Archive for the ‘Spirituality’ Category

Cure for the Pain

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Posted 25 Mar 2008 — by nick
Category Darkness, Friends, Jesus, Light, music, Spirituality

Tonight while hanging out with the Dawgs “Cure for the Pain” by Jon Foreman filled our small dinning room. This song pulls tears from me no matter the emotional state I’m in. The cause: maybe the sadness in Jon’s voice, maybe the ways it reminds me of how I’ve tried to cure my pain, or the ways I know trying to run would simply be a lie. Either way, tonight it causes me to stop and reflect on the healing journey God has me on and how these days I don’t feel quite as lonely as I once did. The tears change from ones of sadness to ones of thankfulness and remembrance.

And here tonight while the stars are blacking out
With every hope and dream I’ve ever had in doubt
I’ve spent ten years trying to sing these doubts away
But the water keeps on falling from my eyes

And heaven knows, heaven knows
I tried to find a cure for the pain
Oh my lord! to suffer like you do
It would be a lie to run away

Tomorrow Spring the next seasonal EP is released and I’ll be picking it up for sure. You can get it the EP’s here.

Palm Sunday: Jesus Triumphant Entry

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Posted 17 Mar 2008 — by nick
Category coffee, Jesus, Light, Scripture, Spirituality

“Happy Palm Sunday!”

That’s how Josh Wondra greeted me this morning as I stirred from sleep and trudged to the couch with my coffee.

Palm Sunday, it’s been on my mind all day – thinking about the beginning of Holy Week. About Jesus riding in to Jerusalem on a donkey, his followers laying cloaks and branches before him and singing praises.

They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Hosanna in the highest!”
Matthew 19:7-9

I’ve decided, as in years past, to reflect on the Easter Story throughout the week. This time I plan to save the Resurrection accounts until Sunday and focus on the events that transpired the days before the Crucifixion. Today I studied the Jesus Triumphant Entry, tomorrow I’ll look at Matthew’s account of the events.

My hope and prayer for you all: That you’d find time to stop and reflect, meditate on the Easter Story and let God draw your heart more to Him and respond in praise. After all He replied “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.“

—————-
Now playing: Jon Foreman – Learning How to Die
via FoxyTunes

PS: The picture for this post is one claiming to be of the gate at Jerusalem Jesus is said to have entered on the first Palm Sunday.

Podcasts: Faith Swapping

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Posted 27 Feb 2008 — by nick
Category Family, Jesus, Ministry, News, Podcasts, Spirituality

NPR Story of the Day is one of the podcasts I keep up with on a regular basis. Embarrassing as it is to admit, often times it is the ONLY news input I get in a day.

Particularly interesting to me was today’s story: “Religion Survey Find Many American’s Swap Faiths.” The segment is short, less than 4 minutes and worth listening to, but if you’d rather read it you can find the transcript here and the results of the survey here.

Since I’m short on time I don’t have the ability to get into much depth on this, but I think it reinforces something we see in college ministry all the time and a trend I’ve seen in my family. Children choosing a different flavor of Christianity from their parents, happened with my Dad and his parents and my brother and I with our parents.

Scientology Protest

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Posted 10 Feb 2008 — by nick
Category Friends, News, Photos, Spirituality, Videos

Longtime friends of the Dawg Haus will remember we are located next-door to the Champaign branch of the Church of Scientology – a fact several folks have found humorous. Recently this group has found it’s way into the news and not on such great terms. There is the Tom Cruise viral video, the Anonymous response video, DDoS on Scientology’s website, and today a worldwide organized protest.

Camped out on our front couches, some of us dawgs grabbed our morning coffee and breakfast and became spectators of the event unfolding next-door.


We have a civil and cordial relationship with our neighbors – none of us would agree with their beliefs but we see them as human beings deserving of love and respect regardless of how misguided they may be. It’s this fact that makes me uneasy about the protest. I’ve been thinking a lot this year about how effective protesting is (part in reference to the call of Christians to boycott The Golden Compass and further with this protest though it’s not officially religiously affiliated).


Do signs, shouting, and name calling do more than cause the targeted group to bunker down and solidify further in their beliefs?

I’m not saying these protesters are hoping to persuade the scientologist, I’m just questioning if it’s affective at persuading those passing by. My hunch is not and thus I conclude they’re just creating a stand-off between themselves and those inside the “church” each side growing in their belief in the other being wrong and growing in dislike.

What do you think?

(PS: A very few more photo’s can be found on my picasa account. I didn’t take many.)

Blog Samples: Jesus

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Posted 04 Feb 2008 — by nick
Category Blogs, coffee, Jesus, Scripture, Social Justice, Spirituality

Thanks to Ben for sharing this post on google reader. Its from Jesus the radical pastor, John W. Frye’s blog. Reading this I felt convicted as I sipped on my Morning Blend Starbucks coffee. I resonate with John here, I don’t think Jesus would like me much, nor I Him. Much has been given me, what am I doing with it?

Would the Radical Jesus Like You?
“In the Gospels I usually identify with all the people Jesus serves. I think that he both liked and loved them. But if I am honest, I should see myself in those groups that didn’t like Jesus and I don’t think he liked them very much, either.”

—————-
Now playing: Ray LaMontagne – Be Here Now
via FoxyTunes

Thinking about Anger

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Posted 18 Jan 2008 — by nick
Category Friends, Jesus, Light, Scripture, Spirituality

Lately the subject of anger and forgiveness have had a healthy amount of my brain and heart (in a philosophical sense not as in a “I’ve been angry a lot” sense). Anger examined in my life has quite often proven tied to an idea of entitlement. This concept, entitlement, is a little more foreign to me though. I have long been aware of frustration and anger in situations where something doesn’t go my way or the way I thought it should have – but this I was less aware of.

The thought process sounds like this: “You deserve to be heard or listened too in this group.””You deserve to be respected or understood.””You deserve to be left alone.””You are entitled to this or that.”

Last night anger had it’s death grip around my heart for a bit. I had walked out of a situation where I felt entitled to my voice and thoughts being heard, neither felt true. Enter the strongman Anger to take my heart hostage leaving isolated and lonely.

This morning I read this passage and as it sank in I began to reflect on last night.

“You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.
Matthew 5:21-22

Something happens to us when we get angry with another person. It feeds self-centeredness, it dehumanizes me as I elevate my feelings/needs/desires above another persons. The anger doesn’t do anything to the other person, only to me.

Freedom from the prison of anger requires I walk back through the tangles of self-centeredness untying the bonding straps of my prison along the way. The agreements I’ve made saying I am entitled to this or that.

Last night I chose to take this journey and return to a state of less self-centered living. The result: reunion and reconcillation and a heart living free again.

Biblical Wisdom About Vegetarianism

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Posted 15 Jan 2008 — by nick
Category coffee, Jesus, Scripture, Spirituality

This morning I consumed my morning cup of Liquid Holy Spirit at the Espresso Royal Cathedral on Goodwin. As it gave new life to my body I turned my attention to my Bible sitting next to me. Thumbing to today’s chapter in Proverbs I read the following:

“A bowl of vegetables with someone you love
is better than steak with someone you hate.”
Proverbs 15:17

So there you have it straight from the Word of the Lord. Come share a bowl of vegetables with me instead of the steak you hate… or I mean with someone you hate 😛

—————-
Now playing: Caedmon’s Call – Trouble
via FoxyTunes

Being Made Right

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Posted 17 Dec 2007 — by nick
Category Jesus, Light, music, Social Justice, Spirituality

I keep coming back to this song lately – starting my mornings with it, rooting myself in it’s truth in the hard hour or so after work when life seems especially heavy and overwhelming. I find beauty in how simple it is, just a guitar and a voice.

“people love you most for the things you hate
and hate you for loving the things you can’t keep straight
people judge you on a curve
and tell you you’re getting what you deserve
and this, too, shall be made right”
Derek Webb – ‘This Too Shall Be Made Right’

Derek has long been a hero of mine, mostly due to his passion for seeing The Church fully realized and fearlessness in speaking up about how we don’t have things quite right.

—————-
Now playing: Derek Webb – This Too Shall Be Made Right
via FoxyTunes

"We’re Awakening"

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Posted 08 Dec 2007 — by nick
Category Jesus, Light, Movies, Spirituality

Last night I watched Awakenings, an older film from 1990 long been residing on my list of “I’d like to watch that someday, but its not to pressing right now.”

The movie tells an emotive story of a shut-in doctor, scared to engage with those around him. Taking a job caring for patients whom have been comatose for decades after surviving an encephalitis epidemic, proves first to challenge these tendencies. His gentleness and care with the patients tells of a deeply sensitive and caring man isolated by social insecurity. Upon trying an experimental drug his patients begin to awake from their coma-like-state hardly aware they had been gone. The gift of life, the simple things – taking a walk, dancing, singing are celebrated as they stir to life. The greatest awakening though happens in the doctor, who begins to live. To risk and engage with those around him.

Watching the movie provided an almost out-of-body experience, almost like watching the past years of my life. The doctor and I share some of the same story, a heart isolated but rescued to begin beating once again.

I was attempting to clean my room this morning when I came across a letter I wrote myself about 3 years ago at Ignite:

“God, you rescued my heart this conference. The process you began months ago by showing me the hardness of my heart and how closed off it has become has peaked here and now. Thank you for drawing me out and revealing wounds in my life and reasons for the state of my heart. You’ve brought me to the point where I am so completely frustrated with being emotionally cold to those around me and alone that I have no choice but to change. Hurting is at least feeling so at this point I’m ready to start the painful journey of healing. I want to live from a heart fully alive.”
Ignite closing reflections 2004

Three years have passed since my pen bled those words, life has taken me many places since then, but God’s leading has never been so apparent. This road is one of heart rescue.

—————-
Now playing: Eisley – Brightly Wound
via FoxyTunes

First Snow

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Posted 07 Dec 2007 — by nick
Category Creation, Jesus, Spirituality, Winter

(John street in front of the Dawg Haus)

As I sat on the couch tonight gazing out the window at the falling snow a smile came to my face. Snow always makes me smile. Snow brings with it a reminder of God’s grace – to see such beauty painted on the canvas of death the fall leaves reminds me of being born anew, reminds me of how God is putting the world back together, reminds me of going from death to life.

—————-
Now playing: Norah Jones – Don’t Miss You At All
via FoxyTunes

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