So yesterday we went visiting various places along the ‘Jurassic Coastline’ of Dorset. I must say, there are some really quite phenomenal places along there, including the Durdle Door (above) and Lulworth Cove (below). These places strike me as quite amazing simply because they are completely natural. Handmade but not by us. The Durdle Door for example is amazing to look at, this huge stone arch in the middle of the water, the centre arc eroded and now it looks like this. Goodness knows how long it took for this to happen. And Lulworth cove, once completely land, the sea has eaten away at it and made it what it is now. All along the walkway there are little coves forming and little arches in the stone walls beginning to be created and you can see these. In the whole of my lifetime they will probably look exactly the same, but here is the evidence to compare in many years to come.
These are the sort of images that we see on postcards and on TV, never thinking that we will see them all with our very own eyes. However, when we do see them we realise that the sights before us as too big to comprehend.
Yup, so slightly embarrassingly I’m posting about Dolly Parton again. Some people who know me will be fine with this, and some won’t, but really, who cares!
Just the other day I went with a couple of friends to the SECC in Glasgow to see Dolly live. Now, I must admit that I don’t have much experience with concerts of the live variety but happen to be quite critical of some when I see them on TV afterwards. I don’t know whether this is a bad thing or not, you can make up your own mind about that.
Now, back to Dolly… My overall verdict on this concert was that it was fantastic, she really puts on a show and for a little lady she has a huge stage presence. The crowd were totally hyped for her to come on and some even cheered as her little blonde backing singer came on stage, thinking that it was the lady herself. OOOoooh the suspense!!
However, the show started with the amazing Two doors down which is always a crowd favourite. I must say that I was a little disappointed in the response of the audience, with most sitting down for the entire show. Needless to see, my companions and I were dressed up in our country gear, and some looking very dolly-ish, and we were not for allowing this to be a sitting concert. Afterall, doesn’t country music like Dolly’s just make you want to dance?
The set list for the first half looked like this:
Two Doors Down
Why’d You Come In Here Lookin’ Like That
Jolene
Thank God I’m a Country Girl
I’m Little But I’m Loud
Backwoods Barbie
White Limozeen
Drives Me Crazy
Coat Of Many Colors
Only Dreamin’
Gospel Medley: Brother Love’s Travelin’ Salvation Show, I’ll Fly Away, When the Saints Go Marching In, Old Time Religion, Calm On The Water, Daddy Was an Old Time Preacher Man
There may be some I’ve missed out of there, so if you’re aware of any I forgot then let me know and I’ll add them on. My personal favourites from the first half were definitely the autobiographic track Backwoods Barbie and then the Gospel Medley which was immense and I totally didn’t expect it. It also reminded me that there are people out there who just refuse to be ashamed of their faith and I think that’s great! The flow of songs in the whole evening was great, with Dolly bridging from song to song with stories from her life. Sometimes in a crowd of 10000 I felt like we were just sitting in her livingroom and she was telling me all about herself. Random eh? But great!
After the intermission, Dolly came storming back onto stage in a similar but similarly stunning outfit (white with possibly rhinestones on there, but hey if you know me you’ll know I don’t have a clue - they were shiny!). She kicked off with Baby I’m Burning and I’d heard this song but had no idea Dolly sang it. The second half was even more amazing than the first half if that was even possible! She stormed through some of her classics and through some of her very first songs which were simply great! Again the whole thing was laced with jokes and story-telling which added to the evening and character of the woman. I must say that overall I was still disappointed with the crowd’s reaction, but Little Sparrow was where things began to change. Through the song the entire audience was stunned and silenced by her powerful vocals, and then she stuck up chords to her next song and the audience were energised.
Here’s a more comprehensive list of the songs she played in the second half. Again, I think I might have got some wrong but I’m sure someone will tell me if I got mixed up!
Baby, I’m Burning
Better Get To Livin’
Shinola
Band Medley: Great Balls of Fire, Bye Bye Love, Johnny B. Goode,
Puppy Love
White Limozeen
Little Sparrow
Here You Come Again
Islands In The Stream
9 To 5
I Will Always Love You
The last three songs of the main set were amazing, Islands in the Stream sung with her backing vocalist who was great, 9 to 5 having everyone on their feet and some (Er, Us of course!) dancing and singing, and then and energy filled version of the hit I will always love you. The crowd were wild for her, understandably and I was truly amazing at how this little woman could play a crowd so well with her vocals and amazing songs.
However, my favourite favourite bit of the evening was the Jesus and Gravity encore. I thought it was so so great, and its by far my favourite song on her newest cd (Backwoods Barbie 2008). My friend and I were totally waiting for this one and I’d almost given up that she was going to sing it! She sang it so beautifully and it was even more powerful than on the cd if that’s even possible! I think it’s an awesome description of the woman’s faith and allegiance that even in a concert where people would expect her to encore with 9 to 5 or something more well known that she actually chose to encore with Jesus and Gravity because her faith is important to her. In addition, I felt that because she left stage before the song was finished and the backing singers kept singing the words Jesus, Lifting me up, Holding me down, Keeping my feet on the Ground it just emphasised the thing she’d said more than once in various ways during the concert, that she needed to remain humble. I think the whole encore was actually a great testimony to her faith and humilty as a woman of God. I know there are people out there who disagree with this and would just say it was showmanship, but I’m not sure - I’d love to hear those arguments though. Go for it!
Anyways, I am so pleased I got to see her, and I’m so glad the whole thing fulfilled my expectations and more. I would definitely go and see her next time she is back in Glasgow, and I would happily recommend anyone else to see her live. I will leave you with what I filmed of the encore. Be sure to leave me a comment here or over on Youtube about the video or your take on the Dolly in Glasgow experience!
Alcohol and the Christian (My Views and others)- Part 1
I’ve been thinking a lot more about whether or not a Christian should drink at all. I guess to put the horse before the cart, my conclusion would be that the answer is almost entirely contextual; but, the contextuality of this is something we will discuss in part 2 of this series. I mean, at YF:T we’ve looked into all the biblical stuff surrounding it, and we will re-cap on this here for those who read this but haven’t been part of our studies. However, it’s not the biblical stuff that I keep coming back to, rather it’s the moral and ethical responsibilities of a Christian which I feel are important, so check back for the link to part 2 very soon.
A Biblical Staple?
As a re-cap on the biblical side of this argument, we’ve recently looked at the pearls or alcohol in our youth fellowship group. We discussed ideas relating to the New Testament events where Jesus was involved with wine. These are as follows:
1. Matthew 11:18 - This passage talks about John the Baptist firstly, who did not drink wine, but of Jesus following on, who did drink. While this verse does not say directly that Jesus drank wine the proximity of the statement to the statement above about John drinking wine suggests that He did. However, as will be reiterated whenever I talk about this subject, we must assume that since Jesus didn’t sin (or else the whole salvation plan would be down the proverbial toilet) that He didn’t get drunk. It is clear throughout the bible (Old and New Testament) that drunkenness is a sin.
2. John 19:29-30 - One of the last things that Jesus actually did was to receive a drink of wine in these verses. Just after that, Jesus said “It is finished,” and then died. Again, Jesus didn’t drink to get drunk as is very clear here, and if He had this would have been sinful. However, it’s also clear that alcohol wasn’t a problem for Him.
3. We all know the story: Jesus turned water into wine. Would He have done this and lead other people into temptation if He knew drinking wine was sinful. I think not. Verdict: wine isn’t sinful.
As for the Old Testament views on alcohol, we see that the word yah’-yin is used around 144 times in the OT. The meaning of this is as follows:
From an unused root meaning to effervesce; wine (as fermented); by implication intoxication: - banqueting, wine, wine
Some people say that this word does not always necessarily refer to grape juice in its intoxicating form; however, Strong’s concordance clearly differentiates between this type, which is intoxicating and others which are not. There doesn’t seem to be a view against this wine, and in actual fact the frequency with which it is mentioned perhaps suggests that it is completely normal. On the other hand, there is another word, shay-kawr’, which is mostly translated as strong wine, and for the most part is condemned, except for case where it seems to be used an offering to God.
Despite the frequency of the subject of wine, we still see this balanced with many many warnings on drunkenness. There is absolutely no doubt that being drunk is sinful in biblical terms. We see that the OT describes to us how alcohol makes people become unwise, noisy and encourages them to mock others (Proverbs 20:1). From Isaiah 28:7 we also see a collection of priest and prophets who are too drunk to stand properly and who are confused and make more judgements because of this. A few examples also show us that people do stupid things that would have caused them embarrassment had they not been under the influence. For example, take a look at Habakkuk 2:15, or at the story of Noah’s shame after He got drunk and his son saw him (Although this story doesn’t not brand Noah as an alcoholic, nor does it mark his stereotypical image). The story of Noah also reminds us that drinking to get drunk clearly has repercussions on the people around us as well as ourselves. Far too many of us, especially in Scotland, have had the unnecessary experience of a family member, friend or acquaintance who becomes addicted to drunkenness for whatever reason.
It is clear to me, through the bible or through personal experience, that a social, relaxed drink is not a problem. However, drunkenness is unnecessary and frequently harmful to ourselves and others around us.
All of this does not clear up the issues surrounding the morality and appropriate context of drinking. For example, I believe that there are in fact circumstances where Christians in particular should not even have one drink. This, as pointed out above, will be discussed in the next part of this series, delivered to you tomorrow.
As always, readers’ thoughts are very much appreciated on all of my posts.
Now, I am not usually one for reading daily devotionals such as UCB’s Word For Today but I happened to be flicking through the pages of this month’s booklet, and stopped at today’s entry. The whole entry made me think, about the issues which were raised but also other issues which are connected. I’ve pasted the devotion in below and my thoughts are further down the page.
The first lie ever recorded was the one satan told Eve when he said that God didn’t really mean what He said, and he’s still peddling the same line.
You hear it in comments like:
a) ‘If you’re sincere, it doesn’t matter what you believe.’ What if you’re sincerely wrong? If your car brakes don’t work your sincerity won’t stop you; telephone poles and buildings will
b) ‘We must be careful not to offend anyone.’ What if people don’t want to hear the truth or live according to it? Should we soften or edit the Scriptures based on what we think they can handle? If you love someone, wouldn’t you interrupt their sleep to keep them from burning up with the house?
c) ‘There is truth in the Bible, but not all the Bible is true.’ Paul writes that ‘All Scripture is God-breathed’ and Isaiah says, ‘If they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them’ (Isaiah 8:20). Twelve inches must make one foot, otherwise we’re all open to each other’s interpretations and subject to each other’s value judgments and somebody’s going to get the short end of the stick.
Now, when we become arrogant in presenting the truth, the cause of Christ suffers and spiritually hungry people are turned off. We who have received grace and mercy must show it. But let’s not compromise what God’s Word says. Interestingly, when polled recently, the majority of today’s young people (16 to 29 year olds) said, ‘Give it to me straight. And if you don’t live it, don’t give it!’ How refreshing! Bottom line: God’s Word is wholly, solely, fully, completely and altogether true. So be faithful to the Scriptures!
These sorts of questions and challenges are the ones which we are all faced with in day-to-day life; sometimes from both Christians and non-Christians. However, my thoughts of late have been along the lines that we do need to stand up for what we believe in, but in order to do this we must actually know what we believe in. This, today, is often the obstacle. We have diluted our faith and our beliefs so much that often we are so easily swayed by the half-baked arguments such as those above. Why? Perhaps because we have a half-baked faith too - not knowing our doctrines, our true beliefs, why believe what we do believe… and sometimes not even knowing our own scriptures or our own Saviour or God.
The other realisation which came to me when reading the above was that although the above excerpt says that young people want it told straight or not at all, there’s obviously the growing challenge of Relativism that the postmodern thought brings with it. Does a postmodern Church mean that we must accept a lukewarm relativist Christianity? Is it really all or nothing? Can a modern church with Universal values and ethics really survive in a postmodern culture?
Where should we stand with Universalism vs. Relativism as the Christian Church?
I guess I’m asking more questions than I can answer myself… anyone got any answers?
Romans 12:12rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing stedfastly in prayer;
JOYFULLY in hope
This verse is typical of the a new testament paradox which tells us so often to be glad in all that we have but also to be glad in all that we don’t have - i.e. in our trials and tribulations; the times on the mountain tops and the times in the valleys. We obviously know that circumstances in this life often do not give us reason to be joyful, but we do know that “Hope” is the anticipation of what is going to come. The main point to this is often take as the believer eventually rising from the dead, becoming like Christ, and going to heaven for eternity. The concept of Joy is mentioned 165 times in 155 different verses through the entire bible (KJV) and therefore there’s no doubt that it’s something that Christians do not live in fully. The Joy of the Lord, count it all as Joy, having the Joy of the God in the Lord and even Hebrews 12:2 “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross..,” What a powerful concept, Matthew Henry writes that: “He had something in view under all his sufferings, which was pleasant to him; he rejoiced to see that by his sufferings he should make satisfaction to the injured justice of God and give security to his honour and government, that he should make peace between God and man, that he should seal the covenant of grace and be the Mediator of it, that he should open a way of salvation to the chief of sinners, and that he should effectually save all those whom the Father had given him, and himself be the first-born among many brethren. This was the joy that was set before him.” There’s a lot in that, and we don’t have time to go into it all in this post, but if anyone’s interested then be sure to ask.
PATIENTLY in trials
What does it mean to be “Patient in Tribulation”? I highly doubt that it means that we must lay down to our trials and troubles and let them overcome us. But, we do know that patience is a desirable character for a Christian. Hebrews says that we should be making the choice “to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a time.” Does this mean that we should endeavour to be patient in all that we must go through in order to endure until the end of the race? Why, yes, I think it does! It doesn’t mean that it’s going to be easy, and it doesn’t mean that we should try our hardest to find an opt-out, but it does mean that we should trust in God, trust in Jesus and rest in patience throughout the hard times. We also know that this patience and waiting is something which is often linked in with the serving of the Lord, a theme which I have occasionally touched upon in this blog. Serving the Lord can often mean “waiting on the Lord”. Just as those who serve you in a restaurant are called “waiters”, so also Christians are “waiters” too.
FAITHFULLY in Prayer
Finally, we come to the aspect of faithfulness in prayer, which is closely linked with the idea above. The Greek word, προσκαρτερέω (proskartereō), used for faithfully or continue or whatever else you have in your own translation means “to persevere, or to beconstantly diligent” from Strong’s concordance. So it basically means that we have to be steadfastly attentive to prayer, i.e. praying without ceasing - oh wait, we’ve heard that somewhere before haven’t we? So in giving complete care an attention to prayer, we are following the will of God also, but we often find that we can get easily discouraged when we feel that our prayers aren’t being answered - particularly when there are no visible results. However, 2 Corinthians tells us that we should “walk by faith and not by sight” we should continue to devote ourselves to praying regardless of how we see things are turning out. Instead we must have faith in all things and faith that everything will turn out for the good. (Romans :8:2
Although I’ve dealt with these in three different sections, it is important also to consider their relation to one another. We see in Jamieson, Fausset and Brown: “since it is “prayer” which strengthens the faith that begets hope and lifts it up into an assured and joyful expectancy, and since our patience in tribulation is fed by this, it will be seen that all depends on our “perseverance in prayer.”"
Check out part 1, and also part 2 of this study here, and check back for completion of the series.
Hello, I’m Clare, a 23 year old graduate of Glasgow University with an MA (Hons) in English Language/Theology and Religious Studies. I work as a Youth and Church Support Worker in Paisley (near Glasgow).
I use this blog as somewhere to lay down my thoughts about the above subjects and more, and I love to get conversation going about things I love so feel free to say Hi.
Yup, so slightly embarrassingly I’m posting about 
