Monday Moanin'

Bob Talbert was a writer for the Detroit News back when I was a kid and delivered papers. He used to write a column on Monday mornings, called "Monday Moanin". In it he would just write random lines about random things. Kind of like a week of Facebook posts in one column (except this was decades before Facebook). It was typically the only thing in the paper that I would read besides the sports section.


Here is my first installment of out of my mind on a Monday Moanin'. (with all respect to Mr. Talbert)

• I have been amazed each time this past week that I have read that Danica Patrick is a role model for young women. The type of amazed where you shake your head in disbelief as to what you just read or saw. 
   
    
• It's not really about gun control it's about the taking away of our rights. This is when people say well they aren't taking away the rights to own guns, just the really bad ones. I then say when did our government become our judge? Who are they to say what is a good gun and what is a bad gun. At that point I note, once a portion of one right is taken the away the seal has been broken and more and more rights or even portions of rights can then be taken away much easier, with less and less of a fight. 
   
    
• Overhead an elderly lady standing in a check out line describing what her health care has become. She called it "euthanasia".  I hung my head and thought about how much that has to be a burden to her. How she might be feeling too old to be relevant, and that her government agrees so they are getting rid of her and her type slowly. Then I thought about my parents.......................
   
    
• Question your government, or your government will act without question.
   
   
• My favorite tweet of this past weeks was: Don't go to church, BE the church.

• Too many churches are like clubs, if you don't fit the profile you don't belong. Thank God EVERONE belongs in Jesus' church.
  
   
• Watching Mike Murdoch is like watching a train wreck. It is SO bad, yet I can't seem to stop watching. I wonder if the audience is paid to set there and look like they believe the stuff.
  
   
• Is there anything more wonderful than young people doing things for God? Is there a faith that is any more pure than that of a young person. (reminds me of Jesus saying that we all need to be as children to enter the kingdom of God).
  
   
• Isn't it ironic that once the major companies bought up all the christian record companies that christian music became so much more main stream, and widely accepted?
  
   
• Does anyone write protest songs anymore?
  
   
• Does anyone protest anymore? Or do we all just call talk shows and complain?
  
   
• Have you ever pondered the thought of Jesus as a boy? Did he play ball? Did little girls flirt with him? Did he skip rocks across the river? Did he climb trees? God became human, Jesus didn't go from the manger to 30 years old over night. The bible doesn't talk alot about it, but Jesus spent time as a little boy. Isn't that an amazing thing to think about? Listen to Rich Mullins' song Boy Like Me, Man Like You.
  
   
• Can you imagine Jesus having the scriptures read to him as a boy? The same scriptures that he helped to write. Wonder what he thought?
  
   
• Why is the devil red? Why are angels usually babies? Why does Jesus look like a white guy with long hair. Why does Jesus have a piece of cloth around his mid section in pictures of the crucifixion? Western images that block out reality.
  
   
• And I leave you with this: ACTS 14:8 (NIV)  In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked. ⁹ He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed ¹⁰ and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.   {That man had faith, I want to have faith like that}.  

You aint' nothin without love......

God has been speaking to me about love lately.

Like love your enemies, love strangers, love when your crabby, and love when your just not feeling it.

That all sounds so cliche, but I've been thinking about it in a different light lately. We all like to think that we love. But then again we all have our ego's that protect us from the truth about ourselves. When is the last time I smiled at someone just because? When is the last time I gave money to a homeless guy on the street, even if I felt they we're going to use it on alcohol or drugs? It's not my place to judge what they do with the money, or justify not giving it to them because they might use it for bad, it is my responsibility to love. How bout handing them a 5 spot and then asking them if I could pray for them? A stranger? Right there on the street...........a guy that smells and is dirty? Hand him a 5 spot (or more) and then ask him if I can pray for him? Me? I should do that? Well in a short answer..........YES.

Isn't that what we are commanded to do? Isn't that the only thing Jesus said we should worry about? Loving others. Feeding the poor and the hungry.........

I spend more on cable TV than I give to homeless charities. I spend more on cable TV than I give to hungry people.

As members of the club USA we have it pretty nice. Even our minimum wage workers make more money than most do in third world countries. Times are tough all over, that is a true statement, however loving doesn't cost a dime. I've been feeling like I want to do more for God, when in reality anything is more than what I'm currently doing.

I've been learning to be nicer to people, this is a tougher thing to do than some would imagine. I grew up in the cold hard life of Detroit Michigan, where people just aren't typically very nice and if they are you wonder what they are up to. It's not just the living in the south thing, it's a heaviness that has been upon my heart lately that I should love more. Smile to strangers, talk to strangers (very tough for me, as I'm quite a private person). Give more to those that need, and just love. Not preach, not argue, not question.....................just love.

I'm inviting anyone that may read this to do the same. If God is Love........(according to the bible), then when we love we share a piece of God with that person. Some take great pride in the number of souls that answer their altar calls, some take great pride in the songs they write and sing, some take great pride in the "work" they do for the church, but God said to love. Just love and he takes care of the rest.

What is it that most athiests say? Don't tell me or teach me that there is a god, SHOW ME! How do you show? You LOVE!

..........dP

(You can be a righteous rocker, or a holy roller, you can be most anything......but without love you are nothing, you are nothing without love) - Larry Norman

My First Visit to New Orleans

I was fortunate to be able to visit the city of New Orleans over the past weekend. I was invited down to dj a wedding for a friend, and while that was the main reason for traveling to New Orleans I was also able to take in a bit of what the city has to offer and to see. Here are some random thoughts on my first visit to New Orleans, Louisianna.

• Traveling to Louisianna through Mississippi from Tennessee is a very long and steady decline. I knew that parts of New Orleans is actually below sea level, but traveling on the roads and experiencing the steady decline was a eye opening experience.
• The landscape is very flat and very wet. Swamps are just for the TV shows, they have alot of swamp area, and weltands
• Shell oil company has quite a few oil pipelines running along the shore lines of the southern tip of Louisianna. We all think about the oil we get from the middle east, but we pump alot of oil from the gulf of Mexico.
• You would think with the Shell oil pipelines that gas would be a bit cheaper than in other parts of the country, however the opposite is true. Gas for the most part was consistently the same price through out the entire road trip, with Tennesse having the cheapest gas that I purchased. Shell gas stations all seemed to actually be HIGHER in price than most other gas stations. On one corner I observed that a Shell station was selling gas for 16 cents MORE than the Exxon station right across the street.
• People build their houses along the coast with some major stilts. But then again some don't. I was wondering why some would and others would not, how would that make sense?
• We as Americans may be in a recession, but you would never know it when you pass by the shops in New Orleans and walk Burboun street at night. People everywhere spending money.
• Katrina still has marks on the city. Most of the "affluent" areas have been rebuilt and they all look new and pretty, but the "inner city" is still quite devasted. We even saw a childs play set still lodged in a tree top (it's been over 7 years).
• The highways that we're taken out are new and rebuilt, so for the most part New Orleans has some very nice road ways.
• The road over Lake Pontchartrain is quite an engineering miracle. How they do that I will never understand.
• Beads are everywhere. People decorate their porches with them, place them on tombs in the cemetaries, and even decorate the trees with them.
• It's amazing that there are stores that just sell beads.
• A tour guide informed us, that beads have no spiritual or historical relevance, that they are used for what we all know as Mardi Gras, or for placing in random places as decorations, and they are mostly made in China is sweat shops..........................
• So these folks in China make beads in sweat shops so we can get drunk and throw them at people............................
• Alcohol is everywhere, it's got to be one of the biggest economical currencies because it is everywhere. It's even legal to walk the streets with a drink in your hand as long as it's in a plastic container. You can take your drinks from bar to bar, this is very strange to someone that grew up in Michigan where alcohol is controlled like it's some big government gift to the people.
• The cemetaries are very interesting. They bury their dead in above ground tombs. The dead are there for 366 days and then the next dead person is placed in the tomb. The 366 days is so that your remains are not disturbed on the day that you died. I was told that the tombs become like an oven in the Louisianna heat, bascially making for a long slow cremation. When the tombs are opened after the 366 days the only remains are typically that of dust and dirt. This causes one to remember that we start out as nothing, and when we are gone we become nothing but dust. One more reason to take care of the spirit inside of us all, our bodies are just dirt walking.
• The reason for being buried in tombs are twofold. Some say it's because of the water tablet in the area and "flooding". If the graves all flooded there would be bodies everywhere. The other reason given is that it was brought over by the Irish and French. In doing some quick research I found that both reasons are fully supported, so the real reason is probaby a combination of both.
• Voodoo looms large in the area. The voodoo priestess Marie Laveau is supposedly buried in a tomb in cemetary #1. People leave her beads, rocks, coins, and Jameson bottles ( I assume she was Irish). People also put three (xxx) x'es on her tomb in hopes that she will grant them a wish. It's crazy to me that people have no problem believing this but question God.
• The Superdome seems (ie looks) smaller than the Silverdome, but I was told it's not. .
• New Orleans was quite clean considering how many people there are, and that visit. Cops we're very noticeable so you felt safe. Not many beggars in the french quarter (I'm sure that's on purpose).
• Cab drivers are quick. They don't like to go to the south bank of the river, but they will if you tip well. Crossing the Mississippi river on a ferry is much more fun than in the back of a cab.
• I was a bit dissapointed that there wasnt more street music, and only two bars (that I found) playing the New Orleans style of music. We mostly heard classic rock cover bands, while I was hoping for some Louie Armstrong and Fats Domino. But then we weren't there during Mardi Gras and we we're told that you see more of it during that time.
• The ride home saw us taking a ride along the gulf coast. I had never seen the gulf before, so this was a ride with a purpose. I was able to walk on the white sand beaches and stick my finger in the water. Gathered a few sea shells and took lots of pictures. The only surprsing thing to me during this portion of the trip was the amount of casino's in Mississippi along the gulf coast. I mean I'm talking like a casino every 3 or 4 miles. It's like Vegas on the water. Weird, neat, and interesting we're the words that kept coming to mind. I also wondered why I don't hear more about this, like we do Vegas.

I enjoyed my time in NOLA (as it's abbreviated). I am glad that I got to scratch it off my bucket list. If your ever going, take alot of money, and plan to walk alot to fully take it all in. It's a party town that is for sure, but there is also a ton of history there and that was the most enjoyable part of my visit for me.

The Top Christian Rock Songs Of All Time

Stealing this from the Righteous Rock Radio website, since they are taking it down to begin their weekly countdowns.

TOP CHRISTIAN ROCK SONGS OF ALL TIME

• 25 - I Need A Miracle - Third Day (it's too new to be any higher, but someday I think it will
• 24 - To Hell With The Devil - Stryper (they infiltrated the other side with this song)
• 23 - Light Your Candle - Steve Camp (summarizes what his music and ministry is about)
• 22 - Shotgun Angel - Daniel Amos (just a great country driving song)
• 21 - Addey - DeGarmo and Key (one of those story songs that could of been written by Dylan or the Eagles)
• 20 - In The Kingdom - Whitecross (the definitve song for the genre)
• 19 - Judas Kiss - Petra (why are you looking for the devil when you should be looking for the Lord?)
• 18 - Built For Glory - Lost Dogs (great coffee shop type song that keeps it all in perspective)
• 17 - We Were All So Young - Randy Stonehill (song about the Jesus Music movement, w/ Larry, Keaggy, and more)
• 16 - I Love - Malcolm and Alwynn (how can you not be happy when you listen to this one?)
• 15 - Great American Novel - Larry Norman (how does one write a dated song that is relevant 30 yrs later?)
• 14 - The Vow - Geoff Moore (a serious song about a serious subject done so softly)
• 13 - God Gave Rock N Roll To You - Petra (even Kiss likes this song)
• 12 - Hero - Steve Taylo (can't put the whole album on here, but it was a first of its kind)
• 11 - Six Sixty Six - Larry Norman (prophetic or poetic or both?)
• 10 - Shine - Newsboys (make em think somthing's up)
• 09 - Best Thing - Big Tent Revival (powerful)
• 08 - Six Six Six - DeGarmon and Key (wastn good enough for MTV, but it's good enough for me)
• 07 - Flood - Jars Of Clay (has there ever been a bigger cross over hit?)
• 06 - He Will Listen To You - Mark Heard (from the first lick this song captures you)
• 05 - I Believe In You - Bob Dylan (a beautiful proclamation of faith)
• 04 - Keep Me Runnin - Randy Stonehill (if theres ever been a perfectly produced song this is it)
• 03 - Jesus Freak - DC Talk (in you face, grunge, rap, rock, a message, they took over the genre with this one)
• 02 - Why Should The Devil Have All The Good Music - Larry Norman (arent we all glad this was asked)
• 01 - The Outlaw - Larry Norman (one of the best descriptions of Jesus' life ever put to paper)

New Vinyl

I found the creme de la creme when it comes to christian rock records online at Ebay. Randy Stonhill's Born Twice. Rumored that only about 400 copies were ever made. I was able to purchase one with a "promotional use" only stamp on the cover. Then just yesterday I found one of the most rare Larry Norman albums, "Street Level". Before Larry re-issued this album on CD, it used to trade among collectors in the hundreds of dollars (now you can find it for around 35 bucks). I was fortunate to find it in a record store for 7 bucks. I'll be converting both of these albums to digital for some airplay time. Just mentioning this because before the age of the internet, these albums we're very difficult to come by............and I'm feeling fortunate to have both in my collection now.