Thursday’s Playlist

What are you listening to today?

I’m enjoying DCB*’s Remedy right now. I like it. A lot.
I’ll be working my way through the other three…no, four cds in the picture above the rest of today. Yay! I love listening to new music =)

PS. This was outside my door yesterday. I’m not kidding. I took that picture…

 

Christian Entertainment - Oxymoron?

It all started as I was posting a brief comment on Dale’s blog. He has some of the most thought provoking posts that I just can’t stop. See here, and here. It started with his post on the new Prince Caspian movie, what his expectations are and I started thinking broader about entertainment, music and movies specifically and why it is that our safe Christian circles just want safe movies. CS Lewis said that Aslan wasn’t safe!

It is disappointing how the Christian market can put so much advertising and promotion into something that is mild and bland. (I’m not referring to a specific movie here, but the Christian market in general. It is so predictable too.) The sad thing is we take the bait, and get caught seemingly happily as we are numbed to bland performances and mild plots about happy walks through endless blossoms of cleanliness and perfect plastic smiles.

This is a reflection of our society today; we expect life to go smoothly, easy and comfortable, without hardships. Why have we allowed these perceptions, especially for Christians, let alone American Christians who have it much easier than those in other countries? In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul says that we should be glad to boast about our weaknesses, to take pleasure in our weaknesses, insults, hardships, “persecutions” (not much of an issue here) and troubles that we suffer for Christ.  Life is hard, but God is our strength.   Much in the same way that some (not all) Christian music is cheesy, so are movies targeted at Christian audiences.  They think that is what we want.  The reality is we probably learn more from those controversial movies that we are so against by creating and generating discussion about why we believe what we do. Hmmm.

There is something about war movies, movies like Schindler’s List, Paradise Road, and The Pianist that resonate with me, not because we like the violence, which I don’t nor do I watch these types of movies on a regular basis, but because it takes us out of our safe little holes and shows us that people faced with tragedy and horrible conditions can survive, not because they are strong, but I believe it is because God sustains them in their weakness. In Paradise Road, there are no lone survivors; they survive together, as a community.  It reminds us of the spiritual warfare that is real and goes on whether we face it or ignore it.

As much as I appreciate not putting disturbing images into my mind…there are certainly big gaps between great performances and safe performances.  The problem we have to address is how to make great performances that don’t sacrifice content for quality.

Thoughts?

 

Psalm 90:14

Surprise us with love at daybreak;
then we’ll skip and dance all the day long. MSG

Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love,
so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives. NLT

Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days. TNIV

 

wordpress tempts me with a domain

So I log in to make a quick post…and wordpress is tempting me to become a dot net….get my own domain for only $15 a year….and yet…why would i…it’s free right now…it works….so tell me…name three good reasons…really good reasons why i should do that…

bamboosong.net or stay bamboosong.wordpress.com??

 

The Farm Bill

Okay, so I’ve been doing a little bit of research. My previous post about Telling congress to fix our food policy - is just one of the issues that has come out of this thing called the Farm Bill. Wikipedia says that:

The U.S. farm bill is the primarily agricultural and food policy tool of the Federal government of the United States. The comprehensive omnibus bill is passed every several years by the United States Congress and deals with both agriculture and all other affairs under the purview of the United States Department of Agriculture.

Congress and the executive branch are currently considering proposals for the 2007 U.S. Farm Bill to replace the current farm bill, which expired in September 2007. Farms bills can be highly controversial and can impact international trade, environmental preservation, food safety, and the well-being of rural communities. The agricultural subsidy programs mandated by the farm bills are the subject of intense debate both within the U.S. and internationally.

That certainly makes sense now. I have just scanned a few articles…and I am sensing a strong theme throughout. Take a look at these titles:

• Farm Bill feeds greed (la times)
  
• Stuck on the Farm (washington post)
• Bush says ‘Bloated’ Farm Bill Rewards Millionaires (bloomberg)

Here is the link to the USDA page about the Farm Bill:

So….it has a wide range of who it affects, both domestically and internationally. Any further thoughts? I’m sleepy…

 

Tell Congress To Fix our Food Policy

I don’t do this very often, but this is pretty common sense to me. Plus I grew up eating rice…surrounded by people who really live off of rice. I know the importance of feeding people. And it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever to have policies that hurt more than they help. I don’t see any hidden agenda’s in this, and I understand the need, so I have signed this. If you agree, please take a minute to help feed the people who desperately need it. (Yet another example of why we, the Bride of Christ, the Body of Christ need to get more involved…because we can’t rely on the government to do our job). - Lori jo

Dear friend,

You’ve probably seen the headlines about record food prices, which have lead to deadly violence and panic across the globe.

The U.N. Secretary-General said last week that the situation has “become a global crisis,” and the World Food Program is warning of a “silent tsunami” of hunger. Even here in the U.S., grocery stores are starting to ration sales of rice.

Sadly, this desperate situation is being worsened by our own government’s policies. While we spend billions of dollars on food for the hungry overseas, Congress requires that all of it be purchased from farmers in the U.S. and shipped halfway around the world - wasting money and delaying the food’s arrival.

I just sent a message to Congress, telling them to fix this misguided policy and help feed more hungry people.

Will you join me? Just click here:

 

2 weeks in 1000 Words

 

Why Windows Sucks

Because it takes a really long time to put a simple audio and pictures slideshow in windows movie maker. I gathered all the pictures all day today. Then, I sat down about 11:30 hoping to get it done in a couple hours. it is now 4:30AM and i finally finished. it’s not as great as i would like simply bc I ran out of time. but seriously…does it have to crash 10 times? ctrl-alt-delete and end task were frequently used. anyways. just wanted to vent. it has been finished. all this to say…one day i’ll get a mac. and i can’t wait. dad’s memorial “movie” is done. complete with music by the beach boys and vicky beeching! gotta get my beauty and vocal sleep…singing tomorrow at the memorial service.

 

The Word is Alive

I’m learning this song to sing at my dad’s memorial service…

I just found it last night. Wow. I wish he had heard this before…I’m pretty sure he would’ve enjoyed it.

It is finished. Death has not won. He has gone to paradise to receive his new body. We rejoice in the truth and the hope of God’s message of love. Thank you for your prayers for my family, we have been held up and carried. To all my friends, you are welcome to come…please contact me for details…you know how.

 

what’s your visual dna?

I’m a visual person… So I love this site…check it out! You can do it without registering…but if you want to you can and let me know so we can be friends!! Here’s a sneak peek:

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