song and dance

Listening to: Mason Jennings

Feeling: Tired, but hopeful

 

I went to see Tony Campollo last night. I love Tony. He says great things, and is always refreshing… and entertaining. But, this event was for some celebration for CTSTV.COM. There was so much about that night that made my skin crawl. Allow me to share:

 

1. There was a ton of rhetoric about morality. barf. Im tired of Christians thinking that morality is the indicator of spiritual maturity and the only purpose of the church. They shared some stat about the percentage of people attending churches today compared to the 50′s (8% now from 80% back then). The reason they were shocked by these numbers was because the morality of people were not being shaped by the church. Maybe thats why people stopped going… all we were doing was trying to control them with rules. They made it seem like people who didnt go to church were not moral, and did not think about morality. There are very moral folks outside the church, and some terribly immoral folks outside. It was a blatant us vs. them attitude. barf. Doesnt the church exist more that to be a moral compass?

2. It was horribly fake. I dont think anyone, except for a hilarious old british man and Tony Campollo, said anything that had any authenticity to it. There was massive amounts of cheese added to the event. From the dancing hockey players (very talented! but the cheese?) to the hyper-emotional speeches of the CTS hosts… barf. It was all sensationalized.

3. If that is what Christians are like, I dont want to be one. Thankfully I have met a few who arent and have redeemed what it means to walk in Christ. Thanks friends.

4. Christian programing is terrible. A Christian version of Dr. Phil (I heard he was a Christian?), rate your Church, and a situational ethics show were just a few ideas thrown at us. With all the talk about the content on television, and I agree its not the best. We are becoming desensitized to violence and our sexuality is shaped by what we see on TV/Movies/Internet. but, is this the answer? A Christian tv network? Tony Campollo always talks about getting out of bed with the whore of Babylon. This isnt getting out of bed with her, it choosing one who doesnt smoke, swear, and who isnt a “potty-mouth” (dont get me going on the amount of times that word was used last night). If you are unable to have some sort of engaging conversation about what you are seeing, I think an appropriate response would be to stop watching TV. There is some good programming out there. Be wise and selective. Dont be used by your media, learn to use it for something greater.

 

thanks for letting me barf.

I may have more to share about this later…

may all of our media move towards restoration…

quiet

Listening too: nothing

Feeling: tired and headachy

 

I sit here in my office. Its a modest space. I have just been sitting in some silence for the last few minutes, and it was perfect. It was just what I needed. I had a restless sleep last night, and a busy day. It is nice to just stop for a moment.

I have a candle lit. I like candles.

There is a softness and a sharpness to them that help me to relax. The flame reminds me of God. I like moments when I can just be; without the need to speak, or to listen. I need more time like this in my life. It is life giving. It doesn’t suck the life out of me, like staring at a screen does, or listening to meaningless crap on the radio. Sometimes the best thing to listen to, is nothing. In the nothing, we are truly able to hear.

I want to hear more.

But, I want to hear more of what matters. I want to learn to listen to the nothingness and hear God. He is there. Remember the emptiness of creation? (the tohu vabohu) God was there. Making sense of the chaos.

As I look at the flame beside me God is mysteriously working in me and through me to bring light, to bring order, to bring quiet to the world around me. I hope I can work with God for most of it.

May we rest it the quiet places of God as we walk towards restoration

mason jennings & war

Listening to: Mason Jennings – The Field

Wanting: a cup o’ Yerba

I wanted to share a recent video of Mr. Mason Jennings. In the video he talks about his latest album, and performs, one of the best songs from the album. It is a profound war song, and goes along with a couple conversations about war that I have had recently.

When I think or talk about war, the Nazi’s always come up. I think of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. A man who was driven to plan Hitler’s assassination, but at the same time did not think it was right. An interesting thought.

In the song, Mason Jennings, tells the story of a man who goes to war and dies. His family misses him dearly, and wonders where his heart has come to rest, as they lay out in a field staring at the stars.

What are your thoughts about war? Is there a point in which it is necessary? Does that justify it?

Come home in one piece James.

may we be moving towards restoration…

numb

Not too sure what to write today. I had a good day, but feeling somewhat numb today. The numbness could be from fatigue, or it could be one of those days. God is in this somewhere. Difficult to see, touch, or hear. Maybe, He is closer than normal, and inside my “bubble”… nudging me along. I like days like today, but I dont want them to come around too often.

moving towards restoration…

V

Listening to: Rage Against the Machine – Killing in the Name of

Feeling: Hungry

Remember, remember the Fifth of November,The Gunpowder Treason and Plot, I know of no reason Why the Gunpowder Treason Should ever be forgot.

Just finished watching V for Vendetta. A great movie! Have seen it many times, and look forward to watching more in the future. I love it because it inspires hope, hope for a better way, because the way things are just aren’t quite right. It is almost as though this movie serves as a parable to tell people of hope (a lie to uncover some deeper Truth). ‘V’ acts as a man who acts with the larger picture in mind, and without his own well being in mind… kind of a prophet of sorts. He is a radical man.  And with that I will leave you with one last quote on what it means to be truly radical.

“To be truly radical is to make hope possible rather than despair convincing” -Raymond Williams

What movies have you seen that inspire you?

allegiance

A video that I made with a friend of mine.  We were shown the video “Lost Generation” (watch here) and we were challenged to write a poem similar.  We used Jesus for President by Shane Claiborne as our inspiration.  What do you think?

towardsrestoration

Listening to: John Mayer – Slow Dancing in a Burning Room

Drinking: Yerba Mate

Hello blogosphere. Not sure who will read this, but away we go anyways. I’ve started this for a couple reasons. I was told by a friend that I should start one.  She thought I had some good thoughts about living life and stumbling after God, so she encouraged me to write. The second reason is somewhat therapeutic. I thought this might be a good way of getting some of my rambling thoughts out of my head and into… something. I’m not the best at written communication, and so I thought this might be a good way to work on that too.

So, why “towards restoration”? Building restoration in the world around me is what gives me a sense of purpose. Restoration is the purpose of God.  God wants to restore what has been broken. I am a broken man. I pretend not to be broken, most of the time. I am heading in the direction of restoring myself, my relationship with those around me, my relationship with the Creator, and the creation He has entrusted to us.

I continue to wrestle, ponder, question, and fumble my way through life… God help me.