Adventures in Living: by Jason Salamun

Let’s be honest. Bob Dylan is not the greatest vocalist in the world.  Yet he is a musical legend.  Why?

He is a talented poet and songwriter for sure, but he could’ve just been that, a writer. Instead, he is a performer who has sold millions of albums and filled venues around the world.

What he has is the ingredient that’s missing in so many artists, speakers, leaders, writers, programs, organizations, and even churches.

He has heart.

He has soul.

He has guts.

When he sings, you believe he’s coming from a real place.

You overlook the fact that he and his voice never would’ve made it past an American Idol audition. Why? Because you know what he’s singing is something he truly believes in or has actually experienced.

When I’m listening to a musical artist, watching a film, reading a book, learning from a speaker, buying a product, or joining a movement, I’m willing to overlook a number of shortcomings if they have heart, soul, and guts moving in the right direction. Not some shallow, manufactured formula that’s spit out of a software program, how-to book, or boardroom.

As a pastor of a new church, I know there are a number of things I, and we, could do better. But if nothing else, I want those who have an encounter with us to at least say, “they are real, they genuinely care, and they sincerely believe in joining God in his mission in the world.”

Your challenge and mine is to do what we do with heart, soul, and guts.

This doesn’t excuse doing our best, but it also doesn’t excuse going through life without life!

As G.K. Chesterton wrote, “A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it.”

No more cookie cutters, templates, and mediocrity!

Instead, be alive! Be real! Be you!

Be who you were created to be!

When I was a single bachelor, I used to poke fun at songs like, “Butterfly Kisses.”  Now, as a dad of a son and a daughter, tunes like that hit me harder than a Rashad Evans kick to the head.

I’ve put together a playlist that is sure to make even the toughest of men tap out in tears…at least on the inside.

Tough Little Boys – Gary Allan
She Crawls Away  - Hootie & the Blowfish
Beautiful Boy – John Lennon
Just the Two of Us – Will Smith
Then They Do – Trace Adkins
Father and Daughter – Paul Simon
Isn’t She Lovely? – Stevie Wonder
Lullabye (Goodnight My Angel) – Billy Joel
Best Day of My Life – George Strait
Father and Son – Cat Stevens
With Arms Wide Open – Creed
There Goes My Life – Kenny Chesney
That’s My Job – Conway Twitty
Dance with My Father – Luther Vandross
I Think About You – Colin Raye
Sometimes You Can’t Make it on Your Own – U2
My Little Girl – Tim McGraw
Landslide – Fleetwood Mac
Watercolor Ponies – Wayne Watson
Butterfly Kisses – Bob Carlisle

What would you add?

“Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!”

That was the sound we were greeted to when we arrived at the movie theater where our church meets. During the course of our gathering, we had a bird flying through the lobby, a bird flying over the theater seats ready to drop bombs, and three baby birds drop from the ceiling onto the stage where I was preaching.

Crazy.

Somehow, these birds found a home and today, the birds revolted against the humans who dared intrude upon their space.  Fortunately, we had a seasoned pro in our midst. A first-timer in fact, who handled the baby birds and made sure they were properly removed. He immediately earned the nickname, “The Birdman.”

Again, crazy.

I’m pretty sure I was the only preacher in America who had baby birds falling around him on stage. The amazing part, after all of this craziness, three people began a relationship with Jesus during our gathering. How about that?

But that’s the way it goes in church planting, and in life.

Sometimes, it’s the crazy events that lead to something amazing.

Facebook is changing its privacy settings and that’s causing many to consider deleting their account.

I love The Moth podcast.

Andrew Jones (Tall Skinny Kiwi) wonders if God sent Jamie Oliver to the Southern Baptists. Make sure you read the comments section too.

Skye Jethani on legitimacy.

Dan Pink reveals new insight on how to motivate people.

J.R. Briggs ponders on practicing Sabbath.

Pete Wilson writes on measuring growth in times of crises.

7 pitching grips every guy should know from Art of Manliness.

Tim Challies has a fun game called, “Joel Osteen or a Fortune Cookie.”

I’m digging Abraham Piper’s short story blog, Downhill Both Ways.

Christian Nightmares. Enough said.

My friend and former classmate, Brian Hunt, wrote an encouraging and very pastoral post in the wake of a old classmate who took his life.

Finally, Donald Trump proves his hair is the real deal in this video.

On Origins
“The sweetest thing in all my life has been the longing — to reach the Mountain, to find the place where all the beauty came from — my country, the place where I ought to have been born.”

On Friendship
“Friendship arises out of mere companionship when two or more of the companions discover that they have in common some insight or interest or even taste which the others do not share and which, till that moment, each believed to be his own unique treasure (or burden). The typical expression of opening Friendship would be something like, “What? You too? I thought I was the only one.”

On Being Made New
“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of — throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.”

On Existence of God
“My argument against God was that the universe seemed so cruel and unjust. But how had I got this idea of just and unjust? A man does not call a line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line. What was I comparing this universe with when I called it unjust?”

On Freedom
“Of course God knew what would happen if they used their freedom the wrong way: apparently He thought it worth the risk.”

On Suffering
“God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

On Desire
“Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”

On Action
“Enough had been thought, and said, and felt, and imagined. It was about time that something should be done.”

On God’s Supremacy
“But then again of course I know perfectly well that He can’t be used as a road. If you’re approaching Him not as the goal but as a road, not as the end but as a means, you’re not really approaching Him at all.”

On Stupid Questions
“Can a mortal ask questions which God finds unanswerable? Quite easily, I should think. All nonsense questions are unanswerable. How many hours are there in a mile? Is yellow square or round?”

I’m a music lover who enjoys a wide variety of tunes and one of my favorite genres is outlaw country.

I grew up in west Texas listening to “Waylon and Willie and the Boys” and my fondness has only grown over the years.  The honest lyrics, the gritty vocals, the simple melodies, the “against the grain” mentality, all of it’s a blend of outlaw goodness.

Here’s a list of some of the best outlaw country songs.  Consider it a starter kit and enjoy.

Highwayman – The Highwaymen
Drift Away – Waylon Jennings
Folsom Prison Blues – Johnny Cash
Pancho and Lefty – Merle Haggard & Willie Nelson
The Ride – David Allan Coe
Copperhead Road – Steve Earle
Bob – Drive-By Truckers
Why Me – Kris Kristofferson
Luckenbach, Texas – Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson
Family Tradition – Hank Williams, Jr.
The Fightin’ Side of Me – Merle Haggard
She’s All I Got – Johnny Paycheck
Can’t You See – Marshall Tucker Band
Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain – Willie Nelson
A Boy Named Sue – Johnny Cash
Midnight Rider – The Allman Brothers
Feed Jake – Pirates of the Mississippi
Mama Tried – Merle Haggard
The Conversation – Waylon Jennings & Hank Williams, Jr.
Man in Black – Johnny Cash
America – Waylon Jennings
Cocaine Blues – Johnny Cash
Guitar Town – Steve Earle
Good Ol’ Boys (Dukes of Hazzard theme) – Waylon Jennings
Live Forever – The Highwaymen

Anything you’d add to the list?

Fascinating video on social media packed full of interesting statistics. Did you know 50% of the world’s population are under the age of 30?

(HT: Jake)

The documentary Young @ Heart performs Coldplay’s “Fix You.”  Very powerful. (HT: J.R. Briggs)

Must Read: Writing a Storyline, An Alternative to the Mission Statement by Donald Miller. Someday, I hope to call him Don.

A satirical look at “contemporary” worship services.

Really enjoying, “Untamed” by Alan & Deb Hirsch.

This is Nashville by Shaun Groves. A call to action with perspective.

Garden to City looks like a killer project. (HT: Jon Tyson)

The History of the “Dude.” (HT: Noel Heikkinen)

Comedy Central is developing a Jesus cartoon. I don’t see this going well.

JR “The Dream Awakener” Woodward announced an Unconference in Denver in June. I’ll be there.

If you’re into music, you’ll dig Daytrotter. I always discover something amazing there.

DATE
Friday, June 11 -  7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 12 – 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

PLACE
New Denver Church, 700 Bonnie Brae Blvd., Denver CO

HOST
The Ecclesia Network

COST
Free

RSVP
Please RSVP for this event on facebook, so we have a sense of who is coming.  Invite your friends through facebook and other means, especially those living in the Denver area.

NATURE OF EVENT
We will be thinking imaginatively about the future of the church with others in an open-source gift economy way. The next BIG idea is about giving time to interact about innovative ways to partner with God in the renewal of all things. UNconference is about freely sharing creative ideas with one another without putting anyone on a pedestal. It is more participant oriented than personality driven.  You will hear from practitioners who are on the front lines. There is also no cost, because people are sharing their gifts and knowledge freely.

TOPIC
During our short time together, there will be 14 innovative speakers from 14 different churches each sharing for 14-minutes on innovative ways to think and live missionally. More details on the speakers and topics to come!

I’m excited to be among those sharing and to learn from others.  It should be a super event. Join us!

According to my dad, when I was a little toddler I would shake my bootie to the song “Here Comes the Sun” by The Beatles.

Not much has changed actually. I still dig that song and will occassionally shake it when I listen to it. When I was little, it was the catchy, happy music that hooked me. Now that I’m older, I’ve come to appreciate the message of the song- hope.

Hope is a curious thing.

Hope is about possibility. It’s the sunrise after a dark night. It’s the light at the end of the tunnel. It’s the belief that things get better. It’s notion that we’re never too far or too late to live the lives we were meant to live. It’s what drives us to press on.

Hope is why we have dreams, finish lines, goals, missions, and purposes. It’s the fuel that propels our lives forward.

Have you ever felt like you lost hope? Have you ever known someone who has? It’s tragic. If we lose our hope we essentially lose our will to live.

If you’re at the end of your rope and feel hopeless, the good news is…there’s still hope.

The key is to place our hope in something real, something true, something certain, something beyond ourselves. You see, it’s not about what we place our hope on- it’s about who we put our hope in.

The truth is this: You’re never too far and it’s never too late. Hope always remains for you.

And his name is Jesus.

Further Reading: Bible Verses on Hope