I'm Not So Sick Anymore

I'm feeling better.

Ugh.

Sometimes life just gets to you, ya know?

Wow

So, after all my ranting in the post below and for the fact that I am so sick of myself, I came across this video at Imago Dei. It kind of puts things in perspective.

(The preacher is a little hard to hear so you may want adjust your volume level.)



My salvation is secure, I won't be left behind, but I'll still be held accountable for my attitude.

I'm So Sick

I'm so sick of life.

I'm so sick of work.

I'm so sick of my house.

I'm so sick of rules.

I'm so sick of people not following rules.

And getting away with it.

I'm so sick of my dog, always yapping, scratching and annoying me in every possible way.

I'm so sick of the phone ringing.

I'm so sick of whacko people IMing me who have no real interest in me, or chatting.

I'm so sick of people.

I'm so sick of the lights being left on.

I'm so sick of money.

Or lack thereof.

I'm so sick of this world.

I'm so sick of car maintanence.

I'm so sick of spam.

I'm so sick of never being alone.

I'm so sick of being lonely.

I'm so sick of clutter.

I'm so sick of being irritable.

I'm so sick of it.

I'm so sick of being invaded.

I'm sick of all the ranting.

Around myself.

From myself.

About myself.

I'm so sick of shoddy craftsmenship.

I'm so sick of thinking about everything I have to do.

That I'm not doing.

I'm so sick of wanting to do things.

That I'm not doing.

I'm so sick of traffic.

I'm so sick of incompetence.

I'm so sick of feeling so stuck.

I'm so sick of feeling so sick of it all.

Reflection

A reminder for those who have forgotten, and a wonderful tribute and memorial for those who haven't.

September 11

It's 9/11 2006. Five years after one of the darkest days in American History. September 11. It used to be just another day. I mean, pick one...does November 9th mean anything to you? What about February 27th? August 18th? September 11th. We all remember what we were doing at the moment we heard the news. It impacted us all that day. That week. Now, five years later...we say life isn't the same. How has your life changed? Honestly. How is your life different today, than it was September 10th, 2001? It seemed time stopped for a moment, in shock. Agony. Fear. We took a breath as we reflected on the "important" things in life. But, how are our lives different today? Maybe some things have changed at the airport, but really, my personal life is basically the same as it was September 10, 2001. I have the same job, I have the same roommate and her kids, I have the same family, I have the same daily triumphs and struggles. I know that a great many families suffered loss that awful day, and their lives are being lived without loved ones, but for most of us I believe not much has changed. I thank God for that. I thank God that I live in a country that allows me to worship Him, and a country that takes its freedom seriously. I thank God that He has taken us from September 11th, 2001 to today. I thank God that He is a Comfort to those who suffer. God has blessed America.

I challenge you to think about how you are living your life today. Is it different than it was September 10th, 2001? If not, why? If so, how? Is that a good or bad thing? My life has not changed in any significant way since that dreadful day, and I know why, because my God hasn't changed. He is the same today as He was yesterday, and as He was September 10, 2001. My foundation is in Christ, the Word, and the Word was, the Word is, and the Word will be. Everyone had their world rocked that day the planes hit, but was your foundation shaken? Did your foundation fail? If it did, you built on the wrong foundation.

"Everything works together for the good of everybody who loves God and is called according to His purpose."

-Sue

The above is an "edited" repost from past September 11 anniversaries. I don't want to forget.

Masterpiece

Get it today.

Listen to it.

"Oh My God" will stir something in you.

Jars of Clay has released a career defining album. "Good Monsters" raises the bar for all CCM.

Read my full review at CrimsonLight.com.

Tags: jars+clay, good+monsters, album+of+the+year, oh+my+god

Shoutfest 2006 in Jackson, TN

Woohooo! Shoutfest RAWKED!

Although, today, I think I've determined I may be too old to "rock out"! I'm feeling a bit stiff and sore and I have a sore throat! LOL

All the bands had excellent well-polished performances and glorified God through their music and through testimonies.

One testimony of note came from the self-proclaimed "tatooed, four-time felon" lead singer Joshua Rojas of Seventh Day Slumber. He shares an amazing testimony of coming from a $400 a day cocaine addiction, stealing from his mother to feed the addiction, memories of his dad beating his mother, his criminal record and a poignant moment of his mother's indignation. He shared that one day he was leaving his home to get his cocaine fix and his "crazy" mother stood in his path shouting "NO! Satan you will NOT have my son!" which brought applause of affirmation from some mothers in the Shoutfest crowd. He continued his story and shared that his addiction continued to consume him to the point he just wanted to end his life and his misery and he told the attentive audience that the mother that continued loving him through all of this walked in on him and witnessed him overdosing on cocaine. She prayed over him as the ambulance came to transport him to the ER and he shared that he chose Christ as His Savior in the back of that ambulance.

Rojas is a gifted evangelist and his testimony of God's love and grace had many eyes welling with tears and some people emotionally breaking down. He cleared the front of the stage to create an "altar" and the Holy Spirit used the words of this young man to speak to troubled and hurting hearts, especially to those people considering suicide. The altar call brought forth hundreds of young people, some adults, and many people actually ran with abandon to reach that altar! It was a powerful moment!

Joy Williams was a delight to listen to perform. The conversation she had with the audience made it up close and personal and gave life and meaning to her catchy pop songs. She is full of life and "Joy" is a perfect name for her because she seems to have one of those personalities that brings joy to this life.

There were many great bands that performed on stage headlined by Jars of Clay. We heard from Building 429, By the Tree, Flatfoot 56 which was quite unique...celtic punk? Yes! Imagine it....punk rock with bagpipes! They were really fun and the kids loved it. They had kids dancing and laughing as they ran in a ring outside the crowd of people gathered to hear them play. It was an absolute riot to witness that! Fireflight, Fighting Instinct and Jessie Daniels and others also rocked the house but my favoritie was Decemberadio!

I LOVE Decemberadio! I went up to meet the lead singer Josh and I said "I manage a music store and push your CD like crazy! " to which he replied "I know you do, you sang along to every word!" (which was true, except when they did a cover of Lenny Kravitz' 'Are you Gonna Go My Way') He asked if he could sign a the CDs I had but I told him that was already taken care of (by Justin). Then as I turned to walk away, he called for me and then gave me a hug and thanked me! Woohoo! He said "my name is Josh" and then he apologized for being so sweaty! LOL It was a neat encounter and Katie was cool enough to capture the moment digitally! (To check out other pics from Shoutfest, click the picture!)

Jars of Clay played some of the songs from their upcoming CD, due out THIS Tuesday...September 5, 2006. One of the benefits of the job I have is that I sometimes get a sneak preview of new CDs and "Good Monsters" is one I was looking forward to. CCM Magazine has named it "Album of the Year".
I call it in one word: MASTERPIECE This may be Jars' career defining album (at least to this point, 13 years in), full of intelligent lyrics and deep spiritual observations, great, memorable melodies and is an all around excellent concept album. This is good stuff and among the best CCM album in recent years. I kept watching the guys on stage yesterday knowing that on Tuesday, they are releasing a MASTERPIECE and they performed for us totally oblivious that their new CD may have an impact on CCM music as a standard setter. "Good Monsters" raises the bar! And another thing to note is that Coca-Cola has agreed to donate one dollar for every Jars of Clay "Good Monsters" CD sold during the first month of it's release to Jars of Clay cause Blood :Water Mission.

I had a blast at Shoutfest again this year (This was my 3rd Shoutfest) and I'm already looking forward to next year. Hopefully, I'll be recovered by then!

Tags: Shoutfest, Shoutfest+2006, Jackson+TN, christian+music+festival, Seventh+Day+Slumber, Joy+Williams, Fireflight, Decemberadio, Joshua+Rojas, Jars+of+Clay, By+the+Tree, Flatfoot+56, Casey+Jones+Amphitheater, J+Remy, Good+Monsters, Jessie+Daniels, christian+rock, fighting+instinct, Building+429

Building 429

Click to hear a sample of Building 429 performing at Shoutfest in Jackson, TN. (Forgive the sound quality, it's through a cell phone.)