80s Fashion Mistakes

Song Lyric Thursday

American Dream
by Casting Crowns



All work no play may have made Jack a dull boy
But all work no God has left Jack with a lost soul
But he's moving on full steam
He's chasing the American dream
And he's gonna give his family the finer things

Not this time son I've no time to waste
Maybe tomorrow we'll have time to play
And then he slips into his new BMW
And drives farther and farther and farther away

So He works all day and tries to sleep at night
He says things will get better;
Better in time

And he works and he builds with his own two hands
And he pours all he has in a castle made with sand
But the wind and the rain are comin' crashing in
Time will tell just how long his kingdom stands
His kingdom stands

His American Dream is beginning to seem
More and more like a nightmare
With every passing day
"Daddy, can you come to my game?"
"Oh Baby, please don't work late."
Another wasted weekend
And they are slipping away

'Cause he works all day and lies awake at night
He tells them things will get better
It'll just take a little more time

He used to say, "Whoever dies with the most toys wins"
But if he loses his soul, what has he gained in the end
I'll take a shack on the rock
Over a castle in the sand
Now he works all day and cries alone at night
It's not getting any better
Looks like he's running out of time
'Cause he worked and he built with his own two hands
And he poured all he had in a castle made with sand
But the wind and the rain are coming crashing in
Time will tell just how long his kingdom stands
His kingdom stands

All they really wanted was You
All they really wanted was You
All they really wanted was You

Converting Kirk Cameron

http://potw.news.yahoo.com/s/potw/41/converting-kirk-cameron

Song Lyric Thursday

Forget Celine. Nobody sings it like the King...and nobody else should!



If I Can Dream
Elvis Presley

There must be lights burning brighter somewhere
Got to be birds flying higher in a sky more blue
If I can dream of a better land
Where all my brothers walk hand in hand
Tell me why, oh why, oh why cant my dream come true

There must be peace and understanding sometime
Strong winds of promise that will blow away
All the doubt and fear
If I can dream of a warmer sun
Where hope keeps shining on everyone
Tell me why, oh why, oh why wont that sun appear

Were lost in a cloud
With too much rain
Were trapped in a world
Thats troubled with pain
But as long as a man
Has the strength to dream
He can redeem his soul and fly

Deep in my heart theres a trembling question
Still I am sure that the answer gonna come somehow
Out there in the dark, theres a beckoning candle
And while I can think, while I can talk
While I can stand, while I can walk
While I can dream, please let my dream
Come true, right now
Let it come true right now
Oh yeah

Song Lyric Thursday

The Secret of Life
James Taylor

The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time
Any fool can do it
There aint nothing to it
Nobody knows how we got to
The top of the hill
But since were on our way down
We might as well enjoy the ride

The secret of love is in opening up your heart
Its okay to feel afraid
But dont let that stand in your way
cause anyone knows that love is the only road
And since were only here for a while
Might as well show some style
Give us a smile

Isnt it a lovely ride
Sliding down
Gliding down
Try not to try too hard
Its just a lovely ride

Now the thing about time is that time
Isnt really real
Its just your point of view
How does it feel for you
Einstein said he could never understand it all
Planets spinning through space
The smile upon your face
Welcome to the human race

Some kind of lovely ride
Ill be sliding down
Ill be gliding down
Try not to try too hard
Its just a lovely ride

Isnt it a lovely ride
Sliding down
Gliding down
Try not to try too hard
Its just a lovely ride

Now the secret of life is enjoying the passage of time

He Is Not Here, He Is Risen!

Then Came The Morning



They all walked away, nothing to say, they'd just lost their dearest friend
All that He said, now He was dead, so this is the way it would end?
The dreams that they dreamed, were not what they'd seemed, now that He was dead and gone
The garden the jail, the hammer the nails, how could a night be so long?

Then came the morning, night turned into day
The stone was rolled away, hope rose with the dawn
Then came the morning, shadows vanished before the sun
Death had lost and life had won, for morning had come


The angel, the star, the kings from afar, the wedding, the water, the wine
Now it was done, they'd taken her son, wasted before His time
She knew it was true , she'd watched Him die too, she heard them call Him just a man
But deep in her heart, she knew from the start, somehow her son would live again


Then came the morning, shadows vanished before the sun
Death had lost and life had won, for morning had come
Morning had come!

It Is Done

It Is Done

It was midnight at Golgotha in the middle of the day
Every sin was laid upon him as the Father turned away
In the silence of that moment Jesus lifted one last breath
It is finished; then He died

CHORUS
It is done, the price has been paid
It is done, provision's been made
It is done, the work has been completed
Satan has been defeated, the victory's been won
It is done

Are you hiding in the shadows of some pain or past regret?
Does your heart feel like it's breaking over shame you can't forget?
The grace of God is waiting where the Lamb was crucified
You were forgiven when he cried

CHORUS

No more pain to carry for what we have been (what we have been)
No cruel accusations, the Blood covered them
We don't have to suffer, Jesus suffered instead
The battle was over when he said, when He said

It is finished, the battle is over
It is finished, there'll be no more war

It is done, the work has been completed
Oh, Satan is defeated, the victory's been won
It is done

It is finished, the battle is over, it is over!
It is finished, Praise God it is done!

Song Lyric Thursday

Freedom Reigns


Where the spirit of the Lord is
There is freedom
Where the spirit of the Lord is
There is freedom

If you're tired and thirsty
There is freedom
If you're tired and thirsty
There is freedom

Freedom reigns in this place
Showers of mercy and grace
Falling on ev'ry face
There is freedom

We lift our eyes to Jesus
There is freedom
We lift our eyes to Jesus
There is freedom

Freedom reigns in this place
Showers of mercy and grace
Falling on ev'ry face
There is freedom

Song Lyric Thursday

Jesus Loves Me

My favorite song sung by my favorite singer in my favorite quartet...




Jesus loves me this I know
For the Bible tells me so
Little ones to Him belong
They are weak but He is strong

[Chorus]
Yes, Jesus loves me
Yes, Jesus loves me
Yes, Jesus loves me
The Bible tells me so

Jesus loves me
He who died
Heaven's gate to open wide
He will wash away my sin
Let His little child come in

[Chorus]
Yes, Jesus loves me
Yes, Jesus loves me
Yes, Jesus loves me
The Bible tells me so

Song Lyric Thursday

I Do Believe
Gaither Vocal Band

Some say faith is just believing
Others say its self deceiving
Inventing childish dreams to get us through
Deep inside me, there’s a yearning
For true wisdom, not just learning
I'd trade all my clever questions
For one answer that is true

I do believe
You are the one
The home I've longed to find
My only hope
God's only son
I do believe
I touch I see
That all along
You've longed to be
My lord
My God

Lord you know, I need some answers
Questions eat at me like cancer
Make me once again, a simple child
Help me take the risk of losing
Lose it all to find in choosing
To believe You are the answer
Earth and heaven reconciled

I do believe
You are the one
The home I've longed to find
My only hope
God's only son
I do believe
I touch I see
That all along
You've longed to be

I do believe
You are the one
The home I've longed to find
My only hope
God's only son
I do believe
I touch, I see
That all along You've longed to be
My Lord
My GOD
My Lord
My GOD

My Visual DNA

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

Have You Hugged A Baby Killer Today?

Believe it or not, it's actually National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers. I'm not making that up.

Jill Stanek offers up the "3rd Annual Abortionist of the Year" award at her column.

Song Lyric Thursday

Pop Goes My Heart
Pop



I never thought that I could be so satisfied,
Everytime that I look in your angel eyes.
A shock inside me that words just can't describe,
And there's no explaining.
There's something in the way you move, I can't deny,
Every word from your lips is a lullaby.
A twist of fate makes life worth while,
You are gold and silver.

[CHORUS]
I said I wasn't gonna lose my head, but then
POP! Goes my heart.
I wasn't gonna fall in love again, but then
POP! Goes my heart.
And I just can't let you go,
I can't lose this feeling.


[VERSE 2]
These precious moments, we have so few,
Let us go far away, where there's nothing to do but play.
You show to me that my destiny's with you,
And there's no explaining.
NOTE: The last four lines of verse 2 are not in the music video but are included on the song in the Music and Lyrics Motion Picture Soundtrack.

[CHORUS] Repeat x2


A twist of fate makes life worth while,
You are gold and silver.

Song Lyric Thursday

Here I Am To Worship
Chris Tomlin


Light of the world
You stepped down into darkness.
Opened my eyes, let me see.
Beauty that made this heart adore You
Hope of a life spent with You

Here I am to worship,
Here I am to bow down,
Here I am to say that You're my God
You're altogether lovely
Altogether worthy,
Altogether wonderful to me

King of all days
oh, so highly exalted
Glorious in heaven above
Humbly You came
To this earth You created
All for love's sake became poor

Here I am to worship,
Here I am to bow down,
Here I am to say that You're my God
You're altogether lovely
Altogether worthy,
Altogether wonderful to me

I'll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross
I'll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

Here I am to worship,
Here I am to bow down,
Here I am to say that You're my God
You're altogether lovely
Altogether worthy,
Altogether wonderful to me.

The Abortion War You Never Hear About

Interesting article from Time here...

Song Lyric Thursday

How Great is Our God
Chris Tomlin

The splendor of a King, clothed in majesty
Let all the earth rejoice
All the earth rejoice

He wraps himself in Light, and darkness tries to hide
And trembles at His voice
Trembles at His voice

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

Age to age He stands
And time is in His hands
Beginning and the end
Beginning and the end

The Godhead Three in One
Father Spirit Son
The Lion and the Lamb
The Lion and the Lamb

Name above all names
Worthy of our praise
My heart will sing
How great is our God

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

Jesus Camp Review from Evangelical Outpost

The Academy Award-nominated documentary Jesus Camp exposes a group of Americans that are insular, close-minded, xenophobic, and obsessed with tying religion to politics. I’m referring, of course, to film critics: “the scariest movie you'll see all year” (TV Guide); “a genuine subversive threat to the nation” (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) ; "...one of the most unnerving films of the year." (L.A. Times) "...the possibility of a right-wing Christian American version of what happened in China no longer seems entirely far-fetched." (The New York Times). Such hyperventilating reactions to the film say more about America than anything in this 2005 documentary, recently released on DVD.

Your own reaction to the film will depend on how shocked you are by Pentecostalism. The film is obstensibly about "evangelicals" yet every Christian depicted in the documentary attends some sort of charismatic church. The casual viewer would be left with the impression that being “saved” causes all evangelicals to speak in tongues, convulse uncontrollably, weep hysterically, and vote Republican.

Exposing the voting patterns of these strange creatures is the primary motive (if not the sole reason) for this documentary. It is not just that these people hold strange beliefs but that they hold strange beliefs and are (a) allowed to vote for Republicans and (b) indoctrinate their children who will one day be allowed to vote for Republicans. Pentecostals have existed in America for over a hundred years, but since they tended to vote for Democrats, the Cultural Elite took no notice of them. It is only after their political realignment that it became clear that their intentions are to install a theocracy and make glossolalia the national language.

The film is also clear in establishing that Pentecostalism equals evangelicalism equals “Religious Right.” What is more difficult to establish is that the people at the “Jesus Camp” have any direct political influence. In order to establish the connection, the filmmakers include snippets of Christian radio broadcast by leaders of the Religious Right, the smooth-talking shepherds of these tongue-speaking sheep. Their attempts to subvert democracy are exemplified by the Religious Right’s support of Samuel Alito for the Supreme Court. The casual viewer could be forgiven for leaving with the impression that Alito was a snake-handling “evangelical” from West Virginia rather than a Catholic from New Jersey. Indeed, the film never mentions that the Religious Right rejected Harriet Miers, a bona fide evangelical from Texas, for an East Coast papist.

Such nuance would be hard to fit into the caricature -- and the one thing this film has no room for is nuance. To ensure that no one mistakes the key message of the film (“a frightening, infuriating, yet profoundly compassionate documentary about the indoctrination of children by the Evangelical right” – New York magazine), the filmmakers include Mike Papantonio, an Air America radio host, to serve as the Greek chorus. Papantonio comes across as an unreconstructed bigot; the type who, in a less politically correct age, would be warning about the nefarious influence of the Jooos. He is even more intolerant—and less articulate—than the children at the church camp. Yet he is portrayed as the "film's voice of reason" (Seattle P-I).

Aside from the political angle, your reaction to the film will—once again--depend on how shocked you are by Pentecostalism. Having spent much of my life around charismatic Christians, I found the extended scenes of the church services downright boring. Speaking in tongues? Check. Being slain in the Spirit? Check. Weeping, hand-raising, women preaching? Check, check, check. There is nothing portrayed in the film that doesn’t go on in churches in every city in America. Some people will find such a thought terrifying, which shows how out of touch they are with the people in their own country.

Indeed, it makes you wonder about the political judgment of those who are threatened by the people—especially the charming kids—in this film. The main character of the documentary is, after all, a Pentecostal children's pastor who runs a church camp in North Dakota. In case you missed that let me point it out again. A Pentecostal children’s pastor. Who runs a church camp. In North Dakota. If this is the biggest threat to secularism that we can come up with, then I hereby renounce my membership in the Religious Right.

While there is much that I disagree with, and even find strange, about the charismatic movement, there is nothing about it that is politically dangerous. What is dangerous, however, is the way that some of our fellow citizens are willing to vilify and dehumanize those with whom they disagree (“the "saved" children in the hypnotic, upsetting and bleakly humorous Jesus Camp are like an extroverted version of Village of the Damned” -- Baltimore Sun). Jesus Camp doesn’t tell us much about evangelicals or the Religious Right. But it speaks volumes about the anti-populist and anti-religious attitudes of secular America.

Where's the Outrage?

Here is one element of Black History Month you certainly won't hear the MSM even mention:

The following statement was released today by Day Gardner, president of the National Black Pro-Life Union:

Throughout the month of February, we take the time ... one month out of the year to remember the tragedies and celebrate the triumphs of African Americans in history. We celebrate the fact that we are a strong race that survived the many horrors and inhumane treatment when we were an enslaved people -- presumed by many to be less than human.

We came together in the 1960s facing very difficult times when hundreds of African Americans suffered physical torture and sometimes even death ... all for wanting to experience the American dream and for insisting that we be allowed that which we as American citizens are entitled to under the laws of this great country.

And since the '60s we have continued to make great strides in breaking down color barriers and the walls of inequality. We become doctors, lawyers, educators, movie stars, corporations and conglomerates. But I worry that many of us in the black community have forgotten what the struggle was all about. In our quest for higher education, bigger houses, better jobs and flashier cars ... are we closing our eyes to the fact that more than a thousand of our children die each day by the horrible practice of abortion? These children are denied their most basic human right -- which is the right to life; a right which our ancestors so proudly worked for, marched for and many of them died for.

More than 44 million children have been killed by abortion -- 15 million of them were black children. Abortion has become the number one killer of black people in this country -- killing more African Americans that accidents, heart disease, stroke, crimes, HIV-AIDS and all other deaths ... COMBINED!

What bothers me is we are very quick as a people to recognize racism everywhere else except the one place that truly affects all of us. Most blacks will agree that racism is sill very much alive -- yet say nothing when abortion facilities are placed purposefully in minority and poor communities. This is no accident! More than 37 percent of all abortions are performed on black women. Last year alone, more than 400,000 black babies were killed by abortion.

We must realize that abortion is a multi-million dollar a year business that makes most of its money by killing our children. Abortion providers need us to make their blood money. If we as black people say no to abortion -- the industry will cease to exist. We are the underground railroad of our time and it's up to us to make abortion a thing of our historical past. If we stand united against this horrific practice ... we shall overcome this, too.

Happy Black History Month!

Say It Loud, I'm Black And I'm Proud
James Brown

Now we demand a chance to do things for ourself

We're tired of beatin' our head against the wall

And workin' for someone else

We're people, we're just like the birds and the bees

We'd rather die on our feet

Than be livin' on our knees

Say it loud, I'm black and I'm proud..........

12 Ways Men Became Sissies

The world has changed a lot since I was a little boy. Sure, we've moved ahead as a society in certain things, we've evolved, we've gone to the moon, we have all this technology crap, but in the end we've taken more than a few steps back as far as human nature is concerned.

When I was growing up, a man's word was his life, a man's honor his most important virtue, and a man's ability to be real his most pressing social concern.

Things, unfortunately, have changed.

To put it kindly, men have become whining, pathetic losers incapable of handling a little hardship, incapable of handling criticism -- essentially we are slowly becoming women.

And here's some news, boys: the ladies agree with me. Women have noticed the feminization of men too, and despite what you might hear about the sensitive New Age clowns being the ideal Romeos women are looking for, it's total bull crap. Women want a man who will act like a man, who will take charge, who can make decisions, who doesn't cry, and who faces fear.

Ways men have gone wrong

1- Men quit easily
It used to be that a man had to have two bullets in his head to quit whatever he was doing. Men used to be tough and not look for the exit door every time things got rough. Now, at the first sign of trouble, men put up their hands and say "I quit," instead of fighting the tough battle. It's easy to say "I quit," but the real champions are the ones who stay in the battle. Whether it's stress at work or a relationship that has hit some bumps, quitting when faced with adversity has become too popular and too easy for too many men.

2- Men can't handle criticism
Remember the expression "take it like a man"? Remember when men could take an order and not cry about their feelings being disrespected? Remember when military training was mandatory and anyone who complained about waking up at 4 a.m. would end up scrubbing toilets with their tongues? Well, so do I. Men used to be able to take a punch, take a knock, take criticism. That's before becoming bruttas. Now every time someone says something critical that isn't sugar-coated with girly fairy dust, all hell breaks loose, and the tears start to roll. So what if your boss tells you you're an idiot -- maybe you are. Can we please get back to being able to handle a little disapproval?

3- Men complain
Remember when Don Corleone said to his godson, "You can act like a man! [Slap] What's the matter with you?" You aren't the only one. It struck a chord with a whole generation because it summed up what whining, bitching, moaning fools we've become. Complaints come left and right nowadays -- coffee is too cold, service not fast enough, distance too far. Shut the hell up. Hand in your testicoli now and go buy a bra. Accept that life isn't perfect and move on. When I hear about some clown launching a sexual harassment lawsuit against some female colleague, I want to hunt down the guy and take him to Lucca's Meat Market to show him what real sexual harassment is. We've become rompipalles (ball breakers). We've become selfish pigs, not doing anything without selfish gain.

4- Men groom like women
I'm all for a good manicure and proper hygiene, but let's get one thing straight -- I will never wax anything off my body that God intended to have there. I am not going to go to a fancy girly spa to get some algae crap on my face. Look clean, iron your clothes, anything else leave to you mother-in-law.

5- Men talk about their feelings
I love this one. Men all of a sudden have "feelings" others need to hear about. It's not enough that men are crying, they now must "express" themselves. It's not enough to say "are you going to marry me and cook me a meal every night," now guys have to recite Othello and tell their women in a 30-minute speech why he should be whipped by his significant other for the rest of his life. Asking a woman if she loves you or if you satisfy her is pathetic.

6- Men side with feminists
Anyone who knows me knows how much I love feminists, so when I see men yelling for social and workplace equality, Girl Power and the Spice Girls, I just start vomiting. Being macho has become a dirty word. Having good old-fashioned values like thinking men should be the breadwinners and the decision makers, and thinking women should raise the children and manage the home front, are condemned as damning to today's moral fabric. Where did it all go wrong?

7- Men embrace unmanly trends
Tom Cruise fan, whatever, all people who follow any of these things should be gathered up, put on an island north of Siberia, and allowed to pursue their interests in the comfort of their fellow sissy males.

8- Men are useless
Our forefathers could build a house that lasted for 200 years with their bare hands, nowadays men can't even put up a shelf without reading a 200-page manual. Sure, there are still Luigi and Mario who can build you a nice five-bedroom house in five days, but most guys don't even own a hammer anymore.

9- Men are afraid to tell someone off
Men have no problem telling everyone their childhood fantasies about their teddy bears, but ask them to be direct, blunt, and tell it like it is, and all of a sudden they belong to the United Nations. You know why? Because if they are brutally honest and forward, then someone might be brutally honest back, and heaven forbid someone tell us we're not God incarnate.

10- Men take over women's roles
When did becoming a stay-at-home dad become cool? When did being a male nurse become something guys grew up thinking of? When did being a secretary scream out "ambitious career plan"? When did holding your wife's hand while she's delivering your baby become a mandatory male experience? You want to be a wuss, do what wusses do. Be a finocchio, get ready for the backlash. You know what the worst part is? These cafones insist it's acceptable.

11- Men watch too much Oprah
Do I have to explain this one?

12- Men are whipped
The most important reason men have lost all sense of masculinity is their inability to be master of their own domain. Men have handed over the whip to their women, and allowed them to use it, liberally, frequently, and without discretion. No decision can be made without consulting the female -- your word as the final say is a running joke when you accept being second fiddle in the hierarchy chain.

Be macho

So where does that take us? Where do we, as men searching for our manhood, go from here? Simple. Go to your local video store, rent anything Frankie Sinatra, Steve McQueen or Sean Connery did before 1980. See how they maintain their presence under any circumstance. See how being rough around the edges adds allure to them. See what it means to "take it like a man."
If that's too difficult for you, here are some simple rules. No matter how tough life gets, bite your lip and handle it. Don't bitch, don't complain, just move on. Be macho, don't be afraid to say something sexist if it reflects reality. Don't follow trends women like (yoga is out, boys), don't start doing jobs women are supposed to do (being a hotel maid won't get you in the country club), don't be afraid to tell people what you think (and be ready for the return punch in the nuts). Most importantly, don't go crying to your mommy or your girlfriend every time someone is "mean" to you.

Boys, it's time for us to get our balls back, it's time for us to swing the pendulum back the other way. You don't have to be a male chauvinist pig, but for crying out loud, reclaim your manhood. Be strong, be decisive, and stop watching Oprah.

Watch your backs and keep your noses clean.

10 Reasons to Despise Planned Parenthood

10. Consumer Reports ranked their condoms the worst, failing tests that measured strength and reliability (they burst when filled with air). (10)

9. In 2005, PP set new records for the number of abortions in a single year (255,015) and for the lowest rate of adoption referrals compared to abortions.

8.


7. PPNYC put a public plea on their Web site -- "Harry Potter: Prisoner of Hormones?" -- lobbying J.K. Rowling to write sex education into the next novel in the bestselling series. (4)

6. PP's willingness to turn a blind eye to evidence of statutory rape.

5.

4. PP's defense of #5.

3. On their site aimed at teenagers, they include a an article ("All About the Anus") which teaches kids that, "Some straight couples use anal sex as a way to preserve the woman's virginity." (3)

2. PP was founded by the despicable eugenicist Margaret Sanger.

1. PP's complicity in the deaths of millions of human beings.

Song Lyric Thursday

In light of Monday's anniverary of the Roe v. Wade decision and the subsequent debate over at the Charles County Cafe, my choice for this week is one that is quite personal to me.

Everything To Me
Mark Schultz


I must have felt your tears
When they took me from your arms
I’m sure I must have heard you say goodbye
Lonely and afraid had you made a big mistake
Could an ocean even hold the tears you cried

But you had dreams for me
You wanted the best for me
And you made the only choice you could that night

(Chorus)
You gave life to me
A brand new world to see
Like playing baseball in the yard with dad at night
Mom reading Goodnight Moon
And praying in my room
So if you worry if your choice was right
You gave me up but you gave everything to me

And if I saw you on the street
Would you know that it was me
And would your eyes be blue or green like mine
Would we share a warm embrace
Would you know me in your heart
Or would you smile and let me walk on by
Knowing you had dreams for me
You wanted the best for me
And I hope that you’d be proud of who I am

(Chorus)
You gave life to me
A chance to find my dreams
And a chance to fall in love
You should have seen her shining face
On our wedding day
Oh is this the dream you had in mind
When you gave me up
You gave everything to me

And when I see you there
Watching from heaven’s gates
Into your arms
I’m gonna run
And when you look in my eyes
You can see my whole life
See who I was
And who I’ve become

(Chorus)

Roe v. Wade Anniversary

On this, the 34th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, tens of thousands will descend upon the nation's capital to cheer and jeer that fateful Supreme Court decision.

LaShawn Barber has a great blog here and there's another terrific piece at Evangelical Oupost.

Performance Review

It's that time again. Time for the annual (or in my case biannual) performance review at work. Maybe I'm a freak, but I actually look forward to this part of my job. I see it as an opportunity for me to get good solid feedback about my performance and an opportunity to set new and challenging professional goals for myself. In my six years and 14 days on the job, I've always gotten excellent reviews. I think that's due in part to my desire to set a high bar and get more out of my job than is in my job description. It's also due to the fact that in recent years, the organization lets employees set their own goals on which to be reviewed.

But some people here and elsewhere HATE performance review time. They see it as a scolding from their managers about all they DIDN'T accomplish in the course of the year. And unfortunately, that can be a sad reality; some managers use the review as a whipping rod and some people fall far short of their goals and objectives through no ones fault but their own.

I think it would be great to get regular "performance reviews" from the people closest to us. Not a formal written assesment of your performance as a spouse or parent or child or sibling. But an opportunity once a week or once a month or once a quarter or once a year to say, "How am I doing?" and "What can I be doing better?" A friend posted an article from the New York Times about questions couples should ask before getting married. And they were all great questions that I'm sure many couples never think to consider before making the leap. But how much better are the above questions asked on a regular basis of the people closest to us!

I have a couple of those people in my life and have for about the past 6 months or so. I have an accountability partner that I check in with on a regular basis about issues personal to me. One of the associate pastors at my church meets with me about once a quarter for coffee or breakfast to discuss spiritual growth and interpersonal relationships. A long distance mentor (though he's never met me, I consider him a "mentor") talks of meeting for a friendly lunch with a group of his closest team members in ministry who had a frank and brutal discussion with him about his increasing arrogance and pride in his new leadership role. It was like an intervention. It was an eye-opening experience that forever changed his perception of himself and the way he communicates. We all need those people in our lives who love us enough to tell us what we need to hear not just what we want to hear. But hearing it isn't enough. We have to act on it. Or at the very least, give it careful and open minded consideration. I once got the same kind of feedback from a manager and from my wife, within the same week, and neither knew that the other had said it. Alright, I thought, maybe they're on to something here.

One of my favorite passages of scripture is Proverbs 27:5: Open rebuke is better than love carefully concealed (NKJV). Love manifests itself sometimes in honest constructive criticism. The older I get the more I realize that there is so much wisdom in God's Word that is still relevant to us in the 21st century. We are called into relationship with each other not just for good times and happy memories, but to improve one another "as iron sharpens iron" (Proverbs 27:17). But it's the wise person who uses life's performance reviews as springboards to growth and improvement.

The Message

In honor of their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, here are the lyrics to Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five's "The Message", one of the first and best rap songs I ever heard.

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Broken glass everywhere
People pissing on the stairs, you know they just
Dont care
I cant take the smell, I cant take the noise
Got no money to move out, I guess I got no choice
Rats in the front room, roaches in the back
Junkies in the alley with a baseball bat
I tried to get away, but I couldn't get far
Cause the man with the tow-truck repossessed my car

Chorus:
Dont push me, cause I'm close to the edge
I'm trying not to loose my head
It's like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder
How I keep from going under

Standing on the front stoop, hangin out the window
Watching all the cars go by, roaring as the breezes
Blow
Crazy lady, livin in a bag
Eating out of garbage piles, used to be a fag-hag
Search and test a tango, skips the life and then go
To search a prince to see the last of senses
Down at the peepshow, watching all the creeps
So she can tell the stories to the girls back home
She went to the city and got so so so ditty
She had to get a pimp, she couldnt make it on her
Own

Chorus:
It's like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder
How I keep from goin under

My brothers doing fast on my mothers t.v.
Says she watches to much, is just not healthy
All my children in the daytime, dallas at night
Can't even see the game or the Sugar Ray fight
Bill collectors they ring my phone
And scare my wife when I'm not home
Got a bum education, double-digit inflation
Can't take the train to the job, there's a strike
At the station
Me on king kong standin on my back
Can't stop to turn around, broke my sacroiliac
Midrange, migraine, cancered membrane
Sometimes I think I'm going insane, I swear I might
Hijack a plane!

Chorus:

My son said daddy I don't wanna go to school
Cause the teachers a jerk, he must think I'm a
Fool
And all the kids smoke reefer, I think it'd be
Cheaper
If I just got a job, learned to be a street sweeper
I dance to the beat, shuffle my feet
Wear a shirt and tie and run with the creeps
Cause it's all about money, aint a damn thing
Funny
You got to have a con in this land of milk and
Honey
They push that girl in front of a train
Took her to a doctor, sowed the arm on again
Stabbed that man, right in his heart
Gave him a transplant before a brand new start
I can't walk through the park, cause its crazy
After the dark
Keep my hand on the gun, cause they got me on the
Run
I feel like an outlaw, broke my last fast jaw
Hear them say you want some more, livin on a
Seesaw

Chorus:

A child was born, with no state of mind
Blind to the ways of mankind
God is smiling on you but hes frowning too
Cause only God knows what you go through
You grow in the ghetto, living second rate
And your eyes will sing a song of deep hate
The places you play and where you stay
Looks like one great big alley way
You'll admire all the number book takers
Thugs, pimps, pushers and the big money makers
Driving big cars, spending twenties and tens
And you wanna grow up to be just like them
Smugglers, scrambles, burglars, gamblers
Pickpockets, peddlers and even pan-handlers
You say I'm cool, I'm no fool
But then you wind up dropping out of high school
Now you're unemployed, all null n void
Walking around like you're pretty boy floyd
Turned stickup kid, look what you done did
Got send up for a eight year bid
Now your man is took and you're a may tag
Spend the next two years as an undercover fag
Being used and abused, and served like hell
Till one day you was find hung dead in a cell
It was plain to see that your life was lost
You was cold and your body swung back and forth
But now your eyes sing the sad sad song
Of how you lived so fast and died so young

Chorus

Proverb of the Day

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths."
Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV)

Proverb of the Day

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction."
-Proverbs 1:7