Introducing Inder Paul
I have noticed that when we as Christians follow Jesus and give our lives to him, we come across the most amazing testimonies, that serve as a source of encouragement. Through my brother in Christ, which I featured on the blog (Ope) I met Inder Paul. He has a story to share, so keep reading if you want to know more. Be sure to listen to his music, which praises Jesus and speaks realistically. All thanks and praise goes to Jesus for all the blessings that are endless.
Thank you Inder Paul for your time. You didn’t have to do this but you did. May God continue to bless and keep you on the straight path on your walk with Him. Amen.
Born again from the land of five rivers and five warriors.
A new creation but I kept the same name, Inder Paul Sandhu. Big up Rosemary for
giving me this platform to literally just be me and a warm shout out to all of
those who have taken the time to read this. Once again everyone my name is
Inder Paul Sandhu and I’m an artist that loves to rap, sing and perform.
I'm gonna kick this set with bringing you all in on a
prayer I made about a year and a half ago.
I will never forget this one prayer I made, I forgot the
date still, but never the prayer. I was walking home one time after Church and
I said to God, Lord I’m shook, I’m too shook to put myself out there on the
stage, please make it come to me. That was it pretty much and apparently all it
took, because the following Sunday when I was in Church my pastor Bankole
Folusho Akinlade, (he might switch for baiting up his middle name but
I’ll just blame that on Rosemary init) My pastor said we’re going to be putting
on an event called 300 and he wanted Ope Oyelana a.k.a Unique Creation my
brother from Church, (you’ve seen his handsome face on this blog before watch
him get gassed now but anyway...) to make a soundtrack and a theme song for the
event.
You would think that is where the story stops right? but
no, his eyes started to scan all the faces in the room and all I could remember
was my heart doing drum and bass rhythms; my eyes stuck on the floor and inside
my head I'm shouting 'Lord don’t let him call my name man' ... but he called my
name. Little did I know this was God answering my prayer from the previous
Sunday through my pastor, who in general God likes to work through. Before I
knew it, Ope equipped with new beat he freshly made, was ringing up my line
asking when was I free to roll to the studio.
You have to remember the closest I'd ever even remotely
got to rapping was when I was with my dons (brothers) in the world getting wavy
over a few spliffs and brews; in an alleyway or in a car and even then we'd be
rapping about making money, our dislike for police, an intense love for
violence and even as far as cussing each others mothers and sisters. As for
singing? Singing was permanently confined to my bathroom and as far I was
concerned that was where it was going to stay. Lo and behold, I now found
myself on a train with my brother Ope, on our way to record some bars over what
some may call a “Gospel” tune. Even that experience was mad in itself, because
I was using an ability, which I wouldn't have classed a talent back then.
Rather, I used an ability to now glorify something or someone other than
myself. I even had me a chance to minister to the studio engineer still.
This was enjoyable for me because a lot of the brother's questions were once my
questions (well my excuses which I can now call them) that I had for rejecting
The Christ.
I wish I could tell you all that me and Ope left that
studio singing hymns and trading scripture high fiving and that but the truth
is the first thing that I did when I came out the booth when all was said and
done was spark up my grade (weed). I still remember thinking why isn't Ope saying anything about the spliff? Why isn't he rebuking me or giving man ten
thousand scriptures against ganja? It's only later I learnt that he was giving
me Grace and choosing his spot to speak, like a few people were doing in my
life - including God.
You see I wasn't born a Christian, I got saved around the
age of 18. Let me not blame my misunderstanding of Grace for the longest time,
the lack of good fellowship or lack of follow up from the Church I gave my life
in, though I believe those are all contributory factors, but I fell away back
into my default setting. Actually I think I upped it a couple levels. I see
that God was being patient with me, just like my mother had been when I was out
there trying to live this lie, live this dream of “making it” on The Roads.
Each and every word God had put out there for me to eat,
only to get ignored just like the plate of food my mum would prepare for
me at home, that would only get scraped into the bin because I was never
there. I now understand all these things were expressions of a divine Love that
was willing to endure whatever it took for me to get me back onto a straight
and narrow path. Life was mad when I look back on it. I remember waking up at
dumb times like 7pm leaving the house as my mum was coming home from work only
to make it back to my yard at 7am when my mum would be leaving for work. It's
mad like, all the sleepless nights I caused and the tears I put in her eyes...
imagine how God felt? He's got one youth playing with his life outside in the
dark under street lamps and another one of his kids in her bed crying.
I was involved in the whole gang culture, let me make no
false statements when I say that I was always “self made” so my loyalty would
always lie with myself but none the less in the various groups I chose to
affiliate myself with, the gang mentality was one I was drawn to. In fact, I
thrived off it. I sought genuine pleasure from others' discomfort. I was also
brought up in a way where my olders’ taught me being on the wrong side of the
law was the place to be. Again, let me not make any false statements, these
olders' I speak of were unwise counsel and an adopted family that I took a
liking to out there on the streets because they took a liking to me. They
filled my head with all sorts of nonsense to one point where prison was a badge
of honour to earnestly seek and being arrested and having trouble with the
police gave bragging rights for years to come.
I was an unproductive member of society and my household.
I had no long term aspirations I was merely living for the day and for a dream
I had been sold from early. The friends started to disappear one by one or
change their loyalties with rivals, which I didn’t hold against them because as
I stated earlier my loyalty would always rest with myself. My so-called family
were disintegrating before my eyes; not to mention the turbulence of
my own actual family life. I could go on about my past but maybe we'll
meet one day who knows? and I can tell you more face to face but till then I
would like to shift your attention to where I am now.
So from that one little trip to the studio with my brother
Ope, I went on to record a whole group EP, called The Response. The Lord opened
doors for that because a man called Jonathan formerly known as Munksta from
Newham Generals, had given his life to Christ 3 years earlier. He had taken a
liking to our track 300 and was willing to help us produce The Response EP. In
fact he gave us countless hours of his own time in his studio and beats that he
had made at no charge, except the occasional McDonalds that I would even have
to force upon him. One performance led to another and before I knew it, we were
ministering in different parts of the country. God had really drawn me closer
into His presence via this beautiful medium we know as music. People around me
especially from back in the day didn’t take this new “Paul” seriously at all,
but the more I rested in the promise of this ministry, perceptions changed and
doors swung wide open. I currently have my pre solo EP teaser out there for the
world to enjoy and I am working on my solo EP right now as we speak, which has
a bag of surprises in it so mind out when it lands.
I know what God has in store for me is even bigger than
what I can imagine, and if you know me I got me a crazy imagination, so I
couldn't even begin to describe the excitement I have for my future. You can
keep up to date with all of my moves, via any of the links Miss Rosemary has
kindly shared for me.
Last thing I wanted to leave with you is don't call me a
Christian rapper, when you hit up your dentist I'm sure you don’t tweet “en
route to my athiest dentist” - sounds stupid right? Music is music lets leave
it that.
After reading what was supposed to my finishing words,
Miss Rosemary said to me "Just one question, why don't you like the term
Christian rapper?"
And I went on to say for me, it’s really a lot deeper than
just a title. I like to evangelise man, its a disposition I have to be out
there and speak to people, me I'm a people person.
Now If I was to approach everyone (and by everyone I mean
predominantly those who aren't Saved) under the label of "Christian"
or funnier labels that I've been called in the past such as "Jesus
boy" or "Church Man" (actually saying that one of my dons
(brothers) calls me "Gospel" which I'm a fan of still but that’s
another story). If I were to approach, or be introduced under a title some or
most people shall I say, would have associated whatever pre conceived notions
that they have, and glue that to me. Some would even dive out the way, which
they more or less do anyway when I try to stop them, but if I came with a label
their mental shutters are more prone to coming down, conversation may not be
possible or at best limited.
I’m not saying this is the case all the time, but in my
experience it has been most of the time. When I just approach them as any guy,
kinda like the scripture when Paul said, I
become all things unto all men [1 Corinthians 9: 19-23], the results are
mega because I come to their level and I don't mean that in a patronising or
derogatory way, what I mean is I come to them at face value or a from place
that’s relative to them. Then going forward, whatever type of value they place
upon me or associate to me is on them. People are going to do this anyway so
lets try our best to make their thought process as open and unbiased as
possible.
Our beef (fight) ain’t against flesh and blood, but powers, principalities and in war [Ephesians
6:12] - you gotta be wise. You can’t just show up to the battle ground and
be planning your moves from there. I’m sorry thats a slip… it’s too late then,
you need to have a game plan from early. You think the devil is happy with us
when we minister to the unsaved? Definitely NOT, he will use all the junk and
nonsense he's already fed the world from day against us.
I dislike being put into a box its unnecessary, it limits
me. Don’t get it twisted Its nice to spit to Christians, to sing and perform
for them, I love encouraging the body because its beautiful still, but I rather
reach all the dons and sisters that ain’t in the Church. That's the main
calling right? Discipleship. If along the way my bars or notes hit a brother or
sister in The Faith and encourage them – that’s great, but know that’s a
secondary objective for me. Bare in mind I say this with the full knowledge that
most of my performances have been in Churches and in Christian arenas.
I did this event called The Soho Arts Fair not too long
ago, it was outside in Carnaby street so you can imagine shoppers etc. would be
stopping as they walked past to listen and watch. Now if they announced me as a
Christian rapper I’m telling you, half the seeds that got planted wouldn't have,
why? because these dons would have left or brought about their pre conceived
notions; which is the last thing anybody that’s Ministering needs. The world
has painted us as Christians in a very crooked and false way, as passive, even
fake and boring people. We gotta be wise in how we infiltrate these peoples
minds, to further qualify that I mean in how we share Christ with them,
sometimes the best we can do is to share via our lives as the example but other
times we have the privilege of actually speaking to them directly and from
there boom, its Christ in the
spotlight not you. What is the taste you wanna leave? Does that mean I ever
deny The Gospel or my love for Christ, never that please. Christ is the center
of this ministry here. I need to make sure I’m relatable to everyone not just
the Christians.
I am a Christian, I
know that and the Lord knows that. I don’t need to tell the world my music is
inspired by my faith for them to know that, from the minute you push play on
one of my dubs it is bait. So it’s not out of pride or me wanting to separate
my talent from Christ, that’s ridiculous. My talent, my being is in Christ, it
would be silly for me to even attempt that. That would be like a wheel from a
car trying to be a car all on is own. I’m just trying to position myself as a
walking Ministry into the best spot I can stand in to get souls saved. Others
may disagree and that’s their choice, but by my fruits they will know me.
Keep up with Inder Paul via the links below (I've heard his music and I am a fan - He represents for Jesus):
2 comments
What a wonderful testimony! God bless you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading, God bless you too.
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