Worship Musician February 2020 | Page 26

since about 2007, we’ve been putting big of these hard issues are our only real way to to hurt someone or injure someone, but I think it global causes in front of students and seeing identify with the suffering of Jesus. What would means that we become better at serving other them give probably upwards of twenty million you say to encourage lay and staff church people and understanding other people and dollars in that span of time. So, I don’t know if musicians dealing with the inevitable tough grieving with people as we have been through it was their Mom and Dad’s credit card. I don’t stuff; the “rain” that falls on the just and unjust? the difficulties on our own lives. I know for me know if it was change from the sofa. Maybe in my early thirties my Dad became disabled, they are saving money and we didn’t know it. I [Louie] I would say that God is going to bring and it was a very difficult time for my family and don’t know exactly where it comes from, but I you through it, whatever it is and at any age in me and for my Dad. I was just barely married, do know that I want to make sure that I never our lives, whether it’s in our twenties, thirties, I think I had been married one year before my count this generation out. Part of not counting forties, or fifties. God is going to bring us Dad became disabled, and I had to figure out them out is calling them up, and every time through, that is His promise, “When you walk how to lead a family and reorganize life and we’ve called them up we’ve exceeded every through the Valley of the Shadow of Death watch my Dad go through a lot of pain and a goal that we’ve put in front of them. fear no evil, for I am with you.” So, it’s walking lot of suffering. through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, not [WM] Issues that require prayer when we are walking to the Valley of the Shadow of Death. I honestly think that was the best path I could go in our 20’s are many times less weighty than the My first encouragement is that God is going to down and to then sit with other families, as I’ve issues we face later on in life. It gets tougher. bring you through. My second encouragement had the privilege of doing, as they go through While not necessarily experiencing betrayal, would be, and I know it’s not that popular, but hardships, and difficulties, and pain and loss. severe depression, backstabbing, injustice, as a leader embrace it because I believe what Not to say, “Hey, I know what you’re going slander, pressure, fear, debilitating illness or the A.W. Tozer said. For a lot of people this doesn’t through”, because I haven’t been through the loss of loved ones, we eventually encounter fit into their theological grid, but Tozer said, exact situation that a lot of them have, but to these trials in our lives and workplace, whether “God can’t use a man greatly until He wounds at least understand what hardship is, and what in ministry or in the mainstream. Ironically, some him deeply.” I don’t think that means God wants pain is, and what loss is, and what death is. Photo Credit: Nolan Knight/Passion 2020 26 February 2020 Subscribe for Free...