notion of His abiding presence:
20 And though the Lord gives you The bread of adversity and the water of affliction, Yet your teachers will not be moved into a corner anymore, But your eyes shall see your teachers.
21 Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, "This is the way, walk in it," Whenever you turn to the right hand Or whenever you turn to the left.
We have the presence of the Holy Spirit, Whom we can trust to direct us through this life. We have the authority of God's Word to rely on, and I think this passage also suggests that God will provide "teachers" for us. We can rejoice that God will provide instruction along the way that He has prepared for us. We can totally trust Him with our lives and we can be still before Him, so we can discern the promptings of the Spirit - what has been referred to as the "still, small voice," showing us where to turn.
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Psalm 37 speaks to the importance of following God's desires for us:
4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.
6 He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, And your justice as the noonday.
7 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him...
During its heyday, American Idol was a ratings behemoth for the Fox network. Proceeding from the talent contest were a number of music superstars, who were selected for stardom by the fans, who by the millions voted for their favorite contestants.
The show returns to television this Sunday night on a different network, ABC, with the same host, Ryan Seacrest, but a different panel of judges: pop diva Katy Perry, country star Luke Bryan, and Alabama's own Lionel Richie. No Simon, no Randy, or Paula - those who wrote the book on American Idol judging, but it will be interesting to see how viewers respond to the reboot of a series that waned in the ratings during its final years, re-entering the market that is dominated by NBC and Mark Burnett's The Voice.
Christian music has been positively influenced by former American Idol contestants, and I wanted to journey through the Faith Radio playlist and highlight former finalists on the show. Now, in addition to the category of singers who have actively pursued Christian music, there is also no shortage of singers who have pursued other genres, but who are professed Christians.
There are probably two places to start - the highest-ranking Idol who has entered Christian music is Danny Gokey. In Season 8, Danny rocketed to the number three position, losing out to Kris Allen, himself a worship leader at the time, as well as Adam Lambert. Danny's story was quite compelling - his wife had passed away prior to his Idol audition, yet he felt she would have wanted him to follow through. Danny's standing in Christian music has increased dramatically - he is a picture of hope, even though he admits he has had his struggles along the way. His latest album is called, Rise.
I'll give the respective placements, according to Wikipedia.
Probably the most-played former Idol contestant on Faith Radio has been Mandisa - she is, like Danny, an amazingly transparent artist, and in an interview last year, she related that she had been through a difficult season of her life and that God had met her and led her, as her latest album suggests, Out of the Dark. Mandisa was a Season 5 contestant and finished ninth; she was known for standing up to Simon Cowell when he made derogatory comments about her weight.
Also, in Season 8, you had a contestant who was among the first of the finalists voted out - as 12th or 13th; she is undoubtedly one of the rising stars in Christian music - Jasmine Murray, who has made an impact with her self-titled debut album, which included the song, Fearless. She was our special guest at one of last year's Family Faith Nights with the Montgomery Biscuits and Faith Radio. And, will her song, You Belong, remain atop the Meeting House Top 10 this week?
During Season 6 of American Idol, the season won by professing Christian Jordin Sparks, Phil Stacey rose to the #5 or 6 position in the show. Phil has done several Christian albums, including the release, Into the Light. He has also become a spokesperson for the international radio and medical missions organization, Reach Beyond, formerly HCJB, for which he wrote a song a few years ago.
Also in Season 6, there was Chris Sligh, who finished tenth that year. He has recorded a number of Christian albums, the most recent being Mighty Roar/Healing Flood, a 2016 release that was the first album he had recorded in six years. He also had a cameo role in the Erwin Brothers' film, October Baby.
Then, there was Season 11, in which Colton Dixon finished seventh. He was, by Idol standards, a bit of a rock-n-roll musician. He had an ambition to go into Christian music, and he had the opportunity to perform a piece of his song, Through All of It, in the final American Idol show.
So, who am I missing? There's also Season 7's Jason Castro who finished fourth and Season 11's Jeremy Rosado, who was a wild-card contestant for that season.
It's a pretty impressive lineup and while my interest in the show waned during its later years, who knows if we may see more former contestants make an impact on Christian music - or contestants who will emerge this year. In the past, I've been able to identify and follow worship leaders or Christian musicians who perhaps see the competition as a tool which God will use to expand their personal ministries.
I think there's something to be said for following God's path, and I think for the Christian singers in the competition, you could regard their participation in American Idol as a step. The Bible teaches that we are to not only commit our ways to the Lord, but also to follow Him when He opens doors for us - He is the One who directs our steps, and by His Spirit, He will indicate what decisions we should make. We have to make sure that we are walking in His will and that we are allowing Him to position us for future steps along His path for us.
Ultimately, our aim is to glorify Him - we do that first and foremost by following Christ into salvation, accepting that free gift. And, once we are "in," we recognize that we have entered into the life of purpose that He desires to express through us.
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