Album review: "Ghost on the Canvas" by Glen Campbell

I just finished Glen Campbell's new album, "Ghost on the Canvas" now I am not a country fan and I would not have never bought the album had it not been for two factors. One, it was recommend to me by a good friend and two the back story behind the album. I will tell you about the second, Ghost on the Canvas is intended to be his farewell album due to his diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease. In light of this the songs take on a gravity given the southern wordsmith wrote them as a goodbye and in light of the disease that will take him before he is gone.

His Faith
I am often very cynical when it comes to public professions of faith by celebrities, maybe to my own shame yet Campbell is the real deal.
Campbell made public his commitment to Christianity nearly 20 years ago. Since, he has evidenced persevering grace and been something of a picture of what Jesus can do with a strung out country singer. In his autobiography, Rhinestone Cowboy, (yep, he wrote that song) Campbell chronicles his life and its near-destruction. He tells the gritty and hard facts of his decent into alcoholism and drugs and of his convention to Christianity. Looking into it, I found out He is an active member in his home church, North Phoenix Baptist Church.

His Music
It is with that back story in mind, I soaked in the melancholy praise of a man world wise but Christ longing. The song vary in content but are never far from a spiritual core. Musically, i was impressed. It is not 70's steel guitars and yodeling. I think it would appeal to hipsters as well as men my dad's age.The interludes between songs weave all the song together into a harmonic whole (reminiscent of the beach boys Pet sounds- I love that album). The lyrics are rich with meaning and almost haunting much like the feeling you get from the whole album. It is a bittersweet goodbye that is purely melancholy yet hope is always just below the surface bubbling up in moment a slow guitar wines and lyrical honesty.

Songs like
"A Better Place"
"It's Your Amazing Grace"
"Hold On Hope"
"Strong"
"There's No Me... Without You"

Give thoughtful and thankful reflections on his condition, his relationships and his past. It is odd to say good by before you really should but Campbell has made this country boy tear with pride at a Christian who knows how to bow out with praise on his lips and most assuredly die well with grace leading the way.




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Flavel on Providence

Today, I digested a bit of an English Puritan. I am not speaking of cannibalism but contemplation. The book was John Flavel's work, "Mystery of Providence". Flavel was an English Puritan and Non-conformist, born 1627 and died 1691. I often go back to him when the clouds of this world blur and blind my vision, stealing the warm light of hope, leaving only the cold comfort and squinty vision of melancholy to sustain me.

Here are some quotes from what I read today. The first illuminates unbelief as the first enemy we face in times of distress. He shows how unbelief is known by the way it calls God's good will into question and guides us to distrust his providence. Flavel writes:

“Unbelief queries the will of God, and questions whether He will now be gracious, though He has been so formerly. If troubles or dangers grow to a height and we see nothing but ruin and misery in the eye of reason before us, now unbelief becomes importunate and troublesome to the soul. Now where are your prayers, your hopes, yea, where is now your God?” Unbelief maintains the impossibility of relief in deep distresses.

'Can God furnish a table in the wilderness? ... Can he give bread also? Can he provide flesh for his people?' Psalm 78:19-20.

Oh vile and unworthy thoughts of God which proceed from our measuring the immense and boundless power of God by our own line and measure ... because we do not see which way relief should come."

The quotes below are just a few more gems from Flavel's pen that sparked faith, life and trust in my heart.

“All the dark, intricate, puzzling providences at which we were sometimes so offended…we shall [one day] see to be to us, as the difficult passage through the wilderness was to Israel, ‘the right way to the city of habitation’.”

"Whatsoever we have over-loved, idolized, and leaned upon, God has from time to time broken it, and made us to see the vanity of it; so that we find the readiest course to be rid our comforts is to set our hearts inordinately or immoderately upon them."

“[Providences] often puzzle and entangle our thoughts, but bring them to the Word, and your duty will be quickly manifested. “Until I went into the sanctuary of God, then understood I their end” (Ps. 73:17). And not only their end, but his own duty, to be quiet in an afflicted condition and not envy their prosperity.”

“You may look upon some providences once and again, and see little or nothing in them, but look “seven times,” that is, meditate often upon them, and you will see their increasing glory, like that increasing cloud (1 Kings 18:44).”

"When our needs are permitted to grow to an extremity, and all visible hopes fail, then to have relief given wonderfully enhances the price of such a mercy (Isa. 41:17-18)."

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Good video on importance of theology

This video from Joshua Harris to promote his book dug down deep.

DugDownDeep_Carnahan.mov from Covenant Life Church on Vimeo.

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Grudem on Hearing God

Wayne Grudem on whether God's revelation has really stopped or not from Adrian Warnock on Vimeo.

The unavoidable reality of theology

As far back as I can remember, back In the days when MTV actually played videos, people told me theology was useless. I thought, nobody needs dry and dusty theology. I like most westerners, I thought theology was an academic exercise whereby a group of people sit in an ivory tower and debate over ancient documents that have no relevancy for today. I was wrong.Theology is an inevitable activity of humanity. But as LaVar Burton of Reading Rainbow fame, (Yes, La Forge from Star Trek: next gen.) always said, "Don't take my word for it!"


Who really needs theology?

Answer:
“Many things can be meant by the word ‘God.’ For this reason, there are many kinds of theologies. There is no man who does not have his own god or gods as the object of his highest desire and trust, or as the basis of his deepest loyalty and commitment. There is no one who is not to this extent also a theologian. There is, moreover, no religion, no philosophy, no world view that is not dedicated to some such divinity. Every world view, even that disclosed in the Swiss and American national anthems, presupposes a divinity interpreted in one way or another and worshipped to some degree, whether wholeheartedly or superficially. There is no philosophy that is not to some extent also theology. Not only does this fact apply to philosophers who desire to affirm—or who, at least, are ready to admit—that divinity, in a positive sense, is the essence of truth and power of some kind of highest principle; but the same truth is valid even for thinkers denying such a divinity, for such a denial would in practice merely consist in transferring an identical dignity and function to another object. Such an alternative object might be ‘nature,’ creativity, or an unconscious and amorphous will to life. It might also be ‘reason,’ progress, or even a redeeming nothingness into which man would be destined to disappear. Even such apparently ‘godless’ ideologies are theologies.” (Karl Barth, Evangelical Theology: An Introduction, pp. 3-4)

Therefore:
“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. The history of mankind will probably show that no people has ever risen above its religion, and man’s spiritual history will positively demonstrate that no religion has ever been greater than its idea of God. Worship is pure or base as the worshiper entertains high or low thoughts of God. For this reason the gravest question before the Church is always God Himself, and the most portentous fact about any man is not what he at a given time may say or do, but what he in his deep heart conceives God to be like. We tend by a secret law of the soul to move toward our mental image of God. This is true not only of the individual Christian, but of the company of Christians that composes the Church. Always the most revealing thing about the Church is her idea of God.” (A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, p. 1)

Conclusion:
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)

Indeed: "Theology is not undesirable, it is unavoidable. What matters is that it should be good theology." (Trevor Hart, Faith Thinking: The Dynamics of Christian Theology, p. 7)

Some things are inevitability. My mom tells me death and taxes top the list. I have found if a Toronto hits a trailer park it is inevitable a the local news team will interview someone with poor dental hygiene and a rudimentary grasp of the English language. Theological thinking is an inevitable activity. So how we feel about theology does not matter. We already do whether we want to admit it or not. So as a Christian our first question is not, why do it but "Do I have good theology?"

Indeed-E-Du: "We're either building our lives on the reality of what God is truly like and what he's about, or we're basing our lives on our own imagination and misconceptions... We're all theologians. The question is whether what we know about God is true." (Joshua Harris, Dug Down Deep, p. 3)

Thoughts on a Rapper's life, love, and unlikely redemption.

If you like/love Run DMC you must listen to this.

If you like/love Sarah Mclachlan you must listen to this.

If your life has been touched in any way by adoption, you definitely must listen to this.

Rap star Darryl ‘DMC’ McDaniels from the groundbreaking rap group Run DMC tells a fascinating, hilarious and touching story about singer/songwriter Sarah Mclachlan saving him from suicide.

While on tour in Europe during a reflective "what's it all about" "why am i here?" period. During this time he began struggling with impulsive and consistent suicidal thoughts. It was at this time heard the song "angle" by McLachlan. Something in him called to him that life was worth living. He ran to the music store and got all things McLachlan. Beginning an obsession with her music that would last for years. He clammed that the songs spoke to him and inspired him to want to live. DMC later found out that he was adopted and the pieces of his forlorn heart began to reshape. McLachlan and DMC ended up making a song together about his journey. He ends his story with McLachlan own revelation as she tells him she was adopted as well.

The whole story with all it's twists and turns is really pretty amazing. The threads of redemption run through the whole of his story. Rappers are modern storytellers, the best on par with homer and Wordsworth. I now have a whole new level of respect for Mr. McDaniels and his hilarious and brutally honest storytelling abilities.

His story reminds me of the truth that the human heart has longings deeper than this reality. We all have orphaned hearts and through a song or story we feel the longing for purpose, for life, for more. Often through other adopted souls we connect to the life we so deeply thirst for and are given grace for the moment.

His story also reminded me of the joy of friendship. Sometimes in times of need we find in others a harmony intangible but unrelenting. Heaven draws us high, away from destructive forces and into the purity of well worn paths. We experience friendship only to find commonalities linking us in places of our deepest and most hidden truths. Truths that define us and remind us why we are alive.

Hear him tell at the moth pod cast from NPR - 01-Darryl-_DMC_-McDaniels_-Angel.mp3

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Loosing my religion

A Facebook friend requested myself,( and many others) to meditate on a text from the book of Hebrews. The reflections for me blossomed
way beyond a little blurb.

Hebrews 13:9-16
9 Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them. 10 We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. 11 For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy places by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp.12 So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood.

13 Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. 14 For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.

15 Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. 16 Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

Interpretation of Hebrews 13:9-16
The writer is contrasting aspects of the jewish sacrificial system and over all religious system with Jesus, making applications at particular points along the way. In short, Jesus is better than the old system, with its legalism and ritualism. They are to come out from all fleshy formalism, and mere ritualistic external "going thought the movements" worship (personified by the city of Jerusalem) that lacks heart felt intentions and hope filled vision through the worship of Jesus.

What is a southern boy to do?

Answer: Walk out on religion.. and into Jesus.

It is often a messy brake up but it must be done. Religion is no good for a Christian. Christianity is a relationship with God through Jesus not a save yourself religion of rules and heartless actions. Anytime a human seeks to win God's approval or smooth over his anger with some religious activities and profanatory worship we commit a deeper sin more deceptive and deadly than the ones we attempt to atone.

Application: How we walk away from religion.

1. Say good bye to legalism - Heb. 13:9–11
The concern appears to be doctrines about foods. They where splitting hairs over the dietary laws and temple sacrifices. The writers argument is basically 1. Such legalism is opposite to grace. 2. Where the spiritual benefit in such legalism. 3. the Christian altar is better than the food of the tabernacle. Unlike most OT offerings, the sin offering from the Day of Atonement could not be eaten by the tabernacle priests. It was burned outside the camp. However, all Christians partake of the Christian altar (Jesus' sacrifice). Jesus went to the place of sacrificial animals. Jesus' sufferings and death render his people holy. The food of the tabernacle makes no one holy. But to the legalists such food debates where central for they majored on the minor and obsessed over the obscure. Legalism takes many forms, the form behind the text in hebrews is called majoring on the minors legalism. The legalists fueled by their Jewish traditions, confused by obsessive thinking and driven by their legalistic assumptions lost sight of Christ and missed the point of the whole system; to wittiness to Christ. In short: don't do that! We must always keep the main thing the main thing ( 1 Cor 15:1-4). Keep the gospel central and center yourself in the gospel.

2. Say good bye to seeking the approval of others. V 12-13
The writer uses the idea of outside the camp in a metaphorical way to speaks of leaving behind the pesky desire for the approval of other. Seeking first the approval of God by embracing the reproach of Christ, emulating Jesus' response to his shameful sufferings (see Heb 12:2–3). We are to be committed to the cause in life until death, with our eyes fixed on Jesus and no one else.

3. Say hello to hope that fills us with life (v.14).
The power to live is not the will to power but the hope of faith. We are to look beyond this world, with it's "save yourself" check list systems of religion and the self-help theories of righteousness and find the power to live in the hope of a sure home. When the writer speaks of the city that is to come (v.14) it is an application and allusion to the Abraham's ability to let hope be his vision. (see Heb 11:9-10, 14–16). Christian endurance is founded on a realization that this world is a mere temporary dwelling we are on journey toward the eternal home. to the degree we see and long for our sure home is the degree we can endure the tribulations in this life.

4. Say hello to thankful service (v.15-16)
The writer describes three sacrifices we as priest of the new convent are to offer God. 1. Praise, 2. doing good, and 3. being a giver. These sacrifices minister to God. Our lifestyle is a ministers to the heart of God. We make God smile like a proud papa when we offering honest thankful praise to Jesus (Jesus revealed God's name, see John 17:6, 26). When we praise Jesus, the Father smiles and says something like, "that my child!" So, praising Jesus, doing good and being a giver (not a taker or hoarder) ministers to God. We touch his heart, not by jumping through religious hoops (like not missing sunday school) or doing special rituals (like a summer mission trip). Our lifestyle is not motivated by fear of punishment, or the guilt of obligation. Our life is motivated by the freedom of grace and the sure reality of redemption. We live thankful for jesus did it all for us. So we Praise Jesus in word and deed. We do good to all regardless of their actions to us. We are to be radical givers of ourselves, and our resources.

Three priestly functions apply named sacrifices for they all take guts. But think of their effect (v16) They please the one who made the universe. God looked at his creation in its newness and called it good. He looks at our sacrifices as mixed and impure as they are and he smiles for his heart is pleased. How is this? Our sacrifices unlike the jewish system are not payment for sin but a response to the sin bearing sacrifice of Jesus. We let our sacrifices rise from the "thank you" redemption has sown into our hearts and he is pleased. By them "through jesus" (v15) we can make God's heart jump for joy, like a proud parent smiles with pleasure at the fumbling of a child learning to walk so God response to us. We don't have to be perfect. We will fall and fumble but because it is "through Jesus" we will not fail to warm his heart.



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God of our Valleys and our Mountains

Visual aid - [a large 3” rope with multiple knots ]

Intro.

This sermon rises from the battles and joys, my wife and I have recently experienced and are still walking out. So I preach more to myself than anything. Today, we will look at how God is in control of all the turns and twists in the knots of life. We look at how he uses them for our good and his glory. We will look at what he requires of us. We will look at four passages of Scripture to get a grasp on what God is doing when life gets tied in knots.

Outline - Five points on faith: 1.) The peaks and valleys of faith, 2.) The Place of faith, 3.) A Person of faith, 4.) A Picture of faith, 5.) The Promise of faith

Let's pray! (prayer)

I have learned - Life can be like a battle.

The battles we face are often intense times of weakness, distress, and confusion; The low points of our life. Yet God is with us during difficulties. In fact, these valleys are often as much the plan of God as our mountaintop experiences. We all need to hear the truth; Christ is God of more than just the mountains.

1.) The peaks and valleys of faith

GOD of more than just the mountains

1 kings 20 speaks plainly to this truth. Israel had recently defeated the Syrians in a mountain battle. In 1 Kings 20:22-23 we read:

22 Then the prophet came near to the king of Israel and said to him, "Come, strengthen yourself, and consider well what you have to do, for in the spring the king of Syria will come up against you." 23 And the servants of the king of Syria said to him, "Their gods are gods of the hills, and so they were stronger than we. But let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they.-

The enemy said that the God of Israel was a god of the mountains, but if they fought the Jews in the valleys they would defeat them. We read in verse 28:

28 And a man of God came near and said to the king of Israel, "Thus says the LORD, 'Because the Syrians have said, "The LORD is a god of the hills but he is not a god of the valleys," therefore I will give all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the LORD.'"

APP: No matter what the enemy tries to tell you, Christ is God of the mountains and God of the valleys. He has not stopped being God because you happen to be in a valley. In and through all things He is our God, in the valley and on the mountain. In your life, is God, just the God of the mountain or is he also the God of your valleys? Faith is easy on the mountain but we often need to be reminded God is in control in the valleys as well.

A. God has different purposes for each place.

Mountains and valleys in contrast

a.) When we are on the "mountaintops", we can see our future clearly. We have perspective and confidence.

ILL: my experience of being on the Macedonian Mountain top: the beauty of the view and how far you could see. On top of the mountain was a giant steal cross, from the mountain top experience of redemption we see life with greater clarity.

b.) When we are in one of life's valleys, our vision is limited and our future seems hidden. Yet valleys are also the most fertile places on earth. Valleys produce fruitfulness. The mountain is not the place you plant crops. You don't farm on a mountain top, you farm in the valley.

ILL: The Macedonian Mountain overlooked the city of Skopje. The mountain was great but life was in the valley. You could see the city far below. Cars like ants moved through vein like roads making the city sparkle and teem with the signs of life.

APP: Whether we are experiencing the height of success, blessing and power or are in a valley of weakness and despair, the Lord is our God continually, in the valleys and the mountains.

2.) The Place of faith

Our hearts are made for the valleys.

In psalms 84, the psalmist writes on the journey of every human heart.

5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion. 6 As they go through the Valley of Baca they make it a place of springs; -Psalm 84:5-6

A few observations
• God has placed in our hearts "highways to Zion," - meaning God places in man's heart by His Holy Spirit, a desire to Worship The Holy One. Placed within every believer is an eternal longing in our hearts for God. It is a holy longing - a desire never satisfied on this side of heaven. Hope burning bright with hunger and longing for the object our hope is turned towards - the Living God. This heart highway is an O.T. picture of a regenerated heart of faith.

• Hearts will go through the valley of Baca. Baca means "weeping." Each of us has times of weeping when our hearts and hopes seem crushed. But we pass through valleys; we do not live in them.

• God redeems our valleys and makes them springs. We All will "Pass through the valley of Baca..." Once we are on the other side of weeping, God makes our valley experience into "a spring." The very things that overwhelmed us will, in time, refresh us with new life. Remember, God never waists our pain.

APP: Do not forget, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Even the hairs on your head are numbered. He cares. God never waits our pain. It is His love for us that redeems our hardships and not only brings good out of what was meant for evil, but also trains us to deliver others.

3.) The Person of faith

Jesus is our object of faith:

Turn to Hebrews 5:7-9, it reads:

7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. 8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. 9 And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, - Hebrews 5:7-9

The writer of Hebrews reminds us that even Jesus had to go through valleys. He lived a sin-less life but it was not without suffering. Part of His training involved suffering. Yet His suffering was the Father's means of acquainting Him with the actual feelings of mankind's need and pain. Because He suffered what we suffer, He is able to serve as a faithful high priest.

APP: Hard times are hard! Jesus understands our suffering - he has walked the same valleys. We have a Savior who understands. This makes trusting faith much easier for we trust a Savior who can say to us the honest word, “I understand, I have been there too.” We place our faith in someone who has been there and understands the process.

If we trust Him and yield to God's plan for Christ to be formed in us, (Rom 8:29) God will take our sorrows and enlarge our hearts to contain the glory of heaven. Once we have been acquainted with grief, and taught by that grief, we will then walk in Jesus-like compassion to help others in their grief. We only need to learn to yield to grace and trust God is making us more like Jesus.

4.) A Picture of faith

A picture of yielding: The life of Joseph

Joseph's life is a pattern for many who have had a genuine call from God. When Joseph was young, he was given a dream of God's plan for him. (mountain) Joseph was betrayed by his brothers, thrown in a pit (valley) sold into slavery then rose to prominence from slavery in Potiphar's house. (Mountain) He was unjustly accused by that hussy, known as Potiphar's wife. He was imprisoned and forgotten by all except God. (valley)

God patiently watched and measured Joseph's responses to difficulty. Joseph knew God was in charge of the valleys as well as the mountains. Rich or poor, blessed or smitten, Joseph served God.

The Lord suddenly connected all the loose ends of Joseph's life. Everything that Joseph went through would have seemed cruel and unfair except that the Lord was shaping a man for His purpose.

APP: Our walk with God may also have begun with Big dreams and clear visions where God wants to take us. Yet we fail to be able to see how His promises will come to pass in our lives. God uses everything we go through for future purposes that He alone sees. We do not see His ultimate plan while we are in the valley. We must remember the vision, keeping faith in what God has promised.

5.) The Promise of faith

Joseph's retrospect look - a promise of hope in every valley.

Scripture tells us that during the birth of his children, Joseph took a moment to look back at his journey. The names that came from his retrospective are telling of what God did for Joseph.

"Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, 'For,' he said, 'God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household'" (Genesis 41:51). God caused Joseph to forget the difficulty and pain of his life.

APP: There is something wonderful about the Lord's capacity to cause all things to work for good. With Jesus in our lives, a time ultimately comes when God causes us to forget all the troubles of the past.

"He named the second Ephraim, 'For,' he said, 'God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction'" (Genesis 41:52). God made him fruitful in the very things that afflicted him.

APP: In the land of your affliction, in your battle, is the place where God will make you fruitful.

Consider your area of greatest affliction.

• In that area God will make you fruitful in such a way that your heart will be fully satisfied and God's heart fully glorified.

• the Lord will touch many others with the substance of what you have gained.

• God has not promised to keep us from valleys and sufferings, but He has promised to make us fruitful in them.

Without a doubt we each will pass through valleys, our hearts are made for them. Remember, As we remain faithful to Him in trials, the character and nature of Jesus will be formed in us. Christ will be revealed to those around us. This is his plan God intends to make your life the Spring others gain strength from as they traverse their own valleys.

We have hope for our God is the God of the mountains and the valley

SEAM REDEEMED

SEAM REDEEMED: Welcome to the Church of What Not to Wear
by Karen Swallow Prior

No, I’m not talking about the get-ups of the folks gathered at the summer tent revival held behind the used car lot. I’m talking about the phenomenon of The Learning Channel’s What Not to Wear. (Full disclosure: I am one of the faithful.)

In case you’ve been living under a rock or don’t get cable, What Not to Wear (based on a British show of the same name) is an hour-long “reality show” in which one of the fashion-fallen among us is secretly nominated by a concerned loved one, filmed surreptitiously for two weeks, then accosted by the show’s two hosts and fashion experts, Clinton Kelly and Stacy London. In exchange for a $5,000 shopping spree, the nominee must agree to surrender her old wardrobe and submit to a litany of fashion rules set by London and Kelly.

Behind the show’s long-running success (the US version has been on the air since 2003) is a formula as old as story itself, a pattern that includes the elements of any well-told story, as well as the one ingredient essential to any great story: redemption.

The True Quest

The protagonist of each What Not to Wear narrative is a reluctant heroine facing numerous obstacles in what superficially appears to be a rather shallow quest: to spend $5,000 on a new wardrobe that adheres to the new style rules. As with every quest, antagonists abound: the person who nominated the subject for the show (a friend, co-worker, or family member); the show’s benevolent but stern hosts London and Kelly; and the scissors-wielding and lipstick-bearing hair and make-up artists responsible for the final touches in the heroine’s transformation.

In any great story, however, the real quest turns out to be something altogether different from the ostensible one, something deeper and far more significant. In the Arthurian legends, for example, the quest for the Holy Grail is actually a quest for kinship in the face of all that threatens the community of the Round Table; in Great Expectations, Pip’s quest to become a gentleman according to his false definition becomes instead a quest to become a true gentleman; in Fight Club, the unnamed narrator’s quest to overcome depression and insomnia is really a quest for a unified sense of self in a depersonalized, commodified society. You get the idea. Likewise, in every episode of What Not to Wear, the true quest for the heroine always turns out to be much more than the merely sartorial.

In each segment, the central conflict ultimately is not with the show’s hosts, the conspiratorial nominator, or even the subject’s requisite battle with her (or his, but usually her) own physical imperfections, be they great or small. Rather, the true struggle is always the inner one. In episode after episode, the subject’s refusal to dress appropriately or attractively (or both) is rooted deep in the psyche and not in the surface-level external circumstances, be these financial distress, work challenges, parental responsibilities, or other personal difficulties.

Inner Battles

The documentary style of the show includes snippets of the subject’s thoughts at each stage of the makeover, and these invariably move through the same emotional arc: from nervous anticipation, to annoyance with London and Kelly and doubt over the new “rules,” to the inevitable breakthrough—that moment when the proselyte confronts (often tearfully) her real issue, be it low self-esteem, self-loathing, or the fear of growing up and accepting a real woman’s body. The battle against the body always turns out to be merely a cover for the battle against inner demons.

The following are typical of the battles faced on episodes of TLC’s What Not to Wear:

• Bailey is a 32-year-old who “recently lost 60 pounds but still hasn’t accepted her new body.”
• Teresa “never felt beautiful” and “chose comfort over style, with sack dresses and oversized tops.”
• Disa “was in a mid-life style crisis” and had “been looking for the fountain of youth in her tween daughter’s closet, often wearing bright-colored jumpers, striped leggings and silly hats” as a walking fashion “playground.”
• Tamara is “a single mom who knew only one word when it came to style: sexy. Her wardrobe went from unflattering and clingy at work to skin tight and almost uncovered at night!”
• Lexa is “a 30-year-old Red Cross employee” and “one of the biggest challenges London and Kelly ever faced. Her ‘librarian meets French maid’ style had gotten her written up at work.”

The “after” state of Lexa—achieved, according to the website, once “London and Kelly helped her overcome her abrasive and defensive attitude and achieve a true life change”—exemplifies the total transformation that typifies each show. And “total” refers not simply to the addition of hair and makeup improvements to the new wardrobe, but rather to an inner, as well as outer, change.

Clothes Matter

Of course, every good story has a significant theme. And the show’s theme—that clothes matter—is also what makes the show work. For whatever else they might be or represent, clothes serve as a constant reminder of humanity’s need, as explained in the Judeo-Christian tradition, arising out of the Fall, to have our sin “covered.” We see this in what Genesis relates as God’s first act in response to Adam and Eve’s disobedience.



Clothes, in covering us, symbolize the greater “covering” provided by the Incarnate Christ, in the Christian view. Thus, regeneration is incarnational. In What Not to Wear, this sacramental view of clothing is implicit in the dramatic changes wrought in the subject inwardly as she undergoes the external transformation. The (literal) material reflects the spiritual.

In addressing both the outward sign and the inward state that sensible sign reflects, What Not to Wear confronts—perhaps unwittingly—the false dualism between the spiritual and the physical, which characterizes modernity. Given this reunion of the material and spiritual that forms the entire premise of the show, it is not surprising that the show’s narrative structure parallels that of religious conversion.

Steps to Conversion

As always, the first step toward redemption is recognition of one’s fallenness. On What Not to Wear this recognition of one’s crimes of fashion begins with a surprise appearance by London and Kelly, who confront the style sinner with the damning footage taken of her in secret over the preceding two weeks. During this encounter, the subject is surrounded, intervention style, by the nominator and other concerned parties.

Once the nominee submits, usually reluctantly, to the rules of the show and is whisked off to NYC under the care of London and Kelly, she faces an even more grueling confrontation: the infamous 360-degree mirror. Surrounded by mirrors, she views herself from every angle, clothed in the favorite outfits of her choice, the failures of which are mercilessly pointed out by London and Kelly’s hellfire and brimstone approach to fashion foibles. Their brutal honesty (along with generous doses of delicious sarcasm) is the most controversial part of the show; it’s what makes most people love it or hate it (for the record, I love it!). As in most stories of redemption, recognition of the need for change tends to come slowly rather than quickly, and the well-coutured London and Kelly can’t be blamed for their zeal in evangelizing the style heathens.

Once she has broken through her denial, and her old wardrobe has been symbolically trashed (the clothes are actually donated to charity), the novice is catechized on the new rules that are to govern her two-day shopping spree (and, ostensibly, the rest of her life). As stern as these commandments might seem, it is clear from watching numerous episodes that London and Kelly develop custom rules for each woman based not only on what will be physically flattering but also on what fits her personality, taste, and lifestyle. This is no one-size-fits-all approach (with perhaps the single exception of their fetish for pointy-toed shoes), but rather a tailor-made approach for each catechumen, one based on her uniqueness as a whole person.

Generally, it is not until the second day of the shopping spree that true repentance begins to emerge (as much the result of sheer physical and emotional exhaustion as anything else), usually with a bit more intervention from London and Kelly. Once the shopping is finished and the $5,000 is spent (with a lot of help from London and Kelly), the final steps of conversion take place under the care of the hair stylist and makeup artist.

Final Step & Follow-Up

The climax of each show is the Big Reveal at the end. Before offering a sometimes-tearful goodbye to London and Kelly and returning home, the convert appears before them in a trinity of outfits for three types of occasions. At this point, the conversion is dramatically evident. Redemption has occurred: The female Peter Pan has grown up; the harried mother has taken time for herself; the sleazy strumpet has acquired some class; or the angry punk-rocker has embraced her softer side.

The convert is now ready to go home for the final step in her regeneration: the baptism by which she emerges as a new creature before family and friends at a gala held in her in honor. There, before the great cloud of witnesses made possible by cable television, hugs abound, tears flow, and loved ones share before the camera their joy at witnessing the rebirth.

In its first years, the show ended at this point. But just as religious revivalists have come to understand that follow-up is as important as the altar call, so has What Not to Wear added updates to the end of the show, displaying the perseverance of the fashion saint in embracing, yes, her new look, but more importantly, her new sense of self.

Even the most frivolous forms of entertainment teach something. What Not to Wear demonstrates that true regeneration involves body and soul. Only materialists or Gnostics would disagree.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Inspiration in the key of awesome

<br/><a href="http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/miracles-musical-mash-up/20gxob94?q=Michael+Jackson&rel=msn&from=en-us_msnhp&form=msnrll&gt1=42007&src=v5:embed:&fg=sharenoembed" target="_new"title="'Miracles' musical mash-up">Video: 'Miracles' musical mash-up</a>

Song on Miracles that leads me to smile and enjoy the beauty of life and truth and all things hopeful.... See a beautifully produced music video mash-up with artists from several genres blended into one song, "Miracles."

marriage and the call for redemptive leadership

I have been thinking a lot about test God puts in the path of a marriage. My thoughts brought me back to a man i greatly admire and I draw strength from his testimony. May his story do the same for you. The except below is from my thesis on marriage.

Historical Example of a Marriage Marked by the Intellectual Attributes

A marriage centered on God and His attributes is a marriage that functions well in adversity. The wisdom of God rules the heart, the truthfulness of God stabilizes it, and God’s knowledge of man and his destiny secures it, in His love.

A newlywed couple was walking in the German Harz Mountains enjoying the scenery, but they did not realize until it was too late that a storm was fast approaching. Surrounded by lightening and thunder, the bride was overcome with fear. Though the two made it home safely, the bride suffered a nervous breakdown which left her frail and an invalid for the rest of her life.

The woman’s name was Annie Warfield. She was the wife of theologian Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, who was considered one of American’s top theologians at the time. He studied under Charles Hodge at Princeton Seminary and was a Professor at Princeton until his death in 1921. Annie and Benjamin were married August 13, 1876. Soon after they traveled to Europe so Benjamin could study there. The two had their faithful encounter with the violent storm just before Benajmin began his studies.

Annie never fully recovered. In her last years, Annie was bedridden and in need of constant attention. Warfield became her primary care giver, and he faithfully nursed her for more than 40 years of marriage. Students and friends noted the tender care he showed his wife during the rare times they were out in public. In the later years, Benjamin did not leave her side for more than two hours at a time, leaving only to do lecture before rushing back home to her aid.

Amazingly, he did not neglect his duties at Princeton. He was an author, and he was a mentor to many of his pupils. J. Gresham Machen stated that Warfield “had done about as much work as ten ordinary men.” Yet, sacrifices were required. Warfield was a man of considerable talent who could command a great influence over the church at large, but he had the wisdom to see that his primary task was to tend to his house and wife. He gave up fame out of love and chose the bedside over the prominence of the pulpit. It is no doubt why one pupil wrote, “I am more and more impressed with him; he is certainly one of the very biggest men in the Church either in this country or any other.”

Before he was a theologian and a husband, Warfield was a great lover of God. He understood the nature of God as wise and truthful. He trusted in the sovereignty of God. The sure footing with which his marriage held is surely a witness to Warfield’s belief in God’s wisdom and knowledge over all circumstances. It was his abiding understanding of God’s nature that made the doldrums of suffering in his marriage; resound with the melody of redemptive leadership. He saw his God given place to be a husband and remained by his wife’s side even when putting her away could have been justified even in the formal and rather Victorian setting in which he lived. God and Warfield's knowledge of him strengthened and girded up his soul to bear the weight of such a glory (Rom 8:17-18). His witness shimmered with the brilliance of this glory, a glory born of suffering; eerily reminiscent of the cross and beautifully emblematic of Redemptive love.