The Bible says that there is nothing new under the sun, therefore all things are merely an echo of what has already been thought, however, I have not thought them yet, so they are a newecho.
As one who has worked with and been around artists, as well as one who has worked with and been around parents, I've come to wonder. How come an artist will see every single error in his own peice of art he created, yet a parent who has a child, will see none of the problems in that?
A wise man once told me to look at scenarios in life in attempt to see the broader picture. I was pondering this the other day, as part of my school year resolution of writing more, and recalled a phenomenon of my earlier years. This phenomenon occurred for the most part in the years leading up to and at the 7th grade in situations surrounding large bodies of water, most notably, the YMCA pool.
When it came time to enter the pool, few possessions were as prized as a good pair of goggles. Goggles were the gadgets to have. Everyone knew the discomfort that would come from the burning chlorine in the eyes, or the water itself blurring ones’ vision, nobody who had to bits of sense would ever try swimming under water without his eyes carefully sealed behind those plastic wonders. In truth, childish games such as Marco Polo freeze tag and underwater tag would have been vain without these wonders. Chasing after a friend while not being able to see clearly would have been as successful as chasing after butterfly fish in the ocean, mere darting shadows of what was once there. Stylish, goggles came in man colors, sizes, shapes and finishes. Some of them had holographic tiger-eyes, cat eyes, lizard eyes and other fantastical creatures. Some were thin, some were fat, some were translucent, others opaque, but no matter what they were, they were vital.
Occasionally, however, one would find himself with a pair of goggles that did not seal around the eyes, and I believe that at that moment in time there was no more ludicrous item than a pair of goggles that trapped the water on the inside! The leaky goggle was the bane of underwater races and foiled many a child from exploring the emerald and veined surface of the pool floor. How many worlds were not known because of the inability to see? In the eyes of a child, willingly taking or not exchanging a faulty pair of goggles, or worse yet, not taking a pair at all to the pool, was as foolish as a one could get when it came time to go into the pool.
Thinking back to this situation, it made me think about entering into the world without God’s word. For us to jump into the world without the “filter” and “protection” of God’s word is almost as foolish as it is sinful. In the same way that we as children knew we needed those goggles to keep the chlorine out of our eyes and to let us see clearly, we also know that God’s word is the only thing that will keep the filth of the world out of our lives and let us see clearly what is truth. As ridiculous as I once saw the lack of “goggles” how much more ridiculous should I see the idea of not knowing God’s word inside and out before submerging myself in this world? As all analogies are, this is by no means perfect, but it did give me reason to think about a very real concept. I will equip myself with my “spiritual goggles” so that I can keep the “chlorine of sin” out of my life.
The question of sociology is the denial of man's inerrant wickedness. By defenition of sociology, as stated by my professor, Dr. Farb, sociology ignores the fact that man will always seek evil outside of Christ and attempts to explain blatant sin as nothing more than a product of his enviroment. Obviously change will not come about if we do not seek change where it is needed, that is, spreading Christ to a generation that does not know him.
After a fairly hard day of work, relative to those doing the work I am sure, few things have given me refreshment in the past, like a tall glass of ice tea. Coming in from under the sun, with dust running through the cracks in your throat, a tall glass of velvet foam and well brewed tea is about all a sensible man can ask for. There have been times, when lack of better judgement have brought me to the point where I have been aware of very little, save the fact that I needed something to drink, and not much would better satisfy that desire than ice tea.
In light of this analogy, I found my self, some days ago, in a similar state. Through lack of better judgement, I had not been ritualy bathing myself in God's word, an element I know to be crucial to my spiritual life. It was this state that I found myself in, coming to the point of bewilderment, aware of very little but that I needed something to drink, I needed scripture. It was in this moment that I decided to begin with a Psalm. As I am inclined to do with opening Psalms, I generaly pick one at random for the day, it was in this manner that I came accross Psalm 32. I can say very little about this that would enhance it's message, save just how much I found it to be revealing, challenging and all the while, refreshing. Here it reads:
1How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered!
2How blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit!
3When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away
Through my groaning all day long.
4For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
My vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. Selah.
5I acknowledged my sin to You,
And my iniquity I did not hide;
I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD";
And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah.
6Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You in a time when You may be found;
Surely in a flood of great waters they will not reach him.
7You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble;
You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.
8I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go;
I will counsel you with My eye upon you.
9Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding,
Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check,
Otherwise they will not come near to you.
10Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
But he who trusts in the LORD, lovingkindness shall surround him.
11Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous ones;
And shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.
Pardon me the "geekish" tangent of endorsement, but I believe as at a minimum, a laptop user, let alone a MAC user, I must endorse a good thing. Urban City Coffee, located on 136th st. and State (with a large "Home Town Deli sign outfront), is a little road side Coffee Joint with free Wi-Fi and a decent carmel Italian Soda. I feel that as a student and as a responsability to my fellow Mac Users/One28 staff/EvCC Eleites.... I must shed light on this little spot. As a matter of history, places with generosity like this do not last long. Therefore, I beckon and call to my fellow comrades, support a good thing, and check out Urban City Coffee.
Making my way accross the scuffed and faded surface that is the gym floor, heading to our faithful one28 room, I noticed something. It seems to me that more and more people these days, particularily students, are wearing casual jeans to church. I am by no means, attempting to say that there is some commandment or scriptural support stating the inherant sin of blue jeans on a sunday, I do think we are lacking a sense of formality. I'll admit, in the face of occasional emergencies, wearing blue jeans beats not wearing pants at all, or dare I imagine it, a skirt, to church on sundays, I think we can do better. While blue CAN have a "nice" look about them, a sharp look, any person in the enviroment of business will tell you, that is known as, business CASUAL. I would love to see one28 ministries continue to grow by putting forth the extra effort to dress nice for church. Yes, the strapping young men in our ministry can pull of "nice attire" in most anything, we will do much in the way of showing our sincerity in a physical sense by taking our matter of dress to the next level. In an attempt to sum up, dress to your best, and keep the jeans for the "weekday blues."
Like tattoos of white boxes, iPod owners run the mill from those that are shy of confessing the social retardation bouncing in their pockets, to those best described as 6-year old girls "accessorizing" their new dolls. On a few situations, I have noticed many of these enthusiastic music junkies almost fighting for the chance to play some new "up and coming" band, a classic old tune they "re-discovered" or some other melody, nostalgic or not. And I will confess, I scoffed. To me, people fell into a couple of categories regarding music. First you have those who are musicians, those I believe have rightful claim to amplified waves, those who's music I would actually like to hear. Then you have students and other junkies who's cluttered libraries (largely pirated) would cause the most veteran Sno-Isle staff to, dare I say, want to cuss. A third category, and that is all I will delve into, would be the industrious folk, those content with their few favorite tunes because when they are mowing lawns, grinding granite, preparing sermons or crunching numbers, it's the nostalgic and pounding beats that ultimately get the day done faster.
The perpetrators, in my mind then, tended to fall more into the student category, and I marveled at the dog-eat-dog empire of those squabbling at getting their tunes heard. AND HERE IS WHERE I RECANT. I was zealous after one evening of witnessing this micro chasm of cut throat "pirates" and thought that I would put them all the shame, show them the foolishness of their ways, attempt to prove that music "rights" belonged though those "musically proven." I was tipped off. I was warned, that had I jumped in so carelessly, I would have been ambushed, like, dare I say, a pack of dogs on a three legged cat. I did not want to be put to shame, so I held back, and attempted to search my motive on this issue. Therefore, here I am to say, I RECANT.
Why did I scoff at people who just want to have their music played? Am I really that different? Truly, I can well identify with the experience of hearing a song that so powerfully drives a bass line and has a melody that cuts so crisply straight to the emotions that everything sweet explodes in your veins and everything bitter resolves itself in your mouth, leaving you in a euphoria known as "music." That is what art is about. Art is the essence of having some past emotion ripped from you and displayed in front of you, or a past thought tickled by some play on words. As a fellow artist, can I really become offended by some person wanting to share another's art with the world?
While I believe that some people could do well to learn the finesse of sharing music, the etiquette and reserve that everyone could do well to learn, I no longer hold it against them. I can appreciate the desire to let everyone hear "the best song ever written" no matter how many times or how many different artists it may be, I can appreciate that. For those who still push and shove, fight and argue about who gets to play their favorite tune, you will learn. You will learn that a great song is a great song for the sheer fact that the musician has made it all the way to being on a record and has won someone's undying support. I say, let the music play on.
