GETTING PERSONAL!

 

"THIS TIME IT'S PERSONAL!!"   Ever hear that, like in a movie line or somewhere?

Hopefully not from your next door neighbor! Yowww! Better get up and run! LOL

But seriously folks,  this time I do want to share some very personal things with you,

about myself, and my Trek into genuine "person-hood", beyond what the world dictates

and the molds it wants to squeeeeeeeze us into.

When I was a wee little child, it was said of me that I was a "Happy Child".  I even

still have a picture of myself from back then, about oh I'd say 6-10 months old, sitting

in a rather vintage "seat" outside of my house. Or some house anyway. I have my

hands lifted up in the air as if I'm praising God! And a BIG SMILE on my face!

Somewhere between then and now, I miss the Big Smile.

Anyway, my wife said she had a vision of me once. I was 8 years old, all dressed up

with my little suitcase packed, and I was ready to leave home, and go out to conquer

the world! She had a talk with this little 8 year old version of me, and I was amazing,

according to her.  I was fed up with home life, and I was ready to travel and see the

world, or at least, the rest of the country. She told me that she thinks I lost some of

that dynamic, some of that young adventurous drive. Or someone took it from me.

That sounds about right.

But growing up,  I always loved to travel, and did as much of it as I could. I did

a LOT of driving. Across The Nation. Well, some of it. And in college, even more.

I loved it. I loved meeting new people, seeing new sights, experiencing different

cultures and meeting "foreigners" and even trying to talk like them! I moved around

a bunch, as an adult. I hated that saying "Bloom where you are planted", because I

just wanted to say, "Hey, Shut Up! I'm a Transplant!" And so, I would "bloom"

wherever I was transplanted, trying to find out the "meaning of my life".

I remember one day back in the days I was attending Bible College, I was

at one of their many seminars. Toward the end of the seminar, they always encouraged

young people to make some kind of commitment to "full-time christian service", i.e.

The Ministry.  I got up front, and just like when I was in grade school making

little speeches before the rest of the class, I blurted out: "Well, I'd like to

work in retail, and have my own health-food store, and also I would like to write

like a 'christian writer' and do some music, and also ... I know I'm called to PREACH!"

The looks on some of the people was priceless! Some were bewildered, because here's

this guy who can't make up his mind what he wants to do ... or I must have been quite

amusing to some others ... and some probably thought "Where's he going with all this,

this ain't what I expected??" ... and then some "Amens" and "Applause" when I mentioned

'preaching'!  Whew! What do you want? You want me to pick 'one thing' and be focused

on that, and that ALONE, so I can be "successful" or what? You mean, it's NOT OK for

me to like 'many things', and have MANY TALENTS and to do ALL OF THEM???

But ... THAT was me. A dude with many likes, many talents, equally frustrated at how

he was gonna do all of them, or any of them.  {Funny thing is, now looking back, I did

DO all of those things, or variations of them.}

Enter this one guy, let's call him "Ned" (that's a safe name as I don't know any 'Neds').

I'm in a meeting in Missouri somewhere, and Ned comes up to me and starts rebuking

the "child in me" and telling it to DIE!!  Yikes and Double Yikes!!! What the frick-frack

is going on??  'Thees ees new doctrine ... i never heerd it beeeforrrrrre!'  Do you know

how WRONG that sounds?? Well, God showed me that guy was just ignorant, and He (God)

didn't let my "inner child" die, and I was in great need of that "child" (thankyouverymuch)

and that little child inside of me was of GREAT VALUE, and that 'the child' only needed to

BE HEALED, not "killed".  This "minister" dude thought, when he observed my "child-likeness"

and my sense of humor, and other manifestations of innocence and freedom, wanted to kill

something he "discerned" was evil.  ERRRRRRRRNNNNHH! Wrong answer. "Let the

little children come to me", even if he's in his 40's.  I hope you get that, because it makes

sense to me, and Ned's "prophetic words" did not.

For years, I have had people, family members, old wives etc. try to tell me what they

thought I should BE, what I should DO with my life. And because I came from a

background of "being controlled",  I actually fell into some of their 'plans', to near

destruction of my Original Planner.  Thank God He is The Restorer! 

You know how it is, right?  If you''re a christian and do music, then you've just got

to be in praise & worship! Or if you're a speaker, then you must be a preacher!

If you're a "writer", well then, you've got to plug into the right christian publishers!

And if you're a comic or a film-maker ... well, you get my drift!

Jesus wants us to be SALT & LIGHT in the World, and many of us are just beaming

our lights into each other's faces, and salting all the christian plates ... how many

are really going INTO ALL THE WORLD?? To Light it up ... to season it ... to influence

it and turn it toward God, toward the light ... and to do so, without HATE, prejudice, bias,

competition, RELIGION, "piety" and pride, superiority, pretense, alienation, being 'untouchable

and unrelatable' etc.!

It's like this folks: God told me over 6 years ago that HE was returning me to my "rock roots"

(in the past, I went to a lot of rock concerts, played rock records and played the music) ... to

reach out to those in the industry, and make a splash, make a difference.

That's what I'm doing now.  I have gone from the guy in the "work-a-day" world, to 9-5 to

ministry of different kinds, to CREATING unique music, art, films and writings! All led

by The Spirit, and the Talents within bursting out of me. They have sometimes flowed out

LIKE A RIVER. And no, maybe I have NOT been famous, or a house-hold name, or have

seen lots of money (yet!) coming from this. But Yes, I am an "accomplished" musician/artist...

a "published" author ... and definitely a "Renaissance Man". My satisfaction comes from the

concept that I AM fulfilling my calling & destiny, and what I'm doing does please The Father.

The greatest FREEDOM is doing what you were MADE TO DO, without some "slavemaster"

dictating to you "the slave" what you should or shouldn't do. Too much torment and punishment

with that ... been there, done that, burnt the T-shirt. And so, with that, I press on. One day I will

have the liberty to publish my entire STORY. But not yet. I'll let you know when that time comes.

In the meantime . . .  BE FREE.  BE YOURSELF.  BE WHO YOU WERE MADE TO BE.

PEACE=OUT

TONY PRINCE

August 13, 2012