip our TV Studio. We’ve hung TV lighting in the studio, and beautiful African side curtains (back-drops) which were GIVEN to us! Praise God, what a wonderful provision. The Outdoor Stage is READY- all that is left to do is a light cover over the top beams, used during filming (it comes off after a day of filming). Please pray for FUNDS to get this cover made, as well as FUNDS to complete equipping our TV Studio.

I’ve made an encouraging start with writing scripts for The River of Life, a STORY PROGRAM for TV (me telling all the major & minor stories to camera). Once the TV Studio is equipped I hope & plan to get started filming the first number of stories.

Recently I have rewritten much of our Entertaining Angels web-site (www.entertainingangels.us). Our VISION has shifted a little bit, away from (focussing on being) a Web & TV Station, and toward being a PRODUCTION HOUSE that produces TV Programs (on DVD, or directly for the Internet) that mostly will be broadcast by the various Christian TV Stations (and sold through Vision Video) and a GREEN HOUSE (glass house) that nurtures & releases MINISTRIES (such as: Story Cafe, STRONG, The Angel Clinic).

The Angel Clinic has come into sharp focus, with Marcia now developing 2 new activities: The Sensory Paradigm, a series of teaching, and Love in Action, a hands-on training. For more information see the Entertaining Angels website (www.entertainingangels.us) and go to: The Angel Clinic page.

The tittle of this post is SLOW MOTION BREAKTHROUGH. This is because we have not had a dramatic (financial) breakthrough, in the way you hope for it, and yet, heaven has given us 1 amazing ‘suddenly’  and we have had several occasions where significant things have happened (new opportunities, new invitations, new friends etc.), and we’ve concluded that we’re in BREAKTHROUGH TIME, even though we still struggle with a lack of funding, and a lack of (technical & administrative) help (which is directly linked to a lack of funding). While still very much in the middle of that struggle for survival, we feel we’re moving forward & upward all the time, and are constantly breaking through barriers, and breaking into new blessings. So we are experiencing a SLOW MOTION BREAKTHROUGH. Praise God. We believe the financial breakthrough is just a matter of time!

Apart from a thorough rewrite of the Entertaining Angels web-site, I have set-up 4 other web-sites:

www.billyangel.com

www.storycafe.org (also www.storycafe.tv)

www.jacobsladder.tv

www.angelwhispers.us

Please have a look at them all! This last web-site is an extension of a SHOP that we have started in our home. Marcia & I have looked into selling goods so many times. Marcia LOVES working with fabrics and jewelry, and she is an excellent set-dresser. So we’ve turned a spare room in our house into a SHOP, and we’re calling it: Angel Whispers. It looks great! Photographs of this physical shop are on the web-site, as well as photos of articles-for-sale. We believe that the Lord has put into our hands the ability to create wealth! And we need much wealth to finance the vision God has given us (as well as help finance a few other visions, other ministries).

Last, but not least, I’m giving serious time to making connections with other ministries, with (some) churches, with Christian TV Stations, Christian Universities, Christian Performers (Story Tellers/ Actors/ Singers), and (last but not least) Christian Businessmen (to help us fund this work).  If there are any people you feel you should put us in touch with, please write to: billy.angel@me.com

This last weekend Marcia & I saw two films in the cinema, over the stretch of 2 nights. We don’t go to the cinema all that often, so this was unusual for us. We saw Michel Jackson’s ‘This is it’, and we saw ‘Where the wild things are!’.

Can’t help but feel very sad about Michel Jackson’s early death. What an enormously gifted man, and how wonderful to see him rise during those rehearsal times (where & when the filming was done). It looks like it was going to be a GREAT CONCERT, that never actually happened. I was very touched by a number of beautiful moments in the film, moments where he was singing without musical backing, moments where he was improvising, and other moments of inter-action with members of the cast & crew of the show. Definitely a MUST SEE  film, to be seen in the cinema!

Michael has (co-) written many great songs, and his whole expression (physically/ vocally) is so VERY UNIQUE; he is mesmerizing!  With him on stage, the stage is filled; without him it is open & waiting to be filled.

I was very impressed with the quality of the filming and the sound and the amount of film material. It seems almost as if they (?) had planned to make this film (of the rehearsal period). Obviously some footage will  have been shot after Michael’s untimely death, but there is plenty of film material with him in it. Makes me wonder, why were they doing all this filming? What would have happened to this footage, had the concerts in London gone ahead as planned?

While cast & crew have great respect for Michael, he keeps his distance and rarely comes out of his shell. He wears sunglasses most of the time, and kind of hides a lot of the time, it seems to me. He is obviously saving himself for the real work (giving the 50 concerts), and slowly gearing himself in the demanding work of dancing & singing and carrying the burden of the whole production etc. Michael’s dancers & singers admire him greatly, and stir him up every once in a while to open up, open out, let rip. Occasionally he does, to an extend, and those are beautiful moments.

My impression of Michael was that he is (was) Peter Pan indeed; never quite grown up. His best qualities are child like qualities. It is as if he put all negativity and pain aside (inside himself) and decided to be like Peter Pan. As a result of not really digesting the trouble & the pain, he never really gained mature adulthood. In his life he seemed lonely, and on stage he could only repeat himself with his songs and movements. The stage was still the best place for him, where he’d come alive; of stage he (perhaps) didn’t quite know who he was.

In the film it became obvious (to me)  that there was no new inspiration; Michael was simply repeating himself, even after a 10 year absence from the concert stage. It looked like Michael had developed some new movements (?), and the concept for the show had some new ideas (?), but on the whole that didn’t invigorate his performance, not in this film. In a way, what did strike me was the knowledge that Michael’s funeral service would be held in this same auditorium just weeks later, with most of his backing vocalists and dancers participating, fully rehearsed.

Would it have been possible for Michael to know, to have some inclination, that this was going to happen? Did he feel he had it IN HIM to go to London and hold large audiences captive for 50 nights running? Did he feel during those rehearsal days that the show was really coming together?  It struck me that at one point Michael mentions that this last run will be his final stage appearance. Could it be that he began to realize that this ‘final’  tour could become  an uninspired repeating-himself grueling 50 day night-mare? Will we ever find out what caused his death, and how aware Michael was about risks he was taking (with drugs etc.). That, I’m sure we’ll never know. It could even be, that all these questions were too delicate for Michael to openly confront, and that much of the struggle was unconscious, or at least pushed away  into the small night hours.

Perhaps in those small hours (of the night) and at some point in his life, Michael called on the name of Jesus. It’s the same for all of us: Without God’s inspired involvement in our lives, we end up just repeating ourselves, in what ever way. Gradually the feeling emerges that we’re missing something IMPORTANT. Indeed, we’re missing the MOST important element to life: God’s forgiveness and God’s amazing (Holy) Spirit! It is only through JESUS (sacrifice) that we can receive forgiveness. He puts us (back) in touch with Father God. I wonder where Michael stood with Jesus; was he humble enough to receive the forgiveness that is so essential for finding real fulfillment. I hope he did. If he did, he kept quiet about it…

Now he sleeps the for-ever sleep.  God bless his family, his children, his mother, and all those beautiful people dancing & singing with him, including the man who made this beautiful film: ‘This is it!’

The next night Marcia & I saw ‘Where the WILD THINGS are!’.  WHAT AN AMAZING FILM! GO SEE IT!! This is not a film for children. It is a film about a young boy, and is world, his perceptions, and how he uses his imagination to work through his conflicts. In the film we experience the boys (imaginary?) adventures, as he visits a far away place ‘where -indeed- the wild things are’; the boy is quite a wild thing himself.

Marcia & I used to have the book (from which the film was written & designed). I always had a special love for that book. I read it to and with Dan, when he was little. The film is remarkable close to the book, in more ways than one. Beautifully made, a huge amount of work must have gone into this cinematic miracle! Slowly moving, but always with an undercurrent of pending danger, which is very much the boy’s  perception of (his) life. The boy in the film deserves an OSCAR- he is completely natural and totally brilliant. I will buy the DVD; I want to own this film!  The creatures that the boy meets, and that make him their King, are all reflections of his family, including the father that no longer lives at home (we never see him), and possibly some neighbors and/ or close friends. While the sound of their voices is so familiar, their bodies, their ideas and words, and their actions are (at times) wonderfully off the wall, out of the box, if not crazy. My favorite line in the movie (when the boy is leaving the wild things to go back home): “You’re the first king we haven’t eaten!”

The imagery of the film is FANTASTIC, the music is BRILLIANT, the boy is MESMERIZING (the king of the world indeed, which is a tittle given to him by his father). The WILD THINGS are AMAZING to watch in their expressions and body language. This is altogether a TOP FILM!! Not to be missed!

Last Saturday, October 31st, I was invited to do some Story Singing @ the River Church for the Platinum Group; first time for me to take the Story-Singing into my home church. There is so much that I wanted to do, many songs, all kinds of scripture to speak (including some Psalms), several stories (& songs). In the end I felt I should do a synopsis of the Moses story, ending it with the Hebrew’s escape from Pharaoh & his army through the sea. What a great story, and my telling of it has grown over the years.  Great to have a chance to sing & tell in this anointed place.  Can’t wait to do some more!

While waiting for a traffic-light today, I read a bumper sticker on the car in front which kind of shocked me. It read:

OK you’ve got your change, but I still have my God and freedom, and I’ll hide my guns and money.

CAn you believe someone actually bothered to put this text on a sticker, and some else bothered to put this strange piece of communication on their car. It certainly got me thinking!

A couple of years ago heaven gave us a VISION for a round building that would be a mix of a coffee place, a community meeting place, a place for LIVE entertainment & short FILM; we decided to call it: the Story Cafe.  A British architect friend did some amazing drawings, and in the process we studied the concept of this special place, and we developed a few options (larger building smaller building etc.).

Since than nothing much has happened with this GRAND idea. Often we’ve wondered weather we should buy a plot of land, and simply build the first Story Cafe. But clearly, having a building (and a huge mortgage on it) is not suddenly make the Story Cafe happen. We would need a team of people to run it, and a serious budget to keep the place open until -finally- business would begin to happen etc. No the kind of scenario you gladly step into. So we’ve waited to act on this vision, while busy with other visionary work.

A few weeks ago I feel I had a brainwave, an inspired moment, a spark from heaven I believe. Suddenly I saw that what we need here is ONE NAME, that covers three things: an ACTIVITY, a MOVEMENT, and a (series of) BUILDING (s).  We start with the activity which eventually grows into a movement which in due course will require a building. The name of this activity/ movement/ building: Story Express!   

We are excited about this! Now we have a beginning! This coming December 5th we are planning our first Story Express! event. It will be along the lines of Story-Round which we did in Wales once a month. First half of the evening (45 min.) will be given to a Christian entertainer (singer/ story-teller). There will be an interval with coffee & tea and soft drinks as well as cakes & deserts. The second half of the evening is OPEN FLOOR!  People can tell their (testimony) stories, sing songs, speak poems, do a mime, a dance or drama, and we’ll let the entertainer finish the evening. We’re looking forward to this event, hopefully the first of many. 

For more information about the VISION behind this initiative, go to: www.entertainingangels.us and click Story Express (on the Opening Page). People carry amazing stories! Each person who became Born of the Spirit has a UNIQUE and IMPORTANT story! This story, which is part of their LIFE story, describes a TURNING POINT in their life! Scripture describes how we are to overcome (darkness) by the blood of the Lamb, and the word of our TESTIMONY!  (Revelation 12: 11) People need to tell their (testimony) story and realize how powerful this story is; realize how God can use their (testimony) story to touch OTHERS!  In the telling of our stories we take further ownership of that story and learn to fully take on board what was given to us (when the events of the story happened). If we don’t tell the story (regularly) we run the risk of slowly losing what was gained (when the events took place); in the end the enemy will (try to) tell us ‘it never even happened’. 

Our stories are powerful communicators! They describe what actually HAPPENED TO US; nobody can argue with that, and in the telling, the power of these events, the miracle working power, becomes tangible, present in the atmosphere!  When stories of healing are being told, fresh healing might take place to other people!  The stories often speak of people’s struggles, their (inner) conflicts and how they found a way out, a way forward.

The Scriptures are full of stories like this, and by telling those stories we invite the same Holy Spirit that moved through these amazing events, to move again, in our midst. This is the LIVING Word of God.

So in Story Express! we want to celebrate all kinds of inspired stories. Stories of ‘becoming born-of-the-Spirit’, stories of  healing, stories of miraculous provision, stories of inner healing & restoration, and last but not least stories from Scripture!

We ‘see’ small groups of people meeting in their homes, or in coffee bars, restaurants, or any public space, to tell each other their stories, and stories from Scripture. Just like people coming together to discuss a book or a film, which is being done in lots of places. Why not Story Express! in the such groups?!

With all the business of this year (2009), Marcia & I working through Dan’s situation here in Plant City and eventually taking Dan to Wales, and me filming many Psalms this year, I simply haven’t had the time to write a blog entree (singing diary) after Story-Singing in Retirement Homes. Yes, I still go in and deliver. It continues to be an amazing and very worthwhile experience; my presentation continues to grow!

I am up to speed on several (Old & New Testament) stories, which are followed up by a song. The GREATER LOVE album is full of great songs, and I’m grateful (great-full) for all that (great) material! If I had the time, I could write many short stories of what happened when going in. NOT ONE TIME has it been bad or boring; NO, every time I go in, something worthwhile happens, the wonderful spirit of heaven moves (the Kingdom) and everybody (including myself) gets blessed!  I’m SO GRATEFUL to have the opportunity to be involved in this (move of the spirit). Quite a few times people have said to ma afterwards, to NEVER STOP doing this. To me it is an amazing exercise, on many levels (physically, musically, mentally, spiritually etc), that keeps me very fit and alert and flowing in the spirit (and in singing, playing, telling, speaking, dancing, laughing…) and enables me to come out of myself and become an open vessel for the Holy Spirit. I see people being liberated,  touched, healed, and turning to Jesus! What a privilege to be part of this precious move of God!

While I continue to go into the Retirement Homes, I am beginning to feel that I should also be going into PRISONS, as well as certain FESTIVALS and celebrations, even house & dinner parties etc. Lord willing I should make a DVD of the kind of work I do in the Retirement Homes (possibly filmed in a couple of Homes), to make this DVD available to the churches, for them to send the DVD to their local Retirement Homes! 

Meanwhile I’ve developed a hunger for more stories! I want to KNOW ALL THE STORIES (in both New & Old Testament). This is a huge challenge, but by God’s grace I’ll take hold of it. I also hope to (co-) write many more songs, to go with the stories. It works SO WELL for me to tell a story, and than sing a song! A great deal of work to be done here, and a serious budget will be needed to bring this vision to reality! By God’s grace it will be done!

I began singing in the Retirement Homes in this area (Tampa Bay/ Brandon/ Lakeland) about 14 Months ago, and I have connected with around 80 Homes. A few of them apart, all these Homes are very happy to have me come in for singing & telling; some of these Homes have really taken me to heart and want me to come in regularly (or as often as I can make it). All together it’s been VERY SPECIAL to make these connections and these friendships.

This Month, December 2008, I finish my third run of going into most of the Homes that I know, which means that in those 14 Months I’ve gone into most of the Homes three times. There’s one place that I visit once a Month; I’ve been there at least 7 or 8 times. A tremendous experience it has been; I’ve learned so much, and I feel I’ve come a long way.

Wednesday December 17th, going into Hudson Manor on Davis Island in Tampa, 2nd time here. I was here not long ago, and people liked me so much that they wanted me to come back a.s.a.p., hence today. The Activities Director has invited me to perform at 3 PM.

When I arrive there’s confusion at reception. Nobody knows I’m scheduled to sing today, and the Act. Director has gone out with a group, shopping at Walmart. All I can do is trust that they’ll be back on time, so I set up as usual and wait. Waiting before singing (and telling) can be a good thing; it helps with getting focussed and gearing up to deliver. However, waiting a long time, can have the opposite effect. You begin to think that the moment of sparking has gone, and it may be better to pack up & go.

The shopping party arrived back 40 minutes after I am supposed to start. When the Activities Director appears, I ask her, wasn’t I supposed to be starting at 3 PM. That’s the time she invited me for. No, she says, you’re in the schedule for 3.30 PM.  OK, but it’s now 3.40 PM and I don’t know what time the room needs to be available for supper.  

I suggest that perhaps it wasn’t such a good idea to invite me on an afternoon with an afternoon shopping trip. Not at all, she says, you can just sing in the time that is left. I have lots of artists coming here who are very happy to use whatever little time they are given.

Basically she’s brushing me off. She doesn’t want to admit that she had forgotten all about my coming to the Home (at her invitation). Instead of saying sorry for the difficulties she’s caused, she gets aggressive with me, and tells me off for being unhappy with the rushing and the lack of time to perform. I offer to come back another time, but she doesn’t want to hear of it. No, she’ll get the people together quickly and I can get started straight away. 

Moments later she’s back to tell me that I must finish at 4.30 PM, because the kitchen staff need the room to set up for supper. That would give me just over half an hour, which for my kind of presentation is very short; I usually have one hour.

While he A.D. walks off to gather more residents, I approach the kitchen staff about the timing of things. They tell me that they’re happy to set the tables quietly while I perform, and so I only need to finish at 4.45 PM. Just before starting my short set, I tell the A.C. that the kitchen staff is happy to give me until 4.45 PM.

At 4.20 PM less then half an hour into my set, the A.C. walks up to me, and tells me that I HAVE to finish at 4.30 PM sharply.

And so I do. The whole thing has become a bit of a farce. The few people present are restless or not very present. They’ve already had a busy day, and the timing of my singing is wrong. In fact, last time I sang here the audience was double the size; most people have gone to their rooms to rest, for obvious reasons.

I pack up and prepare to leave, not quite sure what to do. The A.C. has disappeared; I’m tempted to just walk out the door, and forget about this place. However, I’ve been invited, and I’ve been offered pay, and I feel I should claim what’s due to me. So I fill in the required forms (which I already had on me) and head for reception to hand them in.

Two surprises follow. First: the A.C. sits behind the reception desk, filling in for the receptionist. I see her there and hesitate speaking to her. She will not listen to me, I don’t think, and she’ll be rude again. I’m not interested in being at the receiving end of her aggressive attitude. I’ve been there (in TV production); done that, and moved on. No need for a repeat of that kind of trouble.

Then the second surprise: while I hesitate, the administrator appears (out of nowhere it seems). She had apologized to me earlier for the delay etc. and had been very kind to me.

So I approach her, give her the documents, and give her a brief explanation of what happened earlier. Perhaps it would have been better to invite me for another day, I suggest. The A.C. overhears these words, and jumps in to oppose. Her attitude has not changed one little bit (as I suspected), and she’s ready to shut me up (once more). The phone rings and the A.C. has to pull away to answer. Great, at least I don’t have to argue, and it gives me a chance to suggest that something is really wrong with the way the A.C. has handled the situation. The administrator hears my brief account, and I’m out the door.

When I arrive home the A.C. has already left a message saying that I will not be welcome to return to Hudson Manor. As if I wanted too…

In almost every Home that I visit, I am received with respect and with open arms. Today was very much an exception, I’m glad to say. I do hope to see the people of Hudson Manor again. My first time singing there was outstanding; the spirit moved in a remarkable way; people were very touched. I imagine the A.C. will eventually be caught in her own aggression and either change her ways or be out of there. Eventually I should be able to go back; heaven’s kingdom is on the move; no stopping it!

December 19th, singing in Southerland PLace, Tampa. Second time here; first time went really well. I’ve discussed over the phone the need for a quiet room, so people can be focussed. Cynthia, the Activities Director has prepared an excellent space, and begins to gather the Residents as soon as I get there.

Apart from the usual songs (Little Love/ One day/ In His Way/ Beatitudes/ Love Never Fails/ Touch Eternity? Aaron’s Blessing) I do a long version of the Moses story; a risky thing to do, but the people stay with it quite well; God’s wonderful Holy Spirit is moving through the telling and singing. Altogether a great time. Several members of staff are present all the way through; afterwards they comment on how well I communicate ever with the Alzheimer Residents.  It’s the Holy Spirit, and I’m so thankful for God’s presence. What a privilege! What ever bad feelings were left from my previous ‘gig’ those are all gone; I’m so happy to be a channel of God’s love.

Tuesday December 23rd I’m singing in Ybor City at the Healthcare & Rehab Center. I’ve been here several times before, but not in quite a while. Sweet people here; some of them quite far gone. Like the previous times, today is another wonderful celebration. I tell the story of Jacob dreaming about the ‘Ladder-from-Heaven’. It’s a wonderful story; I try to keep things simple, and people stay with me all the way through. The Angel Whisper song is such a blessing. A great way to finish the year, and to finish this ‘tour’ of the Tampa, Brandon, PLant City & Lakeland Retirement Homes. It has been a very positive experience. I look forward to going back into all these places. Perhaps I should also begin to go into the Homes in St. Petersburgh. Something to pray about.

Several Homes send me a Christmas Card expressing their appreciation for my work; I’m touched and count myself privileged. Next year is going to be GREAT. Perhaps I can also make a start with going into some churches, and beyond that I would like to put my name down at some Christian Agencies and begin to sing & tell all over the USA. God knows what’s in store. Happy New Year!

Big subject this! I’ve been wanting to write about this subject again for a long time, but I shied away from doing it. It seems there are lots of complications in this subject in need of untangling. Where do I even begin?

First of all, the terminology is problematic. If you talk about religion, you’re implying a religion among other (the world-) religions. Libraries full of books have been written about those religions, and further books still about comparing those religions.

When talking about Christianity ‘as a religion’, you’re implying that Christianity is a ‘religion’ among ‘other religions’. Yes? There’s no escape from that implication.

What are religions? Man made ways of connecting with deity (?). The questions arises, ‘is one religion better then the other?’. There is an assumption that in the end all religions lead to the same result (same place). In that view, the world religions are all equally matched, like political parties, and they are all ‘good’ and ‘needed’, and trying to get ‘your vote’. In the end it doesn’t matter which religion you follow, so goes the thinking, or whether you’re an ‘independent’; that’s fine too. It all goes in the grand democracy of philosophy. What ever works best for you.

If religion is ‘man’s attempt to reach/ please God’, then knowing & following Jesus is not a religion. Jesus’ arrival and mission on this planet was not invented by ‘man’.

Still, you could hardly refrain from calling Christianity a religion; it is. That seems right when you consider that there are (and have been) millions of people in the ‘Christian church’ many (if not most) of whom do not necessarily know and follow Jesus.

A while ago I began to compare religion to gravity, which comes with being on earth. No escape from gravity; in fact life on earth would be impossible without it. Without gravity, everything down here would just drift into space (if it wasn’t firmly fixed to the earth in some way) and die from the lack of oxygen.

The ‘down-side’ of gravity is that you get hurt when you fall; if you fall off a tall building you will get killed. Or, the other way around, you get killed by things falling on top of you, as in an earth quake. Tragic and terrible stuff. Yet, we need & want gravity.  Life would be impossible without it.

I think religion can be compared to gravity. We cannot do without it; it helps us in many ways, but there are some very serious downsides to having religion around.

Another way in which you can compare religion to gravity is that religion is every where, even when you don’t see it, or expect it. People have a need to express their longing for eternity, or their amazement (wonder) that their lives in this realm are coming to an end. Our dreams take us outside the realm of our daily & ordinary lives, and in touch with realms that are there (inside & outside of us), but mostly hidden from us. In my view every living person has a need to express their longing & wonder in some way or other. 

Honest expressions can be found in music, theater, film, art etc. They can also be found in scientific research, in sport, adventure, in social action (fighting disease, hunger, poverty, oppression etc.). Honest expressions of longing & wonder can even be found in worship where people are truly expressing their love for God.

However, there is also the dishonest expression, the false expression, the fake. This world is full of imitations and I see religion as an imitation of the real expression.

It’s very tempting to go for the fake; it’s quick & easy, doesn’t cost by far what the real, genuine expression costs. Religion is the imitation of the true expression, and therefor a cop-out or worse, a killer (of truth, of life, of love, joy& peace). A false god.  But in some ways, and for some people religion is very attractive. Many people use it as a crutch to lean on, or as a power system that serves them well. 

Jesus had many confrontations with the religious leaders of the day, and he exposed them for what they were: abusers of the people who were being led astray and held in bondage.

Going back to the comparison between religion and gravity, the comparison does not work so well, in that gravity is clearly and totally outside of us, while religion is also inside. 

You can know that for sure when you see astronauts floating in space where there’s no gravity. There they are outside of gravity’s influence.   

Religion is not only outside of us, but also inside of us. We can all get religious about something, and even those who claim not to be religious at all, are in fact religious in certain ways at certain times. (Expressed in being fanatical, or dumb, or repetitious, or sentimental, or legalistic etc.)

This tendency of getting religious (at certain times, in a certain way, possibly in certain places) could be compared to sin. That sound rather radical, but really I believe that this tendency to be (or to get) religious is NOT good, AND it is with(in) ALL of us; we All have the tendency to get religious, I think. 

This tendency to get religious  ALWAYS clouds (obscures) the things that are right and good and true. 

I may have lost you by now. But please, hang in there with me. 

Religion as in the organization of a faith expression (like Judaism) isn’t necessarily bad. The Christian church as an organized ‘religion’ isn’t necessarily bad, even though many terrible things have happened over the centuries in the name of the church. It is what the church leaders have done with their ‘religious’ powers that needs to be scrutinized and judged. 

Religion as a power base, has done (still does) much evil (at different levels) from the deadly crusades in previous centuries (and the Pope’s co-operation with the German, Italian & Japanese Nazi killing machine in the 2nd world war) to the sexual abuse by Catholic priests etc.

Where-ever power (structures) go un-checked, abuse usually follows. Welcome to planet earth!

Jesus introduced the Kingdom of Heaven, which is an upside-down kingdom. The first will be last; it’s all about serving and turning away from POWER. Lets call this ‘power under’. This in itself is a huge subject, which deserves a great deal of attention. 

Jesus said: “I am the truth, the way and the life. Follow me.”

In His upside-down Kingdom, we follow him to the cross where we die with him, to get resurrected with him (‘power under’). 

Even within the Christian religion it is very easy to miss this truth altogether and have the wool pulled over your eyes by the religious system (power over).

The tendency to get religious, I believe, lives in every-body. 

This tendency (to get religious) is (in my view) how the world religions have come into being. They are all power systems, usually build around an ‘inspired’ founder of the faith.

Most religions are completely man-made and have sprung through this infamous ability to get-religious. The same tendency has also infiltrated the Christian church, ever since there WAS a church! 

Jesus confronted the Pharisees many times about the same thing: the Jewish religious leaders had added to the law (of Moses) a host of extra rules & laws. They LOVED being religious; it gave them tremendous POWER (over).  And so they added massively to the laws given by Moses. This became a huge & impossible burden to the people.

Jesus stood up to this sinful practice in no uncertain terms.

The need (or desire) to get religious sits SO deep within people; it needs constant scrutinizing & cleaning out! 

Sadly the church is FULL of religious practices and religious attitudes. Man made stuff that gets in the way of God’s Holy Spirit and the work the H.S. wants to do. This tendency (to get religious) sits SO deep that people don’t see it; to the point where you don’t see it in your own life (Pastor Rodney describes this as: ‘People think: My pooh don’t stink.’)

Churches gradually slip into all kinds of religious stuff, usually without the congregation noticing it. (A bit like a family living in a place that is dirty and has a bad smell, but none of the family notice it. But imagine getting invited to this house for a meal; you’ll have serious difficulty keeping the food down…)

You might walk off the street and into a church, during the Sunday service, and instantly feel a sense of panic, desperately wanting to get out of this place; it is SUCH a deadly environment!   It’s happened to me several times, especially in the days before I became a follower of Jesus, but sadly also afterwards. At one time while living in London, UK, my wife, son & I, were looking for a ‘new’ church and we decided to visit a different church every Sunday. We did this for several Months. Some places we entered, we just could NOT stay until the service was over; we just HAD to get out- the place was so full of religiosity. 

Religion (religiosity) can slowly choke the life out of people, out of a church, out of an entire church denomination; out of organized religion, the church. The good news is that the Holy Spirit is on the move around the globe and busting the road blocks of religion & tradition.  

A new word here: tradition. While it’s great to have traditions, the dangers are always of those traditions becoming obstacles to happy & healthy living. Traditions need to be re-invented, to be given new meaning. Some traditions could be discarded, while it may be good to invent some new traditions. As a family we’ve developed some of our own traditions, and these are valuable to us, even though the value will change over time and so will those traditions. 

I don’t think you can talk about religion in the same way. We don’t want to be inventing more religion. Still, within the given ‘religion’ we need to constantly re-discover what it is all about. It could well be that parts of our religious expression should be changed or even done away with. We need to constantly go back to the core of our (dare I say) religion, our FAITH, to that which is un-changeable, that which should be & must be un-changeable: 

the heart of our faith, which has to be based on the truth, which is Jesus.

A new word here: faith. The Bible describes faith as ‘The substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.’ (Hebrews 11:1)(What a great statement, right there!)

But faith is not restricted to Christians only. 

Next to the Christian faith, there are the Islamic faith, the Jewish faith, and I suppose there are several more. When it comes to Hinduism, faith is perhaps not quite the right description; it’s vaguer, more diverse, and more like superstition (?). 

In any case, when talking about faith it seems that we are scaling the discussion back somewhat from talking about religion.

When you step into an aircraft you trust (you have faith) that the plane has been correctly designed & built and that it will be correctly handled by the pilot. The aircraft and the pilot can truly be trusted. You put your faith in the true quality of the craft & pilot.

Faith must be based on truth. If it’s not, your faith will NOT serve you well; quite the opposite, it will lead you down the garden path.  

Faith is not blind, it is not dumb, and it is not mute. Faith is active if it is anything at all.

Faith built on truth (Jesus), and practiced actively is a faith that can ‘move mountains’.  

If faith is not built on truth, it will be destructive eventually.

Faith (in the truth which is Jesus) is there to be practiced, as opposed to practicing religion. Religion doesn’t need any practice, and when practicing religion, people are merely following man made rules and customs, while being led astray, away from God & truth! Truth is essential; without it we will end up living a lie; a life (and a world) in darkness. We are desperate for light & truth to see a brighter world and have better lives.

Throughout the Old Testament we read how God interacted with certain individuals and gradually built a lasting relationship with a people that he called his own; a committed (covenant) relationship based on love and respect (fear of God). An organized system was needed (from the days of Moses) to help the (Hebrew) people understand this relationship and be faithful to it. In a sense this was the beginning of the Hebrew (Jewish) religion. A religion for good and for bad, like a necessary evil. Since this world is a ‘fallen world’ the expression and organization of this covenant relationship would be a faulty system from the start, and vulnerable to human abuse.

Obviously God knew this, He knows all, but choose the making of the covenant through the 10 commandments and  the establishment of the temple with all that this involved, even though God always knew that power hungry people would abuse and subvert the intentions of the covenant & temple. It was people really who turned the Hebrew faith into the Jewish religion, not God.

In the same way, Jesus did not come to establish a new religion; people did that, and God has simply allowed it. People need to organize themselves, and this is a fallen world; we constantly drift away from the truth, and God graciously gives us room. He is not a dictator; he is a loving God and constantly stirring us (through his Holy Spirit) to turn away from religion and seek him. He who seeks the Lord, will find him!

It is obvious by now that in my view even within the Christian religion the truth (Jesus) has gone largely missing, and large numbers of people are practicing their religion rather then their faith (in Jesus). This is a terrible state of affairs. Other religions are even further from the truth, in my view, and are powerful systems that can easily be abused by people hungry for power. This is an even worse state of affairs.  

I believe that the Muslim Religion (Islam) has the potential of becoming a power base which intents to dominate much of the world, and that Islam is well on it’s way to taking power even in Western Europe. A very nasty power-over movement this is.

This is a far cry from the Kingdom of Heaven which is all about power-under instead of power-over. Islam is ultimately a power-over system and not based on the love-of-God, as where the Christian faith, where expressed in truth is ALL ABOUT LOVE and power-under, which is serving.

It is very tempting for Christians and ‘the Christian church’ (as in the Christian political voice) to attempt to grab power (power-over), and try to organize the world according to their (political) views, how-ever limited those views may be. In the process (of trying to take political power) the love of God (faith expressing itself in love) is forgotten and the movement turns ugly. This is religion in it’s true ugly sense. We’ve seen this happen in the USA over the last so many years, and the results have been a disaster. The true Christian witness has suffered greatly and the world has not become a better place.

Following Jesus really means following him in the way he kept ministering to the poor and needy, not aiming for power-over, but always choosing power-under, even to the point of death. It’s the resurrection power that will change the world for the better; no other power can do that. Followers of Jesus have to stay focussed on this journey. Religion predictably does the opposite (with predictable results).

I grew up in the Christian religion and learned all about the Old Testament, not the New sadly. I eventually walked away from the this system of bondage, and found myself looking for a savior. When I met Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, I got born again, as they say. But even then there was the option of getting stuck in organized religion all over again. It is every where, you see. It even creeps into places that seem so free at first.

So, even after being touched by God’s wonderful spirit, I found myself gradually going to sleep (spiritually speaking) for lack of focus.

Compare this to falling asleep behind the wheel; it is extremely dangerous. By God’s grace I survived the crash, and knew from then on that the only way to stay on course is to follow Jesus. I now practice my faith in Jesus every hour of the day & night, and make sure I stay fully focussed on him. This has given me tremendous freedom; it has also put some serious and much needed restrictions on my life. How good all of this is!

So, to the question, ‘is religion good or bad?’ I should answer: it is not about it being good or bad, it is about how important Jesus is in a person’s life, in a group of friends or family, in a church, in a denomination, in a party, in a country; in the world. 

Retirement Homes are such unlikely places for a singer with self respect to go into, and yet… To begin with,  (a large) part your audience is either half asleep or mentally not quite there. Some residents make constant noise, talking to themselves, or even shouting at nobody. Recently in the middle of my set, this lady loudly proclaimed that she had to go the bath  room. At first I ignored her and simply carried on, but there was no member of staff in the room and she kept declaring her need. A conviction came on me that if I didn’t respond, we were going to have more serious trouble right there. So when I had finished singing, I left the room for a few brief moments, to alarm a member of staff. Other times members of staff congregate in the back of the room, usually talking to each other loudly. Often they walk right into the audience during the ‘show’ and start giving people their medicine or food, or talking with them loudly. Announcements come through the  PA system in the building loud & clear. At one time the fire alarm went off; it was so loud, people had to cover their ears. Other times I’ve performed in open plan spaces; the ‘hall’ is also a corridor, and all kinds of people walk right through usually oblivious to the fact that there’s a presentation going on.

AND YET! In these UNLIKELY PLACES the Holy Spirit often moves in remarkable ways, because many residents are HUNGRY for GOD. It reminds me of doing STREET SHOWS in Trafelgar Sqare, London, with heavy traffic all around the center where we were performing. There were constant sirens from police cars and ambulances driving right past, AND YET!! Because there were HUNGRY-for-GOD people watching our street theatre, the Spirit moved and created a still & holy space around us (performers & audience). Same in the Retirement Homes. Often when walking into these places, it feels like you’ve come to the wrong building; and yet, once the music & the telling begins, the Holy Spirit moves over the people and something very precious happens; every time!

Never mind going into an expensive building with excellent facilities etc. finding that the people are hard hearted, not hungry for God, but picky & judgmental. No move of the Spirit here! I’ve been there a few times, and have no desire to go there again. Usually those are the places where the money is. Those people think they’ve got it all, and they don’t want you to ruffle their feathers.

Nov.28th, Sunrise Village in Tampa. Another ‘unlikely place’; the Holy Spirit moved beautifully.

Dec.1st, Tender Loving Care, Lakeland. I’ve been here many times before. A wonderful steady little crowd. I did the story of Jacob, which they very much appreciated. I struggle to stay within the one hour time limit. An excellent morning.

Dec.2nd, Hanna Oaks in Tampa. A very unlikely place and a wonderful move of the Spirit.

Dec.5th, Lake Morton Plaza, Lakeland. 2nd time in this place. When I was here before, an excellent little crowd turned up who very much enjoyed the story of Moses. Today, the story of Jacob, equally compelling material. While singing I can see the Spirit washing over the people. This place would be ready for me to visit more regularly (like once a month). 

Dec.9th, Excell Rehab in Tampa. A new experience today… The Activities Director with whom I’ve arranged the date for me to come in, is not there. I rang her the day before, and left a message, since she didn’t answer her phone. When I arrive I hear that the Act. Dir. is not there; she wasn’t there yesterday either, nobody has heard my phone message, and they were not expecting me. Even so, they’re prepared to go ahead, but they are also having an early Christmas dinner at lunch time (I’m there in the morning). In all the business & rushing we forget to talk about timing. I was scheduled to sing from 10.30 until 11.30 AM, and I’m assuming that that’s still OK. To my dismay I’m finding that at 11.15 the staff re beginning to roll my audience (in the wheel chairs) out of the room. The assistant Act. Dic. indicated that I should finish, and within minutes the last few members of my audience are being taken out of the room while I sing the last song, Aaron’s Blessing, having skipped 3 songs that should have come first. A very odd experience! They needed to get ready for their special dinner, and expected me to finish at 10.15 AM. Never mind, I still LOVE going into these UNLIKELY PLACES, where I come in to minister under the guise of entertainment.

November 13th, singing in Summerville, Lakeland/ Nov.19th, singing in Savannah Court, Brandon/ Nov.20th, singing in Delaney Creek Lodge, Brandon/ Nov.21st, singing in Whispering Oaks, Tampa.

It just keeps on getting better! I’m learning more & more to flow in the spirit; while I’m more relaxed in what I do, I’m also learning to be more expressive in the singing & the telling. Another thing I’m learning is to stand against dark forces and present the Kingdom of God with conviction, strength, energy, joy & love flowing through me. If there is restlessness, it usually goes after a while, because God’s peace is powerful.

At Summerville I performed/ ministered in the activities room, which was lovely; a settled & very quiet audience. People were too quiet for my liking, and I tried hard to get more of a response. This began to happen only well into the program. Then I notices some people began to leave. (Sometimes people leave simply to go to the bathroom.)  I  had difficulty finishing within the hour and was ‘on’  for about 70 minutes. Afterwards the Activities Director expressed her appreciation for my work; she had loved the program etc., but next time I should finish with 50  minutes. My oh my, that is very difficult, especially when people are so slow to respond. Never mind; they will learn to yield a little quicker, and I will (have to) keep it shorter. Really, I long for opportunities where I can go for 90 minutes or even 100. “Please come back soon!” was the response; here’s another regular home for me to visit! Great place; lovely people!

Savannah Court is the ONE place where I sing ONCE a month. How special. And I’m glad that I can honestly say that EVERY ONE of those hours (70 minutes) have been really special! The little crowd that comes out to hear me, are like a friend that I very much enjoy visiting.   THEY LOVE ME! They come out early when I visit, because they look forward to hearing me sing & tell. As a result of that they all sit there watching me set-up my PA system (which is fine really- I do it very quick now-a-days). I told my little audience more about Moses, the latter part of his life, and I sang 2 songs: ‘I will wait’ & ‘Have I not dreamed?’    

People LOVE my story telling, and the story of Moses is SO VERY RICH! They LOVED the first song; the second song is about Moses in his relationship with God, just before he finishes his life. I suppose this story material is very close to the bone for these dear elderly. They were more quiet, but I think they received it all just as much. After that I was on to the New Testament material, which is like stepping into a taxi: all of a sudden things move quickly and the ride is great: In His way of being/ Beatitudes/ Love Never Fails/ Touch Eternity/ Aaron’s Blessing. In fact I skipped ‘Love Never Fails’ since I had taken substantial time for Moses (I LOVE {the story of} Moses). I was on for 70 minutes; just got away with that length. Seconds after I finished there was an announcement via the intercom that lunch was NOW BEING SERVED. A great morning!

This is the first time I’m in Delaney Creek Lodge IN THE MORNING (I have been here twice before, in the afternoons). In some place most elderly sleep during the early afternoon, and doing a program at that time of day can be a bad idea! Today I have a terrific audience coming out and I manage to start EARLY. This helps with finishing not too late. The people LOVE my work; they are responding well and the spirit is moving beautifully. It’s almost like today is the first time  here. Afterwards, while taking my stuff out the building, the director of the place asks me what I’m being paid. I tell here I’m not getting paid today. She responds by asking me to write an invoice for $50. “Doing such a great job and then not getting paid, that’s not right…” she says. I gladly write the invoice and quietly say: “Thank you Lord; the worker is worthy of his pay!”, and here it is!

I’ve been to Whispering Oaks once before; the occasion went well; I remember quite a few people who are well ‘out of it’. In recent teaching (through our home group) I had received encouragement to take authority earlier & quicker (instead of too late when ‘all hell has broken loose’). I’m doing just that even on the way here, and while I’m preparing. I suggest we change the set-up of the room, and the Activities Director kindly agrees to it (she is very kind indeed). I find myself playing the sax and singing to individual people, and really inviting the Holy Spirit (praying while I sing/ play/ tell) to touch this person and that person…

The occasion turns into something very special. The Spirit begins to move beautifully over the whole audience, very much including the people who seem so far away. Members of staff appear and stay; quite a few of them. God is at work in a fresh & surprising way. People are getting touched. This one young man is lying in his wheelchair (it’s almost like a bed);  his eyes are bewildered; his arms & legs all over the place. While he is getting touched by the spirit he begins to calm down and gets a little focus in his eyes. After the presentation is finished I pray for him & over him, binding the spirit of infirmity and loosening the healing spirit of God over him. I still  have a long way to go here, but one day (soon) God is going to use me to bring complete healing & liberty to people like this young man. I hope & pray that this young man can have a gradual healing! Many people here received Jesus today, including some members of staff. Another VERY SPECIAL event. I wonder sometimes, where is this all going?! Something very special is happening through all these encounters. God’s Spirit is on the Move!