Tempting, but no.

Twice in the past week I ran into what was, for me, a new teaching/thinking on temptation. I've never thought too much on temptation so no surprise to hit something new; but coming up twice? C'mon.

I think my naive view has been "flee from it" or "lead us not into". Mostly, dwelling on it is like dwelling on sin; I know, I suck; I get it. Temptation has power because the immediate returns seem so pleasant. A daily struggle that I wish wasn't. 
James 1:14 but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.

(1 Tim 1:15) Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.


In the morning devotional with my Becky, we hit Oswald Chambers saying you can be tempted in two ways (he referenced James). Satan outright tempting you with something new, and you being tempted by your past. This hit with a sense of an external and internal view; maybe more of a future/past facet.  Interesting.


Then a sermon from Father Thomas Mackenzie out of Nashville was focusing on Jesus in the wilderness being tempted by things that are not outright evil. How is making bread, a bad thing?  Jesus later turns water into wine, more bread from small bread; how is stones into bread an evil temptation? 

The temptation wasn't really the bread, it was to reclaim power.  It was temptation to ignore the plan of the Father.
Hebrews 2:18
Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.



I think Oswald set me up to really hear T-Mac.  Mostly that we are not alone in our temptation trying to struggle it out, gut it out, strength it out....  Go further though.  It's not that Jesus wants to fight by our side, he wants to fight for us; and he has already won the victory.

Just a quick deep thought.  Back to grindstone.

Take me away - A review of Bluebird by Randall Goodgame

So my church (with minor arm twisting from me) hosted a Randall Goodgame (hereafter RG) concert back in February.

See clip here:



A brief history.  I'm not sure I was aware of RG before receiving Slugs, Bugs, & Lullabies as a gift.  I might have been.  I was blown away by the album.  Laughing at "The Boy who was Bored" and weeping at "Beautiful Girl" for about the first 20x listening to it.  I can usually make it thru now.

So, being touched by the album I bought the RG album Hymnal.  I didn't care for it.  I listened a few times and gave it to a friend.  My recollected thoughts on it was that it was okay, but didn't get me hooked & I probably wouldn't buy another RG album.

Years and a few kids later the family ends up at a SB&L show and we bought War & Peace.  Good album; very good.

Then our church put on the SB&L Christmas program with some help from RG, and part of the whole arrangement was a concert in February as he was in the area.  The concert pushed me from "his music is okay" to "he's one of the best" in my view of RG music.  We bought one of the last copies of Bluebird that will have a proper case.  Although I'm sure if 1000 orders were to be placed he would find a way to produce more.  And honestly it is that good of an album it should be out there more.

And now my quick review of his album/ep "Bluebird".  Yeah, it came out in 2008 and I'm a few years behind.

I can't get enough of this album.  Many listens have passed my ears and I still seek it out.  It does for me everything music is meant to do - it draws out emotion.  When listening to a song I tend to focus first on vocal/lyrics.  It is what I want to pay attention to and generally if I hear the support (the wall of sound other than the primary vocals)  early it is because it is too strong, or doesn't match.  If they blend well I don't notice the support for quite some time.  I am blown away at every listening for the full songs that are present.

The songs:
Bluebird
All the Years
Heaven Waits
Reverie
California
Jubilee

The song that currently rattles my bones the most is "All the Years" (lyric portion is my current best guess from listening):
I've grown tired of all the years. I can feel my bones grinding down.  I used to cave to all my fears; but I've grown tired of all the years.  I have sung a thousand single songs, for all the world to sit and hear.  Candle wax has frozen up the keys that go right here.  And I have grown tired of all the years.

Take me away, take me away my love; can you find me a road I've never known. Take me away, take me away my love; I'm tired can you just take me home.

Something about that hits me like "Calgon, take me away".  The song elicits a feeling of being tired and ready for rest.  A call out for the day when we will hear "well done, good and faithful servant."  It builds to such a great apex of the calling out and ends with a content sigh.

It is such a wall of sound that is powerful and adds the to the power and feeling of RG's voice.  Great song.  Other songs are great as well, but this one is just the best to me.

"Nothing new under the sun" so write about the sun.

There is no clearer sign of the absence of originality among modern poets than their dispostion to find new topics.  Really original poets write poems about the spring.  They are always fresh, just as the spring is always fresh.  Men wholly without originality write poems about torture, or new religions or some perversion of obscenity, hoping that the mere sting of the subject may speak for them.  But we do not sufficiently realize that what is true of the classic ode is also true of the classic joke.  A true poet writes about the spring being beautiful because (after a thousand springs) the spring really is beautiful.  In the same way the true humorist writes about a man sitting down on his hat because the act of sitting down on one's own hat (however often and admirably performed) really is extremely funny.  We must not dismiss a new poet because his poem is called 'To a Skylark'; nor must we dismiss a humorist because his new farce is called 'My Mother-in-Law.'  He may really have splendid and inspiring things to say upon an eternal problem.  The whole question is whether he has.  GK Chesterton - Introduction to 'Sketches by Boz.'

Still waters run deep; and diving into shallow discussions.

If you weren't aware Rob Bell has released a new book (Love Wins) and of course there's controversy because that's what he does, that's what sells books, and that's the only reason he is relevant.  I've seen a few of his Nooma videos and haven't read a single of his book.  Really not interested.  Just too trendy & not my style.  It grabs me more as steps to sell controversy rather than appeal to an honest discussion.

Reminds me of this:
Trendy Church
There's a Veridian Dynamics feel to it.