The blessing today...

[Mike Vande]

My blessing today is encouragement. My magnum opus from yesterday apparently landed on appreciative ears. I’ve heard from several people who were blessed by it, some of whom think I should compile these blessing I’ve been writing about into a book. I started writing these things as way to keep my mind focused on positive things for at least a while each day. And now it has begun to bless more than just myself. And in doing so, the ones who have written back telling me they were blessed by what I wrote bless me even more.

As a young man, I wanted to be a musician. Well, more than musician, I wanted to be a rock & roll STAR, baby! The good life of expensive cars, beautiful women, big money, and cheering crowds was what I was born for. I could tell that because I hated cleaning up after myself, and that had to mean I was destined to employ a maid, right? I was never gonna be able to afford one on what I was making at these other jobs I was working till my ship came in, I can tell you that. So, the dishes piled up in the sink and my bed went unmade while I awaited the huge success at music which was my goal for a very long time.

When I became a Christian, I still thought I was gonna be a musician, but the goal changed somewhat. My dishes still piled up and my bed still went unmade, but now I was aiming for a different kind of success in music. I figured I would be a full-time contemporary Christian music minister, ala Keith Green, one of my heroes in the field. I had the talent (I thought), and I was writing songs that I hoped would get better lyrically as time went on. Ah, the delusions of youth!

I was in a band with two other guys and we sounded pretty good. We were weekend warriors, really. We played out a few times a month and had seen some fruit from the ministry. People were getting blessed and hearing from the Lord through us. One time, Pat the drummer prayed for a lady who had a “glory fit” right there on the spot. From the smile on his face, it was hard to tell who was more blessed, him or her!

There was a song that I sang back then. It wasn’t one of my compositions. It was by a guy named Kemper Crabb, and it was called “Doulos”. For those who don’t know, “doulos” is a Greek word that translates into English as “bondservant” although a more literal translation would be “love slave”. Ol’ Kemp had included a blurb on what it meant it on the album sleeve, and I had heard several preachers talk about what meant, so I always introduced the song with a rather protracted explanation of what the song was about. What was memorable about the song was the response it usually got. The Lord anointed it strongly, and instead of applause, it was often greeted with an almost stunned silence as the Lord’s Presence started ministering to people’s hearts.

We had the anointing, we had the talent, we had the consecration to ministry, we had everything I thought we needed to go into full-time ministry.

It never happened.

We played together for quite a while, more than 25 years, but never as more than weekend warriors. I got a degree and went on to teach. Steve eventually became the associate pastor of the church we all attended, and Pat and his wife Carla ended up moving to the west coast, to be closer to her family. We stay in touch, and once in a great while play together when Pat is back from Reno. But I miss those days, a lot sometimes.

My dream of being a full-time musician/minister has had to die several deaths. I went on to be part of a couple of other bands and several worship teams. For abut two years, I was the staff soundman at a fairly high-profile Christian coffee house here in Kansas City, running sound for both local and national bands. I have seen a lot of minister/musicians come and go, few of them lasting more than a few years. Sometimes, I think maybe we had it better than some of those guys. We played together for more than 25 years, and we still love each other.

I still play regularly; I’m the guitarist for my church worship team, and right now I play every Sunday morning and rehearse every Thursday evening. I don’t get to sing much, but our team has a lot of singers, and it’s easier to play more complicated stuff without singing, anyway.

It has bothered me for a while was the fact that I’m not a “spring chicken” anymore. It never fails to make me wince a little when I see guys who still have the rock star dream but have passed the age it could work at several years prior. Call it pride, but I don’t want to look like that. Sure, there are guys like BB King who are in their 70’s and still touring year-round. But those guys made it as kids, and have lasted long enough to be legends.

I know people who are still pro-musicians, making a living at it and doing well, and they don’t look silly at all. But I have to take various medications these days to avoid physical problems, and I’d really have to be a star to afford some of them. So, barring divine intervention (always a possible), I don’t think the pro route is in my future.

Having had music as my passion the largest part of my life, I wondered if I was good for much else. No other options seemed attractive or open to me. I had thought I was a pretty good teacher, but when I tried it a while back, attendance dropped precipitously after our first session.

I have been a sound man for several churches and frankly, cleaning toilets is a happier job. With toilets, very few people come into the stalls to tell you what you’re doing wrong, and that’s not true of running sound for a church. So, I was at odds to find a situation and opportunity to minister to people from my heart and experience that seemd palatable.

Because of the stress and pressure I have been dealing with at work, I felt like I should start writing things that are blessings to me, to remind me of the good things I have and help keep a positive outlook. When I started writing, all these illustrations and cases in point started coming to my mind, and it seemed right to include them. I started making them public because I hoped they would be a blessing to others as well.

And they have. And because of that, I have been encouraged in an area I hadn't thought of as a ministry. And I thank God for that.

I still I have to figure out a way to afford that maid, though...

[soulsearcher]

Mike, another great blessing, brother!

It is uncanny how often your path as a musician and quest to find your place has mirrored mine, which somewhat explains the connection I feel when I read your "blessings."