For Today - Taken from my tumblr from last year

Let me tell a story. For Today is a hardcore band from Iowa.  They aren't that popular in the mainstream sense, but they have a heavy independent following and are able to pull a good crowd where ever they play.  They are openly professing Christians, and their lyrics and lifestyle reflects they things that they believe.  They seem to take scripture and translate it right into lyric form, and then combine that with amazing musicianship and talent.  Some of their lyrics for example: “here i am God, send me to the world” and “i will proclaim the name of Christ, to a dead and dying world” anyway, several of the guys in our church including myself found out they were playing nearby, and it became a must-see event to attend.  So we planned it out and got a group of people together to go see them.  Now, when we found out that they were on tour, we looked and saw that the tour was called “the anti-hero” tour, and that they were playing with several other non-christian bands.  We decided we still wanted to see them, for one because they are that good, but for two, because we wanted to see how they were around a different environment, one that was outside of their comfort zone maybe.  Which brings me to a side note, if your in a so called “christian” band and you cant do any kind of relating or sharing of that faith in a so called “christian” scene, how are you going to reach the “non-christians”? its so easy to walk up to a fellow believer and say “yay God! lets pray together”. that's what happens at festivals like creation, and cornerstone. its the norm there to be a christian, its easy to share with everyone else there, your not getting judged by everyone around you! its quite a different experience when a few hundred people are staring at you expecting to hear cursing and profanity coming out of your mouth, and instead you are sharing Jesus with them.  That's what it was like Sunday night.  We got there as the first band was playing, and we were already somewhat annoyed with the venue.  They had posted that the show was $15 online, but when we got in they said it was $17, and that we should have had our money ready.  We started watching the opening bands and it was like they couldn't go a full sentence without dropping the F bomb.  It was the “scene” thing to do, and the crowd loved it.  The band A Word Alive got onstage and set up their gear, they got into a huddle and i expected to hear them say 1, 2, 3, hardcore! or something silly,  but instead they put their hands together and counted, 1, 2, 3,…. F you! and gave each other the middle finger. i was like wow, is that where music has gone? we just wanted to see For Today and get out of there.  We were anxious to see them and see how the crowd would react, after hearing what seemed like the entire place yell the F word every other sentence.  I was actually shocked.  Shocked at the crowd, and impressed by the band.  They came out and played, they sang their in your face, this is who we are, this is who our God is, we are not ashamed, hardcore music.  and the crowd sang every word!  The same kids who were throwing up their middle fingers for hate, were now singing about being soldiers for Christ.  It was so bizarre, i wanted to stop the show and ask them if they even knew what they were singing, and how they justified acting that way.  I didn't see the booing and the rejection that i thought i would see, instead i just saw kids blind to their own guilt.  no conscience. I was impressed however, by the band, because in the midst of their measly 20min set, the lead singer stopped and gave a short gospel message.  Basically explaining that if he didn't get a chance to share why they did what they did, and who his God was, there was no reason they should be onstage. He told the crowd that there is freedom and peace in Jesus Christ, and that he could stand onstage unashamed and forgiven because of what Jesus did.  He explained that no one in the room could be too broken, too hurt, too addicted to be rejected by the God that made them and loves them.  He said all this in a secular environment, knowing that everyone there was judging him. That is being unashamed of your faith and what you believe in.  Do you stand up for what you believe in?