I love coming across stuff that is amazing…… blows the mind…. and makes even believing in God possible if we’re impressed by one another’s ingenuity on earth Imagine creativity from heaven… unbelievable….
Enjoy this….
This incredible machine was built as a collaborative effort between the Robert M. Trammell Music Conservatory and the Sharon Wick School of Engineering at the University of Iowa . Amazingly, 97% of the machine’s components came from John Deere Industries and Irrigation Equipment of Bancroft , Iowa .. Yes, farm equipment!
It took the team a combined 13,029 hours (6.26 years) of set-up, alignment, calibration, and tuning before filming this video but as you can see, it was WELL worth the effort.
It is now on display in the Matthew Gerhard Alumni Hall at the University and is already slated to be donated to the Smithsonian.
I have death on the brain right now – death and dying. Cheerful thought isn’t it? Actually yes it is. I’m not thinking of death and dying in terms of a terminal illness but rather as a caterpillar might contemplate disappearing into a cocoon in anticipation of emerging one day as a butterfly with wings. Entering an entirely new identity, unbelievably unrecognizable (Is that you?”) – able to fly further than the bush that’s been home since infancy. Imagine if the only way into the Kingdom of God was through a cocoon….? No caterpillars in heaven, only butterflies with faint recollections of being confined to crawling up branches and eating leaves. Heaven begins on earth with outspread wings and the sweet nectar of flowers, floating high in the breeze light as a feather. Would the death of a caterpillar be so bad if it realized this was the gateway to the flight of a butterfly?
Seems to me that many (not us of course) are hoping and praying to pursue relationship with Jesus and be citizens of his kingdom on earth while maintaining a caterpillar persona. It ain’t gonna happen. Caterpillars believe in God and love Jesus, they worship him in massive throngs and songs gathered in holy huddles on branches across the universe. In fact First Caterpillar Chapel Choir is world renowned for it’s harmony, melody, and musical expertise. They gaze wistfully toward heaven and dream of the day they will fly in the sweet bye and bye…. but right now they’d rather not die. Instead they sing songs, dream of heaven, never get to fly, or heal, or live with extraordinary power.
I share deep empathy with the caterpillar angst and mentality regarding transformation and change, particularly when I’m not sure of what life in a cocoon will feel like; will it even work? Butterflies tend not to talk to caterpillars; I’ve no comprehension or insight into what it’s like to rise from the cocoon. With such a degree of uncertainty I prefer to push such mystifying thoughts away from my mind and continue to plod faithfully along the branch I know with worship music pulsating faith from my iPod.
Jesus had this infuriating habit of ruining great opportunities. Some Greeks wanted to meet him and asked Philip who spoke to Andrew who suggested they both go and tell Jesus. He chose that moment to announce his impending departure when he’d be glorified through death. You can almost hear their jaws drop, “Pssst.. can we change the subject, we have guests?” Then he hammers the point home by proclaiming that anyone who’s prepared to lose their life (into the cocoon or die like a seed) will come alive – surprise! Sounds like resurrection or butterflies to my ears. Jesus used the metaphor of a seed falling into the ground and ‘dying’. It disappears from view; as it abides in the ground it bursts into a life that would be impossible if the seed insisted on maintaining control, independence, and identity. “If God wanted me to be anything else he’d have made me different.”
Then I think about Jesus arriving as a baby on earth through Mary his mother. Nine months after conception he was born with God as his supernatural Father. Quite a unique event, a one-of-a-kind child who by the time he was twelve had the capacity to dialogue in the temple with the religious leaders of his day. Imagine being that gifted, hearing the stories of his birth from his mother, feeling the stirring within and becoming increasingly familiar with the tone and resonance of his heavenly Father’s voice? I ponder what it must have been like for the young Jesus as I read Luke’s words: ‘He went down to Nazareth, was obedient to his earthly parents, and grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.’ (Luke 2:51-2) Was Young Jesus too enthusiastic at twelve and ‘jumped the gun’ not realizing ‘his time had not yet come’? Was he ticked off when told to return to the backwater of Nazareth, listen to his mother, and wait?
If I didn’t know better I’d translate Luke’s words ‘he went down to Nazareth’ to mean a handful of years – four or five maybe. But we know different; Luke is describingt the next 18 years! I wonder what that period of time is all about? If God’s in control surely he could arrange for Jesus to be born in the midst of any circumstance and orchestrate events to accomplish his purpose whenever he wanted, couldn’t he? Even beyond that question is the mystery of contemplating what was happening inside Jesus’ heart and mind throughout those years? Is it possible that while it took a normal nine months for Jesus to be born as a human ‘son of man’, to fulfil the calling of Son of God required thirty years of character building? Imagine being gifted beyond your years, with an identity and mission so profound, and having to wait in anonymity and ‘hiddenness’ for that long. Perhaps he simply had to work in the carpentry shop until his brothers and sisters were old enough to take over and support the family (Joseph probably died while some of them were still young). It would be consistent for an incarnational loving God to care and provide for his human family – a servant king.
Would that experience of trust, patience, submission, and faithfulness be similar to a seed falling into the ground, “Father, not my will but yours be done… on earth as in heaven ?” I consider such humility and obedience and it leaves me in utter awe. I want to be recognized and affirmed, I desire my life to have value; meaning measured by what people think of me and financial earnings – I certainly don’t want to wait. Yet I’m attracted to the person of Jesus, the quietly profound integrity of his character and the selfless love manifest in his ‘being in Nazareth’ those many years. Thirty years on earth for three years of supernatural ministry and the willingness to die on the Cross alone caked in blood and vibrating in excruciating pain. The only cry left on my lips emanating from my selfish and rebellious heart is, ‘Lord please help me die more quickly so that I may arise to live more powerfully for you.”
Someone said that Jesus founded the Christian church on Disciples…. those who’d finally given up their personal and private agendas to serve him as Lord. The battle today is that the vast majority of us worship the god of consumerism. Consumers refuse to be committed; they do not die or serve, they stay as long as their needs are met or they move on.
How would you and I answer the question, “Are you a consumer or a disciple?” “Who are you living for and what are you prepared to die for?” My prayer for the New Year is that the consumer in me will die in order that the disciple will arise to ever greater prominence and life – with much laughter and joy amidst the dying-to-live transformation. How about you? Come die, I mean – fly with me!
Music is a metaphor….. all over the world….. The created reflecting their Creator whether they know it or not….. And he came into His world undercover as one of us to teach a new song….. May this Christmas be a time of singing new harmonies with Jesus…. Here’s an old video that still inspires Joy to the world….
Life is a hell of a journey on the way to heaven…. that starts on earth when we meet Jesus. He is not a religious romantic by a long stretch. He made quite clear that life on earth is trouble-full and that his purpose is to meet us wherever we are and accompany us the rest of the way. I struggled for years to believe this truth and in the midst of the twilight heard hope before I saw and touched it.
I’ve just read a memoir by Brenna Manning… once a Catholic priest and one who lived a life of struggle with alcoholism and discovered ‘amazing grace’. In the foreword a friend of his writes: “I learned the truth of the gospel from Brennan, the same gospel you will find in this book: “That in the end, my sin will never outweigh God’s love. That the Prodigal can never outrun the Father. That I am not measured by the good I do but by the grace I accept. That being lost is a prerequisite to being found. That living a life of faith is not lived in the light, it is discovered in the dark. That not being a saint here on earth will not necessarily keep you from being in that number when the march begins.”
I yearn to share the truth of those words that describe the heart of God – a loving Father…. who never lets us go….
This song was written out of such revelations and places…. as an affirmation for myself as well as a means of encouragement, resolve and focus….. I mean every word and it’s proven to be so… thank God…. very much
On the west coast of British Columbia we have mountains and hills, rivers and lakes, in abundance. They are jaw-dropping spectacular and provide an adventure playground for the locals and tourists from all over the world – especially Europe. Many say they love ‘the great outdoors’ – it’s their church, their spiritual source of refreshing and indeed these wild and majestic places are magnificent. They are intended to be awe-inspiring and to draw our eyes and hearts to one who created them; to have us wonder, “Who made all this? What mind and character could conceive of such beauty?” God reveals Himself through nature to draw us into His personal embrace. In essence He says, “If you think my creation is inspiring and refreshing to your spirit, wait until you meet me – my Son Jesus will introduce us – soon, I pray.”
To ignore the personal encounter with God is not that different to trespassing on a beautiful piece of property, using it for whatever I want, and totally ignoring the owner. In one of the ancient psalms the writer is inspired by the hills and mountains and celebrates the fact that they speak to him of God’s faithfulness. I drive through mountains every day and their solid presence is a great reminder to me of God the Father’s strength and never-changing love for me – one who is not self-created – but was also tenderly formed (and is held) by the same hands that formed the massive ‘outdoors’.
From my CD – Running Free – I lift my eyes…. The images here are from a hilltop in Northern Uganda – it’s a rugged retreat centre set aside to reflect, pray, be refreshed, and be loved into new life up close and personal.
We had a mighty gale blowing across this island a few days ago…. knocked the power out, trees gave up resisting and fell, branches flew, and the waters were whipped into a frenzy of galloping white horses that kicked the ferry schedules out of shape for the rest of the day. Things change when the wind blows…. sometimes brings clouds and rain and other days sunshine and warmth….. When I was very small I used to think that the trees moved and caused the wind…. then I learned the cause was invisible and air moved from high pressure to low pressure and the trees were blown by that invisible flow – the wind. Much like we perhaps tend to think we are the centre of the universe and cause everything around us…… when the invisible is as real as that which we see with our natural eye.
This song started with a mischievous phrase that dropped into my mind like a branch blown in the wind – ‘the wind’s on the water’…… The wind is ofter referred to as ‘God’s Spirit’……
Today – Remembrance Day – is a sobering remembrance of the chronic problem at the core of the human condition. The desire to hammer out on earth a Garden of Eden without the hassle of God; to have peace through sheer human will and effort, to fulfill the dream of democracy by attending to its theory and structure while ignoring the condition of the human heart.
Most wars would be severely curtailed if those who declared them were first in line to fight and lead the charge they are so quick to have other people die for. Look at Gaddaffi in a water-pipe, a coward to the end; or Mugabe, or…. we could probably name hundreds….. Human beings are not to be trusted with too much power. We change, it infiltrates into our head and our heart and we metamorphose into the demons that leach into our souls with the addiction that power releases if unfettered and uncontrolled. We love the concept and possibility of being god-like but lack the character to carry the position with responsibility and selflessness.
Multitudes of men, women, and children have died in this deadly game of ‘who will be God today?’ It is good that we pause and remember the cost, the sacrifice, the loss, the pain, the destruction…. and the brutal reality that not much changes despite it all.
Remembrance Day is incomplete without remembering that God entered into the war zone to take out the main artillery that energizes war…. to overcome the ‘mother of all enemies’ and to set us free to live in peace, democracy, and harmony. The terms are simply to enter into the victory Jesus won through his remarkable resurrection and ask him to end the war within me, release peace into my heart, heal the anger and violence that arises in me, conquer the demons within that overpower me, and liberate my life and soul so that I can live free – now. If I cannot find freedom how can I liberate anyone else for God’s sake!
Imagine the outcry if we distributed chocolates on Remembrance Day and half-naked girls clad in poppies paraded through the streets, and we gave each other gifts after a wild night of partying and very few turned up at the Cenotaph or walked in the real Veteran’s Parade? Imagine if we did to Remembrance Day what we have done to Christmas and Easter? Turn it into a crass commercial opportunity to feed our cravings and self indulgence and gut all the meaning from it so we can stuff the vacuum with feel-good candy and plastic toys? Imagine the outcry, the anger, the sense of betrayal…. and rightly so.
The fact that we prefer to sanctify Remembrance Day above Easter and Christmas is the clearest most eloquent expression we could give articulating who it is exactly we deify, worship, honor, and adore – ourselves.
It is totally appropriate to take the time to celebrate, remember and honor those who have given their lives in wars of our making….. but not at the price of ignoring the One who laid down His Life for the sin and rebellion in our hearts. He won the war of all wars – the big battle we can never win…. Remember, lest we forget….
Walk slowly to His Cross, kneel down and give thanks… Love so amazing….. my chains are gone, I’ve been set free! Give thanks for others who laid down their lives…..
Then stand up…. enlist as a follower of Jesus…. and be the difference you long to see in others….
Imagine creativity from heaven… unbelievable….
