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Thursday, September 18, 2008
Ray Boltz: The interview that started the storm.
"I post this because I struggle with the why and understanding of how a man who could sing and write like he has could let this darkness overwelm him. I am at a loss to know how to react - anger - sadness - and a wanting to reach out to him and minister to him. I know without a doubt that Jesus Christ has the power to do all things and it is my prayer that God will intervene in his life and change it." David Bagwell
Here is the interview that caused the world to know about Ray Boltz and his coming out as a homosexual.
Key changes Gospel singer Ray Boltz shares coming out journey in this Blade exclusive
JOEY DiGUGLIELMO Friday, September 12, 2008
Ray Boltz wanted to do something nice.He’d visited the mostly gay Jesus Metropolitan Community Church in Indianapolis and liked Rev. Jeff Miner, so he decided to give him a copy of his 1997 holiday recording, “A Christmas Album.” It was one of 16 albums Boltz, 55, recorded during a nearly 20-year recording career that saw the Muncie, Ind., native become one of the better-known singer/songwriters in Contemporary Christian Music, a genre born out of the Jesus Movement of the early 1970s that made singers like Amy Grant, Sandi Patty, Michael W. Smith and Steven Curtis Chapman superstars in religious music with occasional excursions into mainstream pop culture.
Boltz, with about 4.5 million LPs, cassettes and CDs sold, never made a splash outside of Christian circles but he never really tried. With a handful of RIAA Gold-certified albums, three Dove Awards from the Gospel Music Association (GMA) and a string of 12 No. 1 hits on Christian radio, Boltz is a household name in evangelical circles. “Thank You,” a sentimental song about a dream in which a Christian thanks the Sunday school teacher who led him to embrace Christ, is his signature song. It was the GMA song of the year in 1990 and has become a staple of Christian funerals. Other Boltz trademarks are “Watch the Lamb,” “The Anchor Holds” and “I Pledge Allegiance to the Lamb.”
Boltz brought the Christmas CD with him to MCC-Indianapolis on that cold, sunny December 2007 day and slipped it to Miner on his way out with a note taped to it on which he’d jotted his e-mail address. Ostensibly it was an innocuous thing to do, but for Boltz it was a big step. It eventually led to him opening up to Miner, one of the first times anybody outside Boltz’s circle of family and friends knew his long-kept secret: Ray Boltz is gay. “I didn’t make a big deal of it,” Boltz says during a 90-minute phone interview from his home in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. “But I was trembling. I’d kind of had two identities since I moved to Florida where I kind of had this other life and I’d never merged the two lives. This was the first time I was taking my old life as Ray Boltz, the gospel singer, and merging it with my new life.
Emotionally it was kind of a big deal to think about that.” Ray Boltz was tired of living a lie. He’d gotten to a point nearly three years before where he couldn’t continue down the road his life had gone. His 33-year marriage to ex-wife Carol was, he says, largely a happy one. It produced four children — three daughters and a son who are now between 22 and 32 — but family life and going through the motions of being straight had grown so wearying to Boltz, he was in a serious depression, had been in therapy for years, was on Prozac and other anti-depressants and had been, for a time, suicidal. “I thought I hid it really well,” he says. “I didn’t know people could see what I was going through, the darkness and the struggle. After I came out to my family, one of my daughters said she was afraid to walk in my bedroom because she was afraid she’d find me — that I’d done something to myself.
And I didn’t even know they’d picked it up.” The Boltz family remembers Dec. 26, 2004 for two reasons: the tsunami in the Indian Ocean but also the tsunami that their husband and father unleashed when he told them what had been bothering him for so many years. He hadn’t planned a major announcement — but sitting around the kitchen table at his daughter’s house, Boltz’s son, Philip, asked him what was wrong. “I thought, ‘Well, I can just do what I always do and hide the truth or I can take a risk and be honest,’” Boltz says. “That day, with the tsunami, has become very symbolic in our family.” Nobody was sure, at the time, what the ramifications of the revelation would be, least of all Ray.
“It’s hard to say I came out because I didn’t have all the answers. I just admitted what I was struggling with and what I was feeling. It’s hard to go, ‘This is the point where I accepted my sexuality and who I was,’ but I came out to them and shared with them what I’d been going through.” Continuing to pretend, Boltz says, was no longer an option. “I’d denied it ever since I was a kid. I became a Christian, I thought that was the way to deal with this and I prayed hard and tried for 30-some years and then at the end, I was just going, ‘I’m still gay. I know I am.’ And I just got to the place where I couldn’t take it anymore … when I was going through all this darkness, I thought, ‘Just end this.’” His family’s reaction took time.“ I don’t want to downplay it like it was just, ‘Oh, well that’s OK.’ It was a very tough time for them too, but the bottom line ...
If you want to read the rest of the article please email me and let me know. I do not want to display it because it is a gay paper and it is not appropriate for young people.
Here is the interview that caused the world to know about Ray Boltz and his coming out as a homosexual.
Key changes Gospel singer Ray Boltz shares coming out journey in this Blade exclusive
JOEY DiGUGLIELMO Friday, September 12, 2008
Ray Boltz wanted to do something nice.He’d visited the mostly gay Jesus Metropolitan Community Church in Indianapolis and liked Rev. Jeff Miner, so he decided to give him a copy of his 1997 holiday recording, “A Christmas Album.” It was one of 16 albums Boltz, 55, recorded during a nearly 20-year recording career that saw the Muncie, Ind., native become one of the better-known singer/songwriters in Contemporary Christian Music, a genre born out of the Jesus Movement of the early 1970s that made singers like Amy Grant, Sandi Patty, Michael W. Smith and Steven Curtis Chapman superstars in religious music with occasional excursions into mainstream pop culture.
Boltz, with about 4.5 million LPs, cassettes and CDs sold, never made a splash outside of Christian circles but he never really tried. With a handful of RIAA Gold-certified albums, three Dove Awards from the Gospel Music Association (GMA) and a string of 12 No. 1 hits on Christian radio, Boltz is a household name in evangelical circles. “Thank You,” a sentimental song about a dream in which a Christian thanks the Sunday school teacher who led him to embrace Christ, is his signature song. It was the GMA song of the year in 1990 and has become a staple of Christian funerals. Other Boltz trademarks are “Watch the Lamb,” “The Anchor Holds” and “I Pledge Allegiance to the Lamb.”
Boltz brought the Christmas CD with him to MCC-Indianapolis on that cold, sunny December 2007 day and slipped it to Miner on his way out with a note taped to it on which he’d jotted his e-mail address. Ostensibly it was an innocuous thing to do, but for Boltz it was a big step. It eventually led to him opening up to Miner, one of the first times anybody outside Boltz’s circle of family and friends knew his long-kept secret: Ray Boltz is gay. “I didn’t make a big deal of it,” Boltz says during a 90-minute phone interview from his home in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. “But I was trembling. I’d kind of had two identities since I moved to Florida where I kind of had this other life and I’d never merged the two lives. This was the first time I was taking my old life as Ray Boltz, the gospel singer, and merging it with my new life.
Emotionally it was kind of a big deal to think about that.” Ray Boltz was tired of living a lie. He’d gotten to a point nearly three years before where he couldn’t continue down the road his life had gone. His 33-year marriage to ex-wife Carol was, he says, largely a happy one. It produced four children — three daughters and a son who are now between 22 and 32 — but family life and going through the motions of being straight had grown so wearying to Boltz, he was in a serious depression, had been in therapy for years, was on Prozac and other anti-depressants and had been, for a time, suicidal. “I thought I hid it really well,” he says. “I didn’t know people could see what I was going through, the darkness and the struggle. After I came out to my family, one of my daughters said she was afraid to walk in my bedroom because she was afraid she’d find me — that I’d done something to myself.
And I didn’t even know they’d picked it up.” The Boltz family remembers Dec. 26, 2004 for two reasons: the tsunami in the Indian Ocean but also the tsunami that their husband and father unleashed when he told them what had been bothering him for so many years. He hadn’t planned a major announcement — but sitting around the kitchen table at his daughter’s house, Boltz’s son, Philip, asked him what was wrong. “I thought, ‘Well, I can just do what I always do and hide the truth or I can take a risk and be honest,’” Boltz says. “That day, with the tsunami, has become very symbolic in our family.” Nobody was sure, at the time, what the ramifications of the revelation would be, least of all Ray.
“It’s hard to say I came out because I didn’t have all the answers. I just admitted what I was struggling with and what I was feeling. It’s hard to go, ‘This is the point where I accepted my sexuality and who I was,’ but I came out to them and shared with them what I’d been going through.” Continuing to pretend, Boltz says, was no longer an option. “I’d denied it ever since I was a kid. I became a Christian, I thought that was the way to deal with this and I prayed hard and tried for 30-some years and then at the end, I was just going, ‘I’m still gay. I know I am.’ And I just got to the place where I couldn’t take it anymore … when I was going through all this darkness, I thought, ‘Just end this.’” His family’s reaction took time.“ I don’t want to downplay it like it was just, ‘Oh, well that’s OK.’ It was a very tough time for them too, but the bottom line ...
If you want to read the rest of the article please email me and let me know. I do not want to display it because it is a gay paper and it is not appropriate for young people.
Ray Boltz has come out of the closet!
I am so saddened by the news that one of my all time favorite singers has come out to say that he is homosexual. Listen to what he writes here on http://www.rayboltz.com/.
"A few years ago I made the decision to retire from contemporary Christian music. I had won awards, performed in front of thousands of people, and sold millions of records. Still, I believed that if people knew who I really was, I would never be accepted. During the last few years I've learned that there are many people who feel the same way I did. One church in particular has helped me in many ways. The Metropolitan Community Church (www.mccchurch.org) was started forty years ago by Rev. Troy Perry in the Los Angeles area and has an outreach to the LGTB (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) community. "
I honestly do not have words to express at this moment on how profound this is.
Click below links to read more about the situation.
Ray did an interview with gay paper and I will post that interview in my next post.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Full of Grace
As I continue to study the concept of "grace", I am finding myself humbled and defeated. I consider myself a humble man of God, but the more I study about grace the more arrogant I feel.
To think Jesus - God - humbled himself to die for me......I am not worth it. Listen to how my memory verse speaks to all of us this week:
John 1:14 (NASB)
14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Jesus is full of grace, self sacrificing, unbelievable merciful, and I am undone, unjust, selfish, and arrogant. May God forgive me for not showing grace to those around me.
To think Jesus - God - humbled himself to die for me......I am not worth it. Listen to how my memory verse speaks to all of us this week:
John 1:14 (NASB)
14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Jesus is full of grace, self sacrificing, unbelievable merciful, and I am undone, unjust, selfish, and arrogant. May God forgive me for not showing grace to those around me.
Oh what Amazing Grace! How Sweet the Sound! That Saved such a wretch like me....
Friday, September 12, 2008
A word from a fellow pastor...
Perry Noble, the pastor of Newspring Church, wrote this in his blog. His blog is www.perrynoble.com. As I came across this blog I spent some time and truly wrestled with what he said. I think all pastors should take a minute and think about this blog. What do you all think?
Four Questions Every Church Should Wrestle With - Part Three
Last post on this from Romans 10:14-15,
#4 - “And how can they preach unless they are sent?”
Pardon me while I go “Rick Warren” and use an acrostic on this one! S-E-N-T stands for…
S = Set On Fire!!! Personal evangelism and inviting people to church MUST be regularly taught from the stage! People have GOT to know that lost people matter to God (Luke 19:10); therefore they MUST matter to the church!
E = Encouraged!!! Anytime you ask someone to invite people to church there is some excitement…but also discouragement because they begin thinking, “I’ve already asked them a hundred times and they won’t come!!!”
Encourage them…I always tell them that I am so glad that a guy named David didn’t give up on me! Ever more specifically…I am glad GOD didn’t give up one me!!!
For those of you at NewSpring getting “no’s” for this weekend–don’t give up!!! Sometimes it takes a while! It did for me!
N = Necessary!!! It is so necessary for a church to be obsessed with personal evangelism! Heck, if the early church had been a bunch of guys who loves theology more than Jesus and had decided to get in a room with people who only thought just like them and solely focused on the “finer points of theology…” Well, we’d have all gone to hell!!!
T = Tense!!! Christians must understand that when we step out into the world and begin to invite people to church…there are going to be tense conversations! AND…that’s OK! We must remember that it should not be our goal to win arguments and distance people…but to work through the tension and allow God to use us to break down walls that people have built up.
Four Questions Every Church Should Wrestle With - Part Three
Last post on this from Romans 10:14-15,
#4 - “And how can they preach unless they are sent?”
Pardon me while I go “Rick Warren” and use an acrostic on this one! S-E-N-T stands for…
S = Set On Fire!!! Personal evangelism and inviting people to church MUST be regularly taught from the stage! People have GOT to know that lost people matter to God (Luke 19:10); therefore they MUST matter to the church!
E = Encouraged!!! Anytime you ask someone to invite people to church there is some excitement…but also discouragement because they begin thinking, “I’ve already asked them a hundred times and they won’t come!!!”
Encourage them…I always tell them that I am so glad that a guy named David didn’t give up on me! Ever more specifically…I am glad GOD didn’t give up one me!!!
For those of you at NewSpring getting “no’s” for this weekend–don’t give up!!! Sometimes it takes a while! It did for me!
N = Necessary!!! It is so necessary for a church to be obsessed with personal evangelism! Heck, if the early church had been a bunch of guys who loves theology more than Jesus and had decided to get in a room with people who only thought just like them and solely focused on the “finer points of theology…” Well, we’d have all gone to hell!!!
T = Tense!!! Christians must understand that when we step out into the world and begin to invite people to church…there are going to be tense conversations! AND…that’s OK! We must remember that it should not be our goal to win arguments and distance people…but to work through the tension and allow God to use us to break down walls that people have built up.
Putting a Face on Grace
Here are some thoughts and insights from Session 2 with Richard Blackaby. Did I mention he rocks? Well HE ROCKS!!!!
- Text: Ephesians 4:29-32 & Story of how many times do we forgive people between Peter and Jesus.
- What is Grace? Is it unmerited favor? God has shown great GRACE towards me!
- Why is it that so many Christians do not show grace to others, but expect grace from others. (Sure we love the grace that Jesus shows toward us and we love that grace has no limit, but wow if our spouse do something wrong or a church member hurts someone - where is our grace in those moments?
- Is your home a home of grace? (I need to really work on this!)
- So many Christians keep a file cabinet of past sins and hurt and when someone hurts them they drop the WHOLE FILE CABINET ON THEIR HEAD! They bring out sins from 20 years ago...its unbelievable!
- Do we give GRACE as freely as we receive it from God?
God forgive me and I pray that my home would be a home of grace and that my life will be a life of Grace!
Next Session is tomorrow morning, I can't wait!!!
Going to New Levels with God!
Session 1 with Richard Blackaby. Some Highlights!
- Text: John 14:8-9 - The story where Phillip asks Jesus to show him the Father - Check the passage out!!!
- It is not about how long you been with God, but how deep is your relationship with God! (There are so many Christians who have been like Phillip and have walked with God for a long time and yet you see not depth!)
- (Speaking to a room of pastors) You can not give to people what you don't have. You cannot lead where you haven't been. (So many pastors and myself included - its hard to get people to grow deeper in than Lord if their shepherd is not! Wow...very convicting!
- As Christians we get too far satisfied with our current relationship with Christ. (Isn't that the truth!)
- Don't you just being around Christians who you KNOW HAVE WALKED WITH GOD!!! I know I do!
- How deep is our prayers....or has our prayer life gotten so superficial where we pray the same thing every day?
- "Some Christians are still riding the kiddie rides and wont take the chance to get on the Rollar Coaster, but once they experience the power of the Rollar Coaster they won't go back to the kiddie ride! Christians who have grown deeper in their walk with God have experienced the majestic power of God and will not be satisfied with a kiddie ride experience with God.
Shepherding the Shepherd 2008
I am now in Hilton Head and I want to take a few moments and share my insights about the conference for pastors. Richard Blackaby is the keynote speaker and he is well known for the Experiencing God movement. The Annie Moses Band is the worship team for this weekend.
Richard has been phenominal! Did you know that he is now living in Greenville SC, now? He children are going to my college...North Greenville University. I graduated in 2002. They have moved their entire ministry from Canada to Atlanta, Georgia. I encourage you to check out www.blackaby.org.
The Annie Moses Band have been wonderful so far...truly inspirational! Check them out at http://anniemosesband.com/category/features/.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Israel Study Trip
I am taking a team to Israel in March of next year. This trip is open to anyone, just send me an email and ill give you an itinerary of the trip.
I feel that door of traveling to Israel may be closing, so the time is urgent if you want to see the Holy Land.
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