on Relevance

The Cross of Christ
by George McLeod

I simply argue that the cross be raised again
at the center of the market place
as well as on the steeple of the church,

I am recovering the claim that
Jesus was not crucified in a cathedral
between two candles:

But on a cross between two thieves;
on a town garbage heap;
At a crossroad of politics so cosmopolitan
that they had to write His title
in Hebrew and in Latin and in Greek...

And at the kind of place where cynics talk smut,
and thieves curse and soldiers gamble.

Because that is where He died,
and that is what He died about.
And that is where Christ's men ought to be,
and what church people ought to be about.

on the Urgent vs. the Important

Strengthening Your Grip
by Charles R. Swindoll

. . . Don't let the urgent take the place of the important in your life. Oh, the urgent will really fight, claw and scream for attention. It will plead for our time and even make us think we've done the right thing by calming it's nerves. But the tragedy of it all is this: While you and I are putting out the fires of the urgentn (an everyday affair), the important was again left in a holding pattern. And interestingly the important is neither noisy nor demanding. Unlike the urgent, it patiently and quietly waits for us to realize its significance.

Forgetting the urgent for a few minutes, ask yourself what is really important to you. What do you consider "top priority" in your life? That is a big question, and maybe one you need some time to think about . . .

on Losers

The Beautiful Letdown
by Switchfoot

it was a beautiful let down
when i crashed and burned
when i found myself alone unknown and hurt
it was a beautiful let down
the day i knew
that all the riches this world had to offer me
would never do

in a world full of bitter pain and bitter doubt
i was trying so hard to fit in, fit in,
until i found out
i don't belong here
i don't belong here
I will carry a cross and a song where I don't belong
but i don't belong

it was a beautiful let down
when you found me here
yeah for once in a blue moon i see everything clear
i'll be a beautiful let down
that's what i'll forever be
and though it may cost my soul
i'll sing for free
we're still chasin our tails and the rising sun
in our dark water planet
still spins in a race
where no one wins and no one's one

I don't belong here
I don't belong here
i'm gonna set sight and set sail for the kingdom come
Your kingdom come
won't you let me down yeah
let my foolish pride
forever let me down

easy living, not much like your name
easy dying, you look just about the same
won't you please take me off your list
easy living please come on and let me down

we are a beautiful let down,
painfully uncool,
the church of the dropouts
and losers and sinners and failures and the fools
oh what a beautiful let down
are we salt in the wound
let us sing one true tune

I don't belong here
I don't belong here
I don't belong here
Feels like I don't belong here
Let me down
Let me down
Feels like I'm let down
Let me down.
Cuz I don't belong here
Please
Won't you let me down?