democracy wins: derek webb covers coldplay's 'fix you'
Fri, Feb 26 2010 09:45 AM
| recommendations, personal, music, music you should know, favorites, popular culture
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in early january, i blogged about derek webb's latest innovative project called democracy vol. 1. last month, fans could cast votes for up to 12 songs that they wanted webb to cover. then, the 12 songs receiving the most votes would be covered by webb for the album. the album will then be recorded over the span on 2010, with 1 track being recorded and released each month. last month, webb released the first track, which was a beautiful version of the beatles' while my guitar gently weeps. you can listen to that track here.
instead of releasing the the full list of tracks, webb plans to reveal each track month-by-month. and today, we found out the second one.
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download rob's memorial playlist & videos
this past saturday—as noted in the previous post—we celebrated the life of our friend rob toon. it was honestly a great time, with laughter, tears and a whole gambit of emotions in between. i had the honor of participating in a number of ways, including sharing a few words about who rob was and the legacy he leaves. one of the things i was most excited to do, actually, was to put together a playlist that played before and after the service.
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information about rob's memorial service
**EDITORIAL NOTE: about 2 years ago, my best friend rob was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. since that time, he had hospital stays at both uams and md anderson in houston, tx. there were times that rob could have walked out of the hospital and conquered the world and there were times when he was preparing to leave this present reality. last saturday, rob's preparation for death culminated with just that.**
most of you know by now that my friend, rob toon, passed away last saturday, february 13 in the wee hours of the morning. after 2 years of dealing with the realities of leukemia, rob moved on to the next space, somewhere where his pain is gone and the broken is made new.
the good, the bad & the space between: in memory of rob toon
Sat, Feb 13 2010 09:40 AM
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**EDITORIAL NOTE: about 2 years ago, my best friend rob was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. since that time, he had hospital stays at both uams and md anderson in houston, tx. there were times that rob could have walked out of the hospital and conquered the world and there were times when he was preparing to leave this present reality. this morning, rob's preparation for death culminated with just that. so, on the wake of his passing, i thought i would offer a few words about him here. i hope that after reading, you gather at least a small sense of how beautiful rob's life truly was.**
we humans tend to see the world in either/or terms. it's black or it's white. it's hot or it's cold. it's right or it's wrong. it's good or it's bad. we live in dichotomies. in bifurcated realities where the middle is often lost.
so it is with people. we see good people. and we see bad people. we seek out opposing forces and divide accordingly.
but there is, in fact, a middle space. and maybe not even as much a middle space, but a blend, a melding somewhere in between where, on any given day, we must re-evaluate and find ours and others' place.
so it was with my best friend rob.
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brian mclaren talks a new kind of christianity
Mon, Feb 8 2010 08:54 AM
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only a minute or two into the story of my theological journey over the last 5 or 6 years, a little book called a new kind of christian enters the story and serves as the genesis for my ongoing narrative. that, of course, was written by brian mclaren nearly 10 years ago and it continues to resonate with a whole new generation of people investigating this whole jesus idea.
on tuesday, the conversation deepens with the release of his new book, a new kind of christianity.
just another blog about vomity corpses: periodic table of smellements
my general rule in life is that when a chart includes "vomity corpse" and "bad crotch", it's a chart worth sharing. so, enjoy this periodic table from natalie dee of the consistently hilarious married to the sea.
democracy wins: derek webb covers the beatles' 'while my guitar gently weeps'
in early january, i blogged about derek webb's latest innovative project called democracy vol. 1. over the last several weeks, fans could cast votes for up to 12 songs that they wanted webb to cover. then, the 12 songs receiving the most votes would be covered by webb for the album. the album will then be recorded over the span on 2010, with 1 track being recorded and released each month.
instead of releasing the the full list of tracks, webb plans to reveal each track month-by-month. and today, we found out the first one.
i do confess: a big eikon announcement
Thu, Feb 4 2010 07:54 AM
| personal, church, little rock, jesus, eikon, confessions, worship
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last june, this thing called eikon kicked off, publicly, with a little cookout with some burgers, some beers and a handful of sorted people. since that time, we've connected with new friends and grown over the course of informational meetings, guided conversations and, over the last few months, a handful of worship gatherings. in just the last 6 or 7 months, we've come a long way in the initial phases of forming this thing we call a church.
what your pastor will (likely) never say publicly or to you privately
Wed, Feb 3 2010 12:46 PM
| general life, personal, church, jesus, eikon, confessions, christian subculture, theology
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life rarely offers those moments where the world literally fades away, blurring at the peripheral edges, and you're left with just you and one other person speaking words directly into your innermost places that no one sees. at the risk of sounding hyperbolic, that very scenario transpired last july in a performance hall in grand rapids, michigan. sitting in a crowd of a couple thousand people, words, thoughts, ideas floated in space and settled somewhere deep within me and unlocked something that would continue to resonate half a year later.
a final farewell from Fat Ryan -OR- my plan to lose the equivalent of a 10-yr old
Sat, Jan 23 2010 02:26 PM
| christen, general life, personal, humor, weight loss, family, popular culture, children, food
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hello friends,
Fat Ryan here. yes, this is the same ryan that's been bringing you this stunning blog content since the year of our lord 2007. yes, this is the same ryan that you see every day or that you interact with on twitter every day or that you think longingly of each day. but i'm now referring to that guy as Fat Ryan.
and the Fat Ryan is singing.
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relief roundup: how to help haiti
Thu, Jan 14 2010 05:46 PM
| church, news, emergent, jesus, eikon, politics, current events
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here's another post from the eikon blog. in this case, john wrote a bit of a roundup of ways to help with the haiti relief efforts. it's often difficult to know what to do, in spite of the fact that we want to do something. so hopefully this serves a guide to giving and responding.
big love returns with season 4 and a new intro
ah yes…do you smell that? take a big whiff. it's the smell of love in the air. it's not just any little love, but big love.
that's right, ladies and gentlemen, hbo's hit drama (and my favorite show of all-time) big love is back in its fourth season. last night, the henricksons returned for what's shaping up to be, possibly, the most dramatic and anxiety-ridden season to date.
that's right, ladies and gentlemen, hbo's hit drama (and my favorite show of all-time) big love is back in its fourth season. last night, the henricksons returned for what's shaping up to be, possibly, the most dramatic and anxiety-ridden season to date.
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orthodoxy vs. monodoxy
Mon, Jan 11 2010 10:01 AM
| personal, church, emergent, jesus, eikon, christian subculture, theology
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here's a little something i wrote over on the eikon blog. as we're still in the initial phase of connecting and sharing our values prior to our official start day (which is coming very, very soon…), a recent tweet prompted me to further flesh out our perspective on the nature of orthodoxy and shared beliefs.
so, enjoy.
so, enjoy.
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7 big ideas for little rock
Sat, Jan 9 2010 10:12 AM
| art, general life, personal, arkansas, church, little rock, christian subculture, favorites, lists
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a couple days ago, i picked up the current issue of the arkansas times, which is their annual natives guide to pulaski county. the cover story was a series of "big ideas" written by various people of (quasi-) prominence in little rock and surrounding areas. the list included some ideas i love (bringing a nice independent movie theater downtown, churches without barriers), some good ideas that could use some tweaking/fleshing out (creating a light rail system, increased revenue sources for parks) and ideas that are just plain unfeasible (tearing down i-630, which is an excessive solution to a real problem). after reading their list, i put myself to the task of coming up with my own list of "big ideas" for little rock. here's what i came up with.
a vote for democracy: derek webb to release "democracy: vol. 1"
last year, when derek webb released his album, stockholm syndrome, several "tiers" were sold with various combinations of physical copies, digital copies, t-shirts, dvds, stickers and other assorted items. in several of the upper tiers, one of the intriguing inclusions was voting and, ultimately, free downloads of a promised 2010 project called democracy, vol. 1. this would be a monthly demo project in which he would record one cover of a song as voted by the fans.
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dissolution of marriage: a case for a church-state separation
Tue, Jan 5 2010 07:49 AM
| personal, church, emergent, jesus, eikon, christian subculture, theology, politics, current events
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yesterday on his blog, tony jones made a case for clergy stepping back in their roles as state-sanctioned marriage officiants. you can certainly read his thoughts about it here (and he goes in many other thoughtful directions that i'm not necessarily pursuing in this post), but i thought i would add a few thoughts to the subject. whereas i don't want to simply retread his points, i do want to underscore the thought and offer a bit more perspective.
in essence, clergy are the legal binding signature required for the state to recognize a marriage, thus granting special tax status and other distinctive legal considerations. ultimately, that means that clergy work as an agent of the state. they are explicitly partner to a state-sanctioned role and office. the problem as jones argues—and i would concur—is that throughout christian tradition, those in the role of priest or clergy were generally regarded as the ones who were oppositional (or at least suspicious) of the government powers that be. to further the argument, many argue (and make a strong, reasonable argument) that one of jesus' primary missions was to offer/model a way of living that freed people from the oppression of government systems (particularly, at that time, the roman government).
in essence, clergy are the legal binding signature required for the state to recognize a marriage, thus granting special tax status and other distinctive legal considerations. ultimately, that means that clergy work as an agent of the state. they are explicitly partner to a state-sanctioned role and office. the problem as jones argues—and i would concur—is that throughout christian tradition, those in the role of priest or clergy were generally regarded as the ones who were oppositional (or at least suspicious) of the government powers that be. to further the argument, many argue (and make a strong, reasonable argument) that one of jesus' primary missions was to offer/model a way of living that freed people from the oppression of government systems (particularly, at that time, the roman government).
the coolest thing i didn't blog about in 2009 -OR- how i got published by spike lee
Fri, Jan 1 2010 07:49 PM
| art, personal, awesome, graphic design, books, popular culture, politics
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to say that 2009 was a busy year for me would be a incredibly gross understatement. looking back, there are still several big things that i just simply couldn't find the time to blog about (some are still coming, hopefully). one of those things i found out way back in april, came to fruition in november and yet, i still couldn't steal away a few minutes to post the news.
a diagram of the same sex marriage debate
Thu, Dec 31 2009 10:53 AM
| personal, church, emergent, jesus, graphic design, christian subculture, popular culture, diagrams, politics, current events
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i came across this on clinical sexologist becky knight's twitter (@livingsexuality) and found it intriguing. at first glance, i thought it was a little one-sided, but i then noticed the credit at the bottom which reads, compiled from various facebook polls. that, in and of itself, doesn't mean a lot, but it is to say that these words and phrases and quotes come from the mouths (um, fingers, i guess…) of real, live actual people. these aren't just a bunch of assumptions, but actual things taken from facebook users.
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2009 in review: albums
Wed, Dec 30 2009 04:16 PM
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i just wrapped up an ongoing series called 25 in the 2000s. if you want to catch up on the series, you can begin with the introduction here and the move to the following posts:
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2009 in review: songs
Tue, Dec 29 2009 03:58 PM
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i just wrapped up an ongoing series called 25 in the 2000s. if you want to catch up on the series, you can begin with the introduction here and the move to the following posts:
