As I’ve mentioned before, one of the perks I enjoy most with this CMCentral gig is the opportunity I have to speak with artists passionate about their musical mission and the God who calls them to it. I’m so often inspired by their zeal, by their dedication. Today was no exception.

I spoke today to Braille, a hip-hop artist who next month is putting out his first nationally released album. But to tell you the truth, we didn’t talk at all about the new album. Instead, he shared with me a bit about his story, about how he lives out this life and Who he lives it for. I wish you could have heard him, because it’s one of those stories too easy to gloss over while reading, to see a few facts and make all the wrong assumptions.

If I tell you he’s been pursuing music full-time since he was fourteen, you might find that interesting. He describes himself as the lonely boy who sat on the bus with ear-phones, listening to music no one else dug. When his family moved across country when he was in his mid-teens, he used the opportunity to take buses to nearby cities every weekend and catch the latest rappers. As soon as he graduated he moved to the nearest big city and spent a year chasing the scene, crashing on various couches to do so. You might be thinking ‘slacker’ at this point, but wait, there’s more. When he married his wife a few years later, they both lived out of their car for the first few years as they followed his musical dream. Yeah, they cleaned houses to make a buck here and there, but they were all about the music and their calling. Are you thinking ‘selfish’? I wish you could hear him. As he speaks of those days, his voice contains nothing but excitement and gratitude for the way the Lord opened doors and provided.

They bought a house and had a daughter, but guess what? They just sold it, and are preparing to tour the country for the next year, with their 15-month old daughter, and perform music from the new album. He assured me that this time around, they’re getting hotel rooms so their child is comfortable. But still, the same excitement and passion floods his voice as he speaks of the coming year. He talked about avoiding pride, about the occasional doubts, about his motivation…. and the Lord is in all of his thoughts and considerations.

I listen to him from my comfortable chair. I’ve got a fire going a few feet away, and I’m feeling pretty cozy. And I wonder… it would be easy to pass judgment, but would I make the same sacrifices as this guy? And where did he find such a supportive wife?! We hang up the phone and I sit and give thanks that the Lord is still raising up servants to take out His message, no matter what the cost. I’m glad for these examples of sacrificial life-styles, and grateful that I get to speak to people this passionate about their calling. And as I rise to throw a log on the fire, I quietly ask God to expand the boundaries of my heart, so that maybe I can be as willing as this young family.

Check out Braille here. You won’t find pictures of him and the family in the car, but you can find out a bit of his amazing story and his music.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 27th, 2008 at 3:21 pm and is filed under Staff Blogs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.