Monthly Archives: November 2008

Bands I like

It’s back in full effect….

For this week’s Bands I like: Cold War Kids

Classified as Indie Rock, they just flat out rock my socks off! If you get a chance to check these guys out, GO! Check em out:

Cold War Kids: Hang Me Out To Dry

 

Cold War Kids: We Used To Vacation

 

Cold War Kids: Tell Me in the Morning

 

Cold War Kids: Somethings Not Right With Me

 

Enjoy!

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Monday’s Scattered Thoughts!

I know its Wednesday, but I didn’t have time to finish so here we go….

For the better part of the past two months I have been out of it… Out of touch, out of tune, out of my mind. why? Well it hit me yesterday when I realized my weekend was gone/done/over. It wasn’t something that I hadn’t felt before, on the contrary I feel it every Sunday night. It was me reaching a breaking point of sorts. This is what my body said to me that night…. “you go go go go go go go go go go go go go go go go, what did you expect?”,”We’re missing something here, and you know what that is”. So my natural reaction is get down on myself, which never solves anything.

So this is what my body was telling me. You’re losing it! The only reason you are out of touch is because you made the decision to walk that way. You don’t make time for things you need to make time for (e.g. Devotional, worship, proper rest, & Solitude/Silence). You are a poor manager of self. UHHHH…. what am I suppose to do with that…..?

So I’m finding my way back…. and its painful!

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I know you hear me but are you listening?

Piggy-backing off of “life together”. Tonight I’ve been simmering with a particular part of the book dealing with the minstry of listening. Its really not anything new to think about, just a helpful to read it out loud, particularly for those “in” ministry. Most people are looking for an ear to listen to them. Funny thing is, and he states this, “they do not find it among Christians, because these Christians are too busy talking where they should be listening“. Tell me its not so Dietrich…. is there anything else you would like to add? Well, “Anyone who thinks that his time is too valuable to spend keeping quiet will eventually have no time for God and his brother, but only for himself and his follies“. So what you are saying is that, our attitude toward our brother is reflective to the relationship with have with our Father/God?

Think about it….. the last conversation you had with someone opening up to you?

The last time God was trying to tell you something?

Get where I’m going with this…. Think about it some more… sit with it/wrestle with it/quit it whatever.

So this is what I’m simmering with…..

Listening is a discipline, its hard! If you are streched thin like I know I can be, you know what I mean when you just don’t feel like you have the capacity for “one more freaking thing”. Its sad really. Not to say I don’t enjoy listening to people, because I do, its one of my favorite things in all the world to just listen to people and their lives. But sometimes…. oh man

For me the problem lies when I feel like I have to be a problem solver. Automatically I can turn into “know it all mode” and begin to guess where people are headed and begin talking over them….. thats a problem! Thats not what people are looking for….

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Life Together

There are a few books that I like to read each year. Books that have a lot in them and that challenge me to look at things differently every time I open them. This morning I breezed through, Life Together by Diedrich Bonhoeffer, once again. I love this book. Yet the more I read this book the more I am challeneged by it. Not as an individual but as a part of a communuity

Much of what the book represents is Community Living, hence “life together”, brotherhood. One of the key features is his emphasis on the Centrality of Chirst, coming together and worshiping in unison. This always causes a pause in my reading….. think about it…. Do we know why we meet each week? Do we know its purpose? and most of all, are we accomplishing that purpose? Some good questions to ask and to answer in a group… For me, corporately speaking, Gifts aren’t being used (my own included), communication is a lost cause, and quality is measured in amount of seats you fill. There is a lot more but those are the ones I reflect on the most.

“will remain sound and healthy only where it does not form itself into a movement, an order, a society, a collegium pietatis, but rather where it understands itself as being a part of the one, holy, catholic, Christian Church. . .”

I love this book for its approach to community. There are a few things that I feel it lacks or over emphasizes way too much but strongly recommended.

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Monday’s Scattered Thoughts

Suprisingly, I’ve made my way back to the blog.

Mondays Scattered thoughts:

I tend to be a person who has conversations with other people in my head. I’m not crazy! or at least I don’t think I am? It usually occurs when I feel resistance or when I see something is wrong. Yesterday I took a little time to sit back and analyze, why the heck am I doing this? I’ve narrowed it down to this.

1. I hate being confrontational

So much of my upbringing was sheltered and dominated. I was the youngest of 3 and boy did I get it, not to mention the only boy, OUCH! On a more serious note, I saw a lot of fighting growing up and paralleled that with things falling apart.

2. I’m too Sensitive

Something I am learning over and over again, is that not everything that happens is because of me nor do I need to make it about me to rationalize my thoughts. I can tend to want to argue for others whom I feel aren’t being taken care of as they should. Call me the fuel to the fire

3. I lack Courage

Some of you that may know me might tend to disagree. I think we all have our moments when we can clearly stand up and be firm about something. But I think courage can be those times when we just let it go.

 

I’m still expanding, still growing, still falling down, still conversing in my head. But its gettin better. Always!

Enjoy

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