July 2011
1 post
“The Bible does not give us a predictable cause-effect world in which we can plan...”
– Eugent Peterson, from the Introduction to the Message
April 2011
1 post
Body first, mind and feelings follow
The modern church has written a lot of these massive anthem songs. You know the ones—stadium-shouters, Christian versions of “We will rock you.” They use words like glorious and majestic, words that I have no idea the meaning of. I’ve long avoided them, but they follow me around and I think I’m finally ready to be friends.
We’re doing one this week at church....
March 2011
1 post
“Of what value is learning that does not turn to love?”
– Anthony of Padua
December 2010
1 post
“To love someone is not first of all to do things for them, but to reveal to them...”
– Jean Vanier, Founder of L’Arche communities
September 2010
2 posts
Don't reinvent. Re-tell.
Whenever I slip back in the mindset of trying to be original—write an original melody, create an unique design—I am reminded that all I need to do is retell what is classic and true.
Flour + Water, the best new restaurant in San Francisco, isn’t new at all:
The cuisine of flour + water has literally been done for hundreds of years in Italy—we are not re-inventing it but just...
“I have to see to it that I fall in love with somebody or something every day,...”
– Richard Rohr
August 2010
2 posts
“Niceness and kindness are not the same thing. One can be kind without being nice...”
1 tag
Secret Wins
What if instead of holding secret sins in our hearts we held secret wins: good deeds and God-encounters about which no soul but our own knows.
Sin held inside is a wildfire, ruthlessly ravaging our soul and our body. It should be confessed immediately to God and verbally to a trusted friend-priest (in Christ we are all priests) who will proclaim those words of freedom and health that every heart...
July 2010
4 posts
A morning prayer
Thank you, Father, for today, a new day, a clean slate. This day keep me rooted and grounded in your love, that I may not fly off into thought and activity that would cause pain. Give me the mind of Christ, full of humility and confidence. Keep me from passivity that comes from fear of others opinions. In its place grant me a strong and gentle kindness that speaks forth truth in a way that brings...
“Anarchism adjures us to be bold creative artists, and care for no laws or...”
– G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy
1 tag
“The kingdom of heaven is available for other uses than those that are sometimes...”
– Joseph Parker
June 2010
2 posts
“Poetry is sane because it floats in an infinite sea; reason seeks to cross the...”
– G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy
May 2010
1 post
April 2010
2 posts
“Keep alert, stand firm in your faith, be courageous, be strong. Let all you do...”
– 1 Cor 16:13
“I am beginning to understand that life is not so much a search for answers, as...”
– Mike Yaconelli - From an article called “Clearings”
March 2010
2 posts
“If Lucy die, maybe Jesus make Lucy again.”
– My three-year old theologian
1 tag
Being present in parenting
Much of my life at home feels obligatory. It is, in reality, a life more beautiful than most can dream. But for me, many times, I am using brunt-force willpower to go through the motions of things that should flow from natural joy: making pancakes, play time with the girls, talking to my wife. There are occasional moments where I am fully present, where the delightful reality of my life rushes...
February 2010
1 post
As a kid we used to sing that song “this is...
January 2010
3 posts
“A soul is healthy so far as it is connected to God in real-time.”
– Mindy Caliguire
2 tags
Melancholy isn't a requirement to be a great...
From Rembrandt to Radiohead, some of the greatest art and music has been produced by very sad people. Because of this some artists actually see sadness as virtue: not only a rite of passage towards producing great art (which it is) but the place one must continue to dwell to be a good artist (which it isn’t).
Yes, pain and death gives art depth. But I don’t want art that plunges me...
“The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s...”
– Frederick Buechner
November 2009
6 posts
“Ruthlessly eliminate hurry”
– Dallas Willard in response to John Ortberg’s question, “What do I need to do to be spiritually healthy?”
Recorded this worship song, Benefits, the other...
“The sun is always rising somewhere, so all over the earth there is a continual...”
“Obedience is rooted in love, not fear; it is activated by affection, not by...”
– Praying With Jesus, Eugene Peterson
The humility of God: working through our bad...
When someone does not take my advice I have at times, sadly, desired their failure so I may have the inner satisfaction of being right. It is not so with God.
It wasn’t good enough for Israel that God was their king. They wanted a human king to be like the other nations. (1 Sam 8) God’s response? A warning, but then look here: He gives them what they want. It’s true, Israel...
Thy Rod And Staff
Wanting to make sure a reference to a shepherd’s staff in a new song I’m writing was accurate I did a little research and stumbled upon this lovely sermon. I love written sermons. Here’s an excerpt.
The staff, more than any other item of his personal equipment, identifies the shepherd as a shepherd. No one in any other profession carries a shepherd’s staff— a long, slender...
October 2009
2 posts
“God judged it better to bring good out of evil than to suffer no evil to exist.”
– St. Augustine