We started to pray, and I felt God’s presence in a powerful way. I also felt the sin in me, all the things that I had tried to justify. If God had cast me away in that moment, it would have been right. I would have said, “Amen.”
Standing in the presence of God, I understood that unless we recognize our sin and repent from it and agree with him that, “Yes, that’s wrong” — and then let him dress us in something different — we can’t mix with his purity. It just won’t happen. It can’t happen, because God is so pure.
Q: What issues do you see young people dealing with today?
A: One of the issues that breaks my heart is that young adults are knowingly and unknowingly abusing God’s purpose for sex. This robs them of the passionate joy and freedom that God intends within purity and marriage. Girls have no idea how valuable they are. They don’t understand about the value of ‘guarding their hearts’ or the danger of ‘casting their pearls before swine.’ So many of them are in physically abusive relationships. They have become so numb gathering up highs in the flesh that they have resorted to cutting themselves, just to feel something real. Some do it for attention, yes, but it’s still an indication that they want and need help.
Q: I understand that you pray for your audiences before you play. What do you pray about?
A: First, we pray for ourselves, that we’ll have clean hands and pure hearts; and that we’ll be prepared to have people shout and scream, and we’ll still have the right heart about it — not to take any glory for ourselves.
We also pray that the Holy Spirit would come in the same powerful way that he did when I was saved. Jesus said, “If I am lifted up, I will draw all men to me.” So as we worship and praise, we pray that the Holy Spirit would fall on the whole room, and on the people. And we pray that the Lord will continue to go with them after the concert, and that they will recognize that the Lord is pursuing them. And also that he would break off chains, and bring healing,and do everything the Holy Spirit does.
Q: What is your prayer for Rock the River? A: We’re praying for Franklin Graham’s message to be in line with what the Holy Spirit wants to say, and also that our performance and the songs we pick will be in line with what the Spirit wants. And I know that Christians may be there who don’t understand what we do.
But I think we have an important message to bring to the Christian audience, because without the prayer of the body of Christ, we are in a dangerous place. We need prayer. So we want Christians to catch the vision for what we are doing, so they will pray with us.
Contact: rocktherivertour.com
This interview originally appeared in Decision magazine. Reprinted courtesy of BGEAC.