It's Here

Love Wins

My Forever

This album embodies springtime:

He is We - My Forever

It's incredible. Especially "All About Us".

Love Wins

     One of my favorite authors is Rob Bell, and he has a new book coming out in late March. It's entitled: Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived and it attempts to answer the question:

Who goes to Hell?

Even though his book hasn't come out yet, it's managed to create a great deal of controversy because some believe Bell presents a Universalist view of Salvation in his video preview. Rob Bell's writings (especially Velvet Elvis) have had a tremendous influence on my life, so any controversy should be treated carefully, with Bell given the benefit of the doubt. After all, nobody except for him and his publishers have actually read his new book.

LOVE WINS. from Rob Bell on Vimeo

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Spring Time

In anticipation of the wonderful season that is Spring, I've changed the design to a spring-time feel. It's still in progress.

Folk Music

Clockwise from top left: Emotionalism, Blind Man Walking, Mission Bell,  Gold

     Folk music has the intangible quality of being organic. Whether its the rich acoustic guitars of the Avett Brothers, the bluegrass of Cadillac Sky, the pop/blues of Ryan Adams, or the soothing voice of Amos Lee, something about these sounds just stirs the soul. In a world of auto-tune and incredible post-production processing on albums, a lot of the tangible qualities are lost.  These songs feel real, alive, as if they contain the souls of the artists.   Organic.  Here are my favorites:

The Battle of Love and Hate - Avett Brothers

Born Lonesome - Cadillac Sky

Windows Rolled Down - Amos Lee

When the Stars Go Blue - Ryan Adams

Dancing Shoes - Green River Ordinance

Poison and Wine - The Civil Wars

White Blank Page - Mumford and Sons

War and Art

I found this on the internet. Such a thought-provoking image.

Beneath the Neon: Life and Death in the Tunnels of Las Vegas

Beneath The Neon by Matthew O'Brien

     Beneath the Neon is an eye-opening book on homelessness in Las Vegas. It focuses on the men and women who spend their nights underneath the strip, living in storm drains and tunnels that crisscross the city. Matthew O'Brien is an investigative journalist who ventures into these tunnels to interview their residents. This book widened my perspective on homelessness. I learned the following about homeless people:

    Just because they're homeless doesn't mean they aren't smart. O'Brian ran into some incredibly intelligent, well-read people who knew more than you and I about society and its problems.

    They weren't always there because of drugs and alcohol. Yes, many of them were battling drug or alcohol addictions, but surprisingly many of them were there because of depression; others from simply unfortunate circumstances.

     They need help. But not the kind of help we normally want to give them. Instead of simply throwing food, clothing, and shelter at them, they need better long-term solutions. In particular, they need IDs, jobs, and affordable housing. Homeless people don't want charity, they want to work themselves out of it.

     Counseling, rehab, and therapy would go a long ways towards helping someone get on their feet. There is a huge mental component of beating homelessness.

     IDs. Most homeless people don't have a drivers license or some form of identification. Without an ID, they can't get a job. No job, no money, still homeless.

     Not all homeless people are messy and slobs. Yes they haven't always bathed in the past few days, but one thing I found remarkable was how clean and organized most of the camps were (a homeless man's living and sleeping area). They had a separate area for the "toilet", and kept their belongings neatly together.

     Creativity is alive in the tunnels. From the graffiti sprayed on the walls, to the poems etched in the concrete, people had created beauty in the darkened tunnels. Several men had elevated their beds in the tunnels like mountain climbers, to avoid the flash floods that wash away everything on the floor.

I hate homelessness, but I haven't done nearly enough to stop it. I keep walking.

In the Name of Jesus

"It seems easier to

be God than to love God,

easier to control people

than to love people,

easier to own life

than to love life."

- Henri Nouwen: "In the Name of Jesus"

The Sun Never Says

 Even after all this time

the Sun never says

 to the Earth,

"You owe me."

Look what happens

with a love like that,

it lights the

whole sky.

-Hafiz

Poetry.

Antiques and Memories

This Thanksgiving I came across the first CD I ever bought. When I was in kindergarten, I got Caedmon's Call's latest CD 40 Acres. Even though I was only 6 years old when I purchased it from the local Christian bookstore, it has remained one of my favorite CDs. The folk/bluegrass acoustic feel is timeless. Derek Webb and Cliff Young write some of the deepest and most honest lyrics you will find. Over the past summer, I would listen to Caedmon's Call in the mornings as I setup our auditorium.  Now I've found an old antique CD player, put some AA batteries in it, and begun to listen to a CD that brings back all kinds of memories. My favorite songs are 40 Acres, Petrified Heart, Somewhere North, and Faith My Eyes.

Grace

    Grace is when you finally stop keeping score and when you realize that God never was, that his game is a different one entirely. Grace is when the silence is so complete that you can hear your own heartbeat, and right within your ribs, God's beating heart, too. 

    I used to think the ability to turn back time would be the greatest possible gift, so that I could undo all the things I wish I hadn't done. But grace is an even better gift, because it allows me to do more than just erase; it allows me to become more than I was when I did those things. It's forgiveness without forgetting, which is much sweeter than amnesia.

-Shauna Niequist "Bittersweet"

     For most of my life I've treated Grace as something God gives me daily, but never something I give to others. At least not on the same level as what God does. For so long Grace and Forgiveness never connected. I thought I forgave people, but after I protected myself. If they hurt me I avoided them and built a wall of protection. After all, "Forgive and Forget" isn't biblical.

As I read and grow, I find that my view is small and incomplete. Grace and Forgiveness do go hand in hand. We shower forgiveness and grace on those who've wronged us. Over and over again. Forever

Even when it hurts. 

Especially when it hurts. 

In these moments we truly reflect Christ.

Days Go By

Apparently on April 14th, 2009 I had my last blog post. 

Somewhere along the way stuff from my sophomore year was lost. But it's ok.

I was a freshman, obsessed with guitars, effects for guitars, and John Mayer. Buckhead church was and is my church. I've gone back and read a lot of my posts. Some are wise, some are embarrassingly short-sighted or poorly written. I put a Creed song down as one of my favorites-of-the-week. I've changed. I promise. Better music.

Since then I've grown. I've worked camp for two incredible summers. Once as a teamtime leader, another as a Production Director. I have grown with Christ and friends for two years. Developed more musical tastes. Better tastes. I've read more books, and learned from them.

Good Friday and Easter at Buckhead Church

These are my experiences from this weekend:

Friday:

We left at 5:30 because we thought traffic would be really bad... it wasn't. We got there at 5:50. We were so early the parking lot hadn't even opened. After sitting in Michael's car and watching videos on his iPhone, we went inside a little after 6. Once inside, we got our picture taken with a Polaroid camera... how cool is that? After standing around for a little over 30 minutes (hey, im tired after a long school day...) the doors finally opened. We calmly walked in and started looking for seats (i dont like those people who rush in so they can sit really close to the band/speaker). Suprisingly nobody was sitting on the front row... there were paper signs in the chairs saying:

"Because of the intensity of today's service, this row may not be suitable for those affected by sudden noises or those who are sensitive to dust."

Thank you

Oddly enough, on the front row in the center, it was us and an elderly couple (80+)... everyone else was in the 2nd row or farther back... Then the service started... 5 minutes into it, the power goes out... things start humming. Fortunately power comes back on. It took a while for all of the intelligent lights to warm up, but everything went back to normal. The worship was great, Casey Darnell is an amazing worship leader, and the guitarists were great. I only had one problem: no words on the screen... I'm not a Super Christian... I don't know all of the church etiquette rules: Should I should sing/stand or sit/watch. Some of the songs I didn't know... I'm sitting in the front, so if I stand I block 10+ people's views... things like that. The guitarists were different which made it even better. The guy on the left played some sort of vintage telecaster in a grey/arctic white. I got a glimpse of his pedalboard when I went to take communion (it wasnt sacrilegious, just a peek...) he had some classic analogue pedals. He also had a Les Paul goldtop with humbuckers. The guy on the right played a Gibson Les Paul (except for Phil Wickham's True Love, he played a telecaster). I didnt see his board, but I imagine it was more modern/digital. They both have amp heads on stage that are probably boosted to isolated cabinets. Throughout the service, this girl painted Jesus on a large canvas in the middle of the stage. The service started with Creation and ended with the ressurection... and all in the space of ~20mins. At the end, they faded the lights until only the face of Jesus was lit. Then, 5 drummers (not including the kit) started playing a tom/snare combo, strobe lights flashed, and a couple guys violently destroyed the picture of Jesus... revealing a cross... with our pictures on it... my picture. Then they went into a haunting beat that started Phil Wickham's "True Love." 6 drummers, 2 electric, 1 acoustic 1 piano/synth/synth 1-2 backup singers all singing... it was incredible. here's a video made by Carlos Whittaker (Buckhead worship team leader): Good Friday 2009 - Ending from buckheadchurch on Vimeo. Sunday... Sunday we got there at about 10:40 and the traffic was terrible after getting off GA 400. Fortunately we got a parking place... The greeting/service people were amazing as usual (didnt see the little kid though...) We got good seats in the balcony ( we normally sit in the balcony to sometimes watch the audio people work) The service started with Casey singing "True Love" again (yet again, no words = nobody (except me and Michael) singing or standing). We got Andy on the screen (as usual). When he mentioned scripture I looked it up in my bible and definitely "bible" pressured the girl next to me (she got hers out right after I did) she was pretty though... I lug my NLT study bible purely for context notes/cross reference stuff... At the end, Andy had a Prayer/Call and Response time. He then asked people to stand if they prayed the prayer. Unfortunately some guys thought they would beat the traffic, so they stood up and left. This kinda made it awkward when people clapped for them leaving. Fortunately several others stood which was amazing. I love Buckhead... Then we ate at La Parilla...

Currently Listening... 04/12/09

Top 5:

Eli Young Band - Guinevere

Bluetree - God of This City

Rascal Flatts - Here Comes Goodbye

Rush of Fools - We All

Steven Curtis Chapman - You Are Being Loved

Twitter

http://www.twitter.com/mckenzieclayton

Common Ground: United

April 19th, 2009 Food: 6:00pm Worship 6:30pm Many different ministries around Georgia Tech will gather at the Kessler Campanile for Common Ground: United for a time of worship, fellowship and community. This is a joint effort between Theta Xi (the Christian fraternity on campus) and Undivided (a ministry whose goal is to unite Christians on campus). My good friend (and future roomie) Michael Grasso is speaking, with the JCA worship band leading worship. I'm actually on the planning team for this (being a part of Undivided), so hopefully everything goes well...

Currently Listening... 04/05/09

Wow, its been soo long... Top 5:

Keith Urban - Stupid Boy

Keith Urban - Sweet Thing

Eli Young Band - Always the Love Songs

Rush of Fools - We All

Angels & Airwaves - The Adventure

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