Dichotomy

I'm a Christian. And I'm a Hip-Hop kid.

I'm a Hip-Hop kid. And I'm a Christian.

These two statements are not the same. Yet I am the same. I am a Christian Hip-Hop kid. I am a Hip-Hop Christian kid.

I'm from the house that KRS-One built, on the foundation of King Solomon. I stand in my B-boy stance, in an effort to dance like David danced. A few minutes ago, I tried to familiarize myself with this new thingy called "The Wu-Tang" while calling out "Ballliiinn'...". If I could, I'd marry Lauryn Hill, but I don't even know if she's a Proverbs 31 Woman. Chingy makes me mad and Rapper's Delight makes me smile. I'd spit a 16 with Mos Def if at all possible, but I couldn't do it in the name of Allah.

Since I first heard Biggie's "Let's Ride", I've been taking Distance Learning classes at the Temple of Hip-Hop. But before then, I've called myself a believer. Singing along with Ron Kenoly and Kirk Franklin in the kitchen with my little sister, it was all I knew. A few years later, and my tastes include Kanye West and Tye Tribbett. All I believe has been sculpted from a lifetime of following Christ. Yet, connecting myself with the art of Spoken Word, I take my pencil and scribble a line between a statement and a rant.

And the line tends to blur, because even if I draw it at foolishness like low-hanging chains and Ms. New Booty, who's being fooled? Am I that mature that I am not influenced? Does the world have such a grip on me that I can't see what's being done?

I'm a Hip-Hop Kid. I'm a Christian.

I am a Christian. I am a Hip-Hop head.

God requires all of me. Hip-Hop desires more of me. God wants me to be distinct, set myself apart. Hip-Hop says the same thing, but everyone else tries to look the part. And I'd stop listening to it if I could/knew how to, because scripture says that God pretty much despises anything lukewarm. (And who does?)
What does this say about me? For all the lyrical prowess that Talib Kweli possesses, it is still an undeniable fact that our faiths are two different things. Where do I draw the line? Do constantly pacify myself by saying something like, "This is between God and I"? And if so, what about all the souls who see me dancing to Black Eyed Peas? How are they to know that I am saved when I'm busy, shaking "My Humps"?

And that goes for so many other things.

Rated R Movies (Not counting "The Passion").

Chapelle's Show.

Def Poetry Jam.

Friends who live a different lifestyle than my faith prescribes.

What a Dichotomy am I when my lifestyle does not support my faithstyle.