Project Switchfoot

Last weekend on the Peace Senior High guy's retreat, we listened to a bunch of Switchfoot songs during our sessions, and it rekindled my love for them. The thing that's amazing about Switchfoot is that they never resort to the cliches that a lot of contemporary Christian groups do, they never bang you over the head with their religiosity, and yet almost every single song proclaims an undeniably Christian message. Lyrically, they're probably my favorite band out there. So, I'm going to attempt something I'm calling "Project Switchfoot". The plan is to go through Switchfoot's songs and do a little write-up giving my thoughts on each one of their songs. I want to do at least one song a week, maybe two if I can manage it (I probably will not). Hopefully, this will keep me writing, and exercise my ability to engage with the things I'm taking in. We'll see if I can keep it up, but hopefully it works out and I actually have things to say.

Since I don't actually own their first two albums, I'm going to start by working my way through my favorite Switchfoot album, The Beautiful Letdown

Meant To Live

Fumbling his confidence and
Wondering why the world has passed him by
Hoping that he’s bent for more
Than arguments and failed attempts to fly, fly

We were meant to live for so much more,
Have we lost ourselves?
Somewhere we live inside,
Somewhere we live inside.
We were meant live for so much more
Have we lost ourselves
Somewhere we live inside.

Dreaming about providence
And whether mice or men have second tries
Maybe we’ve been living with our eyes half open
Maybe we’re bent and broken,

We want more than this world’s got to offer (2x)
We want more than the wars of our fathers
and everything inside screams for second life. (yeah)
We were meant to live for so much more
Have we lost ourselves?

C.S. Lewis once wrote "If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world." I wouldn't be surprised if that quote was on Jon Foreman's mind when he wrote this song. "Meant To Live" is a song about that desire for more than what this life offers. I believe everyone feels that longing for something more, something outside of our everyday lives. Occasionally, we catch glimpses of that wonder that we're searching for, echoes of heaven that squeeze their way through our half-open eyes. Maybe it's the beauty of a waterfall or a sunset, or the rush of skydiving, or the winning shot in a basketball game, or the embrace of a loved one, and on and on. There are fleeting moments where we feel like we've almost gotten there, but they aren't quite the real thing, and they never last. And so, we become moment hunters, grasping for these hints of what we're really meant for, continually making "failed attempts to fly".

As Lewis says though, the attempts to find fulfillment in this world are inevitably fruitless, even if they seem successful. We have countless examples to show us that worldly goods and success are no guarantee of happiness and satisfaction. Consider Michael Jordan, who was undeniably as successful as you can get, yet was so obsessively competitive that 6 years after his retirement, when he was being honored by the Basketball Hall of Fame as the greatest player ever, Jordan felt the need to give a bitter, petty speech aimed at all the people he dominated during his career. One of the reasons The Social Network was my favorite film of last year was because of the final scene. After inventing Facebook, becoming wildly successful and fabulously rich, Mark Zuckerberg sits in front of a laptop and continually refreshes the screen, waiting for the college girlfriend who dumped him to accept his friend request. Even when we are "successful" in our attempts to fly, ultimately we still fail, because there is no true satisfaction to be found in the world. As the preacher in Ecclesiastes says "All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full...the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing."

The line from the chorus that is repeated in the bridge is a great line. "Have we lost ourselves?" On the one hand, it questions whether we've lost our original purpose., if things aren't how they're supposed to be. We are meant for so much more, but we did lose ourselves. Sin has separated us from the purpose we were created for. On the other hand, the question is also the means to find that purpose. "Have we lost ourselves?" Christ said he came that we may "have life, and have it to the full," that we might have more than this world's got to offer. He also said "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it." Have we lost ourselves?

Things I Like: Take 2

It's been a while since I last posted, mostly because my last few weeks have been mostly consumed by learning Hebrew. Hopefully (I know I've said this before, and I'll probably say it again) I'll get to writing more now. I have a cool new idea that I hope will keep me writing consistently, but I'll get to that tomorrow. For now, I'm going to list some of the things I've been enjoying lately.

Things I Like

• The Script: I know they've been around for a while, but I've recently just gotten completely addicted to these guys. I absolutely love "The Man Who Can't Be Moved", "We Cry", "Fall For Anything" and "If You See Kay", but this song is genuinely great:

• Community: It's back! I unabashedly love this show, and I'm ecstatic that it's back on after the winter break. I almost wrote a whole blog post about how amazing this show is, but I'll just leave it at this. You need to be watching this show. It's the funniest thing on TV, and nothing else comes even remotely close. Get on the Donald Glover train now, because he's going to be a gigantic star.

• Netflix Instant Watch: I love Netflix Instant Watch. I watched a bunch of movies the last few weeks because I would just lie on my bed doing all my Hebrew busywork and queue up one of the many movies I've been wanting to watch. In case you were wondering, here are some of the ones I've really enjoyed that you can check out as well.

- Exit Through The Gift Shop: Great documentary on street art (and it's also available for free on Hulu right now)
- Man on Wire: Another great documentary about "The Artistic Crime of the Century"
- The King of Kong: Yet another documentary, this time about a guy who sets the world record high score in Donkey Kong. Sounds ridiculous, but it's actually great.
- TiMER: Fun little RomCom wrapped in an interesting sci-fi concept.
- The Damned United: It takes a lot for me to love a movie about soccer. I love this movie.
- Death To Smoochy: Ed Norton plays a purple dinosaur children's show host. Awesome.

• The Books of Magic, by Neil Gaiman: I've read almost everything Gaiman has read, and he's probably my favorite author right now. This was a comic I hadn't been able to find before, and I loved it like I love most of his work. It made me wish I owned the Sandman series so that I could go back and reread it. If you've never read Gaiman, or you've never appreciated a comic book before, I cannot recommend the Sandman series highly enough. It's probably one of my five favorite things I've ever read.

• Bridge: I've learned how to play Bridge recently, and found that I really enjoy it. It demands a much better card sense and ability to keep track of what's been played than most other card games, and I've really enjoyed learning how to play.

• The Peace Church Senior High Guys: I just recently got back from a weekend at Myrtle Beach as a chaperone for the guy's retreat, and after times like that, I'm always reminded how much I miss working with and hanging out with those guys. I think I told someone this weekend, I'd give just about anything to be able to come back and work with that youth group again. I love these guys, and I'm always so encouraged to hear what God is doing in their lives.

• My Car's Gas Mileage: I can drive from Charlotte to Cary and back again on one tank of gas, and it only costs me $30 to fill it up. Almost single-handedly keeping me out of the poor house.

That's all for now. Hopefully I'll have a fun little post for you tomorrow.