Lucy is ready for the holiday season to begin. Of course she is just a party going somewhere to happen and every day is filled with a few snacks or treats. But she will notice the tree and she’s not a real fan of it while assembly and decoration is taking place.
Monday’s Music Moves Me
The theme at 4M this week is Black Friday, that day when traditional Christmas shopping season begins and malls are flooded with shoppers. In the past few years many people have opted for shopping online and having their purchace delivered directly to their front door. For the past ten years I have taken the opportunity between Black Friday and Christmas Day to share at least one Christmas song per day. I try to find songs that express the true meaning of the season and the reason for the celebration, which is the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. There will be a few traditional secular songs along the way, but the story of the coming of the King of Kings is where the primary focus of the music will be. So, you can stop by here every day during the holidays and be reminded that it’s not all about the shopping, parties, bowl games, and parades. It’s about the sweetest gift of all. So here is a preview of coming attractions.
Lucy has been a member of the family almost three years now. She was born Christmas Eve 2016 and we brought her home at 10 weeks. On the other hand, this coming Wednesday I will have survived seventy-three years on this planet. It’s been a good life so far. I have been blessed more that most citizens of the globe and I am ever thankful for that fact. I have been fortunate enough to live most of my life in what I consider the best part of this country. Born in Henryetta, Oklahoma…I have lived in Tulsa, Dallas, Springfield MO, and NW Arkansas (for the past 32 years)s. I love the four seasons and the gracious people that have been a part of my life. The two best things that have ever happened to me in this world was giving my life to Jesus Christ and marrying my wife of over 45 years. There is no doubt that I have far more days behind me than I do ahead of me, but I am looking forward to what God has in store for this old soul. Have a blessed week.
Monday’s Music Moves Me
This week is a free choice week at 4M. Ocassionally I will turn on my computer, fire up Spotify or YouTube and just listen to whatever is playing at the time. My music choices come from such a morning. The songs are long and a couple are enriched by an all-star cast of band members. So enjoy.
This week at 4M the theme is Native American music and artists. Growing up in Oklahoma, everyone in Oklahoma believed that they had some Native American ancestral connection. Between 1830 and 1850 Oklahoma was the resettlement destination of what was known as the Five Civilized Tribes from the southeastern United States. Time does not permit me to tell the entire story here, but let’s just say it was a series of resettlements (forced marches) that resulted in the confiscation of Indian lands and the deaths of thousands of Native Americans. Oklahoma was designated as the new Indian Territory. These five tribes, Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Muscogee Creek and Seminole still maintain separate governing bodies within the state. Musically, Native American artists have been involved in virtually every genre of music, so today I will feature a few, both popular and lesser known.
The first artist is Johnny Curtis. Curtis is of Apache descent and is primarily a gospel artist. In October 2008 Chief Curtis received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Native American Music Association in Niagara Falls, New York. He is also two time Native American Music Awards winner.
In October 2008 Chief Curtis received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Native American Music Association in Niagara Falls, New York. He is also two time Native American Music Awards winner.
Martha Redbone is an American blues and soul singer of part Cherokee, Choctaw, European and African-American descent. She has won awards for her contemporary Native American music. Her music is a mix of rhythm and blues, and soul music influences, fused with elements of traditional Native American music.
One of the most popular artists of Natiave American Descent (Cherokee) is Rita Coolidge.
The final entry in this Native American artist collection is Marty Robins (Cherokee) and his most popular song of all was El Paso. Have a blessed week.
In 2006 fellow blogger Mimi Lennox began blogging for peace and invited the world to join her. Her thought was that if words are powerful, then this matters and if the world would spend one day thinking about peace, it might make a difference. This year the theme is climate change.
The debate over climate change has been going on for a couple of decades now. Is it real? Is it a natural phenomenon or caused by humans? If this generation lived through an ice age, would they consider it the fault of mankind or simply a natural lifecycle event in the history of the universe?
Whether one believes in climate change or not is of little consequence. The fact is that God created this universe and presented it as a gift to mankind. It is our responsibility to be good stewards of that gift and we have failed miserably. We have polluted our waters and spent trillions of dollars cleaning them up. We have hunted certain animals into extinction and removed the natural habitat of untold species for the sake of development and progress. Mankind seems to live in a constant state of crisis management. We wait until an issue becomes a crisis before we attempt to manage it. Can the effects of climate change be reversed or have we passed the tipping point and are doomed to live in a world with much more volatile weather patterns. Only time will tell, but it doesn’t alter our responsibility to take care of this planet that is God’s gift to His most precious creation, mankind.
Monday’s Music Moves Me
This week is a “Free Choice” week at 4M so in keeping with the peace theme I am going to post a couple of tunes that speak to the idea of peace. The Bible tells us that there will always be wars and rumors of wars in this world. As a result mankind has always dreamed of peace and it has been reflected in his music. The first peace song I can remember was from a folk group in in late fifties and early sixties. Blowin’ In The Wind was one of the original peace anthems of my generation.
In 1969 a music event changed music forever. It changed a generation forever. Woodstock Music Festival was billed as three days of peace, love, and music. Much of that music was protesting the Vietnam war. One of the songs that came out of that era was The Weight.
One of my favorite artists reminds us that regardless of the cause, war is war and every war looks much like the previous conflicts. Young men and women go to war and not all of them come home. None of them come home the same person as when they left.
Before peace can be universal, it must be personal and internal and that peace can only be found in a relationship with Jesus Christ. It is a peace that can be felt in every life situation but cannot be fully explained.
Finally, let there be peace. One day Christ will return and gather His church. That will be the beginning of eternal peace. Peace, out.
The theme this week at Monday’s Music Moves Me is Autumn. I don’t know that my music will feature Autumn as the main topic so I am going to post a few images that I captured recently. The peak fall colors here in Northwest Arkansas typically arrive in late October or early November. The best colors can last from one to three weeks, then the wind blows and all the leaves fall off the trees and winter begins. We had a l-o-n-g summer and I was still mowing the lawn the first week in October. In one week we went from a high temperature of 85 degrees to a low of 33. The next night we experienced the first light freeze of the year and that stopped the growing season for the lawn while setting the stage for the commencement of autumn color. A few trees began to make the transition, so I grabbed the camera and headed out to capture a few images.
Okay, that’s enough fall photos for now. Stop back by on Wordless Wednesday and I may have a few more.
The crisp, short days, the final blaze of color, and the thought of a warm fire in the fall put me in a mellow mood. A little over a year ago our oldest grand daughter intorduced her dinosaur of a grand father to John Mayer. ‘Nuf said.
I’m going to close this set out with an inspirational song by a Christian artist that reminds me of John Mayher. Jason Gray’s music has a lot of Mayher influence. I have met Jason and he is a great young man with a message of hope. This is a song of praise for the life that we have been given by our creator and we should not waste it. We are reminded that we are not promised tomorrow, therefore, we are indeed living on borrowed time. Scripture tells us that before we were placed in our mother’s womb, God knew everything about us (Jeremiah 1:5). The Good Book also states that it is appointed to man to die once and then face judgment (Hebrews 9:27). We do not enter heaven based on our works. Our place in eternity is determined by what we do with Jesus Christ. Have a blessed week.
Driller's Place 