I HAVE MOVED

After many years on blogger I've moved my blog... for reasons too boring or vain to go into here....

you can find it on Tumblr:

pleasekeepmoving.tumblr.com

or as

davidgate.com

See you over there!!!

dg

Robyn - Hyper-Ballad

Playlist - September 1.0

Satisfied Mind by Ben Harper & The Blind Boys of Alabama - There Will Be A Light
Run into Flowers by M83 - Dead Cities, Red Sea & Lost Ghosts
Atlas by Battles - Mirrored
Our Love Goes Deeper Than This by Duke Special & Neil Hannon - Songs from the Deep Forest (ltd.ed.)
Edgar by Modeselektor - Happy Birthday!
The Sound of Silence by Simon & Garfunkel - Sounds of Silence
Pretension/Repulsion (Four Tet remix) by Manic Street Preachers - Journal for Plague Lovers Remixes
Let Down by Pedro the Lion - Tour EP 2004
Lost and Found by Steve Mason - Lost and Found
Kanga Roo by Big Star - Keep an Eye on the Sky

Go on. Try it.

dg

Justice League

I've always been a sucker for superhero teams - Avengers; Titans; Runaways; JSA; Teen Titans and of course the Astonishing, Amazing & Uncanny X-Men. But my favourite is the Justice League of America. It is kind of like the Real Madrid of the DC Universe. More often than not each incarnation of the team has included the iconic 'Big Three' (Superman; Batman; Wonder Woman) combined with other classic DC characters (The Flash; Green Lantern; Green Arrow; Aquaman) and many others too.

They are a team of fantastic individuals. They are powerful beyond imagination - yet only together, with the whole greater than the sum of the parts - can they defeat various threats to the world (or universe) (or multi-verse).

In one of my favourite JLA stories is the Pinocchio-esque tale of 'Tornado's Path' by Brad Meltzer in which Batman, Superman and Wonder look at reforming the team after the Infinite Crisis event.

Batman, the shrewd tactician, is intent on forming a perfect team - every skill and power present, every threat covered, full of experience and ability. But in the end they end up with a team of heroes who 'happened' to be involved in the 'Tornado's Path' story. Which annoys Batman until he is reminded that is how the team originally formed - when a group of heroes happened to gather round a disaster.

The team isn't who Batman would pick. It has holes. It has inexperience. It has relational issues. But sometimes the best team is not the one you would pick; it is the one that is there.

In my life I have sent up many prayers for better drummers/guitarists/singers/sound engineers. And that isn't wrong (I don't think!) but if my only plan to go forward is to get in 'better people' then when 'better people' leave we are left short and without a plan B.

The lessons I need to learn are more to do with the valuing and releasing of who is here already rather than looking to acquire new talent from outside. Embracing the creativity of our teams is key to their development and our collective growth.

Perhaps God does has have others He wants to bring to our teams but we need to be careful that our prayers don't slip into the realms of telling God that the people and resources He has given us aren't good enough. He doesn't make mistakes. I need to believe that.

I love Paul's beautiful imagery of the 'Body of Christ' in 1 Corinthians 12:

The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!" On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.

It speaks of how our diversity is not just important or preferable - it is essential. It is God's perfect intention. Team is not optional - it is a necessity of the very design of the Church.

Before I pray for better people I need to seek to honour the people we already have. Sometimes the best team is the one that is there.

dg

Music Heals

Recently I’ve bought a lot of new music - something I tend to do before going on holiday, to go with a pile of books, comics and a pair of cheap flip-flops. As I was listening to all this new music I felt all the usual joys and fascinations that fresh new music brings, but I was also experiencing something else; a peace; a calming effect; a refreshment.

I was experiencing healing.

My heart and my soul were being restored. It was certainly spiritual. Yet the music was not ‘worship’ music nor was it ambient or chill or remotely meditative. It was beautiful and creative and inspiring however. And that was healing me in ways I didn’t even know I needed healing.

When David takes his lyre to Saul in 1 Samuel 16 his playing refreshes Saul and causes his spiritual torment to cease. No words, no voices or songs. Just notes, just music. The spiritual power held in music is beyond our understanding.

I cannot comprehend how an electronic beat created in another part of the world that some how finds itself as an mp3 on my phone can hold the power to heal me. But it does.

I do not know why the resonant frequencies of a guitar or drum or piano would have the ability to reach into my soul and breath life. But they do.

Of course not in all music do I find healing. But some music resonates with the depths of your soul - causing it to be still, restoring things to their intended nature. It is a wonderful mystery - and an incredible blessing to find music that can do such powerful work.

Dream Within A Dream

Playlist - August 2.0

Vicious World by Rufus Wainwright - Want One

1 Thing by Amerie - The Very Best of Amerie

Boys Keep Swinging by David Bowie - Lodger

Summer Mood by Best Coast - Crazy For You

Unforgettable by Nat King Cole - The Nat King Cole Story

Monkey by Low - The Great Destroyer

Tired of Waiting For You by The Kinks - Picture Book

Vessels by Philip Glass - Koyaanisqatsi

Fancy Clown by Madvillain & Viktor Vaughn - Madvillainy

He Lays In The Reins by Iron & Wine and Calexico - In the Reins

The Spotify Link

dg

Genuine Creative Thinking

Playlist - August 1.0

The Edge by David McCallum - Best of David McCallum

Sorrow by The National - High Violet

Sleep Now In The Fire by Rage Against the Machine - The Battle of Los Angeles

Chase the Tear by Portishead - Chase the Tear (Single)

Unravel by Bjork - Homogenic

Fool's Gold by Lhasa De Sela - Lhasa

Waves of Rye by Department of Eagles - In Ear Park

All Things To All Men by The Cinematic Orchestra feat. Roots Manuva - Everyday

Send It On by D'Angelo - Voodoo

First Time I Ever Saw Your Face by Johnny Cash - The Man Comes Around

You Know You Want To

dg

Playlist - July 2.0

I Saw The Dead by Villagers - Becoming a Jackal

La Vie En Rose by Louis Armstrong - Louis Armstrong

Cannibal Resource by Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca

The Sky Was Pink by Nathan Fake - Drowning in a Sea

Constellations by Darwin Deez - Darwin Deez

Baby It's You by The Shirelles - The Definitive Burt Bacharach

Dog Shelter by Burial - Untrue

Jet Song by Leonard Bernstein & Stephen Sondheim - West Side Story OST

Revenge by Dangermouse, Sparklehorse & Flaming Lips - Dark Night of the Soul

Revelate (Live) by The Frames - Setlist

enjoythemhere

dg

Cyclops

Cyclops' power is in his eyes. He is capable of a devastating 'optic blast' - one of the most powerful weapons in the whole 'Marvel' universe - destroying sentinels and enemies.

Our eyes are also one of our greatest weapons; seeing things as they really are; knowing the true value of others; appreciating what we have. These things are power. Power to defeat lies and deception. Power to bring the Kingdom.

Jesus has this unusual concern that we become like children:

"Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." (Luke 18:16-17)

The way a child approaches the world is key to Kingdom living - trusting, creative, innocent, curious, teachable, grateful, joyful... the list could be endless. But so many of these traits are characteristic of children because of the way they see the world. They are not swamped with the politics and one-up-manship of adult life. They're not confined by traditions and the way things have always been done. Every gift is received gladly. Every day is full of learning. They do not believe they know it all. They are intrinsically trusting. They cannot help but create, discover, imagine and dream. More often than not, they see the value of people.

There is power in our eyes but only if we choose to have the eyes of a child.

dg

Playlist - July 1.0

Magnetic Warrior by Archie Bronson Outfit - Coconut

A Line in the Dirt by Eels - End Times

A Rumour in Africa by Errors - Come Down With Me

Plastic Palace People by Scott Walker - Scott 2

Me & Mr Jones by Amy Winehouse - Back to Black

Celestica by Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles (II)

Son of Sam by Elliot Smith - Figure 8

Even When You're Sleeping by The Acorn - Glory Hope Mountain

With Every Heartbeat by Robyn - Robyn

Gloomy Sunday by Billie Holiday - All of Me

Listen! Here!

dg

Andy (or Whatever happened to the 'Revival Generation')

Andy grew up in a Christian home. His parents are baby boomers, born in the late Fifties and became Christians themselves during the house church movement. They brought their children up attending church and doing plenty of colouring in at Sunday school. During his early teens Andy Though at the beginning to experience some personal encounters with God at youth camps and youth weekends.

Then one summer, at the age of 15, he goes to Soul Survivor and has the best time of his life. God is real and He loves Andy. He experiences worship like he never imagined - lively, passionate, real. He meets God powerfully. He is filled with Holy Spirit. He is full of dreams and potential. He is on fire.

He comes back different. It’s not like coming back from a great summer camp or youth weekend. Andy is a new person - seeking God, believing in His power to change the world and believing his generation can transform the church. He grows in faith and seeks out more experiences of worshipping and encountering God and looks to serve the Church and make difference in the world. He learns about being ‘salt & light’ at school. Slowly but surely being a different kind of person around his school friends. Many even notice the changes - some are even drawn into church and they go to Soul Survivor and they become Christians too.

It is happening. Not all at once. Certainly it’s not easily or simply. But it is happening. The world around him is changing. By the time Andy is 18 he is a fantastic example of a young Christian man. Still on fire, but more experienced and wiser, with a greater sense of calling. He does a gap year - six months working and serving the Church, five months in the developing world, cementing his passion for social justice and making a difference in the whole world. On his return to the UK he heads of to Soul Survivor again before he begins University in September - he sings his heart out, he sets his eyes on God, he is nervous about Uni but excited about what God will do.

The next three years are hard. University life is so contrary to the life he wants but he is not going live like a weird hermit or monk. He is here to be salt and light and he will try his damnedest to do just that. But it is harder here. A lot of the Christians he meets at Uni aren’t like him. Many have been living of their parents faith for their whole lives. They aren’t passionate about God in the same way - in fact after a term or two those ‘Christians’ don’t look much different to everyone else at Uni. The other type of Christian he meets are the opposite. They seem frightened of the Uni life - determined to be good and unwilling to have any of their beliefs and perceptions challenged. Andy finds little companionship amongst either of these people. The CU is dry - full of committees and theological disagreements. The local churches are fine - in fact they much like the church he grew up in, but he is not a ‘son’ of this church and is unable to make a difference here, especially as he is only there for half the year and the 10:30am family service is not that conducive to student life.

These years have been hard but he gets through them. He still loves God, he still believes in making a difference in the world and he is excited about life beyond Uni. He loves the city he studied in and looks to get a job and put some roots there. His degree was in design but is competing with hundreds of other designers so takes a job in a coffee shop. He continues to go to the same church with the family service. There are a handful of people his own age who kind of get this God thing so he can tolerate the stale worship and the dry preaching. A year later he is sick of his job and decides to quit do a further course in web design. Once he has qualified he stays in his job at the book store that he picked up to make ends meet, trying to do some freelance work for his friends in his spare time - he’d love to get his own business off the ground but it isn’t easy. Two years later he is sick of the book shop and has little hope of getting his business going. He had put aside a bit of money for his business and decides to spend of traveling for 9 months. He visits Thailand and Australia, Mexico, USA and Canada and finishes it off with a city tour of Europe. On his return he decides that now he is 28, he needs a career and so he gets an apprenticeship as an accountant. It’s not the creative life he had imagined but it is stable and makes him feel like a grown up - which very little else in his life does.

He no longer goes to church with any regularity. He no longer reads his Bible or prays with any conviction though he would still calls himself a Christian. He has had a few girlfriends, even has one now, but isn’t sure if he has ever been in love. He wants to get married and supposes that one day he will have kids. He likes the Nooma DVD’s and got into Velvet Elvis. He went Soul Survivor Momentum a year ago, which was cool, but it felt like a chunk of teenage nostalgia. He still has a couple of his favourite worship albums on his iPhone. He no longer designs anything. His heart is stirred when he reads articles about famine, sex trafficking and poverty. He gives to Tearfund but he no longer dreams about changing the world himself.
__________________________________________________________

This is the story as it stands now - and there is much the Church can learn about how it deals with, and invests in, teens and early twenties - but this is not the end of Andy’s story or the end of the story for the rest of his generation. They are still ‘saved’. They have already had a fair amount of experience in serving and leading and being involved in positive Church life. They still have a heart for social justice. But they are numb and apathetic to Church and discipleship. They require a church environment that is authentic and honest. Quality and accessibility matter to them: the quality and accessibility of preaching; the quality and relevance of the worship music; the way the church presents itself. But most of all they are numb and they want to experience God again. They want to feel the presence of God once more. They are full to brim with dormant dreams and unlocked potential. They could still be the generation that changes the world.

Long Time, No Blog

(Warning: I may be cruel about this man)

It's been a while - certainly the longest time I've gone without blogging for the 5 years I've been doing it here and on the now defunct dailyhealthscare (which Emilie deleted and where I learned that getting cross on a blog is perhaps the biggest cliche imaginable).

So what have you been doing I don't hear you ask but I've started this imaginary conversation so I'm going to carry it on?

Well the blog took a real back seat as I was writing 2000 words of LOST recap & theory a week in the last few months of the series. (which you can read here if you are bored or addicted). Also much of what I used to post here - links, videos, music stuff etc. I now spew out onto twitter - if you are member you can follow me @davidgate or if you just want to read my inanities then you can read them - http://twitter.com/davidgate - all the cool kids are doing it, but despite that you should too - 'tis a good thing

With all that I had a moment where I've been thinking that blogging is perhaps 'sooooo 2005' - but I am going to carry on - with the intention of putting up largely church orientated stuff with some music bits and videos and that. So the same as before then? Yep. I thought we had finished the imaginary conversation a few paragraphs ago? So had I.

I know a lot more people read the blog than comment on it - that's what google analytics tells me anyway - and whenever I go somewhere new I always meet people who say "Oh I've read your blog, it's very.... (insert vague compliment with a hint of suspicion)". I know I don't always say nice things - but I think of it more of a discussion/thought provoker than absolute judgments. But I certainly aim not to say nasty-ish things about specific people (apart from John Mayer, Alex Ferguson, Simon Cowell and Piers Morgan). It's hard when on Myers-Briggs you are a highly expressed curmudgeon like I am. And even more so when you have the spiritual gifting of misanthropy. Glad to be back.

peace love & understanding

dg

Playlist - June 2.0

Cloud of Unknowing by Gorillaz (feat. Bobby Womak) - Plastic Beach

Herr Bar by Clark - Body Riddle

Zebra by Beach House - Teen Dream

Search and Destroy by Iggy Pop & The Stooges - The Life Aquatic OST

Actor Out Of Work by St. Vincent - Actor

Latin America by Holy F*** - Latin

Flagpole Sitta by Harvey Danger - Scooby Doo 2 OST (seriously)

Winter Dies by Midlake - The Courage of Others

The Book of Love by The Magnetic Fields - 69 Love Songs

Tornado by Jonsi - Go

SPOTIFY LINKAGE

dg

(new post to read and that coming soon. promise.)

Playlist - June 1.0

Cellphone's Dead (Jamie Lidell Remix) by Beck - The Information

Cobwebs by Ryan Adams - Cardinology

Cry Me A River by Julie London - The 50's Collection

Sparky's Dream by Teenage Fanclub - Grand Prix

Camel by Flying Lotus - Los Angeles

Road To Perdition by Thomas Newman - Road to Perdition OST

It's In Our Hands (Soft Pink Truth Mix) by Bjork - It's In Our Hands

Repeaterbeater by Mew - No More Stories.....

Millionaire by Kelis & Andre 3000 - Tasty

Between The Bars by Madeleine Peyroux - Careless Love

S.P.O.T.I.F.Y

dg

Playlist - May 2.0

Consoler of the Lonely by The Raconteurs - Consoler of the Lonely

Drop by Cornelius - Point

Quiet Dog by Mos Def - The Ecstatic

I Just Wasn't Made for These Times by The Beach Boys - Pet Sounds

Whisper Pitch by Stereolab - Fab Four Suture

Sail to Nowhere by Broken Bells - Broken Bells

Down to Earth by Peter Gabriel - Wall-E OST

Brian Eno by MGMT - Congratulations

I Never Said I Was Deep by Jarvis Cocker - Further Complications

Jesus Blood Never Failed Me Yet by Gavin Bryars - The Sinking of the Titanic

Link Link Link

dg

Playlist - May 1.0

Encore by Jay-Z - The Black Album

This Guy's in Love with You by Jimmy Ruffin - Greatest Motown Hits

I Was Playing Drums by Efterklang - Magic Chairs

Standing Up by Paul Leonard Morgan & Steve Mason - Filmtales

We Used to Think The Freeway Sounded Like A River by Richmond Fontaine - We Used to Think The Freeway Sounded Like A River

The Last of the Melting Snow by The Leisure Society - The Sleeper

Vitamin C by Can - Ege Bamyasi

Blackberry Stone by Laura Marling - I Speak Because I Can

With My Own Two Hands by Ben Harper - Diamonds on the Inside

True Love Will Find You In The End by Daniel Johnston - Welcome to my World

And you can find it on the brand new SPOTIFY....

dg

Let England Shake

Stillness is the Move

When the child was just a child
It did not know what it was
Like a child it had no habits
No opinion about anything

Maybe I will get a job
Get a job as a waitress
Maybe waiting tables in a diner
In some remote city down the highway

After all that we've been through
I know we'll make it after the wait
The question is a truth
There is nothing we can't do
I'll see you along the way baby
The stillness is the move

On top of every mountain
There was a great longing
For another even higher mountain
In each city longing for a bigger city

After all that we've been through
I know that i will always love you
From now until forever baby
I can't imagine anything better

Isn't life under the sun just a crazy dream?
Isn't life just a mirage of the world before the world?
Why am I here and not over there?
Where did time begin?
Where does space end?

Where do you and I begin?