A Call To Anguish

I had to post this.  Watch it and share with others you may know that have become complacent in Christ and the Holy Spirit.  Jesus prayed with anguish before he went to the cross, we need also pray like this.  We need a REAL revival!

Pastor David Wilkerson was quite a man.  He was an incredible pastor with fantastic messages.  He worked with gang member in New York in the 70′s and founded “World Challenge” an organization whose sole purpose is to spread the gospel of Christ.  I think the most interesting thing was a vision that David had in 1973 (from Wikipedia) “Wilkerson claimed to have received a vision in 1973 regarding the future of the United States, subsequently published in a book called The Vision. Some of the subject areas of this reputed prophecy were: “Worldwide recession caused by economic confusion”; “Nature having labor pains”; “A flood of filth and a baptism of dirt in America”; “Rebellion in the home”; and “A persecution madness against truly Spirit filled Christians who love Jesus Christ”.”  I think we are pretty close to having all these prophesies come true, all but the last…..

Here I am Lord……

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The Hoax – Christian Punk’s Not Dead!

Every now and again there are still punk bands that are worth their salt, pushing the boundaries of punk music and making it their own.  I have heard a lot of so called punk bands in my time, most are rip-offs of other bands or sing about the same boring old social fare that has been sung about so many times before.  The Hoax is one of these bands that we should all be checking out, getting their music and going to shows to see them play.  I received their first album and was impressed they did a Minor Threat cover, their newest album however “Stumbling Through” is a punk masterpiece.  These guys are really branching out and even incorporating ska and rock-a-billy into their new tunes.  Their music is sure to keep you interested and engaged.  Anyway, read on about these guys, based on some shows they just played, I have a feeling they are turning some heads of some well know Christian punk and hardcore bands.

BAND: The Hoax
MUSIC STYLE: PUNK
LOCATION: Anaheim, CA
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Q: The Hoax has been together for a while now, how and when did the band get it’s start?

A: We got together in early 2005, I don’t remember exactly when I think it was spring time. We were just a couple of bored kids who had just got instruments, except for Daniel he’d been playing drums for a while. and were inspired by Officer Negative and Headnoise.  The hoax was originally a three piece, we added David in January this year.

Q: What is the significance of the name “The Hoax?”

A: We chose “The Hoax” originally just cause it sounded cool. When we started we planned on calling ourselves “50 Caliber” but after talking to friends and other people in bands we decided it didn’t sound like the name for a punk band. After we switched names we kept getting asked what does your name mean and at first we didn’t have an answer. But Daniel wrote Fake Reality, which was originally titled The Hoax Song and it basically says this world is a hoax, don’t trust in things of the world, put your trust in God.

Q: Who all is in the band and what does everyone do when they are not playing?

A: Tyler is our singer and he used to play bass also. He works at Ralph’s grocery store in the seafood department and is going to Cypress college. I am Johnny Hoax I play guitar and do some vocals. I work at Reliable Sheet Metal Works, I’m a fabricator. I’m also studying at Cal Poly Pomona. David Robledo is our new member, he plays bass for us. He used to be in an awesome ska band, Skamikaze! but they are on a break for a while so we stole him. Daniel aka Danimal plays drums. And he is finishing up an Accounting degree at Cal State Fullerton.

Q: Do any of the members in the band have side projects? What bands have members been involved with in the past?

A: David was in Skamikaze! That’s the most notable by far. Daniel and I had a grindcore side project with a friend of ours, Matt Dreer, but he moved back to Maryland so that died. Tyler was in a band called The Clerks, everyone in the band worked at grocery stores at the time but they never played any shows. Right now I am working on two side projects, one is a pop punk band and the other is a hardcore band.

Q: Saw that you guys recently had an 11th hour signing with our pals over at Thumper Punk Records. Can you tell us about the album you just released entitled “Stumbling Through?”

A: Oh the story behind this album, where to start. This album definitely tested us quite a bit. We’ve had this album ready for a while, we finished recording in August. We recorded at Live Wire Studio with Jason and Josiah from Spades and Blades/ The Havoc. The Hoax had originally signed to another label, but due to circumstances with their personnel we weren’t able to release with them. I had been talking with David from Thumper Punk and he offered to pick us up and release the album and we were stoked. We love Thumper Punk Records! TPR is an amazing label.

Q: I took a listen to the “Stumbling Through” and love the album, I really like how you guys are diversifying your sound, there is a little ska, rock-a-billy, and whole lot of punk, where do you guys draw your influences from?

A: We draw from everything we listen to. We like a lot of different music, obviously punk but we also are into hardcore, grind, thrash, ska. The bands we draw from most are probably The Crucified, Oi Polloi, Minor Threat, Toxic Narcotic, and The Deal. There are a lot of others but I would say musically these are the most influential.

Q: The Hoax played a pretty neat show recently including reunions of Officer Negative, The Deal, and also Headnoise, how did you guys manage to get on the bill and how was the show?

A: That show was amazing, we had so much fun being a part of it. We were able to get on the bill through Breakthru Entertainment, we’ve known them for quite a while. That show was unreal, I never thought I’d see the day Officer Negative got back together, let alone be able to play with them. Headnoise, The Deal, and The Havoc we’re awesome too. Headnoise is back! I’m really excited about that, when I heard about the shows I thought they were just doing a couple reunion shows but Robert announced at Chain that they were back for good.

Q: You guys planning to tour the US at all (or do a mini-tour?)

A: We are planning to do a small tour this summer, probably just a West Coast thing but in the future we really want to be able to do a full tour and make it out to play Cornerstone.

Q: What is the main purpose of The Hoax?

A: The main purpose of The Hoax is to be a light to the punk scene, we want to go play shows and be examples that you can be punk and Christian at the same time and that you don’t have to be drunk to have fun at a show.

Q: The Hoax is a Christian band, where do you guys draw your biggest inspiration from in the bible? What messages from the bible would you like to share with folks reading this interview?

A: Acts 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. We know everyone is sinner, we want to show other punks that you don’t have to stay in that sin. We aren’t the band that will stand up on stage and point people out and say change your ways, we just want to show people God’s love and tell them that Jesus loves them, not criticize them because they know what they are doing is wrong. If their hearts aren’t ready, I feel our criticism will just push them away. I prefer to lead by example and just show them love.

Q: Now for some fun stuff, give us a funny story about the band, some great story about a show etc.

A: The Officer Negative show. I ran up onstage and sang part of JCHC then did a stage dive, it was my first stage dive ever and it was pretty sweet that it was during JCHC.

Q: What music are you guys currently listening to? Who should we check out?

A: Everyone is listening to a lot of different stuff lately. Tyler is into a lot of grindcore and thrash. Daniel pretty much sticks to straight up punk. David is our ska guy. I’ve been listening to a lot of pop punk lately and I’ve been getting teased quite a bit for it but I’ve also been listening to a lot of ska, hardcore and metal too. I’ve really gotten into Big D & the Kids Table, they are a ska band they aren’t Christian but they are very good ska. Also Maylene and The Sons of Disaster, I really like their sound, it’s different from a lot of what is out right now. One band I was really looking forward to hearing their new album was Earth From Above but I think they have called it quits which is a bummer cause they were really good. I’m excited to hear False Idle’s new album, I can’t wait for that! I’ll only recommend one pop punk band, the guys will probably kill me for it anyway but check out Such Gold, they aren’t Christian but if you’re a fan of good pop punk you need to check them out.

Q: If you guys could be characters in any movie which movie would it be and which characters would you play?

A: Well I can’t speak for the other guys but I would choose pretty much any zombie movie, I am a huge fan of zombies. If I was in one I would definitely be the guy who doesn’t die. I’m prepared for the zombie apocalypse!

Q: What should we expect from the band in the future? More albums planned we hope?

A: I really would like to do a split album with another Christian punk band, that has been an interest of mine for quite a while. But we are going to continue writing music for as long as we can.

Q: Feel free to give shout-outs, share links, etc. Thanks for the interview and thanks for contributing to the HXCChristian.com compilation album!

A: I’d like to shout out to the local bands we are friends with Professor Panyck’s Schizophrenic Circus, Spades and Blades, Heart Like War, Higher Learning. And some not so local bands, The Way, The Kings Kids, and False Idle! Also check out Caustic Fallout Radio and all the other TPR bands. Keep the circle pit alive!

Building a Hardcore “Dynasty”

Every couple of years a band bursts onto the scene that has the momentum of a snowball rolling down a hill.  Dynasty is a band like that.  These dudes have been playing for a number of years but were recently signed to StrikeFirst Records propelling them into a whole new arena.  So these guys are putting some solid NYC hardcore style music out with a slight twist of hip hop.  Funny thing is these guys are from LA!  So read the great interview below that John did with the guys from Dynasty and make sure to check them out on their upcoming tour with Call To Preserve and Dead Icons and at Cornerstone Festival this year (hint – they will be the hardcore band doing covers of Beastie Boys songs).

BAND: Dynasty
MUSIC STYLE: Straight Up Hardcore
HOMETOWN: Los Angeles

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Q: So can you tell me a little about the history of Dynasty? I see from press materials that you’ve been together for 6 years. How did you all come together? Were any of you in other bands? Are any of you in other bands at the moment? I’m guessing here but it looks like there may be some brothers/relatives in the band?

A: Well we started practicing and writing in 2004 but actually started gigging in 2005. My brother Marcel (guitar) was in the band in the early years but was actually the one who quit the band because of the drugs and alcohol issues going down in the band. He actually said “I won’t play until everyone gets saved.” (Haha). At the time I was super pissed off that he would say that and we had no relationship at all for awhile. God straight up restored that bond between us. Years later, down the line when I actually decided to follow Jesus, it made sense to me.

Ivan & Mike are new to band. We’ve had dudes play for us from Like It or Not (Lion) and Jerez which was an awesome local band. Ivan (guitarist) was in a band called Take Vengeance which he sang for. His vocals are all over the record! Marcel also sings for another band Loud N Rowdy, which is my favorite band as of now. They’ll be playing our record release shows.

Q: The first thing that stood out to me was that musically, Dynasty sounds a lot like you should be from NYC or at least the East Coast , which to me is very cool thing as I grew up listening to a lot of those bands. So how do 5 guys from LA end up in a hardcore band sounding like you could be from NYC? How is the scene in LA and how have they responded? Not to be stereotypical, but is there some expectation that you’ll sound like downset or Suicidal (Tendencies)? I mention Suicidal as I see some similarities in some merch designs.

A: Well we pretty much were influenced by NY and NY style bands such as Madball, Leeway, & No Warning. It seemed like Cro-Mags, Outburst etc. were our favorite bands and we wanted to sound exactly like them. (Haha) The LA scene is rad but we’ve been under the radar for a while. Little by little as the record drops we’ll be active a lot more. We love Suicidal! And their merch designs are too dope. We’re ’80s kids and we love all the style that came from that time. I’ve always wanted to do a remake of the Suicidal music video “Possessed to Skate” but with a Dynasty twist to it.

Q: How did you end up on Strike First? And how do you see your fit with the rest of their band roster?

A: Well I really prayed about it and I sent a package to 1 label and sent an email to Strike First. I prayed for the will of God and here we are now. Too rad! I definitely think we stick out from the roster. Both Messengers and us are the only ones actually doing hardcore. I love how we’re set apart. I love how we can be on a label that has bands like A Plea for Purging, For Today and bands like us. It shows the diversity of the label.

Q: What do you see as the mission of Dynasty? In the endless debate, would you side with the statement of “Dynasty is a Christian band” or with “Dynasty is Christians in a band” or do you feel it’s even relevant?

A: I feel like it’s relevant but you’ll know us by our fruits. We really just want to proclaim salvation, righteousness & love!

Q: Tell me about the new CD (coming out May 24th, Truer Living with a Youthful Vengeance). Is there a lyrical theme? What are the thoughts behind the title? Was there anything special about the recording? Any special guests? How does this release compare to your older material that I’ve only seen cryptic messages about? From what I read, there was some older stuff posted, but no longer?

A: Truer Living with a Youthful Vengeance stems from the hip hop side of us. I could say it’s influenced by Gangstarr and the Wu! I wish we could’ve gotten some guest vocals on the album but we had a short time to complete it all. The next album is definitely something that everyone should look forward too. (Word is Born) Our old songs have disappeared; I wish I can get them back. Those songs are real funny.

Q: How does the songwriting process work in Dynasty? Lyrics first, music first? Anyone take the lead in the process?

A: We practice only once a week and within a few weeks before the studio I’ll write the lyrics. Some call it lazy but I work a little better under pressure. (Haha) Usually everyone gets a say in what they want in a song. And sometime that takes a while. (Haha)

Q: So, looking at the pre-order, some lucky winner will be getting some sweet – looking Nikes. How did that all come about?

A: A few of us in the band are sneaker heads. We custom made them thinking what would we wear. Hopefully some people dig em.

Q: I see mention of a tour with Call to Preserve, so how are those plans shaping up? Any dates yet or parts of the country you’ll be hitting? Will you be hitting any festivals other than Cornerstone this summer? Have any members been to Cornerstone before? Has Dynasty done any touring before?

A: Yeah Boy! The final Call To Preserve tour is gonna be ILL!! We’re pumped about it. And we do have all the tour dates up now. I wish we could get on a few more festivals but at this point everything is booked up. Maybe next year we could get on more. So all you promoters out there, holla at your boys! Oh man, not one member of this band has been to Cornerstone yet (haha). Dynasty did a mini tour a few years back with HOODS.

Q: There seem to be a lot of guest appearances lately on albums. If you could pick a band to either do a guest appearance on a cd or have someone be a guest on your cd, who would it be? Who would be your ultimate band to tour with? Would others in the band think the same way?

A: It would be a blessing to have Scot Vogel, Martin from Terror/Lion. Jasta, Jon Joseph (Cro Mags), Joey C (Righteous Jams), DFJ (Mental, Mind Eraser), Justice (Tui), Morgado (The Wrongside) Thom Green, Freddy Cricien and plenty more. I’d love to go back in the ’70s and tour with Electric Light Orchestra. I’d cry. Currently I would love to tour with Trapped Under Ice, Messengers, Loud ‘n’ Rowdy, For Today, Terror, Converge, Sleeping Giant, Madball, Obituary, Bitter End, there are too many to list LOL

Q: What is the most embarrassing music people would find on your iPod/MP3 player or in your music collection? Anyone else in the band you’d like to call out for their weird music?

A: Haha, great question! I listen to a lot of stuff like Doris Day, Connie Francis & Nancy Sinatra. Maybe most embarrassing might be Ace of Base. Haha Ruben our bassist is a freak with his music.

You can support Dynasty on their upcoming tour with Call To Preserve (which happens to be their final tour) and Dead Icons.  Tour dates below.  Also, Dynasty is having a CD release part at The Stronghold in Chino, CA on May 21st for $5.  Support your local hardcore bands (or else).

6/15 Fayetteville GA @ 11th Hour Venue ** NO DEAD ICONS
6/16 Columbia SC @ Unit One Art Space
6/17 Whitesburg KY @ Letcher County Tourism
6/18 Cookeville TN @ Westside Station
…6/19 Southhaven MS @ Cafe 549
6/20 Little Rock AR @ Downtown Music Hall
6/21 Tyler TX @ The Attic
6/22 Houston TX @ Cain’s Ashes
6/23 McAllen TX @ VFW Hall
6/24 San Antonio TX @ The White Rabbit
6/25 Fort Worth TX @ TBA
6/26 Tulsa OK @ The Reverb w/ Onward To Olympus
6/27 Springfield MO @ Salad Days w/ Onward To Olympus
6/28 Springfield IL @ Black Sheep Cafe
(Break in here for Cornerstone Festival – Bushnell IL)
7/05 Evansville IN @ The Rev ** NO DEAD ICONS
7/06 Chattanooga @ The Warehouse ** NO DEAD ICONS

HXCChristian.com Comp Album!

ORDER IT NOW! VISIT THUMPER PUNK RECORDS

For those of you who have not heard, HXCChristian.com will have a comp album due out around March 16th.  Special thanks to our pals at Thumper Punk Records who helped with all the heavy lifting on the comp.  “We at HXCChristian.com are really excited for this comp album to be released,” says Josh of HXCChristian.com, “not only did a ton of great bands step forward to contribute to the album, but the proceeds will help HXCChristian.com to continue to have a great presence at music festivals such as Cornerstone.”  While HXCChristian.com keeps it overhead low by a pure DIY ethic, we really like to do it up at Cornerstone.  Last year, we had an official generator tent where we were able to have bands do “meet-and-greets” with all the folks who attend Cornerstone.  Leroy – lead singer for War of Ages, Andy – lead singer of A Plea For Purging, and the guys from Debtor, all came out to answer questions about the band, life on the road, and how God has used them to reach out to people at shows.  We also had a pancake breakfast with Call to Preserve, and a free spaghetti dinner where we must have fed 200 people.  We look forward to doing it bigger and better at Cornerstone this year.  So, by purchasing a download of this comp, or buying the disc will help support our efforts.

Enough about us…..Who is on the comp?  Well, we had 25 bands volunteer to put a song on the comp.  It is just short of a full disc of music.  There are two sides of the comp, hardcore vs. punk.  Here is the track listing:

Side A (Hardcore Side)
1.   Welcome to Hardcore Christian Radio
2.   “Familyhood,” In Shepherds Arms, Armor of God
3.   “Nineteen Eleven,” Braveheart, Speak to These Bones, 1981 Records
4.   “Pale Rose,” Messengers, Anthems, Facedown Records
5.   “Keep On Smiling,” Gorilla Warfare, Keep On Smiling
6.   “Big Question,” Carrying The Fire, Demo (2011)
7.   “Lazy Sunday,” Those Who Fear, S.O.T.S. Demo (2009)
8.   “The Seed,” Killing Years, Demo (2010)
9.   “Control Freaks Who’ve Lost Control,” Divinity Theory
10.  “Bare Heights,” Debtor
11.  “Voids,” Strengthen What Remains, Humanity, On The Attack Records
12.  “Season of the Starved Wolf,” A Hill To Die Upon, Infinite Titanic Immortal, Bombworks Records

Side B (Punk, Oi! and Ska Side)
13.  Welcome to Hardcore Christian Radio
14.  “Old Rugged Cross,” False Idle, Hymns of Punk Rock Praise, Thumper Punk Records
15.  “Revolution,” True Liberty, City of the One, Wounded Records
16.  “Walking Dead,” The WAY, The Fight Is Ours, Thumper Punk Records
17.   “Lost Cause,” The Kings Kids, Thumper Punk Records
18.  “Take Me Away,” The Rekoning, The Road Less Traveled, Facedown Records
19.  “They Hate You” (originally performed by FBS), Grave Robber, Exhumed, Rottweiler Records
20.  “Standoff,” FBS, Live Grenade
21.  “Mad At The Girls,” Lust Control, This is a Condom Nation, Captive Thought Publishing
22.  “You Forgot Something,” Unshackled, Overcoming Years, Thumper Punk Records and Caustic Fallout
23.  “Another Day Gone,” The Hoax, Stumbling Through, Thumper Punk Records and Caustic Fallout
24.  “Boxcutter,” Skamikaze!
25.  “10,000 Ladders,” Send Out Scuds, High Score
26.  “I Wanna Let You Out of the Box,” Destroy Nate Allen, Until My Ankle’s Better
27.  “Hope, UniSEF,” Can These Bones Live?

AND….for the big reveal, we have been teasing folks with what the album cover would be.  I am big fan of the punk DIY style and lifting an existing design or album cover.  SO…we were huge fans of the Christian Aerobics album that was released many years ago.  And we thought, what a better way to honor such an interesting piece of Christian art/Americana than to update it to “Hardcore Aerobics?”  After all, anyone who has ever been in a pit knows that it is a real work out!  Folks that buy the physical album will also get some cool info on the insert including an exclusive on the how and why the site was started.

How much? Digital downloads will be available and will be priced at $5, physical copies of the CDs will be $10 plus shipping ($2.50).  Also, we should be able to take orders on this site or from Thumper Punk Records.  So check back often before the 16th for more details.

Thanks for your support, thanks to the great folks at Thumper Punk Records, Caustic Fallout, Seth from False Idle, and all the fantastic bands that have contributed to the album!  See you at Cornerstone 2011 and God bless!

John’s Challenge To You!

Ok, so in my first blog/note/advice column, I challenged you readers to get in the Word every day.  Notice I didn’t really give you any tools or specific ideas?  Don’t you just hate when that happens?  So now I’m fixing that! Unfortunately, it’s often easier not to get in the Word, so with that in mind, I’m going to list some easy things you can do to get started.

  1. Check out the Daily Meditation at Forward Movement.  Forward Movement is an organization whose goal is to reinvigorate the Episcopal Church (which is not terribly relevant here).  Regardless of the church association, there is a brief meditation and at the bottom are the scriptures for the day and a link to a site where you can get those specific verses in an online Bible.  Just a couple clicks, and you have a daily Bible reading plan.  Doesn’t get much easier than this.  Readings include an Old Testament, New Testament, Psalm, and Gospel.  They change daily and are on a set schedule based on the church calendar.  Following this schedule, you’ll cover most of the Bible in 2-4 years.
  2. If you’re on facebook (and who isn’t at this point?), “like” Christian Quotation of the Day.  It starts with a short Bible verse/passage and then a related quote from a famous Christian author/theologian (CS Lewis, Martin Luther etc.).  Highly recommended.  It now has links often to the online book the quote came from even.  If that’s too much work, you can subscribe to get the quotes by email. Go to: www.cqod.com I’m partial to the email as I often forward them to friends.  You’ll be amazed at how often they fit a situation that someone you know is in or one of your own to the point that you want to share.
  3. Another email newsletter with daily devotionals and scripture is at the Truth for Life site.  Again, these seem to directly speak to me at times and sometimes to people I know, so I forward them.

Obviously, this is not an exhaustive list and somewhat biased as it’s ones I like and use.  Make yourself a routine.  Find someone you can share what you read with, that’ll help keep you on track.  Even people  with @hxcchristian emails would be interested.  I bet some of your daily activities involve checking email and facebook, so why not start with the scripture-related parts of those?  I’ll skip the formalities and procedure, “I triple dog dare you”…

Soundtrack for Life

John Jackson has joined the staff of HXCChrisitan.com as a contributor.  If you want to learn more about John, check out his profile on the HXCChristian.com About Us page.  Comment on his post folks!!

Soundtrack: “Grounded” from Chase the Sun – OC Supertones

So, many of you likely have seen the ad on the HXCChristian.com site looking for unpaid workers.  Music, specifically HXC, punk, and (gasp) metal, has been a large part of my life and God has literally used it to reach me and, more often than not, slap me across the face to get me back on the narrow path.  I’d written some things for a buddy’s metal newsletter and thought it was about time I gave something back to the other scene so influential in my life.  Calling up Josh and chatting about it and making a commitment to write something was the easy part.

Then the hard part I knew was coming arrived – what was I even going to write about?  I had some rather grandiose, overly complicated dissertations I was thinking about, but put those in the “just in case” file and set about praying for direction.  I even asked one of my colleagues at work to pray for me as well, and that email exchange is below:

Me: I need some prayers for inspiration and then clarity.  A burning bush would be nice as well, since I tend to get easily confused/distracted…  Then again, I might miss the burning bush so some stone tablets, perhaps?

Coworker Ryan: Lol. Let’s just believe that God will cause you to have a “trance like” experience much like he did for Peter on the roof of Simon the tanner. Then there will be no distractions at all.  I am looking forward to reading your blogs. I am sure they will be insightful and helpful.

Me: Now I’m hungry…

At the time, I just thought that whole exchange was somewhat comical as in Acts 10 Peter goes up to pray, is hungry and then enters a trance like state where he has a vision that involves food.  Of course, there’s a deeper meaning to the vision as well which we learn later in the chapter.  As I thought about what I was going to write, this email exchange suddenly seemed more important than some random banter.

My point to all of this is how critical it is for us as Christians to read and know the Bible.  We need to know it well enough to be able to work it into everyday conversation.  What better to come from our mouths than the word of God?  I know that it is much better than what often comes out of my mouth.

Being able to quote scripture, chapter and verse, is really cool, but that takes a while and in all honesty, some people’s brains really aren’t wired for this (trust me, I’m a scientist).  So, here’s my suggestion -  Get in the Word every day!  Find a reading plan and set aside some time every day.  There are a ton of reading plans out there.  Being an Anglican (stop snickering), we have a daily reading schedule where we have an Old Testament reading, a Psalm, a New Testament reading, and a Gospel passage.  There are even websites that list these and have links directly to the scriptures.  So even if you are Bible-less, in this day and age there is no excuse.

Most of all, don’t be embarrassed if you’re not reading everyday.  It’s a discipline you have to work at initially, and I guarantee the evil one will throw all sorts of things at you to keep you from the Word.  I’ve been there and still have to fight some days to get it done.  Today, while thinking about what to write, I stumbled on the name Matt Morginsky in Facebook, which reminded me of how an OC Supertones song really spoke to me and pushed me into regular Scripture reading.

“War rages on through generations.
All of these Christians abandoned their stations.
A whole world around us, that we’ve ceased to reach.
An army of soldiers, we’ve neglected to teach…
How will you stand if you don’t understand,
Fight like a man Scriptures in hand”

From “Grounded” – OC Supertones.

The word of God is powerful and we need to have it in our arsenal.  The more often you read it, the more available it will be in your everyday life.  Soon enough, it will start coming out in everyday conversation with believers and non-believers.