Tag: music

New Podcast Episode – Happy New Year

On By josephbarlowIn MinistryLeave a comment

Or click this link to go to the podcast.

Hey Friends,

I’ve been quite focused on my podcasting more than blogging recently. So I wanted to let you know about the podcast and at the same time start blogging more.

Besides the podcasts here’s a couple thoughts for you.

Honing The Flow

I had dinner with my daughter Sarah last night. She took me out to a fancy restaurant as a Christmas present. We always have excellent talks, we challenge each other and the food was off the charts delicious.

While we ate she said something about my music that kind of hit me and challenged me. I need wisdom from God on how to implement it, but she said, “You need to become your favorite artist.“

Think about that for a second. I need to become my own favorite artist. I need to love the music that I make more than anyone else’s. From an artist’s point of view that means I can’t just lay back. I need to be pushing my own music forward more, being more creative, honing my product to be the best, making sure that the flow that’s coming from within me is what I absolutely love. This is not necessarily an easy process.

When I was pastoring this principle was true. I enjoyed my own teaching more than anyone else’s. The reason I don’t feel this was self-centered, prideful or negative is that when I was teaching I was also listening and learning. My guess is that when I was preaching and teaching 40-60% of what I would teach would be new to me as well. Because I was listening to the Lord at the same time as I was sharing. It was a prophetic flow. I still teach this way. But because I’m listening while I’m teaching I still need to go back to listen to the messages again to learn the very things that I was teaching. I needed to give myself time to digest them, enjoy them and implement them. The discovery process was prophetic and beautiful.

I guess I don’t really need to change systems, this same system that I used when I was teaching is and can be the same system I use as an artist. For me, all my art/music doesn’t come from me, it comes through me. Just like my teaching, I just need to turn on the faucet and let it flow. Invite it and allow it to come through me. I’m going to enjoy that so much. Can’t wait to get started. But it’s 4:08 AM so I can’t be playing my guitar or piano right now; it would wake the family. But I’ve got to make the time, position myself in the right place at the right time with the right attitude and the right equipment and the right emotional atmosphere to play; turn on the flow and just allow God’s gift to flow through me.

I hope this blessed you. It did me.

THE WORD OF GOD BRINGS HEALING

On By josephbarlowIn Encouragement, Journal, Ministry, TeachingLeave a comment

Friends,

Last year I put together an album of my instrumental music with healing scriptures spoken over the music. My desire was that people would either hear and be healed or at least that it would build their faith to be healed by God’s available healing power.

I really want everyone to be healed. I believe God does too.

We’re actually working on a book and a class on this topic.

I hope you enjoy this track.

Just sit back and close your eyes while listening.

If you want to hear the rest of the album, you can purchase the CD here on this site, download it from iTunes, Amazon, stream it on Spotify and many other outlets.

God bless,

Joe

The Main Thing

On By josephbarlowIn Encouragement, JournalLeave a comment

Gardeners are amazing! They keep watch over their plants and over everything in their garden to make sure that it is in order and working right. One thing that they are very careful to watch out for is if anything is dead. They’re checking to see if there’s any brown leaves on any of their plants. If there’s brown leaves, that means something has died. When they see that something has died, they trim it off.

In your life are there any brown leaves? Are there any places that aren’t bearing fruit the way that they should be?

Proverbs 29:18a “Where there is no vision, the people perish”

This passage of scripture states clearly why there might be death in some of the things you are doing.

Let me illustrate.

I love playing guitar. I’ve written several songs and recorded a few CDs. I love playing at parties and in front of people and at church. My wife especially loves my playing. She wants me to go back out and play in the restaurants like I used to, just because she knows how much it blesses people.

But I have so much on my plate. It’s very difficult to choose what I’m supposed to keep my eyes on. I am the pastor of a church, I run Joseph Barlow Ministries, we have 7 children, we have a home group on Wednesday nights, we have healing class on Saturday morning. We are trying to manage a very busy schedule and there is a lot going on. Rest is sometimes something that you have to steal; at least it seems like that.

So what about the guitar playing? My guitar has been sitting in its case.

I haven’t played it in a little while. It feels like a brown leaf sometimes. I want to write songs I want to go back into the studio. But I’m letting too much get in the way of that.

What is happening?

I am letting the vision dissipate. I’m letting it lose its appeal in my heart. Sometimes you have to stir yourself back up. You have to stir up the vision. When you stir up the vision, the desire gets stronger. You have to imagine what it would be like if your desires were coming to pass right now. Is that something worth working for? Maybe!

You, like me, need to make some decisions. We better decide what are the visions we want to keep in place in our life that will motivate our actions and drive our plans forward. So list the things you want to do. Then list the things you have to do. How well do those two lists intersect?  It’s time to start trimming. It’s time to reestablish vision. If we don’t do the trimming then disappointment and the clock will do it for us.

Let’s make the main thing the main thing.

But, for you, what is the main thing?

What is it you were sent here for?

Are you doing it?