The Life and Times of a Confused Drifter

Taking the Next Step

2011-05-04T09:39:00.026-03:00

I have taken a long Hiatus from my blog, but I have realized that it is important for several reasons:
1) I find myself more and more writing to people about common concerns that could easily be discussed in this forum.
2) I have been doing a lot of one on one study with people on the matters of theology, and the role of worship/fine arts within the church.
3) I just plain like writing.

So, I will soon be posting a new revised 'Mission' for this blog. It will continue to be titled, "The Life and Times of a Confused Drifter", because we are all confused about something, and though I have a firm anchor, sometimes it can still feel like you are drifting. (All you fellow fishermen will understand this analogy. If you don't, maybe I will try to explain it at another time).

But for now,

I leave you with this address that a recently gave at our 2011 Graduands chapel at Crandall University. It was a great honor to be asked to speak to the grad's, and congrats to you all! I hope you all go forth in Christ, and follow Him, regardless of what the cost may be or what the world may say.

So, here it is:

Good morning Mr. President, Mr. Vice President, Guests, and the soon to be Graduating Class of 2011. It is my honor to stand here today to congratulate you on your pending graduation. Just as one day four years ago marked the start of a journey here at Crandall, so today marks the beginning of the end of that chapter in your lives.

As you stand on the brink of moving into life beyond Crandall University, change will be inevitable! It has been gratifying to see you mature over the past few years and become ready to tackle and further your life-long education. As you prepare to leave Crandall things will change in your day-to-day lives. you will face new challenges and it is inevitable that things will seem a little different in the year ahead.

But as we look back this morning on a journey - a journey that started out with hesitant, tentative steps, we see just how far along this path you all have progressed. It has been an honor and a privilege being part of that journey which has been filled with wonderful memories.

Now you face yet another step forward in that journey. One that everyone has to make at some point in their lives. The question I want to ask you this morning is will it be a step of fear, or of faith? Will it be steps of determination, or of defeat?

We see both when we look to the Bible. At the end of the book of Numbers we have a picture of the nation of Israel standing on the edge of the Promised Land. They see the whole of the land that God has set aside for them. They can see the call, the challenge, and the promise that was made to them by God. It was 500 years earlier that God made a promise to Abraham that this land before them would be theirs. They were given this promise again as Moses led them out of Egypt.

When they looked to the land they saw a place that was bountiful. Scripture describes it as a land flowing with milk and honey. They had everything they could have wanted laying before them. but what they saw were the obstacles. In Deuteronomy we see Moses sending in spies to the land to bring back a report on what they have found. Instead of looking at the good of the land, the Israelites saw the nations that occupied it as giants that would destroy them. In stead of taking a step of faith, they feared what would happen if they entered the land.

They were paralyzed by their fear, and doubted the direction that God had called them. As a result, they ended up circling the desert for 40 years (hopefully you are not still here 40 years from now). Sometimes our own doubts can cause us to hesitate when we ought to go forward. Some of you may doubt where to go next, and instead of taking that next step, you are thinking of circling around it without moving forward. That next step into the future is unsure, and it scares you to take it because it is unknown. But the unknown does not need to be full of fear.

In Joshua we have a great example of going forward with faith and determination (read Joshua 3:1-4:3 for full context):

The Priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.

When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua, "Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from right where the priests are standing, and carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight."

Joshua 3:17-4:3

Under Joshua's leadership, the nation of Israel entered into the Promised Land. They even marked the spot from which they left as a reminder of where they had come from ad where God was now leading them. For some of you, graduation day will be that marker.

They stepped out full of faith and determination that this was the direction that God was not only leading them, but had promised them. When the Lord told them, "Go. Step out, take the land," they were ready and obeyed. they did not know every step along that path, but they took the first one, knowing that God was guiding them and leading them in a direction that He Himself had laid before them.

Each and every one of your this morning is called to take that next step. Whether it is professionally, personally, or spiritually. for some of you that may mean furthering your education. For others, it may mean moving out of the province or away from home to a completely foreign place, leaving behind family and friends. For others, it may mean seeking God's will for your life. But we are called to do so with the faith that God is leading us to take that next step. He is calling you to trust Him, to love Him, to serve Him, and to follow Him, where ever that may be. Whether you believe in god or not, He is calling you and He wants to lead you if you will only follow Him.

So will you take that next step of your journey fearfully or faithfully? Will you do so with determination? Will you continue to do so if the steps lead to what seems like failure? The Israelites still faced defeat even though they entered the Promised Land. But as they followed the steps they knew God had laid before them, they ultimately entered and settled in the land that was promised to them. They succeeded, though there were what seemed like failures along the way.

Many who have come before you failed before they recognized success:

Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor for lack of ideas and originality.
Leo Tolstoy, author of War and Peace, flunked out of college (you are already ahead of him). He was described as "both unable and unwilling to learn."
Michael Jordan, perhaps the greatest basketball player of all time, did not make his high school basketball team his sophomore year.
Beethoven's teacher called him hopeless as a composer. That he would never write anything of significance.
Winston Churchill failed the sixth grade. He did not become Prime Minister until he was 62. His greatest contributions came when he was a "senior citizen."

So Ladies and Gentlemen, as you face and tackle these new steps in your lives, hold true to yourself. Remember to hold true to what you have learned here at Crandall, your work ethic, and most importantly, to seek God's direction and follow him faithfully. It is these qualities that will guide you further in life than even you would have dreamed possible.

To the Graduating Class of 2011; you have all left and will continue to leave an indelible legacy of excellence , achievement and a fine ethos and tradition for generations to come.

Our future seems destined to be in capable hands. you strove to work to the limits of your potential; you aimed high, set your goals, and for the most part not only achieved them, but in fact surpassed them.

I leave you with this parting thought. Your achievements that you received while at Crandall University may one day fade or even be forgotten. the applause from convocation day may become a distant memory and your certificates, medals and awards may gather dust on a shelf or in a drawer. But, you will always be remembered for caring enough, for helping others, for making someone feel special and appreciated and for being the kind of person that others enjoy spending time with. you will always be remembered for being Christ to others, and being faithful to Him.

May God bless you richly as you 'step out' into your future endeavors.

Congratulations!

(Address given April 7, 2011)

Are You Ministering or Doing Magic?

2009-01-16T09:51:00.005-04:00

Here's a little something from an old school friend that I thought some of you might like. Thanks for the post Jon Leatherwood. Hope things are going good for ya. Anyways, here it is:

Act 8:9 But there was a man named Simon, who had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great.
Act 8:10 They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, "This man is the power of God that is called Great."
Act 8:11 And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic.
Act 8:12 But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
Act 8:13 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed.
Act 8:14 Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John,
Act 8:15 who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit,
Act 8:16 for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Act 8:17 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.
Act 8:18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money,
Act 8:19 saying, "Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit."
Act 8:20 But Peter said to him, "May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!
Act 8:21 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.
Act 8:22 Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you.
Act 8:23 For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity." Act 8:24 And Simon answered, "Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may come upon me."

Last Sunday I was sitting in church, and the man who was calling for the offering said “If you put in 5 dollars, you’ll get 50 dollars worth of blessing!” Prosperity Gospel garbage that is rather popular in many parts of Africa, including Liberia. I decided to look at a story of someone in the Bible trying to buy a blessing; trying to buy the Holy Spirit. So I remembered this story and have read it several times this week. There are several points that intrigue me. First of all, these people believed in Christ, were baptized, but had not yet had the Spirit of the Lord fall on them. This was precipitated by the prayers of the apostles. Hmm. I believe in Christ, I have been baptized with water, but the Spirit of the Lord falling on me? I don’t remember that… I don’t remember anyone praying over me for that either. I want that. I have wanted that, but I have sought it in the wrong way. It was then that I realized that I was like Simon the Magician.

I have seen the power of the Spirit of God, in my parents and others, and have wanted that power to be displayed in me. So I tried different ways to get it. I tried going to a Christian college, spent thousands of dollars, looking, I believe, for the power of the Spirit of God, but not finding it. I found academia, knowledge, but little heart, and no Spirit power. I am like Simon the Magician. I’ve tried to buy a gift. ‘Will this end? It goes on and on, over, and over and over again. Keep spinning around I know that it won’t stop, till step down from this for good.’ That is a line from what has been my favorite song for 6 years, Sick Cycle Carousel by Lifehouse.

It is a song about trying… Trying, and failing to buy a gift. What was Simon’s motive in wanting to buy this gift? To have the power, so that he could lay hands on others and they might receive the Holy Spirit too. Is that so wrong? Simon wanted to pray for people and have them receive the Holy Spirit. It sounds to me like he wanted to people to be saved! I want to be filled with the Spirit and used by the Spirit, to the glory of God and for the salvation of souls too!

Simon wanted to be used by God, but I think that he was also interested in his own glory. He wanted the power of God so that he, Simon, would be glorified as well. I too find this pride in my heart. May God have mercy. Peter said to ‘repent of this wickedness and pray that, if possible, you might be forgiven for the intent of your heart. You are in the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity.’ I cry out to you, my brothers and sisters, in the words of Simon the Magician “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what [Peter has] said may come upon me.”

Confessions of an Audiophile. . . Seal

2009-01-14T13:59:00.013-04:00

Before I start with this one, I must add that this review is coming from someone who doesn't generally listen to soul music. Don't get me wrong, I like the stuff; I actually really enjoy listening to it to unwind, but I don't actually own a lot of it other than maybe a cheap Wal-mart mix CD (3.99 sampler addition).

For me, I generally gravitate to the heavy, like As I Lay Dying, or some Thornley to rock out to. But the last year or so I have been discovering some truly wonderful mellow music (i.e. Arron Espe BUY HIS STUFF!!!!)

Also, before this album the only thing a knew about Seal was his song 'kiss from a rose' (I still cringed every time I think of Batman forever) and that he is married to Heidi Klum. That's about it. So when I stumbled across a special with David Foster and Seal on TV, it sounded pretty good, so I thought I would give it a chance (and I got the album for Christmas, so bonus!)

One thing you need to know when you get this album: Seal can flat out sing! So be prepared to be blown away. His vocals on the first track 'A Change Is Gonna Come' are strong and emotional. In fact, with only a couple of exceptions the album is pretty emotional from his vocal range, from raspy low end to sweet falsetto, this is some good easy listening.

Now I know some people are going to read this review and think I know nothing about music, and they are partly right: I know almost nothing about soul music and its origins, but I know talent when I hear it. I have never heard the original versions of these songs by James Brown, Sam Cooke, or Al Green (of course I have heard 'Stand by Me' and 'people get ready', but I like Seals interpretations of these as well), so I have no comparison. As far as listening, I will add it to my collection of mellow music, and get rid of that Wal-mart sampler. . . 2.5 out of 5.

Back and Bionic. . .

2009-01-13T15:37:00.004-04:00

Well, after directing a play, holidays, and surgery are now complete, I'm back baby! There will be more to follow, but I wanted to just check in. So, the wedding is coming up in June, so We are going on with those plans, and school is back in session, so I'm catching up on stuff I had to do while laid up with surgery (who knew how tiring it would be just to get to work. . . All those stairs? I mean come on!!) Anyway, I'll be back soon (possibly tomorrow) with an update of some sorts. Have had stuff brewing in the old noggin', so something is sure to come out. Whether it's good or not, well, that's for you to decide. Until then, this is The JonoVision signing off. . .

The Story of an . . . Engagement. . .

2008-10-27T09:33:00.002-03:00

Well, a month has past, and it is time to let you all in on how the engagement happened. (since many of you are asking me about it in one way or another) I won't go into great detail, but I will go over the basics. We had looked at rings a few months before hand, and having remembered what Jessica liked, I went to a gold smith to see what we could do. I ended up getting everything she had talked about for a reasonable price, so I went with it (for all you single guys; gold smiths are a lot cheaper than you might think!).

So since I had the ring taken care of (quite a bit in advance actually) I went about finding a good way to propose. I didn't want to be over the top, but wanted to find a good way that would be memorable for us as well as meaningful. So, I set about finishing/adding to a scrapbook that I had started of our relationship. ( I had given her a similar one for Christmas) and planning the day. The day came months later in September.

We went to Fundy National Park, and went hiking for a bit, enjoying the scenery and nature in general. Later on, we had a picnic that I had prepared for the day. It started raining at fundy, so we went back to my place for the picnic to a room that I had setup in case of rain (always be prepared!)

After the picnic, I gave her the scrapbook, and at the end I had added a story I wrote about our relationship. I thought she would enjoy it because she loves reading, and it would be personal as well. I had written the ending asking her if she would marry me. when she got to the last page, I didn't wait for her to read it, and asked her. She said yes, after the shock wore off. There you have it. That's the story. So now we are going through the process of planning a wedding, which is huge in and of itself. I hope I don't lose my sanity over this. Oh well, at least we have lots of time. We have set a date in June for the wedding here in Moncton. Well thats all for now folks. Have a good one!

2008-10-03T09:37:00.001-03:00

"Religion (the law) is for those trying to stay out of hell, spirituality (the spirit of the law) is for those of us who have already been there"

Engagement Time!!!

2008-09-29T10:11:00.004-03:00

As some of you may or may not know, this weekend seen the long anticipated (by me anyway) engagement of Jessica and myself. Because, after all, I wasn't busy enough already with directing and writing a play. (just kidding). To say that I am happy would be a gross understatement. We are looking towards June as a possible time frame, so there is still plenty of time, but I figured since a lot of my friends read this blog, that I would make this posting so all of you out there could know what's going on. I won't post many details at this moment, but if you would like to know them, feel free to add a comment or email me. I'm sure I will be adding more here as my life begins to get busier, so tune in regularly for updates.

And This One Ranted All The Way Home. . .

2008-09-17T14:42:00.004-03:00

It's that time of year again when things get busy, and with it comes good news and bad news.

Good News - My script is being used for the Christmas Nativity this year.

Bad News - My script is being used for the Christmas Nativity this year.

Okay, so it isn't that bad of news, but it is a lot more work than I anticipated. I also need to decide whether or not I want to direct it. On top of all of this (with Casting call starting tonight) I have yet to find out when I have to have surgery on my leg (sometime this month I think), which could throw a major wrench into the mix.

But then again, who wants to be bored? Not that my life is ever boring. Far from it. I have great friends, a beautiful girlfriend (who I always wish I could spend more time with) and enjoy my job immensely. That said, it is still easy to get too involved and overburden oneself.

But I digress. To be honest, the whole script writing thing has been a great experience, and has been more of a stress reliever than a stress maker, and I assume so would the directing part. (even though it would take up a lot of time).

So the long and the short of it is this. I still have no idea what I am going to do and what I am not going to do. Either way, there will probably be a lot of caffeine involved in the next few months. . .

Holiday Hiatus. . .

2008-08-01T15:59:00.005-03:00

I've been on holidays for the past bit, so I figured I would check in and just post a little rant. I'm sitting at Damascus Coffee in Riverview, while I gradually sipped on a nice hot cuppa dark roast fair trade coffee. It's the simple things that seem to bring the most pleasure, especially while on vacation.

I've been enjoying the time off, but the semester is fast approaching and I know that there will be a lot of work to do when I get back. Speaking of which, I've been getting together info for small groups in the coming year and have been thinking about some stuff. More specifically, heroes of the faith.

When I use the term 'heroes of the faith', most people I talk to think immediately of biblical figures, such as Samson, Joshua, Moses, David, etc. And they are heroes to be sure, in one way or another. Others think of people such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Billy Graham, or perhaps the Wesley brothers. However, these are not the people I initially think of either.

I think of first and foremost, those people that some may consider controversial. Names such as Bob Dylan, Derek Webb, Bono, Johnny Cash. Now I know that some may be thinking that Johnny Cash isn't controversial, but think again. You're probably thinking of the Cash the church has embraced since his death. These guys were all what I would call 'messy' and I mean that in a good way.

Their faith is that of one who has lived in it and encountered the good, bad, and hard times, as well as asked the questions that we seem not to dare ask. Say what you might about where you may or may not think their faith is now; only God knows for sure. But I do know this: Bono and Dylan's music have soothed my soul at times as much as the words of any theologian or preacher.

So, next time you're looking for some solace for your soul, maybe turn to some music instead of a book as usual, and you may be pleasantly surprised by what you experience. As for me, I'll continue to enjoy my coffee, while I listen to some Pedro The Lion playing in the background at my fav Coffee spot. . . .

Henry Morgentaler and Canadian Abortion Laws

2008-07-10T10:15:00.003-03:00

I was all ready to make a post about this current issue, with Morgentaler being awarded the Order of Canada, but friends of mine have already done a much better job than I could, and what i write would only be a rehashing. so, instead, I have left links to their blogs so that you can read them yourselves. Please feel free to make any comments here as well as one their pages about the issue.

You can read Joey's input here, as well as Kelly's here, and Jesse's here. Enjoy, and pray for us as a nation that we will sort things out.

Leave the Bible out of Theology

2008-07-10T09:26:00.005-03:00

I was listening to a radio show yesterday that seemed to start out fairly harmless (even though the content was of that which is fairly controversial in some circles). It was about the church of England and their decision as to whether or not they should allow Women to be in ministry as Bishops, etc.

Now I realize that this is a hot topic for a lot of people, which, in a way, is one of the reasons I wanted to listen to the show. Keep in mind, that this was not on Christian Radio, but on a secular call in show, so it piqued my interest. The host had a 'minister' (I use this term since I cannot remember her name or whether she was officially a priest, pastor, etc.) from the Anglican church speaking about bringing equality into the priesthood.

But as I listened there were several disturbing things that I heard, none of which were directly related to this topic. Like many discussions concerning the church, it quickly started to go in different directions. One caller called in to debate the issue, (If I remember correctly they were against women in the ministry) and started using scripture to back up their point of view. Before they could finish, the minister said, "Lets leave scripture out of this."

I have to say that this caught me quite off guard. A minister in the church telling us not to use scripture to prove a theological point? Don't get me wrong, I am not one to say women should not be in ministry. In fact, I am of the opposite view. I think they very much should be and have the right to be in ministry, but that is another point all together that I do not wish to get into right now.

You see, I could understand if the host had said not to use scripture. I would have given him that. After all, in his view this was probably more of a point of view debate than anything else. But the minister? This drew my attention.

In another hot debate between the minster and another caller, it came out that she, the minister did not believe that Christ was the Son of God. Well I guess this kind of explains why she didn't want to bring scripture into any conversations. then I decided to phone in to this show. I wanted to know how, a Christan minster in the church, could continue to be ministering in the church and not believe one of the primary truths of the church: that Christ is the Son of God. Sadly, the Caller screener was doing a good job that day and would not put me through.

More disturbing to me was her suggestion that a great majority of ministers that she knew believed the same way, and taught there congregations the same. That Christ was a mere peasant teacher, who did a lot of good things, but was simply another man. I wish I was making this up, but those were the words she chose.

Now I have been in ministry both as a pastor and a lay leader for many years in several different denominations, and I have yet come across another pastor or priest, or bishop, who would say that Christ was not the Son of God, and still call themselves a Christian. I mean, isn't that one of the most basic beliefs as a Christian?

I guess more than anything a feel for her flock. Christ was right when he said that in the last days, people would come in his name to deceive. I just didn't think it would be so blatant, and that so many people would follow. It saddens my heart greatly. I can only hope and pray that someone will open their eyes. . .

2008-06-17T11:26:00.003-03:00

"Listen to your Life
See it for the fathomless mystery that it is
In the boredom and pain of it no less than in the excitement and gladness:
Touch, taste, smell your way to the holy and hidden heart of it
Because in the last analysis
All moments are key moments
And life itself is grace."
- FB

The Church

2008-06-17T11:14:00.004-03:00

Just thought this would be something good for us all to hear. . .

". . .Something like that, I think, is the way those twelve men Matthew names were called to become a church, plus Mary, Martha, Joanna, and all the other women and men who one way or another became part of it too. One way or another Christ called them. That’s how it happened. They saw the marvel of him arch across the grayness of things – the grayness of their own lives perhaps, of life itself. They heard his voice calling their names. And they went.

They seem to have gone right on working at pretty much whatever they’d been working at before, which means that he didn’t so much call them out of their ordinary lives as he called them out of believing that ordinary life is ordinary. He called them to see that no matter how ordinary it may seem to us as we live it, life is extraordinary. “The Kingdom of God is at hand” is the way he put it to them, and the way he told them to put it to others. Life even at its most monotonous and backbreaking and heart-numbing has the Kingdom buried in it the way a field has treasure buried in it, he said. The Kingdom of God is as close as some precious keepsake we’ve been looking for for years, which is lying just in the next room under the rug all but crying out to us to come find it. If we only had eyes to see and ears to hear and wits to understand, we would know that the Kingdom of god in the sense of holiness, goodness, beauty is as close as breathing and is crying out to be born both within ourselves and within the world; we would know that the Kingdom of God is what we all of us hunger for above all other things even when we don’t know its name or realize that it’s what we’re starving to death for. The Kingdom of God is where our best dreams come from and our truest prayers. We glimpse it at those moments when we find ourselves being better than we are and wiser that we know. We catch sight of it when at some moment of crisis a strength seems to come to us that is greater than our own strength. The Kingdom of God is where we belong. It is home, and whether we realize it or not, I think we are all of us homesick for it.

A fat man drives in his Chevy pickup with a cigarette in his mouth and on his rear bumper a sticker that says Jesus Loves You. There’s a shotgun slung across the back window. He is not a stranger we’ve never seen before and couldn’t care less if we ever see again. He is our brother, our father. He is our son. It is true that we have never seen him before and that we will probably never see him again – just that one quick glimpse as he goes by at twenty-five miles an hour because it is a school zone – but if we can somehow fully realize the truth of that, fully understand that this is the one and only time we will ever see him, we will treasure that one and only time the way we treasure the rainbow in the sky or the ring we finally found under the rug after years of looking for it. The old woman with thick glasses who sits in front of us at the movies eating popcorn is our mother, our sister, our child grown old, and once we know that, once we see her for who she truly is, everything about her becomes precious – the skinny back of her neck, the way she puts her hand over her mouth when she laughs.

These are not ordinary people any more than life is ordinary. They are extraordinary people. Life is extraordinary, and the extraordinariness of it is what Jesus calls the Kingdom of God. The extraordinariness of it is that in the Kingdom of God we all belong to each other the way families do. We are all of us brothers and sisters in it. We are all of us mothers and fathers and children of each other in it because that is what we are called together as the church to be. That is what being the church means. We are called by good news about God – the gospel – which he came to proclaim. Loving each other and loving God and being loved by god is what the Kingdom is. No scientific truth or philosophic truth, no truth of art or music or literature is as important as that Kingdom truth."

- Frederick Buechner

Finding good Music.

2008-06-13T11:03:00.003-03:00

Several people have asked me where they can get a hold of Aaron Espe's Music, So I have provided a link here to CD Baby. You can choose Songs from a Small town or My Whole Life. But if I was you, I would invest in both. Money well spent. . .

Confessions of an Audiophile. . . Songs from a Small Town Part 2

2008-06-09T09:19:00.006-03:00

Well, It hasn't been very long, but I have been listening nonstop to Espe's new Album since I received it, which in and of itself, should say how good it is. It is one of those few albums that you enjoy from the first time that you hear it.

I had said that Espe's "My Whole Life" was one of the best albums I have ever heard. His second may be even better. What else would you expect from a guy who lists such a wide range of musical excellence as his influences? (Dino, Imperials, Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Simon and Garfunkel, James Taylor, Neil Young, Martin Sexton, David Mead, Jeff Buckley, and Ryan Adams just to name a few) And if you have never heard him live, then you are deeply deprived. As good as his recordings are, his live presence is mind blowing. He isn't showy, or necessarily funny. He's just a shy guy playing some wonderfully beautiful music. It's simple. Which is what makes him so good.

For much of the album, there is little more than Espe's guitar with his vocals, added occasional by some percussion and piano, but it in no way lacks anything. Simple arrangements, with the right instrument at the right time. That is the essence of what Aaron does. So well in fact, that it would be easy to miss what he is singing, which would be a travesty.

Once again Espe not only tells his stories with catchy melodies, but he also tackles again issues of faith, grace, and doubt in a way that only someone who has experienced all three can. This album deals with issues that we can all relate to in some way. Trying to impress a girl (Music Man), dreams put aside or lost (change), not knowing where you stand (faith & doubt), and loving the place where you grew up (Small Town) just to name a few.

There are many lines that stand out from songs that seem to sum up so many things so well:

"That was nice, now don't ever do that again" (music man)

"I'm caught somewhere between faith and doubt" (faith and doubt)

"It's no wonder how things have changed, you try to make a plan it never stays the same." (change)

I've said it before and I will say it again. Listening to Espe's music is like a cool glass of water on a hot and dry day. If there is such a thing as the total package, then Espe may be it. He delivers again with his second album that has been long awaited by his many fans.

His new record is recorded with warm-hearted folk nuances, combined with pop-sensibility. I could listen to this guy's voice all day, but the songs are incredible lyrically as well. "Songs From a Small Town" will top your list of 'greatest recordings of the year., possibly of all time. Espe just keeps getting better & better...

Confessions of an Audiophile. . . Songs from a Small Town Part 1

2008-06-06T09:43:00.006-03:00

If you have never listened to Aaron Espe then you are truly living a deprived musical life. I only just got his newest album "songs from a small town", so I will give a more in depth review after I have listened to it for a while. First impression: amazing. There are few artist that capture the attention from beginning to end. Webb, Dylan, Cash, and Springsteen come to mind. Maybe we should add Espe to that list.

Though his style is more folky than mainstream usually hears, his lyrical and storytelling styles are beyond this world. I popped in his new album on my way to work and found myself getting honked at while I slowed unknowingly, listening to Espe weave together his music and lyrics. Needless to say, I was a little late for work that day.

After his first album "my whole life" I couldn't wait until his second. after only a brief listening, I think we can look forward to big things from Espe, and I for one cannot wait until the whole world discovers him. So tell your friends, and if you haven't heard of him, pick up one of his albums at cd baby. You won't be disappointed.

The Sweetness of Nothing

2008-06-04T14:28:00.004-03:00

I have made a discovery recently....I enjoy nothing. That's right I said it. Nothing is awesome. I don't mean that I hate everything, I mean I enjoy taking time to do nothing in particular, which I did yesterday. It's not like I didn't accomplish anything, or that I sat around all day (because I didn't). I just enjoyed the day, without really planning on doing anything of consequence. I read, prayed, played some video games, and had some good tea while soaking up the rays out on my deck.

I guess that sometimes you just need to do that...nothing that is. I didn't plan it or anything (though I did have the day booked off from work), I just woke up and thought, "hey, I really don't need to do anything today," and it felt good. It was a relaxing day, and though I would not want to repeat it again anytime soon, it was a nice step back from the last couple of months. So maybe you too could benefit from doing nothing. Try it for a while, maybe 15 minutes, an hour, and maybe, you will be able to step back from the torrid pace of your life, and simply enjoy nothing...

Shameless Plugs and a Love of Life

2008-05-27T11:44:00.010-03:00

Call it a shameless plug, but I love good coffee. Not that I drink a lot of Coffee, because realistically, I don't. But when somethings good, it should be promoted. So here we go.

A friend of mine recently opened up a coffee shop in Riverview, NB. If you have a chance to check it out, I promise you won't be disappointed. Not only is the coffee good, but the atmosphere is great as well. So there you go Kevin. Here's your plug. Seriously though, I urge anyone in the Moncton area to go there and try some good dark roast straight up! Kev definitely knows his coffee!

So here is the real reason I wrote this posting (sorry Kevin, it wasn't just for your shop). Community. Some of the best community I have ever experienced has been in coffee shops. There is just something about the smell of freshly ground coffee mixed with the chatter of friends that brings a smile to your face.

Everyone has (or should have) a place like this. I can't begin to tell you how many heart to hearts I have had over the years on an old overstuffed couch in some out of the way coffee shack. Connecting over a cup o' Joe, a pastry or two, or just some soft music in the background. It seems that there is something a little bit nostalgic about it. Perhaps it harkens back to simpler times when people used to gather at the local burger joint for shakes, or when we gathered around the grand parents living room with all your cousins, aunts and uncles.

Maybe even more so, for us believers, it brings us back to those original gatherings of the early church, just meeting together and sharing each others lives. Back to when Christ himself poured into the lives of his disciples.

So next time that you settle in with a friend at your local coffee shop for a nice hot cup of coffee, don't rush through it. Enjoy it. Revel in the atmosphere and the experience. And if you find yourself in Riverview at a certain Damascus Cafe, perhaps you'll see me there, and we can share each others lives....

Incoherent Ramblings in a Broken World

2008-05-26T14:36:00.003-03:00

". . . at certain rare moments of greenness and stillness, we are shepherded by the knowledge that, though all is far from right with any world you and I know anything about, all is right deep down. All will be right at last." - Frederick Beuchner

I have been having an ongoing conversation with several old friends. They keep asking me how I can be so positive with the state that the world is in. With Everything that is happening is China, Burma, and other places in the world, where does this hope and peace I seem to have come from.

I suppose it comes from my outlook on life. Yes, things are bad. People are dying, starving, being mistreated, and cast aside like garbage. Does this affect me? Of course it does. My heart breaks for them, and I realize there is little I can do to help, but I try to do what I can. I guess part of my outlook on life comes from knowing that things will get better.

"Things will get better? how can they get better in a world that hates like it does?" This is a common question after my response. See, when I say things will get better, I don't mean in this world. In fact, I'm pretty sure that things are going to get a lot worse than they are now, to the point where we will wish they are like they are currently. My hope is that they will be better when Christ returns, and puts things as they should be.

And this is the point where I lose most people. They look at me like and intolerant oaf who doesn't care about peoples suffering, or like someone who is delusional. But I'm not. I simply have a differing world view that most of them. Does this change the fact that I should help out those in need? Of course not. I do my best. I just acknowledge that some things will happen regardless of how much I try to help. But this does not stop me from trying.

When we read Revelation we see destruction and death everywhere, yet this is a book of great hope and joy for believers. I guess we have always had things a little backwards compared to the world. Or is it the worlds itself that is backwards? I don't know. I don't even know if what I've said here even makes sense. I'm just rambling on about stuff that's been knocking around in the ol' noggin, hoping that someone will put their two cents in, and we can start some kind of dialogue about this. until next time, this is The JonoVision signing off. . .

Truth and Silence

2008-05-26T10:03:00.005-03:00

Writing is Hard. Most of you are probably thinking, "well, duh," but it is a discovery that I have only recently come to realize. You see, writing has always been easy for me for the most part. I just start writing about my thoughts, and before I know it, I have a 8 page discourse on the book of Luke.

However, I recently began writing or more accurately adapting a story for stage. And though it has gotten some good initial responses from people I realized this. It is a lot harder to tell thoughts than to tell stories. All of a sudden I'm being asked, things like, "what is this character thinking when he/she is doing this?" I don't even know how to answer that question. I thought I was just simply writing a story that people would enjoy. I wasn't trying to develop some giant epiphany...I was just trying to write something that is true.

Which brings me back to a sermon by Buechner (The Truth of Stories) in which he speaks to this end. Sometimes we miss the point of a story by searching for the moral of it, or the points trying to be made. Sometimes, just maybe, it is the stories themselves that are true, and not some point behind them. Maybe it is the story as a whole that is the truth, and not that "we should help our neighbors" or some other nice and tidy truth that we can take and move on to the next one.

Writing this play has also taught me the importance of silence. In theatre, it is said, that silence is death. But when I think of some of my favourite plays or stories, it is the moments of silence that make them powerful. And it is this silence that Beuchner speaks of as well:

"Pilate asks his famous question, 'what is truth?', and Jesus answers him with a silence that is overwhelming in its eloquence. . . Jesus did not say that religion was the truth, or that his own teachings were the truth, or that what people taught about him was the truth, or that the Bible was the truth, or the church, or any system of ethics or theological doctrine. There are individual truths in all of them, we hope and believe, but individual truths were not what Pilate was after, or what you and I are after either. . . THE truth is what Pilate is after; the truth about who we are and who God is if there is a God, the truth about life, the truth about death, the truth about truth itself. that is the truth we are all of us after." (the truth of stories)

So, once upon a time, something happened, and I, or you may have discovered truth. It wasn't in a nice little three point sermon, nor in a song, nor in the moral of a story. It was the story itself that was true. And that is why it is so hard to explain. It isn't one part or piece of a story that can be told to someone so they can move on to the next part. It is the whole story itself that is true. And it is this truth, that we believe.

So next time, let's just tell the story, our story even, and let the rest be Christ's silence.

Origins and Thanks of a Confused Drifter

2008-01-16T09:50:00.001-04:00

Someone once told me that a new year brings new thoughts. I don't know if that's true, but someone said it to me once. I've taken quite the sabbatical from my blog, (about two months give or take), but be assured, my thoughts have not become stagnant. But I want to take this time to answer a question that was recently posed to me. "Why do you call your blog 'The Life and Times of a Confused Drifter?'"

This is probably a little more complicated than it may appear. It's not some witty line or comment from a book or movie, or even from a song. It comes from part of a journey that I have been on for a long time. A yearning if you will. I guess it first started with my buddy Danny and I in reference to all of the traveling the two of us continually did. We kinda went everywhere aimlessly, moving more than knowing where we were going sometimes. Hence the term, confused drifter. I think Danny was the first to coin the term between us, but I have used it ever since.

So I recently started thinking harder about what this actually means. The 'life and times' part is pretty straight forward, so I think I will start with the rest. Confused, as defined by the dictionary means, "To make unclear, or indistinct; to fail to distinguish between." Now, I admit that there are plenty of times throughout my life and currently where this applies. Times when it seems I have not had the foggiest clue what is going on. But I like another definition that I found recently. "Lacking logical order or sense; Chaotic; jumbled."

Until recently, I would have to say that my life has been very chaotic (and some would say that it continues to be so). However, I have learned to find a peace amidst it as well. The part I am referring to now is that of lacking logical order or sense. This is the part that makes my heart ache a bit. It also ties into my sense of drifter. A drifter is someone who, "moves aimlessly from place to place." I admit that there has been many a time that I have felt this way in my spiritual walk; like I am drifting through faith, without knowing where I am going.

And it is because of this lack of a logical order that I have found what I have been searching for desperately my whole life. Now I have found this is churches, and in individuals who have also been searching, but this is not what I am talking about right know. What I am talking about are times when my mind and heart seemed to be out of synch....to be confused. If you have ever searched your faith for answers, I'm sure you have been in a similar place at some point. I'm not talking about losing faith either. I mean those times when your heart and your head just refuse to agree, and you desperately need them to do so.

And this is when something amazing happened for me. It didn't come from reading theology, or debating with others. It came in the quiet stillness while I had taken the time to fast and pray for a while. My head wanted to understand God to his fullest, but I knew that it was not possible. My heart yearned for more, but my mind held it back. But in the stillness, I found peace....and those things that made no sense, that were confusing me.....were put to rest. Did they still confuse me? at times. Did I get answers? Not what you would think. I got peace. I was okay with not having all the answers. I was okay with knowing what I knew and not knowing that which I did not understand.

Does this mean I will stop searching for answers? Of course not, for that is a part of the journey. I just now know that confusion is also part of the journey. A wonderful part. I heard it put best like this:

"In this world, science tells me that there must be a God,
My head tells me that I will never understand Him fully,
And my heart tells me that I was never meant to."

Peace be with you on your own journey. This also being my birthday, I have some thanks to pass on to some people who have helped me through my times of drifting. First, to Kmax for giving me a friend who aches for a lot of the same things I ache for..I miss you my friend, and know that I still keep you in my thoughts and prayers daily. To Sir Joey of Royal, the "king of castle Bergen", thanks for giving me insight into writers like Beuchner, Fitch, and Berry. They have stretched me in many ways. Also thanks to introducing me so many years ago now to one of the best singer/song writers I have ever heard (Bob Dylan) and to my now favorite theologian, Stanley Hauerwas. I am eternally grateful. To K-Steen, I know we have only met recently, but thanks for showing me another pentecostal who has a similar voice, and is willing to think and debate issues that some may look at us as heretics for even questioning. I will gladly be the heretic with you any day.

Well, that's it for know. So will the life and times of this confused drifter end? No, but they may influence your own walk in some little way I hope. Keep searching, keep asking questions, and most importantly, keep drifting.....

Commercializing Christianity Part 2: Seeker Sensative or Bust....

2007-11-22T09:02:00.001-04:00

Well, It finally happened. Hybels has finally admitted that his whole scheme of "seeker-sensitive" Churches doesn't create discipled followers of Christ. I feel so Justified!! From the first time I read Hybels stuff, to my first encounter with an actual 'seeker' church, I was very skeptical about the whole process. Where was the biblical emphasis?

Now, It seems, his house of cards has fallen. Maybe this is harsh, for I am sure that he had the best of intentions. However, many people have had good intentions, but when you stray from the Bible (or lack to emphasize your need to study it) bad things happen. Isn't this what the book of Judges is all about? The Israelites stray from God's commandments, Get in trouble, realize their error, and call out to God. God in turn sends a judge to deliver them. (sound familiar?) If only we had read this and applied it!! Oh, wait, I did and people called me a herectic or "insensitive to the needs of people" when I did.

I have to confess that I enjoy reading Theology. I mean, I really do. It doesn't even have to be from a theologian that I particularly agree with. In fact, I find that reading the one's I don't agree with more helpful, because it causes me to go back to the Bible even more, to reaffirm my beliefs (or sometimes to realize I may need to rethink some things).

Unfortunately, I know I am an exception. Most Christians rarely read anything, yet alone theology or the Bible. I can understand them not wanting to read theology, it is after all, and acquired taste. But not reading the Bible??? Where else are we going to look for the truth of who God is? We can't just rely on other people to tell us. I think this was my biggest problem with the "Hybels way". It led me to believe that in order to follow his model, I had to assume that everything needed to be packaged and presented all fine and dandy. But the Gospel isn't that way. Faith isn't that way. It's messy. It's not clean, or sensitive......at least not in the way we have come to define the word.

It is living, it is Christ. Because of this, it offends people. I myself have been offended by it on many occasions, because of the truth that has cut deep to my soul, past all my hiding places, and to the heart. So is "The death of seeker-sensitive" a good thing? I don't know. It depends on whether we as believers take it as a wake up call to become more diligent in our studies of the word, or if it is merely replaced with another type of system, that waters down the truth.

Commercializing Christianity

2007-11-16T12:31:00.000-04:00

I've been listening to a lot of Derek Webb of late (no surprise there) and, as usual, his songs have gotten me thinking again. So here is the song that started this little rant:

Ballad in plain red
Derek Webb

I’m robbing peter, I’m paying Paul
I’m changing my name back to Saul
I got to them and you know I’ll get to you

I’m turning shepherds into sheep
and leaders into celebrities
it’s holy sabotage, just look around you

‘cause everything’s for sale in the 21st century
and the check is in the mail from the 21st century

don’t want the song I want a jingle
I love you Lord but don’t hear a single
and the truth is nearly impossible to rhyme

but I know the songs with all the hooks
and I know some lies that will sell some books
so grab ‘em fast, I’m running outta time

just keep selling truth in candy bars
on billboards and backs of cars
truth without context, my favorite of all my crimes

‘cause everything’s for sale in the 21st century
and the check is in the mail from the 21st century

what works verses what's right
hey what's the difference tonight?

take out the sign, forget the meal
we’ve got a gym and a Farris wheel
I swear it's just like the country club down the block

‘cause you can make your life look good
you can do what Jesus would
but you’d be surprised what you can do with a hard heart

I think you’ve got trouble in the 21st century
so welcome to the struggle, it’s the 21st century
I never thought I’d make it to the 21st century
Lord, I love the 21st century

I write these words from the grave
‘cause it’s the only place that I’m safe
and only the dead are permitted to speak the truth

When did we start believing that we had to sell Christianity instead of presenting its truth? somewhere along the line we forgot the meat and potatoes of the gospel, and decided that hey, we can make a lot of money from this thing.

Wait Jon, there are people out there who are doing a lot of good with there books and stuff, really presenting the Gospel to people. This is true enough, but out of the best intentions...

I guess What I'm most concerned with is content. You look at the 'best sellers' list in any Christian book store and you will find a list of artist who wrote some really catchy songs, or wrote a book telling you why you are so miserable, and how they have the keys to your happiness. (funny that they have the keys, cause I don't remember being miserable in the first place). The writers and artist who actually talk about theology or spread the Gospel as it is (the Beuchners, Webb's, etc.) are usually no where to be seen, unless your store is truly exceptional, or large.

Somehow it was decided that it doesn't matter how the truth is out there, as long as it is truth. Let's slap it on bumper stickers and church signs, and hope people get the idea.
But, as Webb eludes to in his song, truth without context can be even more dangerous than not telling the truth at times.

I have a lot more to say, but I really am getting worked up over this, so maybe I'll make another post later. for now, this is it. It's a sad day when faith and entertainment are so intertwined that it is hard to see the truth.

Sex and God

2007-10-31T08:55:00.000-03:00

My Buddy Ty has a really good discussion on sex. I think you should really have a look at it. You can read it on his blog HERE.

the vaguest of interests

2007-10-29T09:43:00.000-03:00

I haven't really been in a writing mood these past few days. I find as the onset of winter approaches, even the things I take joy in tend to fall to the wayside. This perplexes me, because I am not one of those people who dread winter...I actually quite enjoy it. Contrary to most people's thinking, I think that it is one of the most beautiful times of year. However, I have been in kind of a funk the last little bit, hence my lack of writing. Not just here, but musically as well. I haven't even played except when I've had to for practices and what not.

I guess there are times that even the things that we enjoy the most become cumbersome. I am reminded of my Bible college days with this. I have always enjoyed studying the Bible, as well as that period of history in general. But when at Bible college I went through a period where I was disgusted by the fact that I had to read it. I know that sounds harsh, but it is reality. People told me that it was just because it was now a textbook, but it was more than that. I really had stopped enjoying reading it.

I have since moved on from that and have regained the pleasure I once had to some degree at least, but at the time it concerned me greatly. I have come to understand though, that it is because of this: Too much of a good thing really is bad. I think in some way, this is part of our brokenness. If we were still as we were in the garden, I do not think too much of a good thing would be possible. But as a result, the enemy can use even good things as a stumbling block.

Well, I have since begun to regain my joy of writing again, so perhaps I will be writing again soon. Until then, feel free to leave any thoughts or comments you may have.

2007-10-19T09:25:00.000-03:00

interesting article about facebook here.

Fall foliage, Part 2

2007-10-16T12:28:00.001-03:00

Looking back on the event, I think it was quite successful. However, I found it very hectic, and unenjoyable for the most of it. I guess that's what happens when you plan things and then are involved behind the scenes to help make sure that everything continues running smoothly.

But there were moments that were breathtaking. At one point I had gone off by myself, just to enjoy the walk, and I remember looking up in the sky at the birds. They were going about there own little rhythmic dance, that only they knew the beat of. As I watched, I found myself entranced, and drawn into this sort of ritual that was displayed before my eyes. It seemed perfectly planned and rehearsed, but at the same time, completely fluid and unknown as to where it would go next. Beautiful.

I also found myself wandering in the woods (also known as lost) and discovered a small clearing. The floor was covered with ferns and mosses, in varying degrees of decays or decline. In the air was a hint of the fern sap in the air, with the harshness of the slight autumn breeze. I remember closing my eyes and thinking about how complicated such a seemingly uncomplicated setting can be. How each tiny aspect has been placed and crafted by the hand of God, and how small I felt in the midst of it. I count it a blessing to even have happened across it.

So in these following days, I find myself reflecting even more on nature, and the goodness of God. In fact, when I feel most downtrodden, I just close my eyes, and the ferns and surroundings come drifting back to mind, and I am wrapped in the goodness of God's creation again, if only for a minute.

The New Rant......half the calories, same great rant

2007-10-15T15:05:00.000-03:00

I was sitting in chapel today, and the speaker quoted from one of my favorite cartoons: G. I. Joe. At the end of most episodes they had a informational little bit which ended with the phrase, "the more you know" ( I think NBC did a series on this as well when I was a kid). Anyways, that phrase stuck with me and i began to think about what that phrase means.

At the end of the show the connotation was that because I now had this information, I had a responsibility to put it into action. I think this may be why I sometimes choose to not learn about certain things. As much as knowledge is power, knowledge also brings responsibility, which is something I really don't want anymore of. So 'the more I know', the more I need to put into action what I 've learned. At least this is how I view learning. This is a disconcerting thing. Who wants to do more??? Who wants more responsibility??? I know I don't. So maybe I'll stop learning. Yup, I'm going to stop reading, watching TV, listening to music, and interacting with people. That way I can't learn anything new. Come to think of it, I better lock myself in a room with nothing in it to inspire me, so I no longer have and original thoughts, or heaven forbid, learn a life lesson from the lamp in the corner, and then have to apply it somehow.

The point is we can't stop learning even if we try (although, I do admit that many people give a good effort at it). I wish I could, because a lot of what I learn makes me spring into action, or feel bad about doing nothing. So my options seem thus: learn, and do nothing, leaving in my on loathing of how bad I am because I don't do any of the things I should, or learn and put these learning into actions of some sort. Or perhaps, I'll just take a long nap and wake up when the world makes since....I guess I'm in for a long night......

Fall Foliage, Part 1

2007-10-11T08:01:00.000-03:00

So I'm sitting here in my office, sipping a nice hot cup of Earl Grey on the eve of this event. I awakened this morning at dawn, and instead of going back to sleep, I enjoyed the sunrise. It wasn't one of those spectacular sunrises, you know the ones where the sun comes up in all its glory and blasts you with its rays. And then you stand in absolute awe of the color array that you are presented with on the eve of a new day.

This one was one of those slow, gradual risings. It gradually gets lighter, you know it isn't night anymore, but it is not quite day either. It is that in between dusk, but you know what is coming. Even though it may not be glorious, there is still something very beautiful about it. So as I stood on my patio and watched this happen, I was reminded of my faith journey, and how it has been more like this slow, gradual sunrise, than a glorious explosion of daylight.

Now it has definitely had its moments. Moments where I have done nothing but stood back in awe of God. But more often than not, it has been a process of gradual awakening to a new day. It has been a slow awakening intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually......and it has been beautiful. Sure, I would love it if my whole journey was filled with explosions of breathtaking experiences with God. You know the ones I'm talking about. You may not have experienced them, but you have heard people talk about them in their testimony, or in books they have written.

But there is something beautiful in this slow, gradual, awakening. Perhaps sometimes more beautiful, because even though we seek these brilliant sunrises, I find the gradual rise even more appealing. Perhaps it is for this reason: Even though it may not always seem brilliant or colourful to us, the sun will still rise. It will not change. And even when God sometimes may not seem 'brilliant' or we may not always want to 'stand in awe' of Him, He does not and has not changed. He is the same, whether we experience Him the same way or not. I find something very comforting in that, yet at the same time it makes me uneasy. Kind of like dusk can be an uneasy time of day for some people. It's hard to explain in words.

But as I await the coming day, this day that we have set aside as a school to experience the 'aahhh' moments in nature, I hope that we also do not side step the slow, gradual revealings of God in nature as well, because they can often be even more beautiful than any grand sunset you will ever experience.......

Vulnerability, The Darkside of Self, & The Gospel

2007-10-05T11:26:00.001-03:00

I've been doing a lot of thinking and reading lately about vulnerability. About letting people see the real you, flaws and all. It seems to me that this is something that is important for my faith. I mean, for me to say " I believe I am a sinner" or that without the Grace of God I would be lost, in those phrases, it is inherent that there must be something wrong with me. I mean if there wasn't, why would I need to be saved? And if I don't really believe this, why do I need God?

And this brings me to what I have heard some writers call 'the darkside of self.' What they speak of is the side of human nature that makes us think we need to hide who we really are, so that people see the nice clean exterior. This is what disturbs me about this term: It seems to me that this 'darkside' as they call it, if we are really honest with ourselves, is who we really are.

When we strip down the layers that we have built up over time, whether it be because of past hurts or experiences, what we get to can be very ugly. If I am honest with my self, I have to admit that I am capable of many very destructive things, not only to others but to myself. There are times when I truly just want to hurt someone, for no other reason than I can. But instead of admitting these things, we go about our business, and tell people, "I'm good, how are you?"

This concerns me not only for my own faith but for the Church as a whole. We are called to be in community together as Christians. So if we are in a community together, but aren't willing to be honest with ourselves, yet alone with each other, are we really benefiting from community?

"There is no other context for your faith as a Christian than to be in community with other people."

I Remember listening to Derek Webb talk about community and the church, and this phrase stuck with me. It seems to me, that the risk we run as those who are called into community together, is that if you divorce the people of God, if you divorce local community from the gospel, then it ceases to be the Gospel. People have told me many times, 'it's just me and Jesus and that's all I need.' If I am going to be someone who claims to love Jesus, then I should be compelled at some level to also love those things that He loved, and he not only loved people, but he died for them.

I think we as the church more often than not, instead of trying to love each other, spend most of our time trying to make ourselves lovable. If I am honest, most of the time I don't really want people to see the real me. I want them to flatter me and tell me I'm great, even though I don't always think so.

Here's the truth about that: Flattery at its very best, will encourage nothing more in me or you than behaviour modification. Modifying our behaviour to act the way we should to hide the things you do that are wrong and to try and amplify the things that you do that are right. It will not change who I am.

Maybe the most comforting thing for me about Christ is this: He liked people. if someone asked me to begin a religious system, I would probably start with writing some sort of book like Muhammad or Joseph Smith did. But Jesus didn't do this. Instead, he gathered with friends and allowed them to write about Him, talk about Him, testify about Him. The Gospels reveal a Christ who ate with people, traveled with people, and worked with people.

And this brings me back to this darkside of man. I sometimes wonder if the greatest desire of man is to be known, and loved anyway. It's no secret that we protect our hearts, and the closer we are to another person, the more vulnerable we are and the more we feel a sense of risk. It seems that we feel we must trust people before we let them know anything remotely vulnerable or true about us, and to ask for more before we can establish trust, is to break social etiquette. I'm not talking about spilling my guts to every person I see. I'm talking about just being real with people about who we are instead of hiding behind the suit of fig leaves that we all make for ourselves.

But the Christian life isn't about hiding. It’s not about living in fear, but often that’s what we all do. we all on some level, live in fear that we will be found out for who we are. I think that the best thing that could ever happen to me, the best thing, is that my sin, or who I really am on a base level, would be literally exposed on the 6 o’clock news. My deepest darkest most embarrassing secrets, the ones I work the hardest to hide, would be broadcast on the 6 o’clock news. Best thing that could ever happen.

'Cause I am so tired of hiding my sin from people. I’m deceiving people about who I really am. I’m tired of it. I just wish my sins would be exposed, I wish there were huge billboards that would just show you the truth about me, all the way down to my core, in order that you may know me for who I really was. In order that I could not, I did not even have the option to hide from you anymore. In order that I would have nothing but Jesus to grasp onto, ‘cause that’s all I’ve got anyway. The truth is, our sins have been exposed. They’ve been exposed to Jesus. He knows us better that we're willing to even admit to ourselves. But He's forgiven you!

We should take joy in the fact not that our sins are not real, but that they are real, and that our savior is real. I can't tell myself this enough times in hopes that I might believe it, or start living like I do. I'll never tire of talking about it, because by the time I go to sleep tonight, I'm going to stop believing it again. It's in my nature, my darkside, so to speak. I'll start thinking of ways to hide myself from people in hopes that they might like me, or something. But that’s not what my Christian life is all about, that’s not what sanctification is about. That’s not what growth as a believer is all about.

And so here is my whole point in writing this today: It's about coming to grips about who you really are, and being able to admit that to each other. In doing so, that others might come and say, “I heard you talking about this stuff you're dealing with and that was bold of you, and brave of you to admit that. And it’s kind of leading me to repentance as well. I want to tell you something. I want to invite you into where I hide in hopes that I may not hide there anymore. Make it harder for me to go back there. ‘Cause the light switch was turned on."

Some of the best moments I have ever had with people have been these moments of vulnerability, where I am able to admit who I am, and that I am not a perfect Christian who is 'doing good.' I have struggles like everyone else.

So I guess my challenge to you, if you are a believer is this: Please, begin talking/preaching the gospel to EACH OTHER in a way that you might actually believe it, and in a way that you might come out of hiding yourself. In that it might change our Churches. I mean, am I the only one sick of living in a sub culture of Christianity where we encourage each other to hide, encourage each other to put on these fake faces?

That is not what the Christian life is about. It’s no wonder that statistically the Christian church is losing relevance by the day. It’s no wonder we’re so stagnant. WE don’t believe the gospel. It has not failed us, we have just failed to believe it.......but this is just one drifter's opinion......

The Noise of Silence

2007-10-02T15:24:00.000-03:00

The past couple weeks I have been getting things ready for Fall Foliage day here at the school. It is an annual event in which afternoon classes are canceled and programming is implemented to get students to focus on creation and nature and how God is at work in it.

I've been thinking lately about silence as well, or the noise that often comes with what we sometimes call silence. I'm talking about nature. How often have you heard someone say I need to get away from the noise of life, or Just listening to the silence of nature helps me relax? I think a more accurate description would be the noise of nature. This 'silence' is often noisier than many public places, but in a different way. It is the sounds of life. Often nature is the only true thing that points me directly back to God.

Now, I admit that many people probably disagree with me on this, but for me, being in a wooded area, or on the ocean away from 'life' as we sometimes call it are times that I cannot help but connect with the Almighty. I think that we need to get into nature more than we do. We spend too much time in commercial places. Psalm 23 says that He makes me lie down by still waters and green pastures. I think this can be taken to heart. I have often been refreshed by nature, and these times have been when I have learned more about myself as well. Perhaps it is because in the noise of the silence, I truly allow my thoughts out, and examine myself as I am...just a small part of the 'silence' of creation......

Confessions of an Audiophile....Good Albums

2007-09-17T16:09:00.000-03:00

After reading the writings of my friend Joey’s postings, I also have concluded that far too many artist have lost touch with the album. Too many are about the one or two hit, and too often we find ourselves listening to a catchy tune, with an album full of crap. So I have decided to post a collection of some of my favorite albums that are currently in high rotation in my CD player. So, in no particular order, here they are:

The Clash: London Calling (1979)
This was the first album that I bought with my own money, and is still one of the best records that I own. It seems that anything the clash wanted to do musically, they not only did, but did well.

Deftones: White Pony (2000)
These guys started it all. Before there was Korn, Sevendust, or even Rage Against the Machine, The Deftones led the soundscape. White Pony may have been the biggest leap in that genre to this date, as the boys maintain the fierceness they helped make popular. On this album though, their patented brand of hip-hop metal is adorned mostly with ambient and alt-rock touches, and less hip-hop. The lyrics are also more brooding. Check out the track Change (in the house of flies). Its awesome.

Three Days Grace: One-X (2006)
I hesitate to place this CD among my favorite album, but I can’t stop listening to it. I don’t mean a track here or there. I mean the whole thing. I fell in love with this one the minute I listened to it, though I admit, it took me a while to give it a try.

Grammatrain: Flying (1997)/Lonely House(1996)
As far as I am concerned, Pete Stewart is a Rock God among men. You should listen to anything that he has written. These albums are from his far too short lived band before he began producing and writing music for other people full time.

Jeff Buckley: Grace (1994)
At times resembling a soft-sung Robert Plant, Buckley was an intuitive vocalist whose voice could run the gambit of genres. This album really is captivating, and his version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” still gives me goose bumps. You owe it to yourself to listen to this album.

Aaron Espe: My Whole Life (2005)
I saw him in concert, and had the chance to meet him in person afterwards. He is an amazing guy, and his music speaks for itself. Probably one of the best records I’ve ever heard…really…. I think intelligent Pop Magazine said it best, “Hearing his music is like the experience of not realizing how thirsty you are until you start drinking.” There’s no doubt in my mind that Aaron’s vocals and storytelling is some of the best music you’ll ever hear.

Tea Party: Splendor Solis (1994)
I know that the tea party are an acquired taste, but Jeff Martin is an incredible musician. I think that Splendor Solis is probably the best album that Martin ever put together with the tea party. It does not have that same eastern feel that they are known for (though it is still there a little), but the musical and lyrical content flow together from one song to the next with a certain continuity that most albums lack. It is also one of the few album’s that he wrote sober. Combined with The Edges of Twilight, this is the basis of what later became the signature sound of the Tea Party. If you don’t like the party, but like rock, check out this album.

Derek Webb: The House Show (2004)
I think that all of Derek’s music should be listen to in high rotation, but this little gem is hard to find. It’s Derek at his rawest. It’s just him and his guitar in front of fifty people in someone’s living room. The songs are great, but his discussions on faith, art, and living and Screwing up as a believer are what set it apart for me.

Finger Eleven: The Greyest of Blue Skies (2000)
This is the first real attempt by these Canadians boys to separate themselves from the sound of their earlier moniker, the rainbow butt monkeys (remember them??). When they first released this record, it got lost in the shuffle among other big name bands. Sonically though, the riffs are larger, the melodies are executed better, the production is better, and overall, it is really quite addictive. Hard rocking tracks like “Drag You Down” and “Suffocate” are full of angst while more emotional and frail pieces like “Sick Of it All” make a louder statement. This is the album I always turn to to get out my frustrations. But be careful…Too much of it may lead to your own depression.

U2: The Joshua Tree (1990)
Need I really say more? This is a classic album. Though I think they have made better albums, this one is the one I always refer to when I speak of that classic ‘U2” sound.

Skillet: self-titled (1996)
How do you describe perfection? All I know is that I remember when this was first released, and when I first listened to it, I was blown away. The shear range of Skillet has blown me away from day one. Whether it’s pure rock like on the first track “I can” or a softer ballad such as “Saturn,” skillet proved from day one that they were going to be the next big thing. But then something tragic happened. Two of the three founding members left, and John Cooper became experimenting with techno and industrial sounds (a single tear…). This first release however, proved not only the shear skill of the musicians, but the great lyrical quality of John as well. From lyrics that grab you to musical modulations galore within each track, this album grabs a hold of you and never lets go.

Dave Matthews with Tim Reynolds: Live at Luther College (1999)
This is Dave at his best with his writing partner and equally great guitarist Tim. Just, two guitars, Dave’s vocals, and an audience. Great easy listening.

It's Rantastic!!!!!

2007-09-12T11:08:00.000-03:00

Ya know what I miss??

G.I. Joe's. The old school one's with the elastic in the middle of them that held them together. Man, talk about a solid product!! That elastic was high quality. And it was also always fun to swap parts from different action figures. Like, taking the legs from Duke and putting them on Storm Shadow (yes, I still remember the names of them...deal with it). I mean, talk about early engineering! What better way to learn how things work than to take apart your toys and then reassemble them? They also burned really well, but that is another subject that I will deal with at a later time.

Yup, G.I Joe's were great. Leave it to the American propaganda machine to come out with a great toy. Maybe next they will make Action figures based on Afghanistan, complete with protesters and everything. Probably not, but it would be cool. So remember, if you ever want to sell a war to the general masses, start early with toys, and maybe, just maybe, when they grow up they will be willing to go to war for you, and hopefully not realize that real war is nothing like playing with your G.I. Joe's in your friends basement. In real war, your friends don't always come back alive, and the 'heroes' are sometimes a lot harder to find.

Confessions of an Audiophile....Derek Webb (The Ringing Bell)

2007-08-31T11:09:00.000-03:00

So here it is......My long awaited review of Derek Webb's album The Ringing Bell. This is just my opinion and is from someone who loves his music to start, so believe what you may.

If Mockingbird was a call to action for believers, then The Ringing Bell is more of a coffeehouse discussion. It is varied, thoughtful and without any clear agenda, Unlike his previous albums. If nothing else, this album stands out as something new from Derek who already has a lot of musical history behind him (i.e. Caedmon's Call, his wife Sandra McCracken). this is a big change musically from the past for Derek, and though I was not tiring from the old sound (not even a little bit), it is refreshing to hear something a little different from him....even nostalgic in some ways.

The Ringing Bell sounds as if Webb looked back and drew from his past musical influences that shaped his early musical stylings. While his first three discs had a largely folk feel to them, he now seems to be tapping into his inner Beatle, with a little bit of Wilco on the side, and some Dylan to top it all off.

I Wanna Marry You All Over Again (presumably written to his wife Sandra McCracken), is based on reliving their courtship and the joy of falling in love.

A Love That's Stronger than Our Fear, however, is an antiwar piece that asks some pointed questions:

Though he has moved away from the heavy hitting lyrical content of his previous albums, it is still there on some tracks, but mostly the album is more of a light hearted affair. It seems that with this album he has answered the one question that he always gets again and again, "Derek, will you ever write a happy song again?" The answer is not only yes, but an album full of more light hearted affairs. But don't get too carried away with the light sound of the album. The lyrics still hit home:

"What would you do if someone would tell you the truth,

But only if you torture them half to death.

Tell me since when do the ends justify the means,

And you build the kingdom using the devils's tools..." - A love That's Stronger than Our Fears

This disc is more relationship based than Webb's other projects, but still packs a punch....just not the left hook out of nowhere that his stuff usually packs... Name is a light, romantic tune, and The Very End is another love song than could be directed at a woman or at God.

Though this album does have a kind of tongue in cheek approach to some issues that is more reminiscent of his Caedmon's Call days, I miss the heavier message that provoked the difficult and thought provoking examination of one's self, that message that makes you at once love him, and hate him for putting the truth out there for all to see.

Overall, a solid offering, evening if not as thought provoking as his previous offerings. Musically though, it may be the genre that fits his voice better than any other he has tried in the past. I hope to hear more from Derek in the future...

Paste Magazine - 5 STAR Review
Pop masterpiece from songwriter whose name might not ring a bell, calling "the ringing bell, easily ones of the years best..."

...The Ringing Bell, Webb's fourth solo album, is also his masterstroke. Over the past few years, he's tried on numerous genres for size- foot-shuffling alt. country, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot-inspired noise collage, pared-down singer/songwriter folk- but he's finally realized which sound fits him best: all of them. Add to this mix a band capable of delivering scrappy, devil-may-care rock 'n' roll. Then it seems Webb asked himself, "What would a band that claimed to be bigger than Jesus do?" ...

The "Joys" of Leadership and unasked questions

2007-08-31T10:40:00.000-03:00

This past week has been leadership training week here at ABU. I've been going through things with the RA's about conflict resolution, policies and procedures, and all that fun boring stuff. On Wednesday we had the guys from SAFETALK come to speak about suicide intervention, and this got me thinking about suicide. Not about me personally, but about the topic in general.

When a loved one dies, whether it be natural or accidental, we always remember that person with fondness. However, if someone kills themselves, it is as though it is wrong to remember them. It becomes taboo to talk about that person. Why is that? Now, I know that as Christians we look at it as a sin, but we don't shun people who are adulterous like they never existed do we? If anything we tend to talk about them more.

It robs the loved one of that person who has committed suicide of closure that they so desperately need. I'm not trying to say that it isn't a tragedy, because I do believe that it is, but I can't wrap my head around why these people are treated as less than people because of one act. I don't really have an answer or anything about this, and perhaps one of you guys out there has a comment that you would like to make. I'm just kinda thinking out loud about a subject that we tend to hide away in the back of our minds. Maybe one day it will be okay to remember those who ended there own lives in the same way that we remember those who died by other causes, for they are missed just as much....maybe even more because of the method.....

For Love.....

2007-08-21T11:16:00.000-03:00

Robert Creeley

Yesterday I wanted to speak of it, That sense above the others to me important because all that I know derives from what it teaches me. Today, what is it that is finally so helpless, different, despairs of its own statement, wants to turn away, endlessly to turn away.

If the moon did not. . . no, if you did not I wouldn't either, but what would I not do, what prevention, what thing so quickly stopped. That is love yesterday or tomorrow, not now.

Can I eat what you give me? I have not earned it. Must I think of everything as earned? Now love also becomes a reward so remote from me I have only made it with my mind.

Here is tedium, despair, a painful sense of isolation and whimsical if pompous self-regard. But that image is only of the mind's vague structure, vague to me because it is my own.

Love, what do I think to say? I cannot say it. What have you become to ask, what have I made into, companion, good company, crossed legs with skirt, or soft body under the bones of the bed.

Nothing says anything but that which it wishes would come true, fears what else might happen in some other place, some other time not this one. A voice in my place, an echo of that only in yours.

Let me stumble into not the confession but the obsession I begin with now. For you also (also) some time beyond place, or place beyond time, no mind left to say anything at all, that face gone, Now.

Into the company of love, it all returns.

If Stressed Is Desserts backwards, then was isn't it Delicious??

2007-08-21T10:54:00.000-03:00

Man, this week sucks, and it is only Tuesday. Even the whether, which is usually great sucks. It looks like a beautiful day, and then you step outside and it is freezing and the wind is strong enough to knock you off your feet (well, not me, but possibly a lighter man).

Anyway, I've been slaving away at the office trying to get these placements done for residence, while prepping chapel, worship teams, and planning leadership training week, not to mention the calls I've been getting all morning about room changes, etc. So it is one of those days. I wouldn't say I'm stressed, just frustrated more than anything. But, the way I am I will be good to go after this little rant. Plus, I found this picture that I thought was pretty sweet.

So why is it that stress isn't sweet? shouldn't we be a lot more careful with the words we use? Maybe stress should be called Skcus instead, because it really sucks the life out of you. I mean, I think we could have come up with something better for the backwards spelling of desserts. I will never look at desserts the same. I will have to eat them silently in disgust...sweet delicious disgust.....

Stained Glass Masquerade

2007-08-15T08:45:00.000-03:00

I was reading a interview with Mark Hall of Casting Crowns fame, and thought that it should be put here in part:

"I don't think it bothers the world that we sin. I think it bothers the world that we act like we don't. There are times that instead of being myself and exposing my own weakness and hurt, I portray a character of the person that I know I should be. But when I expose myself as weak and frail at times, it frees the Body of Christ to restore me as it should and invites others to unmask as well."

Matthew 23:25-28 / Matthew 7:1-6 / John 8:7-9 Galatians 6:1 / 1 John 1:9 / 1 Corinthians 15:9 2 Corinthians 12:9 / Romans 14:1

Stained Glass Masquerade

by Casting Crowns

Is there anyone that fails

Is there anyone that falls

Am I the only one in church today, feelin so small

Cause when I take a look around

Everybody seems so strong

I know they'll soon discover

That I don't belong

So I tuck it all away, like everything's okay

If I make them all believe it, maybe I'll believe it too

So with a painted grin, I play the part again

So everyone will see me the way that I see them

Are we happy plastic people

Under shiny plastic steeples

With walls around our weakness

And smiles to hide our pain

But if the invitation's open

To every heart that has been broken

Maybe then we close the curtain on our stained glass masquerade

Is there anyone who's been there

Are there any hands to raise

Am I the only one who's traded

In the altar for a stage

The performance is convincing

And we know every line by heart

Only when no one is watching

Can we really fall apart

But would it set me free

If I dared to let you see

The truth behind the person

That you imagine me to be

Would your arms be open

Or would you walk away

Would love of Jesus

Be enough to make you stay?

Confessions of an Audiophile....Derek Webb

2007-08-14T11:42:00.000-03:00

So I've recently ordered the new offering from Derek Webb, The Ringing Bell. I've been told that it is a departure from the folksiness of his past offerings in which he comes back to his roots of rock. Having become quite an obsessive fan of Derek's of the past few years a cannot wait to hear this new offering. Will it still have that volatile lyrical quality that both makes you stand up and cheer for the truth it contains, and yet stirs up anger towards that same truth at the same time? I hope so.

Even though he has become somewhat of a 'counter-christian culture' icon of the past few years, Derek's honesty remains the same in his writings. I can only hope that the same remains with this new CD. I also cannot wait to hear the rock side of him again. With his influences listed as vastly as Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Pedro the Lion, U2, Neil Young, and Wilco to name a few, I hope that this new musical branch will be of the same caliber. But maybe I am setting the bar a little high by putting him on par with Dylan. I think his music can make you think about your life and the world in similar ways as Dylan's does, but let's remember, Dylan is a legend, and though Derek may be looked at in that way in future years, he is far from that status right know. However, if his music continues to evolve as it has in recent years, maybe one day we will look back at him and say that he was one of the reasons that 'Christianity' as a movement turned itself around, and started to practice what it was preaching, instead of pointing fingers.

Contemplations Above The Noise of Life

2007-08-13T09:44:00.000-03:00

I've been thinking about this for some time, so here is a little teaser from the last Abandon gig that we did a while back. I was speaking between sets, and well, kinda got off on a rant......

"Sometimes I wonder why we hold onto things that in reality are insignificant. I feel that most of the time, what I see as really important is usually just useless, or an attempt to hold onto the past, something safe and familiar. Aren't we as believers called to do the very opposite?? Being a Christian means stepping out of the comfort zone and putting ourselves out there, to be vulnerable.

But most of the time I find myself struggling just to be honest with myself and others. Sometimes I feel that it would be better if my life was like a movie on a big screen or posted on a bilboard somewhere so that I couldn't hide anything from people. Why is it that we think we need to put on these disguises to make people accept us? Ok, I can see why the world may look at it that way, but if anyone doesn't have an excuse, it should be me.

We are just so afraid of being found out for who we really are. What is the big deal?? And even as I say this, I know I will go on through the day and begin to cover my tracks again so people don't see completely who I really am. Why am I so afraid to let go and let God take control?

Probably because it would mean that I wasn't in control, but I'm not anyway, so why put up the illusion? Of course, illusion is reality to a person until they discover the truth. Maybe that's why everyone is striving to be like everyone else: so the bubble doesn't burst and they see themselves and others for who they really are: Laid bare, before God....."

Time for a good ol' fashion rant.....

2007-08-13T09:15:00.000-03:00

Why is it that it is always so hard to get people to help you, especially Christians????? I mean, as Christians, aren't we suppose to help each other out? And now, to be fair, I am not talking about helping someone move boxes, or mow a lawn or something. I'm talking about doing for lack of a better term, 'Christian Ministry' (I don't like this term for several reasons, but i gotta use some kind of label so you guys know generally what I'm talking about). Here's an example:

So I'm in the midst of planning this training week for young adults with some other people, and we figure that it is a good idea to get other people who are in leadership to help out and do sort of like a devotional time. Everyone in the group thinks that it's a good idea, as do the leaders that I talk to. However, when I asked them if they are willing to do something, the excuses come out of everywhere. "I have too much work to do", "It's too short notice", "My house is on fire and I have to put it out"......Okay I made the last one up, but you get the point.

My point is this: If we are so gun-ho with our words about doing 'ministry' or helping others, then why are we (and by 'we' I mean Christians) not leading the way with our actions. I think too often we say what we really do not mean. We say that we want to feed the hungry, help those who are homeless, etc. because we know we should say that, but when it all comes down to it, we really want nothing to do with them. I admit that I include myself in this group a lot of the time as well. I'm definitely no saint.

Derek Webb put it quite eloquently when he wrote "poverty is hard to see when it's twenty miles outside town instead of on your front door." I mean, I am disgusted by myself at times by my lack of helping others as I know I should. I get caught up in myself and buy a new guitar (which I don't need since I already have two) instead of using that money to help someone who really needs it. And I am not talking about some far off place like Africa. In fact, I think that it is easier for us to help those people, than the people that are right in front of us. We do not have to see those people, except on TV every now and again, and when we get that monthly or so letter from them telling us how good we are because we are helping to save their lives by giving up the price of a coffee every now and again. (sorry, if I'm getting a little bit indignant here.)

It is the people in front of us that we don't like to help, and I have a theory on this. I think it is us......In fact, I think that the real reason why we have so much trouble actually helping people who are 'just down the road' is that they remind us of ourselves, and our own frailty/humanity. Perhaps because we know that we ourselves could very well be them if the circumstances were different, but we do not want to admit it. In some way, maybe we think that helping them is admitting that we are like them...Well here is a news flash people.....we are like them. We are just as dirty, just as broken, just as poor, and just as lost....The only difference is that they admit it and we are better at hiding it behind our new house, car, or guitar......

Confessions of an Audiophile....Three Days Grace

2007-08-08T14:54:00.000-03:00

Normally I am not one to jump on the bandwagon of popular music, but even I have my moments. I am addicted. I am addicted to Three Days Grace's album one-x. I debated even buying it in the first place, since I remembered seeing them open for Thousand Foot Krutch when they were still a cover band. With that little 'tidbit' planted firmly in my mind, as well as the vast media machine that has been pushing them over the past year or so, I figured they weren't really worth listening to. I have been proven wrong.

I admit that I really liked the release pain when it came out, and maybe this is what first peaked my interest in them. Either way I bought the album, and I haven't regretted it a bit. In fact, if I go too long without listening to it, I start to get an itch to hear those vocals from frontman Adam Gontier.

The first couple of songs catch you right away, and never let you go. All the way to the last track where I admit that the first time I heard it, Adam's vocals combined with the Crunchy guitar riffs gave me goosebumps. the only thing that makes this better for me is that they are Canadian, which is awesome! I have always been a supporter of Canadian artist, and I can now in good conscience recommend Three Days Grace as well. I just hope that they can follow up their one-x album with another potent offering. If you like hard edge rock with killer vocals, then you should definitely check them out. I doubt that you will be disappointed.

2007-08-07T10:58:00.000-03:00

First Post EVER!!.....okay not really.....

2007-08-07T10:42:00.000-03:00

So I had this great idea that I was going to write a long and insightful posting for the first thing I posted here. You know, something that would make people think about life, and be intrigue about 'who this mysterious drifter is'...and then i saw transformers....Things in life rarely go as planned.

Well, I am in Moncton, New Brunswick now (at least that is where i have pitched the tent for the time being) and working at a University here. So far they seem to think I know what i am doing, so that's good. It's kinda weird knowing that I will be in a place for at the bare minimum, a full year. I can't recall the last time that I did so. The past seven years (well, maybe more like ten) have been kind of a wandering walkabout for me.

I mean, I've met lots of people, written songs, Loved, been heartbroken, and seen the work of God in peoples lives...even when they don't want to admit it, or are too caught up in there own selves to realize it is God doing these works around them. Perhaps this is what life is. I mean, I think John Bunyan had it right with his whole Pilgrims progress thing. Maybe, we are 'drifting' through this life trying to find that road or path that will lead us to ultimate fulfilment. I think that this road leads through Christ, even though there are many who do not believe so.

We are all wanderers at heart i think. Searching, prodding, trodding onward, looking for the light ahead to guide us. I was reading this book heavens wager by Ted Dekker lately, and he touches on this. At one point he speaks of the main character in the book who looks up and sees nothing but black clouds, and a rain pouring down on him, making him downcast. What he is unaware of is that in reality, the light of heaven is shining down on him, trying to light his path, if he would just look up. I think that is how life is at times. Though we seem to be in a storm, if we were to only look up and see past the clouds to the light, it would lead us home.

I'm Back!! and know with more rantin...

2007-08-02T11:18:00.001-03:00

You know what I miss? Transformers. I just watched the movie, and it got me think about how sweet those toys were. I mean the really good ones you know? the ones that were made out of metal. Man, you could through those things off your roof and they still kept on ticking. Nowadays they make all that stuff out of cheap plastic. I mean, yeah they are more fun to burn, but what about all the wear and tear a young boy puts on his toys???

No way one of those plastic toys is going to hold up to being thrown off the roof of your shed or house. I mean, even when you throw it at your friend it's going to break. Those old transformers were awesome. You could use them as a baseball, and they would still not be broken when you were done with them. I know, cause I tried it. Plus, all the dings and scraps added character to them.

Alas, toy companies just don't allow for the destructive nature of young boys anymore....the innocence of youth is gone.......but at least you can still burn stuff..... They can never take that away from you.....So if you are a young boy who is fed up with broken toys, let me give you this advice. Even though they may be broken, they can still make one wicked awesome fire!!!!!!