Basics of Life
Now Think On This
Steve Martin
“He commanded the
people of Judah to follow the Lord, the God their ancestors followed. And he
commanded them to obey the Lord's laws and commandments.” (2 Chronicles 14:4,
ERV)
In 1992 a fairly new Christian
contemporary group 4Him (full bio and concert playlist below), formed in 1990 in sweet home Alabama,
came out with their third studio album. It was entitled The Basics of Life, released on Benson Records and produced by Reed Arvin and Fred Hammond. As the
lead single song says, they sang of life principles as recorded in the Living
God’s manual to us, the full Bible.
I still have the CD, these 25 years
later, as I write these words.
4Him – The Basics of Life 1992 Benson Records
(L-R) Marty Magehee, Andy Chrisman, Kirk Sullivan, Mark
Harris
For better than 4,000 or more years
later after being written, the Torah, the Pentateuch (the first five books of
Moses), the Tanakh, the books of the prophets, the Psalms and Proverbs, the Old
and New Testaments, the Holy Scriptures – whatever you want to call them – are still
the foundational truths given to us through God’s chosen people, the Jews, in
order to live a full life.
The Arks inside the Western Wall in Jerusalem, Israel.
Contain Torah scrolls opened on Shabbat and feasts of the
Lord.
(Photo by Steve Martin May, 2017)
You can find a copy of the Bible in
most places around the world, in many translations for the local nationals. When
the good Lord built it, you can bet it was meant to last.
I guess then that we should adhere
to the principles that our Creator took so much care in bringing them to us. Knowing
the different characters God the Almighty used to write the individual 66 books
of The Book (unless you include the Apocrypha of the Roman Catholics, which add
yet another seven for a total of 73), you get a good picture of its importance.
From Jewish kings to Jewish prophets,
through Jewish scribes and Jewish apostles, and a doctor named Luke, these
words have been the bedrock of solid civilizations for centuries. They are
eternal, and should be treated as such.
In fact, based on the discovery of
the Dead
Sea Scrolls in a series of twelve caves around the site known as Wadi
Qumran near the Dead Sea and the Jordan River, between 1946 and 1956 by Bedouin shepherds and a team of archaeologists, these words have been meticulously passed down to us. They
have been the most preserved and accurate of any writings, of any book,
available today for mankind.
The Bible then must be that
important to read and follow, if the God who brought these words to His
creation took so great care in keeping the eternal words alive for us.
You want to know how to live? Read
God’s Word.
You want to know what step to take
in a decision you seek to make? Read God’s Word.
Don’t let it just sit on your bed stand
or living room coffee table, or occupy a prominent spot in your home library,
making it look like you are the Christian you want people to think you are.
Or have it on your smart phone with app to look impressive either.
Read it. Believe it. Act on it.
Let His Holy Spirit, the third
member of the Holy Trinity, the God-Head, guide your steps each and every day.
Have a rock solid, never-changing footing to stand on in this crazy world that tries
to change the rules and the belief system constantly.
You want answers? God has them all. Let
His truth be known in your life today and every day, Sunday through Saturday.
“For the word of God is living and active
and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of
soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions
of the heart.
And there is no creature hidden from
His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom
we have to do.” (Hebrews 4:12-13, NASU)
Now think on this,
Steve Martin
Founder
Love For His People,
Inc.
P.S. I would be most grateful if you'd share
this encouraging word with your family and friends. They might need it. You can
easily use the social media icons below. Thanks! Steve
We are blessed when
the ministry receives gifts to support the families that we do, primarily for
those living in Israel, Pakistan, Northern Ireland and India, and the hurting
ones here in the USA. You also can share out of the abundance you have been
given.
Love For His People,
Inc. is a charitable,
not-for-profit USA humanitarian organization started in 2010 to share the love
of the Father in the nations.
If these messages minister to you, please consider sending a charitable gift of $10-$25 today, and maybe each month, to help us bless families we know in Israel, whom we consistently help through our humanitarian ministry. Your tax deductible contributions receive a receipt for each donation. Fed. ID #27-1633858.
Contribution checks
can be sent to:
Love For His People,
Inc. P.O. Box414 Pineville, NC 28134
Todah rabah! (Hebrew
– Thank you very much.)
Please share Now
Think On This with your friends.
Email: loveforhispeople@gmail.com
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Martin and Love For His People
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LovingHisPeople
Now Think On This - In
the Year of our Lord 06.04.17 - #290 – “Basics of Life” – Sunday, 3:33 am
All previous editions
of Now Think On This can be found on this
Blog, and on the website: Now
Think On This
Again, I would be most
grateful if you'd share this encouraging word with your family and friends. You
can easily use the social media icons below. Thanks! Steve
4Him
-25th Anniversary Tour "Real Thing" – Irmo (Columbia, SC) 11.01.15
- Riverlands Baptist Church (photo by Steve
Martin)
4Him
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
4Him
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4Him plays at Lifest 2006
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Background information
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Origin
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Genres
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Occupation(s)
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Singers
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Instruments
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Voice
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Years active
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1990–2006
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Labels
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Associated acts
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Past members
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4Him was a Contemporary
Christian group founded in 1990 in Alabama, US. The group has ten Dove awards, a Grammy nomination and three certified
gold albums to their credit. The group was inducted into Alabama's Music Hall
of Fame, following the awarding of The Governor’s Achievement Award. The group
has also been featured performers for popular Christian Evangelist crusaders, Billy Graham and Luis Palau.
4Him disbanded in 2006 to pursue individual
careers of ministry and music. They have released 12 studio albums which have
produced 27 number one singles.
The group has made sporadic reunion
appearances since 2009.
Contents
[hide]
Andy Chrisman, Mark Harris,
Marty Magehee, and Kirk Sullivan originally met when they sang together in Truth, a Contemporary
Christian vocal group founded in the late 1960s and directed by Roger
Breland. Truth had a rotating roster of four male and four female
vocalists. After three representatives from Benson Records attended several Truth
concerts in the late 1980s during which Andy, Mark, Marty, and Kirk performed,
Benson approached the quartet saying that they wanted to use the guys to create
a new male four-member vocal group under the Benson label. "Where There Is
Faith", their first single, stayed at No. 1 on the charts for eight weeks,
two months before 4Him left Truth. Releasing their self-titled debut in 1990,
they blended the traditions of Christian music's past, with modern pop
production and practical lyrics.
In 1996, with the release of The
Message, 4Him changed their overall sound in an effort to keep pushing the
creative limits of the group. The guys replaced the over-the-top orchestrations
and choral vocal arrangements with a stripped down, acoustic band approach
where one of the guys would sing lead and the other three would sing backing
vocals. On 1998’s Obvious, each member took more ownership of their
music – becoming more involved in the production and songwriting aspects.
By 2004, all four of the guys reevaluated
the future of the ministry. After close to seventeen years together, the
members of 4Him decided to embark on solo careers.[1] On September 23,
2006, they performed their final concert at Cottage Hill Baptist Church in Mobile, AL, the city where 4Him’s 17-year
journey first started. At that concert, various individuals (including family
members, record producers, management, and Truth founder Roger Breland) were
recognized for their contributions to 4Him’s ministry.
Andy Chrisman released his freshman solo
effort One in 2004, and is worship pastor at Church
on the Move, in Tulsa, Oklahoma.[2] In 2008, he, along
with the Church on the Move Praise Band, released Beautiful Name, a
live worship CD.
In 2005, Mark Harris released The
Line Between the Two. In 2007, Harris won a GMA Dove Award in the category
of Inspirational Song of the Year for "Find Your Wings". On September
25, 2007, he released his second album Windows and Walls on
INO Records. On October 13, 2011, Harris released his third album Stronger
In The Broken Places on Stylos Records. In 2012, Harris had the
featured song, "When We're Together" in the film, Courageous.[citation needed] Until mid-2013, he
served as Artist-in-Residence/Worship Pastor at Bay Community Church outside
Mobile, AL. He is currently serving as Artist in Residence/Associate Worship
Pastor at Gateway Church in
Southlake, TX.[citation needed]
In 2010, Kirk Sullivan released his
independent solo release Timeless on his website. Timeless contains
"Get Down Mountain" (previously featured on the Encore album),
a new reworked arrangement of his trademark song "The Basics of
Life", and a bonus track of a song recorded when he was twelve years old.
In 2008, Marty Magehee released his
independent solo release, Open, on his website. The first single,
"Eyes Wide Open", was released to Christian radio in May 2008. The
album also included the song "Runaway Train", which appeared on
4Him's final CD, Encore. He is also producing albums for other
artists. In 2011, Magehee is on the faculty of Valor Christian
High School in Highlands Ranch,
Colorado, teaching courses in Worship Band, Studio Recording, Beats
and Loops, and Songwriting.[3]
After nearly five years apart, the quartet
made their first reunion on the K-Love Friends and Family Cruise in
January 2009.[4] A one-off concert
in West Monroe, LA took place in March, and another reunion happened on Kathy
Troccoli's "KT and Friends Cruise" to Alaska in June 2010.[5] In Spring of 2013,
4Him will perform several concerts on a tour dubbed "With One Voice"
together with the group Avalon and solo Christian singer songwriter Cindy
Morgan. Starting in September 2015, 4Him will begin a 25th anniversary tour.[citation needed]
Compilations
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2004: Simply 4Him
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2015: 4Him XXV
Other album appearances
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1990: Jesus - The Best Gift of All (various
artists), "The Best Gift of All"
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1992: Master Pieces (various
artists), "Turn Your Radio On"
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1993: The New Young Messiah (various
artists), "The Trumpet Shall Sound"
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1993: Chain of Grace, Dallas Holm (background vocals),
"Chain of Grace", "Nothing Satisfies Me Like Jesus"
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2000: Hope Changes Everything (various
artists), "Broken"
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1991: Face the Nation
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1993: The Basics of Life
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1995: The Ride Comes Alive
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1996: The Message in the Making
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1995/96: The Young Messiah Tour
(Christmas)
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1998: Headlined 1998 Spring Tour, featuring Big Tent Revival and Jeni Vernadeau
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2002: "4Guys And A Fruitcake"
Christmas Tour with Chonda Pierce
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2003: World Vision 2003 Spring Tour
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2006: Encore Farewell Tour
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2015: 25-Year Reunion Tour
Awards and nominations[edit]
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1997: Grammy nomination
– Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album for The Message
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1991: Best New Artist of the Year
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1993: Group
of the Year
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1993: Inspiration Album of the Year for Generation
to Generation
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1994: Group
of the Year
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1994: Inspirational Album of the Year For The
Season of Love
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1995: Group of the Year
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1998: Inspirational Recorded Song of the
Year for "Center of the Mark"
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2003: Nomination for Inspirational Recorded
Song of the Year
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1990: CRR (Christian Research Report)
Reporter Poll – Best New Artist
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1991: CRR (Christian Research Report) –
Best Group
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1992: CRR (Christian Research Report) –
Best Group
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1993: CBA Impact Award – Total Promotional
Campaign, Music: The Basics of Life
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1994: CCM Magazine – Song of the Year:
"For Future Generations"
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1995: American Songwriter – Christian
Artist of the Year
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1996: CCM Readers' Poll – Favorite Long
Form Video: The Ride Comes Alive
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RIAA Certified Gold Album – The
Basics of Life (1996)
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Performed at "Sold Out 1998" Promise Keepers conference the day before
the Super Bowl
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The song "Ride of Life" was
featured in chiptune form on a NES game by Wisdom Tree, on a cartridge which included
their game Sunday Funday
I was very still for a long time, just basking in His manifest presence when suddenly the Lord spoke to my spirit, 
