What's on my Playlist Today

One of the things I love about being the Mom of a teenage daughter is the variety of music I'm exposed to on daily basis.
We've always been a pretty musical family and music is one of the ways that God speaks to me best, but also, music has been one of the languages that's bridged the generation gap for us in our home.

I think a lot of people would be surprised to know some of the things that are on my current playlist, and I'd probably be surprised at yours too. We all have our guilty pleasures, don't we? For example, I have quite a few Big Time Rush songs on my mix playlist and when I hear "Nothing Even Matters", I can't get it out of my head for hours. (Go download it, I dare ya.)
And yes, for the record I am 49.
Don't judge. 

Anyway, we've all heard the saying - "There's no such thing as Christian music, just Christian lyrics."
True.
Lots of great faith-statement lyrics are partnered up with some musical styles that we would scratch our heads in wonder at with secular lyrics. 
And also, thankfully, today's Gen X has proven itself to be very open to retro tunes (that's 80's music for those of us Baby Boomers/borderline Gen Y kids. Really.)
Which just proves that they CAN be taught. Don't give up. :)

Because of that, we've always been open to listening to each other's music in our home. Emma loves Journey (thank goodness), a little Fleetwood Mac, Stephen Curtis Chapman and Point of Grace among others.
I have discovered TobyMac, the Afters, Pentatonix, Lindsay Stirling and Imagine Dragons to name a few. 

This Momma counts herself blessed.

Recently, Emma introduced me to a song called "Rebel (Intro)" by Lecrae.
Yes, Lecrae is a rapper.
Yes, it is a rap song.
No, I really don't enjoy a diet of rap music.
No, I haven't lost my mind.
I do have to confess that I sing the TobyMac rap line in the Mandisa song "Good Morning" and can make it sound legit.
Emma loves me. :)

So this brings me to the point of today's post - sharing a rap song with you.
Don't just click off and walk away - I challenge you to actually listen to it. (and if you can't understand all the words, I've posted the lyrics underneath. You'll thank me later.)

I've added this song to my workout playlist. Not only is it great theology, but the beat gets me through the foam roller at the end of my training sessions.

What I love most about "Rebel (Intro)" is that it challenges us to rebel in the way Jesus was a rebel against the culture of His earthly days.
Let's face it, today's culture is conformed to the latest and greatest, hottest, sexiest, fastest, outrageous, who can out-trash who lifestyles in history. Just read Romans 1:18-32.
It was pretty bad back in Paul's day, and humanity hasn't improved much through the centuries.

The song is a challenge to follow the counter-cultural Jesus, rejecting the 'sameness' of what everyone else is doing in exchange for being a stand out for the truth.
If the youth of today really want to rebel against society then being a Christ-follower, a Jesus Freak is the best way to do it.
Dare to be different?
I'll take that challenge.

With a Courageous Heart,
~~Robin



Rebel (Intro) lyrics:
 [Spoken]
Yeah
Just wanna dive into the beat
Swim around in it
Lets rebel

[Hook]
Rebel, I'm in rebellion (repeated)
[Spoken]
Yeah, to all my Rebels out there
Rebelling against the culture, being transformed
Not conformed to the ways of this world, or this age
Welcome to the Rebel-ution

Jesus was a rebel, a renegade outlaw
Sanctified trouble maker, but he never sinned, naw
And he lived his life by a different set of rules
The culture ain't approve so you know they had to bruise him
That's the way they do, man they swear they so gangsta
Everyone the same, everybody do the same stuff
Tattoos, piercings, smoking up and drinking
Money and sex, plus them extravagant weekends
Man if that's the high life of puff puff pass that
You live evaporated like missing a gas cap
I guess I'm past that, I'm in rebellion
Rather have a dollar in my pocket than a million
I'm scared to worship money and my wants over Elyon
I remain a rebel while the rest of them just carry on
This is what I live for, its the hill I'm buried on
If Jesus is the truth that means one of us is very wrong
Think about it

[Hook]
Rebel, I'm in rebellion (repeated)
[Spoken sample]
I know in our day rebel means sinner
But everyone is sinning, so it’s no longer rebellious to sin
Jesus was a rebel who was counter cultural

No glory in me, all glory's to the King of the throne
You either love him or you leave him alone
But you can't do both
Yeah I know you heard that once in a song
I pray you hear it ten more 'fore you're gone
Hey listen up holmes, the stage is the corner the crowd is the streets
And I rap the bread of life because they dying to eat
Yeah I'm a rebel, you know the kind that die in the street
Cause you refuse to conform won't eat the king's meat
Christ rebelled by shunning the culture
He eating with the sinners, giving Pharisees ulcers
He never got married, he was broke plus homeless
And yeah that's the God I roll with
Your boy got a wife, and no I never cheated
I'm praying for humility whenever I get heated
Forget about the drugs, rebel against pornography
This ain't how it ought to be homie its how its gotta be
A rebel

[Hook]
Rebel, I'm in rebellion (repeated)
[Spoken sample]
You’re just a conformist, if you're drunk and naked and driving around on a loud motorcycle smoking cigarettes and breaking commandments
And getting pregnant out of wedlock
Everyone's done that, that’s so tired
If you really want to be a rebel, read your Bible, because no one is doing that
That’s rebellion
That’s the only rebellion left