Behind These Hazel Eyes
Kelly Clarkson
Sorry.
Walk On Revisited
I just picked up the revised edition of Walk On: The Spiritual Journey of U2 by Steve Stockman. Right off the bat I noticed the added thickness and beautiful blue cover. There stands Bono dressed in black leather staring into the sky. The audience, with thier hands raised, look like they stepped right off a Hillsong worship album. Church is underway.
I was not planning on reading the book until school started in the fall. Alas, I could not resist.
I am in Searcy, AR for an administrator’s confrence. This is where I went to university. I spent most of my time in a small coffee shop called Midnight Oil instead of studying. I believe in not letting school get in the way of one’s education! So, instead of heading back to my hotel I stopped in for old time’s sake.
I pulled out my iPod and listened to Elevation as I read the foreward. Written by Steve Beard, the forward contained a couple of great nuggets.
(U2’s) lyrics unfold a world beyond the things that can be merely seen and rationally grasped. The music is not a simplistic mish-mash of yummy lyrics about skipping with Jesus through the fields of daisies. Instead, their songs wrestle with pain and frustration without catering to hopelessness.
Stockman does a tremendous service to those who follow Jesus, as well as those who aren’t traveling the path. To those who count themselves among the faithfull, Stockman will help you open the eyes of your soul to intellectually and spiritually engage the music that touches the deepest part of what it means to be human. To those who do not consider themselves believers, this book will go a long way in helping explain why U2’s music seems to scratch an unidentifiable itch. (xiii)
That’s all for now. I’m in the middle of listening to Boy as I prepare for chapter one. Go pick up this book!
Existential
ex·is·ten·tial adj.
Of, relating to, or dealing with existence.
You cannot help but begin to think about your existence as you drive 8 hours across Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Arkansas.
Not only am I prone to think existentially but I also have the most existential music collection ever. I have the perfect soundtrack to question your life to.
Of course, U2‘s songs always pose existential conundrums. Songs like Message in a Bottle by The Police, In My Life by The Beatles, Dancing Nancies by Dave Matthews Band, and Be Yourself by Audioslave just beg you to ask yourself about yourself.
All this introspection can get annoying. That is why I love the fact that existential thinking inevitably asks you to look outside of yourself. Existential thinking isn’t about you. It is thinking about the world you inhabit. I try to live by the old Boy Scout rule of leaving my area better than I found it.
A quick side note:
The very first class I attended at a youth ministry conference was entitled “Why Youth Ministers Should Read the Writings of the Existentialists.” Tony Camoplo presented the lecture and I took an obscene amount of notes. I am weird!
Prayernouncment
Public prayer is a fine art.
Last week, I went to back to the church I grew up in. After a few songs an elder stood behind the podium and delivered unto us a unique hybrid of intercessory prayer and announcements. His prayer went as follows:
Lord, we pray now for the family of John Smith, who died on July 1 and whose funeral services will be held on July 3. Father, also be with the family of Jane Doe who left this life on July 2 and who will be laid to rest on July 5 at Rolling Hills Mortuary.
It went on like this for quite some time. Does God really need to know the date of the funeral or which hospital room someone was in? In his prayernouncement, this elder stopped just shy of telling God that in lieu of flowers the family would appreciate a donation to the Heart Association. If it were not so frustrating it would be laughable.
I said that public prayer is an art. It is an art of learning to speak to the Father and not to those around you. In college, a friend of mine helped me make this distinction. He was relating to me how difficult it was for him to pray with his girlfriend. He told me that he had to resist the temptation to talk to her when they prayed together. A light bulb went off in my head and I realized how often I fell into that trap as well. Prayer is such an awesome gift and we squander it by trying to find just the “right words” and just the “right phrases” in our prayers.
A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of hearing Tony Campolo speak. He told the story of an interview Dan Rather had with Mother Teresa. Dan asked her what she said to God when she prayed. Mother Teresa answered, “Nothing. I just listen.” Bewildered, Dan asked her, “Ok, well what does God say to you?” The old woman looked back at him and said, “Nothing. He just listens.”
Quit talking to the congregation.
Wrapping It All Up
We had a great time in the Lone Star state last week. We were able to spend a lot (but still too brief) time with my friends and family. I am co-officiating a wedding for two friends in August so we spend a good deal of time at wedding hooplas oooh-ing and aaah-ing at gifts. We gave the couple a “blessing.” All of their friends and family gathered around them preaying for their future and offering advice and marital wisdom. Sandy and I have been married the longest out of all my peers. We have a whole year on everybody else! More on this wedding as the date approaches.
We caught a Ranger game last week. The Red Sox crushed the Rangers! Let’s-Go-Red-Sox!
Our trip back took a mere 12 hours to complete. We are now in the “path of destruction” for Hurricane Dennis. The highway was clogged with fleeing Floridians. Let’s pray that this all blows over.
Nothing else to report. I’m heading to Searcy, AR on Monday night for an administrator confrence (a.k.a Snoozefest 2005). I will be able to see my sister and brother-in-law. And one of the presenter’s was my advisor in college. It won’t all be bad.
Peace,
Felker
Sorry Rachel Perry
According to VH1, both VH1 and MTV will re-play this past weekend’s Live8 concerts commercial free and sans all that babble from on air V-Jays. Well done Viacom. Good on ya.
Your parents might not listen, your teachers might not listen, but MTV, apparently, listens.
Responding to viewers and critics, MTV Networks has announced that it will broadcast 10 hours of Live 8 performance footage — including sets from Jay-Z, U2, Paul McCartney and others — commercial-free on MTV and VH1.
MTV and VH1 will each offer five hours of uninterrupted performance footage with differing artist lineups on Saturday. VH1 will air its Live 8 highlights from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, while MTV’s batch of highlights will roll out from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m.
“At MTV and VH1, we’re in a constant and candid dialogue with our audience, and in the wake of the live events last Saturday, our viewers have resoundingly told us online they want to see full-set performances from their favorite artists,” MTV Networks Music Group President Van Toffler said of the move. “As a result of viewer demand and thanks to the Live 8 organizers and performers, MTV and VH1 will air 10 consecutive hours from one of the most important musical events of our time.”
MTV has also announced plans to roll out a half-hour special on the issues behind the Live 8 event on Friday at 9 p.m. “Live 8: Next Steps” will re-air at 8 p.m. on Saturday immediately following the Live 8 highlights.
My Heart is With Those in London
I haven’t been able to take my eyes off of what happened in London this morning. My thoughts and prayers are with the city and her people tonight. Rudy over at Urban Onramps quoted Tim Worstall earlier today saying:
…save the anger until we really know who did it, keep the political posturing until we’ve buried the bodies and if it’s one of the things you do, pray for those who have been murdered and those they’ve left behind.
Very appropriate. You can find many more pictures and stories about today’s events from the Flickr photo pool.
Hello From Texas
Hello all! I am here in Dallas, TX visiting family and friends.
I hope everyone enjoyed Live8 today. The telecasts were less than desirable often playing half of a song and then 8 commercials. Oh, well. Maybe the DVD will find its way into my stocking come this Christmas.
Have a great 4th. Remember: In the kingdom, independance is for all!
Peace,
Felker
What Are the Issues?
They said: “The man is judged according to his works,”
so tell me Africa, what’s your worth? -Wyclef Jean “Million Voices”
These paragraphs come from the ONE website. As you can see, these issues go much deeper than a mere rock concert. These statistics are more than mere numbers. They represent children, mothers, fathers, uncles, aunts, teachers, doctors, farmers. They represent real people, fleah and blood.
AIDS
More than 38 million people around the world are infected by HIV/AIDS, 25 million in Africa alone. Left untreated, AIDS leads to an early death for people in their most productive years who are needed to raise crops and families, teach school and care for the sick.EXTREME POVERTY
Extreme poverty means living on less than $1 a day, unimaginable to us as Americans. ONE in five people around the world survives on this amount, with few opportunities to earn more.EDUCATION
Parents in Malawi know just as well as parents in Missouri that education is crucial to their children’s future. But around the world, 104 million children do not go to grade school, because their parents cannot afford fees, books or uniforms for all their children.WATER
ONE person in seven has no access to clean water for drinking, cooking or washing. In addition to spreading disease, this has multiple negative effects –– girls growing up in villages without water are far less likely to attend school because they’re too busy spending hours walking to and from the nearest water source.CORRUPTION
While corruption is harmful to all governments, losing resources to corrupt leaders is particularly devastating in poor countries where ever dollar lost results in one less child in school or one less well dug to provide clean water. Approaches like America’s Millennium Challenge which direct assistance to honest governments are the most effective, as is channeling assistance through private (and faith-based) relief and development agencies.FOOD
Around the world, ONE person in seven goes to bed hungry each night. We need to address hunger not just by giving food, but helping farmers in poor countries grow better crops and helping countries build farm-to-market roads so farmers can supply distant cities.ORPHANS
18 million children have already lost one or both parents to AIDS, 12 million of them are in Africa alone. Unless more is done, there will be 25 million of these children around the world by 2010. We have the opportunity to help.TRADE
As much as people in poor countries appreciate development assistance, no one wants to rely on a handout –– they want to trade their way out of poverty –– but international rules make it difficult. A fair trade system would give people in poor countries the chance to earn their way out of poverty by participating in the world economy.DEBT CANCELLATION
Every year Sub-Saharan Africa, the poorest region of the world, spends $14.5 billion dollars repaying debts to the world’s richest countries and international institutions such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. Though we’ve made efforts to relieve them of these unpayable debts, many poor countries still spend more each year on debt than on health care or education.
These are the issues facing Live8 participants and the world this weekend.
Live8
I am so excited about what can happen this weekend. There is a great deal of buzz happening. Keep working hard to promote the ONE Campaign by wearing your white band tomorrow. I have pulled a Chris Martin and written some messages on my hand for this weekend. Every little bit helps!
Don’t forget to check out the Live8 blogs over at Technorati. Also check out the links below.
Together we are strong. Stand as ONE