Some thoughts on music
Sound has a special place in my life. The soundscapes which envelope ones everyday life dictate the way we view the world. I know that 5 minutes from my house there is a storm water drain next to a creek that goes under the road. Its relaxing there, especially in storms, the wind hums down the pipe, the water gushes down the stream and over a waterfall next to it, cars splash water over the sides of the roads. The world is a wash with movement and vibrancy, sound pours itself into my ears and sets my mind at ease. I love the sounds of the city, its constant thrash is crazy and makes me stop and shut my eyes and think about all the lives being lived out around me without me ever having a part of them or anything to do with them. The city has the power to make you feel overwhelmed, nervous and sometimes even disgusted at the extent to which man has overpowered nature for commerce and economic prosperity.
There are constant beats in my earphones and throbbing from my computers subwoofer that act as a force that crams energy into my nervous system and fires my messages through my synapses. The carefully constructed, artificial, rhythms and grooves of dance music act as the background to many of my daily activities. I felt lost without my mp3 player, which broke after many hours of exercise caused its innards to rust from the constant barrage of sweat, yummy. It was weird the motivation to cycle almost completely left me. Getting up in the morning to grind up and down the winding roads that travel through bobbin head national park, Galston gorge and other such haunts suddenly became a massive effort.
The nature of cycling lends itself to music. The same movement gets repeated over and over again, with the only variation being in intensity and distribution of weight on the bike. That is not to take anything away from the skills and athleticism of cycling, because those simple movements can send you into a world of pain and suffering. High energy songs keep you going through those times when throwing down the bike in frustration seems like the best option. You lose focus on the pain and just attempt to keep in time with the beats pressing into your brain which are constantly running away from you.
There are times when you need to drop your life down a couple of gears, escape from the buzz and craziness of the routines and pressure that are placed upon you. I like thoughtful music in such moments. Lyrics, mind state and creativity are the three things I look for in music. I have little time for the technicality, skill of the musician or discrepancies between genre’s and styles, if it sounds good, makes me think and gives a new perspective through which to view any aspect of life, I’ll find a place for it. One such album which has been finding its way into my soundscape has been “The new arrivals” by Faithless.
Faithless have always been a unique and innovative force in the dance music world. They are hard to describe as a certain style or genre. “Electronic” does not do them justice. If I had to summate Faithless in a word it would be ontological. They make music concerned with people. Their music has a respect for the human condition and concern for its current state that few artists I know purvey. Something which electronic music tends to lack is intelligence, any kid with half a tech centered mind can bang out his own creation with fairly basic music editing programs. I am guilty of it myself. Hey, you never know, I could just make the “crazy frog” song. However faithless doesn’t meddle in this unintelligent nor commercial electronic music that seems to be ubiquitous throughout CD stores, clubs and the internet. I like the way that when they do use words they are designed to make you think, and the music is designed to make you feel. In a sense they impose on electronic music what tends to be missing from many other creators of it, they turn it back into an art.
A lot of faithless lyrics critique western culture and the flaws in western society. Some of their songs really make you question the way you are living. I often find that non-christian media can illuminate practical issues that people are concerned about and God is concerned about in a way that is harder hitting and cuts deeper than Christian media. I have so much respect for many non-christian thinkers, artists and philosophers who have given so much to the world and to my very own existence. I am addicted to reality, and finding out more and more about it. Artists like faithless help me to do this in ways that theology and Christian music does not. That is not to underestimate the later’s value. I am merely saying that Christian music and thought is not as comprehensive as many Christians believe and the rest of the world has a lot to offer in terms of understanding the world God created and the systems which humanity has put in place for its self.
I think the main reason why I connect more with this music than a lot of Christian stuff, is while Christian stuff praises our God and looks forward towards the future of Heaven and focuses us back on the cross, this looks at the now. Capitalism has raped and pillaged the world and our world is running under economic systems that are flawed and broken. Changing this world in the now is something that humanity needs to do, or perish. I know the Gospel is the most important thing in the world. But to think that spreading it is the only thing that we need to be doing as Christians rather than doing something about the shocking state that humanity has got itself into, is kinda apathetic in my mind. Besides there has to be people and a world for the gospel to go out into, so maybe looking after the canvas rather than just worrying about the paint is something worth doing more.
I’ll throw in a couple of faithless lyrics that I find I really connect with and make me think. Obviously as just words a lot of the feeling is lost, so I would recommend you get out there and either download or purchase some faithless and allow their soundscapes to take you into the faraway philosophical regions of your mind
Excerpt from mass destruction
My story stops here, lets be clear.
This scenario is happening everywhere.
And you ain't going to nirvana or far-vana,
you're coming right back here to live out your karma.
With even more drama than previously, seriously.
Just how many centuries have we beenwaiting for someone else to make us free?
And we refuse to seethat people overseas suffer just like we:
Bad leadership and ego's unfettered and free
Who feed on the people they're supposed to lead
I don't need good people to pray and wait
For the lord to make it all straight.
There's only now, do it right.'Cos I don't want your daddy, leaving home tonight
Excerpt from reverenceI'm not a mystic, My views are realistic, simplistic,
One special brew I get pissed quick
And get sick so I don't do it no more
I won't find peace of mind
Rolling around on the floor
The point I want to make is
you can never escape from your fate
The mistake is to take without giving
From within, You wanna know how I'm living,
I'm cool.. I'm looking after myself,
And I could never place wealth before my spirit,
I feel it's unhealthy
The devil creep around your soul stealthy, stealthy
I want moreHey friend your misery bewilders me
How come you're never satisfied or gratified
Four walls n' a roof, electricity,
Stable mind, wife and child,
Hot and cold water to run anytime.
But still you, whine.
i want more
I was told as a child
I wants never gets
Learned to count my blessings
Long before I saw an abacus
So what ya family don't speak
At least they're alive
Show me a man without guilt
Or a soul that ain't lied
You don't know what ya got
Open your eyes, look around
Really, hear me you,
Ain't got no reason to be down
What d'ya meanI want more
Friend what is it that you seek
What is it that you try to find
Someday I hope you realized
It shined in you all the time.
Hills to climb, sights to see, seas to cross,
Friends to make, hands to shake, the world is yours,
Foods to taste, sounds to hear, love to feel,
Seeds to sow, things to know, fish to reel,
Space to quiz, stones to lift, life's a gift
2 posts for the price of one!
Random thought on perspective that helped me cope during exams
One of the fantastic things about knowing God is the experience of this world is suddenly temporary. With your future secure in Christ you are free to chase your dreams which have suddenly totally changed as God changes you and failure no longer exists because you’ve already won at life by dying to sin and being part of the new creation in Christ. I’ve never been so clam in a high pressure situation as these past exams. I slipped into “intellectual athlete” mode set up a training program and for a few weeks lived as efficiently as possible, eat, sleep, study, pray, exercise, read the bible, sleep. Repeat. You can stress out during these times, or you can trust God and do what you have to do and as do it as best as your body and mind lets you.
It's weird how becoming dependent on something (a.k.a God) outside the world who relates to us from other dimensions, suddenly frees us within the world. We are in the world and yet our life is not of it, as suddenly our actions are based on realms beyond it with consequences both in it and outside of it. This is truly mindboggling if you think about it for more than 20 seconds.
Selah (1 missipi...2missipi....20missipi)
The idea of the old self bound up inside the world dying and then being created a new has become more and more of a reality. In a sense existence is no longer constrained to your sensory perception of objects and people nor thought. Christians now exist on spiritual and relational plains which they never could access or could even conceive existed before they came to Christ. What this means is that whatever happens within the world which only has consequences in this world is no longer of the highest importance. We can now draw on the whole of reality to make decisions and not be to phased about the setbacks and obstacles that are thrown at us by the world. That freedom from the world can allow to eliminate states such as anger, stress, jealousy, guilt and other emotions which are tied directly to external things.
Think about this, how is it that you came to perceive the aforementioned emotional states? I read an article on shame, by Satre, the other night on how we conceive knowledge about shame. Basically a lot of our emotions are entwined in the world we live in. He argues that it isn’t actually possible to feel guilty unless there is another human being in our reailty. So much of what we think and feel is wrapped up in their other beings with demands on us, who are constanly making assessments about who we are, our value and worth as a human being. God frees us from that, we only have to live us to his expectations, no easy feat, but still, it is far more meaningful to live up to a standard that is eternal and failing than constantly trying to please everyone in your world and ending up feeling temporarily stressed, guilty etc. When you realize this and believe that God believes in you, you actually can perform a whole lot better in the world. Kinda ironic I know. This thought may seem a bit jumble but if you can decipher this rambling, rock on.
People are awesome :)People never cease to amaze me, they bring a richness and depth to ones personal existence and have an entirely unique place in Gods world that separates them from the rest of creation. These uni holidays so far have allowed me the opportunity to spend time relating to vast amounts of people from a huge array of backgrounds. Normally I’m so pressed with other responsibilities that just maintaining the relationships I do have is hard enough let alone meeting and getting to know new people. However the vast array of social events which litter my calendar and NTE(national training event), have provided some fantastic opportunities to accelerate old relationships and start new ones, even if they are only as brief as a few hours. So yay for holidays!
There is a dangerous balance of uncertainty and excitement that can go into a night out in some social circles. The night holds nothing but possibility it is a blank canvas for events, people and objects to come together and manifest themselves into crazy stories that can be told for many months to come. It is no secret that I have a plethora of strange folk whom I associate with. This is something which I am thankful to God that my life experience and passion for people has provided me with. Mathews gospel tells us
“ While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" came and ate with him and his disciples.When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"
On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."”
The element of Jesus that pressed him to hang out with people no matter how broken nor far from the social norm is something I admire and try to cultivate in my own life. Another example of Jesus loving broken people comes in his dining with the pareses and a woman, who leads a sinful, broken life comes to him knowing her own need for salvation, and breaks down in worship as she knows Jesus is the only one who can save her. He then asks the pareses who would be more thankful someone who had a $5000 (or denarii) debt or a $50 debt. Obviously the guy with the $5000 debt. It’s a powerful analogy and one that is helpful for when I feel inadequate especially when surrounded by so many brothers and sisters who appear to have lived their whole lives with integrity. I know many share this same struggle of comparing themselves with others and looking at their own lives and feeling like they are somehow sub-par Christians because they don’t seem to glide through the Christian life with the same ease and acceptance that some do. Though how much more thankful should I be to Jesus if my debt is larger than someone elses!
I believe in following Jesus example and forgetting about how sinful someone is. I try to look past the labels and stereotypes and labels society gives them, no matter who they are, or what they do I will connect with them for the simple fact that they are human and so am I. They are sinful and so am I. We both can’t save ourselves, except by grace alone. Unfair? Perhaps. But in the words of “Relient K” one of my favorite Christian bands “the beauty of grace is life’s not fair.” Christians can be some of the harshest judges in society. While God may be angry at the sin and in deed at the sinner for offending him, he still created them, and wants them to turn back to him. What right do we have to not look past the sin and see just a person facing the exact same predicament that you or I face? Christians need to get out of their comfort zones far more often than they do. I don’t do it enough, sometimes its just easier to connect with a band or singer in my MP3 player than say hi to the person sitting next to me. The bible studies in leafy suburban homes, the conservative middle class evangelical church meetings, uni public meetings are all tops. But they can be just a tad to comfortable. Its all “fellowship, encourgagement, boardgames and prayer nights” in our comfortable little world. Though when we step outside of it and feel the full weight of humanities brokenness and share the treasure that God has imbued inside our weak frames, that is when we are really living for Christ and pursuing the mission of evangelism that God has given us.
The couple of days I went on Mission post NTE were fantastic for feeling uncomfortable, inadequate and stripped of self-sufficiency. Sounds like fun doesn’t it! At the end of the day all those feelings where stripped when a full realization of what ministry means hit me. Its just you engaging with another person and taking about reality with them. Sure you adjust to peoples age, knowledge and background in order to communicate more effectively, but at the end of the day your talking about life, God and Jesus and why they need him as much as you do. Sure they may not commit their lives then and there, but you may be the only conversation they have had in months, even years, that makes them consider God and everything he has done for them. I’m constantly reminded we only plant the seeds we don’t choose where they land or grow them. My own lengthy coming to Christ after a solid year of questioning and conversations with Christians is a constant humbling reminder that I may never see the fruits of my ministry but ever little baby step of the way that I can guide someone is nothing to get discouraged at.
So yah, in short, stress less but rely on God more, Love everyone and tell them all about Jesus. Sounds simple right?
