A couple months after graduating high school, my friend “1/2 Ton” introduced me to music of The Real Untouchables (TRU). Group members consisted of rappers Master P, C-Murder, and Silkk the Shocker – all brothers from New Orleans, Louisiana. Their ’95 album was True.
1/2 Ton and I were among the first people in Bomb City to noise-pollute with tunes from the anthology blaring from the windows when cruising around town. After joining the Marine Corps in ’96, I encountered a number of East and West Coast jarheads who despised TRU’s music.
However, Marines from the South seemed to appreciate the group’s gritty beats, controversial lyrics, and unpolished style of rapping. In ’97, TRU dropped their fourth studio album TRU 2 da Game. On the second disc of the anthology was the song “The Lord Is Testin’ Me.”
In the introduction of the song, C-Murder states:
What’s up, y’all. Hello, world. This C-Murder
I’m ‘bout to put you in the mind of a crazy
Fucked up in the head muthafucka (this nigga sick)
You know what I’m sayin?
One of the muthafuckas you see in the
News every day, for doin’ all types of crazy shit
For context, according to one source, “A federal judge has upheld the prison sentence of Corey Miller, the rapper known as C-Murder, who was convicted of first-degree murder in the 2002 death of Steven Thomas. He was sentenced to life in prison in 2009.”
Taking the rapper’s words at face value, C-Murder likely wasn’t unfamiliar with the process of self-disturbance which is addressed in Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT). This occurs when people upset themselves using unproductive assumptions.
REBT theory uses the ABC model to illustrate how when Activating events (“Actions”) occur and people maintain irrational Beliefs about the events, these unhelpful assumptions – and not the actual occurrences – are what create unpleasant cognitive, emotive, bodily sensation, and behavioral Consequences.
In particular, there are four predominate irrational beliefs which people use: demandingness, awfulizing, low frustration tolerance, and global evaluations. Addressing these, the ABC model incorporates Disputation of unhelpful assumptions in order to explore Effective new beliefs.
From a psychological standpoint, people disturb themselves using a Belief-Consequence (B-C) connection. Of course, this isn’t to suggest that in the context of the naturalistic or physical world there is no Action-Consequence (A-C) connection.
As an example, if someone reportedly shoots a “teen [fighting] for his life against several other men” (Action), the bullet that pierces the boy’s skin may result in death (Consequence). In the naturalistic world, gunshot wounds can have a direct A-C connection with bullets.
Still, from a psychological standpoint, B-C disturbance is directly associated with assumptions when an individual unhelpfully Believes about the incident, “The Lord shouldn’t test me, and it’s awful when He does!” This irrational conclusion causes a self-disturbed angry disposition (Consequence).
It’s likely that this connection is what C-Murder attributed to the “mind of a crazy, fucked up in the head muthafucka” on “The Lord Is Testin’ Me.” Worth mentioning, although I help people to stop upsetting themselves through use of B-C connections, I can’t fully resolve their A-C connections.
Noteworthy, for those who subscribe to biblical teaching, Deuteronomy 8:2 states, “Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.”
In fact, there are a number of Bible verses which express how Yahweh reportedly tests people. As well, I suspect other religious faiths maintain narratives about godly tests. Therefore, one may wonder about whether or not REBT can be practiced in conjunction with religious faith.
Understandably, I can’t name every deity a person serves. However, I’ll take a charitable approach to the TRU song, and without disputing an unfalsifiable claim, let’s suppose that one’s creator is responsible for activating events experienced in one’s lifetime.
Does a fallible human being have personal agency? Can a person exercise free will in order to pass the test of Jehovah? Is personal responsibility and accountability taken into consideration if or when Allah tests an individual?
Why shouldn’t, mustn’t, or oughtn’t to Bhagavan test a person? Is it truly awful to be tested by Unkulunkulu? Can an individual genuinely not stand (tolerate and accept) being tested by Elohim? What utility is there in globally rating the test of HaShem as entirely bad?
In the chorus of “The Lord Is Testin’ Me,” Master P states:
Sometimes, I think the Lord is testin’ me
But I’m a TRU nigga
I can’t let none of these niggas
And bitches get the best of me
This is an example of another technique used in REBT known as unconditional acceptance (UA) which is used to relieve suffering. This is accomplished through use of unconditional self-acceptance, unconditional other-acceptance, and unconditional life-acceptance.
Suppose it’s true that one is being tested by whatever deity a person favors. One activating event after another undesirable occurrence inevitably happens. Can a person practice UA by refusing to allow beliefs about oneself, other people, and life to affect one’s own reaction?
Of course this is possible! It’s precisely what committed practice of REBT allows people to accomplish. Interestingly enough, one can remain devoted to a deity while also practicing a humanistic approach to rational living which is offered through REBT.
For more information on this topic, I invite you to consider the book Counseling and Psychotherapy with Religious Persons: A Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy Approach. If it’s true that the Lord is testin’ you, you can pass the exam through use of REBT and devotion to your religious faith.
If you’re looking for a provider who works to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.
As the world’s foremost old school hip hop REBT psychotherapist, I’m pleased to help people with an assortment of issues from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.
At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply helping you to feel better, I want to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
References:
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