QUESTION: Greg, do you create these classic-rock hymns?
ANSWER: Yes. But not by myself.
EXPLANATION:
In my personal "JesusLand" (better known as "Greg's Jesus Life- Temple" ....which is essentially my little personal part of the Kingdom Of God that I am now building and manifesting on earth)...
In THAT "land", I am establishing a new culture with Jesus, a CULTure that has a curious/ peculiar, new (to me) language: a way of speaking about the things I am doing and others are doing (with Jesus).
In that land (JesusLAND) there is MORE Jesus---MORE truth: because Jesus is "the way, the TRUTH, and the light".
And thus, in my little part of Jesus' Kingdom there exists a growing awareness that I AM NOT ALONE in those endeavors that bring (into my life) more truth, light and understanding.
For example, I have found that if I prayerfully seek to know what the NEW, Jesus-centric (Jesus-enriched, Jesus-converted) lyrics are to a Led Zeppelin song, or a Guns-N-Roses song, that Jesus (through his holy spirit), will reveal said words to my mind and heart.
In fact, I am being (RE)trained by Jesus to believe that...
". . . If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy. . ." , that these things (each one of them) have the fingerprints of Lord God Jesus all over them (for those who have eyes 👀 to see).
Jesus has been (RE) training my eyes to see such wonders, lately.
He has been using classic rock (of all things!) to RE-discipline my eyes 👀 and ears--- that I might #HearHim, not just in classic-rock mashUPs, but in all of the many "early Zion" projects Jesus has me enrolled in, including Jesus TV and Jesus Radio.
This "Jesus-is-creating-stuff-with-me" belief is being self-reinforced daily as I engage in song-writing with Jesus.
To reinforce this belief, Jesus brought to my attention (i.e. he put it into my heart), something said by the writer of the hymn, 'What A Friend We Have In Jesus". The writer was Charles Scriven.
"On an occasion when Joseph became ill, a friend who was visiting with him discovered a poem near his bed and asked who had written it. Scriven said, "The Lord and I did it between us."
Bottom line. Jesus has put it into my heart to believe, and nurture the belief that Jesus himself creates with me the new classic rock-infused hymns (and likewise co-creates with me many other pieces of early Zion).
Thus the new songs that I share with the world is, for me, a claim, like Charles Scriven's, that, "The Lord did it between us."
The words of Charles Scriven, have become an important touch point for my practice of believing that Jesus is with me.
Jesus knew they would be.
Thank you Jesus.
And then, September 4, 2022, Jesus reiterated his presence in the creation of these songs, when he led me to this little movie:
(((https://youtu.be/oXDfvWiT2y8)))
These words and Jesus' (RE)training of my heart and mind have also let me see that the hand of God is with others around me (you?) who are bringing forth "WITH JESUS" things that are "virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy".
Hallelujah. Let's build Zion. In the open. Knowingly. Wittingly. Explicitly.
With Jesus.
Full on.
Without shame.
Quickly.
