I haven’t written about any of my Christmas Presents yet so I thought I would take a moment to write about an album I got by my favourite band right now. Third Day released an album call ‘Revelation’ in 2008, inspired by Salvation Mountain, a huge public art project designed by Leonard Knight to send a message that “God Loves Everyone.” The album cover is an artistic interpretation of Knight’s creation made with the titles of all the songs off the album.
A Drive-by of Salvation Mountain
I am usually not a huge fan of public art projects of a spiritual nature. To me they just come off making your message look cheap, and making you look crazy. When in grade school a classmate’s father erected a huge cross in his front lawn along Hwy 8 between Beamsville and Grimsby. The message seemed lost on everyone; they thought he had gone nuts. All that aside, I find this exhibit hard to dismiss.
Young’s objective is to communicate as widely as possible God’s unconditional love for every person on Earth. God is the original lover; he pursues, he chases. He yearns for a relationship with everyone. Am I too concerned with looking like I’ve got it together to get God’s Love in front of the people I know and care about? Either I’m being tactically wise in my presentation of the Gospel or I am a coward. Things that are tactically wise are usually very effective…. I have not been ‘very effective’ in 2008.
I think I am like most people; I could hardly be working harder at this but am not being terribly effective. I am not big about New Year’s Resolutions but I am big on Resolutions the rest of the year. I don’t know how but I need to spend less time being busy and spend more time being effective.
Right now my 2009 theme song is the second track off the Third Day album. The lyrics are:
Tell me to slow down if you think that the road that I’m ons’ goin’ nowhere
Tell me to slow down if you know that I’m goin’ to fast for my own good.
Tell me to slow down if the way is leadin’ to a dead end.
Tell me to slow down, turn around, let me change the way I’m goin.
Oh, I don’t want to let go
Of all the things that I know
Are keepin’ me away from my life.
Oh, I don’t want to slow down.
No, I don’t want to look around,
But I can’t seem to work it out,
So help me God.
Tell me to slow down if you see that I’m runnin’ to fast in the wrong race.
Tell me to slow down if you think that I can’t keep up with my own pace.
Tell me to slow down cause you know if there’s ever any question.
Tell me to slow down, turn around, let me change my direction.
Oh, I don’t want to let go
Of all the things that I know
Are keepin’ me away from my life.
Oh, I don’t want to slow down.
No, I don’t want to look around,
But I can’t seem to work it out,
So help me God.
ephesians2eight 