the story i find myself in

so today the artwork was finished for the record and off it went to print!! i cant wait to get em back!! but in the mean time, here is the cover for your viewing pleasure, enjoy:

Posted by ashdown at 4/28/2006 03:54:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

mark your calendars people...be still my soul - my new record - will be released JUNE 4th! if you are in the houston area, we will be gathering for a time of celebration and singing at first pres of houston in the grand hall, at 7pm. hope to see you all there!

Posted by ashdown at 4/28/2006 09:14:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

that's right - and we are coming soon! may 21-27. i am heading out for the Origins Conference in the begining part of the week and amanda will be joining on wednesday for the rest of the week. so mark your calendar - we will be there!! cant wait to see you all!!

Posted by ashdown at 4/25/2006 07:58:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

so if you are looking for something to read i highly suggest nt wright's new book, simply christian. i am about 100 pages into it and i am loving it. he does a great job of telling the story of israel and YHWH - the section i just finished reading - man if we could only communicate to the masses how he writes - so informed and so inspiring...anyways, pick it up if you are looking for something.

Posted by ashdown at 4/25/2006 09:37:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

so most of you have seen my taylor 610 ce - i am selling it on ebay. you can check it out here. it is an amazing guitar - just not what i am needing anymore. happy bidding!

Posted by ashdown at 4/24/2006 09:29:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

so i just finished the secret message of jesus and have to say that if you have ready anything by brian before, then just read the last 2 chapters. most of the book felt like review to me, but these last 2 chapters were great. the second to last chapter is on revelation and the last one is on heaven. brian points out that in order to understand revelation properly we must place it properly, and figure out what kind of liturature it is. the genre that revelation fits in is known as jewish apocalyptic; and jewish apocalyptic is part of a larger genre known as literature of the oppressed (p. 175-176). when i begin to read revelation again in this proper context, a lot comes to view and to life and makes more sense. the original readers of this book lived in constant threat of religious oppression from Rome. so obviously you cant speak/write of criticism of this government and instructions for a new 'kingdom'. so instead of writing about the roman empire, you write of the 'beast'. and you dont talk about present corrupt religious authorities; you personify them as a false prophet. you dont talk about an emporer; you talk about a dragon (p.176). wow. this opened my eyes big time to understanding this book deeper. check out what he says here: "if revelation were a blueprint of the distant future, it would have been unintelligible for its original readers, as well as the readers of all succeeding generations, and would only become truly and fully relevant for one generation - the one who happened to live in the one period of time it is prognosticating about. but if revelation is instead an example of the literature of the oppressed, full of ever-relevant warnings and promises, it presents each generation with needed inspiration and wisdom and encouragement. in this light, revelation becomes a powerful book about the kingdom of God here and now, available to all." yeah! maybe if i were to understand this a little in high school and college i wouldnt be afraid to talk about it with doubting friends and stay clear away from it. i mean come on...i always avoided it, at all costs!! haha! and now in understanding its context it brings new life for me. and makes much more sense then before. after this chaper on revelation he dives into the topic of heaven - and calls is the harvest of the kingdom. i must admit, this new understanding of heaven being here now - the kingdom coming here, not us going to heaven - has been so freeing and great, but a question that has come from it is what happens to everyone that dies before heaven gets here - before all is made whole again on this earth? and it is a question that i tend to stay away from and glad that brian sheds some light on it here in this chapter. one comment after exploring what jesus and paul have to say about the resurrection that brian gives seems a little like a cop out to me. i think there is some validity to it but still frustrates me too. here it is: "perhaps details would preoccupy us, distract us from where our focus should be. perhaps all we need is the challenge, the invitaion, the enticement to risk everything in faith for this vision of an eternal creative project of God...to see the only reward worth having as the reward of being part of the kingdom of God, both now in this life and after death too." so i guess i just want to know what the answer is...what happens when we take our last breath, when this life ceases here on earth and jesus hasnt returned and heaven hasnt come here fully? and maybe brian is right - it isnt worth knowing, not really importand to what life is... all that to say i would like to do some more reading and study on it. brian quotes cs lewis a lot in this last chapter - so i will be checking out the great divorce, but does anyone have any other insight/books to reccomend on this thought? so a lot to digest, i am still digesting it and just thinking out loud here. in other news, i started on nt wright's simply christian and i am diggin it! maybe he's got some insight as well... happy saturday! go red wings!

Posted by ashdown at 4/22/2006 05:11:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

and we are soooo glad. thanks for coming back mr wakeling. check it out: An Acrobat's Search

Posted by ashdown at 4/21/2006 09:58:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

so this week pops was in town from nc, so you know what that means...good eatin'!! it was great to have him here and see him again and spend a few days with him. here is a shot of us from papadeaux last night. enjoy...

Posted by ashdown at 4/20/2006 07:32:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

yes it was amaaaaaaazing. go see her if you can. it will bring shalom to your soul. seriously. do it.

Posted by ashdown at 4/20/2006 04:52:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

we have arrived! whoo hoo! the drive was quick and easy, now we are off to walk around before the wonderful MARIA TAYLOR concert this evening. check back in with ya after the show...

Posted by ashdown at 4/16/2006 06:06:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

so by now we all know i have a hobby/addiction with music. so here are 3 bands we have come upon in the last few days that we are really diggin': check em out!!

Posted by ashdown at 4/13/2006 09:18:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

in reading the secret message of jesus this morning i came across a 'definition' of repentance and it is resonating with me. thought i'd share it here: "it (repentance) involves a deep sense that you may be wrong, wrong about so much, along with the sincere desire to realign around what is good and true." i love that last phrase, realign around what is good and true. so now when i think about repentance, it isnt just a confession of my bad behavior and then a change to good behavior - it is realigning/recentering my life around God's sphere of reality, his kingdom, all that is good and true. beautiful. God help me to have the courage to admit i am wrong about so much and the receptivity and willingness to realign my life around you.

Posted by ashdown at 4/13/2006 08:24:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

so i have been on this journey and unlearning and relearning things about God, faith, life, Jesus, the Bible, etc for a couple of years now. and one of those things i am still learning is heaven. in the beginings of my faith i was always taught that heaven was a place in the sky, above the clouds - maybe in the clouds, that is a place where we go when we die. it is the best place to be. so wouldn't i want to go there? of course, which then leads to the traditional track and accepting Jesus as my savior. well here i am about 15 years later and i have begun to study the scripture in context, dive into jewsih culture and jewish thought. read about these physical places and study the history of them. one person that has helped me in this is nt wright. and i have been reading his reflections for holy week this week and today he said something so powerful and something that many need to hear. it goes like this (p.33): "one of the hardest theological lessons for us is that when ancient Jews said 'heaven', they didnt mean a place far up in the sky. They ment God's sphere of reality, the place where God lives, and where his future purposes are kept in store." in hearing that a lot of what Jesus says about the kingdom of God starts to come in focus. the kingdom is here now, God's sphere of reality is merging with earth's - specifically through Christ. if we could only help others unlearn all about heaven and start over with this understanding, God's kingdom here, now - heaven here now. heaven is God's sphere much like earth is our sphere. and the point is that they 'intersect, overlap, interlock and merge' (as wright puts it). and ultimately in the death on the cross of our saviour. the beginning of heaven here. oh that we could understand this. what would that mean? would we be more careful with what we throw in the trash? would we be more aware of the hurting and the needy right now, instead of worrying if all my ducks will be in a row when i die. people, heaven is here now - let's live like it and in such a way as to help others unlearn and relearn about what our lives here on earth are all about!

Posted by ashdown at 4/12/2006 09:00:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

a phrase i learned a long time ago. you too, probably. well in reading brian's book, the secret message of jesus, he has shed some light that i think is very interesting and thought provoking. he is diving into jesus' conversation with nicodemus in john's gospel and informs us that john hardly ever uses the term 'kingdom of god'. instead john normally translates 'kingdom of god' most commonly to 'eternal life'. later john simplifies the term just to 'life' or 'life to the full'. at the end of this conversation jesus sheds the most light onto this definition through a prayer in 17:3 - this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom God has sent. from this we learn that 'eternal life' means knowing. and knowing implies relationship. brian also points out that kingdom means the same thing - a relationship one has with a king, his subjects, etc. from there brian gives a simple (and not complete) definition of this 'eternal life': "an extraordinary life to the full centered in a relationship with God" (pg 37). all that to say it got me thinking that eternal life and the kingdom of god are intertwined deeply, if not interchangealbe and leads me to think that eternal life has a lot more to do with life here now, on this earth, rather than 'life after death'. our eternal life is based on our relationship with God, right now. not after we die. and that is inspiring. just thinking out loud a bit...

Posted by ashdown at 4/10/2006 07:24:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

so if you dont have borders reward yet, you should, because it rocks! and because it rocks i picked up nt wright's The Scriptures, the Cross and the Power of God: Reflections for Holy Week. i am excited to dive into it and i will let ya know how it is. in other news...if you dont have the death cab record, we have the facts and we are voting yes, you should get it. amazing stuff.

Posted by ashdown at 4/09/2006 09:24:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

the frozen four is WAY better than the final four this year. man i love hockey.

Posted by ashdown at 4/06/2006 09:09:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

has taken me over again. eh. sorry for the silence. trying to rest and get better...

Posted by ashdown at 4/05/2006 09:32:00 AM | Permalink | Comments