thoughts while watching the sunrise from the parking lot of a shopping complex PART 1

[on friday morning, August 15 i took my sister to the airport at 6am - so that she could catch a flight back home to Portland, Maine. rather than driving all the way home - i decided to 'kill' some time early in the morning until 9:30am - when i had to pick up something from Best Buy. i had over 3 hours to fill and i was really tired because i stayed up late the night before watching the Olympics. the following is PART ONE of "Free Expression" writing. i decided to look for potential God moments as i parked my car in a parking lot minutes before dawn.]



The world is watching. To my left, out the car window, sitting in the parking lot at the Strip, a major shopping complex in northwest stark county, are a number of video surveillance cameras. Watching. Me. I almost didn’t notice.

They are always there. We go on in our daily lives… we don’t even notice. But they are everywhere. My life is too busy to notice.

The oher day – while on vacation, my son, micah and I were riding around lakeside in a glof cart. It was early evening… and he noticed something that we don’t often hear… a chirping noise… almost musical, he called the sound. “what is it?”

Crickets, I said.

We had a conversation about crickets. Why do they make music? Where are they? Are they nocturnal? Yeah – he used the words nocturnal. How did he know that word? Are they nocturnal like skunks? Why do skunks stink?

We went to the cottage and went to bed.

A day or two or three later, I had long forgotten about the cricket conversation. When micah asked me again about crickets. I told him, we have already talked about this. He said, in the middle of the day, mind you, again about crickets.

Why do you ask? I said. “Because I hear one but it’s not night time.” He forgot to go to bed.

Crickets. Always around us. Making music. Mostly at night. But not always.
They are all around us… making music…
but we don’t hear it. It blends in with the rest of the chaos that is around us.

The music is all around us.

Are we tuned in to the wrong frequency?



God is all around us. Watching us. Trying to get our attention.

a passage of time

Players from Sam Javanrouh on Vimeo.

change

Change Your Life
But there's also this, it's not too late—
God's personal Message!—
"Come back to me and really mean it!
Come fasting and weeping, sorry for your sins!"

Change your life, not just your clothes.
Come back to God, your God.
And here's why: God is kind and merciful.
He takes a deep breath, puts up with a lot,
This most patient God, extravagant in love,
always ready to cancel catastrophe.
Who knows? Maybe he'll do it now,
maybe he'll turn around and show pity.
Maybe, when all's said and done,
there'll be blessings full and robust for your God!

Joel 2:12-14




post#401

always

run forrest run

the 23rd annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement 2 mile and 5 mile races were held yesterday morning. Jen and i took on yet another running challenge, as did a number of young adults from our church. we ran in the 2 mile race with 882 other people. it was very crowded and the race started without any warning... some guy with a bullhorn hit the siren and we were off. the biggest challenge was weaving in and out of the masses of people... i think a couple of kids tried to take me out when we were running across the bridge. i was pushed to the outside. i felt like i was in Nascar - zig-zaging my way through, hoping not to blow a tire. after the one mile marker it thinned out. i started out running with THIS guy who finished about 20 seconds ahead of me... i think i could have ran with him the whole time - but he used to be chased by defensive lineman and linebackers back in his QB days so he's used to running fast.

i finished in 16 minutes 36 seconds... 45 seconds faster than the two mile race i ran two months ago at the YMCA. my pace was around an 8:19... when i ran my first 5k a year and a half ago - i was running a 9:35 pace. sweet, yo.

like before i ran with what Bryan might called a robotic-iPod arm band that no doubt makes one run faster. running with the Nike+ iPod system does make a race less boring, though.

we are planning on running a race in each of the next three months.

i'm pushing the 300 mile mark since i began running with Nike+ and have been a lot more consistent this spring and summer. i hope to keep it up.

my results... # 243 out of 882.

most beautiful week

i am on the tail end of a 'week off'. it was a vacation week for me, although i did not go anyplace - save the back yard. well there were a few get aways to local parks and what not. and we hit Starbucks a few times. it was a good week, despite chronic back pain that seemed to plague me most of the week.

i took the week off for a few reasons. 1: my wife was recently hired as the childrens ministry coordinator at our church - so it allowed her to get some things organized and what not while i was home with the kids. 2. our niece Harper was staying with us - as my sister was on a mission trip to Guatemala.

i read a lot - mostly from the book Growing Souls by Mark Yaconelli.
i journaled a lot. drawings and musings filled the pages.
i sat in the back yard a lot while the kids played.
i enjoyed the sun, the cool breezes and on occasion the refreshment of water - as we went swimming on three separate occasions.

it was beautiful weather all week - mid 70's... we even saw a couple of rainbows on the one evening where we were graced with rain.

we went and saw WALL-E, which was surprisingly good and we went to Tuscora Park - which was a highlight.

i am most thankful for this beautiful week.

why do you always see one shoe on the side of the highway?

ever been driving down the interstate - or on the entrance ramp to a major highway? what are you bound to see? a shoe. not shoes, but shoe. a single shoe. sometimes it's a red high-heeled pump, sometimes a casual buster brown. often you'll see the kids gym shoe or the occasional Pro Keds sport shoe. i don't recall seeing too many Nike's on the side of the road. but none-the-less, you will see a shoe. it's usually dirty, in a mud puddle or next to someone's misplaced empty bag of McDonalds garbage.

who leaves these shoe there? does someone throw them out the window when driving? was little Junior sticking his feet out the back seat window when mom hit a pot hole and alas his shoe fell off? i have my theories as to how the red pump is there - but what is a female escort doing on the side of the interstate? there are no corners there. and the casual dress shoe... was some guy walking to work along Interstate 77 and without noticing he walked right out of his shoe? i wonder when he finally noticed. maybe when he arrived at work. it would be really ironic if that dude worked at Payless Shoe Source or something.

i can hear the conversation now.
"Hey Roger where's your left shoe?"
"Oh, I was so intent on getting to work that i literally walked right out of it."
"Ha ha ha ha" (a collection of hearty laughs would no doubt follow)

well the next time you see such a shoe - remember - with every missing shoe is a story of some guy named Roger or some kid named Junior or some escort named Destiny.

or maybe this mystery of life has no answer. many o' men will no doubt spend the majority of adult life trying to solve it, no less. i hear it's now being offered as a major at Akron U.

silence of morning

birds make their songs known...
who is there to listen?
yet they still make their music loud.
proud of the melodies.
simple melodies that communicate so much.
they do it instinctively.

no matter if you or i bother to take time to listen.
even the wind can't silence them.
after a summer rain - their music intensifies...
sort of a homecoming
or a calling home.
they now have my attention.

there is something to be said about the
songs of the winged folk -
perched in trees mightily singing
for all or none to hear.
for they are not driven by others
but by God.



written early monday morning while sitting on the front porch swing... taking a moment...

Maker Moment #33

watching Dead Poets Society.

so much truth is found within. the entire movie is a God moment... waiting to speak to you if your eyes and ears are open.

i love it when i see and hear from God through a film.




what films does God speak to you through?

Maker Moment #1

read the book SEEING GOD IN THE ORDINARY by Michael Frost.

it has inspired my previous posts from today... and shall inspire many more.

what an eye opener...

Maker Moment #2

Do you see the magnificent love of the Father all around us?

the Maker is creating everyday, in-between moments for us to connect with Him... daily. after God created man on day 6 - he didn't just stop being who He is... he didn't cease to be Creator anymore, did he? God's creation is present tense. to Him creativity is as connected to us as is love, a love that abounds. you can not separate God's creativity from his love.






all we have to do is look. it's all around us. his love is there, eyes open or not.





Look.











maybe you need to view life from a different angle... maybe then you'll see.

Maker Moment #18

Sigur Rós





finding God in the simplistic things... finding hope in the unintelligible words and sounds...


because sometimes we have a hard time putting words to the feelings and emotions that are found from within us... our expression is pleasing to God - he is with us and he understands us. the Holy Spirit groans... (1 Thes. 5:15-17, Romans 8:26, etc.) with this comes hope... a hope that someone understands our deepest, darkest, inner-most being.

this is what comes to mind when i listen to Icelandic band Sigur Rós.

much of their music is sung in a form of Vonlenska.

Vonlenska is a term used to describe the gibberish sung by the band, in particular Birgisson. It is also commonly known by the English translation of its name, Hopelandic. It takes its name from “Von”, a song on Sigur Rós’s debut album Von where it was first used. Von - in icelndic means 'hope'.

Vonlenska is not a real language as it lacks a consistent grammar structure, word meaning, or even distinct words as such. Instead, it consists of meaningless syllables; the band’s website describes it as “a form of gibberish vocals that fits to the music”. Most of the syllable strings sung by Birgisson are repeated many times throughout each song, and in the case of ( ), throughout the whole album. As the rest of Sigur Rós’s lyrics are sung in Icelandic, which most of their audience do not understand, an unknowing listener could easily take Vonlenska to be Icelandic and be unaware that a song’s lyrics do not have a direct literal translation. Rather it is a form of expression. (from Wikipedia)

songs of choice:

Untitled #8 from the album ( )

Gong from the album Takk

Festival from the album Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust ("With a Buzz in Our Ears We Play Endlessly")

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Now playing: Sigur Rós - Untitled 8
via FoxyTunes

Maker Moment #7

seeking God in the ordinary... day by day... are your eyes opened enough to see Him?

Dancing.

some guy named Matt Harding went around the world and danced in 42 countries... captured all on video. pure joy. i'm quite certain God delights in our joy.


Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

Maker Moment #42

God is all around us... revealing himself to us... are our eyes open enough to see Him?






'We sing "Great is thy faithfulness, O Lord. Your mercies are new every morning." Every day God shows us grace and favor, but we're too busy to spot it.' - Michael Frost (from the book Seeing God in the Ordinary

i read this while sitting in our postage-stamp sized backyard last evening. the sun was preparing to set. the kids were playing joyfully. a gentle breeze kept me cool. and God came near.

i stopped. got the camera and captured the moment... so that i would not forget.
































God is all around us - making a pass at us - trying to get out attention.
are you OPEN?

SEE. HEAR. TASTE. TOUCH. FEEL.


i will strive to post more Maker Moments from here on out.

where i've been

HERE... at the amazing CYF camp.
i put together this highlight video from CYF08. CYF is a senior high youth camp held at Malone college in canton, ohio. i serve as worship coordinator. this dude is the worship leader.

God was present with us and he moved amongst us. what a blessing.

enjoy.

guiding steps to a lasting legacy

this past Sunday was Youth Sunday - I, along with some of the youth from the group led the service. LEGACY was the theme of choice. listed below is some of the main points that were shared. We had many scriptures - but the meat of the message came from Luke 5. here are some notes from the sermon...



THE STORY OF LUKE 5 (IN A NUTSHELL)

• Fishers of Men called
  
• Man with leprosy healed
  
• Others join in on the healing
  
• Two guys cut a hole in the roof
  
• Sins forgiven / Pharisees mad
  
• Crippled man walks
• Awestruck people
  

INVITATION TO A CHANGED LIFE (GUIDING STEPS TO A LASTING LEGACY)


based on the Gospel of Luke, chapter 5

1. FOLLOW
• ”they pulled their boats to shore, dropped their nets and followed Jesus”
• they literally left everything... all the fish Jesus just helped them catch!
• think of the amounts of money that amount of fish would have brought them?
• they knew - in an instant - what it meant to to be in the presence of the Messiah.
• they recognized holiness.
• the holiness drew them in and they followed, without question.
  
2. DESIRE
• ”I want to be clean”
• the leper had the desire and couldn't keep quiet about it.
3. BELIEF
• ”a large crowd gathered to listen and be healed…”
• God's gonna reveal himself. You watch and see.
• Do we have expectant hearts? do we have that kind of belief?
• it's all about perspective... point of view. glass half full or half empty? do you visit the Grand Canyon and complain about the dirt on your shoes? do you watch the sun setting on the shores of Lake Erie and focus on the sand between your toes? the big picture reveals greatness, and the big picture of Christ's invitation to a changed life is to be celebrated.
  
• being in His presence brings about change. if we don't want to change - do we really want to be in the presence of Jesus? why resist the party?
4. BOLDNESS
• ”when they couldn’t find a way in… they cut a hole In the roof… Impressed by their bold belief, Jesus said, 'friend, your sins are forgiven.'”
• What must it feel like to have Jesus Christ impressed by your boldness?
• Whose boldness for the Gospel are we impressed with?
  
5. AMAZEMENT
   
• ”awestruck, they said “we’ve never seen anything like this.”
  
• Are we amazed at the mysteries of God?
• if the mystery fades - does our need for God fade?
• Like a child's Happy Meal toy... soon the amazement fades and the cheap toy is discarded.
• it shouldn't be that way for those who follow God and his teaching, yet - it often is.
• We ought to be awestruck every time we witness the presence of God.

if we allow it, DOUBTS WILL CREEP IN and squelch…
OUR ABILITY TO FOLLOW
OUR DESIRE
OUR BELIEF
OUR BOLDNESS
WHILE THE AMAZEMENT FADES

but we can exchange our doubts for courage to follow Him. the hand of Christ is extended to us - just like it was extended to Peter after he lost faith (in himself, perhaps) and began to sink after walking on the water to meet Jesus.

Christ’s invitation to a changed life...
IT'S ALL ABOUT PERSPECTIVE.





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Now playing: Explosions In The Sky - So Long, Lonesome (Eluvium Mix)
via FoxyTunes

a message to my wife (from some of our youth)

for troy

5...4...3...2...1

With or Without You

i remember the first time i heard With or Without You by U2... well, i remember the first time i really listened to it, i should say. it was the spring of 1987... i was 13 years old. we were riding back from a soccer game and i was riding shotgun in my coaches car. i can't remember the name of the coach. i remember the car, though. something like a mid-80's Chevy Impala. there were probably six of us kids in the car. very safe, i'm sure. We were dropping off one of my teammates and With or Without You came on the radio. i had heard the song before... my sister had The Joshua Tree on cassette and i had probably heard it on the radio prior to that moment - but for some reason - i vividly remember hearing, no listening to With or Without You in the front seat of a Chevy Impala - tuning out the rest of the world, the loud muffler, the teammates climbing out of the back seat as i leaned forward (two doors made it difficult for others to get out - with two other kids and a coach in the front seat).

I don't know why i remember that moment. it was quite random. but we all remember random things. don't we? what random things do you remember?

atu2.com bible references notes the Biblical reference found in "With or Without You"

"See the thorn twist in your side" -- 2 Corinthians 12:7: "To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me."


----

my love for U2 grew and grew after that moment. 'tis true. the third cd i ever purchased (way back in 1990 - after i sold a Michael Jordan basketball card and a Joe Montana football card for $100 - which i used to buy my first single drive Magnavox cd player, of which i still have and occasionally use) was U2 - Rattle & Hum. (my first and second cd purchases were Bell Biv Devoe - Poison and George Michael - Listen Without Prejudice vol. 1)

i later fell in love with the movie Rattle & Hum and my love for U2 sky-rocketed.

it all goes back to the spring afternoon - some 21 years ago... hearing, no listening to With or Without You for the first time. that is what i love about music. you never know how it's gonna stick with you. at times, it just does. music has power.

listen to With or Without You today. if you have it - spin it. if not - watch the video here.

blog about that moment when you heard that one song that you've never forgotten... maybe on the radio, at a concert or on a friends mix tape... think about - no, write about the power music today.



See the stone set in your eyes
See the thorn twist in your side
I wait for you

Sleight of hand and twist of fate
On a bed of nails she makes me wait
And I wait without you

With or without you
With or without you

Through the storm we reach the shore
You give it all but I want more
And I'm waiting for you

With or without you
With or without you
I cant live
With or without you

And you give yourself away
And you give yourself away
And you give
And you give
And you give yourself away

My hands are tied
My body bruised, shes got me with
Nothing to win and
Nothing left to lose

And you give yourself away
And you give yourself away
And you give
And you give
And you give yourself away

With or without you
With or without you
I cant live
With or without you

With or without you
With or without you
I cant live
With or without you
With or without you



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Now playing: U2 - With Or Without You
via FoxyTunes

cross/eyed