My Manifesto On The Pursuit Of Music

I feel like Jerry Maguire as he was writing that letter to all of his co-workers on how they should treat their clients. It was a manifesto of sorts on how they should treat their clients. The clients were individuals and that they needed to be loved and taken care of on a personal level. The basic principle behind the letter to his own company was "less clients, more personal care". The next day after everyone got the letter he was applauded and fired all at the same time. Well I have no idea if this letter will be received the same way or if it will be nearly as powerful as his was, but I feel I needed to write it. If I had to pick a basic principle behind my note I'd say its "less about me, more about God". Seems like a simple statement, especially on a personal application level... but take that and apply it to all areas of the Christian music industry and you will get some pissed off people. I promise. I might get a few that applaud, but I think I may get a few more that want to fire me, and to that I say... oh well. So be it.

Let me pause here and say that I am in no way trying to judge anyone else's hearts. This is solely something that's been placed on my own heart in regards to how I am going to pursue music in the future, or I guess I should say on how I am NOT going to pursue music in the future.

So I've been going at it for about 4 years now. Pursuing music in the hopes that I would "make it" or get some place. I often use terms like "get my name out there", "get some exposure". I probably wouldn't have ever come out and said I was trying to "make it", but I know my heart and I know what my real desire is/was for my life. In my heart of hearts I have been shown and convicted that anything I've had to do with music over the last few years has been a pursuit of getting my name out there and made known. I might have said that I wanted to make God known and really try to affect people for Him and push them towards Him, but if I am being completely honest... my deepest darkest hope was that I would get a career out of this somehow. That somehow my name, Rick Hopkins, would be the name people would hear and be drawn to. That my message would be powerful and convicting, and that people would want to hear me, and that I'd be able to move into doing music as a full time "ministry" and career. No where in this pursuit has there been a real full fledged pursuit of getting God's name out there and making Him known.

Also, in this pursuit of mine, I've seen parts of the Christian music industry that I just don't want to see again. I don't want any part of it really. I know there are some good artists out there doing some great stuff who have honest and pure hearts. But I don't want to have to go down some of the paths I was told I'd have to go down. One such thing that has torn at me was trying to get my music on the radio. I am in no way putting down the guys I talked to about getting songs on the radio, so please don't hear that. I realize they have a job and a ton of music to weed through in their selection process. However, I felt like I was begging them to play my music. I walked away from my meeting with them just feeling dirty. I felt like a loser. I was also given names of people that could help me get into the industry somewhat, but I was also told I'd have to wine and dine and spend lots of money to get them to listen to me... well I'm sorry but that's just not going to happen. I will not be humiliating myself and spending a load of cash in a vain pursuit of my own desires. I'd rather leave things in God's hands from now on. When my song "Lift Up Your Eyes" got on the radio and had lots of air play I had absolutely nothing to do with that. It just happened. That's really how it should be in the first place. Any time I have tried to get myself somewhere, I have gone nowhere. So in the immortal words of Carrie Underwood... "Jesus Take The Wheel"...

Another side of this is my family. I have 3 kids, and due for a 4th in little less than a month. That's a lot of responsibility, and I don't just mean the work of keeping them under control at Wendy's when we go out to dinner. I am the spiritual leader of this family. For my wife and my kids, they are all looking to me to lead them well. My children need a godly example of strong male leadership from a loving father. My wife needs a godly husband who will love her and cherish her. How does all this mesh with my selfish pursuit of myself and my own gain? Not well. My heart is heavy lately with what it means to be a good father and husband. I want my kids to grow up with a dad who they use as a role model on what it means to follow God. I want my wife to be drawn to me because of my pursuit of God. My pursuit of self, and my desire to be this type of man to my family conflict.

So here is a list of things that I am committing too, which seems fitting with the beginning of a new year. In regards to how I approach music...

1. I will never charge for music again. If you want my music you can have it. I will have some way for everyone to download it for free if they want it. If you come to a show, like the one I played tonight at a church in Grand Rapids, and I have copies of my cd, you can take a copy of my cd for free. Again this is just my own conviction and in no way reflects anyone else's hearts... but I feel like if I have a message of a loving God that I want people to hear, then why would I charge them to hear it...? A side effect of this is that I may not ever make hard copies of cds again because I won't have money to get them produced. But whoever can download will be able to get all my music for free, and if you can't download, let me know, we'll work something out.
   
2. I will not charge to play shows... this with a condition... that you help me cover expenses of traveling and food and what not. If you feel compelled to pay me for the show, I will not turn down your money. I do have a family that I need to support and take care of. This could possibly make me a little more selective in shows, but most of my shows are local to west Michigan anyway and require very little travel.
   
3. I will not ever enter a battle of the bands, or any sort of songwriting contest ever again. This is a just a personal thing for me and what I know it to do within my own heart. When I win I get prideful and arrogant about how much better I am than the other bands. I wouldn't say that out loud, but I know it to be true in my heart. When I lose I get prideful and arrogant and resentful of the judges because they obviously must have made a mistake, or the contest was rigged or something. How could I have not won? Shouldn't I be the winner of all contest in relation to music mastery?
   
4. I am going to pursue God with all my heart and my life. I've said for many years that I am a believer in God, but only recently have I been burdened with how all encompassing that belief is. If you say you believe in God, specifically the God of the Bible, and that you ascribe to the way of life that God in the form of Jesus came here and prescribed for us to live, it is all consuming. Everything falls under it. From the very breathe in your lungs at this very second, to how you react to the most menial circumstance or inconvenience, or the biggest blessing of your life. All things fall under the umbrella of a belief in God. I have to admit that I am an utter failure at how I have approached God and my relationship with Him in the past. Giving Him very little of myself, and keeping it all for me. I have pursued myself long enough. I find myself to be empty, lonely, boring, and any other adjective you can think of pertaining to the pursuit of death.
5. I am going to continue to write and record music. But I will not bow to the pressure to write radio friendly music, nor will I seek to write any "hits", or any songs that fit the formula for a hit song. I am going to write what I want and feel needs to be said in regards to my own relationship with God, and my own experiences in life, or whatever words God puts in my mouth to sing. I will not be trying to get my music anywhere. I am going to put it out there for anyone to hear that wants to hear it, and if God decides to use it in some way... I almost hope I don't know about it because that would only make me arrogant again anyway. If God decided down the road to move me into a career in music, I am not opposed to this... but it's totally in His hands and He will have to make that happen. I will pursue Him. He can do with me as He pleases. (by the way, that's a terribly frightening phrase to put out there, but I suppose I can't give Him only part right?)

There is probably more to my manifesto here... but this blog post is getting really long so I am going to draw it to a close. I'd love to hear from any of you on this, and get any feedback you may have. Even in writing this I feel I walk a tight rope of getting a big pride filled head because I am some sort of super Christian. Believe me I am nothing of the sort. I simply want my life to reflect that which I say I believe. If it doesn't then I am wasting my time with my "beliefs" and I hold them only as a source of false comfort and personal gain.

Again, it should be said that I am making no judgments on anyone else or their heart in their pursuit of music. I am sure there are others out there who are pursuing God with pure hearts and are going after music in the right way. I however, am not one of those people.

Anyway, there it is for the most part... I have lots of stuff to say, but this is enough for now.

Gospel Music Channel Indie Spotlight...

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Pipe Dream

I sat down the whole day yesterday reading scripture, reading A.W. Tozer, and Francis Chan, and watching the video podcast from the church where Francis Chan preaches. One idea or concept keeps coming back to haunt me and convict me. It's the idea that if we call ourselves Christians and have the power of God in us, our lives ought to show evidence of that power. I mean just listen to that phrase... when we believe, we are filled with SPIRIT OF GOD! When we say we are Christians, we are saying to the world that we have the SPIRIT OF GOD inside us. If that's true shouldn't that Spirit be very apparent to all those we come in contact with. I am convicted by this deeply lately because I think its very possible that the secular world I come in contact with wouldn't know me to be any different than anyone else. Is the Holy Spirit so evident in my life that people could look at me, people who didn't really know me that well, and would they know that I am who I say I am?
Francis Chan had a really good analogy on a video podcast sermon I watched yesterday. Let's say we played basketball in a church basketball league and all the while we were playing you knew me to be a very average to less than average player. Then in the off season one day I come up to you and explain that I feel that the Spirit of God has really filled me and has supernaturally enabled me to be amazing at basketball, and that next season I am going to be completely amazing at basketball because the Spirit has enabled me to be so. Then when the season comes around, you discovery that I am the same old out of shape and slow Rick, and I am no better at basketball than I was the previous year. How would that look? What would you think of me? You'd think that either I am liar... or a fool... and it would appear that I had just made a mockery of the Holy Spirit. Is it not the same in life. If we profess to be how we say we are, should it not show? Anyway, deeply convicted of this lately I wrote a new song yesterday. It's got some harshness and aggressiveness to it, but I wrote the song to myself and I do feel strongly that its something the Holy Spirit has been laying upon my heart lately. So my hope is that this song will push some buttons for other people as well and get us all thinking about what it is that we really believe, and how we are portraying that to the world around us. It's called Pipe Dream.

Pipe Dream

You say you believe
but you live like you're diseased
you make the whole world laugh at me
as if I'm only your pipe dream

cause what I see in your life
is that opposites deny
the very truth you keep inside

and that you only love when you've been loved
and only give when you've had enough
and you keep the least of these away from me

You say you believe
but you live like you're diseased
you make the whole world laugh at me
as if I'm only your pipe dream

so tell me one more time
that you want me in your life
cause I can see right through your lies

and that you only love when you've been loved
and only give when you've had enough
and you keep the least of these away from me

You say you believe
but you live like you're diseased
you make the whole world laugh at me
as if I'm only your pipe dream

maybe dreams mean more to you
maybe you're more false than true
maybe I'm not real to you
maybe we are nearly through

My Utmost - November 27, 2009

http://www.myutmost.org/11/1127.html

It Is Finished

Galations 6:14
“By whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.”

Key Passages

• If I brood on the Cross of Christ, I do not become a subjective pietist, interested in my own whiteness; I become dominantly concentrated on Jesus Christ's interests.

• Our Lord was not a recluse nor an ascetic, He did not cut himself off from society, but he was inwardly disconnected all the time.

• He was not aloof, but he lived in another world.

• He was so much in the ordinary world that the religious people of his day called him a glutton and a wine-bibber.

• Our Lord never allowed anything to interfere with His consecration of spiritual energy.

• We must never allow anything to interfere with the consecration of our spiritual energy.

• Consecration is our part, sanctification is God's part; and we have deliberately to determine to be interested only in that in which God is interested.

My Own Thoughts

Dear Heavenly Father, I want to be consumed by that which concerned you. The things that you cared about, I want to care about Lord. I pray in your Son Jesus Christ's name that you would consume me with these matters. I pray Lord that you would use me in this world to accomplish your will, but I pray that you would keep me from allowing the world to consume me with its desires. Give me the desire to follow you only Lord, and not myself. Give me eyes to see the world the way you see it. While you have me in this world, keep me in it, but not of the world. Show me how to reach an unbelieving and hurting world around me, all the while, not getting caught up in it, but longing desperately for my true home. Be with me Lord, and convict me when something comes between you and I. Keep my focus right, and locked on you.

YouVersion Daily Reading: Day 329

http://www.youversion.com/reading-plan/robert-roberts/329

Nehemiah 13

14 Remember me for this, O my God, and do not blot out what I have so faithfully done for the house of my God and its services.

22b Remember me for this also, O my God, and show mercy to me according to your great love.

• I love this whole chapter. Nehemiah is giving an account of how he was trying very hard to keep the people of God from sinning, and falling out of favor with God yet again. He will tell of something he did to try and correct the people, then appeal to God to remember him for all that he was trying to do for God.

• Nehemiah has some amazing zeal and love for God and His reputation, and some real frustration and trying to deal with people.

• Nehemiah went completely and utterly out of his own way to make the reputation of God great. Even when it was very difficult and he couldn't get the people to go along with him, he worked very hard to uphold the reputation of God, and to make His people holy. If only there were more people like Nehemiah at the time, and even now. Nehemiah wasn't the priest, or even part of the temple workers. He was just a guy who became cup bearer to the king, who had a desire to see the reputation of God made great and he was willing to do what it took. Even confront the High Priest on his wrong doing, he confronted the people on their sinfulness, not to mention he organized the complete rebuilding of the city walls and the city itself pretty much. Amazing guy!

Nehemiah 1
Nehemiah's Prayer

1 The words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah:
In the month of Kislev in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa,

2 Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem.

3 They said to me, “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.”
4 When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.

5 Then I said:

“O Lord, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands,6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father's house, have committed against you.

7 We have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses.
8 “Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations,

9 but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.’
10 “They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great strength and your mighty hand.

11 O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man.”

I was cupbearer to the king.

Amos 5

21 “I hate, I despise your religious feasts;
I cannot stand your assemblies.

22 Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,
I will not accept them.
Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,
I will have no regard for them.

23 Away with the noise of your songs!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.

24 But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream!

2 Timothy 2

3 Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.4 No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs–he wants to please his commanding officer.5 Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules.6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops.

7 Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.

• God give me the desire to meditate upon your words and your instruction

11 Here is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with him,
we will also live with him;

12 if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;

13 if we are faithless,
he will remain faithful,
for he cannot disown himself.

16 Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly.

• I really like the “if we are faithless, he will remain faithful.” that is encouraging to me today.

• From the Amplified Bible... “11 The saying is sure and worthy of confidence: If we have died with Him, we shall also live with Him.12 If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny and disown and reject Him, He will also deny and disown and reject us.13 If we are faithless [do not believe and are untrue to Him], He remains true (faithful to His Word and His righteous character), for He cannot deny Himself.”

19 Nevertheless, God's solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”

22 Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.23 Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.24 And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.25 Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth,

26 and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.

• God give me the ability to flee from the desires that still try to direct me. Give me the desire to pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace. I want to call on you with a pure heart Lord. Give me the ability to be a peacemaker, to not be a quarreler, and to be humble.

Indie Spotlight: Gospel Music Channel

Quick Link: Rick Hopkins Indie Spotlight Page

Ok folks, for sometime now you've probably seen all these messages I have put up all over my facebook and twitter page asking you to vote for me on the Gospel Music Channel Indie Spotlight contest. Basically what this contest is all about is that I entered the contest as an independent artist, people come to the site and sign up to vote on their favorite artist. You can cast one vote per artist, per day. The artist who makes it all the way to the end of the contest and wins it all gets to be featured on the Gospel Music Channel, they get recording time with Integrity Music, and they win $5000 worth of Fender musical gear. So its a pretty sweet opportunity for any independent artist trying to make his/her way into the music scene.

I entered the contest a while back and people have been voting for me, and I need to say thank you to all of you who have been voting for me everyday. Last night they concluded the first round of voting and narrowed it down to the top 100 artist. Thanks to all of you who have voted for me I am in the top 100. Since there were around 600 artists, I feel pretty good about that. So again, from the bottom of my heart, because that's were the big love comes from, I say thank you!

It's not over yet though I still need your votes, and I need your friends votes, and I need your parents votes, and I need your co-workers votes, and basically anyone who can click a mouse. I need you guys to twitter about it, and facebook about it, and youtube about it, and myspace, and facespace, and twittertube, and youtwit, and myface, and twitface, and whatever other social media sites you use. There are widgets you can add to your facebook sites and all sorts of stuff... I need your help. I promise that if I win, I will no longer ask you to vote for me. But if I lose... oh if I lose, so help me God I will come at you rabid spidermonkey... er, um... I mean... please vote for me. If you need any help with the site or with setting up the widgets just let me know.

Down below here is a quick rundown of how the contest works. We just finished round 1 where artist were narrowed down to the top 100. From now to midnight December I need your votes to make it to the top 50. Then I'll need your votes to get into the top 15. I think if I can get into that top 15, I will have a pretty good chance. I'll just have to beat my buddy George Moss :)

So here is the link to my profile page. Hit it everyday to vote for me whether you like me or not. I'm gonna be asking you to vote either way so you might as well just go do it. Oh, and if you sign up to vote in the contest you are automatically entered for the chance to win an HD TV!
Indie Spotlight: Rick Hopkins

September 14 - November 24: Open Round
To compete, upload a performance video or MP3 and fill out the profile information. Once you have completed your profile, spread the word. Tell all your friends and fans to vote for you and to vote often. The best way to be seen and heard by the industry is to prove the fans love you. Every day counts so don't waste any time.

November 25 - December 1: Round Two — Top 100
The field is narrowed to the Top 100 bands. The top 100 battle it out by gaining attention and votes to see who advances to the Semi-Final Round.

December 2 - December 8: Round Three — Semi-Finals (Top 50)
The best of the best emerge and the Top 50 start fresh to prove they have what it takes. Once again attention and votes determine who the Final 15 are.

December 9 - December 15: Finals (Top 15)
Our judges weigh in and determine the next person to step into the spotlight.

Voting Rules
Fans may vote for as many artists as they wish, but each fan may only cast one vote per artist, per day.

My Utmost - November 18, 2009

http://www.myutmost.org/11/1118.html

Winning Into Freedom

John 8:36
“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”

Key Passages

• We are designed with a great capacity for God; and sin and our individuality are the things that keep us from getting at God.

• God delivers us from sin: we have to deliver ourselves from individuality, i.e., to present our natural life to God and sacrifice it until it is transformed into a spiritual life by obedience.

• God does not pay any attention to our natural individuality in the development of our spiritual life. His order runs across the natural life, and we have to see that we aid and abet God, not stand against Him and say - “I can't do that”.

• God will not discipline us, we have to discipline ourselves.

• God will not bring every thought and imagination into captivity; we have to do it.

My Own Thoughts

I have to somewhat summarize this passage to make it more understandable to myself. What I think he is saying here is that we all have an immense desire to know God. To know and be known. We also are a broken people with selfish desires and drives, and sins we fall into routinely. God can and has delivered us from the effects of the sin. If we believe in His Son Jesus Christ and that His death on the cross covered over our sins making us blameless in the sight of God, then God has delivered us from the outcome of sin. He doesn't automatically take away the sin as a source of temptation however. The temptation will still exist to follow our own desires and to commit those same sins that have a foothold in our lives. We have to go about the work of “dying to ourselves” so that we don't follow our own desires, and so that we don't continue to fall into the sins we are prone to wander into. If you struggle with a porn addiction don't imagine that its just going to stop being a source of temptation because you believe in God. If anything the temptation may increase because the enemy wants us to fail and to feel defeated. We have to conquer that temptation by practicing self control and obedience to the Word of God.

2 Corinthians 10:1-5

1By the meekness and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you—I, Paul, who am "timid" when face to face with you, but "bold" when away! 2I beg you that when I come I may not have to be as bold as I expect to be toward some people who think that we live by the standards of this world. 3For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

We can say we believe all we want, but still have to do the work of dying to ourselves so that we can follow Christ and reflect Him to those around us. You wouldn't just say you believed in exercise and eating right and expect that belief to be enough to transform your body. Even though it is true that these things will transform your body... you have to actually choose to do them yourself. So if you say you believe something, but never follow through with the discipline it takes to actually live that belief, did you ever really believe it in the first place?

John 8:34-36

34Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

If you were a slave for your whole life, and one day you were set free, would you know how to stop being a slave instantly? You'd no longer have the effects of slavery, but you'd have to learn and choose to be free and to live like a free person. Look at the Israelites when taken out of Egypt. They were made free, they walked for a little while, and decided that freedom wasn't for them because they didn't know how to live it. They wanted to go back to Egypt and live in slavery again. It looked better to them than freedom. How ludicrous does that sound? But its very true that its way easier to sit where things are comfortable and easy, rather than choose to live be free and have to do the hard work of being a free man. But we are called to it because thats what it means to follow Christ. If the world sees and hears us professing to be Christians and supposedly having this “higher standard”, but then they see and hear us living it totally opposite, Christ will be made a joke to them. A late night talk show comedy bit about the failings and hypocrisy of Christianity.

Nobody said it would be easy. But if you believe, tough choices and hard work will follow. That is the life of the honest and true follower of Christ.