Snooze by Jenny Filson
Meat by Rich Mullins
More by Gary Rowe
Snooze
By Jenny Filson
We've been busy! These past months and summertime has brought those of us in Zion much growth and Joy. Richard and Pam have been on the Church Camp counselor circuit -- and frequently break into choruses of "announcements! announcements!..." at our meetings on Thursday nights. Beth is becoming more widely known throughout the world, after vacationing in Greece. Gary has been taking it easy, adjusting to migrains and learning to eat again after a severe bout with hypoglycemia (please be praying for him). Tom has been vacationing, vacationing, vacationing. However, we do feelt hat he does, in fact, need a vacation. I've gone back to being a poor hand-to-mouth music student at Cincinnati Bible College. In general, we've all be learning and growing. Looking ahead, we find outselves bombarded with your questions -- "what will you do?" "How is everyone?"
To answer these -- we're fine, all looking to the Lord for what happens next. What else can we do but look to Him who has given us 4 years of ministry, , blessings untold from all of you, and many lessons learned? We find out labour of love is not to cease, nor has it been in vain. You are our evidence which reminds us that we have anything but failed. I look at those in Zion and see friends who have become family; people I have come to love, respect, and trust. I look to our glorious father and see how He has brought us to expand and be used for greater works.
Indeed, we are wondering what will fill our weekends and Thursday evenings. How does one go back to being normal again? But we all have been taught these 4 years to trust, and view life without Zion rather as life with something else God moves us into. We are all Christians; we are all ministers. We will never lead "normal" lives. My feeling is that of excitement and interest rather than sadness or dread. How can we help but be excited after these 4 years?
Ny hope is that you pray for each of us as we look to the Lord with open hands and open hearts, especially for Richard as he exchanges one chaotic life-style for another. Our hearts are finally so full -- of joy, not remorse. God has not allowed anything else.
Meat
By Rich Mullins
In our preoccupation with God's gentle, providential care -- so beautofully described in the pastoral setting of Psalm 23 -- we often glib over or totally ignore the dramatic and prophetic words of the 22nd Psalm. Jesus did not. Even though he borrowed the metaphor of the shepherd in the 23rd Psalm to describe Himself (see John 10:1-18) near the climax of his popularity, on the cross, Jesus quoted Psalm 22:1 directly. Perhaps He did this to call the rest of the Psalm to mind for its evidencial value -- perhaps it was written in the psalm simply because it is the most startling cry ever uttered by Christ in the crucifixion. Whatever, this Psalm should have a place in our personal cannons of underlined scriptures. It seems to have been in Jesus'.
From verse 12 to verse 18, the brutality of a gloating mass and the agony of a tortured victim are described. From the beginning of Jesus' passion to the end of it we can see the same thing -- the inhumanity of man and the love for humanity of God. Thankfully, the gospels seem to focus on the virtue of Christ -- virtue as tested with the greatest heat -- and the feeble hatred of the religious leaders and the cruel madness of the military forces (the gates of hell, perhaps?) serve merly as an incidental backdrop against which the overpowering love of God is contrasted.
"...they have pierced my hands and feet..." this, to me, is a most significant details. The hands of Jesus -- the hands thru which His healing power so lavishly flowed, the hands with which He broke the few loaves and fed the masses, the hands He lifted in praise and put to service were stretched and pinned to a cross that keeps them from the work they were so prone to. And Jesus' feet -- the feet that carried Him from Galilee to Judea, the feet that won the support of an angry sea and received the fragrance of a woman's praise, were imobilized -- nailed helplessly against the wood. For that moment, Jesus count not extend His hands for healing or move His feet to serve. He hung helpless, stuck to the sinfulness of mankind by the wrath of God.
This, of course, is not where it ends, but in our preoccupation with the glory of ressurection, we often glib over or totally ignore the key that opens the door to that abundancy of life -- death. Like the Jewish leaders that Jesus denounced, we equate success with life within God's will. To do this, friends, is to empty the cross of its meaning and to replace the true glory of Christ's character of servitude with the glitter of cinematic heroism.
We must die daily -- just as Jesus did, just as Paul exhorted us to. We must surrender our pietistic successes or else cloak the true power of God so that it is impossible for those who live in desperate need of it to find it. We must make sure that our lives and ministries are real proclamation of the love and holiness of God and not a defense for our own character and convictions.
It could well be that when the things on which we place our affections and faith are removed, the God to Whom that affection and faith are rightly directed comes through more brilliantly than we could have ever imagined. The beauty of a bride far exceeds the beauty of her gown, and the value of a gift does not diminish when the ribbons and wrappings it came in are collected like scraps and burned on December 26th. Tho it may be a lovely bushel that you have got there, it is not in place when the Light is under it.
And so, we say "good-bye" to Zion. The truth we hope you encountered thru the ministry is the big deal here. We give up this particular bit of work, trusting that as God vindicated the fully surrendered Jesus, He will vindicate the work He did thru this ministry. Let all the glory go to Him and may you be blessed when you enter the place of His dwelling -- the true Zion -- the City of God.
More
By Gary Rowe
Jenny Filson has decided to further her musical skills and is studying music and voice at Cincinnati Bible College. Gary Rowe and Pam Zea are futhering their skills in counseling in graduate programs at Cincinnati Christian Seminary, and both fresee careers as Christian counselors. Tom Weimer is moving to Jacksonville, Florida in January and plans on going to school (?) for woodworking skills as well as working together with Sam Howard in his new youth ministry "at the beach." Beth Snell will be resuming a normal life-style in her job with Delta Airlines -- until the Lord throws her back into a life of chaos!
Even though Zion, the music group, is ending, Zion Ministries, Inc. IS NOT. Plans are not definite as of this writing, but it is possible that both the newsletter (Pretty Feet Publications) and the retreat ministry (Pretty Good Retreats) will continue. Pam, Rich, and Gary will remain as trustees and advisors, but the actual staff would be made up of new talent. Also it is possible a new music group might surface. These are all possibilities, as we seek the Lord's direction and purpose concerning each of these.
Change is difficult. And sometimes sad. But each of us in ZMI is rejoicing in the new directions and ministries the Lord has challenged us with. Please pray and rejoice for each of us as we grow to be what the Lord whants us to be, equipping us for further ministry. We at ZMI pray that we have been a blessing to you in your walk with our God!
Pretty Good Retreats... Still Crazy After All These Years... Still booking in '83
And now we in Zion are coming up on what may be the most joyous and exciting event of our four year history --
4th and Final Birthday Extravaganza
This event is one that every one of us here at Zion Ministries has been looking forward to and preparing for for months -- and we want all of you to come share in this celebration.
Withought a doubt, the friends we have made (and that's you all) are some of His richest blessings to us and the greatest rewards for our work and so nothing is so vital to the fourth and final birthday party as your presence!
The concert will be at 7:30 O'Clock ** Saturday ** October 23rd
At the Highview Christian Church ** Mt Healthy ** Cincinnati
With A Reception following (with lotsa food, so come hungry)
If you will need housing for Saturday night, please contact us so we can make arrangements for you (513-471-0805). Following Sunday morning worship at Fellowship Christian Church, we will treat all of our out-of-town guests to a delivious pitch-in dinner provided by our in-town friends. After that, you're on your own.
Know that we love you with all the love God is stretching our hearts to capacitate, and He loves you even beyond that!
More
By Gary Rowe
Isn't it peculiar how rumors begin? I mean it never ceases to amuse me how we humans have such an amazing ability to get the facts about a particular matter all wrong when we tell them (but then, I am amuzed by many things, except by new rolls of toilet paper that never tear off the way they should). Anyway, it has come to our attention that there are some new rumors floating around about the future of Zion Ministires, Inc. Well, let me tell you here and now that none of these rumors are true, except for the one about Rich having two big toes on his right foot.
I realize that some of you may be saying to yourselves -- "What rumors?"
I also realize that most of you are saying, "How do I get off this mailing list?"
So for those unenlightened fans of Zion Ministries, Inc., and its members therof, here are the false rumors and the real TRUTHS about what's happening with Zion Ministires, Inc.
Rumor #1: Rich Mullins is leaving Zion behind and seeking a lucrative career on his own in Nashville as a hit new song writer. ***This is FALSE. Rich is not leaving. We kicked him out.
Rumor #2: Amy Grant's "new" hit single, "Sing Your Praise to the Lord," which is sweeping the nation, was stolen by her from Zion's song of the same name. This, too, is FALSE. We stole it from her first.
Rumor #3: Jenny Filson and Tom Weimer are making bold career moves and have accepted new positions as hosts of the 700 club. This is TRUE.
Rumor #4: Beth Snell has secretly been negotiating her own contract down in Nashville. This is TRUE. Except that the contract was not negotiated with the recording industry, but with the mafia. She is now either in hiding or on the bottom of the Ohio.
Runor #5: Pam Zea and Gary Rowe have come out from behind the scenes with hidden talents and have themselves successfully broken into show business with bright new careers. THIS IS TRUE. They are both ushers at a local theater.
Seriously, NONE of the above mentioned rumors are true. But there are some exciting changes taking place within Zion Ministries. As of December 1982, the musical group "ZION" will sing its farewell concert, and the members of the group will move on into new avenues of ministry opened by the Lord.
Rich will be moving to Nashville to fulfill a long-range goal of Zion Ministries, Inc. -- that of bringing Rich's music to national exposure. Rich's song "Sing Your Praise to the Lord," sung by Amy Grant, has been #1 on two Christian Contemporary music charts for the last several months, and has a chance to be nominated as "Song of the Year" at the Dove Awards. Rich will be both writing and recording his own music, and is co-writing with several other Nashville writers (ie. Pam Mark Hall and Kathy Troccoli). In addition, other performers such as Debby Boone, will be singing and recording Rich's music. It is a very exciting time for Rich and all of us!
