The Black Cab Sessions

One song + One take + One cab = Great fun! Check out Death Cab for Cutie



THE SESSIONS ARE ALL ABOUT GREAT MUSIC AND THE VENUE STRIPS THIS TO ITS ESSENCE!
www.blackcabsessions.com

Surrender

As I get older, I realize that the path that leads to destruction is wider than I once thought, and the narrow road of life is virtually unwalked, even by those who call themselves “Christians.” Since only the Lord knows the way of the narrow path, why do we insist that we know it better than He does? The unsurrendered life can never follow that tiny trail, though, since it's too busy insisting on its own way, even if that way leads to death.

One author said a truly surrendered person will…
…never be well-known

.…will never live in the nice house, drive the appropriate car, or wear the most fashion-forward clothes

.…will never be wealthy and may never be “set” financially

.…will make a career of loving God and others, even if this means his/her professional career suffers for it

.…will be overlooked (or even mocked) by the “important people”

…will be seen as a fool by almost everyone—even by those in the church

.…will never labeled a success by anyone but Christ

.…understands that to buy the Pearl of Great Price will take everything

.…thinks first what is the mind of the Lord

.…says, “Not my will, but Thine be done”

Hmmm, looks like I have a long way to go before I'm a truly surrendered person! But the reality is apart from surrender, there can be no life in Christ. I used to think that it was possible to be a Christian and yet live just like those around me, but I now know that's a lie. We tend to believe that lie. So we go on stumbling in the dark for a light that can be ours only if we, like that grain of wheat, fall into the ground and die to the rest of the world around us. Only then can we be fruitful, the aroma of God amid the stench of a dying world (John 12:24-25).

Another word....

I love words that help you say things in new and fresh ways (sometimes I just can't help myself! ; ) Take for example the word DOMICILE \DAH-muh-syle or DOH-muh-syle\. It means a dwelling place; place of residence; home.

So why say, "welcome to my home" when you can say "welcome to my domicile!" Has a nicer ring to it, don't you think?! Interestingly "Domicile" traces to Latin "domus," meaning "home," and English speakers have been using it as a word for “home” since at least the 15th century. So grateful for the gift of words!

Something else to be grateful for!

I think TOMS are incredibly fashionable, versatile, well-made, and most importantly oh so comfy!! I use to have a cute red pair, but somehow left them behind at a nashville hotel (what was I thinking?? And when I called about them, they were no where to be found. : ( But the best part about these shoes is that they're for such a great cause!! So I think it's time to get myself another pair...the problem though is which pair! I'm open to suggestions!

PS: Okay, reality check here...in just the short time that I posted the above, God has really been convicting my heart. In as much as I'd love to have another pair of TOMS, the reality is I have more than enough shoes and I just cannot and should not justify spending that money on myself! Instead I think I'll gift a pair or two to people who I know aren't already familiar with TOMS and some who aren't in a position to afford to buy them. TOMS actually offers a gifting platform on their site, where you can give the gift of TOMS without knowing the person's shoe size or style preference. Honestly I've already experienced the joy on multiple levels of owning a pair of TOMS and how it put a pair of shoes on a child somewhere. Now it's time to let someone else experience that joy! Thank you God for convicting my heart and for causing me to listen this time! : )

Gratitude for the less obvious

With another Thanksgiving literally right around the corner, instead of just focusing on the obvious things I'm thankful for (family, friends, health, etc.), I thought I'd also share the not so obvious things I'm thankful for and intentionally blog about them on an ongoing basis. So here it goes....

I'm thankful for time. Stop and think about it... we're so busy, so rushed through our days, we rarely stop to give thanks for the gift of time. It's a commodity that is very precious, and we just don't know how much we have of it, but in this life, we have the opportunity to make every moment count. So what are you doing with your time today? tonight? Pick something good. Celebrate. Tell someone that you love them. And take time, time to do good, time to love, and time to give thanks.

I'm also thankful for the gift of sight. How many of us take sight for granted? The ability to open your eyes and see the AZ sunsets, a bird in flight, the smile of a friend. What a great gift it is to see. To be able to read, to watch a movie, to see your kids. To see the stars at night, take in all the sights in the day, and a thousand other things! Then there's the the other side of sight, insight which I'm also grateful for. To be able to look at myself and various life situations and see them for what they truly are. To be able to look inside and take an honest, fearless moral inventory of who I am. The possibility of a better future for us begins when we look at ourselves and are honest enough to see ourselves as we are. So what do you see today? What do you see in yourself?

Interesting economic indicator

A fascinating li'l article here by Claudine Zap entitled "The Lipstick Economy." Since I don't really wear lipstick (does chapstick count?! ; ), I was oblivious that this small piece of makeup wielded so much clout. But now I see, so read on and be informed...

"In this economy that's in the red, there may be one bright spot that comes in shades of pink, brown, and taupe: the lipstick index.

It's a financial indicator that's as true as that colorfast shade that stays on you, and doesn't get on your man. In bad times, lipstick sales soar while other sales sour. The term "Leading Lipstick Indicator" was coined by Leonard Lauder, chairman of makeup company Estée Lauder, after he noticed the trend during tough economic times. And what is indicated right now? All lips are pointing upwards.

After all, women don't need to think twice about plunking down eight bucks for a drugstore lipstick while passing on $800 Jimmy Choos.

History can be our guide here. As a Harvard professor explains: "The decade of the Great Depression, cosmetic sales increased 25 percent." After the downturn following Sept. 11, lipstick sales doubled.

Looks like we're on track for a similar lip-color craze with this latest economic funk. The New York Times notes that in the last few months, lipstick sales have shot up 40%, and even put out a list of favorites ranging in price from the budget-conscious $1.99 to the more pricey but still affordable $55. Preferred colors for this new economy? Red is out. Neutrals are in.
Maybe you can't put lipstick on a pig (FEED THE PIG came to mind! ; ) For those who have no clue what I'm talking about go to http://www.thirdformat.com/). But you sure can stock up on the stuff during rough financial times."

Hmmm...I bet there are a lot of other economic indicators out there like this we wouldn't normally think of. Greeting cards come to mind. People will always buy a card, but just won't include a gift when the economy is depressed. Can you come up with any others?

Random questions....

Okay...it's 12:43am and I'm way too tired to think deep thoughts, so here are some questions instead:

~ What was your favorite cartoon when you were growing up? Mine was the Flinstones....yaba daba dooooo! But to this day I still don't understand why Betty Rubble was never included in the Flintstone vitamins.

~ What kind of music do you listen to while you drive? Whatever I'm in the mood for.

~ When a stranger smiles at you, do you smile back? Yep! It doesn't hurt or cost you anything.

~ What is your favorite color of ink to write with? Black...what better color is there!

~ If you were a superhero, what would you call yourself? RomOsabe!

~ How many times do you hit the snooze button on a typical morning? Probably around 3x's.

This says it all....

Apparently this sign is somewhere in Chicago and people driving by have been stopping to sign it! Pretty cool, eh?! : ) Thanks, Joel for sharing it!

Another favorite word...

Yes, it's time for another one of my favorite words!!

IDEATE:

To form an idea or conception of; to form an idea!

People, it's time to ideate!!

Have no fear, it's just an election, people

This pretty much sums up my thoughts for today....

Have no fear
by John Fischer

Well it's finally here, and not a day too soon – election day for those of us in the U.S. of A. I hope you all exercise your great American privilege to get out and vote. Vote your choice, and vote your privilege, and please make sure that fear has nothing to do with it.

There has been a rash of fear mongering going on that should not command any of our attention. So many have fallen into the scheme of inciting fear as a motivation to get people to act. There is simply no room for fear in a believers life in any way, shape or form, and any Christian leader who would use these tactics over other Christians for whatever reason is violating the gospel of Jesus Christ and canceling out the hope that is to be our distinctive mark in the world – the evidence of the presence of Christ in our hearts.

Peter told us: "Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened. But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have" (1 Peter 3:14-15). Notice how fear is contrasted with hope. You can see why it's so important. Our hope is the means by which we will have an opportunity to speak of the goodness of God in our lives. So if people look at us and see fear, they will only think one thing, "Who wants their God? They're more afraid than I am." If we are to always be ready to give an answer to anyone who might ask us the reason for our hope, then what we will say to those who ask us why we are so afraid?

This is just an election. It's not the end of the world. We have one of these every four years. And God is not in heaven with His fingers crossed, hoping for a certain turnout. God is over all of this. So go, vote proudly, watch what happens, and know that nothing escapes His constant care.

We are the hands and feet of Jesus Christ in a broken world. Sure, voting and getting involved in the political process can be a small part of that—but we can’t use politics to abdicate ourselves of our responsibility to be loving, to fight injustice, to feed the hungry, to heal the sick and to constantly look to God’s word for his guidance about the important issues we face every day. When we limit ourselves to slandering or blindly following politicians, we fall far short of the plan God has for us in this world. When we put trust in a politician as our “only hope,” we are forgetting where our real hope lies. ~ Michael Geertsma

Like lilies of the field...

“The people who influence us the most are not those who detain us with their continual talk, but those who live their lives like the stars in the sky and “the lilies of the field”— simply and unaffectedly. Those are the lives that mold and shape us. If you want to be of use to God, maintain the proper relationship with Jesus Christ by staying focused on Him, and He will make use of you every minute you live— yet you will be unaware, on the conscious level of your life, that you are being used of Him.” Oswald Chambers

I'm so inspired by this quote from Oswald Chambers. Every day of my life leads me more and more to the conclusion that I am merely a miniscule part of the beauty which is Christ. One star in the sky is not impressive, nor is one lily in a field. What’s impressive is a sky full of stars, and a field full of lilies. It’s these visions that are impressive because they more closely represent God’s greatness.

How I see it is that we are simply here to shine, to bloom, to become part of an image greater than we can ever imagine. The only way to accomplish this is to exert ourselves to death for the grace of others (Philippians 2:1-11). We often think of influence in small personal terms: “How can I influence other people? How do they influence me?” I think the most powerful and profound influence is community (or culture): “How can we influence neighborhoods? Cities? Society? The world?” Afterall, sustained influence is lived out in the context of authentic community.

It's a USO (unidentified strolling object)!

So what do you get when you cross a classic Airstream with a baby carriage? A Pramulator, of course! It’s made from hand-shaped aluminum panels and antique baby stroller parts.

Now that's what I'm talkin' about....nobody is gonna mess with this baby and his wheels! You gotta love it! lol Reminds me of the Jetsons! http://www.televisiontunes.com/Jetsons_(The).html

http://www.bentfabrication.com/pram.html#

Are you watching or playing the game?

"You know we can't get out of life alive!" motivational speaker Les Brown has been quoted as saying. "We can either die in the bleachers or die on the field. We might as well come down on the field and go for it!" Whenever you follow a dream, you're no longer sitting on the sidelines, watching life pass you by. You're on the field with the balls whizzing by, winning and losing and going back for another inning. So keep that in mind and cheer yourself on. Hold yourself in the kind of esteem you would afford to any player who stays in the game and plays with all his or her heart and soul! And if you're holding back, ask yourself what have you really got to lose and then go for it anyway!