|
|
DerekTemple New user Warsaw, Indiana 3 Posts |
Howdy all-
Ok, so I like a few tricks with some good wholesome shock value. Teenagers love the Needle Thru Arm effect. Does anyone have any ideas for a gospel message to tag onto it? Does anyone have ideas for other Christ-centered applications or biblical truths? |
tbaer Inner circle Pennsylvania 2003 Posts |
Derek, I personally don't perform tricks like that for gospel magic. You may want to be careful when doing effects like that if you plan to present the gospel or a biblical application. This is just my own opinion. Tom
|
BroDavid Inner circle America’s North Coast, Ohio 3176 Posts |
While I might not, or I just might.... use a needle though arm to convey a message, I can easily see how if the message were crafted properly, it could carry a whallup.
Should we be careful? Absolutely! We need to be sure that God is Honored, and He gets the Glory. If this is done, then we have done well. I have Christians tell me a lot of different things about what I do. (perform magic, and tell people about the God who saved me from a firey eternal hell.) Some say don't use magic at all. Some say don't use this kind of magic. Some say do it this way, and some say do it that way. But I do things the way God has uniquely created me to do them. He has given me a boldness, and a burden to share the knowledge of what he has done for me. So when it comes down to deciding what I will or won't do, I ask myself these simple questions: Will God be Gloried? Will His Kingdom be enlarged? And will he get the Glory? Then I ask God what He thinks. And if He doesn't say no. Then I move on what He said thousands of years ago, "Go and tell..." Ok, I will now step back down off of my soap box, and back to the question.... Here is a very off the cuff, or mabe it is more an "off my rocker" thought... Talk about sin. What is sin. Sin is anything that separate us from God. Little sins, like lying Hit God's Top Ten on the Sin list! Why becuase Sin big or small, penetrates our being, even if it doesn't feel like it hurts while you are sinning And that is what draws us to sin. It is the promise of pleasure, or other gain. So even though we should know better, we succumb to the fals promise of deceiver, (Insert the needle and wait a moment and now the blood now flows from it..) but Sin has its consequence. Make a painful face. Even when Jesus took our sin on the cross, He did not come away unmarked. To this day, He bears the marks of the nails and of of the spear in the side. Even God's forgivenss does not take away the consequences. jail, pregnance, guilt, shame. So the only way to avoid the mark of sin, is not to sin in the first place. Remove the needle, and wipe the arm, and offer the arm for inspection. You might mark the arm with an ink pen to leave an actual mark (in the "hidden place", you should know what I mean there..) when you take the needle out. Then reinformce the message, whether chastity or avoiding alchohol, or lying our passing rumors, or whatever is the prime message you want to convey, and remind them of the mark,consequences of sin) and that the only way to avoid consequences is to avoid the sin. I havent done the needle throguh arm for some time, so I have never done anything like what I described above. And I don't even know if it would work or not. But I do know that God speaks to many people through messages that many others would disdain. Pray about it, and if you feel that God is OK with you doing a needle throguh arm, then do it. If you feel He is saying NO, or Not Now! Then hold off. But I find that many of the most outrageous things get young people's attention. And you cant talk to anyone until you get their attention. Then once you have their attention, make the most of it. Maybe that means just becoming friends and letting your life speak to them. Or maybe it means putting a message with a needle thru arm, finger chopper, fire, or doing something considered more "mainstream" by Christains who perfrom magic. BroDavid
If you stand for nothing, you will fall for anything.
|
DerekTemple New user Warsaw, Indiana 3 Posts |
Dave- That's not a bad idea for a potential routine.
To both Tom and Dave- You both have given me something to think about: Where to draw the line between gospel magic and just plain entertainment. Lesson: just because "I" like it, doesn't neccessarily mean it is something wise or even proper to do. I don't yet have a deep conviction on this particular effect as of now, but it is something to ponder before throwing it in our "work" for Him. Thanks guys and God Bless. |
tbaer Inner circle Pennsylvania 2003 Posts |
BroDavid, you make some very good points. I can't speak for anyone but me when it comes to a trick like this. But I know if I would do this effect in my local church where I do tricks every Wednesday night, it would probably be the last time. Each person must know in his heart what tricks are appropriate and that's where the Holy Spirit comes into play. Each of us must be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit, then we can't go wrong.
|
revlovejoy Special user Pennsylvania 765 Posts |
Two thoughts reading BroDavid's post....
Consequences: Pope John Paul II visited, in prison, the man who shot him. He forgave him. But when he left, the prison bars remained. We Lutherans refer to the kingdom on the left in such matters. On avoiding sin: I'd be careful how far you go with that. If I could totally avoid sin, then I would be perfect, and a savior would be meaningless to me. In our tradition, we confess regularly and corporately, that we are "in bondage to sin and cannot free ourselves." A common preaching point for me is that the obvious "blatant" things, with the obvious consequences are not the biggest problem for the Christian. I am not concerned that members of the congregation will soon turn to Satanic ritual. But many have put the god of golf, or family, or country, well above the Triune God. The consequences are not always as clear. Not as obvious as sticking a needle through one's arm. Just an idea for presentational directions.... |
Clifford the Red Inner circle LA, California 1941 Posts |
Something Eugene Burger will do is perform an opening effect, even if it is a poem, and then when people aren't expecting it will turn over his arm to reveal a needle sticking through it, bleeding. He gingerly pulls it out and wipes off the blood and remarks "Not everything is as it appears."
"The universe is full of magical things, waiting for our wits to grow sharper." Eden Philpotts
|
BroDavid Inner circle America’s North Coast, Ohio 3176 Posts |
RevLoveJoy,
That is a really good illustration of consequences. Thanks. But I am not sure that we need to careful about talking to people about sin. If there is anything that everyone can relate to, it is sin. Even unbelievers, who, as an evangelist, I speak with a lot acknowledge their sin when they understand that it is sin. I agree that we can never be sinless. The 10 comandments were not given because we could live up to them, but rather by God's grace to show us how to live, and in our failures of living that way, to remind us that we need a Saviour. The Apostle Paul said that he was the Chief of Sinners. He may have been then. But now I am sure that he is tied, if not exceeded for that title by me, and many, many others if we are willing to admit it. And when I speak of sin, I am not talking of Satanic conversions, I am talking about the sins that beset us daily, and there are many. But I worry about all sin, because I beleive God is offended by all sin. Avoiding sin should be everyone's goal. If I did not avoid it, I would become used to it. And if I got "comfortable with it" then my heart would become hardened and insensitive to it, and conviction would never come. So reminding people of the consequences of sin, while it may help them think about it, and maybe even reduce the occurrence of it, has absolutely no chance of ending sin in anyone's life. It was, and continues to be a clear understanding of my sin, that brought me to Christ, and keeps me on my knees before Him. Maybe that is why I speak and preach on sin so much. I know that unless they understand that they are are sinners and that they need a Saviour, and that Jesus is waiting for them to realize that. BroDavid
If you stand for nothing, you will fall for anything.
|
revlovejoy Special user Pennsylvania 765 Posts |
BroDavid, I don't think we're saying different things. My only concern is in anyone getting the idea that we, under our own will and power, can avoid sin. It is only through the work of the Father Son and Holy Spirit that I am made clean and in any way sanctified. So I guess my point is that any Christian illustration involving the conviction of sin is incomplete without the proclamation of the Gospel, otherwise the basic sin of making ourselves our own gods is an option, where we solve the problem on our own.
|
The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » The Good News! » » Needle Thru Arm: Gospel Presentation? (0 Likes) |
[ Top of Page ] |
All content & postings Copyright © 2001-2024 Steve Brooks. All Rights Reserved. This page was created in 0.03 seconds requiring 5 database queries. |
The views and comments expressed on The Magic Café are not necessarily those of The Magic Café, Steve Brooks, or Steve Brooks Magic. > Privacy Statement < |