A Recent Realization

This is a realization that I already knew, but maybe just lost sight of. So it's almost like I've learned it again.

Divide the Sea just got home from a small tour through the southeast. We had a great time, met cool people, had good hang out times, played fun shows, popped a tire, and ate plenty of pizza. But once I got home, I couldn't help feel like my focus was off the whole time. That's when I realized what this is all about.

Being in a band, playing shows, playing music, working hard to pursue goals, trying to find that certain job, making as much money as possible, trying to date someone because they're good looking.........ALL OF THIS IS MEANINGLESS.

If you read the book Ecclesiastes, Solomon, the writer, wrote the very words, "Everything is meaningless" over and over. He talks about desires, pleasures, hard work, etc. and concludes that everything on earth has no meaning and no point except for this one thing: the Fear of God and the keeping of his commands. That's it. There is nothing else.

So how do we fear God and keep his commands? The greatest command is explained in Matthew 22 in these verses, "Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ ³⁸ This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ⁴⁰ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

And so the realization is this: Unless we are loving God and loving people through the things we do, then what we are doing has no meaning whatsoever.

My life these days is simply music. I basically and literally have either a practice or performance every night of the week. So for my life, if I am not loving God and loving people through my music, then there is no point to what I am doing.

Don't get me wrong, I understand the point of a hobby, and doing things for entertainment, but once you die and you are gone, those things will have no eternal value. Everyone can have a good time at a show, but how much more valuable would that show be if there was love for God and a love for the people involved? It only makes sense to me to use my music for one purpose (which is the only purpose) of loving God and loving people. There is no other reason.

I say all this to plant this question in everyone's mind who reads this: "What's the point?" I believe that if you cannot answer this question with eternal value in mind in regards to the things you do, then there is no point.

If you don't believe in the Bible in the first place, then I'm sure there are tons of arguments you could throw against what I am saying. But I would say consider this: What is every person's common problem? Death. We will all die. Jesus is the only person who claimed to defeat death, and He offers that victory to us. Logically, it makes sense to follow him. Instead of thinking that this is all wrong, consider thinking that it is all right, and then look at the differences.

If you have a question, comment, concern, or argument, feel free to message me and I'll try to answer the best I can. I'm posting this as I continue to learn and grow, I'm not posting this to say I have everything figured out, because I don't. Thanks for reading.

Words

Alrighty, well just last night I finished this acoustic song that I pretty much started writing close to two years ago. Usually it doesn't hardly take anywhere close to two years to write a song, but this was off and on kind of work. I wrote the words back then along with the music, but I just didn't really like it. So every now and then I would pull it back out to see what I could do with it and I just never really had any ideas. Then last night I decided to give it another try, and i finally got it the way I think it is supposed to go. Some of the words and music changed some, but that's fine because no one had heard it yet anyways, and with the way I am about acoustic shows, I'll be surprised if anyone even hears it ever. But that is ok with me, because I basically just write these acoustic songs for me to be able to play just straight to God, one on one; however, if people want to listen along, then I'm usually ok with that as well. Anyways, here's the lyrics to the song.

The Metaphor

You are the waves of which I'm lost upon.
You are the chords that strum my life.
You are the voice that speaks to me.
You are love.

I am the lust of the eyes.
I am the deception that tells lies.
I am the thief that steals the innocence.
I am death.

You are the air within my lungs.
You are the governor of the skies.
You are the maker of worlds unknown.
You are love.

I am the selfishness of the wild.
I am the colors of strife.
I am the chaos that tears apart life.
But You are forgiveness of which I seek;
You are the life of which I need.
You restore me.

I am death.
You are love.

Completely Awesome

It's been quite some time since my last blog. I think mostly the reason for that is because I am finding it harder and harder to justify the importance of some of the stuff I think about saying. But every now and then I think of something that is worth blogging about, and then I'm just not near a computer to put it "out there" in cyberspace. However, this time I have something worth sharing and I am near a computer. Which creates the perfect equation to write yet another blog. Yes.

Ok, so I've recently begun reading a book called Radical by David Platt. The "slogan" for the book, or the catchy phrase on the front cover to summarize the book, is "Taking back your faith from the American Dream." This is right up my alley because I have a serious problem with the current "system" of American Christians caught in the American Dream. The back of the book says, "What is Jesus worth to you? It's easy for American Christians to forget how Jesus said his followers would actually live, what their new lifestyle would actually look like. They would, he said, leave behind security, money, convenience, even family for him. They would abandon everything for the gospel. They would take up their crosses daily...but who do you know who lives like that?"

Now that you know basically what the book is about, I'll get to the real reason for this blog posting. David Platt tells a story in this book about a young man he met in Indonesia named Raden. He recounts the time when Raden shared his testimony with him. And this story is why I posted this blog, and I'm just going to quote it directly from the book word for word.

"One brother, Raden, shared his testimony. With a fiery look in his eye and an intense tone in his voice, he said, 'Before I became a Christian, I was a fighter. I learned ninja, jujitsu, and a variety of other techniques for taking people down.' I (David Platt) nodded. I was making a mental note: Don't mess with Raden. He continued, 'One day I was sharing the gospel in an unreached village with people who had never heard of Jesus. I was in one house sharing Christ with a family, and the witch doctor from the village came to the house.' Witch doctors and magic men are common in villages like these. They hold sway over entire communities with their curses and incantations. 'The witch doctor called me out," Raden said. "He wanted me to fight him.' Raden smiled as he confessed, 'My first thought was to walk out there and take the witch doctor down. But when I turned to go outside, the Lord told me that I no longer need to do the fighting. God would do the fighting for me.' So Raden walked outside, pulled up a chair, and sat down in front of the witch doctor. He told his challenger, 'I don't do the fighting. My God does the fighting for me.' Raden recounted what happened next. 'As the witch doctor attempted to speak, he began to gasp for air. He was choking and couldn't breathe. People came running to see what was wrong, and within a few minutes the witch doctor had fallen over dead.' By now the entire village had crowded around the scene. Raden said, 'I had never seen anything like this, and I didn't know what to do. But then I thought, I guess now is a good time to preach the gospel.' Raden smiled and said, 'So that's what I did, and many people in that village trusted in Christ for the first time that day.'

Talk about power. That is the God we American Christians serve. So why do we not see these types of things happening in America? I personally believe a lot of the problem is because of the American Dream. Another quote from the book is, "While the goal of the American Dream is to make much of us, the goal of the gospel is to make much of God." I think that about sums up the problem quite simply right there.

I say all this, not to advertise a book, or be anti-American, but to show that we, including myself, could be missing a whole lot in our walk with Christ. Maybe one problem, besides our sin, is simply the Westernized version of Christianity that we live in. I'm not saying that everything we do is wrong, I'm saying that not everything we do is right.

Southern Hospitali-Tour and Music Videos

It has been forever since my last post. I guess I just got slack with it since I've sorta been busy doing a lot of stuff lately. Divide the Sea is currently on the Southern Hospitali-Tour with Wrench in the Works and Strengthen What Remains, and it has been a blast so far. We are having lots of fun hanging out (currently in Florida). All the dudes in the bands are super awesome and cool to hang out with. I'm going to be sad when we part ways. But be sure to check out Wrench in the Works and Strengthen What Remains for some solid beliefs behind some solid rock music. These guys really know whats really going on so give them a listen.

Also, our music video by Michael Dalton at Dreamery Films just came out about a week ago or so. I think it turned out pretty good if I do say so myself. The video is for the song "In Knowing, Triumph." The song is about David and Goliath and how we as Christians can slay the giants through Christ who gives us strength, but we have to know Him personally and have a relationship with Him. And of course, if you know anything about Divide the Sea, you know that we like to keep things fun. So the music video has some crazy silly things in it (with lumberjacks fighting robots), but there is an overall message through all the funny, stupid stuff that we put in there. If you look hard enough and understand the lyrics, I'm sure you'll be able to see it. We also had a good friend, Aaron Moller, create a little behind the scenes video on the music video set, and Caleb's girlfriend, JoAnna Webb, took some awesome photos. Now I'll post both videos for you to watch. Ok? Ok.

"Behind the Scenes with Divide the Sea":


"In Knowing, Triumph" Music Video:


I hoped you loved both videos. If you did, be sure to show your friends and spread the word about Dreamery Films. Alright, I'm done blogging for now. Until next time, Peace be with you, and I'll leave you with these words of awesomeness:

Psalm 10

¹ Why, O LORD, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

² In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak,
who are caught in the schemes he devises.

³ He boasts of the cravings of his heart;
he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD.

⁴ In his pride the wicked does not seek him;
in all his thoughts there is no room for God.

⁵ His ways are always prosperous;
he is haughty and your laws are far from him;
he sneers at all his enemies.

⁶ He says to himself, "Nothing will shake me;
I'll always be happy and never have trouble."

⁷ His mouth is full of curses and lies and threats;
trouble and evil are under his tongue.

⁸ He lies in wait near the villages;
from ambush he murders the innocent,
watching in secret for his victims.

⁹ He lies in wait like a lion in cover;
he lies in wait to catch the helpless;
he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.

¹⁰ His victims are crushed, they collapse;
they fall under his strength.

¹¹ He says to himself, "God has forgotten;
he covers his face and never sees."

¹² Arise, LORD! Lift up your hand, O God.
Do not forget the helpless.

¹³ Why does the wicked man revile God?
Why does he say to himself,
"He won't call me to account"?

¹⁴ But you, O God, do see trouble and grief;
you consider it to take it in hand.
The victim commits himself to you;
you are the helper of the fatherless.

¹⁵ Break the arm of the wicked and evil man;
call him to account for his wickedness
that would not be found out.

¹⁶ The LORD is King for ever and ever;
the nations will perish from his land.

¹⁷ You hear, O LORD, the desire of the afflicted;
you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,

¹⁸ defending the fatherless and the oppressed,
in order that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more.

Knowing, Accepting, And Becoming More Like The Real You

A good friend and teacher showed this to me, and it really opened my eyes. I hope it does the same for you.

Parents, teachers, friends and media images taught you acceptable and unacceptable ways to look, act and believe. You learned which behaviors earned you approval, which “self” of all your possible selves would be accepted and loved. Using this knowledge, you constructed an acceptable personality and internalized the rules of conformity.

You can suppress traits that don’t conform--dangerous thoughts, naughty impulses--but you can’t destroy them. They go into hiding, creating subconscious personalities or shadow selves, the cast of characters for your dreams and a rich source of insight into human nature for anyone willing to venture into wild, uncharted areas of the psyche. Your public persona might earn the acceptance and love you want. But you lose a lot, too--all those possible other selves you might have been, the authentic impulses you never express, the creative resources that might have enabled you to live more fully, effectively and joyfully.

And your mind may pick up a constant, numbing fear: if you must suppress some of your impulses and inclinations, they must be wrong or even evil. That means you must be wrong or evil, too. You may fool the world into thinking you’re okay, the reasoning goes, but deep inside, you know what a wretch you really are. You may become terrified that a shadow self will emerge at the wrong time, like a belch at the dinner table, and you’ll be found out for the faker you know yourself to be. When that happens, all your love and acceptance will be snatched away, leaving you alone and miserable.

Only in moments of extreme intimacy do you ever get to see anybody else’s shadow selves. Usually you see only the assured, confident masks others wear. So you may believe you’re the only pretender, all alone in your deception and fear, the only one in the world who must forever wear the lying mask. It takes a lot of energy to create the mask and to keep it from slipping. The constant anxiety and underlying sorrow costs still more. The strain may even make you sick.

“You are healthy when you are most yourself,” according to Dr. Kenneth Pelletier, an expert on links between stress and disease. “There is no prescription for health other than that. Do anything that gives you a sense of enthusiasm and joy, and be yourself.”

If you could put down your mask, release your fear, welcome your shadow selves out into the sunlight--imagine the energy, health and joy you might also release. It’s easy to say but terribly hard to do, after a lifetime of keeping the mask firmly in place. It may be the hardest work you’ll ever do--and the most rewarding.

“This is my way,” the philosopher Nietzsche wrote. “What is your way? The way doesn’t exist.” But how do you begin to create that authentic “you” as opposed to a masked self? You don’t. The real you is already there. You need only let it emerge. Take off the mask. Stop pretending. Be what you are. Set your own standards. Strip your life of any object or action that is false to your true self that clutters and complicates your life and separates you from your true self.

It won’t be easy, especially at first. The longer you’ve responded as your masked self, the more automatic those responses have become. Your first thought will be the one you were taught to have. Your first impulse will be the acceptable impulse, the “right” behavior, the desire you’ve learned to let yourself have. Take a deep breath, challenge that first response, and ask yourself if that’s what you really want to do. If your gut tells you that what you were about to do is false to what you believe, don’t do it.

If others disapprove or fail to understand--as they surely will--grant them the freedom to react as they must. You want their love and approval, of course. But you don’t need it. And when you drop the mask, you’ll begin to attract those who can approve of and love you for what you are, not for what you’ve worked so hard to seem to be.

Fruit

Don't wait for something crazy, catastrophic, or phenomenal to happen to you to make you turn your life towards Christ. If you claim Him, then live like Him. Many people would easily call themselves Christians, but they leave out certain parts of the deal that they would rather not do. Would Jesus flick someone off for taking his parking place at the grocery store? Uh...no. This is just one example, but I think you know what I mean. The word "Christian" means "little Christ" or "like Christ." If you claim Christianity, then imitate Jesus. Jesus was beaten with a whip until his guts were basically hanging out, but instead of cursing the humans doing this to him, he carried his cross (his undeserved electric chair) up a hill and was crucified. Through all of this, any of us, if we weren't dead by this point, would be extremely upset with the people causing all this. But what does Jesus do? He asks his father (God) to forgive them, because they don't know what they're doing. IMITATE THAT, CHRISTIAN. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control. Which one are you excluding? There are times when I struggle with all of them, but I could easily say the hardest ones for me are faithfulness, self-control, and lately...joy. I have decided to follow Jesus, which means I've decided to work my butt off on the things I struggle with. I pray you will do the same. So help me please, God.

Hope

"All my life I've been searching, face by face, and day by day. I've walked a hundred shorelines, but all my footprints have been taken by the waves. I've trusted and I've loved, I've reached out time and time again. I've lied and I've betrayed, I've whispered evil things into the wind. Everything I've ever seen, or felt, or heard has left me with no purpose, or meaning, or reason. But were I to curse God and die, that would be the ultimate treason. Well I feel so dead, even though I'm alive. It's the things that I have done, that I could never deny. I met a man the other day, as he pulled me aside, he told a story with a fire burning in his eyes. He said I know who you are, and I know where you've been. I've walked the same shorelines, and I've felt the same wind. I've lied and betrayed, and I've said evil things. I put my trust in the world, and I know what it brings. I remember my wife, and the love that we shared, and the smile on her face, and the smell of her hair. On the day we met, I was dead inside, but then she spoke these words, fire burning in her eyes, 'The Lord knows who you are, and he knows where you've been. He keeps an eye on the shores, and an ear to the wind. Though you make your bed in the pit of hell, He'll stay by your side, and He'll love you still.' Well it's been five years now that she's been gone; I'm giving you her words, so you might carry them on. This is love, this is hope."

-"Hope" by Hands