by Lon on September 21, 2009
Since the U2 concert last week I’ve been revisiting my love of music in general. I haven’t really listened to the radio in years, and have opted for books and talks during my winding down time.
While I still find it hard to sit down and do nothing but listen to music, there’s still something beautiful about just catching a great riff or a powerful lyric.
I’ve decided I’m going to do a series of posts on some of my personal U2 highlights. I know volumes of books and blogs have already been written on them, but amuse me, won’t you? I’m not sure how long this will go for, or if I’ll move on to some other band/artist. But they’ll do for now.
One lyric that’s stuck with me from the recent album is in the song Stand up Comedy. A friend and I were having lunch a few months back and started talking about the album, and this one same line came to both of our minds.
“be careful Of small men with big ideas”
The interesting thing is we had completely different impressions of the verse. I shared about how it echoed one of my fears of being a person with great visions and weak in character. My buddy Zaya (who’s actually written a few guest posts here) shared about the hope of having powerful ideas even if you’re low on the ladder.
I wonder if the discrepancy had anything to do with our cultural narratives? Myself being Asian, known for mass-production and corner cutting. And Zaya being shaped by an African oppression narrative? I’m not sure, but like the Scriptures, there’s something mysterious when what you’re examining starts looking back at you.
A couple weeks ago I wrote a guest blog at Aaron Havens site, it was in response to the question he asked:
Is there such thing as a “Christian lifestyle” ?
I have a hard time with the word ‘Christian’ these days, partially because the term has been so thoroughly abused by its adherents. I also believe, ‘Christian’, in it’s most authentic sense refers to people. Music, bookstores, and even lifestyles weren’t made to be “Christian”, that’s just our spin on them.
Sometimes we want there to be a Christian lifestyle so we have a bar by which to measure our own lifestyles. Other times we assume our lifestyle is the Christian lifestyle, and wonder why others aren’t conforming and becoming more like us. How unbelievably boring this would world be, if that were true!
On a deeper, more personal level, I use to search for a Christian lifestyle, because I was insecure of my own. I couldn’t believe that my characteristics, my personality, my preferences could actually in any way be honorable to God (leading me to box away my smashing pumpkins and radiohead cd’s for a couple years).
Then there are those of us who long to be relevant and missional doing all things possible to reach the culture for Christ (I often fall in this camp, 1 Cor 9:19-23). I wonder if we sometimes go overboard adapting to culture, leaving Christ behind. When we look out at the culture that surrounds, sometimes we try to follow every trend, or ‘target group’, and be more skater, geek, punk, jock, gangsta, monastic, emo, prep, hippy, goth, etc… Instead, I believe there is a Kingdom culture, or a cross-culture, by which we are to live out within all of that.
The genius of the kingdom is that it transcends any particular lifestyle. It’s simply a life that seeks to honor the King. This life is most stylish, and extraordinary, and distinct, when it is the life that God uniquely intended you to live and enjoy.
Of course there are plenty of beautiful characteristics and values that we are all to allow Christ to form in every one of us (love, joy, humility, etc.). But besides these typical traits, when I look at the life of Jesus I see ’style’… Jesus was provocative, Jesus was hilarious, Jesus was shy, Jesus was audacious, Jesus was poetic, Jesus enjoyed reclining, Jesus seemed to really dig fish, and he might even have a thing for tattoos.
Is every Christian suppose to imitate the exact same ‘lifestyle’? I’m not so sure. But I do know followers of Jesus should be full of life and have plenty of style.
by Lon on February 29, 2008
For our date night yesterday we went to see U2 3D. It was great to be able to do nothing else for 80 minutes but appreciate their music (that and watch four sweaty old men prance no stage).
I’m glad they played some of their older stuff, but they’ve just got too many good tunes to really play all in one concert. The most spiritually intriguing part was where Bono chants
Jesus, Jew, Muhammad, it’s true…
All sons of Abraham.
Father Abraham, speak to your sons.
Tell them, No more!
Here’s us looking cool in our 3d shades
by Lon on February 4, 2008
