Superman and Seatbelts

I was reading Peggy Noonan's Wall Street Journal column the other day when she recounted a story about Muhammad Ali. Here is an excerpt from the article, Brace Ourselves:

Tuesday I talked to people who support a Catholic college. I said a great stress is here and coming, and people are going to be reminded of what's important, and the greatest of these will be our faith, it's what is going to hold us together as a country. As for each of us individually, I think it's like the old story told about Muhammad Ali. It was back in the 1960s and Mr. Ali, who was still Cassius Clay, was a rising star of boxing, on his way to being champ. One day he was on a plane, going to a big bout. He was feeling good, laughing with friends. The stewardess walked by before they took off, looked down and saw that his seatbelt was unfastened. She asked him to fasten it. He ignored her. She asked him again, he paid no attention. Now she leaned in and issued an order: Fasten the seatbelt, now. Mr. Clay turned, looked her up and down, and purred, "Superman don't need no seatbelt."

She said, "Superman don't need no airplane. Buckle up." And he did.

I really liked the stewardess's response to Ali. It really humbles me and shows the frailty of us as humans as opposed to the power, steadfastness, wonder, and majesty of the Lord.

You know the Germans Always Make Good Stuff

Reds

Red,
Red as Roses.
Scarlet,
Go Scarlet and Gray.
Crimson,
Crimson stains a flowing.
Ruby Red
Ruby Red slippers speaking of home.
Cherry,
Cherry wood of beauty, luster, and glow.

Fiery Red,
A Furnace burning with fiery flame.
A salute to But If Not,
Because of the Sovereign Hand.
Come now and let us reason together
Saith the Lord:
Though your sins be as Scarlet,
They shall be white as snow.
Though they be Red as Crimson,
They shall be as wool.

Red,
Red as deep as blood.
White,
The White of Glory.

Sermon Tidbits

Today's sermon was on what it truly means to meditate on God's Word. I know the idea of meditating on the Word is something that is thrown around a lot and sounds good, but what really does it mean and how do we actually do it. Joshua 1:8 tells us,

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. (emphasis placed on meditate)

The hebrew word, hāgâ, is translated meditate in this passage. The word, hāgâ, is also the same word translated as growls in Isaiah 31:4,

For thus the Lord said to me, "As a lion or a young lion growls over his prey, and when a band of shepherds is called out against him he is not terrified by their shouting or daunted as their noise, so the Lord of hosts will come down to fight on Mount Zion and on its hill. (emphasis added on growls)

This just reflects how when we meditate on the Word we need to be feasting on God's word, like the lion over its prey, savoring it bit-by-bit, and chewing on it day and night.

The Quotable Sbux

While up at Starbucks tonight I came across this cup which had an interesting quote on it (Sorry the picture is quite blurry)

"Having two older brothers is a
healthy reminder that you're
always closer to the bottom than
you are to the top"
~ Andy Roddick

I'd have to imagine my little brother thinks the very same thing. Remember your place, Ryan.

LBJ = MVP

52 Points, 10 Rebounds, 11 Assists

I know the season is only about halfway over, but LeBron James is the MVP of the National Basketball Association. He is putting up great numbers for one of the top teams in the league. He is leading at both ends of the floor, upping his defensive performance this year and truly getting the whole team to buy into Mike Brown's defensive philosophy. This is putting the Cavs in a great position to win the championship this year. Let's Go CAVS!

Fiction Family

Excellent concert by Fiction Family this past Saturday. For those unfamiliar, Fiction Family is the side project of Switchfoot's Jon Foreman and Nickel Creeks, Sean Watkins. Their newly released album is really good and shows they are not afraid to experiment musically. Each song has its own uniqueness to it as it really differentiates itself through many different styles.

The show itself was thoroughly entertaining. They did a really good job of interacting with the crowd. And it was great to be in a smaller venue so you really felt you part of the concert. I could really tell that both Jon and Sean really enjoy just playing music, having fun on stage, and giving the crowd a good show. Sean is amazing on the guitar, picking away all over the place. And Jon really did a great job of really connecting with the audience through such an intimate setting with probably only 300+ people fitting in the ballroom. The bands drummer as well was amazing. I just loved how he was getting into the music and you could see his whole body just gyrate with the beats as he played. The show was simply well worth it and I really enjoyed the stories they told throughout the night, especially the one about how they were just passing the guitar around one night singing songs like from Radiohead, Dylan, and even Seal's Kissed by a rose. That sounds like it would be a great time just being able to sing together, enjoy each others company, and enjoy so much of the music one has grown up listening too.