“Use the little that God gives you, be responsible with it and He multiplies it”
He efficiently strums the guitar, plays the piano and the harmonica; he composes, sings, writes poetry and is also a Graphic Designer, but Jonathan Mesen is mostly a man of faith who dared enough to give up his childhood ambition for a much nobler cause.
The fact that he always dreamt of being part of the fast and furious Corporate World isn’t anyone’s guess. He was born and brought up at Rengma Mission Centre, Tseminyu, with his father being closely associated with the Mission Field. He later graduated from Symbiosis Pune.
Clearly, he studied Economics to fulfil his dream but says, “God had other plans for me.” He went on to pursue a 4-year Bachelor’s Degree in Divinity from Union Biblical Seminary at Pune.
“God’s call for me was very clear,” Jonathan states, even as he became passionately involved with the Naga Christian Fellowship as Worship Leader and Chairman, and simultaneously developed a deep interest in writing and singing.
His first book was born in 2008 with a foreword by Dr &
Mrs Monty Barker, Bristol, UK, which reads: “Jonathan is known to many
of you as a skilled musician; what some of you may not know is that he
is also a wordsmith, one who carries words in his head, and is all the
time weaving them into thoughts, which seek to express some of the
deepest longings of a young person’s heart”.
The poetry book titled, “When your heart won’t go on…” also carry beautiful reviews by Dove Award Winning Singer/Songwriter, Lenny Leblanc, English Professor (Retd), University of Pune, Grace Jacob and Chief Training Officer, Ravi Zacharias International Ministries, Cyril Georgson.
As for music, it has always been part of Jonathan’s life although, perhaps, he started playing instruments and singing only later. He did get himself trained in the category of voice while he was in Pune, but except for this one, the rest of his skills seem to come naturally whether it’s playing an instrument, designing, writing, composing or singing.
If you ask him how somebody could be gifted with such a variety of talents, his answer quite simple. “Use the little that God gives you, be responsible with it and He multiplies it” – this is what he strongly believes in. It is true that he is a self-taught man who has come a long way experimenting, learning, practicing and most of all, using his gifts the way he is supposed to.
He insists that he knows only the basics of music, writing or designing but one will have to decide otherwise after watching him indulge in his many interests. And he has also walked an extra mile to come close to the release of his debut album “Being me”, which is a blend of jazz, blues, alternative, worship and love songs with biblical principles. For somebody who also started exploring tools and designing out of curiosity he has professionally managed to design his own album which will be on the stands soon.
He is obviously a man of many talents but his greater commitment is something much nobler as I mentioned before. To become a Theologian wasn’t in his scheme of plans since he grew up in such an environment and sometimes saw theologians lead hypocritical lives (as he puts it), but then, again, deep down, he has also always wanted to serve God.
That’s how, after returning from Pune, he joined the Union Baptist Church, Kohima, first as Worship Leader for one year and an Associate Pastor for two years now.
“Church environment is not a new thing for me”, he says, and passionately adds, “If we really want to serve God, 24 hours is too less a time.”
His desire, he confesses, has always been to come back home, especially to help the youth “know God, know life and enjoy life.” Also wary of the fact that many people tend to keep their distance from Church Leaders and Pastors, he says, “I know this language, I know how they feel, and when they talk to me without reservations I feel good because they are pouring out their hearts to me.”
Did I mention that he is one of the youngest pastors that I know?
Talking of his experiences, he says it is challenging but rewarding. There is sheer joy in his eyes when he states, “We may not be able to change the whole Kohima but I believe we are making a difference in someone’s life…in the past 3 years, I have seen young people changing lives, from black to white, and I know that I make a difference in someone’s life.”
In their Campus Mission that reaches out to young people, specifically students in high schools, colleges and universities, he talks about visiting hostels and conducting retreats and having chapel time, all to the accompaniment of good music - all of which are evangelistic in nature and gives them an opportunity to respond to God’s love. The team of 12-15 in the Campus Mission, which includes a few theologians and volunteers, is also fervently involved with ‘PowerComm, for every nation, tongue and tribe’, a English Sunday Service for diverse communities at UBC.
It is his greater goal “to create in young people’s mind, the hunger and thirst for God’s word.” He admits that it is challenging and not easy, ‘because when they hear church and bible study, they give the boring look’. “And so I tell my team to make sure they are making it creative, interesting, so that even when they leave Kohima, they will go looking for church,” says Jonathan.
The most challenging part of working with young people, he says, is relating to them because some of them have the “do you know us?” kind of attitude, and they find it hard to relate with church leaders. But there is great hope in his eyes as he says that they are working hard towards breaking these barriers. He feels that a simple, genuine “how are you doing?” can seriously make a big difference.
The multi-talented, young, lively Pastor said ‘I do’ to the lovely Meneno Moses last December…….and even as the young couple has joyfully begun this new chapter in the journey of life, yes, happily for us, he’s got more plans to publish books, design, compose and sing more songs.
“You have a talent, use it for the Lord”……this is a song that many of us sang loud and hard in our Sunday Schools while growing up. Here is one who’s truly living it – he is using God’s gifts and making his life a gift back to God.
He efficiently strums the guitar, plays the piano and the harmonica; he composes, sings, writes poetry and is also a Graphic Designer, but Jonathan Mesen is mostly a man of faith who dared enough to give up his childhood ambition for a much nobler cause.
The fact that he always dreamt of being part of the fast and furious Corporate World isn’t anyone’s guess. He was born and brought up at Rengma Mission Centre, Tseminyu, with his father being closely associated with the Mission Field. He later graduated from Symbiosis Pune.
Clearly, he studied Economics to fulfil his dream but says, “God had other plans for me.” He went on to pursue a 4-year Bachelor’s Degree in Divinity from Union Biblical Seminary at Pune.
“God’s call for me was very clear,” Jonathan states, even as he became passionately involved with the Naga Christian Fellowship as Worship Leader and Chairman, and simultaneously developed a deep interest in writing and singing.
His first book was born in 2008 with a foreword by Dr &
Mrs Monty Barker, Bristol, UK, which reads: “Jonathan is known to many
of you as a skilled musician; what some of you may not know is that he
is also a wordsmith, one who carries words in his head, and is all the
time weaving them into thoughts, which seek to express some of the
deepest longings of a young person’s heart”.The poetry book titled, “When your heart won’t go on…” also carry beautiful reviews by Dove Award Winning Singer/Songwriter, Lenny Leblanc, English Professor (Retd), University of Pune, Grace Jacob and Chief Training Officer, Ravi Zacharias International Ministries, Cyril Georgson.
As for music, it has always been part of Jonathan’s life although, perhaps, he started playing instruments and singing only later. He did get himself trained in the category of voice while he was in Pune, but except for this one, the rest of his skills seem to come naturally whether it’s playing an instrument, designing, writing, composing or singing.
If you ask him how somebody could be gifted with such a variety of talents, his answer quite simple. “Use the little that God gives you, be responsible with it and He multiplies it” – this is what he strongly believes in. It is true that he is a self-taught man who has come a long way experimenting, learning, practicing and most of all, using his gifts the way he is supposed to.
He insists that he knows only the basics of music, writing or designing but one will have to decide otherwise after watching him indulge in his many interests. And he has also walked an extra mile to come close to the release of his debut album “Being me”, which is a blend of jazz, blues, alternative, worship and love songs with biblical principles. For somebody who also started exploring tools and designing out of curiosity he has professionally managed to design his own album which will be on the stands soon.
He is obviously a man of many talents but his greater commitment is something much nobler as I mentioned before. To become a Theologian wasn’t in his scheme of plans since he grew up in such an environment and sometimes saw theologians lead hypocritical lives (as he puts it), but then, again, deep down, he has also always wanted to serve God.
That’s how, after returning from Pune, he joined the Union Baptist Church, Kohima, first as Worship Leader for one year and an Associate Pastor for two years now.
“Church environment is not a new thing for me”, he says, and passionately adds, “If we really want to serve God, 24 hours is too less a time.”
His desire, he confesses, has always been to come back home, especially to help the youth “know God, know life and enjoy life.” Also wary of the fact that many people tend to keep their distance from Church Leaders and Pastors, he says, “I know this language, I know how they feel, and when they talk to me without reservations I feel good because they are pouring out their hearts to me.”
Did I mention that he is one of the youngest pastors that I know?
Talking of his experiences, he says it is challenging but rewarding. There is sheer joy in his eyes when he states, “We may not be able to change the whole Kohima but I believe we are making a difference in someone’s life…in the past 3 years, I have seen young people changing lives, from black to white, and I know that I make a difference in someone’s life.”
In their Campus Mission that reaches out to young people, specifically students in high schools, colleges and universities, he talks about visiting hostels and conducting retreats and having chapel time, all to the accompaniment of good music - all of which are evangelistic in nature and gives them an opportunity to respond to God’s love. The team of 12-15 in the Campus Mission, which includes a few theologians and volunteers, is also fervently involved with ‘PowerComm, for every nation, tongue and tribe’, a English Sunday Service for diverse communities at UBC.
It is his greater goal “to create in young people’s mind, the hunger and thirst for God’s word.” He admits that it is challenging and not easy, ‘because when they hear church and bible study, they give the boring look’. “And so I tell my team to make sure they are making it creative, interesting, so that even when they leave Kohima, they will go looking for church,” says Jonathan.
The most challenging part of working with young people, he says, is relating to them because some of them have the “do you know us?” kind of attitude, and they find it hard to relate with church leaders. But there is great hope in his eyes as he says that they are working hard towards breaking these barriers. He feels that a simple, genuine “how are you doing?” can seriously make a big difference.
The multi-talented, young, lively Pastor said ‘I do’ to the lovely Meneno Moses last December…….and even as the young couple has joyfully begun this new chapter in the journey of life, yes, happily for us, he’s got more plans to publish books, design, compose and sing more songs.
“You have a talent, use it for the Lord”……this is a song that many of us sang loud and hard in our Sunday Schools while growing up. Here is one who’s truly living it – he is using God’s gifts and making his life a gift back to God.
No comments:
Post a Comment