John D. Rockefeller

I can think of nothing less pleasurable than a life devoted to pleasure.

Two Kinds of Evangelism

There are two kinds of evangelism.

One that points to draw our attention to God.

One that points to draw our attention to a finger.

Something's Wrong

Yahoo news had a story today about a $25,000 dessert. Why does it cost $25,000? Because they sprinkle gold leaf shavings over the top. Do gold leaf shavings add anything to the taste? No. They are simply a way to say to yourself, "I am so special, I can eat gold while others starve."

I get that I have my own eating habits that others would look at and find wasteful, but isn't this a sick extreme? It would be one thing if it were artful commentary on how we eat, but it's another thing when we will eat gold without irony simply because we can afford to.

Something's wrong with us. Just so wrong.

If you purchase one of these, a line of homeless guys should be allowed to kick you in the groin as you leave the restaurant.

Thomas Mann

War is only a cowardly escape from the problems of peace.

Of The World, Not In The World

It seems to me that by creating a Christian subculture based upon the values of power and success, the church in America has managed to live of the world but not in the world and has, therefore, become the exact opposite of what Christ called us to be.

...And To God What Is God's

Every worship service is a challenge to Caesar. -Peter Leithart

Robinson on Dawkins

Author and Christian Marilynne Robinson wrote this insightful review of Richard Dawkins' The God Delusion. I'd love if you took the time to read it. I'd love even more if you were to leave a comment here.

Psalm 37:37

A future awaits those who seek peace.

I don't think this is a passage about heaven or an eternal reward. I think it simply means that if we don't seek peace we have no future.

In All Fairness

I'm pretty quick to point out any time that President Bush claims that Christ is King and then implies that our greatest hope is America. I'm pretty quick to criticize. So, it's only fair that I take issue with this statement too:

"Of all the rocks upon which we build our lives, we are most dependent on the family; the family is that most important foundation." 

-Barack Obama

Now this statement was made at the beginning of a fantastic Father's Day speech. But it was also made in response to Matthew 7:24-25, and this is where the gospel gets controversial. America isn't our best hope and family isn't what's most important. For those who claim Jesus as Lord, only Christ can be the rock upon which we build our lives. Only He is that most important foundation.

How To Do It Wrong

Great article on church-planting written by my friend, Pat. A must read for any would be church planter.

What Have I Learned?

What have I learned? The old verities, mostly; that love for our children is what sustains us; that people are not what they seem; that those we hate bear some wound equal to our own; that power is desperation's salve, and that this fact as much as any is what dooms us. -from America America by Ethan Canin

Sir Harry and the Qwerty

My son Harry is a pretty imaginative kid. Today he began telling me the story of Sir Harry and the Qwerty. Sir Harry is what you might imagine, a brave and good boy who goes on various adventures. The Qwerty is a snake. The Qwerty grows up with Sir Harry and they seem to be friends, but one day the Qwerty tries to eat Sir Harry and Sir Harry has to kill and eat the Qwerty himself. 

Where do kids come up with this stuff?

Patience Is Better Than Pride

The end of a matter is better than its beginning and patience is better than pride.

Ecclesiastes 7:8

I've been thinking a lot about patience this week and this passage was striking to me. What is it about pride that is naturally opposed to patience? Discuss.

Kester Recommends

Check out my most recent recommendation for KUT.

Moltmann

Christian faith in God is not a naive basic trust. It is unfaith that has been overcome: 'Lord, I believe, help thou my unbelief.' In the fellowship of the assailed and crucified Christ faith grows up in the pains of one's own suffering and the doubts of one's own heart. Here the contradictions and rebellions do not have to be suppressed. They can be admitted.

Skullduggeries

I'd like to recommend that any and all of you check out one of my favorite new blogs. It's called Skullduggeries and is run by one of our very own Inklings.

"Just Because I Did It That Way"

So, here's a something you need to know about your dad.

Some guys think their dads can do no wrong. They define what's true by what their dads taught them, they aspire to be nothing less and nothing more than their dads, they make choices, consciously or unconsciously, by asking the question: "What would dad do?"

Those guys are wrong. Their dads make mistakes, sometimes big ones. Their dads make bad choices, have wrong opinions, and, at least, one glaring character flaw.

Some guys think their dads can do no right. They seek to be as unlike their dad as they possibly can. The smallest nugget of truth is completely compromised simply by being associated with that jerk they call dad.

Those guys are wrong. Even a broken clock is right twice a day and even the worst of dads did something right once. 

On my wedding day, my dad looked at me, smiling but serious, and said, "Don't let me hear you justifying bad behavior just because I did it that way. You be better than that. You be better than me."

That's one of the best legacies our dads can leave us. A desire to see us become good people, even if it means becoming better people than them. The freedom not to compare ourselves to them in order to attribute value. My dad is a great dad and did a lot of great things for me, but the best was to point me towards God and to say, "This is your Father. Listen to Him."

My father taught me to follow God and led by example. What that means is that there a lot of moments where my heavenly Father and earthly father would find themselves in agreement. But, in the times when they don't, my earthly father always taught me to listen to my heavenly one. And that is the best thing he ever did for me. And for that I give him thanks.

My Point Exactly

So, I was making this point to a friend of mine just last week. Then I came across this video today.

Year At Danger

Last night a group of Inklings got to go see the Austin Film Festival encore presentation of Year At Danger. I cannot recommend this film highly enough. Keep your eyes peeled and your ears open for any opportunity to go see this film.

Bush v. Supreme Court

Will Roper: So now you'd give the Devil the benefit of law!

Sir Thomas More: Yes. What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?

Roper: I'd cut down every law in England to do that!

More: Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country's planted thick with laws from coast to coast and if you cut them down do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil the benefit of the law, for my own safety's sake.

-from A Man For All Seasons by Robert Bolt

Linklings

If you're an Inkling and have a blog that you keep up regularly, post the address here and I'll create links for the various Inkling blogs. Thanks.

Charity. Water.

Check out this video.

The One You Feed

"A fight is going on inside me," the man said to the boy. "It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil -he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, self-doubt, and ego. The other is good -he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. This same fight is going on inside you and inside every other person too."

The boy thought for a minute and asked the man, "Which wolf will win?"

The man replied simply, "The one you feed."

The Source

The person who strays away from the source is unrooted and is like dust blown about by the wind.

Why Worship Matters

"In a foreign landscape a man discovers the old songs. He calls out for water from his own well, for apples from his own orchard, for the muscat grapes from his own vine. What is a man who has no landscape? Nothing but mirrors and tides." -from Fugitive Pieces by Anne Michaels

The Truest Test

"The choices we make in the grip of fear are the truest test of our humanity."

Wisdom and Foolishness

"The wise man questions the wisdom of others as he questions his own, the foolish man, as it is different from his own."

32 and Music

So, I turn 32 today and thought I'd direct you to my personal blog for a look back at some music that has influenced me.

Then return here and answer this question:

What music has influenced you? Does music influence you? If not, what does? Movies? Books?

Let us know.

seventeen albums that changed my life

This list concept is absolutely and shamelessly ripped off of the brilliant and beautiful Summer Anne who, in turn, ripped it off of Patton Quinn. Being a lover of lists myself, I couldn't resist. See both of their blogs for disclaimer.

1. Billy Joel -Piano Man

Mom introduced me to Billy Joel at the ripe old age of 6. Well, she didn't sit me down like the sister in Almost Famous and ask me to light at a candle, it was more like osmosis. Piano Man was one of those albums in the air at our house, like stuff by Bread or Chicago. This one stuck, the title track in particular. 20something years later, this is my mom's favorite song to hear me sing. I don't know if there are too many lines that hit me the way "they're sharing a drink they call loneliness, but it's better than drinking alone" does.

2. Jackson Browne -The Pretender

This was another of those "something in the air" albums, although my dad was a tad more intentional with it. Where Piano Man served almost like the background music of childhood, The Pretender got turned up whenever it was on. Turn it up, sit back, and quietly sing along. This was dad's way of saying "Pay attention. This is important."

3. Johnny Cash -At Folsom Prison

Grandpa is actually more of a Merle Haggard guy (he loves that "love it or leave it" sentiment), but Johnny was a close second, and much more my speed. Where Merle was funny until you realized he was serious, Johnny was funny and serious in exactly the way he meant to be. Some of the most heartwarming and heartbreaking music I have ever heard.

4. Tom Waits -Closing Time

Ask my cousins which album they turned their nose up at as kids that they now count as a favorite. They'll all say Closing Time. My Uncle Norm plays this album at the end of every road trip and it is the soundtrack to any vacation up north. This is the sad peace of togetherness put to music.

5. U2 -The Unforgettable Fire

What? You thought I was going to say Joshua Tree? Yeah, it's amazing, but Unforgettable Fire is a superior album and my introduction to U2. This was one of those albums that was about something, it was political in the kind of way that I associated with Jesus more than I did with Reagan. I know that "political" is one of the reasons a lot of folks despise U2, but it was the initial draw for me. At 13, I was looking for someone to give me permission to be serious in a passionate way.

6. Public Enemy -It Takes A Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back

While my parents were initially concerned about my brother introducing me to hip-hop, I could not have been more grateful. Still looking to be serious and passionate at 14, this was one step further in both directions. This was angry. "You know who they're angry at?" he said, "You." That didn't matter. People had been angry at me before. It sounded like they might have a good reason. It sounded like I should listen.

7. Nirvana -Nevermind

When I was 28 and had been working with teenagers for a number of years, one of them came over to the house, checked out my music collection, and exclaimed, "Nirvana? That's my music!" He was wrong, of course, but he was right. Nirvana always feels like your music when you're 15 years old. It's just that I was 15 in 1991.

8. Bruce Springsteen -Nebraska

Anyone who knows me at all was wondering when Bruce would make the list. Strangely enough, I came to Springsteen kind of late. He had always been my dad's music, but at a stage when that didn't make him appealing. So instead of jumping in early like I did with Jackson Browne, I was 16 before I really gave the Boss a chance. Paul Merino and I were walking through a record store when he picked up a copy of Nebraska and said, "you're a Bruce fan, right?" I responded in a withering tone, "No. My dad is." "Then your dad's got better taste than you do," he retorted, "Buy this idiot. If you don't love it, I'll buy it from you." Needless to say, he was right.  Bruce Springsteen became my favorite recording artist ever, and Nebraska will always be my favorite album.

9. Bob Dylan -Blood On The Tracks/Neil Young -After The Gold Rush

OK. OK. 18 albums. But these came together at summer camp when I was 16. This kid in my cabin (Mark?) had made a tape that had Bob on one side and Neil on the other. This was mindblowing. This was everything I loved about every album I had ever loved. I simply could not believe how good this was and how strange it was that Bob Dylan had always been background noise and Neil Young non-existent. What were my parents thinking (actually dad is only a nominal fan and mom doesn't care for their singing voices. She likes a real singer. Like Billy Joel.)?

10. Jeff Buckley -Grace

There are few performers who can manage to be perfectly controlled and completely exposed in the same breath. Buckley is one of them. This album represents that shift from high school to college that meant just a little less Nirvana and just a little more Radiohead. And not enough Jeff Buckley. But what he gave us in that little time was more than most singer/songwriters do in a lifetime.

11. Radiohead -The Bends/Ben Harper -Fight For Your Mind

Go on. Say it. 19 albums. But these came together as well. David and Max were two older college guys whose opinions on what was cool could not be questioned. In this case, they shouldn't be. Before Harper became a sort of sellout, he had a raw and wild quality that made it possible for him to cover Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye without irony. And Radiohead simply was the college band for anyone in college in the early 90's. That's OK. They earned it.

12. Ben Folds Five -Whatever and Ever Amen

And if Radiohead was the band for serious college students, BFF was the band for the not so serious. And I was a bit of both. Ben Folds Five was the soundtrack to my senior year, when we were all just a bit too witty and ironic. Still, there was no irony in that piano powered pop, which is why we let Ben slide.

13.Rich Mullins -A Liturgy, A Legacy, and A Ragamuffin Band

Rachel had some initial concerns about the fact that I refused to listen to Christian music and I was equally concerned that she didn't. I'm pretty sure Sandi Patty and Twila Paris wouldn't have spanned the gap. Rich Mullins did. Simply one of the most flawed and honest Christian songwriters ever. All the "rah! rah!" stuff that I had rejected from Christian subculture was absent from his music. This was a guy just stumbling towards Jesus and knowing he'd never make it if Jesus didn't run towards him.

14. Lyle Lovett -Joshua Judges Ruth

I was introduced to Lovett's music in Abilene, TX. I had just made the claim that there was no longer such a thing as "good country music" and my friend Blake assured me I was wrong. I asked him to prove it. He did.

15. Neutral Milk Hotel -In The Aeroplane Over The Sea

There was one good record store in Abilene and it was like something out of High Fidelity, which means it didn't stay in business very long (curse you Abilene!). However, it was there when I needed it and it was where I heard Neutral Milk Hotel for the first time. I remember asking the owner what it was and him handing it to me with a smile and saying, "Buy it. It'll change your life."

16. Elvis Costello -Get Happy!

If it took me awhile to get to Bruce, it took me forever to get to Elvis. In fact, my buddy Mark was pretty shocked to discover that I had yet to discover Costello's music. Dumbfounded. Like finding out your college English professor has never heard of James Joyce. Get Happy! is, quite simply, the greatest punk album ever recorded.

17. Okkervil River -Don't Fall In Love With Everyone You See

BookPeople. Where the only thing better than the books is the people. And not just because they introduce you to music you'd have missed sitting in an office somewhere. Still, that is a plus. When Summer and I started trading mixes, Okkervil River's "Listening To Otis Redding At Home During Christmas" was a standout track. One of the many times on this list where I asked, "What is this?" and was changed as a result.  Thank. You. Summer.

Best So Far

Halfway through 2008 and here are my picks for the best albums of the year so far:

Elvis Costello -Momofuku

Bon Iver -For Emma, Forever Ago

Bonnie "Prince" Billy -Lie Down In The Light

The Dodos -Visiter

Centro-Matic/South San Gabriel -Dual Hawks

Shearwater -Rook

Jim Noir -Jim Noir

DeVotchka -A Mad and Faithful Telling

Vampire Weekend -Vampire Weekend

Death Cab For Cutie -Narrow Stairs

Billy Bragg -Mr. Love & Justice

She and Him -Volume One

Fleet Foxes -Fleet Foxes

Stephen Malkmus -Real Emotional Trash

The Magnetic Fields -Distortion

Grand Archives -Grand Archives

Gnarls Barkley -The Odd Couple

For those of you who don't know my regular practice, this list will eventually be a top 25 of 2008. Odds are that Grand Archives and Gnarls Barkley won't make the final cut.

Here's the list from last year and the year before.

What new stuff have you come across so far this year?

Belief and Behavior

We had a great conversation last night about belief and behavior. Why is it that so many people want to make one of these more important than the other? When did we start separating them from one another?

Dietrich Bonhoeffer once wrote, "Only those who obey can believe and only those who believe can obey."

What do you think?

The Race Is On

So, today we have two official Presidential candidates. Share your thoughts and reserve your attacks for ideas and not people.

Go.

Twain

Be good and you will be lonely.

Wordsworth

Our meddling intellect

Misshapes the beauteous forms of things:

We murder to dissect.