BE ORIGINAL.

The end is really the Beginning Theresa Dedmon

Creates with Purpose

Redprint A Fathers Heart Evolving Perfection

$4.50

ending to begin

here are few things that bring more anxiety in our lives than the perceived ending or beginning of something. We must keep in mind that the ending and beginning are one in the same held to high standards because they signal a transition that we are always in the midst of. When a child is born it is the end of the pregnancy, but the beginning of their life. One in which as the days pass they each begin to represent a smaller and smaller portion of the whole. Try telling a child to wait a week for something. They will most certainly respond A week! Thats a long time. Since I am writing this that mean that the world has not ended and we are starting at a world that is full of the same problems as before. What is the semi-sane optimist to do?

We have to remember that the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of God as the waters cover the sea. (Hab 2:14) In simpler terms it means this earth is harboring its own redemption. There is a day when all things will come to a head and transform this world. Our endings, no matter what form they take always have implications upon the next phase God has prepared for us. No matter the scope of understanding we must realize that nothing is destroyed. Better yet, there are no mistakes. What!!? Of course there are! No, when a painter make a stroke unplanned or errs in a way that does not fit in with the whole, does He stop? He continues to fold the mistake into the whole picture thus rendering the entire false move into a creative thrust that continues nonetheless. Fear is Ok, as long as you do not let it stop you. When we are frozen because of fear then the courage to go on has to come from a God who has no ending ever. Go forward and change the world, today. He has all the time in the world, we do not. The finite nature of our frail lives becomes obsolete in the shadow of the purpose and plan of the One whom has no beginning and no END. Nathan Bam Bam Stanton

Creative Director| Metatron magazine metatron@metatronmag.com

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dec-jan/12-13 Vol. 1, #9

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in this issue: 8 Theresa Dedmon fights for creativity

Erica finds out whta makes a revolutionary tick Bam on the latest installment from Rob Vick A test of historys resiliency

13 Mapping out the redprint 6 for the sake of posterity 10 Sandy shores

Prose and poem lend perspective to disaster

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Im(age)

Departments
Each month we profile artists, musicians and writers that rise into these medium categories. We hope you come away with inspiration and encouragement.

Miracleshout

15
Visual Art

12
Miracles

Golden Notes

8
Music

The one who is most dangerous is not the talented or passionate, but the disciplined. -Metatron Mag

Ripe Fire

10
Poetry/Prose

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ost of us spend our lives seeking the easiest way around obstacles. Hey whats not to like about comfort? It drives us to be tense about change all the while providing a false sense of security. Historically some of our most trying times have given way tto creative outbursts that cannot be matched. Proof that the beauty of the human condition is vividly seen even in the midst of suffering. On the timeline below are movements born out of moments of great suffering. Whether persecutions, war, disease or famine. The most undesirable conditions have produced the most innovative creavive movements

For the sake of posterity

and Revolution

Once you match the influencer with their era. With the order take the first letter from each color and use these additions (OWIN ILIY) in their current order to answer the question:

Why will LOVE never die?

nc ak om e e an ni ng ti N c is eg m ro Sp H ir ar it le ua m ls D R aD en ai a ss an A ce bs tr ac tE H ip xp -H re op ss io ni R
I G G
SB

en

an

li

It a

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at

A w

ai s

sa

O
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ts a strange coincidence that we had hurricane Sandy and now the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary. The name Sandy actually means defending man. This is a spiritual battle we are fighting. Satan wants nothing more than to bring more fear, hate and violence into our nation. But thank God for Jesus, our advocate, our DEFENDER, that you are in the midst of these tragedies. -Liz Stanton
Sandy How trivial are the children of strip clubs yet battered beyond measure expectations cave, capes point to the harmony of one mistake apt to send the whole season crashing Down forward tanking liquid and all of the mists traded for the comfort of a solid Our goals are made to drown well the vocal stances, sconces abscond extinguish crowns from terrycloth tattered robes not even with the defeat of Egyptian cotton fields fed by a breadth of ocean, returning from the bowels past burnt faces, Argued as the origin Of fantasy gyrations, support fancy eyes, seventeen or less marching, towards death or an invitation.

Metatron Dec-Jan 12/13

metatron
Editor-in-Chief Erica Henry Creative Director Nathan Bam Bam Stanton

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Web Designer Jeremy Pennington

Account Manager Liz Stanton Contributors: Theresa Dedmon, Zaire Jordan, Ken Reif, Rachael Tanger, Trevor Parker, Cecie Wilson, Jamie Solorio Photography Terry Hogg, Josh Russell, Francesco Sideli, Kara Stewart Photography, Dream Chicago, Anthony Allen, Exodus Music, Dana Gioia, Beni Johnson, Johnny and the Beloveds, The entire GCC family, the entire Bethel family, the entire Stanton/Muse family, the entire Lex family Special Thanks The Trinity, all of our subscribers, the spouses and children of team members, most of all to the Creator who makes it all happen.
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Dec-Jan 12/13

golden notes music Review

Redprint
4 M-halos out of 7
Exodus Music/December 2012

RobVick

edprint comes to us from the artist named Rob Vick, legal name Robert Vickers. He is a Kingdom artist in the most thorough sense of the word, passionate about his message and craft. He hails from Nashville, Tennessee and is a part of the label Exodus Music Group. Their motto is leading hip-hop out of the desert, an allusion to the story found in the Torah (first five books of the bible). This is not Christ-hop for the faint at heart. You find immediately from the first track, which is called Are You Ready?, the listener is taken into a place of decision. And this is a consistently visited theme throughout the album. Those who are wishy-washy or in Biblical terms, double-minded in their belief systems or convictions, are urged to make a stand; because one Kingdom has to be victorious.

Redprint is a word that is a play on many different concepts. First of all it feels like a subtle jab at the album Blueprint by Jay-Z, which contains a completely different subject matter. While his is mostly glorifying the life of overindulgence, Rob Vick urges sacrifice in the face of sacrifice by Jesus. Ever turn to your common place New Testament section? All of Jesus words are in red print. This is an obvious nod to the most concentrated form of the Gospel that is made available through parables, placing this album within the company and the expectation of being a modern day parable. Lastly, this also draws the listener into the images of Christ blood washing away sin and that being the very restorative and redemptive power that escapes from the soul of this artist. Personally, upon first listen of this album, I was thrilled to hear the quality and composition that lent itself well to the subject matter. After listening for a while, there were some sounds that became redundant and seemed to weigh heavily on the sonic nature of the album. I love the opening of Are You Ready? that comes in with an almost country sample and goes immediately into the high drums and catchy melody rapping, Some pirouette they way through this life/unaware of what they do from the day to the night.
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Some of the sounds seem to be outdated, especially the sped up sample sound a la Kanye West and at times I found myself waiting for the next one to come on. I also enjoyed the track Kingdom of Heaven its use of the Earth, Wind and Fire sample was superb because of its almost laid back story-telling structure that made the Kingdom sound like a joyful thing. Eddie Mo brings a graceful juxtaposition to the often heavy-handed nature of the gospel presentation in Redprint. In particular Samsons verse gave me a really picturesque vision of what the Kingdom looked like, that it could even be described by man in a casino in Las Vegas running up the tab to have it erased by Jesus. Also, the second song FOTW which stands for Follower of the Way has a very minimalist beat which is basically just a little synth and one drum, but they all ride the beat with a skill beholding of a professional. There werent many elements that held the album together a cohesive unit, but I felt like there were OK songs and there were really good songs. One of those really good songs is Faith. It also has a sped up soul sample, but I find myself singing the chorus daily- I gotta have faith, faith, faith. In this way Redprint found its way into my psyche

I find myself singing the chorus daily- I gotta have faith, faith, faith. In this way Redprint found its way into my psyche and even injected the Word in to my spirit.
and even injected the Word in to my spirit. There are some statements that are made that could be pretty offensive to Christians or even non-Christians alike. But like I said, this is not an album for the faint at heart. There are times when an artist stands firmly on their convictions and that conviction results in a bridge to those who may not believe the same thing. I dont believe this is one of those moments. This is a time to celebrate the legacy of the followers of Christ and there is an appeal or invitation at the end that welcomes those who are ready into the body. The track Image is the most heartfelt. The chorus chimes I know your image of me is what I hope to be Rob Vick transparently opines of his shortcomings as a man but he realizes jesus is gracious and will lead the way. Lately Ive been disappointed with the lack of fun Christian artists let themselves have. Our message is serious, and dont get me wrong it is the most important message, but its the joy of the Lord that is our strength. He brings a completely new perspective into a life that is committed to Him, and this is a joyful thing. Maybe because Im somewhat easy-going, I do not want to present a Gospel that doesnt sound like great news. And I believe this album, like others recent that Ive heard, would do well for a joy infusion. Because the world is getting better, not worse. And these are the words of Jesus, written in red print. -Bam

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A FATHERS HEART
BY Donna Schoenthal

ast Sunday a tender picture of the Fathers heart toward His children was displayed during the worship service. This picture was being portrayed in the front of the sanctuary where everyone would be able to embrace its beauty and drink of its message. It was a picture of a father kneeling on the floor before a canvas intently expressing with his brushes and paint what was burning in his heart. No sooner had the father taken up his brushes and knelt over his canvas than he was joined by his youngest daughter who quietly knelt beside him to view what was being painted and then with brush in hand begin to paint with him. There was no fear or hesitation as she joined her father. You could tell she had complete confidence in his approval and acceptance of her presence with him. There was no sign of rebuke or impatience from the father. I sensed how tenderly he allowed his daughter to express herself, how skillfully he blended what she had painted with what he was doing. Together they knelt before the canvas and together they painted, each expressing what was in their heart, blending their imaginations together into a beautiful painting. The sight before me captured my heart for it spoke of the Heavenly Father kneeling over the earth with brush in His hand to paint what is in His heart and of His children gathering around Him to not only view what He is doing but also to take up their brushes to paint with Him. It is a picture radiating with loving acceptance and intimacy as the children work alongside the Heavenly Father in all His awesome glory and authority. The picture freely spoke of how patiently and tenderly the Father takes what His children have painted and blends it with what He is doing as together they paint a picture of His Kingdom and of His will on earth. How

lovingly He teaches, allowing us to express what He has placed in our hearts, how strong is His call to come and paint with Him. What a tender picture of the Fathers love for His children in the midst of our songs of worship and expressions of our love for Him.

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Theresa Dedmon, Inciter of Revolutionary Creativity

heresa Dedmon believes that creativity is something that has been lost in Christian culture and has been denied its power to do good for humanity. She has found herself on a mission to change this course of events in order that more people get to experience the pleasure of creatingan inherent part of human natureand the supernatural power that comes with the act of creation. During our interview, Theresa referenced Biblical scripture that indicates that we were all meant to make and form things using our minds and imagination. She points to the fact that Jesus Christ told his disciples to go out into all the world and preach the gospel, without ever giving them a guidebook on how that should be done and in effect, leaving their methods open to interpretation. She also mentioned numerous places in scripture where individuals effected powerful change through the arts. Theresa always saw herself being a pastor in the more traditional sense of the word. She chose to go to Bible college instead of art school because she thought that was the best way to serve God. She never imagined that creativity would be the focus of her life, and she never envisioned this position for herselfa role in which she travels nationally and globally to train leaders and congregations about how they can use the power of the imagination to show love. She always thought that art and other worldly pursuits were secondary to the responsibility of preaching about salvation from sins. Theresa now believes that this exciting call to free people to be the creative beings they were meant to be is her lifes work, and it gives her joy. EH: What have been the responses of the people who you train? TD: They come alive. Its like this, for a long time the church has really lost creativity. When the whole grace message really radically transformed the church with Martin Luther in the 1600s, he thought that idolatry happened through creativity instead of realizing that it was through the corruption of the church that people began to worship idols of Mary or of different saints within the church. He basically threw out all creativity in the church. Even having a cross in your home or in your church would be considered idolatrous or sacrilegious. What happened is that the church became very colorless and it lost its creative edge. Whoever leads in creativity is basically influencing our culture. If you and I were going to see who is impacting our culture, we Metatron Dec-Jan 12/13 11

would turn on the ipod and see what the top songs are or what the tops TV stations are or what the top movies are. Basically, creativity is what influences culture the most. If you take creativity away from the church or away from a Christian, then people arent going to be coming there, because its not influencing them. Thats why things like Jesus Culture, which has happened here, is so influential. Its tapping into the heartbeat of what the youth and the young people are listening to. I go to these churches, and I showcase to them how creativity can influence people. We see this in negative ways, what happened with the holocaust and how Hitler impacted a whole country to basically accept Jews being incinerated in their own hometowns through the media, for example with pictures of Jews with large noses in the newspaper. You can see how creativity impacted a whole culture to deny what they truly believed and how it is highly influential. So I am introducing things back to the church. I want them to stop and notice, Wait a second, Jesus is the one, God is the one, who is creative. Jesus spoke in parables. He drew and did prophetic art in the sand and created something without saying a word, and all the accusers left the woman who was caught in adultery that they were going to stone. Paul started singing when he was in prison and because of that all the jail doors flew open and they were saved and so were all the prisoners. David sang and he played over Saul in the Old Testament, and the demons left Saul. We have so much creativity that we havent tapped into, because we havent accepted the fact that we are creative and that creativity has a supernatural ele-

I try and I teach people that God is creative, and everything we create, if we do it in Gods presence, carries a weight, carries an anointing behind it and therefore it can transform people.
ment that can release blessing and can release healing and can really set people free. Thats what I bring. Jesus said that he wanted us to go into all the world, and he wanted us to make disciples, and he wanted us to heal the sick, but he never said how. There is no blueprint: this is how you pray, this is what you do, and that is because he wanted us to be creative, and he wanted us to understand that is through partnering with the Holy Spirit that we can creatively release things through song, through dance, through art, through creativity, through vision to really touch and transform society and to really awaken people to who God is. EH: After you decided to pursue the arts pastoring, did this theology about creativity come naturally or was it revealed to you somehow? TD: It came as I began to share miracles about people getting healed through art, through people getting touched. I thought I have to begin to research this Biblically. I began to see the effects of what happened the church and how the church hasnt really embraced that call. I began to see the supernatural part of it as well. I didnt just want to just train people how to do stuff creatively but also the supernatural part of how God can work through that to see healing, to see prophetic, to see blessing, like we talked about at the holiday feast, to really transform a city. Most people who have seen creativity do it for their own enjoyment. Most artists paint because they want money. In other words, it is for their own profit. And I say, no, creativity was meant to 12 Metatron Dec-Jan 12/13

bless others, to really prosper others as well. I try and I teach people that God is creative, and everything we create, if we do it in Gods presence, carries a weight, carries an anointing behind it and therefore it can transform people. I will give you a simple example of that, a simple testimony. We have people that go out every Thursday into the marketplace, 200 people, maybe more. I had an intern who said he had a degree in stick figures. In other words, he wasnt a trained artist. It was Valentines and we also parlay what the culture identifies and understands, and then we create a platform for them to understand the love of God and understand who they are to God. So he made a simple valentine, and he was at the store. And there was an elderly woman waiting in line to go to the bank teller. So he approached her and says, Maam, I have a valentine for you. And she goes, I cant hear you. So he yells and explains it to her, and he goes, Do you have a problem with hearing? And she goes, Yes, I am profoundly deaf. And he says, Well, I would like to pray for you, but I will wait for your transition, for you to go to the bank teller. Because we always want to honor people and honor establishments. Honor is a core value in what we do. And she goes, No, no, no, they can wait. So the bank tellers, all these people, are watching this process. So they pray and she gets completely healed, and she is able to hear perfectly. And again he explains his valentine. And he goes, Wow, this has been a great day for you. And even the bank teller and everyone else is so excited for her. And she goes, Young man, I am so excited that I am healed, but the greatest thing that happened is that I understood that God loves me. I have been a Christian and I have gone to church my whole life, but I never understood that God personally loves me. I am going to put this valentine on my mantle so I can remember this time. And he is thinking I just drew a simple valentine that took probably five minutes, but she was so wrecked by the love of God because he was

drawing in Gods presence, so it was a direct target to her heart. That is the kind of stuff that happens every time we go out. We have miracles that happen like this every time When that happened, I began to see, oh my gosh, I have got to get the word out. EH: I love the idea that creativity itself is transformational and brings about the supernatural. TD: To me, its things that I didnt really understand until I started to study scripture. How Bezalel in Exodus was filled with the Holy Spirit, and then he was anointed

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to make the Ark of the Covenant and how important that was to God for us to have a representation of who He is. In Numbers how Moses, how all the people were backbiting and there were snakes sent and they were killing the people. Moses went to God, and God says create a serpent. So he created something that had the opposite effect, and when the people looked at the serpent, they were healed. There you go. Its right there, creativity that brings about healing. It breaks off that opposite spirit. That is so important that we understand what is robbing our culture of purity, of the right moral standards, of who God truly is. Its all happening through the arts. Its happening through songs, its happening through movies Why wouldnt God want us to use that same vehicle to bring about shifts and changes? EH: Were there indicators that led other people to give you words saying that you would oversee arts? TD: To tell you the truth, there were indicators, but I didnt put two and two together. I remember in our high school yearbook when you open the front cover they had a picture of me holding a painting I had done of Jesus. And they took it right in front of my public high school. I never put two and two together. When I look back I can see there were indicators about what God was saying to me and how he really had blessed me, and how this was really related to a call that I had. When I came up here to Bethel, basically no one knew me. I went to a leaders advance, and there is a time when students from our school of ministry go around and they encourage people there and they ask God what he is saying to them and we call that prophecy. They didnt know me from Adam, so there was no past understanding of who I was. The student goes, I see an arts movement on you. I just hear that song from West Side Story, I Feel Pretty and there is just something from your life that you are going to be leading. And I was thinking, You have the wrong person. I preach, I teach, I have been involved so much in pastoring and doing things out in the city to touch people but not in a way that would categorize me as a person that would be leading that. No way. I didnt even have a grid for it. Then I began to activate on that word I just activated where I could on what was given to me. And when Chris Valloton asked me to oversee this ministry, I realized I am carrying this ball nowthis ball is mine. I could begin to create and begin to dream. And thats when I embraced it fully. Before that it was a great word, but I wasnt quite believing it, because it seemed like the way for me to really teach people and train people about God would be through preaching. Thats the model I had my whole life. The fact that God could use creativity We have people that bake and do drama who are changing peoples lives We have people that are seeing how God is using their passions to transform society...

You can listen to the full interview with Theresa Dedmon on www.metatronmag.com, and you can check out Theresas website at http://createsupernaturally.com. Read more about creating supernaturally in her manuals and books including Cultivating Kingdom Creativity and Born to Create, published this past April. Look for a forthcoming DVD series and workbook, as well as inspirational childrens books in the not-so-distant future.

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Glory reflection, Paint on Canvas, 12/12

where a cleric from Frombork in Poland decided one day that he wanted to change the world. Well maybe he didnt decide that he wanted to change the world, he knew he couldnt leave it the way it was. For centuries astronomers and astrologers alike claimed the earth was the center of the universe. This natural philosophy was established by Ptolmey and confirmed by Aristotle. Its inaccuracies were usually buoyed by some theory concocted for that purpose. It was the catalyst, Copernicus, who dared to see the universe in a different way and then set about proving it to everyone. Recently astronomers have discovered that there is only one perfect occurring sphere in nature. So of all the things that are round or circular, from rocks to eyes of tornados, none appear to be as perfect as the sun. This becomes a very subtle but powerful admonition to us for how we should build our personal universes. The imperfection of humans are put on display and amplified when they are put at the center of any relationship or organization. Its important for us to keep the only perfect sphere in the middle. The only one who lived a perfect, sinless life. The ability of Copernicus to turn against all conventional wisdom was the divine inspiration that he walked in daily and even the desire to discover the mysteries hed seen appear as a youth. The son is personified well in the sun. Revolve to evolve.

Perfection. The Copernican Revolution is the point

But to you who fear My name The Sun of Righteousness shall arise With healing in His wings;

Malachi 4:2

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