I’m actually feeling the “mundane-ness” today that I wrote of fearing just yesterday.  It’s just one of those days that feels uninspired.  And I get that what I believe IN is not about what I feel – thank God for that – if it were, Truth would ebb and flow with my every whim and worry.  But part of the problem with the mundane is that a moment of it can sometimes stretch and paw and spread itself out until it settles in as it’s own season in my life.   (more…)

I wrote, back on January 16, about the Haiti earthquake – the horror of it all, but also the very real reminder that it had become of what sort of life we’re really called to as believers…how it felt unifying somehow.  And at the end of that post I spoke of my fear that we would inevitably slip back “into the mundane of ‘normalcy’ like moth to flame” and forget that the story is still being told.   (more…)

I had a beautiful weekend with my family.  It snowed about 3 or 4 inches on Friday so I built a fire that evening and we have literally not left the house since.  I don’t really know what it is, but there’s something refreshing about an unexpected event that forces you to change your plans, or maybe just stop for more than a moment or two. (more…)

I recorded a Valentine’s Day promotional video today for my record label.  This sort of video is a fairly normal thing to do for big Holiday promotions…you know, the standard “what’s your favorite gift you’ve ever gotten for Christmas/tell us about your favorite family Christmas tradition” sort of thing, or the ever repetitive “what are you thankful for this Thanksgiving” list, etc, etc. (more…)

[Excerpt from an old Journal entry]

I’m reading Annie Dillard this morning and, as always, she is leaving me breathless.  Her words say everything.  Her willingness to find her own reality in the reality of the wilderness is compelling.  She tells a story in Teaching a Stone to Talk (pg. 12) of a man who shot an eagle out of the sky.  When he examined the eagle he found “the dry skull of a weasel fixed by the jaws to [the eagle's] throat.”  This is really a story of a weasel.  She goes on to describe just how this sort of thing might happen. (more…)

The song that my label is currently releasing to radio is one called “Never Saw You Coming,” and I received an email this morning from a radio station in Texas (KSBJ-Houston) asking for an explanation for one of the lyrics.  I think they were really just examining the details of what the song actually means before they decided whether or not to put it out there for their listeners. (more…)

So, it took a grand total of 10 whole days for me to fail at my commitment to blog every day for the rest of the year.  I can’t say I didn’t see it coming.  Probably an unrealistic goal in the first place I suppose, but I’m one of those odd types that has to see the end, or at least set a goal that points toward the end, before I really start moving. (more…)

I went to Chick-fil-a this morning with a couple of good friends of mine that I haven’t seen in while.  We talked about guys who have hairy backs…specifically that little patch of hair sometimes found on the lower-back.  It was deep conversation.  Anyway, it reminded me of exactly how thankful I am that I am not one of those men.  I’m sorry if you are.  I mean, for real, I really am sorry. (more…)

I took Smith to school this morning.  He’s my 2½-year-old.  I had a chance to hang for a little while with his teachers because this morning was “Donuts with Daddy Day.”  Clever alliteration, huh.  KRISPY KREME Donuts with Daddy Day, to be specific.  Except all the dumb little school kids ate every last one of the donuts before I had the chance to snag one!  (Just kidding about the kids being dumb, by the way.  I mean, they may be dumb, but I don’t know them well enough to know that for sure yet.  Okay, so just kidding about the fact that they may be dumb as well.  But not really).  ANYWAY, I love my son.  Like crazy.  Partly because he’s crazy.  He’s just all boy – climbs literally everything climbable (or not), loves to wrestle with me or our little white fluffy pansy dog, Otis…doesn’t make any difference to Smith as long as he gets to wrestle; he gets hurt ALL the time but he’s still really tough, shins always all bruised up, and he’s already been to the hospital twice for a busted lip and a busted chin.  The thing is, we run our household with pretty much only three rules for our kids:  1. First time obedience, 2. Have a “Right Response”, 3. Be kind.  And it’s a pretty beautiful thing to watch a kid as wild and as “all boy” as Smith is, respond to those things.   (more…)

Man, what a breath of fresh air.  I wouldn’t normally be saying that after a day of interviews.  But today was different.  The response to this Guitar Auction for Haiti Relief has been so overwhelming that my publicist decided a couple of days ago that she wanted to set up a few radio interviews with some of the stations around the country that had expressed interest in helping us spread the word.  Long story short, I just finished my 20^th interview of the day, not to mention the 5 that I had yesterday.   (more…)