The Famine of Encouragement *article for Christian Musician

After all these years of reading old testament stories of famines and pestilence, I only now get a small hint about what might have been going on in biblical Egypt. We don’t like to talk about the down side of anything in Christian Music in a post new testament America now. Except to point out what we’ve been delivered from. But sometimes that “Valley of the shadow of death” drags right along. All the while we’re circling the desert as believers thinking maybe the pillar of cloud by day is only an apparition. Or possibly the vapor left over from a career that’s gone up in smoke.

 To say there’s a down turn in the economy is an understatement, mumbled in low voice by some, because maybe, it’ll send a wave of panic through the stock market. Or in a smaller world, you’re afraid you might “confess” something and give it more power! Personally I think you can’t address a problem if you’re not talking about it.

I’m not gonna launch into some diatribe about what the President ought to being doing, or the government. And I’m not gonna start pointing fingers at the selfishness of corporate CEO’s. We are where we are. And I’m sure for more reasons than we can ‘appoint’.

 Bottom line is, most likely, your seeing a smaller bottom line this year. Or maybe you’ve stopped reaching a bottom line all together except that one at the unemployment office. But in the case of at least one “Self Employed” singer songwriter, honestly, I’ve never experienced anything like this. My mom says she survived the Great Depression. “I only have weekly ones so far, that I go through weakly” I told her.

 What I do know is that there are some great things about lean times. Number one, it sharpens your focus. It also has an incredible impact upon your motivations. Humility too becomes more necessary. I find myself looking for ways to get things done by offering more services! I’m now willing to do a concert AND pass out flyers at the door! I’ll even clean up the sanctuary when we’re done and lock up.

 You have to be aware that your promoter friends and outreach ministry personnel are experiencing a backlog of undone work. They’re probably doing the jobs of people they had to let go to stay afloat themselves. Sometimes what they need most is some outside encouragement even on the phone when they’re telling you “Maybe next year”. Don’t get too near sighted in all this. Pursue whatever you might contribute with encouragement and conviction.

 Here’s a chance to see God work a miracle. The one where your prayer life gets really sincere! In the last two years I’ve learned the first and last names of everyone I work with across the Globe. My conversations with “co laborers” are longer than they’ve ever been. I’m seeing a true relationship where you actually know what a ministry is doing and how much that is costing. You might even know who the volunteers are. In fact YOU may have to be one.

”A famine in the land” can also produce a famine of encouragement. The one thing that has to happen before changes come is to see the goal beyond the obstacles. Attitude may be the only thing to keep your circumstances from overwhelming you. The best way to maintain a good attitude is to apply encouragement to others even in your own dilemmas. Kind of like sharing the gospel with a tooth ache!  Here’s where you find out for real if your faith is real! Can you believe that God has your back? Can you believe that his process for all of us is exactly on schedule, that there are no coincidences? Easy sometimes to sing about Trusting God, but God forbid we should actually have to do it.

 In hardship we get to strengthen our song material before it’s written. “if I didn’t have a problem, I wouldn’t know that God could solve them” sings Andre Crouch. I personally don’t think that was his last problem he was singing about either. Success is mostly guided by a supply and demand mentality. Maybe we could apply that now to “encouragement” as a real product. It might be in shorter supply than quality musicianship at this point. An attitude of encouragement is like singing or writing music. You don’t need a budget to do that part!

 Here’s what else you can do with absolutely no money: make your prayers real. Look to encourage others before the contract is signed. Make relationships that are based on common ground. Find people you “resonate” with. Look for ways to be authentic! And lead by example. And trust others with your life! It’s not just God that will get you through. He uses relationships!  You can’t turn the sail boat if it’s dead in the water. And without God’s unseen power, like the wind, we will reach no destination worth arriving at.

 Purification is not a fun process. But the end result is more valuable. Gold and Silver is what we use to purchase what we really want. But it’s not the prize itself! You have the prize when you find your focus in pursuit of your passion. Christ will redeem your hardships! See that! Believe that. And watch it come true.