#17 Somewhere North...

So, let me introduce you to one of my main influences as a writer of music. Derek Webb and his deep, heartfelt songs about life pulled me in about 13 years ago and I've never looked back. There has always been a certain honesty to his writing. If he is writing about broken relationships or broken people, he normally hits it right on the head. I might not agree with all of his theology, but as showcased in this song, he will always have my attention.

Okay, So Maybe This Disney Post is Better...

If you've never been to Epcot, here's a great tour and a little taste of the musical atmosphere...



Apparently these guys did this entire video in one day...AND it's not actually a video. They took 5,151 separate still photographs and then played them all in order. Pretty amazing stuff!

If You Love Music...

...then I assume some part of your past has connected with the legacy that is Disney music. Something about the entire catalog of their music connects with who we are as humans, and our desire to be lifted up and out of the depravity that surrounds us.

If you know me, then you know my love for Disney cartoons and their history, as well as the modern stories told by Pixar. There is just something about them that speaks to the human condition. Well, I recently stumbled across a video on YouTube of a Pixar animator who is a very gifted singer. He has taken a few select Disney favorites, and proceeded to sing every part of them. Doesn't matter if it's a villian, a hero, or a princess...he hits every single note. I was amazed at his talent, so I just had to share with you!

#18: Luv is a Verb...

Oh man, the memories I have of this song. Junior High camp in the year of 1994, the year that I was introduced to the band called dc Talk. At the time this was the greatest thing I had ever heard in my life. I had never known of this thing called christian music, but I loved it! My affinity for "christian" music has waned over the years, but my love for what dc Talk was doing back in the day hasn't. They were the grandfathers of Christians who are trying to reach culture for the Kingdom of God. I feel like they were the start of driving bands such as Switchfoot, Mute Math, or even Paramore. However, some bands seem to still be stuck in the year 1994 with their approach and message. Love truly is a verb, and at it's core requires us to act! We need to be reaching out to the world around us, spreading love to all who would accept it. We are not called to hold it in for our little subculture, that is countering to Christ and countering to His Great Commission. So, thank you dc Talk. For even at a young age, at a junior high week of camp, you were teaching me about what Love looks like and how it moves.

Exiting...

I love having Netflix back in my life.

The other day (monday), I chose to watch a critically acclaimed movie called "Exit Through the Gift Shop." It is a documentary focusing on the world of Street Art. I'm an artsy kind of guy, so I figured I would like it. Well, I loved it!

ETTGS (as we'll call it) is a story of doing things for the wrong reasons. The movie is centered around a guy name Thierry (pronounced Terry), and his love for filming things. This love drives him into the world of Street Art, and the people and thrill that it brings. Street Art (or graffiti) is currently in somewhat of a grey area legally, and many modern artists are using this medium to express themselves. Our main character, Thierry, ends up falling in love with this community and begins to emulate their craft. Not really having a touch of his own, he begins to pattern himself after the artists he has followed and worked with. In the end, this carries him to a place where he is acting against the message Street Art is supposed to convey.

As I watched (and fell in love) with this movie, I began to think about the Church and how we do things. We love to borrow from other congregations and leaders, taking what they are doing well and instituting in our own ministries. Will it work? Maybe. It all depends on the kind of people you are working with. However, I really want to look at the bigger picture. Do we do this with Christ? Adopting Him as an ends to a means. That is not what Christ instituted all of this for! His name does not exist to glorify ourselves, but instead, to glorify Him. The scary thing is...I sometimes see Thierry in myself. Using what I have learned, and who has poured into me, to puff myself up. I don't want that, and I don't want to viewed in my community as Thierry is now viewed in his.

I highly encourage anyone to watch this documentary.

#19: God Only Knows...

I've always been a fan of the Beach Boys, but something about their music always seems to fall in and out for me. Somedays, I love it! Other days, it's just meh. With that all being said, I love this song! Yes, it's a silly little love song written by some silly little band...but, something about it just has always resonated with me. It's sounds unlike anything else the Beach Boys have ever done, and it's a song about God's all-knowingness. At least, that's what I take from it. You see, God has a bigger plan for us outside of butterflies and moonbeams. He can work through our downfalls and the times that really, really stink. We've all been in those places where we can't imagine life without someone or something, and yet God is truly the only thing we should be concerned about losing. That fact was probably not Brian Wilson's intent here, but it is the Truth that I hear echoing through this song.

Somtimes, It Gets It Right...

So, I was reading a book today and it referenced one of my favorite passages of scripture...1st Corinthians 13:1-3. As I finished the chapter my mind kept going back to Corinthians 13, aka the "love chapter." While focusing on what Paul was saying, I played around a bit with the translations on Bible Gateway. To my surprise, I really love what The Message had to say and I thought I would share...

If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.