I was in a good rhythm of diet and exercise before my surgery. Now, I’m just laying on my back, eating a lot of carbs. I’m a little bummed.
But it is Christmas break, after all, and I’ve never really been a guy who struggles with overeating. I guess I’ll just accept the tasty morsels as manna from heaven, and leave it at that.
You are tired.
Some of you have children, and you are angry and horrified and anxious and frustrated and scared.
All you want to do is hold the ones you love and make sure they know how much they mean to you.
You are reeling, and you are wondering what you will say in the face of this massive tragedy because you just want to sit and cry and pray.
And that is good and natural, but, for you, that is not your calling.
You have been called to preach Hope. You have been called to preach Life. You have been called to preach Love.
Please remember: It does not matter if you feel it. Feelings are real and they are valid, but they are fleeting. They do not own us. You want to be honest and authentic, and that is to be applauded. But preaching in the midst of tragedy does not require that you completely “feel it.”
You have been called to preach a word that is not your own. You have been called and trained to preach a word that is God’s.
You and I are fragile creatures. We bend and break more than any of us would like to admit, but this Sunday is a day to rely on the Holy Spirit to bring to mind all you have been told.
In life and in death we belong to God. That was the Truth I proclaimed at the funeral of my father-in-law who took his own life. It is the Truth that sustains us. It is the Truth for a reason: It is true.
You have not been called because you are above this. You have not been called because this tragedy does not affect you. You have been called because you know the Truth that has set us free. The Truth that God holds us, even in the midst of tragedy. In the midst of Life and in the midst of Death.
People will not believe you. They may call you a charlatan and a liar. They may be angry. They may revile you. But one day they will see that the word you have offered is the Truth of God. That Hope wins. That Love wins. That Faith wins.
You are tired, but God will sustain you.
I will pray for you fervently.
Last week, I started reading the new pseudo-biography of Rob Bell, Rob Bell and the New American Christianity. Also, there is a multi-page profile on Rob in the New Yorker. Even almost a year after he left Mars Hill and published Love Wins, he’s still getting press just for being him.
I have long been an admirer and fan of Rob, and a student of his work. I have listened to countless sermons, digested every Nooma film and longer tour films, and have been to see him live. I borrowed the videos from his preaching conference, and have read his books. I have worked his exegetical insights into my own sermons and have led classes on his teachings.
And now, lo, these many years later, I feel comfortable admitting that I am insanely jealous of Rob Bell.
I’m not going to sugarcoat it: When I read or hear anything that Rob has to say, my first reactions are always “Why didn’t I think of that?” or “I’ve been saying that for years!” According to whatever personality profile you choose, I’m the kind of person who fears being “normal” (insert jokes here) and unoriginal. I want to offer the world a new way of seeing, a new way of thinking, which will result in new ways of being.
This jealousy has troubled me recently, so I’ve decided to employ Calvin’s “Three Uses of the Law” to see if I can get a handle on it.
Pedagogical:
The First Use of the Law is that the Law teaches us. My jealousy is tantamount to (if not outright) the Tenth commandment regarding coveting. So the First Use actually teaches me about coveting. If this Commandment was not in place, I would not know anything about it.
So, I get a little education about jealousy and coveting, and what it means, and how and why it is different than other strong emotions I have. This is different than a healthy competition. This is beyond debate. This borders on anger that someone else is having success in life. Simple enough.
Civil:
The Second Use is the one we normally think of: Don’t do it.
The Commandment is pretty clear that this is not behavior to be encouraged. All sorts of extrapolations can be teased out as to why: It’s bad for my health, my self-image, the resultant way that I will treat others, etc.
Regardless of the way I feel, this Use is about behavioral modification. Essentially, Divine Approved program to “Fake it until you make it.”
Didactic:
The Third Use is where the real genius lies in Calvin’s scheme. The Third Use is designed not to teach us the parameters and require adherence to the parameters, but to point us in the direction of the Christ-like response; the way in which we can allow ourselves to be more and more conformed to the image of Christ.
I’ve known what coveting and jealousy are for a long time. I get the psychology and emotional content surrounding them. I know not to do it and why. But when I get to the Third Use, I am always amazed at what it teaches me.
And what my insane jealousy of Rob Bell has taught me is that I admire the work he has done and want to do similar work, because I find that kind of creativity to be life giving for myself and others.
I know that I have had a good deal of success in my life. I know that I have no reason to complain or be petty in my jealousy. And so I am thankful for the Third Use because it has, once again, reminded me of the kind of work that I believe God is calling me to be a part of. My soul resonates with the work of Rob Bell because it is work that I see as valuable. I see my jealousy, interestingly, as a confirmation that seeking the answers to big, life giving questions is where I need to focus my time and energy. That’s a relief to me because I have been blessed to be in situations where I get to do that on a regular basis.
And this, friends, is the beauty of our God. We are not left to wallow, but (as the Psalmist says) to be lifted up out of the muck and mire to a better place to stand.
NOTE: I’ve gotten a bit of push back for the use of the word “you” in this post. Some have pointed out the presumptuous nature of the word. I think they are right. While I concede that, I do want to maintain that “going digital” has screwed many of us up. I’ll try to be a little more careful next time.
Second NOTE: Upon further reflection, the presence of the word “you,” the most common objection, was used as a literary device and, I think, fully appropriate. While it is always beneficial to be aware of one’s communication tendencies, I will also choose to assume a high level of self-awareness on the part of readers and will hold them responsible for their own interaction with whatever text they are reading.
I’d like to introduce you to my new Midori Traveler’s Notebook. It’s really a pretty beautiful thingy, this notebook, and it represents my return to organizing my thoughts, tasks, and schedule using pen and paper. I got the “radial datebook” and little modification inspirations from Patrick at Scription.
I tried for a long time to be a digital boy. I am obviously a fan of technology, but I have found that I do better when I’m writing things down by hand. About two months ago, I tried out another digital system. I bought a tablet that had a stylus you could write with, but… Oh, the balls I dropped. I needed to go back.
Here’s the thing: There is real and there is not real. Pen and paper are real. Digital is not.
Digital is bits and bites. It’s an idea. It’s an abstraction. when something is created digitally, it doesn’t actually exist. I think this was the essence of my problem. When I tried to work solely with a digital workflow, I think my subconscious knew that what I was manipulating wasn’t actually real. And this is saying something, coming from an abstract guy like me.
But the pen and paper… Those are real things. Sure, they may be symbols of other things, but they are real. My to do list can never be deleted. It can only be completed. I can’t erase something, only cross it out.
This is a spiritual thing for me, dealing with the real. My life – your life – is too full already to deal with things that aren’t real. What’s the point?
I know, I know. Some of you will claim that you do “just fine” organizing your life digitally and that I should stop acting like an old fogey and go back to being the “open source guy” who celebrated technological innovation. The thing is, open source is about making sure things work.
Friends, there’s a whole lot of us doing things that aren’t working.
I don’t believe you when you tell me that you can organize your life digitally. I know you, and I read about your stress all the time on Twitter and Facebook. I see how much stuff you try to cram into your day. A lot of you are cranky because of it. I know I am when I try to live by the digital code. It sucks.
So here’s what I want you to do: On Monday, instead of firing up your OmniMuiltiThingFocus program to start the race to see how many boxes you can click, just ask yourself “What are three things I need to do today?” Write them down on a piece of paper or a note card and do them. One at a time.
Cause, really, most of you reading this are pastors, and the people you serve deserve to have a servant who models daily Sabbath and simplicity. We all know you’re good enough and capable enough, but we’re tired of you modeling unhealthy behavior.
Psalm 127:1-2
1 Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labour in vain.
Unless the Lord guards the city,
the guard keeps watch in vain.
2 It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
for he gives sleep to his beloved.
Yesterday, Rocky and I threw up the first of our end of the year best in music lists when we let you know what the Top 5 Songs of the Year were. Today, it’s on to albums (check out Rocky’s list here – it’s stellar).
I can’t speak for Rocky, but, for me, the album is a different beast entirely than the song. Songs are about mood, moment, and memories. Songs are immediate. Songs conjure emotions. I will never tell you what the “best song” is because, like all other tunes, it is fleeting. But an album…
The collection of tunes we call an album is a serious endeavor. To my mind, an album represents a complete expression of an artist. Any tosser can write a song. But not everyone can write an album. It takes stamina. It takes foresight. It takes something than we mere mortals possess to write not just a bunch of songs, but a craft a vision. It takes something akin to what Nietzsche called “a long obedience in the same direction.”
These five albums I submit to you today are not necessarily my favorite albums. They are not necessarily the albums I spent hours listening to. But they are, in this man’s opinion, the best albums I heard this year. So, in alphabetical order, here are my nominees for Album of the Year:
1) Admiral Fallow’s Boots Met My Face
Featured as well on my Songs of the Year list, Admiral Fallow were a joyous discovery for me. Finding this album was one of those rare moments when I found something before everyone else (the last time that happened was the summer of ’95 when I pimped The Verve Pipe’s “Freshman” ad naseum. No one liked it. Until it went into radio play that fall…). I listened to this on Bandcamp for probably 2 months before deciding to buy it. By the time it hit my mp3 player, it was road tested. The perfect buy.
What gets me about this album is the percussive nature of the tunes and the obvious Scottish brogue of frontman Louis Abbott. But it doesn’t stop there. There’s clarinet, and flute, and pop sensibility. They describe their music as “orchestral folk pop.” Yes. And they do it beautifully.
Sample: “These Barren Years”
2) David Bazan’s Strange Negotiations
Bazan is one of those artists that I have long tried to like. I tried with his legendary band, Pedro the Lion, and I tried when he decided to record under his own name. When he came up in musical conversations I would always say, “I don’t get him. I appreciate him, but I don’t get him.” Strange Negotiations is not necessarily the album of his I’ve been waiting for, but it’s very close. I didn’t turn to this album repeatedly over the year because I just LOVED listening to it. I turned to it because there was something primal and raw in this collection that sought me out and required that I pay attention.
Bazan filled a need for me in giving voice to my distaste with idealism. Be it religious, economic, or patriotic, I have found myself disturbed by the pursuit of the perfect resulting in the shunning of all else. With a clarity and artistic sense rivaled by very few songwriters, Strange Negotiations finds Bazan tearing your understanding of the American Christian Industrial Complex to shreds. And you like it all the while. And you find yourself asking for more.
Sample: “Wolves at the Door”
3) Josh Garrel’s Love & War & The Sea In Between
Let me begin by saying that this album brought me to tears. In fact, I am still coming to terms with the impact this album had on my soul when I found it. The best I can do is say that it was a mystical experience, and I’m not trying to be cheeky.
Here’s what I wrote in Theology is Art, when I used Garrel’s as one of my main examples:
Recently, singer/songwriter Josh Garrels released what I consider to be a magnificent work of art, a collection of songs titled “Love & War & The Sea In Between,” which succeeds masterfully at revealing new facets about God to me. While I find his musical arrangements to be some of the most creative I’ve heard in years, it is his lyrics that leave me dead in my tracks, unable to do anything but ponder their depths… (And this is coming from a decidedly “non-lyric” person. I don’t care what you sing, as long as I tap my foot while you do it.)
Many people deride Contemporary Christian Music, and with good reason. Legend holds that the late Christian musician Rich Mullins commented that most music associated with the church is “fifth rate lyrics set to sixth rate music.” Louisville, KY songstress Heidi Howe has even written a song titled “Why does Jesus Music have to suck?” Saddled by the twin forces of capitalism and a stringent orthodoxy, CCM musicians have consistently produced music that is inoffensive to both ear and soul. Tired musical arrangements provide the foundation for tired “theological” conventions.
Yet Garrels has taken these once tired ideas and given them fresh life.
Garrel’s released Love & War… this year as a free download from his website (you would be foolish to not obtain it), and is, hands down, my pick for Album of the Year.
Sample: “Resistance”
4) The Lower Lights’ Come Let Us Adore Him
Who let a Christmas album in here?! Trust me – I am as surprised as you are.
Here at Casa de Whitsitt we are crazy about Christmas music, and we have a wide variety of it. We have Sting, James Taylor, Bing Crosby, John Denver and the Muppets, New Kids on the Block… (Don’t judge, Judgey McJudgersons). The last thing we needed was more holiday offerings.
But, cruising Bandcamp one night, I stumbled onto The Lower Lights. These magnificently gifted Morman musicians grabbed a hold of us and didn’t let go all season. I’ll be listening to this long after the tinsel is gone.
Sample: “O Come All Ye Faithful”
5) Young the Giant’s Young the Giant
I have nothing witty or snappy to say about YTG’s self-titled offering except that it is a party in my ears every time I turn it on. It’s catchy. It’s jangly in that Athens, GA sort of way. It’s lyrically clever.
It’s just fun, and I could not stop listening to it. I could. Not. Stop.
Yay, hipsters!
Sample: “Apartment”
landon whitsitt 