why is this stuff important? i don’t think this is about arisefest and my blog – not anymore, that was just a catalyst to a lot of in depth thinking about a crucial topic which i feel is hugely lacking in the church…
[was i right in wot i wrote about arisefest? i’m not sure, perhaps not – the one principle that was intentional though was mentioning names of some of the bands i was super amped with (so that those who were not there could still hear some praise of some of the individuals and groups who got it right – there were many more) and not mentioning names of bands/individuals who i thort maybe got it wrong (so that those who were not there didn’t get a gossip feed on something that didn’t concern them) – however, for those who were at the fest it was obvious as to two of the individuals i was referring to and that is consistent with my thorts on the public behaviour vibe (i do think it would have been a lot more fair on the mc guy to speak more in depth with him as opposed to the quick rebuke i gave to him in person – i have been trying to track him down to do so, but as of yet no-one has given me his name) and dealing with it…]
the principle i do want to look at is accountability – most people really don’t dig confrontation (maybe all people, altho i have met some do who seem to rather like it) in any shape or form and so just don’t do it at all – and so when our friends are caught up in sin (which is always going to be destructive – to them and probably those around them, at some time or other) we look the other way, because dealing with it will be awkward.
and it will. but it is necessary. and if the friends and family of people started taking more responsibility and ownership in the area of accountability/Truth-in-Love speaking/correction then it would not be left to third parties to feel the need/pressure to take it on themselves. and if it comes from friends/family then it is way more likely to be received well and effective because there is relationship there already…
proverbs 27.6 “wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.” – that is an incredible verse and an amazing principle – if someone who is a good friend to me calls me on something/challenges in love/gently rebukes then it will still be a wound (no-one likes to know or hear they are wrong ever, it is the pride in us) BUT if it is from a friend then i know it can be trusted because i know they love me and want my good – an enemy on the other hand will look the other way and allow me to continue with behaviour or habits that will ultimately hurt me much more deeply or else even applaud me in the wrongdoing – they may think they are being my friend because they are not making me feel bad now, but ultimately their actions prove them to be an enemy because as the sin/habit increases so it will later take me down…
the Love of the “does anyone condemn you, no? well neither do I?” must be balanced by the Truth of the “go and sin no more”
if we can get this right, we will transform the church… and then the world…
Inspiring thorts! I like the bit about pauls blog to the gelathians:)
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It sickens me when I see band members on stage trying to show off. They take their shirts off and try to seduce all the women in the audience. If I am with my girlfriend, then it becomes quite insulting. I do not wish to give such people the attention they seek and do not like their music. It is even worse when they pretend to be Christian bands. It makes me very angry to watch this type of behaviour. I am so glad I did not attend this festival. I also wonder how people can spend thousands on plane tickets to get there, and then more money on entry fee. It shows that those in the Church are all about the money and fame.
If you are looking for a true person of God, then you should have to seek him/her out for quite some time. Those who present themselves so freely on stage and in the public eye are mostly attention seekers who seek only glory for themselves.
Prov 27:5 Better is open rebuke Than love that is hidden.
It is not always (or rather never) easy to be the friend that corrects! Even from a friend people don’t take correction very well! We have started accountability groups for our youth and young adults, ’cause like most things, it is something you need to teach people! Eventually they will see the protection and the safety in having someone check your back!
@ Morne – I loved Arise Fest! We traveled for almost 12 hours and it cost each one of our 22 person group no less than R1000 to come along and eat and play.. And it was worth it!! There may have been one or two things out of place, but there was LOADS perfectly in-line with the life of abundance Jesus promised us! We danced, laughed, played hours of Settlers – just had a blast! And 99% of the music was only bringing glory to our Creator! Worshiping into the New Year with thousands of people – wow – what an experience!! Doing an alter call @ 12 instead of popping bottles and calling friends, but doing things God’s way! It was fantastic!
I would suggest you next time come, even if only to be able to criticize/compliment from actual experience instead of assumption/gossip..
@ Brett – good series, I am happy to be reading you again after years of no Truth Mag 🙂
absolutely agreed, maryna, on your comment to morne. It was a fantastic time, life-transforming for many, and wow – those 2 hours after midnight were incredible! Highly recommended. And yes, far better to talk from a place of experience rather than assumption. Gives greater weight to your opinions too.
arr settlers of catan, if only we’d known – we could definitely have bonded over that – do you play normal settlers or do you have or have played Cities and Knights – best expansion by a long way (so far) and responsible for hours of fun and bonding… look out for a game we play a lot now called Carcossane which is very different but slightly the same (the board is different every game like settlers altho the game is actually creating the board as you lay down a tile at a time) but very fun and cool cos it’s a lot shorter than settlers (our game record for that is 7.5 hours believe it or not) but normally 2 to 4 hours whereas a good came of Carc is just over an hour so nice for when you don’t have a lot of time… and there are many expansion packs so like a bunch of different games in one…
Guess by now you’ve seen my Catan comment!! We will catch up next year with a game or 6!! You should look out for Dominion!!totally different, in that there is no board, but rather cards, but well worth the play!
We have seriously stayed up all night more than once to just play one more game…. Work is usually not so good after those nights!
Also been playing some Ticket to Ride these days! Not as exciting as Settles, but still fun! We usually have loads of people over for games, then have a table for each game – Settlers, Dominion, Ticket & Dutch Blitz or other card games… We love bonding over a game!!
Amazing ministry tool also!! Getting to know people is a great start for discipleship
Axis and allison could be about 4-6 hours or more depending on your strategy and winning rules.
Crickey, thats a lot of cash, R22 000 for one night for a small group of people. You could have bought groceries for a month at R200 each for over 100 poor families. This is what grates me about Christians, always living it up and thinking they’re better than anyone else. They’re not, just more wealthy and with lots of time on their hands.
hi wayne,
your perfectly right. R22 000 is alot of cash. and i guess there were guys with more and possibly guys with less than a grand. and for the guys that had less the rest helped and made sure they had enough. and yes, your right it could have bought plenty of food for poor families.. i think the fact that each of them brought or bought a tin of canned food and gave it in as a donation towards the needy at the festival (as that was one of the fest’s themes, being and making a differance) should at least to a degree bring you some comfort. i’m sure you do plenty of charity work and i have to say most of these kids serve in their comunity in several ways. they plant veg gardens for underprevilaged families, they help us paint pre-schools for a missionary couple. we go on outreaches into the rural areas and do differant things, play soccer, feeding schemes, sometimes just hang out and visit with a school of orphans. oh, and some of our boys visit the Letaba hospital for physical and mentally disables. making judgement on what types of kids these are to spend money on going to a christian festival instead of buying food for poor families (although i do commend you that you would have rather done that) is rather short sighted. they are amaizing kids that put way more back into their communities than life has given them. they find sponcors for kids to go on our camps, they love people and they love to serve.
we have been walking a road with 90% of the kids on that bus and hope to connect more to the 10% that we don’t know that well.
thank you for reminding us of the importance of the needy, but as Jesus once said – we’ll always have the poor and the needy with us, sitting at His feet is choosing the better path.
i would love to tell you more about the people in the bus.. they truly are what Jesus promised the world in His followers.. people that love people..
of everyone on that bus i’d have to say shawn and myself probably have the most to learn from them..
regards
m
Hi Brits,
i’m sorry if i created the impression that all of these kids were wealthy and had a grand lying around to do this. most of them are from middel class or even poor black families. some of them looked for sponcers to join the 5 day event. we traveled as a group for 2 (one there, one back) days and spent 2 days at the music fest and then went through to Durban for one day. several of these kids had never seen the ocean. it was a thrill for us to watch them and for them to experiance this. My husband and i are youth workers and have spent several years building relationships with most of these kids. we were so blessed to be able to take them to the music fest.
and playing cards while the band were playing is what makes this fest such a special environment. to each his own, hey, but for us, being able to hang out chatting, playing games and being able to have super, excellent music in the background was worth every cent!!
oh, and we had a few guys in our group (including my husband) and they all enjoyed the music.)
lastly… maybe you should check out The Arrows – record deals, traveled the world, all girl band…
Where do you get all the time? I am always busy with work and it take up most of my week and sometimes even Saturday. I only took a week of holiday over December and then it was back to work. I would never find the time for such a festival. It is also so far away and I would have to spend thousands on such a thing – air tickets as well as food and camping out there. Where does all the money from this concert go? To the bands? Organizers. Why don’t they post a full accounting of how much money came in, and where exactly it went. If they cant do that for all to see then its obviously just like any other commercial venture, but with the facade of it being a Christian event. So lets see some accountability – i.e. accounting. It would be refreshing seeing it on paper for a change. I don’t want to hear, “all of it was donated”.. I want to see figures. As I say, its just like a commercial festival – no different really. “Can we see the accounting…”
hi,
we are also crazy busy!! you know; life… we have 2 businesses, i run a family counciling centre, we have 4 children and do ministry under youth and adults. these 5 days was our dec break and it was a fantastic break! except for me who had to do plenty of driving!! would much rather have been in the back of the bus making jokes, falling asleep and having a blast!
I hope the orginizers and bands made money off Arise Fest!! just because they said it would be a christian festival, (meaning – christian bands, no drugs or booze, thus a safe environment for teens and adults) it doesn’t mean they have to do it for free!! by all means, why on earth should they give an account of what the money was spent on.. i don’t think anyone is gonna ask U2 what they used the money, that they will generate on their SA tour, for. the word ‘christian’ must not be confused with wimp, walkover or charrity.. Jesus called us to be disciples, not floormats. if they called themselves a non-profit org, then you could ask for financials, but what is the big issue with someone doing business, and actually maybe making some money, just because he/she is christian!! do you have any idea the amount of time away from family, the headaches, the planning, the work that goes into it.. it would be sad if they did not make some money.
i’m sure some type of donation was made to something (and i don’t care, ’cause it is so none of my business) but i truly hope they made some profit.
well done guys!
m
They should not make money out of being Christian in any way. If you tell young christians that you are a christian band and then take their money it is dishonest. There are too many folk who make money from “being a christian”. If they were not christian, they wouldn’t even get to play at a regular rock concert – they wouldn’t be able to compete with more talented bands. It seems the trend for bands who cant make it mainstream to re-label themselves christian then play for thousands of impressionable young people who’ll soon get bored with this scene, have their curfews lifted and move onto more exciting concerts.
About 90 percent of the attendees are probably from Middle/Upper white class homes. Those in the area would probably attend. Those with curfews or strict parents would probably attend. As soon as they have more freedom, they’ll be going to Oppikoppi and other festivals.
My beef is this: Don’t use the word Christian to promote a festival for commercial gain. Its completely counter to what Christianity stands for. But this all common these days.
Its always all about the money with Christians. Show me a free concert and I’ll be impressed..
clive, i was there and it was a cost-covering not money-making venture so be careful about speaking about stuff which you actually have no clue about – “about 90 percent of the attendes are probably” – that is a ridiculous statement cos you have absolutely nothing to base it on – you weren’t there, you don’t know, you are completely guessing and therefore a lot of your argument falls to the ground before it begins – it was a christian festival in the sense that christian bands played (like the Arrows who have just been on an international tour and John Ellis who played for Tree63 who won a Dove award for rock album of the year and a bunch of other bands that play in clubs all around cape town) and so they definitely could cut it at other festivals (and a lot of them do – Versus the Wolf for example) – and even if all it provided was a safe environment for families and friends to enjoy new years in then that really is not such a bad thing… the theme of the festival was ‘be the change’ and when midnight hit, instead of counting backwards from ten or being involved in drunken debauchery the thousand or so festival goers were being challenged on going home and being the change in their families, in their schools and work places and in their communities…
So you say it was cost covering and not money-making. That is impossible as all the fixed costs, electricity, venue hire, security, bands, generators and advertising were already accounted for. Depending on how many attended, they would have either made a loss or a profit. If they just covered costs then one less person, and they would have made a loss, one more and they would have made a profit. So you see the logic? There were plenty of folk there, so they must have made a pretty big profit. So that is basically my irritation with this type of thing. Have a concert, make as much profit as you like, but don’t use “Christian” to pump it up and advertise it. Jesus is not a poster-boy for profit.