Doug Van Pelt

Cornerstone.1

Somewhere in Oklahoma, near the place where 69 is going to meet up with Interstate 44, I was at a stop light and a lady motions to roll my window down.

"Do you know you're riding on your rim in the passenger side back of the trailer?"

While it might have been funny to be funny, I said "No" and "Thanks." We have double axles on this trailer, so blowing one tire to complete shreds doesn't send the trailer flipping. We immediately turned right into a strip mall parking lot that was deserted (it is Sunday). After using the jack from our vehicle to replace the tireless rim with our spare, we headed over to a Walmart, which my ingenius and resourceful wife found out about on her iPhone. After going less than a mile up the road I was able to get a new tire installed on the rim, which would be our new spare. Did I mention that we arrived with about 40 minutes to spare before Walmart closed its automotive section for the day? Did I also mention my lament that "gone are the days of the thirty dollar tire?" Big sigh.

Later, after we hit the turnpike that is Interstate 44 going East to Missouri, we were about 20 or 30 miles West of Joplin when I saw some bits of black rubber flying from our driver's side trailer wheel area. Sure enough, some courteous passenger told me (I can read lips when someone is motioning and telling me that my tire is shredded) that something was wrong with my tire. I pulled over to the narrow shoulder, which included a steep grassy slope to the right of it, just a few feet from cars obeying (and some not) the 65 or 70 mph speed limit. With the blowout on the leading wheel, any more travel would send the shreds into the trailing tire and possibly damage it, so something needed to be done very very soon. With it being on the driver's side and the steep slope providing no room on the grass, we stood out behind the trailer while our girls were inside the car.

I wanted to remove some of the tread to make it safer for the trailing wheel, but not all the traffic was changing lanes to give us space. I found myself shaking a little bit. Crazy how our bodies can get out of control. I had to tell myself to keep it together. We decided to drive slow with our hazards on until we could find a spot. A few miles later we found a driveway and a very non-descript barn/warehouse/storage building with a big concrete driveway. It was up and removed from the busy highway.

Our daughters delighted in standing on the driveway and pulling down an imaginary horn trigger to get passing truckers to blow their horns. They liked it when they did. I told them to stop after awhile, because I wanted to change the spare but not mis-communicate some sort of distress signal to passing vehicles. A minute later an Oklahoma State Trooper shows up. He was very nice and offered me his hydraulic jack to speed the changing of the tires up. He told my wife that he'd been avoiding this spot, because this is where they took most of the vehicles from that deadly pile-up two days prior, and they cut the bodies out of the mangled cars up on this driveway. He said he'd been avoiding this spot as long as he could, because of the bad memories. Apparently, two children from that wreck died today.

We drove to a gas station about five miles further up the road after changing the tires, hoping for no more blow-outs. I pumped more air into the tires, until they were all above the max pressure of 50 psi. Another 20 or so miles and we made it to the Bid Red Barn RV park, which has free wifi and I could write this.

Praise God for His protection. These mishaps could have been much worse. I hope for no more complications on the rest of this trip.

I took a photo with my cell phone camera and posted it on my twitter and facebook page, so you can see how shredded this thing was (the first one). All the rubber, pretty much, was gone.

White Collar Side Show on cover of HM

Yes, it's true. I'm announcing it here (after talking to my wife, God, Corey and the band (in that order). I will be writing a cover story on White Collar Side Show (the band little Jesse Thompson refers to as "The Gypsies"), based upon our two-hour (Lord help me transcribe that sucker) interview in Nashville last April.

I'm so excited. Here's the deal: I had several options for this cover, and one idea that popped its way into my head was the "wildcard" idea of putting a relatively unknown (but deserving of attention) artist on the cover. I mentioned it to our interns last night. It was one of the "bold" options I had. I told my wife I was kinding leaning towards this one. This band is a ministry. They've put all their money into their thing (instruments, gasoline, an RV) and they're out there doing it. They're travelling all over, putting on the craziest, "What the heck is this?" show (mixing part Vaudevillian visuals with Drum Street Corps percussion craziness and bringing a message that the xxxchurch and Promise Keepers would be proud of). I love 'em. Now I get a chance to express that love. I am stoked. I might even feel that "I was made for this" kind of fulfillment as I write about something/someone I love.

Well, it all came down to the intersection of FM 685 and FM 1825 (if you live around Austin, you should visit that intersection and start a WCSS shrine...NOW). I was praying (and I believe I heard from God). I asked Him, "Should I do this?" (I believe He knew what I was talking about...it's like the God I know uses telepathy or something. He can read minds. For real.) Anyway, I believe He told me, "Yes." I felt a squeeze in my stomach area. I might've even felt the muscular contractions involved in crying tears. I think I heard Him expound on this, maybe even saying something like, "Go with the freaks."

Then, just at that moment (exactly), turning left towards the North from 1825 onto 685 was a big white pickup truck with large 4 or 5 inch diameter multi-colored polka dots ALL OVER IT turns right in front of me as I'm stopped at the light in prayer.

Now, I tend to want to look at signs from a partially skeptic viewpoint. I like to mull over things. Anyway, it wasn't my deciding factor. I had that with His "Yes" word. This was just like a funny confirmation afterwards. This kinda fits in with how I think He rolls.

Now, if God did not speak to me. If that was just my imagination, okay. I'm guilty. Blame it on me. I'll take that. I'll be the fool.

So, here it is: on the cover of the Sep/Oct issue of HM Magazine -- White Collar Side Show. Now I've got lots of work to do.
(maybe I'll ask Corey or Kelly to transcribe the two-tape interview for me... Wouldn't that be a great thing to come back from Cornerstone and find: "Here is your interview, sir!" Not that they should call me sir.)

By the way, that cover, above? Not official or final layout. Just a preliminary "throw something together real quick" to make the announcement.

Special HM Magazine | Bennie & the Jets Promotion

You might call it the "EJ Promo." Here's the deal: For the rest of the week, whenever you sing along to the song "Bennie and the Jets" -- whether that's in a public place, like a karaoke place, or semi-private, like in the car with the windows rolled down at a stop light -- you change the line in the song to reflect HM Magazine. Alone in the shower is encouraged, but that's only practice for the public publicity.





Instead of singing: "...I read it in a magazine, oh, oh..."
You belt out the line: "...I read it in HM Magazine, oh, oh..."

This can work with any song with the word magazine in it, including the great King's X song, "Everybody Knows A Little Bit Of Something."

Thank you.

HM News Text Messaging Service

Would you like to receive late-breaking news on your mobile device? We're not talking all the time, but cool news worth knowing.





Here's a sample of the 4 text messages we've sent in the last two months (which gives you an idea of how often we're talking about):
6/23: Original members of Evanescence (sans Amy) unite
6/22: Galactic Cowboys Reunite for 3 August Shows in TX
5/4: New Group From Still Remains & The Showdown
5/1: New Zao album streaming
We carefully choose what we deem to be important, timely, short and worthy of your attention. In other words, we won't send them all the time. That would be annoying.


Sign up by simply emailing news@hmmag.com and telling us your mobile # and its carrier (AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, etc). You can un-subscribe by emailing us at the same address. [This is a free service from HM. Of course, if you pay for your text messages (instead of having a cool unlimited text messaging plan with your cell phone provider), then normal text charges apply.]

The Love Dare.18

The content of this chapter gets into one of the richest lines from the movie, Fireproof. One of the firemen is giving off-the-cuff and invited advice on marriage. He references how much he studied the woman he was going to marry her ... and that, by now, after being married awhile, he should be like a college professor with the knowledge of his mate. It was inspiring (at least when the actor told it).
:)

Love seeks to understand
Here's a line from this chapter that's put eloquently:

...if the amount you studied your spouse before marriage were equal to a high school diploma, then you should continue to learn about your mate until you gain a "college degree," a "master's degree," and ultimately a "doctorate degree."

Here's some good questions:

-Do you know his or her greatest hopes and dreams?
-Do you fully understand how they prefer to give and receive love?
-Do you know what your spouse's greatest fears are and why they struggle with them?

Understanding the differences between you and your spouse can help you uncover and understand some of the reasons why you have conflict with them.

I was not aware of this passage of scripture in Jude 10, where it says we tend to "revile" those things we don't understand. That's a cool passage, which even refers back to the Old Testament.

Each nuance in your spouse's character has a back story. Each element of who he is, how he thinks, and what he's like is couched in a set of guiding principles, which often makes sense only to the person who holds them. But it's worth the time it will take to study why they are the way they are.

That makes a heck of a lot of sense. Hearing those "back stories" can prove to be very interesting time spent together, too. I like to people watch, and I also like to hear people tell me stories about their life. I need to do this more with my wife.

Here's some great pointers in getting to know our spouses better:
-Ask questions.
-Listen.
-Ask God for discernment.

Today's Dare:
Prepare a special dinner at home, just for the two of you. THe dinner can be as nice as you prefer. Focus this time on getting to know your spouse better, perhaps in ares you've rarely talked about. Determine to make it an enjoyable evening for you and your mate.

The Love Dare.17

"VAN PELT?! Take a lap!"

I had to run around the HM Ranch property just now, because I showed my face and showing back up for work on this Love Dare blog. My coach has no mercy. Yes, I failed to keep this going in one 40-day span. Oh well. I'm back.

This chapter is called "Love Promotes Intimacy."

But first, the cover of the latest issue:





This chapter emphasizes the responsibility we have with the secrets and details we have of our spouse's life. They bring their "baggage" into the marriage relationship and we generally get to deal with it, which is sometimes sensitive stuff. We have the ability to hurt and wound deeply, but also the privilege of being able to cover, tend and help bring healing.

It's a real call to use the information we have for good, not for bad. We can let our spouse know that we are there to bring security, not fear. It's a big responsibility and an area where we can mess things up in a hurry, with one careless word or action.

The only One Who can probably know us better than our spouse is the One Who made us. Yet, knowing all the dark and jagged edges and secrets of our life, He loves us at a depth "we cannot begin to fathom." That's the kind of love we should emulate with our spouse.

There's a practical point brought up in the concluding paragraph:

This may be an area where you've really failed in the past. If so, don't expect your mate to immediately give you wide-open access to their heart. You must begin to rebuild trust. Jesus Himself is described as One Who doesn't barge into people's lives, but Who stands at the door and knocks. "If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to Him and will dine with Him, and He with Me." (Revelation 3:20). The reality of intimacy always takes time to develop, especially after being compromised. But your commitment to re-establishing it can happen today -- for anyone willing to take the dare.

I like that.

Today's Dare:
Determine to guard your mate's secrets (unless they are dangerous to them or to you) and to pray for them. Talk with your spouse, and resolve to demonstrate love in spite of these issues. Really listen to them when they share personal thoughts and struggles with you. Make them feel safe.

Well, this one is easy. Guarding and praying aren't real exercises that will stretch, but they are good.

I used to write a lot of songs...

...back when I was in a band. I think I've shared this point in my blog before, but I really believe that having a "Creative outlet" will allow creativity to flow. If there is no outlet, there is no purpose for the "creative juices" to flow, no reason for ideas to churn in your head, and so the creativity ...


it will...




STOP.






When I was in a band, it seems like my mind was often in "creative mode." When a good idea came along (sometimes from random, unexpected places), I would jot them down and store in a "SONG IDEAS" folder. One song in particular, which I spent a year working on, was housed in this folder. It was to be the third part of a trilogy. The first song dealt with confronting an idea, with like a call to stop a certain kind of behavior. The second song was written as an apologetic of sorts -- pointing to God's power to set people free and the deliverance available to us as believers. I did not initially have a trilogy set when I wrote either of these first two songs, but afterwards it made sense to kind of tie them together with a song that dealt with failure. What if you decide to stop a certain addictive behavior. What if you cry to God to set you free from this bondage and He actually comes through and brings that deliverence? What if, after all that, you fail again? How do you deal with the condemnation, guilt, and self-hatred? The answer is grace. The song I wrote was called "If You Fail" and, while I wrote parts of the song over time, adding pieces of information into this folder or notes about where I wanted the song to go, it wasn't until "crunch time" or a self-imposed deadline to finish this song (so we could record it for an album) that it came together. I prayed and asked for God's help, guidance, and leadership. I think I actually prayed a prayer something like, "This is Your song, I offer you my pen, so please write it through me." I can't honestly remember what I prayed prior to sitting down to finish that song. But I remember how quickly it came together and all the ideas flowed into another and the quite lengthy song came together in one sitting.

What kind of ideas do you have? What do you do when a new idea comes into your head? If it's not the solution to a problem you've been working on (which is another form of creativity, for sure), and it comes "out of the blue" with no immediate use, how do you preserve or put that idea into action? This is one reason why I try to keep a notepad fairly handy. I've become a backpack person, and I have a small spiral notepad with a pen that conveniently fits inside the spiral binding. When something comes to me, I try to quickly write it down.

Ideas seem to have wings. They fly into my head, but if I don't do something to embed that idea inside or flesh it out, the idea will take off just as fast as I focus on something else. There are not many things in my life as frustrating as that feeling of knowing that I had a good idea, but forgot to write it down. Sometimes I can figure out what it was by focusing, analyzing what category or subject it was in, and even praying for God to help me remember it. An idea lost is a loss indeed.

When I had a band, I had something tangible to put my ideas into action. Now that this band has folded into a nostalgic idea and collection of old friends, songs don't seem to come to me much anymore. With a magazine, though, I have need for fresh ideas on layout, writing, and promotions. I do my best to store these so they don't "get away," because I have a good use for them.

I started painting again a little bit, and that small outlet provides some interesting creative ideas. I use acrylic paint, because I have some experience with that medium, thanks to a course in college, but I also appreciate the ability to thin or water down the colors with h20. It will last a long time, and it dries pretty fast, too. I usually will paint on anything that'll work. The back of an old poster, the back of a large frame insert, giant wrapping paper, wood. It helps to have some white house paint around, as I will often try to start with a blank, white canvas. While I haven't finished anything I'm super pleased with, re-discovering this outlet has brought some real joy. It's also pretty cool that one of my daughters shares this enthusiasm with me.

youtube is not evil

This is a blast from the past. This is from a public access show in Corpus Christi. I wouldn't be surprised if their archives have some live Lust Control footage somewhere... Uh oh!

I have nostalgic feelings looking at the interior of my old office space -- one bedroom of a 3-bedroom condo. We had 3 people working in that one room! Funny, but I never heard any feedback from Steven Curtis Chapman or even any of his distant connections (via ways of someone related to his nanny sorta thing) about that smoking cut-out.

Seven Pounds of Messianic Thrust

Wow! I finally watched this movie with my wife. I'd been hearing great feedback on this Will Smith movie -- Seven Pounds. With Will Smith's typical characterization and lovable personality, he incarnates a story about someone giving of himself to others. It has HUGE messianic or Christ-like love.

Greater love hath no man than this,
that a man lay down his life for his friends.
(John 15:13)

What a beautiful story to tell, where this guy gives of himself (literally, with organ donorship) to help others.

The big things/big events, like the organ gifts, are huge and mind-blowing; but it's the little things, like when he sneaks into this girl's garage (Emily, played by Rosario Dawson) to fix her Heidelberg Press. His love is practical, anonymous (at first) and purposeful.

When a lady who has been battered by her husband finally contacts Smith's character, she is lost for words, but knows that she needed to reach out. He dropped what he was doing and set his well-thought plan into motion.

Inspirational ... to the max.

Wow! This was more emotional than an episode of Grey's Anatomy!

I am glad to be pushed to think about loving extravagantly. So much like God's love. I want to do something really tiny, which this reminds me of. I want to contact a prison chaplain and get their advice on finding a person that could use some company ... and I want to spend some time visiting that person. We'll see.

Does anyone out there have their own unique ideas on giving to others?

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King's X in Austin

On Sunday night, May 31, I went to the Red Eyed Fly to see a couple of local area bands. First off was a group of kids from our church, called Invisible Target. They're a pop punk sort of band that are showing some promise. They haven't arrived yet, but they just might soon.


The very next night I went back to the same club to see King's X. They never fail to put on a fantastic show. This one might've been one of the least-inspired show I've seen from this trio, but it was still excellent (that's how good they are).


The next night I went on a date with my wife, where we saw Bryan Adams put on an acoustic show at the Paramount Theater. I've reviewed that show below ... but here are some of the better pics I took of King's X.



















As you can see by the setlist, this show had some very special (and older) songs, like "What Is This?" (from Out Of The Silent Planet) and "Pleides" (from Gretchen Goes To Nebraska) and "Lost In Germany" (from their self-titled fourth album. During the classic "Over My Head" bassist Doug Pinnick took the breakdown section and talked about being a little boy, but it was much different than the church environment of their gigs in the 90s. Near the end of the set he proposed a toast to the audience, holding his drink high, referencing themselves as "The First Church of Rock and Roll," and mentioning that they weren't about a heaven or a hell, but rock and roll, having a good time, and forgiveness (?). And then he shared that "If you free your (butt), your mind will follow" and "If you free your mind, your (butt) will follow." Ty looked at him and laughed, as the philosophy was kind of comical. They hung around and talked with folks at their merch table for a good, long while afterwards.

Bryan Adams Concert Review

Bryan Adams
Paramount Theater, Austin, TX
June 2


After releasing his 11th album, 80s pop rock icon Bryan Adams set out on a long acoustic tour, which began in Florida and worked its way through Austin, Texas on Tuesday night. Word was that it would be a two-hour performance and, when I took my place next to the stage to photograph his first two songs, one of the Paramount Theater employees told me, "Stick around afterwards, because he's doing five encores. That's a heckuva lot of time to kill with just an acoustic guitar in hand. Fortunately, Bryan added a pianist to help him out for at least a third of the numbers.

He came out solo and jumped right into "Run To You," which showed that his trademark tenor voice was as strong as ever. He brought out the pianist and started playing his harmonica in his third song, and then he started telling stories and engaging the appreciative audience. His fourth song was introduced as having been written for a horse movie (Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron), but he returned to the original words, that did not climax in a horse being born.

It was very apparent to anyone in attendance that Bryan Adams was both a heartfelt and funny performer. Reminding me of a lot of other talented singers (like Shaun Groves, Steven Curtis Chapman, or Larry Norman), he exhibited a keen sense of comedic timing -- best displayed when playing off things happening in the audience, like a couple of girls leaving their seats up front for a potty break. When one woman shouted out, "I love you, Bryan!" He replied back with, "Inter Continental Hotel" as a response, then holding up both hands in an animated shrug. "I'm trying to keep it real," he smiled coyly.

He introduced "When You Love Someone" by telling the story about the movie soundtrack assignment he was given, infering that he accepted it because the motion picture starred Sandra Bullock. He shared that, while the romantic relationship with Bullock he'd hoped would happen did not come to fruition, fortunately, the song in the movie Hope Floats did pretty well.





"Where are your fellas, girls?" he asked a couple of ladies during a break between songs. They replied that they were "out of town," so the performer asked the audience if anyone wanted to sit in the front row. While initially shocked, several hands started going up around the two-tiered theater. "Let's have you in the black t-shirt," he said, "and bring your fella." A minute or so later the couple comes strolling down the aisle and sat in the front row -- a cool and kind gesture that was most likely admired by all.

In addition to Adams just being on with his performance, between-song banter and vocal quality, one unknown variable that made this concert memorable was the audience knowing how to sing on key. During the hit song, "Cuts Like A Knife," he motioned to the crowd to take a chorus and they cohesively nailed the notes.

He told a funny story about the beginning of this tour, where he recieved an un-announced visitor backstage, who had a letter and a guitar with him. The letter was addressed to Willie Nelson, so Adams replied, "You've got the wrong guy," but then he was told that the guitar was for this guy's brother that was being sent off to Iraq. This was how he introduced his cover of Willie's song, "Seven Spanish Angels," which sounded both respectful to the original Texas songwriter as well as sounding fresh and stamped by Adams the Canadian singer.

Having a little fun, he countrified some of the verses to "This Time," changing and stretching his drawl to tip his hat to several seemingly recognizable country voices (though I couldn't identify a single one but Willie). "Please Forgive Me" was a nice, tender song with its gentle words and pleas for a universal theme.

He went right back to his humor when introducing "Summer of '69," which he said was a very misunderstood song. He did his best to persuade the audience that it wasn't locked into any one time period, but the repeating rest that the season of summer brings. After the joyful song was over more people started shouting requests. It's always funny to see a performer handle the caucophony that dozens of voices at once brings to a single set of ears. "You did NOT just say 'Free Bird?'" he asked someone. Then he proceeded to play the tune -- all the way up to the first chorus. Again, he stretched his voice to ever accomodate the Florida band's original (albeit exaggerated) Southern drawl.

In another Storytellers-type moment, he explained that he was told to write a song for a movie and he was told that it was to be about this guy ... who held a job as a male stripper. "What?" he replied, as did his songwriting partner, Jim Vallance, when trying to convey the vision. They scrapped the idea of trying to match the words with the character's vocation, which was a good thing, but then he apologized to anyone in the audience who got married to the song ("Heaven"), hoping he didn't just ruin it for them. It was these kind of light-hearted moments that can make a solo performer with guitar in hand endearing to an audience, creating a memorable moment. Bryan Adams consistently conjured this kind of magic all night.

After two hours and a very brief exit from the stage, the audience flooded the front of the theater's aisles for the first of five (!) encores. For his second encore, he admitted that he finally felt like he'd made it in the music business when he was sitting in a Mexican restuarant and a Mariachi band came to his table and serenaded him with his own song, "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman." He dedicated one of his last songs to the US Coast Guard, to which he'd written the new song ("Never Let Go") for (as well as firefighters and people in the Army -- people who laid their lives down for others).

The packed house gave him a standing ovation. One he surely earned.