Harps In Scripture

I know they didn't have harmonicas in old testament times. But they had harps. And in modern day slang, a harp can refer to a harmonica. (Mouth Harp, Juice Harp, etc.) Why do I bring this up? Well, we learn in Job 22:28 "You will also declare a thing, And it will be established for you; So light will shine on your ways". We have the authority to speak God's word over things and situations and see them fulfilled. Right now I am speaking into my life an outlet to allow my creativity to flow. I can declare that my talent will be seen and someone will give me an opportunity to shine. It's those gifts and talents that can land us before kings and rulers. Just like Joseph. (see Genesis 40)

So what I like to do is find scripture that mentions the harp and apply it to the harmonica. My favorite is 1 Samuel 16:15-17 'And Saul’s servants said to him, “Surely, a distressing spirit from God is troubling you. Let our master now command your servants, who are before you, to seek out a man who is a skillful player on the harp. And it shall be that he will play it with his hand when the distressing spirit from God is upon you, and you shall be well.” So Saul said to his servants, “Provide me now a man who can play well, and bring him to me".'

David's harp playing was brought to the attention of King Saul. 1 Samuel 16:21-23 'So David came to Saul and stood before him. And he loved him greatly, and he became his armorbearer. Then Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Please let David stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight.” And so it was, whenever the spirit from God was upon Saul, that David would take a harp and play it with his hand. Then Saul would become refreshed and well, and the distressing spirit would depart from him.'

Music can calm your nerves. It can help you relax. It can change your mood. And when you use it to worship, it can usher in the presence of God!

There are those that think blues is the devil's music. They condemn it and won't let it near the church. I strongly disagree! How can music itself be evil? Now, when words are sung, that's a different story. It's the words that determine the meaning of the song. I've heard some really great songs that I refuse to listen to because the lyrics are negative or just plain evil! But in general, blues is about the emotions we all feel at one time or another. I've heard some really fun, positive blues songs. (i.e. 'John The Revelator') I, personally have written a couple dozen blues songs that are aimed at giving God glory. I actually have a very hard time writing a song that doesn't glorify God.

We are made in God's image. (Genesis 1:26) We can do what he can do. What is one of the first things we see God do? Genesis 1:3 '...God spoke...' So what am I doing? Speaking! My playing is going to get noticed by someone. I am going to have a creative outlet for my music that will glorify God and allow me to use my talent to usher in the presence of God.

Now I encourage anyone reading this. If you have a talent that you feel has gone unnoticed, don't give up. God doesn't give you a talent for no reason. Pray about it. Ask God to reveal to you how He wants you to use it. God never does anything for no reason. But if you don't get an answer tomorrow, or next week, or even next year, don't give up! I've been playing for 30 years. My day WILL come! And so will yours.

Hello Everybody!

Hi and thanks for visiting my new homepage. I want to start by introducing myself. I go by the name Billy Blues. I'm a harmonica player from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I've been playing for about 30 years now. I wish I could say that I am currently with a band but I'm not. So if you're in the Milwaukee area and need a good harp player let me know.

I am also a born-again christian. I've been serving God in some capacity or other for the last 10 years. These have been the happiest 10 years of my life for both me and my wife and family. Serving God does not mean giving up on having fun in life, I've had more fun SINCE I gave my heart to Christ.

I fell in love with the blues back in the early 80's when one day I was listening to a Led Zeppelin album and noticed that a couple of the songs were written by Willie Dixon. I wanted to hear how the original songs sounded so I headed down to my local library to see if they had any. They did. That was it. I was hooked. I started buying harmonicas and learned how to play along. My heroes are Sonny Boy Williamson (II) and Howlin' Wolf.

I also have other intersets and desires. I want to start doing voice over work. When I was a kid I had an old reel-to-reel recorder in my room. My friend and I used to play 'radio station'. I listened to local DJ's of the time and tried to mimmic their style and skits. I'm pretty good at doing foreign accents.

I hope to add audio clips in the near future, so look for those. So until later, thanks for stopping by and be blessed!

BB.