How to put on a concert

I was lucky enough to see the band Coldplay live last Wednesday, September 21. I'm not going to lie, it was one of the most amazing spectacles I've ever seen. I haven't been to very many concerts at all, but I think I can still say with reasonable certainty that it will be quite some time before I experience a show as good as that was.

Me, John Michael Fohner, and Brandon George drove down to Kansas City and met David Ubben at a Waffle House a couple of miles away from the venue (Verizon Amphitheater). We got to the show about 2 hours early, giving us plenty of time to find our seats (which were very good), get some food (which was very expensive), and give Ubben a hard time about "replacing" us as his friends with new people from Mizzou (which was very funny).

The band Rilo Kiley opened for Coldplay, and they weren't bad. Their lead singer, Jenny Lewis, has a very good voice. The band had a lot of energy. It was refreshing to see a band with a woman lead-singer that wasn't your stereotypical bubble-gum pop act. It was kind of funny, though. Their lead guitar player was a little guy, probably no taller than 5'8", whom the guys I was with decided had "little man syndrome"--a nasty disposition that gives little men with guitars the feeling that they need to compensate for their lack of stature by behaving spastically and erratically on stage. Anyways, good band. I don't think I'll be buying their latest album, but good band.

There were about 30-45 minutes of down time before Coldplay came out, but when they did, it was awesome. They opened with "Square One", then moved straight into "Politik" (a concert staple), making for an incredible one-two punch of high energy. They played pretty much every song I wanted them to, with a couple of notable exceptions (those being "What If", "Shiver", and "Amsterdam". But, all is forgiven, as the songs they did play were done incredibly well. At one point--I think during "In My Place", Chris Martin ran out into the audience to sing. I didn't have a camera, but one of my friends, Susanna Stewart, did. Now, Susanna didn't go to the same show that we did (her and Hopwood went to the Dallas show 2 nights later), but I think this picture will still give you a feel for what it was like at our show.



Coldplay closed the show with "Fix You".

I guess all I can say about the show was that it was awesome. I really don't know what else to say. I now have a much deeper appreciation for them. I think they deserve their title as "Biggest Band in the World" right now. Thats all I've got for now.

Comfort

I'm not sure that I agree with the whole "God has allowed this or this to happen because he has something better for you" mentality. So many times I hear people say things like that, and I'm just not sure that its truth.

"I know you really liked her a lot, but don't worry about the fact that you broke up--this just means God has someone better for you."

"I know you didn't get the job you wanted, but this just means that God has a better one in store for you."

In both of these situations, it is very possible that God does, in fact, have a better future-spouse or a better job for you, but it is not a certainty. We can't just say "Well, because God allowed that to happen, he has to have this in store..." The fact is, most of the time we don't know how God works.

Thousands of people have lost their homes in New Orleans, many of them (I'm sure) are Christians. Some of them won't get "better homes". In fact, many of them might be without homes for the rest of their lives. God allowed this to happen, and sure, he has a plan for it, but we don't know what that plan is.

Countless Christians become martyrs every year--some spend nearly their whole lives in pain and suffering for their faith. God does not "rescue" them (in the sense that we might expect him to), or have a "better" earthly life for many of them in the cards.

It seems to me that, oftentimes, we have a clouded view of what our relationship is to God. I started talking to Roland about this today at FSM and he said that he thinks the American church, on the whole, really neglects certain aspects of Christianity that might be viewed as unattractive by many. He said we put way too much emphasis on the self. I agree with him. We are, oftentimes, too afraid to admit that our worldly happiness doesn't necessarily have a whole lot of value to God.

Just to clarify, I know that there are a ton of examples in scripture where it talks about God working for the good of those that love him. I just think that sometimes what we view as "the good" might not line up correctly with God's defintion of it.

Heaven is going to a great reward--thats a given, but we honestly don't know what God's plan is for our earthly lives, or if our "happiness" is a part of it. We do know that joy is, though. And that is comforting.

some things

Wow, it really feels like its been forever since I blogged last. Not too much is new, and I don't really have that much to say, so this might be a little bit of a random post.

First of all, I get to go see Coldplay in concert next Wednesday, the 21st (which is the day I present my first speech in Communications). I seriously can't wait. I'm a lucky, lucky kid.

Second of all, I am not a big fan of "street evangelists", at least not in the sense that I'm about to describe. A family came to the University mid-last week and stood on the corner of the street right in the middle of campus and started (literally) screaming at the top of their lungs to people all of the reasons they were going to hell. When a friend of mine tried to ask them a couple of questions (and he even did it in a very non-confrontational way), they refused to acknowlege him and continued shouting at all of the students who walked by. I guess the biggest thing I felt while walking by was embarassment. I wanted to walk up to each person that heard what they were saying and whisper to them "This is not Christianity, I apologize".

David Ubben, when he came down here for Labor Day weekend, told us about a similar family that "preaches" every day at Mizzou. The family's online flash presentation is so rediculous that I thought it was made by someone to make fun of them, but, no, its from their official website. Check it out. There is one point where the video claims that "Brother Jed" (the patriarch) is sinless. Interesting. Now, I don't want to get any kind of self-righteousness--I know I'm just as much of a wreck as those guys. We've all fallen, and yes, we have been redeemed, but until we die, our sanctification is not yet complete therefore we all still sin. Even Paul, in the beginning of 1 Timothy, claimed that he was the world's worst sinner. We are all flawed. I recognize this... its just that I get extra-frustrated with people who I feel do not accurately portray the message of the Gospel. Anyways, enough of that rant.

Third of all, my Dad started a blog. It is called "I Hate Houston Nut!." While it might be a little harsh of a title, I agree with the intent of the blog: To get Houston Nut fired from the head coaching position of the University of Arkansas football team. It is now obvious that the Hogs are never going to return to a state of national prominence with him calling the shots.

Finally, I'm getting really excited about my band, the Christmas Fuller Project. We are making a lot of progress and I am really, really enjoying the way our songs are turning out. We hope to have a 5-or-so song demo done in the next 2-3 months. One could check out the band's blog to read the lyrics for our current songs and to keep up with the general progress of the band, if one were so inclined.

Thats all I've got for now.

p.s. I'm very upset that the Jim Jarmusch-directed, Bill Murray-starring film "Broken Flowers" is not being released anywhere in Northwest Arkansas. I really want to see it badly.

p.p.s. Sufjan Stevens... if you haven't heard him--hear him. His album "Come On, Feel the Illinoise" is one of the best album's I've ever heard. And he's a Christian, what are the odds?