Humility n' Vulnerability . . .

The hidden keys to a powerful faith

I’ll get to the guy in the photo up there in a minute.

But I need to go back, because last week’s column touching on Jelly Roll and his duet song “Hard Fought Hallelujah” with Brandon Lake was barely online when comments started popping up on various social platforms.

Some readers were thrilled and identified with Jelly Roll’s newfound faith and the song which exemplifies a struggling faith journey. And others pointed out how powerful it was of Brandon Lake to step outside the “Christian box” (and risk possible “cancellation”) by taking on Jelly (Mr. Roll?) as duet partner. To me, it was genius.

Still, some were cautious. Is Jelly Roll’s faith real? Is it solid? Fair enough. As I wrote, “. . . I’m sure someone will read this and find something negative to say about this guy. And for all I know, there may be some stuff in Jelly Roll’s life which I might disagree with.”

I don’t have answers on Jelly Roll’s faith—I haven’t spent time on Jelly Roll’s Instagram or any of that. And I’ve never met him, never talked to him. I’m thankful however, that he is on the journey.

Which brings us to this week. An interesting week for me. I spent five days at Heartbeat International’s Conference in Birmingham, AL; teaching, connecting, worshiping, and in general, having a blast.

And somewhere in the middle, I was reminded of some advice I would give Jelly Roll, myself and all of us: If you desire a powerful faith, choose vulnerability and humility.

This isn’t new stuff, I know. But as I was thinking about Jelly Roll, I thought of so many well-known artists, pastors and Christian leaders who’ve fallen away, lost their influence.

And almost every time, it’s so true that pride goes before the fall. I won’t name names—but how many times have we seen a big-time Christian leader who “preaches the word” or hits the big time, and at some point, there is a scandal.

Why?

Choosing the risky path

Fact is, it’s easier than we think. We can begin believing we are super-important and slowly, rules we know should never be broken no longer apply to us. We can rationalize. Make little choices which lead to big mistakes. I say “we” because I can’t find any of us—whether big influencers or ordinary people—who is immune to these temptations.

Which leads me to the guy in the photo above, Matt Hammitt. Matt is another guy—like Jelly Roll—I don’t truly know. We met and chatted for a few minutes. He’s genuine.

Keeping it real

But here’s the thing. Matt could see himself as a big deal. He’s a Christian artist with three Dove Awards, two Grammy nominations, 15 chart topping hits and perhaps best known as the lead singer (1996-2016) for Sanctus Real. Not a bad resume, right?

Yet while providing a keynote address and leading the conference in worship, he spent time with everyone who asked. Listened to their stories. This is humility. It’s one reason why he’s sustained success.

The other reason? He’s real. Vulnerable. Matt talked openly about struggling with a strained marriage and trying to balance life on the road and fatherhood. This battle led to the song, Lead Me, which you’ll see below. And Lead Me is also a book—which I’m about to load up on my Kindle.

When the need for balance outweighed his desire for success as an artist, Matt left Sanctus Real to spend more time at home with his family. That’s risky in the music business. But he did what he had to do. Good on him.

Sure, he still writes songs and spends some time on the road. He still goes out and speaks about marriage, fatherhood and more. But at that near breaking point, he had to admit his balance was off. He had to find it again. Looks like he has.

In my work, I’m no rock star. But I do get to stand on stages and talk to a lot of people—which can be intoxicating if I’m not careful. And oh, I travel too—always trying to keep a balance between home and work. I don’t get it right all the time. But I try.

In different ways, we all face challenges like this.

So last week, writing about Jelly Roll’s budding faith journey and his duet song with Brandon Lake, Hard Fought Hallelujah, awakened something in me about faith’s crazy twists and turns.

But this week, I got to see what happens when someone chooses faith and family—and is willing to risk a career to do so. As Matt talked with our audience of more than 1500, I saw a quietness of faith which, at least to me, was brimming with those key characteristics of humility and vulnerability.

If we want success in our faith, these two attributes connect with anyone. They encourage others to keep trying, to never give up.

So as we fight for our Hard Fought Hallelujahs, let’s do so with humility. And let’s be vulnerable with others, too. If we do, I think we’re going to make it just fine.