Doug Van Pelt

50 First Dates

Come into my office...
brooo-ha-ha-ha!

Interesting mix in the 6-disc cd changer right now:

By The Tree - Hold You High
Isaiah Owens - You Without Sin, Cast The First Stone
Bad Acid Trip - Lynch The Weirdo
Sevensystem - Alteredstate
Amen - Death Before MusicK
The Williams Brothers - SoulLink Live

Wow. By The Tree is not that bad.
Track #3 has kind of a musical creed/statement of faith thing going lyrically. Kinda cool in a Rich Mullins sorta way...

Isaiah Owens is just a cool old man. Gotta love that deep, low voice and heartfelt passionate blues praise. Raw. Powerful. Soulful.

B.A.T. Wow. Appropriate name. Crazy bad like Type O Negative's Bloody Kissesalbum intro. Heavy and guitar driven. Like the BH-Surfers going to Norway... This'll trip out the co-workers in the office cranked up loud.

Sevensystem. Metal. Yes. Sustaining power chords with the right tone is just... a heavenly powerful thing. Love it. Vocals kinda grunge-like. Strange. Other times more hardcore shouts. Maybe if Creed had been signed to Victory Records and produced by Adam of Killswitch?

Amen. I've been told it means, "I understand and I agree." I'm not so sure now, cuz ... well, I can't really say anything just yet. Deep. Intense. Wow.

Williams Bros. Wow. They start off with "Love Train." Wow. I used to love that O'Jays tune. Still do. Cool. Rockin. Pouring out with soul and spirit. Fantastic.

Wow. What a listen.

Watched 50 First Dates with my wife tonight. Funny movie. I got the boxset of Playmakers, which I've been eating up. Can't get enough football these days -- offseason stinks...
:?)

Am looking forward to honoring Charlotta's grandad, who turned 80 today. What a great example he's been for Christ. A servant. Consistent, and easy-going and a real conversationalist. Very good gifts for the body of Christ. He joined my grandad in praying over my wife and I in our marriage ceremony. A great moment. I'm convinced that God loves families and He loves marriage. That easily flows into "God loves people." I should do the same. Whenever I get a glimpse of the value of people, I feel that much more alive.

"There's something about You Jesus...
there's something about You Jesus...
there's something about You Jesus...
...makes me feel mighty good!"

That SoulLink Live album really rocks!

[that picture is a giant banner we have for the magazine... i think it really inspires the interns. our intern james seems inspired these days. he's kicking butt over here.]

Planning for September

Now that the weight of deadline is gone, we are looking at all the possibilities for editorial in our Sep/Oct issue. Hopefully it will be as good as the Jul/Aug issue, which was fantastic. We're very happy with that one.

I hope my doctrinal diatribe from yesterday didn't wig anyone out. I think I was fairly clear that it wasn't a battle worth fighting for me. In some ways, I don't really care. I know I appreciate it, though, when someone's willing to tell me what they really think.

The "tour" of the office continues. This room is our "intern office," where we've got two computers and room to work.

It Is Finished

Today's chapter in PDL is the last of the book. It encouraged the reader to write down a purpose statement for their lives. The author encouraged us to not expect to nail it in one writing, but to re-edit it as you meditate on it.

When I think about the purpose for my life I think about a controversial doctrine. That's a drag, but it's what I seriously think about my life. It touches on the whole belief about the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and wiggles all the way down to the concept that God still acts and does miracles through His people by His Spirit today (in the here and now). When I prayed with a friend to "receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit," * I felt like I was committing to something serious. Almost like a recruit into the military or the government's spy agency -- the C.I.A. I actually remember formulating the thought that, if God was going to invest His Spirit in and on me as a person, then I will have to be willing to be woken up in the middle of the night and travel to such and such a place to do something specific. I imagined God whispering to me to go to a certain street to tell someone that would be there something very specific. It was a sobering moment for me, because I seriously counted the cost. I knew that when this sort of thing happened, that it would not be comfortable. Sleep is comfortable. My own surroundings are comfortable. Being quiet and not talking about God or things that could offend -- that is a comfortable state to be in. Not sure where all these thoughts came from. I never recall anyone else ever telling me this stuff. I assume that it was the Lord. I'm glad that it was such a serious moment for me, though. I've been around certain charismatic circles where the "event" of receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit was like a sporting event -- with lots of cheering and super high emotions. Those things are exciting and emotion is cool, but it's so fleeting that it can be real easy to equate "I don't feel it anymore" to "it wasn't real."

Anyway, if I were to draft a life purpose, it would probably involve that sort of "I'm at Your disposal, God" kind of statement. I don't believe God needs me or anyone else, but I think I have a privilege and an opportunity to offer myself to God in a unique way. Each of us does. There is a real sense of satisfaction of doing a "mission" for God. Some of the most exciting ones can seem ever so small, too. They might involve doing some good deed or service in total secret. This may sound really dumb (and I wouldn't hold it up as evidence of any modern day supernatural work whatsoever), but one day at campus while I was going to college, I was walking past a bricked bench and some girl's spiral notebook was blowing open in the wind. As I walked by, I quietly turned it 180 degrees so the wind wouldn't blow into the open end anymore. No one else saw it, which made me smile. To me it felt like a good deed that I wouldn't get noticed for. I use that as an example of how minute some act of kindness might be. Not noticed, but somehow spreading love in a tangible way.

* The whole doctrine of there being a "baptism of the Holy Spirit" is not believed by everyone in the body of Christ. My understand of it is based upon 3 different baptisms being talked about in Scripture. Luke 3:16 talks about 2 kinds of baptism -- water and Holy Spirit/fire.

"John answered them all, 'I baptize you with water. BUt one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.'"

1 Corinthians 12:13 talks about one other type of baptism -- by the Spirit into the body of Christ.

"For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body..."

We have three different baptisms with three different characteristics: element, the baptizer, and the baptizee:

element
water
Spirit
Body

baptizer
John
Jesus
Holy Spirit

baptizee
believer (each time)

That was enough for me to understand that the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, which is mentioned in Scripture many times is different and distinct from the baptism by the Spirit into the body at conversion.

I could be wrong about this. And whether I'm right or wrong on this matter is not the most crucial thing in my life. Just thought I'd gently share what I believe as it pertains to writing a purpose for my own life. If you disagree with this doctrine, you can at least benefit from the perspective of knowing how another person views this thing.

Pictured above is another view of our offices here at HM. This is the view as you head from the "meeting area" into the individual offices.

Achy Breaky Back

Whew!
Aaggghh!
Uhhhh.

Man, I could use some sleep (the over ten hours kind).
They say your body doesn't really "catch up" in the sense that if you lose x hours of sleep, you just sleep x hours extra to make up for it.

Gotta jet and get some food. Will be back with some more info soon.
Pictured is one of the important areas of the office -- the caffeine center.

Halfway There...

I've shipped the proofs to the printer. I've ftp'd about all the ads to the printer's ftp site. Just waiting for a few album reviews to get finalized. And then tomorrow morning we'll ftp over the rest. It's gonna feel great to have this one "in the can."

Very excited about this issue. It's hard to fathom for me, but it's even better than the last one! Wow. That is a great, great feeling. David did a spectacular job laying this one out. It is a real honor to have someone of his talent laying out this thing.

We have lots of giveaways -- about one per week (with multiple winners most of the time) with fun trivia contests in our email newsletters. You can sign up for these on the main page of our site. We are soon to have a giveaway of the new Pedro album, too. So be on the lookout on our main page in the near future.

On to the continued office tour. This is our meeting area. We'll sit down and discuss matters of the magazine here.

If all goes as planned tomorrow, we will eat somewhere fun in Austin, and then have a sporty game of miniature golf. I'm confident I will dominate the competition. That new intern, James, won't know what hit him.
:?)

Almost Done...

Today's chapter in PDL was chapter 39. Only one more to go...
And today should be our last day in deadline, where we send over each of the files for every page in the magazine sometime later today.

The chapter talked about balance. There is a simplicity but yet a number of things to keep growing in for this life. Following the greatest commandment of loving God and loving others guides us in this balanced way. The simplicity of those things makes the broadening areas of discipleship, fellowship, and evangelism in focus.

I'm enjoying sharing some pictures of the office here for the next several days. You've seen the front door, the intercom outside. Now come in...

Ahhh, Rest...

Lying around.
Tired.
Almost finished with deadline.

Mowed and trimmed lawn today after church.
Didn't realize how much sun I got until finished.
That cloud cover's diffused light sometimes will zing ya.

At church my beloved pastor gave a nice plug for the Rock Stars on God book. Very cool.

Rest.

Hope to finish deadline tomorrow.

Morrow is Coming

Matt Morrow is coming thru Austin on a trip tomorrow and I'll have the privilege of having lunch with him and his family. I'm looking forward to it. Perhaps I'll tell him to stop listening to so much metal music and settle down for some Steven Curtis Chapman, etc?
Nah.

Today in PDL the chapter is called "Becoming A World Class Christian." It contrasts the characteristics of a 'worldly' Christian and a 'world class' Christian. I remember Inter-Varsity Christian fellowship used the phrase 'World Christian' to describe someone who saw the big picture of world evangelism and the Great Commission as more than just a great suggestion. The contrast is pointed:

"A worldly Christian will go to concerts and conferences, but never to a missions conference...they are me-centered Christians..."

This is the sort of rebuke that I think only God can give to somebody. Do you know who the wrong person to give that rebuke probably is? It's that person who went to the missions conference at his church and asks his friend why she didn't go. "You spent money last week on the Third Day concert, but you won't even spend your time to think about the third world countries and come to our missions conference." It's just a misguided attempt to push personal convictions on someone else. Fortunately, this scenerio happens very little with mature Christians. They are the ones that, if they see a need or a potential area for growth (a deficiency) in another believer, they prefer to pray on it instead of prey on it like an self-appointed teacher/prophet from God.

Well, today might be the last day of deadline. Here's hoping we finish it up before this day expires. We have a slightly longer window for deadline now. It used to be 3 pm on Friday is what we'd aim for (as we could call in a Fed Ex pickup at 3, who came within two hours to pick up the discs and proofs). Then it was 8 pm, which gave me time to race to the Fed Ex office before it closed its doors at 9 pm. And now we are sending PDF files over the internet to our printer, so we can send our last file at 10:30 am Monday morning and equal the file delivery time of old. We still have to overnight proofs, but we can get those printed earlier and get those out in mid-afternoon and still be working and fine-tuning the files past that.

Have a great weekend.

"This Lineup Will Never Change..."

"...And This Band Will Never Break Up!"
--Scott Mellish of Zao (Austin TX, May 19)

Zao was really good. They played last night at the Back Room as part of the Ferret Records tour. Their new drummer, Steven, and new bassist, Sean (or Shawn?), played really well. Some of the new songs, especially the second-to-last-one of the set, sound excellent! This new album promises to be great.

Taking in a late night show like that is taxing at deadline. I wish I could've gone and seen Killswitch Engage and As I Lay Dying the night before, but making the decision to go see Zao in the last week of deadline was a ridiculous decision as it was; going to see two shows back to back seemed un-do-able. I regret not saying hi to Howard Jones of Killswitch, though.

Awesome reminders about evangelism in PDL today:

We are called to be "witnesses," not attorneys! We don't have to argue the case for God, as if a verdict depended on us. (whew!)

A witness just relates what they saw and what happened to them.

Here's a cool quote:

"Actually, your personal testimony is more effective than a sermon, because unbelievers see pastors as professional salesmen, but see you as a 'satisfied customer,' so they give you more credibility."

Ain't that cool?

There is also encouragement to make a list of things God has taught you through experience. People listen to stories, because they are curious. I remember some great advice a pastor once told me about speaking/preaching:

"Nobody remembers what you say, but they'll remember a story you tell them."

Funny, but it makes sense.

"Save One More For Jesus"

PDL author Rick Warren had a harrowing...let me re-phrase that: he had a life-changing experience when his dad was dying. In the last year of his dad's life, the illness kept his dad in a semi-conscious state almost 24/7. When Rick sat by his dad, he could hear what his dad was dreaming about, because his dad would utter what was going on. Many of those dreams were one church building project (going overseas with a group to build a church building for a small congregation) after another. In his dreams he was reliving some of the work he did for the kingdom of God. One day his dad was trying frantically to get up out of bed. Everyone tried to settle him down, but he insisted, saying, "Gotta save one more for Jesus, save one more for Jesus." Rick sat by his bed, bowed his head, cried, and thanked God for his dad's ministry. Then his dad patted him on the knees and told him, "go save one more for Jesus."

Isn't that cool? His dad understood that he could pass a torch on -- that the work of the kingdom wasn't his alone, but he was part of a team. The mission of the church (of every believer) is to share the message of forgiveness, reconciliation (which is salvation). That mission is serious. When Jesus was about to ascend into Heaven after spending several weeks post-resurrection with His disciples, they asked him when he would return. Like many a wise pastor today, he re-focused their thoughts away from prophecy and onto evangelism. That e-word has seemingly become an ugly word or one we don't want to hear, but that's mostly because of the methods we've seen used in evangelism. Invent your own method! Seek the Word, try to distill it down to a method that you know is right. It's what Jesus told His followers (us) to do. Grapling with our own sinful state and being grateful to our Savior is the first step and in some ways we do stay there forever, but in other ways we move on in obedience to Him.

Walk Like An Egyptian

PDL today is good. It's a reminder that God uses our weaknesses. "Though we are weak, He is strong." There is only God glory in this kind of work, not self glory. Why I get stubborn and think that I can do everything myself I do not know. There was some cool words of encouragement that promotes vulnerability in today's chapter. When people see your weakness, they can relate to you. Vulnerability attracts. That's a good thing for me to hear today, because yesterday I was honest and a little vulnerable and it made me worry (as being vulnerable often does, making us suspect of being hurt or taken advantage of). It's good to remember that God can use honesty to build community. Sure, there are clubs made up of people that are strong in a certain area, but a real community is built when people see their need for one another, which is often the case when we see our inadequacies.

Even criticism from another can be very helpful in bringing us to the realization that we need more of God's help in our lives.

Hopefully, this new issue will come together and be finished by the end of this week. We certainly need God's help to get it done. We are doing something new and different this issue -- a "New Faces" feature that highlights a handful of indie bands, which will be up in the front of the magazine (kinda like a super pick of the litter focus). Ashton Nyte (of South African band The Awakening) and University are two bands that will be featured. With a hard press all day, I hope to watch "24" tonight on the tv here at work. Fun show. Talk about stress! Jack Bauer's day never seems to let up...

Think Like A Servant

Very challenging chapter in PDL today. Thinking like a servant? The book exposed my selfish nature. It talked about serving many times as a way to get something, whether that's respect or status or returned favor... Wow, that hit home. There was one comment that talked about using times when we are unappreciated, unthanked, and unrecognized -- using these times to practice true servanthood. This is when we are able to vanquish our selfish motives.

I think of times where my wife asks me to do something at the office and it sounds like I'm not appreciated. The last thing I think of (meaning I don't) is using this as a chance to serve. One of the first things I think about is, 'How does this sound to David (in the next office)?' I worry about my status as a man. 'Does this look like I'm not wearing the pants in this marriage?' Instead of caring for my wife's needs, I am consumed by the insecurity of worrying about what others think or how I'm not being properly appreciated. Wow. It's amazing to be confronted with my own shallowness.

I hope next time I have the chance I can act as a servant and not concern myself with how it looks or being appreciated. But as I'm typing this, I can find myself secretly hoping that David or the interns will read this so they'll know and see me acting unselfish and taking this principle to heart. How shallow I am!
:?)

Obviously I've got a long way to go in my journey. Praise be to our Guide and Master!

PTC = Party At Mi Casa

My wife is a proctor (or something like that) of our local PTC (Parent Teacher Conference...used to be called the PTA back in Harper Valley...), and they're all meeting at my house tonight.

Instead of being bored, etc, I'm with my girls at the office. I'll mow and edge the lawn. I'd like to try and get some writing work done, but I feel like that probably won't happen. Maybe I'll just rest as much as possible and kick into that next week.

By the way, Mary was found in 2 hours after her under the office/house scene. We brought her sister, Martha (the overweight and mean 'n' nasty one) with us tonight.

Had fun. Mowed the lawn while the girls drew inside and made fake polls where they asked each other questions. After edging, I took the girls for a ride on the scooter here. David has this cool electric scooter that he graciously keeps at the office for everyone to play on. The girls had such a blast. Lots of screams of delight. Very cool.

Cat In The Office

I brought one of my cats in the office today -- Mary, who is a grey tabby. Kinda fun.

Today in PDL it talked about serving. Good encouragement to look for ways to meet needs. When Paul the apostle was shipwrecked, he went about gathering wood to start a fire and warm people up. He didn't have to wait to be asked. He didn't consider himself over or under qualified to do that. He just saw a need and met it. I love the idea of God rewarding people in Heaven that none of us know.

"John Green, ladies and gentlemen! He faithfully led worship to shut-ins and invalids in a nursing home for years. And let me show you this video clip (that shines high definition on a flat cloud). Here he is building a ramp for Mrs. Jukes, who lives 3 houses down from him, which she'll be able to use to get her wheelchair out in the yard."

I love it. We all need encouragement, but some of us don't hear it from those around us at all. I guess there is silent encouragement from Heaven and there will be very vocal encouragement and reward for them when they are in Heaven.

On the way back from lunch today, Mary ran underneath the office. I hope she comes out of there!

Cover Story is Done!!

Whoo-hoo!
Feels SO good.

Special props go out to Don Clark, who graciously answered my email questions today to clarify details; and James Wetz for a superb job in transcribing the interview (which you'll see in its entirety when this next issue gets posted online).

Read the Intern Diaries

Man, focusing on this morning's PDL is rough. I keep finding myself wanting to read the emails in my inbox. Phew. This one talked about spiritual gifts and learning what our shape is (how God formed and gifted us). It's a good reminder not to resent or try to reshape ourselves (there's a difference between training and improving our shape and attempting to reshape ourselves). I can see my six years in Lust Control as an experiment in musical giftings. I basically ended the band when I saw my limitations as a vocalist. We wanted to go in a more metal / Pantera direction and my inability to hear exactly what I was singing, and thus going offkey (I should say "staying offkey," ha ha) showed me that this wasn't my gifting. It was weird, cuz people who saw us live would enjoy our shows, but those I trusted around me let me know that my voice wasn't cutting it. Besides the obvious benefits of the experience (and having insight into the rock I write about), perhaps the experiment showed some giftings in teaching or speaking. Not sure. Anyway, a good piece of advice from the book is "Don't look at stuff like this (venturing out into a gift/skill/talent) as a failure, but as an experiment."

Good word.

Attempting to finish our cover story on Demon Hunter today. Our newest intern, James, is working out real good. We will miss Colin soon, as next week is his last; and we look forward to meeting David at the end of this month.

Help! Someone Stole My DNA!

I was at the gas station, buying some M&Ms and I sat my DNA down just for a second. I picked up a magazine near the register, turned, and GONE! My DNA was stolen! Now someone has really gone and done an identity theft! They'll be able to get into my bank account, hack into my eBay auctions, and ruin my credit!

Well, okay. I'm fibbing. The chapter in today's PDL talked about our uniqueness. Who we are is quite impressive when it comes to our complicated and unique attributes. I do believe a Creator was involved.

One concept that's always blown me away is what I call the "little drummer boy" concept. That is: Our hearts are unique. Only we can give God our specific heart. Therefore, we have the ability to bring a totally unique gift to the King. No one else can give God my heart. I know it's not beneficial to be "me-focused" when we're talking about God, but it encourages me to know that I have the ability to offer God something that no one else can. It brings me joy to know that I can please Him -- simple as that.

Am struggling to maintain hope for this issue. I have to offer it to God and clearly ask for His help and direction. If it's gonna be this hard to make our deadline and keep our production schedule going (one lapse cuts into another issue's production cycle), then I want God to be in the middle of it, the focus of it, and the Creator behind it. I pray that He actually writes through us. I have to finish selling enough ads and then switch gears and tackle the cover story I'm writing. It looks tough on paper. I pray for the energy and creativity to pull it off. Having His blessings upon ad sales would be nice.

I was able to turn our newest intern, James Wetz, on to that "Does your dog bite?" scene in The Pink Panther Strikes Again. Yes, I have a dvd playing by my computer while I work. While that may sound glamorous, it's not. I am counting cusswords as part of my dvd review for the Pink Panther boxset (no cusswords so far -- in 3 movies). Anyway, James had not seen it yet. I feel like a drug dealer, giving away a free classic scene that he will laugh at and repeat to others, in turn spreading the "disease."

Yep, there's a new intern diaries up and being edited each work day. Go.

I WILL eat those M&Ms today, by golly!

M&M's Peanuts candies are so good. I've had this bag sitting there on my desk all day yesterday. Never felt like snacking yesterday. But today looks like it'll be the day.

What is your SHAPE?
Spiritual gifts, Heart, Abilities, Personality, Experience?
I love what is said in PDL about spiritual gifts. If you had them all, you wouldn't need anyone else, which would subvert one of God's plans for us: to be a part of His body. Not using your gift, or keeping it "unopened" robs yourself and others. Good stuff.

I like what is said about the heart, too: "Don't ignore your interests." They are often God-breathed and that's a way He guides you.

Now that is a freeing thought, isn't it? Knowing that what we like isn't automatically the exact opposite of what God likes or what He wants us to like. Some people, for one reason or another, have a view of God that is mean-spirited, ugly, uncaring, aloof, and a ball-fisted dictator that's intent on spoiling your fun, crushing your heart, and erasing your personality. That is so wrong. Such a lie. But why do some believe it? I wish I could give them all a magic peanut M&M and they'd suddenly see a glimpse of how God sees them -- their wonderful potential and great worth. Perhaps if I make an effort to think positive and treat others with kindness, God will use that to reinforce these values in some level or way...

Does Anyone Read The Message Boards?

I wonder sometimes if anyone (or very many people, actually) read the HM Forum message boards. There's some silly arguments I've actually (probably unwisely) got into there. Silly and lame.

Am back on the HM clock, getting reservations for HM advertising wrapped up this week.

Got our initial order of Rock Stars on God here at the office. If anyone wants to order one, they will be shipped out quickly for ya via Priority Mail.

Our newest intern, James, started today. He's going to be able to see all the crazy work that happens in a concentrated way at deadline.

Going up I-35

On my way to Minneapolis, Minnesota tomorrow morning. Am helping judge the New Band Tournament finals at Club 3 Degrees (which was covered in Rolling Stone on its opening last Fall and will be on MSNBC tonight or tomorrow). I hope the bands are good.

I'm writing the cover story for Demon Hunter today. I have writer's block. So many things call for my attention since I make so many decisions about the magazine. I plan on spending my "free time" on Saturday afternoon hashing out the story. Lord willing, our intern Colin will receive an anointing from on High and will be empowered to transcribe the entire 1 hour 15 minute interview for me tomorrow and email it to my waiting notebook's hands so I can finish up the story in Minnesota.

I'll miss my family while I'm gone and I have to wake up before God's chosen ones are expected to be out and about on Sunday morning, but it'll get me back home by 9:30 on Sunday morning! That's a good thing.

God bless everyone who reads this!

Jesus Got A New Set Of Eyes

According to PDL, in China, they welcome new believers by saying, "Jesus now has a new pair of eyes to see with, new ears to listen with, new hands to help with, and a new heart to love others with."

That's beautiful. Love the points this chapter brings up. At the moment we were saved, we were not jettisoned into Heaven to spend the rest of eternity with God and the angels. No, we stayed right here. Why is that? Is there some purpose we're supposed to fulfill? Why doesn't God just impose His salvation will on everyone on the planet and be done with it? Why does He leave the job of harvesting to us? What role do we play actually? If I'm a Calvinist, does that mean I can just sit around and let God do everything? Why am I here?

One interesting point matches a conversation we were having in the marriage group that we have in our home. We are studying "Handling Stress in Your Marriage," and we were looking at the story of Mary and Martha when Jesus was at their house. You remember the story: Martha tells Jesus 'to do something and make Mary help her' do all the serving. Jesus told Martha that Mary was doing the right thing -- sitting at His feet and soaking up His Words. It's always easy to belittle Martha for this story; but the book we were reading tried to bring up the good points about what she was doing, too. It wasn't easy to respect Martha for serving the Son of God, since she gets the rebuke she does. But a point brought up in today's chapter sheds light on this.

Jesus was at Peter's house, apparently, and Pete's mom was sick. Jesus healed her and ... what did she do? Sit around at His feet, worshiping Him and thanking Him for the healing? No. She immediately got up and started serving Jesus. Interesting. So this faith journey we have is not all about soaking up knowledge and the teachings of Christ. Certainly there's a place for meditation and rest; but there's also a call to serve God -- which most often finds its form in serving people. Nice.

I love the list of misfits at the end of the chapter. People God used in great ways were messed up: Elijah was suicidal; Paul had health problems; David had an affair; Moses stuttered; and (my favorite) Samson was codependent. What's our excuse for not serving? These folks had pretty good excuses and most all of them tried using their excuses not to serve, but served any way. What a good example.

Watched a new arrival DVD this morning, The Art of Liveby Queensryche. At the end of the show, the screen goes black for a good 5-10 seconds (maybe longer) and then the band comes out for two encores -- "Comfortably Numb" and "Won't Get Fooled Again." They are joined by their tourmates Dream Theater for the two songs. The great David Gilmour solos of Comfortably Numb are shared by 4 or 5 guitarists, and the end of the song improvises with 3 guitarists going after it to good effect. This was my entertainment for the morning before school. My youngest daughter's was to play a Barbie dress-up game online.

"I'll Be Right On Time..."

Today's lesson in PDL discusses how growth takes time. That's no fun to ponder, but if you think about how well rounded you become and how solidly you learn a lesson when you bear the full brunt of the situation and its consequences, then it becomes clear. It's great to get advice for wise people, and that will help you avoid some pitfalls, but the lessons that God wants you to learn? You'll learn them.

I'm reminded of the Stavesacre song, "Keep Waiting." We'll grow and we'll "arrive" at certain points at just the right time. I get in a hurry all the time, but that doesn't help these things move any faster. Sometimes hurrying just makes it feel longer. Those lyrics in "Keep Waiting" are so powerful, like many other Stavesacre tunes. It's funny how artists like that can be so profound and yet so unrewarded (at least in this life). Mark Salomon has crafted so many great sermons put to music that he deserves (in my book) to be supported by the church. He has offered some real gems. Not a perfect guy, of course, but anyone who's read Stavesacre lyrics and put any thought into them could agree that there's some depth there. That's cool.

Seven zebras still there.
Oreo cookies on my desk.
Now that I'm at work,
I better get to it.
Later.
-#81

Blindside + P.O.D.

Went to see both bands (plus Lacuna Coil and Hazen St) last night in Houston. Had a great time. Enjoyed watching the bands interact with their fans at a pre-show meet-and-greet. It's always cool to be a part of the private prayer time before the show. The band has a wonderful guy named Michael Guido on the road with them, who has been acting like a pastor to artists and whatnot for a couple decades now (he went out with Stryper back in the day). He's so good at encouraging, challenging, and edifying those around him. It could be said of him, if you were to describe him as a friend as someone "consumed with God."

One of the things he shared in that devotional time was his perfect nail-it description of a guy's private time at home on Sunday: "...you get home after church and you're getting ready to watch the game. Someone knocks at the door. You're like, 'Man, I don't want to invite anyone in... Then you see it's a close friend and you open the door wide, inviting him in..." He made a point about how both God invites us to enter into fellowship with Him and how we can make that connection with others. What struck me besides the point he made was how accurately he dialed in a time that I cherish and hold tightly -- those Sunday afternoons in the fall. Man, all I wanna do is just lounge around and be inside my home. It's always so cool when someone else can describe yourself when you have never divulged that info and/or it's a common trait shared by many (as is the case here). Funny.

Great show. Verizon Wireless Theater (hey, my Sprint PCS phone actually worked inside!) is a mid-sized venue and it sounds better on the floor than upstairs in the balcony sections, but the bands delivered.

I had a hard time getting back to Hwy 45 North to get home last night (my wife was called in to work beginning at 4 am, so I had to hoof it home for the 3 hour drive). Seems it's easier to get to where I was from 45 than it is to get back. All I saw was 45 South entrances. I took one to U-turn around, but I u-turned too soon and was stuck with the same problem. I asked a police officer at a stop light for directions and he told me. Then I sped off and soon he had his lights on behind me and honked at me. Seems he told me the wrong directions and wanted to straighten me out. Better than being suspected of wrong doing or DUI, for sure. Found my way and got home in 2 hours 45 minutes. I was alert and on guard, for so many wished me a "safe trip," that danger was on my mind and the threat of falling asleep was there. Turns out that I made it safely, but David informed me today that the headline on the Drudge Report stated that the moon would be blood red tonight. I'm thinking, "Well, all the worrying was all for naught. I made it home safely only for the Lord to return and the world to end anyway!"
:?)

Defeating Temptation | Blindside & POD

Some good advice here. "Be careful how you think...your life is shaped by your thoughts...Choose carefully what you think about..."

While that may sound pious to some of us progressive thinkers of the 21st century, it is Scripture and it is God's Word. The brain is an amazing thing and even though it plows through a ka-jillion calculations a day (by my own estimate -- no telling how many brain cells and nuerons fired to make that one), our mind can focus on something so intently that it begins create a synergy and develops something else -- whether that be a solution to a problem we are trying to solve; or a temptation or wrong thought that is quickly developing into a problem. The practical advice of "it is easier to stay out of temptation than to get out of it," is smart. Even though I'd probably sit through a movie that I paid to go see, I commend someone who would follow their convictions enough to get up and leave midway through. Being obedient can be so much more important than losing face with friends or strangers.

Tomorrow I'm planning on seeing Blindside and P.O.D. in Houston. That should be fun. It'll be great to see all the guys in both bands, which I haven't seen in a while.