Baroni Bloggin’

I woke up at home in Franklin, TN very early yesterday morning with the old Toto song playing loudly in my mind: “I bless the rains down in Africa.”

Then Rita and I drove to the airport where we kissed goodbye and I got on a flight to New York’s Kennedy Airport, then on to Dakkar, Senegal to refuel; and finally to Abuja, the capitol of Nigeria.

Comfortably ensconced at the Hilton here, I look out at the Nigerian cityscape. I see modern homes and apartment buildings, some vacant dusty lots, an ornate golden mosque, new roads, cell phone towers and a haze that brings a promise of rain later in the day. The view is a microcosm of the successes and struggles of this nation.

I think about the helpful, diligent and strong “protocol” men that whisked me through the airport and into the 3 car caravan including a uniformed man with a machine gun in the front car. (It sounds more dramatic than it actually was.) I reflect on the terrible violence in the nearby city of Jos- where just 5 days ago hundreds were killed. I think of the potential in this country of the many committed followers of Jesus, the visionary pastors and business leaders, the musicians and artists that I will be blessed to work and worship with over the next few days- not only in Abuja but also in the sprawling city of Lagos.

Pray for Nigeria- this land of beautiful, hospitable, strong and hardy people who have endured much hardship and have so much to offer Africa and the world. These believers take the Word and Spirit, the promises of God seriously! They have blessing in their mouths and hearts. Almost nowhere else in the world would you be able to find, regularly, a gathering of one million believers in an all night worship, prayer and praise gathering at a campground outside of Lagos. Pray for the young people who are looking for the reality of the Kingdom of God. Pray for their elders- for wisdom to know how to guide and encourage those entrusted with the rapidly approaching future of this great nation.

The theme for House on the Rock’s JAM (Jesus and me) Mega Festival is: “Nigeria; Celebrating Jubilee.” I hear the sound of an abundance of the rain of God’s Spirit, the reign of God through King Jesus and His people in Nigeria!

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In the darkness, in the cold and the silence, beneath the frozen ground of December; a promise waits.

As I walked my typical neighborhood route recently I noticed a barren tree. As I drew closer I saw that what had looked like bare limbs actually had tiny buds, almost imperceptible yet pregnant with the promise of new blossoms to burst forth at the right time… in the springtime.

Jesus said, “Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet believe.” Paul the apostle wrote about seeing the unseen, by faith looking beyond the circumstances and trusting in the God Who holds the seasons in His Hand.

One of my favorite songs, “Faithful God,” puts it this way:

Even when it’s hard to believe,
Even when our hope seems all gone
There has never been a night without a dawn!

And there has never been a winter without a spring. Our Father is the God of new life, of promises kept. He is a faithful God!

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What if God was bigger and better than we thought he was?
What if His plans for you and me involved us going for the dreams in our hearts?
What if God was an extravagantly generous Father?
What if we were no longer slaves or servants, but sons of God through Jesus Christ?
What if God wanted us to take more initiative in our lives- not foolishly or presumptuously, but not fearfully either?
What if we could see other people and ourselves the way that God sees?
What if God’s people really lived as a new creation in Christ?
What if some of the things that I have believed about God were wrong, and He showed me by His Spirit and through the Scriptures more clearly Who He is?
What if, just for today, I walked in the joy of the Lord?!

Godrest and Godspeed!
David Baroni

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I originally called this article: “Needless Arguments Over a Multifaceted God.” That sounded too fancy-shmancy, hence the current title.

Many of you are familiar with the story of how 5 blind men were placed into close proximity with an elephant and asked to describe the elephant.
One man grabbed the elephant’s tail and said, “An elephant is like a rope”.
Another man ran his hands along the elephant’s side and said, “No, it is like a wall!” Yet another blind man felt the huge leg of the animal and described the elephant as being like a palm tree. You get the idea. All five men were accurate, yet very limited in their understanding of what an elephant is like by their perspective.

That’s how we get into arguments about God. We all have limited perceptions of Who God is. The Apostle Paul said that “we look through a glass darkly.”

There are some people who have wonderfully discovered Jesus as their Savior. This is the main aspect of God that they emphasize. Obviously this is a very important attribute of the Lord, but He is more than a Savior. Others see God as Father. Indeed, He is; however He also nurtures like a mother. Still others are in love with Jesus as their heavenly bridegroom. Scholars and others emphasize God as the Master Teacher. Scientists may zoom in on the “Creator” aspect of God.

The fact is, all of the above are right and yet only seeing just a part (however important) of Who God really is. In my own life I have gone through phases of relating differently at different times to this multifaceted God. In one season I have leaned on (and still do) the Fatherly aspect of God. In another season I became intoxicated with the thought of Jesus as the Lover of my soul, my Heavenly Bridegroom and I wrote songs of intimacy (as some derisively say- the “Jesus is my Boyfriend” kind of songs.) From one who has been on a quest for real intimacy that was severely thwarted by abuse in my childhood, this facet of God is very important to me. But that, by far, is not all that God is.

He is the Creator, the Sustain-er of that creation. He is Redeemer, He is Teacher, He is Healer, He is the Mighty Warrior. (For awhile we in the church focused almost exclusively on that aspect of God.)

We could save ourselves a lot of time and energy if we could learn that, like the blind men with the elephant, God is bigger than we individually could describe. Let others focus on the trunk or the tail or the side or the leg for awhile, and trust that God will help them get to know Him in other ways. Hope that they also will be patient with you, because, like it or not- believe it or not, your view of God is limited too! Let’s all extend grace to each other and honor each person’s process of getting to know the Lord.

After all, I will eventually get around to an aspect of God that you are also discovering and we can rejoice that God is so vast that it will take eternity to get to know Him!

Check out this excerpt from a recent message “The Great Unveiling”

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Just watched an inspiring interview with Garrison Keillor and Robert Altman about the movie “A Prarie Home Companion.” (on Youtube)

In the interview with Peter Travers of “Rolling Stone”, Keillor commented on Robert Altman’s directing style. Altman’s approach is to get out of the way and let the actors bring what they have to the scene.

This started me thinking about the best music producers and authors and songwriters that I know. By far my favorite style of producer (and the way I try to produce as well) is the one who gives a skeletal outline, a flexible “wineskin”, then empowers the musician to let the music flow; to rely on Inspiration and the interplay between the musicians. To let go of creative control requires humility and trust in the creative process that causes one to rise above the paralyzing self consciousness and fear that so easily thwarts the free flow of creativity.

One of my favorite authors, Dean Koontz, imagines the characters in his novels, then lets them take on a life of their own. He merely writes from the flow of the moment. It is unselfconscious, and to me, the vulnerability and trust in the inspiration is what gives the novel it’s power and “out-of -the-blue” sense of creativity, freshness and imagination.

In a recent newsletter Koontz writes:

“When you accept your talent not as something to take pride in but as something for which to be grateful, you set the ego aside ad you are freed from the desire to impress, and you enter into play. When that happens, the consequent spontaneity enriches the work, and you experience moments that are spiritually exhilarating, an awareness of God within and without.”

I like my friend and Pastor, Steve Fry’s recent take on authority. My rough paraphrase: “Authority is not so much about power and control and submission to leadership, it is “author-ity”- creating, originating.”

The best songs that I have written were (with only a few exceptions) songs that seemed to have a life of their own. I merely yielded to the creative impulses that were bubbling in the Spirit-realm, and in my own heart.

Jesus is the Author… We are created in the image of the Creator! There is an authenticity and vitality that comes when we trust the Creator to create through us. Let it flow!

Godrest and Godspeed
David Baroni

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David and Rita have been in full-time ministry for 25 years.

David has ministered in 49 states and 20 countries. Rita has been able to join David on many of those trips and contribute in her unique and powerful way.

We are very grateful to the Lord for Him allowing us to be in full time ministry. We appreciate your prayers and support financially. The ministry is dependent on the love offerings and sales at our live events, some songwriter royalties, and the generosity of the people who believe in us. Many times God has provided for us with unexpected donations through offerings through the website or checks in the mail.

Recently, the Holy Spirit has impressed us to offer many of the items on the website free of charge, in particular the teaching mp3s.

We at davidbaroni.com know that God is always faithful to provide for all of our needs whether they are financial, spiritual, or physical. Thank you for the part you have in our ministry.

Thank you for your prayers and love! If you feel led by the Holy Spirit to make a donation to our ministry you can do so by clicking on the donation button on the home page at www.davidbaroni.com to donate securely by Pay Pal, or mail a check to:

Kingdomsongs Inc.
209 Cambridge Place
Franklin TN 37067

You can also help by purchasing the ministry resources that are available on the website.
Thank you and God bless you!

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I was having coffee at Starbuck’s with a friend and fellow musician today when the conversation turned to one of his favorite jazz recordings: Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea doing a lot of improvisation- free flowing spontaneity within a very loosely sketched, skeletal arrangement.

I told him that spontaneous flowing musically and spiritually is a metaphor to me of how our relationship with God should be. We flow with what we hear from the Lord, willing to lay down our preconceptions of how life is supposed to play out. In involves receiving the gift of faith and the grace to trust that God is faithful and really is working… “all things out for the good of those who love Him, who are the called according to His purposes.” I call it the “victory of vulnerability”, when we step out of the boat on a Word from God.

Jesus said “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” As Paul the Apostle wrote “Now the just shall live by faith.”

It takes a degree of trust to launch out with other musicians into the unknown waters of spontaneous composition. Our tendency, especially as Greek-mindset influenced westerners who rely on empiricism- that is, on what we perceive by our natural senses- is to lean too heavily on the sheet music. It seems safer that way, we like structure.

But does our structure make room for God? He dwells not in temples (structures) made with human hands. He came in the unlikely womb of a young virgin… to the natural minded a woman of reproach. A King? Yes, but born in a stall surrounded by smelly animals and lower class shepherds. The Word was made flesh… the Eternal/Invisible clothed, indeed bound Himself with Time and the Physical so that we who were blind could finally, by faith, see the Father.

The church is a wineskin for the Kingdom of God, not an inflexible piece of pottery that crumbles under the intoxicating pressure of the
flowing wine of God’s grace and Presence. I am not advocating that we have no structure, no wineskin, only that the new wine of the Kingdom of God is poured into the accommodating wineskin that the church is meant to be.

“He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.” And as the Message translation of Psalms 40:3 goes on to say:

He taught me how to sing the latest God-song,
a praise-song to our God.
More and more people are seeing this:
they enter the mystery,
abandoning themselves to God.

Godrest and Godspeed
David Baroni

P.S. My book “The Jazz Preacher” has more on this topic. You can order your copy at www.davidbaroni.com

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To introduce our new affiliation with Itunes, we are announcing this promotional event!

The first 25 people to log into Itunes from our site (you can click the icon below or go to the home page at www.davidbaroni.com) and order at least $9.99 from Itunes will receive 3 free MP3s of your choice from the list below.
You can order anything, it doesn’t have to be David Baroni music. Of course, if it is, that would be great too!
Then email us at david@davidbaroni.com and tell us your order total and what 3 free MP3s you would like. It’s that simple!

The one who places the largest Itunes order will receive the following CDs free!
“FingerPaintings: Dream” David’s new instrumental
“Real Life”
“Captured By Your Presence”

After you place your order, choose 3 MP3’s from the following songs:

Ain’t Gonna Let No Rock
Faithful God
Bow Down
A New Anointing
O Draw Me Lord
He’s Been Good
Within the Heart of God
I Rest In You
Hear My Cry
Daddy Daughter Dance (FingerPaintings)
Serenity (FingerPaintings)
Blessed Be The Lord God Almighty
You Are
Sweet Songs

Event ends April 16th so order now!

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““If you could see you how I see you says the Lord, it would free you to be you. Then you would know me for I will show you Who I Am and who you are.”

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Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. Hebrews 4:11 (KJV)

A preacher friend of mine said years ago: “Where you find a paradox, you find God.” Some famous paradoxes are in the words of Jesus- “when you lose your life for My sake then you will find it,” and “unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone, but if it dies it bears much fruit.”

Jesus was asked by the people “what shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?”

He replied (and I can just see some of them getting their quills ready to write it down in numbered list form) “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” What a letdown for the listmaking human “do-ers!”

Imagine yourself in a canoe floating down a stream that is flowing in the direction you want to go.
All you have to do is sit in the canoe for awhile, admiring the scenery, waving at the fellow boaters, delighting in the sight of a fish leaping gleefully in front of you. You smell the sweetness from the fragrant trees on the shore. Perhaps you are enjoying a cool drink and a bite to eat. The current and the boat cooperate marvelously to facilitate this journey. You are resting, yet still making good progress toward your destination.

How foolish it would be to suddenly grab a paddle and begin to over-exert yourself with stroking, thinking that it takes your effort to complete the journey.

Welcome to the world of the Believer who is (unwittingly) serving God in his (her) own strength.

As author Major Ian Thomas says in his wonderful book, The Saving Life of Christ: “Serving God in our own strength is like someone giving us a fine automobile, and we receive the gift thankfully, then proceed to get behind it and push it where we want to go!. We are sincere, we are going in the right direction, and we are… exhausted!” Why? Because the automobile was never designed to operate properly by being pushed!

And we were not created to live the “Christian life” in our own strength. As the Apostle Paul said: “I live, nevertheless not I, but Christ Who lives in me!”

Many times we grasp in prayer, asking for what we have already received. Sometimes we respond in a knee-jerk way to a need, instead of following the example of Jesus Who only did what He saw the Father doing. Even Christ did not minister out of His own strength!

Often I find myself striving, living in my own power. What is the answer? To put the paddle down, reach for a drink of Living Water and by faith appropriate- “put on” the Life of Christ. He is our Life! He is our Strength. Christ in us is the hope of glory!
Godrest and Godspeed!
David Baroni

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