ok, everybody to the back of the bus

hat tip to holy heteroclete for this idea.



how does that change how you view the world? i'm a product of my own North American education which ... well ... it's ethnocentric. i had to look around to get used to the idea that there is absolutely nothing wrong with this picture.
i was reading some other links that stated that maps used to have East at the top until navigators started keying on the North Star. most maps put North at the top of the map now because of that.
this look is different though. it forces one to look at places that you don't think about. if Asia, South America and Africa are prominent then how can we ignore the billions who live there in poverty. no more of this hiding faces behind the tilt of the globe, no more of this hiding in plain sight.
what if the majority also had the most money? where's that put me?
what if the ancient Asian cultures had explored the world the way the Europeans later did? how's that change how we view our maps? how's that change how we view our culture? how's that change how we view our economies?

i'm still ethnocentric. help me learn to throw more things on its head and look at it all from a completely different angle.

there are more versions of maps that you can find here and again here (thanks to Joel Stainer for the 2nd link).

God is love

enthusiastic hat tip to waitingfortheday

what's out there?

as i read this my heart leapt because there was so much here that i was vigourously nodding my head in agreement. i used to but now i ... and it is SOOOOO good.

September 21 is the International Day of Prayer for Peace and this particular blog is also very fond of labyrinth-ing.

this is a recent find. there's just some funny stuff on here that i'm enjoying, you will too.

the internet monk asks why doesn't the church talk about domestic abuse? it's naive if you think it isn't in the church. and let me also add this little baseball related post that brings together a bit of a father's grace.

this kinda thing didn't happen in my day. uh, yeah it did.

things i heard during worship today

Romans 8:19

The creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.

in song

And all creation's straining on tiptoe just to see,
the children of God come into their own.

and again in song

Take good care of the land and water, take good care of the creatures too
Take good care of one another, I'll be taking good care of you.


there are all sorts of thoughts that i've had on this topic all week, in particular as an addendum to my "i want to be a better man" post from earlier this week. i'll undoubtedly want to add another post related to a question i was asked this week, "what do the words 'i love you' mean to you Ian?" my answer delves pretty deep into some real stuff for me.

blessings to you on this Lord's Day. take good care of one another and take good care of this wondrous creation. that's what i heard and i still hear it ringing in my ears now, hours after it was spoken to my heart.

Blessing

hat tip to Graceful.

this spoke to me today and went pretty deep. listen to it.

Beannacht
(Blessing)
John O'Donohue

On the day when
the weight deadens
on your shoulders
and you stumble,
may the clay dance
to balance you.

And when your eyes
freeze behind
the grey window
and the ghost of loss
gets in to you,
may a flock of colours,
indigo, red, green,
and azure blue
come to awaken in you
a meadow of delight.

When the canvas frays
in the currach of thought
and a stain of ocean
blackens beneath you,
may there come across the waters
a path of yellow moonlight
to bring you safely home.

May the nourishment of the earth be yours,
may the clarity of light be yours,
may the fluency of the ocean be yours,
may the protection of the ancestors be yours.
And so may a slow
wind work these words
of love around you,
an invisible cloak
to mind your life.

i want to be a better man

we had seed group last night and Wendy and i led the group in a Mark Heard tune. we played our guitars and i was nervous. i'm the Mark Heard fan among the two of us and Wendy humours me on this topic so that we went with something that i enjoy. she allows things like that often and we do what i enjoy more often than we do what she enjoys.
i've been thinking about my marriage a lot today and i've decided that i want to be a better man. don't get me wrong, i basically like me and i'm not depressed, i just want to be a better man. i want to be more attentive, i want to hang out more and do stuff together. i want to invite friends over and play a game and i want to go for bike rides just as soon as i get my wobbly back tire working again.
i want to hear her. i want to see her and be enthralled with whatever has her attention. i also don't want to annoying, i want to be cute and playful and that can be a fine line sometimes.
i just want to be a better man, a better husband, a better friend. i love you Wendy.

a little child shall lead them

let me tell you about Em (not her real name). she's a special needs girl in our worship circle. she's 10, and she speaks volumes to me although i've never heard her utter a word.
she's enamoured with beeps from my watch. she loves to watch the piano player do their thing during worship. she strums at the strings of any guitar left to stand while the service isn't going on. she dances. she blesses. God uses her mightily.

i love it when Em decides to go wander around a bit during worship, because she does this little 2 step as the music moves along and the people praise.
i once saw her stand right behind the piano player and put her little hands on his shoulders as he played, i actually got a bit weepy as i prayed with her and blessed our piano player. it doesn't matter to me that she probably just wanted a better view of what was happening, that moment shoved me to pray for our people and i wouldn't have done that in that moment if i hadn't been "spurned on" by a little sweetie.
i firmly believe that God uses little incidents like this to speak to His people. Em works mightily in our ranks as we are sensitive to the little things that God is doing in our own hearts. i've worked with people with special needs in my employment history and there is no doubt in my mind that certain people see much more easily through the veil to God than others do. it could very well be that Em has a connection to God that i'll never have, and so i'll definitely be watching this sort of stuff to see if there might be something behind the veil that is brought to me by a different angel.

i've been considering this for some time now and this past Sunday morning Em came into worship with Mom and Dad in tow and as she sat down she was tapping her temple with her finger like she was saying, "are you thinking about what's going on here?" now i'm not saying that every little innocent move by an innocent child should be dissected for spiritual truth, i'm just saying that what if God is trying to get my attention and he's using a little one to do it? am i open to that? you bet your bippie i am.

Father i pray a special blessing on Em, let her life be filled with joy, and peace, and love. let me be as open to blessing, as open to beauty as she appears to be. let me take time to 2 step, to strum a guitar, to watch whirring numbers and listen to beeps on a watch. teach me to stop and enjoy. i pray this in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
bless you Em and thank you.