Hmmm, am i missing something here ?

So a thread was started at "another" Christian music board and it was called "Rate the signature above yours" -

I thought it was a clever idea and wanted to see what people thought of mine.

Boy did someone MIS-INTERPRET what mine was trying to say !!!!! WOW !

As you know, I have this quote:
"God has made the sun to rise today - He delights in His artistic children who sing not just about the Creator behind the sun, but also all the things that the sun's LIGHT reveals." (Leslie Phillips quoting T-Bone Burnett who quoted someone else...)

I got a very LOW "rating" and this was the response:

"I dont believe we should worship anything other than the Creator"

..... I was like, W H A T ?!?!?!?!

So this is MY response:

"I figured mine was a little controversial anyways - but I wanted to clear up a misunderstanding.
It was interpreted thus: "I dont believe we should worship anything other than the Creator"
I agree ! But the quote by far does NOT mean to worship anything else besides our Creator, the point behind the quote is: God should be sung about, but there's no reason why His children cannot sing about other subjects than just the Creator. Other subjects and things in life are considered His creation. If a musician sings about Christ, it is a great thing, but the quote says God also delights in His children who sing about other subjects besides the Creator - a loving relationship, difficulties in life, a song about the person's daughter, etc...
So, I hope this cleared things up on that quote - and if that's how people are interpreting it, I'll take it down, cuz that's totally far from what was intended by Leslie Phillips, T-Bone Burnett and myself."

CHM-ers: Your turn.... what's your take on my quote. Is it so vague that people could get out of it that I condone worshiping the creation instead of the Creator ?
Be honest. Is it difficult to understand ?

I'm about due to change my signature anyways, but I wanted your opinions first. You can also tell me your thoughts on the "Fight Before Surrender" quote too.
That one IS my personal opinion that basically means "Christian" is NOT a genre of music. I realize everyone has their own opinion  on that term and I respect each person's view.

Don't hold back  

I don't see anything wrong with the quote in question from the CMR.  I have learned over the years that if you want to be misunderstood and come under fire for it, keep posting there.

The quote just seems to say that God is honored when we make art that honors Him.  He is also pleased when we write & sing about things that He would call good like true love, your cat, that first car you had even if it was a Rolls Kent-Hardly (rolls down one hill--kent hardly get up the next one), etc.  There are many things in this world that are good that we humans make sinful.  Sex is wonderful--within the bounds of marriage.  Drugs are awesome--if taken as prescribed to help with a real medical condition.  I could go on and on.  God is honored when we honor Him with our art and is pleased when we see the things that He made as good.  In so doing, we draw attention back to Him.  It would be hard for a Christian to see something as truly good without thinking of He who made these things.

As to the second quote, you will never lose the "Christian" tag.  If Jesus is the focus of your songs, you may as well get ready for that label.  A pair of Levi's will always have their label on it.  Unless you become an artist that walks a line between secular music and sacred (Christ-focused) like Skillet, Switchfoot, Red, etc., you will always have that tag no matter what style of music you make.  The same goes for Christian fiction writers or Christian movie makers.  If you are making art that you really want to give a strong message about who Jesus is, then that is the tag you will wear.  It will also limit your sales as pretty much only Christians are going to buy it.  If you had a lot of Muslim bands preaching Allah, then you would get the same tag for Muslim music.  It just happens, and there isn't anything that you can do to shake that stigma.  Even if the church strays away from that tag, the world will apply it to you regardless.

I don't have a problem with the Leslie Phillips quote, in fact the T-Bone version is one of my favorites.  I do have a problem with you thinking that it is ok for a band that is all about sex to call themselves a Christian band.

I give it a 5.  It has a nice beat but I can't dance to it

I like your sig G/F. In Song of Solomon we see writing of a something God created to be celebrated in joy. Or the Psalms, they do the same thing.

Messiah, not sure if you're kidding on the second signature but I don't see it as your seeing. It's saying they are a punk band and christians comparing them to a different band that is all about sex yet they are only called a punk band.

alldatndensum wrote:

I don't see anything wrong with the quote in question from the CMR.  I have learned over the years that if you want to be misunderstood and come under fire for it, keep posting there.

I think that is the crux of it right there (and I didn't see anything wrong with your sig).
I wouldn't say that a large number of posters at the CMR are idiots, but several people there seem to take things out of context or just seem to completely misunderstand some things.

Guilty/Forgiven wrote:

So a thread was started at "another" Christian music board

'nuff said.  There's a reason I rarely post anymore at the "other" Christian board that I am assuming you are referring to.

G/F, you'll also notice my signature.  I have it because of the "other" board.  While I was still a moderator there, I came under fire a lot if I pruned a thread, deleted content, whatever, even if I had full backing of the rest of the staff.  There's more to it, but that is essentially the reason for my signature now.  I don't plan on changing it.  Or, maybe I do.  I'll decide later, or now, or not at all.  LOL

Right on everyone.
Sometimes I'm not very good at wording out my thoughts, and I confuse people. Happens occasionally with me. So I just wanted to get all of ya'all's opinion on the matter - and ya'alls got my quotes pretty clearly except one person.. As Redeemed said, I really hope you're kidding about that sex one.

My thought tonight was "seriously, here I thought they were somewhat profound, but if people are completely missing what's actually being said in the signature bar, then I'll just take them down."

Then I got to thinking, the person at the "other" thread who completely missed the boat was just a 13 year old child. That made more sense to me.  Of course a child is going to miss a profound thought.

I'm rather shocked that anyone could get anything other than what the quotes simply say. As if I, a Christian, am going to toss a signature quote that condones worshiping the creation rather than the Creator (as my quote was interpreted as saying) or that the Fight Before Surrender quote condones Christianity mixed with sex ?? Goodness, are these quotes really THAT difficult to understand ?  My career is working in pharmacy - when people ask, should I refer to myself as a "Christian Pharmacy Technician" ? - I'm a pharmacy technician who happens to be a Christian.
Why am I even explaining this ?
Quotes are gone.
I'm also pulling out of the "other" place as I just don't "get" them over there. Half are Christian, half want to argue about things, some hate Christian music - yet they're posting on a "CHRISTIAN" board.... really ??
I get it now Chris... took me a while, but I get it.
I'm just gonna stick around here for however long you guys will have me   

oy vey

Guilty/Forgiven wrote:

I'm also pulling out of the "other" place as I just don't "get" them over there. Half are Christian, half want to argue about things, some hate Christian music - yet they're posting on a "CHRISTIAN" board.... really ??
I get it now Chris... took me a while, but I get it.
I'm just gonna stick around here for however long you guys will have me   

oy vey

Yeah, I don't post much at the CMR anymore either. The atmosphere just doesn't feel right anymore. The Theology Realm, though, can be cool sometimes. Sometimes.

Quote :

Sometimes I'm not very good at wording out my thoughts,

I have the same, it's not always simple to express how I have to say things in English.

I'm so very glad we have CHM.
It's a home for us, a place we can vent things when we need to do that.
A place where people pray for us when we need prayers.
Most of us post here for years and years and it feels comfortable here.
Here we can encourage those who need it.
Thanks for CHM.

The vast majority of people that posted regularly over there just 5 years ago almost never post now (including the owner and most of the admins). The feel of the place has definitely changed in the last few years. But eventhough I have been a member there since 2005, I rarely post.

You people* are great over here. Always have been.

Though we're all fallen and screwed up humans (who KNOW we are saved by His Grace), YOU people show genuine love and a true heart desire to KNOW Christ more on an intimate level. For almost 10 years now, I've felt like I'm in the midst of a non-judgmental family who genuinely cares about me (and many have offered me help and support -even giving me their cell phone #... and if I wasn't so stubborn, I may have taken some of you up on your offers    )

Also there is much talk over here about CHRISTIAN music.  I like this !
Unlike the blurred lines of threads that post "a Great New Band !!!" only to find out
1) The album is all screamo/emo/angry noise
2) They're blatantly non Christian

I've said over there on more than one occasion: "oh, silly me, I assumed this was a band with Christians in it or lyrically Christian. Ya'know, since it was posted under the title of 'CHRISTIAN' "












* I say "people" now instead of "you guys" cuz I've learned that people from different cultures than mine interpret the term "guys" as referring to men only, while here in the states we've changed that term to mean "everyone" in a group-male or female.  

Guilty/Forgiven wrote:

I'm also pulling out of the "other" place as I just don't "get" them over there.

Got me to thinking just how long it had been since I had logged in there. Sometime before they were hacked since my bookmark takes me to niceboard with Anonymous image. I'm guessing I no longer have an account then. Could someone look? It would be topshot (with possibly rhit appended). I think I may have been the first from here to ditch it since the signal to noise ratio was just too much.

I started to feel like an outsider over there trying to defend what I thought was basic christianity. And it often felt like a public school setting the way some things were talked about and defended so I opted out.
Besides, it was bringing my jerk side out dealing with a certain poster who shall go unnamed.

I haven't felt very welcome over there myself, and I feel like the threads gravitate between two themes: secular music and theology. Well, I'm not there to discuss secular music OR theology, so now I pretty much just lurk around, watching for posts about bands I care about or posts by people I respect, like Gipperman (Michael Sweet).

topshot rhit wrote:

Got me to thinking just how long it had been since I had logged in there. Sometime before they were hacked since my bookmark takes me to niceboard with Anonymous image. I'm guessing I no longer have an account then. Could someone look? It would be topshot (with possibly rhit appended). I think I may have been the first from here to ditch it since the signal to noise ratio was just too much.

Nope, not topshot member there at all (with or without the rhit)

I like reading the bible. I like Christian metal (and other Christian music). I like to fellowship with other believers over there. 

I do NOT care to discuss what John Calvin said about the bible, nor Martin Luther, nor John Wesley, or anyone else. I'm all for iron sharpening iron, but I can't stand it when people back up their claims with something a theologian said instead of from God's Word. 

It's like one user said in a thread a few weeks back (paraphrased):
I just listed all these miracles and healing that were answered through prayer and you people ignore it so you can keep on arguing about whose theological view is right?

And so, I am ending it there. I am being frank about how I feel, but I don't want to keep going, lest I begin relentless gossip.

Redeemed Fool wrote:

I started to feel like an outsider over there trying to defend what I thought was basic christianity. And it often felt like a public school setting the way some things were talked about and defended so I opted out.
Besides, it was bringing my jerk side out dealing with a certain poster who shall go unnamed.

I think I may guess at the identity of the certain poster… wouldn't surprise me if his initials were DBF.

Oh yehhh, that DBF guy, man he was too much ! A HATER of everything. Why, he even hated his own screen name - SUCH a hard guy to get along with... dang !




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I've got a great example of IGNORANCE and something that brings me right back to people's askew interpretations of things: 

I searched the internet to find "bands that sound the same as Stryper"

I got hits, so I snagged the first one and it took me to THIS page, where the "point" was completely missed ! On this "Last.FM" page, they list a bunch of bands they consider "SIMILAR" to Stryper - even with ratings like "Super Similarity" or "Very High Similarity"

What's the problem ? THEY'RE USING THE BASIS THAT "CHRISTIAN" IS A GENRE ! So to them, HB and Theocracy are SIMILAR to Stryper !!!!!  Howabout Tourniquet and Bride ? Oh they're REAL similar aren't they ???

Egads. When did "Christian" become a genre ?

That's horrible but I find that in a lot of music anymore. I was recommended Nightwish because I liked Metal Church. Huh?

So I did a similar search for "bands that sound the same as Poison"

Well, now we're making more sense: Cinderella, Crue, Ratt, LA Guns, Faster Pussycat, Tuff, etc.

To be consistent with my previous search, shouldn't I have got some Metallica, Pantera, or Ministry ??

haha - total silliness.

Guilty/Forgiven wrote:

What's the problem ? THEY'RE USING THE BASIS THAT "CHRISTIAN" IS A GENRE ! So to them, HB and Theocracy are SIMILAR to Stryper !!!!!  Howabout Tourniquet and Bride ? Oh they're REAL similar aren't they ???

Egads. When did "Christian" become a genre ?

Maybe people think it's a genre because "Christian" is put before metal when referring to it. Like, people will say "Christian metal." People also say thrash metal, death metal, doom metal, stuff like that. I guess it can be a little confusing. I'm not entirely against saying "Christian metal" because it's a lot easier to say that than "metal that has Christian lyrics" every time. Christian is describing the lyrics, but people mistake for a genre.

I think I've repeated myself in there somewheres. I'm sorry if I have.

^ that sounds plausible.