Great Music Intended to be Enjoyed by the Masses

Here's some songs that I love right now:

This Too Shall Pass by OK Go

Kids by MGMT

Uprising by Muse

Surely I have a delightful inheritance

Last Monday as I was driving from the Studio to the house, I got stopped behind 3 school buses dropping kids off from school. Phoenix's new song Lisztomania was playing on the radio as the school buses took me down memory lane to a time when I was 10.

Our church van took Daniel and I to church many Sundays even though Mom and Dad also went to church. I think it was that my brother and I liked riding to church with our friends. One Sunday morning before heading out the door to Sunday School, our parents sat us down to tell us that we were going to begin attending a different church. Just as they were telling us the big news, the church van started honking and we had to tell the driver that we wouldn't be riding the van anymore.

This was a big deal to Daniel and I because we had gone to that church since we were born. All of our friends went to that church. That's where we learned about Creation and Jesus and the Cross and Resurrection. That church was like a home to us.

Then, just as sudden as that memory had flashed in my mind, I thought of this:

When I was 9, Granddaddy died.
When I was 10, we changed churches.
When I was 12, we moved to Midland.
When I was 13, my parents divorced.
When I was 16, Meme died.

These are the great hurts and disappointments in my life. God then showed me that these were my foundation, my security and my salvation:
My grandparents
My home church
My hometown
My parents' marriage

As suddenly as everything had been revealed to me before, God then revealed to me that it was He who took these away from me. It was He who ordained them to happen. It was He who orchestrated my life...

But before I could be resentful to God for doing all that to me, He revealed to me that it was He who orchestrated my life so that He alone would be
my glorious
and sovereign
and joyful
foundation,
security,
and salvation.

And that made me so happy. I think I'm not resentful anymore of my grandparents and parents' marriage and hometown and home church being stripped away from me. On the contrary, my heart is filled to the brim and overflowing with joy over the fact that God would love me so much that He would give me these disappointments so that in the end He would be my sole foundation, security, and salvation.

When I was 17, I was reconciled to God

Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup;
You have made my lot secure.
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.
Psalm 16:5-6

Misery Swallowed Up in Mercy

After reading this on a friend's blog I had to post it here.

“Every good thing we could think or desire is to be found in this same Jesus Christ alone. For he was sold, to buy us back; captive, to deliver us; condemned, to absolve us. He was made a curse for our blessing, sin offering for our righteousness; marred that we may be made fair.

He died for our life; so that by him fury is made gentle, wrath appeased, darkness turned into light, fear reassured, despisal despised, debt canceled, labor lightened, sadness made merry, misfortune made fortunate, difficulty easy, disorder ordered, division united, ignominy ennobled, rebellion subjected, intimidation intimidated, ambush uncovered, assaults assailed, force forced back, combat combated, war warred against, vengeance avenged, torment tormented, damnation damned, the abyss sunk into the abyss, hell transfixed, death dead, mortality made immortal.

In short, mercy has swallowed up all misery, and goodness all misfortune.”

—John Calvin, preface for Pierre Robert Olivétan’s 1534 French translation of the New Testament