A Day in the Life: Downtown Canton

unique

Who were you uniquely made to be?

muse

Main Entry: ¹muse Pronunciation: 'myüz Function: verb Inflected Form(s): mused; mus·ing 1 : to become absorbed in thought; especially : to turn something over in the mind meditatively and often inconclusively 2 archaic : WONDER, MARVEL transitive verb : to think or say reflectively synonym see PONDER - mus·er noun

Main Entry: ²muse Function: noun : a state of deep thought or dreamy abstraction

Main Entry: ³muse Function: noun 1 capitalized : any of the nine sister goddesses in Greek mythology presiding over song and poetry and the arts and sciences 2 : a source of inspiration; especially : a guiding genius 3 : POET
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what are you thinking about? anything at all? what are your dreams? do you share them or keep them to yourself? do you write them down? keep a mental checklist in your brain? post them on the fridge for the world to see? do your thoughts or dreams make you feel free? what does freedom look like to you? do you think your musings are of value or that anyone, someone would gain anything, something from reading such thoughts? do you feel like you are free to express yourself? are you satisfied? who or what has squelched your dreams? what circumstances make you feel like you are nothing? why is it hard for you to feel the truth that you are unique? does your mind wander? where does it go? where does it take you? do you follow sheepishly or ambitiously? do your dreams, thoughts, musings scare you?

Express yourself. Be free.

click here: Freedom. Expression. Project. (an experiment)

Stg. Pepper + Pet Sounds

a few years ago - i took some birthday money and set it aside - to be used for something really important. i had always wanted to pick up some classic albums on CD if, for no other reason than for prosperities sake. The first two albums i purchased were The Beach Boys - Pet Sounds (1966) and then The Beatles - Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

both albums were recorded and released within a year of each other. Sgt. Pepper was said to be a response to what Brian Wilson did with Pet Sounds. Both albums exuberantly convey a creative, ground breaking sound that, at the time, broke many taboos and set in place new trends in popular music. Brian Wilson's multi-layered vocal mixes from the Pet Sounds sessions are still nothing short of extraordinary. This album separated the Beach Boys from the surf rock stereotype and stands alone in their catalogue of music.

While tension between Paul McCartney and John Lennon was beginning to show for The Beatles, Sgt. Pepper proves to be a masterpiece of creativity. McCartney was at a high point (and his songs reflect that) while Lennon was a bit lower (with his songs reflecting that as well). Listen to Pepper and see if you can figure out who wrote what lyrics.

Key tracks (Pet Sounds): Wouldn't It Be Nice, Sloop John B, God Only Knows, Caroline No

Key Tracks (Sgt. Pepper): title track, Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, Fixing a Hole, A Day in the Life

If you are a music connoisseur you need these two albums in your collection. Listen to them. Admire them. Let them inspire you.


List of Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Albums of all time (note #1 & #2 on the list)

making a playlist

there is a certain satisfaction that accompanies the building and creation of a playlist. the searching out of just the right songs... weeding out the good and the bad... organizing the track listing... meshing the right songs back to back - in attempts to create seamless playback... and then the anticipation of that first listen.

it feels good to create.

admit it.

and yet life is like the playlist... we spend a lot of energy getting our track listing set, so to speak... wanting things to be perfect so that our future will be bliss... but the beauty of the playlist is that is can be constantly adjusted and changed and corrected on the fly. life is the same. we never have to be content. we weren't designed to be content.

God sees the bigger picture. He sees how our 'songs' will mesh. he guides us and revels in our creations - with hopes that we will revel in His. we are his pride and joy - and if our eyes are opened we see that He is our joy as well.

life is a playlist. live it out... play it loud.





tentative title [Journey into the Morn]
SONG ... ARTIST
Intro … Trespassers William
Just Because … Jane's Addiction
Well Thought Out Twinkles … Silversun Pickups
Bloodhounds On My Trail … Black Angels, The
Seaside … The Kooks
Today … I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness
Starlight … Muse
Way Back Home … Starsailor
A Place in Displacement … South
The Information … Beck
Holy Calamity (Bear Witness II) … DJ Shadow
Halfway Home … DJ Shadow
The Number Song … DJ Shadow
Fractions … Decoder Ring
Losing Color … Idiot Pilot
Paperbag Writer … Radiohead
This Is Not A Test … Radio 4
It Would Have Happened Anyway … Mogwai
Hush … Soular
Big Love [Live] … Lindsey Buckingham
Razor … Foo Fighters
Fare Thee Well … The Innocence Mission
St. Augustine … Band Of Horses
Jerusalem, My Happy Home … Ralph Stanley
Sinthtro … The Dears
Scattered Black and Whites … Elbow
Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) … The Beatles
New … 100 Portraits
It's O.K. … Delirious?
Closer … Travis
RM - RF/ … Decoder Ring
The Boxer … Simon & Garfunkel
Spark … Over The Rhine
The Maker … Daniel Lanois
Outake 2: Sixty Seconds In Kingdom Come … U2
Our Secrets … Helen Stellar
The City Lights … Umbrellas
Into The West … Pilate
You Are My Joy … Reindeer Section
Salvation … Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Comforting Sounds … Mew
Polybackwards … Gus Gus

THE TEN: things googled this week

10. William Blake - Introduction to Songs of Experience (also: U2 - Beautiful Ghost / Introduction to Songs of Experience)
9. Pablo Escobar (and the fictitious film Medellin)
8. Kid Brothers of St. Frank (Rich Mullins tribute/info)
7. Northern Ireland
6. Definition of Sanctity
5. Yuri Gagarin (Russian Cosmonaut - 1st man in space) (also: featured in lyric in the song Mercury by The Prayer Chain - from the landmark album of the same title... a must have for any and all music guru)
4. Map of New York City
3. The History of the Relocation of Professional Sports Teams
2. Psalm 137 (read it all... don't skim over it)
1. Facebook (my new obsession?)

"feel"

"How do you feel close to God? I don't know. Read about the great saints, they didn't always feel close to God. Check out the Psalms - David often felt far away from God.

Closeness to God is not about feelings.
Closeness to God is about obedience.

I don't know how you "feel" close to God... and those that are close to Him don't know anything about those feelings either.

Obey - occasionally the feeling follows, but not always."

-Rich Mullins

6:46pm - July, 21, 2007

A cool breeze.
A melancholy spirit.
Green grass with weeds a plenty.
White puffy clouds.
A sparrow makes music.
Shadows and tall trees.
A stillness abounds.
Children play.
Distant, muted sounds.
An iPod plays instrumental bliss in my left ear.*
The wind picks up.
Refreshment.
A summer Saturday evening.
Blue sky overhead.
My 4 year old rides his bike.
Tiredness overcomes me.
Hide and seek across the street.
A cook-out near by.
Soaking it in.
Seeking grace, trusting instincts.
It's 6:46PM, July 21st, 2007.
And God is in this moment.

momentary pause for clarity

clarity... a state of being clear. a silent lucidity. a presumed capacity to perceive the truth directly and instantaneously. peace. stillness after the whirlwind. a search for hope after a door creaks closed... or is that just my perception? maybe God is teaching me a lesson about seeing His faithfulness, even through the cracks of a door not yet sealed. hope is always present in the light. and the light seeps through...


in the late 1930's, pre-World War II, a Navy submarine was doing dive testing off the New England coast. War was inevitable and the U.S. was already in the midst of secret underwater U--boat attacks. Failure of the main induction valve caused the flooding of the after torpedo room in the Squalus, both engine rooms, and the crew's quarters, drowning 26 men immediately. Quick action by the crew prevented the other compartments from flooding. Squalus bottomed in 40 fathoms (73 m) of water. Here's the rest of the story:

The Squalus was stuck on the bottom of the harbor off the New Hampshire coast. It seemed that all was lost. There was no electricity and the oxygen was quickly running out. In one last attempt to rescue the sailors from the steel coffin, the U.S. Navy sent a ship equipped with Navy divers to the spot on the surface, directly above the wounded submarine. Squalus was initially located by her sister ship, Sculpin (SS-191). The two submarines were able to communicate using a telephone marker buoy until the cable parted. Divers from the rescue ship Falcon, under the direction of the salvage and rescue expert Lieutenant Commander Charles B. "Swede" Momsen, located the submarine. A Navy diver went over the side of the ship to the dangerous depths in one last rescue attempt. The trapped sailors heard the metal boots of the diver land on the exterior surface, and they moved to where they thought the rescuer would be. In the darkness they tapped in Morse code, "Is there any hope?" The diver on the outside, recognizing the message, signaled by tapping on the exterior of the sub, "Yes, there is hope." He then proceeded to respond, tapping out these letters in Morse code. "J-E-S-U-S C-H-R-I-S-T"




Hope creeps in and rears its head at just the right moment... for those who believe and trust and obey. And hope does not disappoint us... because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. [Romans 5:5]

The waters are stilled. If they are stirred it will be His doing, not mine... and I shall respond. Clarity gives me hope. One way or the other - i will be diligent. I hope for a clear answer. I trust it will come.

what a process this has been.




*Divers were later able to rescue all 33 surviving crew members from the disabled submarine. Four enlisted divers earned the Medal of Honor for their work during the rescue and subsequent salvage.*

state of...

i am in a state of something... my mind is filled. can not concentrate. living amidst the whirlwind. three weeks + and still it whirls. somewhere there's a playlist in this moment. that would make it all better... that would answer all the questions. wake me when it's over. surely God will light the path for this journey.

Psalm 23

A psalm of David.

1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,

3 he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.

4 Even though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death, ^[a]
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.

6 Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.

1GL

$$$

who owns who?
a blessing and a curse.

io

inspired by the song Io by Helen Stellar
(featured on the Elizabethtown soundtrack)

a fresh rain fell today

a fresh rain fell today
after 10 days of sun.
it was cool and refreshing.

the birds of the air,
they are making music
showing appreciation
and giving thanks for the bath and the drink.

nature has its purpose.
perfect symmetry.
it gives. it takes. it provides. it needs.
can this be random?

God is in the falling rain.
He is in the songs of praise
from the nesting birds.

He is the symmetry.
the synergy.
the energy.
the supremacy.

he is the beauty of Monet
and the lyrics of Bono.
He speaks through:
the silver screen,
the small screen,
the LCD screen.
the iPod and the FM dial.


He is the joy of children
laughing; the peace of
a quiet stream. the
patience of a grandmother;
the gentleness of a summer breeze.

most of all He is love.
a personified love that is
known within the hearts
of all mankind... rejected and accepted.

His love is His creation.
His creation is us.

A fresh rain fell today
and i experienced God.

free

a self portrait of randomness

Not a fan of death… it’s so… final.
I’m tired.
Don’t know how to feel.
I miss the small things.
I somewhat feel guilty that I had (for God knows why) thoughts about my dad dying about a month or two before.
Fears come and go.
Less today than yesterday.
But it has forced me to put things in perspective.
Take nothing for granted.

Covetousness.
Big word. Big problem, presumably.
I’t’s too easy to lust after that which isn’t mine – or that which I'd like to own.
A home. Video equipment. More music (cuz I don’t have enough?)
I have never gotten used to the fact that I will never make money as long as I’m working in ministry.
But I don’t do it for the money… I’d be a fool, otherwise anyway.
I am thankful for the passion God has given me for youth ministry and creative worship.

It appears we have some ‘suspicious’ neighbors.
A few are teenagers – one with a banged up car with no muffler – who likes to leave 2 or 3 times a night, usually between 1 and 3 am. He’s gone for 10 minutes and returns.
It should be against the law to drive a car without a muffler.
‘sweet’ smelling smoke is often looming. it blows in through our window fan.
The other day, the inhabitants were partying at a children’s park (behind their duplex – beside our house) – alcohol and all… on the playground, mind you.
is it even any of my business?
They kind of avoid us…

I was on hold for 40 minutes today.

Nothing compares to listening to a favorite album that you haven’t listened to in a while.
This evening, The Joshua Tree brought me great joy.

I want to run.
I want to hide.
I want to tear down the walls that hold me inside.

Bliss.

(from melancholy to bliss... a self portrait that gives thanks to God for that which is beautiful)
LIFE is beautiful
MUSIC is beautiful
OPPORTUNITY is beautiful
I am beautiful (even when the lilly's don't look pleasing to the eye...)

i live

If you had permission to do what you really wanted to do, what would you do? Don't ask how, that will cut your desire off at the knees. How is never the right question; how is a faithless question. It means "unless I can see my way clearly I won't believe it, wont venture forth."

...How is God's department. He is asking you what.

What is written on your heart? What makes you come alive? If you could do anything you've always wanted to do, what would it be?

A man's calling is written upon his true heart, and he discovers it when he enters the frontier of his deep desires.

...Don't ask yourself what the world needs, ask yourself what makes you come alive because what the world needs are men (and woman) who have come alive.
[excerpt taken from john Eldredge - Wild at Heart]




DO THAT
WHICH MAKES YOU
come
ALIVE







LIVE.

a live

live [verb] 1: to be alive 2: to continue on 3: to dwell
live [adjective] 1: having life
live [adverb] 1: at the actual time of occurrence

what does it mean to survive?
choice: exist or live.

true living? follow Christ. receive your gift.

full. not empty.

embrace risk.

kick.

tornado stories

a massive F5 tornado ripped through Greensburg, Kansas on the evening of May 5th. reports say that 95% of the town has been destroyed. everything has been destroyed. this is mind boggling. at this point 9 people are confirmed dead.

i am particularly drawn to this story because the town in which i spent my youth was also ravaged by a tornado. the date was June 13, 1981. Early in the afternoon that Saturday a category 3 (max. wind speeds 158-206 mph) tornado 0.4 miles away from the Cardington city center killed 4 people and injured 56 people and caused between $5,000,000 and $50,000,000 in damages. the entire downtown of the small town of Cardington was destroyed - as were hundreds of homes - including an entire trailer park.













[downtown Cardington... more photos]

i remember seeing a mobile home literally wrapped around a tree. i was 7 years old at the time. my other memories include having a hard time sleeping - because of the lack of electricity and the loud noises of machinery and generators outside our house. Our church next door served as a soup kitchen and shelter for many weeks following.

i still have a t-shirt that reads I Survived the Cardington Tornado - June 13, 1981.

so yesterday, while listening to The Maxwell Show on WMMS 100.7 in Cleveland they were talking about the Greensburg tornado so I called in to discuss my own tornado experience. You can listen to that segment HERE [i'm the first caller... approx. 4 min 50 sec. in]. I said "hey, i lived through a tornado..." later he asked me me where i was at the time and i said "we weren't home at the time at the time the tornado touched down..." i didn't clarify that we were nearby at my grandma's house... but anyway - some guy (the third caller) said "what was that first caller thinking - saying he lived through a tornado - but he wasn't home at the time.".

well i still lived through it and the tornado tore up our town.... i didn't think much of it at first - then my wife started laughing - saying i got called out on the radio! then i couldn't stop thinking about it... i wanted so bad to call back and set the record straight so that i wouldn't look bad... but we were heading to Wal Mart... we needed ground turkey and a golf glove. so all through Wal Mart i started thinking about what i could have said. i guess this goes to show that little things can eat away at a man's ego.

to prove this fact - maybe that is why i have gone to great lengths to research the Cardington tornado - as if to validate my story that i told on the radio.

ego and tornado's... to powerful things that can destroy many...

the slam

Dead man walking.
Life loved. Life given. Life breathed...
But dead in sin. Made alive through the bridge
- the bridge leads to life - true life, not deceived life.
The bridge is Jesus.

No more death.

He took it upon him.
No more suffering.
Once + for all.

Different walks of life on the same bus...
on a journey... to the cross.
Discovering together,
through unity + grace + empathy + humility + respect
that a love for all is present.
the One who provides love + is the example of love.

Disciples on the same journey.

Love. Peace. Understanding.

[journaled thoughts found in a notebook... written during a TobyMac concert... 'The Slam' was playin', yo.]