concert

by

Same Experience Different Takeaway

It is no surprise that people can be engaged in the same experience but have different takeaways.

Even as I write this now, I prove this “same but different” concept to be true. It’s 3:30 am and I’m writing my blog while my wife is fast asleep. 

Just a few moments ago we were both in bed. We got into the same bed at the same time, and turned the lights out at the same time. 

All the conditions were the same, yet she is sleeping and I am not.

I spoke at a church in Spain two weeks ago. Everyone heard the same message, though some in Spanish. One woman, however, responded differently to the message than everyone else. She gave her life to Christ that day.

Back in 1974 I had waited outside of A&A’s record store on Yonge St in Toronto for tickets to an Elton John concert. My friends and I got 17th row on the floor, centre stage. 

Those tickets were pretty sweet.  

From the first note, all 20,000 of us in the Gardens that night were on our feet, jumping up and down and screaming out the lyrics of every tune Elton sang … I pretty much demolished the chair I was standing on.

Near the end of the concert, someone I knew was even closer to the stage. I’m not sure if he wormed his way up there or if his seat was just that close. 

At one point in the concert, Elton John came to the edge of the stage and touched the hands of delirious fans. This acquaintance on mine had a felt top hat in his hand. He held it out to Elton and he took it, sat down at the piano and played, “Bennie and the Jets”. 

Then Elton got up and, amongst all the extended arms, put the hat right back into the hand of my school mate.

We all experienced the same concert but that guy had a different takeaway than the rest of us. 

I just finished attending a conference in another part of the world. During one session each day, conference participants spoke about their experiences of sharing God’s love with others. 

The stories were the same in that each story was about making Jesus famous. The content of each story had the same bottom line of how Christ was changing people’s lives. 

But each story was so different.

Some of the stories involved people being healed. There were stories of kindness being the convincing factor. Some stories were about explaining or interpreting a dream. And some of the stories involved a consistent example. 

It was amazing how in one story it seemed like only an angel could have been involved in making Christ famous. 

It was so interesting because, though we heard story after story on the same theme, each story was so different.

It was the same message but each person had a different takeaway. 

Here’s the thing: The message of Christ is the same. It doesn’t change but people respond to different parts of it. Some people respond to love extended to them, some to a truth that finally clicks and makes sense. Some respond to the contrast of God’s desire for them versus the desire of another god. Some take longer to respond than others, and some respond through different means, like in dreams or visions. But to all who respond, the takeaway will be the same … salvation.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What experience have you had that needs a different takeaway? Leave your comments below.

by

Ripped Off Because I Missed It

Fifty years ago I got ripped off, but not this time. Tonight on TV was a show called “The Beatles: The Night That Changed America.”

heyjude

There was no way I was going to miss this one! On February 9, 1964 I was at church during the first time the Beatles were on the Ed Sullivan Show.

I tried to stay home. My younger brother faked some mysterious sickness so he wouldn’t have to attend the evening service and got to remain home with Gram.

But not me; I had to go. I remember John telling me how he saw a music group on TV; I don’t think he could remember their name. Then the next day at school everyone was talking about the Beatles.

Sure, I saw the Beatles other times they were on the Ed Sullivan Show, but I didn’t get to see them the first time they performed in North America. And now that there are only two of them left, I had to see them for what will probably be the last time Paul and Ringo do something on a stage together.

I once had a chance to see Paul McCartney at Maple Leaf Gardens in 1976 for the Wings Over America Tour. I still kick myself to this day that I didn’t go. I didn’t go because, well, Paul McCartney and Wings weren’t the Beatles and I didn’t have the $16 (I think) for the ticket.

Ya, I know. It was only $16 – what an idiot! That amount seemed like a lot of money to me at the time and I really had no means to pay anyone back, either.

Tonight’s Beatles show was vastly different from the ’64 show. For one thing, it was in colour. I’m not sure if the Ed Sullivan Show was broadcast in colour back then, but we only had a black and white TV so it wouldn’t have mattered.

This time there were all kinds of artists singing renditions of Beatle songs, while the real Beatles watched and applauded. It didn’t really matter to me who was singing because I was drowning them all out singing away to every song that was aired.

The program was about the same length as a hockey game. In this case, they put the two stars on the stage at the end of the game and they scored a couple of goals by singing a few of their hits individually and together.

The last song was, “Hey Jude”, the longest song on the radio in its time. It was the song that opened the way for hits to be longer than about two and a half minutes long.

I knew the song well. My brother got me the single for Christmas in 1968 … actually, before Christmas. He couldn’t wait till Christmas morning, so he told me, and we actually played it a couple of times before it was wrapped and put under the tree.

The TV show ended with everyone, musicians and the whole audience, singing along. I didn’t miss out on it this time . . . na, na, na, na-na-na-na!

Here’s the thing: There are many things that we will miss out on in life. For one or more reasons we will wish we had been there, tried this, seen that, or in some way experienced something we didn’t. Any of those things, while they might have been great, don’t come close to missing out on heaven. We can only get to experience it if we have a relationship with Christ. Don’t miss out on it by put off beginning that relationship.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you missed that you really wish you had experienced? Leave your comment below.

by

Some People Don’t Age Well

You’ve heard the line, “You know you’re getting old when…” There are all kinds of ways to finish that sentence: You know you’re getting old when you and your teeth sleep separately; or, you know you’re getting old when you’re the first guy to the public urinals and the last one to leave.

IMG_1301

Well, there is another way to tell you’re getting old, and that is go to a concert of a band from your youth. This week a friend of mine called me up and said he had two tickets to see Randy Bachman.

Now if you don’t have a clue who I’m talking about, you were born before the 1930’s, or after the 70’s and you’re not Canadian. Randy Bachman was a founding member of The Guess Who, and then went on to form another band called Bachman Turner Overdrive (BTO).

This concert was a little different, as it was at the Grand Theatre in Kingston, and not at an arena. It was a little more intimate and wasn’t about the performer playing song after song. Bachman was there to tell stories of his life in the music industry and how the songs were written.

The stories and music were amazing. When the band would start to play an old classic, I found that I kept picturing myself back in my teens. But then I looked around and saw all these old people around me.

I couldn’t get over how many old people liked “BTO”. When I say old, I don’t just mean a little grey hair – we’re talking wrinkled skin, unruly eyebrows and white hair. These people were ancient!

I felt like a kid amongst them. I was trying to figure out how much older most of the crowd was than me, and they had to average about 10 years plus.

I knew going in that the crowd wasn’t going to be young. I’d been to a Rolling Stones concert when I was about 40 and everyone there was my age or older. But that was nothing compared to this group. I saw canes, and there was a line up for the men’s washroom … when does that ever happen?!

During the intermission, I found myself staring at people trying to figure out what they might have looked like when they were in their teens or early twenties. I would look at them and squint to see if I could picture them appearing wrinkle-free.

It was about then that I realized I had been remembering myself back when I was in my teens and, in reality, I kind of fit in with these old folks. Of course, I was on the much younger side of the crowd . . . but it probably wasn’t that obvious, except to me.

I thought to myself, “What happened to these people?” Then I thought, “What happened to me?!”

. . . We’re getting old, that’s what’s happening! It was all a little disconcerting.  But the music made me feel like I was 18 again. Thanks Randy . . .  both of you.

Here’s the thing: Even though we get older and mature physically and spiritually, God still sees us as His children. We need to remember we have that kind of relationship with Him when we are with Him in prayer. Enjoy!

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What experience of the past causes you to reminisce about how your life with Christ has changed?  Leave your comment below.