Rick Rubin must be something else. He makes the old ones cool to the young again. He did it with Johnny Cash. He's probably going to do it with Metallica when their new album comes out. And now here comes...Neil Diamond.

Neil's new Rubin-produced Album is #1 making him the oldest guy ever to have a #1 album.

So as the mentor of the week on American Idol last week, Neil sang his new song. (Stars don't appear on shows unless it's to promote something. If you think otherwise you are naive.) It was called "Pretty Amazing Grace." The title caught my eye so I just watched it on youtube just now.



So here's my question: "Is it a Christian song?" The religious imagery is blatant, but is he talking to a girl or God?


Neil Diamond Lyrics
Pretty Amazing Grace Lyrics

I'm not the only blogger asking this question. But as the smartest blog-readers in the world, I thought maybe someone here could find out for me.

I needed to hear this this morning. Side hug to our friend Jen for the youtube link.



Have you ever had times when prayer seems hard? Not that you're not praying, but just that you don't really have words anymore? I find myself in the uncomfortable position of no longer being able to dictate my plans for fixing our situations to him, because sometimes life just beats my pair of jacks.

Prayer's easier when I can just tell God what to do and slap an amen on the end of it. It's a lot harder when the words don't come because I've already worked through plans A through Z. and I'm running out of letters.

That's one of the awesome things about God's love, the gospel. It's for the helpless. People like me.

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. - Romans 8:26

Took my wife to the airport this morning, and on the way back I heard the song "The Living Years" by Mike and The Mechanics. I remember liking this song when I was a kid, but I never really knew any of the words beyond the chorus. I listened to the verses for the first time this morning.

I always thought the song was about telling people you love them and reconciling with loved ones "before it's too late." Sort of a proto- "Say What You Need to Say," I guess.
But "The Living Years" is not about that at all -- at least, not directly. It's basically about the dude wishing he could have shared his beef with his dad before he died. He says he is a prisoner of his dad's hopes and what-not and he wishes he could have told him that while he was alive. It's about making sure somebody knows you're unhappy with them. In fact, the "bitterness" he sings about in a later verse is attributed to not being able to vent to the person who caused it. He even regrets he wasn't there when his dad died so he could tell him about his pain.

Selfish brat.

I have nothing snarky to say about this. I think it's awesome.



"For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." Habakkuk 2:14

(via the our lovely friend Jen, who has more to say on this)

Ready to Ride, by Clear, from their self-titled debut project, from ten years ago, and I can't believe it's been that long. They made two CDs (both excellent) and then fell off the map.

...from guys in jackets and ties thinking, "How in the world am I supposed to talk to this long-haired musician hippie freak for two whole minutes without embarrassing myself? Man, am I having to reach for questions or what? I'm going to throttle the guy that made me do this. How in the world is this guy waxing pseudo-intelligently about something other than music?"

1974


1992 - skip ahead to the interview

Here's the incomparable Al Green to help you celebrate the occasion.



I posted another Green video here if, like me, you just can't get enough.

I am in awe and in envy.
In an odd way, this video perhaps encapsulates the entire jumbled nature of the Christian blogosphere -- theology and silliness.

You kind of have to be a theology nerd to get it, but being familiar with Grease helps a lot too.



Why this man is thematic, he’s charismatic, he’s systematic,
Why he’s Wayne Grudem! (Wayne Grudem)
He did not author Scripture but provides a clearer picture - Oh Yeah!
(Keep reading whoa keep reading)
Wayne may not be Jesus but he writes mean exegesis- Oh Yeah!
(I’ll buy a copy, I’ll kill to buy a copy)
You put it on the flo-or and it props open your door,
Or if you need to sit- you can climb on top of it - With Wayne Grudem
Go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go
Go Wayne Grudem with your intellectual writing style,
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
Go Wayne Grudem you make ha-rd doctrines less of a trial
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
You are extreme, but God’s supreme, oh Wayne Grudem
Go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go
(There are) many heresies which we-e now clearly see- Oh yeah!
(oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
Despite him being bald, hundred-thousand copies sold - Oh yeah!
(oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)
His six appendice-es leave you praying on your knees.
Although he’s not inerrant he’s a heresy deterrent - Wayne Grudem
Go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go
Go Wayne Grudem with your intellectual writing style,
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
Go Wayne Grudem you make ha-rd doctrines less of a trial
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
You are extreme, but God’s supreme, oh Wayne Grudem
Go Wayne Grudem with your intellectual writing style,
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
Go Wayne Grudem you make ha-rd doctrines less of a trial
(Wayne Grudem go Wayne Grudem)
You are extreme, but God’s supreme, oh Wayne Grudem
Grudem, grudem, grudem, grudem
Grudem, grudem, grudem, grudem yeah!

(See at The Blue Fish Project, where Grudem is reported to have said, "I quite like it.")

Bonus points if you know who that is...

OK, I confess. I'm an 80's Christian metalhead. I still like Tourniquet, Deliverance, Bloodgood, Barren Cross and One Bad Pig. (Further confession: my favorite secular band is Metallica. I pretty much judge all music by how close it comes to Metallica, which is perfection.)

So what's out there now? I'm totally out of it. Man, I have no idea. I haven't kept up at all.

What's good now? I'm looking for good, quality, Christian Metal. It needs to be driving, melodic, drums have to go faster than my heartbeat, but I need to understand the lyrics. And some seriously awesome guitar riffs and solos wouldn't hurt.

Suggestions?

My mother-in-law gave me a cool book for Christmas: U2: The Ultimate Encyclopedia by Mark Chatterton.

I just read Chatterton's entry on "The Wanderer" which is, I think, one of the most interesting tracks in the U2 catalog. The track appears at the end of 1993's Zooropa album and the vocals are sung by the legendary Johnny Cash and not Bono.

Here's what Chatterton said:

The actual track (along with "The First Time") was written for a Johnny Cash album, but was put on the end of Zooropa as a devious conclusion. The lyrics could have come straight from a sci-fi movie, and, as with a lot of U2 songs, a Biblical influence is evident. For instance, the singer was carrying a bible and a gun. Somehow the track would not have worked with Bono singing the vocals. Not surprisingly it has never been performed live.

I remember reading somewhere, maybe it was in Bill Flanagan's U2: At the End of the World, where it said that Bono preferred not to sing "The Wanderer" because it would have been something like a personal confession for him. I don't think Bono actually said that, but rather that was a bit of conjecturing on Flanagan's part.

Interestingly enough in 2005 U2 finally performed the song live as part of a tribute to Johnny Cash. Some of the lyrics were changed, for example the "bible and a gun" reference was changed to "the bible and the son." To my knowledge, it was the first time anyone had heard Bono actually sing the song.

Enjoy.



Here's the original version, as performed by Cash on Zooropa:



I can't decide what version I like better. I like Johnny's vocals as a nice contrast to the end of Zooropa. I also like Bono's humming at the end of the track, a sort of signature Bono hum that stamps the track with a U2 insignia. Either way, both versions are great.

OK - this post looks like a stump for Mike, but WAIT - it's not.

I post this because of its soundtrack that I think the Thinklings may love (or hate?) Personally, I like it. To be honest, I found it through Mike's site, but there's not really a message that the video shows - it's just a bunch of pictures. So - turn up the sound and check out this music that I think you, too, will enjoy.

Can someone explain to me the seething rage against the use of PowerPoint in corporate worship times?

I'm not talking about the anti- "praise chorus" crowd. I generally understand that. I'm talking about the antagonism toward the projecting of song lyrics on an overhead screen. Why is that so maddening to people? I see people commenting on this all the time as a mark of the decline of church culture, and I have to confess, as a frequent critic of the deterioration of church culture myself, I don't get it.

Why is looking down with my nose in a book somehow more reverent than lifting my head up?
Why is reading words on a screen somehow less reverent than reading them out of a book?
If you don't know the lyrics, you don't know the lyrics. Right?

What am I missing?

It's Fanny Pack Friday.

The Foo Fighters have released their latest video for their song "Long Road to Ruin" and it's one of the ones with costumes and story lines (in the vein of Learn To Fly or Everlong as opposed to videos like the more "normal," although incredible, The Pretender).

Check it out [note: this video is PG]:

There's a popular Johnny Cash video out there, set to the song "God's Gonna Cut You Down." The video is something of a collage of cameos by various celebrities. Even though the song speaks of God's judgment, some notably audacious hellions were awed enough by the legend of Cash to make an appearance and mouth a few lines for the video. In particular I think of Kid Rock. I have no doubt that, absent an amazing (not that there's any other kind) work of the Spirit in his life, this video will be on the big screen at the day of judgment.

It's a remarkable song, and jarring in its effect. The steady rhythm and repetitive lyrics will pound the reality of God's judgment into your head.



But as real as God's judgment is, this video captures a hidden gem of Christian truth-- one that too often gets passed over by critics and defenders of God's wrath alike. It comes at about 1:41 in the video, just after Bono.

(I will continue after the applause for Bono dies down)

Okay, let's go.

The video moves from Bono to a blonde lady whose face is filled with pain. (I'll betray my ignorance of celebrity culture here-- I have no idea who she is). Cash sings:

You can run on for a long time
Run on for a long time
Run on for a long time
Sooner or later God'll cut you down
Sooner or later God'll cut you down

And the teary-eyed blonde shakes her head and mouths the words for a long time.

Now this may not seem like much, but it cut me to the quick. This is obviously someone who knows what it's like to be on the run. And that alone makes it powerful.

But it's not just the pathos that grabs you. It's the fact that she gets it. I don't know if she's a Christian, but I know-- in that moment-- she captured the agony of life apart from Christ. Most of us get the punchline all wrong. It's not about God cutting you down, although he will do it. It's about the running.

The tragedy isn't in getting cut down. The tragedy is running from God. We can waste our lives and wallow in our "freedom." You can run on for a long time. But in running, you don't postpone a bad thing. You risk losing it all:

For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

It's the running, not the cutting, that demands a cry of lament.

Those of us who have been transformed by the Spirit know that God's judgment is a blessing:

God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? . . . For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

BYU Vocal Point, doing "Thriller"



And, as a bonus, and probably even more amazing, the U.C. Men's Octet, doing Bohemian Rhapsody:



Enjoy!

[the Thriller YouTube link comes courtesy of Scot McKnight. The Bohemiam Rhapsody link comes courtesy of the Thriller link]

The Key to the 20 Somethings is Not Musical Style.

I read this article by Trevin Wax with much interest, since young singles is our area of ministry at our church. A few excerpts, below:

I talked to a handful of 20somethings who dropped out of church for a few years and are now back and engaged. When I asked them about the worship style of our church (we’re a mix between blended and traditional), the answers were all different. Most of them indicated that they would rather we sing less and get to the preaching quicker. “That’s what we’re there for,” said one. Others mentioned how much they loved the organ. A couple mentioned that the “hymns” could be hard sometimes, but that they wanted to learn them anyway, as they felt they were important.

My generation is musically fragmented.

. . .

The idea that a “contemporary” music service is going to reach my generation just makes me laugh. No one in my class is there for the music. They are all there for the relationships and the Bible teaching. Not that the music is unimportant… it’s just not central.

Even funnier is the mindset among the Boomer generation that if we were to start using the organ and singing hymns again that all the young people would leave. The Boomer generation is making the same mistake that their parents did, thinking that what attracted them to church is what will attract their kids. Sorry. It isn’t happening. Furthermore, musical style isn’t much of a factor anyway.

This next paragraph hit hard.

For some reason, I have a feeling that most churches don’t really want to invest in the 20something crowd. It’s almost become an expectation that people will drop out of church between 18 and 30 and then return when they have kids and are ready to start “real life.” Meanwhile, the 20somethings are drinking their lives away, buying into the American dream of materialism, and starting off marriages on shaky foundations.

And I laughed (well, inside I was laughing - Jill's still asleep and I don't want to wake her) at this:

Let’s keep hoping in the 20somethings and stop cursing them with low expectations or old-fashioned ideas. ”Contemporary” worship is so old anyway.

Finally . . .

Let’s bring this generation back to the church with what they might have missed during their childhood and youth group experience: the gospel!

What are your thoughts?

a.k.a., De posts a U2 video. Wassat?

I saw this on the Anchoress (a great blog, by the way), and it's amazing . . .

U2's Window in the Skies:

I saw this on Reformissionary, and it just seemed to have such a sweetness to it, I decided to post it here. It's by a band I'd never heard of before (Cloud Cult).