The Radiance Road Compiled

by Hans Sirotniak '24

PREVIOUSLY DISCUSSED ON THE RADIANCE ROAD...

We have to fight on our knees!

In the “in-between,” waiting...

In the beginning, God said, “Let there be light.”

“THE WEAPON OF THE SURVIVOR”

I am guessing that you have probably heard of some stories where characters go on adventures. They travel the lengths of the world, day and night, seeking, knowing that this time, this moment, is their journey. It is their life. It is their destiny. One day at a time, they go on that journey, traveling to the ends of the earth to resolve that one conflict, trying to win over the chaos and the evil that has taken them captive. Perhaps they momentarily make a pit stop in a cave, in a vault, in a base, in a house, or in the heights of a skyscraper. There, they can find their weapon, what they are looking for: maybe a key, a sword, a card, a torch, or a staff. They take the weapon to fight against evil. They are kept safe by a simple resource, one that is most likely made by hands just like theirs, yet it has the power to keep them safer than they can be on their own. As they fight against evil, they keep this weapon handy. They use it for the victory. The spiritual survivors do the same. They pick up a map, and in this map, they will find the way to their weapon.

What is the weapon? In the spiritual battle, we fight against temptation, against sin, against the lies. We build ourselves up to radiance, which is a symbol for ourselves being devoted to God completely, uniting ourselves to God in everything we do, and letting God make our lives greater. To get there, the path takes establishing trust, being taught and encouraged, connecting to God’s love, putting other things aside, giving up fear, setting a foundation, and receiving spiritual formation.

With lives of devotion, we can become resilient in our struggles, valiant in living out the Faith, and permanently connected to God. Permanence is the weapon in the spiritual battle, counteracting the horror of being separated from God forever.

There are many ways to use the resources we have to remind ourselves to strive for permanence.

Before we consider those resources, however, imagine yourself putting a great amount of your time, effort, and strength into something you believe in. For some people, the thing that they commit to is a career and a ministry in Christian music. Hopefully, you have been able to hear a sign of that commitment and that effort if you have listened to some Christian songs recently. You can sense the beats, the influential lyrics, the thoughtful messages, and the sense of connection that is established. While some artists might be doing this to simply advance their careers, there are other artists who stand out in dedication and service, creating music to help people to reach their potential in being great signs and witnesses of living a life dedicated to God.

We have seen many examples of this dedication, but it is especially apparent in the lives of Christian Rock and Christian Gospel artists. There is no doubt that starting and maintaining a rock band or singing in a Gospel choir requires a lot of time, dedication, and perseverance, but doing these things for the glory of God offers meaning and purpose throughout whatever highs and lows occur during the process.

As we take a look at some of their pieces of music, let us remember to offer our all to God, who is dedicated and persevering in making us into His masterpieces.

The following songs are copyrighted by their respective owners. I attempt to mention songs in accordance with fair use guidelines for commentary and educational purposes. I am not affiliated with any of the websites/links/organizations/artists mentioned.

It’s time to turn up the radio! If you’ve been following the past stories about Christian music, you’ve witnessed a preview of how Christian music can be beneficial in finding radiance. For this final story, it is time to present a very simple and easy way to get music in a much larger context, using our resources to access the radio. Throughout frequencies and the internet, the waves travel from place to place, lighting up the world through the message they spread.

How can the radio help with the path to radiance? In the spiritual battle, what matters is what believers do in those other moments, the moments when the community is not gathered in-person to praise and celebrate the goodness of God. It matters what these people do in the silence, in those times when no one is watching, in those times where temptations come near. The goal is to make it through, to be a survivor.

Many Christian radio stations have a community behind them that encourages people to believe in God’s love. Listening to Christian radio is also a great way to complement spiritual formation. For example, radio can be used to learn more about scripture in addition to learning it from official religious education, as many songs and on-air discussions are based on important scripture verses. Through the radio, songs present the same message that says to keep getting up, to keep trying, to keep taking those second chances over and over again, continuing to keep believing even when things are super difficult. The reminder of God is there at all hours of the day, and even when someone can’t physically listen, there are many pieces of content and lyrics to be read online on radio stations’ websites.

The radio isn’t necessarily a source of perfect songs or perfect content. Christian songs don’t fully address all the answers needed to know everything about the Christian Faith. Christian radio hosts themselves are not perfect people either. However, with all things considered in the end, God can still use Christian music and Christian radio to help us become closer to seeing His perfection.

Christian radio spans across a variety of genres, subgenres, locations, and languages. Some Christian radio stations focus exclusively on talk shows, while others focus on music and talk shows or just music. Many stations include the following categories: community, new music, engaging messages, fellowship, and radio shows. Although most radio stations are centered around a specific location range, they are generally able to be accessed online from anywhere in the country with an internet connection. (continued)

• Some examples of Christian Contemporary stations are WGTS 91.9 (local), WPER (local), The House FM (Ponca City), K-LOVE (throughout the country), SOS Radio (throughout the country), The Message (SiriusXM Radio), and WayFM (throughout the country).

• Some examples of Praise & Worship stations are Worship 24/7 (throughout the country), Air1 (throughout the country), and CrossOverFM (Cedar City).

• Some examples of Pop & Hip-Hop stations are LF Radio (Sarasota), BOOST Radio (throughout the country), CurrentFM (Virginia Beach), NGEN Radio (online), and His Radio Z (Spartanburg).

• Some examples of Rock stations are YesFM (Toledo), WAY LOUD (online), RadioU (online), and ChristianRock.net (online).

• Some examples of Gospel stations are Praise 104.1 (local) and Holy Culture (SiriusXM Radio).

• An example of a Christian Talk station is American Family Radio (throughout the country), and an example of a station that plays a variety of subgenres is WJTL (Manheim).

Most of these stations you can search up and listen to right away on their internet pages or smartphone apps to help you continue on this spiritual journey. Thank you very much for reading this edition of Christian music articles for the Crossroads publication. This has been the Radiance Road.

Since 2020, PVI '24 graduate Hans Sirotniak has been compiling many different playlists of old and new, thoughtful and inspiring, and uplifting and motivating creative Christian songs. God has blessed him with the ability to listen to these impactful songs, find meaning in them, and share them with others. Hans served as the Senior Editor and an integral leader on the Crossroads editorial team during his senior year at PVI. He is current enjoying his freshman year at the College of William & Mary.

Enjoy the remaining days of summer '24, and I hope you will consider joining The Writer’s Block Club and contributing to Crossroads this new school year!

~ Hans '24