Pray 1

One reason I gave all my reading to God, as I spoke about it in the last blog, is because I knew I was not going to do that in other areas.  This means the reason I read only Christian books and the Bible is because I knew I was never going to do that with my music.  I realized a long time ago that I was never going to be like my mom or my uncle Rich, who only listened to Christian music.  Yet, from my roots there is a band I love a lot--Toby, Kevin, and Michael, otherwise known as DC talk.  DC talk was the first concert I attended.  They have broken up now, and have formed three separate bands.  The most successful is Toby Mac.  His band has created some of the top Christian hits.  Occasionally I hear one of his songs, which is just like pop music, and I fall in love with it immediately.  I was in the midst of having one of my Christian music moments while I was listening to Pandora, and I heard one of Toby's new songs, "Steal my Show."  Let me develop this song for you.

            Toby gets off the plane and heads out to put on his "Show" or concert.  He realizes, as he is about to be on stage, that the people came there for "the beat to drop."  He goes on to explain that what they really need is Jesus.  So this is where the line comes in: If you want to steal my show, I'll sit back and watch you go, if you got something to say, go on and take it away.  The concept of this artist stepping back from all his fans and letting Jesus be center stage is a powerful image of prayer.  But the image gets even stronger at the end of the song when he sings: No matter who we are, no matter what we do every day, we can choose to say, if you want to steal my show, I'll sit back and watch you go, if you got something to say, go on and take it away...go on take it away, my life, my plans, my heart, my dreams, my fears, my family, my career, take it away.  What a powerful portrayal of our prayer life with God.

            We all have a show.  We all have something we own.  We all have lives that we expect belong to us, and prayer is that time when we communicate with God, and listen for what He has to say in our lives.  It is also the moment that we give it to Jesus, to have Him take it away; a reminder that we need His leadership.  As I listened to this song I thought through all of the times I have had to say to God (and sometimes with resistance) Steal my show and take it away.

            Martin Luther stood in the crux of time when the show that the Church was putting on was wrong.  The prevailing spiritual leaders were truly unwilling to let Jesus take back the show.  They had their way of doing things, and were not just resistant, but unwilling to hear the true essence of the Word of God.  Jesus came to save.  He came to rescue us from the mistakes we have made.  It may be hard to hand over our lives, but this is where prayer is important.  It is our connection with God.   And while I love the prayers I have memorized since childhood, there is nothing better than just talking to Jesus, knowing He came to steal my show and rescue me.  He came so that I could Pray 1, and now that has become a privilege.  If praying out loud makes you uncomfortable, I would encourage you to practice it.  But right before you try it, say:  Jesus, steal this show, and then Pray 1, boldly trusting in His Word through you.  Pray 1!