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| Atlas Takes Aim |
By Scott Osterbind
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(before you read, make sure you go download and then enjoy their song "The Lonely Sound Of A Train Whistle, That Is Me" and the Bible study waiting for you at the bottom of this article... enjoy!)
A few things pop into your head when you think of Las Vegas. Gambling, organized crime, prostitu- tion, drinking, and pretty much every vice known to man. It is a town where they actually encourage visitors to ignore the consequences of their excesses with the slogan, “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.”
What the average visitor doesn’t know is that Sin City also has a vital Christian community that is bringing God’s grace and healing to those caught in the town’s devious glittering web.
Atlas Takes Aim, an alternative rock trio, is part of that light in the darkness. The band leads worship in local churches in Las Vegas, plays for huge Christian festivals, and helps put on ROCK’N U training weekends. They also are part of the secular underground music scene and have gained a following through their explosive musicianship and dynamic live show among the bar- hopping local crowd.
Atlas Takes Aim is known for being self-controlled, gracious, and joyful in an industry and town where people are only out to get as much as they can as fast as they can. ATA’s no-holds-barred, philosophy-tinged lyrics demand action from listeners who have just stumbled in for a beer. Sometimes they even rock out full worship songs in bars. (Watch a video of the band doing “Jesus, Be The Center” in a bar at youtube.com/atlastakesaim#p/u/15/7PD6yKStaHk to see this for yourself.) The band’s comments on this apparent Divine dichotomy are both instructive and inspirational.
Do you go play bars with a “mission” of any kind?
(Mason) We don’t look at the people in the bar and say, “Let’s convert them!” We are individual believers who are missional, so naturally we end up directing people to Christ. Our primary mission is to create music as art that surpasses and tran- scends our fragile, finite selves—which will tangentially impact the Kingdom.
What is presenting spiritual lyrics in a secular realm like?
(Billie) My youth pastor once said, “People will listen to lyrics about anything as long as the music is good.” That goes for the good as well as the bad.
(Mason) I’d like to think that someone would go home from our concert with the consciousness of something bigger and beyond himself or herself, namely God. I think God is in the business of pur- suing people. People just need to realize that God is after them.
(Billie) “If the people in a bar are really feeling the music, their prejudices about Christ and Christianity are challenged when they find out we are Christians.”
(Mason) I’ve had people say, without irony, “I don’t like Christians; they are all a bunch of judgmental hypocrites. But you guys are awesome.” That is flattering, but terribly sad.
(Billie) Imagine if by us being lovers of God making the best music we can, someone reconsiders his or her bias against Christians, the Church, and Christ. Wow. We’ve had people come to us for advice for their really serious relationship or abuse problems because they think we must have answers.
Do you see yourself as straddling two worlds?
(Mason) We don’t straddle the two worlds. We exist fully in both because our spiritual life isn’t separated from our everyday lives. I suppose that’s why “music as art” actually can mean “impacting Las Vegas for Christ.
(Billie) If a church asks us to play, we play. If a bar or club asks us to play, we play.
(Joel) There are a few exceptions. Obviously we won’t be doing a concert in a strip bar—but we played one place where all of a sudden there were scantily clad women dancing on the tables.
(Mason) We just kept playing. What can you do? They don’t know that behavior doesn’t honor God. That’s why we have to be un-offendable Christians. Pagans just don’t know any better! If you want to impact the world you can’t merely launch moral platitudes from the comforting ramparts of a church. Outside of the church people are going to give you their opinion of Christians and Christianity straight. Some want to argue with you, some are condescending. Some even want to shock you. But most are just so far from the truth that they have no idea that their behavior, language, atti- tudes, and prejudices are rotten.
Pointing out that someone is sinning does no good if they don’t believe in sin. Better to show them through your joy, patience, kindness, self-control... you see where I’m going with this, right?
If you genuinely show that you care to know what they believe and think, just maybe they’ll give you the same consideration for your belief. And who knows, maybe, just maybe, one day they’ll start asking questions like: “Why are you so different from everyone else?”
Check out the Bible Study for the Atlas Takes Aim song, “Undertow” on page 24. |
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| Extra Goodies |
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