Worship Thoughts

So I was listening to this sermon last night on my ipod. The guy sharing said something that I think is beautiful. He was talking specifically about how the church needs to make sure we don't limit the way we worship to just one thing. He gave this story:

There was this ballet dancer and she was really good. She danced and did so beautifully. After her performance several of the people in attendance went to her to congratulate her on her great show. As they did, one guy came up to her and told her what a wonderful job she did. He continued and said, "I really enjoyed the dance, however I do not watch a lot of ballets and was wondering if you could tell me exactly what the dance means?" The dancer responded with this statement, "If I could tell you with words, than I would not have had to dance it."

Okay so this may seem a bit cheesy, but I thought it was a cool reason why art should have a place in our worship of God. To believe that we can properly articulate our worship of God through prayer, the study of his word, and song alone is making little of the nature and character of God. I think as long as God is making humans different, there will be as many ways to worhsip him. We should always be careful not to confine ourselves to one set of ideas and call it worship. I think this story shows why we should be sure to make our worship a fluid and multi-faceted representation of the character of our God. Nevertheless these are just some ramblings, but I wanted to write these thoughts before I forgot them. I have currently been given the freedom at my church to develop an additional worhsip service so that we as a body can explore these ideas. My prayer is that God will lead us in the direction he would have us go, and that he would allow this to a place of great freedom.

Leaving

I just read this quote:

"Everybody has to leave, everybody has to leave their home and come back so they can love it again for all new reasons."

In my experience, this is an accurate statement. I never loved home until it wasn't mine anymore. In the words of James Hetfield, "You know its sad but true--oo." Nevertheless I didn't have much to say but wanted to record that quote.

Cash

So I've recently been going through a hardcore honky tonk phase where I've been listening to mostly old-school country, namely: Willie, Waylon, Hank Jr. (borderline white trash, rather than country), and Johnny Cash. I was bale to pick up Johnny Cash's autobiography in a used book store a couple weeks back and have been creeping my way thorugh it. This is his quote about country music:

"I was talking with a friend of mine about this the other day; that country life as I knew it might really be thing of the past and when music people today, performers and fans alike, talk about being "country" they don't mean they know or even care about the land and the life it sustains and regulates. They're talking more about choices-- a way to look, a group to belong to, a kind of music to call their own. Which begs a question: Is there behind the symbols of modern country, or are the symbols themselves the whole story? Are the hats, the boots, the pick-up trucks, and the honky-tonking poses all thats left of a disentegrating culture? Back in Arkansas a way of life produced a certain kind of music. Does a certain kind of music now produce a way of life? Maybe thats OK. I don't know. Perhaps I'm just alienated, feeling the cold wind of exclusion blowing my way. The "country" music establishment, including "country" radio and the "country" music association, does after all seemed to have decided that whatever "country" music is, some of us aren't."

So I'm going to try really hard not to become a complete geek about all this, but I thought it was a cool quote. I'm just now getting into country music, I guess over the past 2 years, and I do know that there is a depth and honesty to a lot of the old guys that I don't hear in dudes like Tim McGraw, but to be honest I don't give most of the young country guys a chance if they can't play a guitar. Anyway I digress, I just thought it was a cool quote from a cool guy. I think music might be taking over my soul. I always frame what I am doing in terms of song or quote it seems, I wonder if that is bad. Alright so this is entirely too long.

X

Last night I saw the movie American History X. Rock. It was powerful, beautiful, and grotesque. It is about hate, and how it accomplishes nothing. I am tempted to insert a sweet hippy statement here, but I relent. Nevertheless it is a beautiful portrait of how broke we are, but how we all realize evil corrupts, and satisfies only for a time, but in the end is left wanting. 2 enthusiastic thumbs up. Also sweet: Lord of War. Saw it last week. It is another portrait of how broke we are as humans, and how we are in need of rescue.

life

Its been a while since I blogged so here it goes: My life is fun. I live with 2 cool dudes and we have a dog. There is something really cool about having a dog. I can't really articulate what is so cool about indy, our dog. Nevertheless I have a great girlfriend that I don't deserve and don't treat well at all. I think I am an emotional wreck for anyone to have to deal with so most of the time I take up an unhealthy amount of time in our relationship dealing with myself. Boy I am glad I am making this public to the 2 people that read this blog, but whatever. Confession is good for the soul. Nevertheless I've decided I am definitely melodramatic about most things in my life. I guess people my age all feel like our lives are so differnt from each other and thus we should talk about all the crap that is going on, but it seems to me that is the definition of normalcy. Geez I'm rambling. I suck at blogging, nevertheless I am gonna try to do this once a week for my friend Loren, and others, who might have time to read this garbage.

PS- The cold weather today was beautiful and refreshing. I wanted to stand outside in my bathing suit just to be cold. I am definitely sleeping with the windows open. There is something clean about the cold.