Take The Blindfolds Off

"There can be a certain dishonesty in christian music."--Dan Haseltine from Jars of Clay.

"There are two great lies that I’ve heard: 'the day you eat of the fruit of that tree, you will not surely die' and that Jesus Christ was a white, middle-class republican and if you wanna be saved you have to learn to be like Him."--Derek Webb, A King and a Kingdom.

I've been really digging Derek Webb lately, a christian artist whose lyrics are those of a prophetic rebel. No tiresome cliches or "skipping through a field of daisies while holding hands with Jesus" type songs. His lyrics make me uncomfortable, in a good way. He's artistic, creative, blunt, subversive, and asks the tough questions. He knows he doesn't do the church any favors by only being its apologist, but like any prophetic voice, he must also be the church's critic, to challenge the church to be what it ought to be and call it to repentance when its gone astray.

I stumbled across the video for Webb's facetious tune, "New Law." It reminded me that we need to stop trying to control people by teaching them what to think, but need to empower people by teaching them actually HOW to think for themselves. Anyway, the video and lyrics are compelling.

Note:To turn off the automatic music playing on my site so you can actually hear the video, scroll down to the very bottom of the blog where you will find my playlist. Just click pause or stop and then continue on your merry way.

don’t teach me about politics and government

just tell me who to vote for

don’t teach me about truth and beauty

just label my music

don’t teach me how

to live like a free man

just give me a new law

i don’t wanna know if the answers aren’t easy

so just bring it down from the mountain to me

i want a new law

i want a new law

gimme that new law

don’t teach me about moderation and liberty

i prefer a shot of grape juice

don’t teach me about loving my enemies

don’t teach me how to listen to the Spirit

just give me a new law

i don’t wanna know if the answers aren’t easy

so just bring it down from the mountain to me

i want a new law

i want a new law

gimme that new law

what’s the use in trading a law you can never keep

for one you can that cannot get you anything

do not be afraid

do not be afraid

do not be afraid

You Like Me, You Really Like Me!

Kathy from The Carnival Inside my Head nominated me for the Subversive Blogger Award and as "scary" as the word subversive sounds, this is actually a compliment, one that is particularly meaningful to me.

The description for this award is as follows:

“Subversive bloggers are unsatisfied with the status quo, whether in church, politics, economics or any other power-laden institution, and they are searching for (and blogging about) what is new (or a “return to”) - even though it may be labeled as sacrilege, dangerous, or subversive.”

Here are the rules:

1. If you are tagged, write a post with links to five subversive blogs.

2. Link back to this post on JakeBouma.com so people can easily find the origin of the meme.

3. Optional: Proudly display the “Subversive Blogger Award” somewhere on your blog.
That’s all there is to it.

Keep in mind that this award is meant as an encouragement to bloggers to keep doing what they’re already doing - being subversive (however you interpret it). May we never forget that Jesus (and His message) was the original and ultimate subversive.

I nominate:

David, over at Imagination Conversion (I would nominate Mak too, but she's been nominated several times already, I think).

Terry over at Ornaments of Grace. We disagree on many things, but also agree on the important things. Disagree or not, she definitely challenges the status quo.

Mike Clawson over at Emerging Pensees

Linda over at Christian Feminism

Derek over at Rebel God.

All these bloggers challenge the status quo in their own unique and creative ways. Thank you all for giving me something to think about.

As for me, I have been in a bit of a blogging slump. I am officially finished with school, but I have been working a lot and am currently on the hunt for a full-time job. I can't seem to find the time to put together anything compelling. On a personal note, I've been in a very private, introspective mood, kind of keeping to myself and thinking over a variety of things. I've also been reading two rather depressing books, which are proving to be extremely beneficial for me, but are depressing nonetheless. All of this to say, my blogging well is running dry at the moment. But after tomorrow, things should settle back down, at least in the busy department.

Someone Knit A Sweater For Satan....

Well, I don't think these two will solve Earth's climate change, but Hell may be freezing over at this very moment. So, that's something.

Note:
To turn off the automatic music playing on my site so you can actually hear the video, scroll down to the very bottom of the blog where you will find my playlist. Just click pause or stop and then continue on your merry way.

Uncomfortable Realities

I don't know about you, but after seeing that ad and then looking in my fridge filled with 5 gallons of bottled water and remembering the 20 minute hot shower I enjoyed this morning, I feel spoiled, selfish, over-privileged, and clueless to the unjust realities of how billions of people are living, or trying to live, around the world.

Note:

To turn off the automatic music playing on my site so you can actually hear the video, scroll down to the very bottom of the blog where you will find my playlist. Just click pause or stop and then continue on your merry way.

Worship Songs On American Idol

"God is with the vulnerable and the poor. God is in the slums, in the cardboard boxes where the poor play house. God is in the cries heard under the rubble of war. God is in the debris of wasted opportunities and lives. And God is with us, if we are with them."-Bono

It's no secret that I am obsessed with American Idol. I watch every year, vote for my favorites, and then throw things at the television when my favorites are prematurely kicked off. Last year, when people were knocking of Idol Gives Back, I was up in arms! OK, or I just made a few snarky comments. But I actually admire American Idol going to the poorest places around the world and using their clout to bring attention to the poor. I know big corporations are probably in it for their own publication and indirect profit, but the actual participants (the hosts and past American Idol contestants) who physically visited these impoverished places, I KNOW it affected them and changed they way they view the world. I always think of Jeremiah 22:16:

"He defended the cause of the poor and needy, so all went well. Is that not what it means to know Me,' declares the Lord."

It is a mark of searching for God, when people take an interest in the poor by using their influence to obtain justice for them, giving of their own resources to provide for them, and personally interacting with the poor as fellow human beings of equal worth, who should not be left in the shadows to starve or die alone in their illness. I don't care how rich they are, how famous they are, how ludicrous they appear, when any person's heart is stirred with compassion and cries out for true justice for the poor, I truly believe that could be the beginning of their journey with God. After all, is that not what it means to know Him?

Anyway, as I watched both rich and poor be transformed through American Idol Gives Back, I was still surprised when this year's remaining American Idol contestants sang Shout to The Lord, not once, but twice! Even American Idol can recognize God's unrelenting heart for the poor. I hope we in the church see this as clearly, too.



Here are some other compelling moments.

This promo for Idol Gives Back 2008 showed some instances of transformation for both poor and rich. Interactions like these narrow the vast gap that usually keeps the rich isolated from a world of poverty and all it's ugly realities.


"If I am honest I'm rebelling against my own indifference. I am rebelling against the idea that the world is the way the world is and there's not a damned thing I can do about it. So I'm trying to do some damned thing."-Bono

Carrie Underwood covering "Praying For Time." These sharp lyrics cut right through me.



“The test of our progress is not whether we add to the abundance of those who have much. It is whether we provide enough to those who have little.”-Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Daughtry's Trip To Africa



Favorite Moments from Idol Gives Back 2007


NOTE: Since I now have music on my site that plays automatically, you won't be able to watch videos and HEAR them without first turning off the music. To do this, scroll DOWN to the very bottom of my blog. There, you will see my playlist. Just hit stop or pause. :)