EXPRESSION OF FAITH: RYAN HARPER USES MUSIC AND WRITING TO TELL OTHERS ABOUT CHRIST

Ryan Harper wants to communicate with people and help them learn to express themselves whether it be through his influence as a writer, a musician or Christian.

Harper is a graduate student at Southeast Missouri State University and a musician who performs frequently in the area. He also works as a part-time minister for youth and children at First Baptist Church in Jackson, Mo.

"Part of the many things that I do is provide information and a means for people to express themselves," said Harper.

That expression comes in multiple forms. Harper found that music and writing are the best ways to express himself and didn't want to choose one vocation over another, so he found a way to do both.

Harper graduated from Southeast with a degree in secondary education and still meets people who assumed he studied music. He is a percussionist. "I knew I would do music even if I didn't have to, and I would always be an avid reader and writer."

Teaching offers him a daytime profession; music is a nighttime career and writing is an all-the-time profession, he said.

"I couldn't teach without the music and I couldn't have the music without all the social implications of teaching," he said. He brings an instructive quality to his music, which is an influence of his teaching, and his music is heavily influenced by his writings.

"A lot goes into my lyric writing -- that's the English major coming out," Harper said.

He wrote all the lyrics, performs the songs and sings vocals on his first CD, "Colours of the Sun," which was released last year. He's in the midst of writing and production for a second CD that should be released by summer.

More than anything else, Harper wants to let people know that he isn't a Christian musician but a musician who is a Christian. "That's a clarification that I make because we put too many labels on people."

Just because a song mentions God four times doesn't mean it's Christian music. By the same token, a Jazz trio could play any songs, and if they perform with an attitude of Christian love their music could just as easily be Christian, Harper said.

"It's an attitude that transfers when all the Christians gather to play. That translates to the music."

While music is a love, Harper doesn't know if it will lead to a career. He doesn't have a master plan for his life and doesn't like planning too far into the future. "I call it living in comfortable uncertainty," he said. "I don't know what I'll be doing in three years."

He admits that it isn't a lifestyle choice many people can make, but it offers him options and teaches patience. Some options include teaching English overseas, doing missionary work or working as part of a church ministry staff.

"You don't just let things fall into your lap, but you are challenged to think things through. It has a calming effect on your life."

This semester has been one of the few times -- possibly even the first -- that Harper has kept a daily planner to mark his activities.

When he wakes up every morning and plans his day, whether it is blocking off an afternoon to grade papers or an hour to work on lyrics, Harper tries to do it in a manner that glorifies God. "At the end of the day I have a picture of God smiling," he said.

Harper grew up at First Baptist Church in Jackson, where his family still attends, but didn't always participate in youth activities. Coming back to the church has been a good experience, he said. His past experiences help him relate better to the kids "on the fringes."

The church has been willing to work around his sometimes hectic schedule and the members have given him an identity. "I have more of a church home now and a sense that I identify with a community of faith," he said. "I've learned so much from the kids about spirituality and the church."

Taking an active role in church leadership has given him a place to channel his gifts, Harper said.

He often performs at area churches and special events like fund-raising activities. He will perform Nov. 10 at Touch of Grace Cafe and at an upcoming benefit for Journey, the university's literary magazine.

Ryan Harper

Age: 22

Occupation: Graduate student at Southeast Missouri State University. Part-time minister for youth and children at First Baptist Church in Jackson, Mo.

Family: Parents, Pam and Paul Harper of Jackson; five sisters and one brother.

Hobbies: Reading, writing, music. Enjoys music and is studying Swahili.

Church membership: First Baptist Church, Jackson.