The final season season of Lost is right around the corner, and I can’t even begin to describe how excited I am.  February 2nd could not get here faster.  Lost is one of those shows where you’re either in or you’re out.  As you can already tell, I am completely in.  I think it will go down in history as one of the greatest television dramas ever created.  Now let me share with you a couple of reasons why.

For starters the character development is completely unparalleled. They are able to go farther with these characters than any other show, because of consistency and the intentionality in which they write. I heard recently that each writer has a certain character that they know, and I mean they know everything about them, even things we as the audience don’t know, things that may never even come into play with the script.  So then as they are writing each episode, and ideas are thrown out, they can then respond with “no, that can’t happen. Kate would never do that because…”  I’m not sure if that’s true or not, but I love that idea.  Also with all of the background stories and intimate details of their personal lives that we are given about their lives prior to the crash, you feel like you truly know these people.  Which makes it all the more easy to fall in love with them, no matter how flawed they may be.

I think that overall the acting is pretty superb, especially when you consider the enormity of the cast from season to season. From guys like Dominic Monaghan playing the fun-lovin’ drug-addicted rockstar, to Michael Emerson playing the creepy and sinister Benjamin Linus, to Jeremy Davies playing the extremely nervous, but lovable physicist Daniel Farraday, they are all just excellent.

Not to mention they do a fantastic job with the music. Very rarely do they use pop culture songs to score the show, but when they have it has worked really well, like in the end of the Season 1 episode “In Translation”, where they used Hurley’s discman to play “Delicate” by Damien Rice.  That was a great moment. But the best thing about the music is the original score performed by the Hollywood Studio Symphony Orchestra and composed by Michael Giacchino.  They often use the score to invoke some sort of emotion in the audience, be it suspenseful or joyous.

Another highlight of the show for me is all of the incredible philosophical and biblical references and metaphors intertwined in to the story, which I won’t get into, for I do not want to spoil any of the plot-lines for those of you who have yet to buy in to this incredible series.

This last love of mine is a piece of contention among many viewers.  This is where Lost has lost a great portion of its audience.  It’s the fact that each episode leaves you with more questions.  Every time you think the show is about to go somewhere and give you some answers and a bit of resolution, it turns a corner.  And often when it does give you an answer, that answer merely leads to more questions.  Where some people find this infuriating, I find it invigorating.  I love this aspect of the show for many reasons. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve finished an episode of Lost and immediately turned to the person next to me and started to ask them one of the many questions that I was left with.  And more often than not, that question has led into a great and very deep and meaningful conversation.  Not only that, but I feel like this is more true to life.  More often than not, in our quest for truth, and for answers, we have to wait a long time before we get them.  And then when we do receive answers, they often lead to more questions.

I think this is the way that our God often relates to us. “I am coming soon.” I mean how much more unresolved can you get than that. It’s been what a little over 2,000 years now .

It has taken me a long time to come to grips with the fact that I am never going to figure it all out. That I will never have all the answers.

So what do you think?  Is it ok for things to be unresolved?  What is your reaction to Lost when it leaves you with more questions than you can handle?  What’s your reaction to God when you seek Him in prayer dig into His word and all you are left with is more questions? Knowing that we will never be able to figure it out, do we just stop seeking?  Or do we seek harder?

Michael Giacchino – The Constant

I began following R.E.M. during my first year of college.  At that time, their steady rise to fame had just begun and I’ve been a fan through the years. That’s why a recent headline caught my eye quoting Michael Stipe regarding a friend of his, respected musician and fellow Georgian, Vic Chesnutt. If you haven’t heard of Vic you aren’t alone, I hadn’t either until December 26, 2009, the day after his death on Christmas Day from an overdose of muscle relaxers. I saw the story headline, but I didn’t have time to read it. 

Several days later, while in the middle of one of my favorite past-times of searching for new and quality independent-label musicians, one website I frequent suggested several artists based on my musical taste and there he was again; Vic Chesnutt. This time I followed the lead, pulled up digital versions of all of his albums and sampled most of them. Within an hour, I owned two of his last albums (is it okay to still call them that even though they are mp3 downloads?), “North Star Deserter” and “At the Cut”, both recorded with the backing support of a hidden gem-of-a-band by the name of Silver Mt. Zion and Fugazi guitarist Guy Picciotto. Considering my ever-obsessive interest in music, I was surprised that I hadn’t at least heard of someone with over a dozen albums throughout a 20+ year career.

Since downloading these two albums, I have hardly stopped listening to them and I have learned that Vic Chesnutt was an amazing wordsmith. His lyrics, often flowing like poetry, were meticulously crafted to tell some deeply personal stories, mostly soaked in tragedy and sorrow. Such was his life. You should know that Vic, in the early 80’s at age 18, was injured in a car accident while driving drunk. He lost most of the movement in his legs, a lot of the mobility in his arms and his hands were greatly compromised. So while his body was confined to a wheel chair, Vic relearned to play the guitar with simple chords and only a few fingers, and with a very limited musical structure to work with and a uniquely gritty voice, Vic spent the following 26 years rising out of his chair in the ether of his storytelling and musical genius.

His sound is rooted in folk with streams of other influences such as jazz, soul, and country flowing through it. His voice, sometimes rugged and graveled in a heavy Dylan/Springsteen kind-of- way while other times floating weightless in a beautiful falsetto, is usually accompanied only by the minimalist sounds of his lonely guitar. In his music are, naturally, stories of loss, pain, sadness and vacancy; an imprisoned perspective that few can entirely relate to. Yet, if we’re honest, his music is at the same time deeply accessible on multiple levels. The place from which his art stems is hauntingly and intensely real.

However, pointing you to the work of Vic Chesnutt is not the point of this writing, although some will undoubtedly (and wisely) seek his work. No, there is more to his story that I find fascinating. You see, he was raised in a Christian home and yet, from the age of 13, Vic was an admitted atheist. He writes about this dichotomy some in his music. One would have hoped that from his tragic accident, he would have reformed from his formidable lifestyle and embraced a new appreciation for life. That was not the case for Vic. His personal choices in life would likely be defined as unfortunate by many, battling alcohol and drug abuse for most, if not all, his adult life. There are stories written about him describing his drunken belligerence in the public music scene during the earlier part of his career. He was rather anti-establishment and as a result of near medical bankruptcy at the end of his life, he was outspokenlycritical of America’s health care system. He writes of watching his mother die a painful death from cancer, begging mercy from Jesus and Vic had a long-time preoccupation with death, attempting suicide 3-4 times through the years before his successfully-fatal overdose last month.  

You may not have liked the person. You may disagree with his viewpoints. You might not like his music. However, Vic Chesnutt was, if nothing else, brutally honest about life as he saw it and he openly acknowledged the complexities he saw in life. In the midst of the conflict and controversy surrounding Vic’s work, here’s what I take away from listening to his music. He makes me think. He makes me think about my position on social justice issues. He makes me think about my own spirituality and theology. He makes me think about my own mortality. He makes me think about the pain in my life and the pain in the lives of others. He makes me think about compassion and also about anger. He makes me think about being broken and the hope of being fixed. He makes me solidify where I stand in regards to my personal beliefs. All this from a crippled and indulgent atheist. So here are my questions. What would you do as a Christian about Vic Chesnutt? Would you protest his music? Would you even listen to it? Would you hear the stories and appreciate the realism or would you dismiss him as a bad influence? Would you embrace him as a human being or would you turn back into your comfortable circle? What is our role as Christians in God’s Kingdom? Are you intimidated by atheists? We know that Jesus hung out with outcasts, but do we really buy that we should too? What if we are the outcasts? Who do you hang out with? Who are you influenced by, and who do you influence?  

One of the last songs Vic wrote was called, “Flirted With You All of My Life”. He called it his break-up song with death. In it he reminisces about his preoccupation with death saying that he’s flirted with her all his life before coming to the realization and celebrating, ”Oh Death / Oh Death / Oh Death / Really, I’m not ready / Oh Death / Oh Death / Oh Death / Clearly, I’m not ready.” This song was released 3 months prior to his death by apparent suicide. 

Vic Chesnutt makes me think. What makes you think?

Tuesday night I am sitting in an Outback Steakhouse in Tulsa, OK celebrating my brothers 40th birthday. When my eyes stretch out across the restaurant to the near by TV and I see “Breaking News – Haiti is hit with massive earthquake”. My thoughts immediately went to the missionary friends I know there, the churches and medical facilities they have built, and if they are all OK. I was motivated to say a little prayer for them, the country, and quickly moved backed to my shrimp, prime rib, and garlic mashed potatoes. Last night while watching the news I noticed another form of motivation. The New York Yankees gave $500,000.00 to Haiti, Lance Armstrong’s foundation gave $250,000.00, and the NFL Colts gave $10,000.00 to the Red Cross for relief efforts. I also caught that Obama and our government have already shipped out and flown out relief aide, along with troops to keep the peace. To this I say Kudos and applaud the action they have taken.

It seems as a nation and for the most part as a people we respond very well to massive tragedy. Whether it be tornados throughout Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas and people responding to wrecked houses and wrecked lives or on September 11th when the Trade Towers were hit by two airliners and people lives and a country where changed forever, people rose to the occasion. We see political figures, celebrities, Christians, Athesists, Buddists, etc. rise to the occasion of helping one another in spite of race, political preference, or belief. Although, the question remains why are we mostly motivated by a massive tragedy when injustices and tragedies are happening around us everyday? Nightly I am hearing on the news of police officers, firemen, teachers, and city workers in Tulsa and the surronding communities having their pay cut or worse their jobs taken from them and the New York Yankess have no problem increasing someone’s pay from $35 million to $40 million because the player hit 10 more home runs last year. But, when Haiti is hit with an earthquake they can spare $500,000.00. I have friends moving to Thailand next month to make a place of refuge for the girls in the sex slave industry and they can’t sell their homes, and are having a heck of a time raising the needed support to go. Is it not enough of a tragedy yet in Thailand that we will stand up and make a difference. How many have to die? How many girls have to be used, abused, and thrown out on the street before we take notice?

Again, what motivates you? Are you only moved when massive tragedy takes place around you, do you only respond when a tornado roles through town, or have you opened your eyes enough to see the hurt and pain around you daily?

** Side note: I am trying very hard not to use one wide brush when facing these issues. I know there are many daily fighting for injustices and I applaud them. I also know there are numerous athletes who give graciously to communities, civil and religious organizations, and many make a huge impact. I merely have a hard time seeing people struggle daily and we say it is because of our economy, while others already making a ridiciously amount of money are getting more. There seems to be something wrong with this picture. Thanks for allowing me to vent a little this morning….

As a reader of this blog I must say I count it an honor that you are reading this, but let me be honest with you. This is my first rodeo. Now, I could say be patient with me, don’t ruffle my feathers too much, etc. but I am not treading in that water. I think what CQ Missional is trying to accomplish with this interaction is real conversation as we share tough questions, feedback, and our deep, heart felt issues. So let’s try it. Be nice, but let’s challenge each other to the core of who we are, what we believe, and why we believe it. Who knows this just might make us better people, leaders, followers, spouses, employees, and more.

Growing up in a pastor’s home in a strict, almost legalistic at times, denomination I have always been struck with the thought: “Why do I do what I do?” Do I wear certain clothes so others might see me and think “that guy is a follower of Christ?” Do I get myself up on Sunday mornings to darken a church door to please myself, my parents, my God, or to fulfill an obligation? Do I work in full-time ministry because that is what everyone told me I would be good at and I didn’t want to disappoint them? I guess what I am trying to get at is this: we are all motivated by something. There is some reason, good or bad, why we put two feet on the floor next to our bed each morning. It could be a pay check, a great job, friends, or a significant someone. It could be because we are destined, called, or because we have purpose in life. It all comes down to motivation. Dictionary.com describes motivation as a force, stimulus (heard this word before?), or influence. If we are honest we are all driven by motivation. Commercials motivate us to buy Mac or PC, Coke or Pepsi, Toyota or Honda, and the list goes on and on. We face pressures to have the the right job, with the right benefits, so we can have the right house, in the right neighborhood, so our kids can go to the right school. We are motivated to attend the right church, with the right pastor, that preaches the right way, and gets us out on time to get a seat at our favorite restaurant before everyone else. We are driven by motivation and this motivation can tell us a lot about ourselves. What are we living for? Who are we living for? What kind of legacy are we leaving behind us?

So I start this conversation by asking a few simple questions: What motivates you? Why does this motivate you? What does this motivation say about you as a person, friend, spouse, parent, child, employee, or boss?

If you subscribe to the CQ rss feed you may have noticed a few odd posts in the last few days. We are working on a totally new site that we think you will really like! While we are working on it though you may see several new (or odd!) posts in your reader. Think of it as a sneak peak!

We will let you know when the new site launches!

CQ Missional Year End Letter 2009

Well, friends, its been quite a year of change around here- and I want to thank all of you for your support and encouragement.  We started this wild idea of helping people grow into missional lives through mentoring and experiences in September.  That means we’re wrapping up the 4^th month of existence and I would like to report some of the beautiful things we seen happen in what amounts to the “starting line” of something much bigger than me or my friends who are excited about this.

• 13 young leaders are involved in a mentoring relationship with me each month.  They are learning to own the life that God has given them- and are making decisions with courage in their respective worlds.  We are making a difference here- more on a specific story later.
• The Certificate of Missional Leadership program is a huge success for our participants and also the site we’re partnering with, Garnett Church of Christ and the Green Country Events Center.  We’re in month 3 of 10, and the life altering learning, and impact on a community is thick already.  We have “a-ha” moments with each gathering, and the church is thrilled with the process.
• We are starting to engage an organic gathering of 20s each week- looking for a community of people who love God and want to make a difference in the world.  The group is called 20/30 and meets in the “redemption house” where Ben and Beth West (participants in our CML process) live. (Ben and Beth, btw, are awesome and their experience has been a huge deal.)
• Work with Challenge Quest being a lead facilitator for groups of all sizes and shapes is enjoyable, helping pay the bills, and dovetailing in a sweet way with the CQM work.  While we haven’t met our financial support goal for coaching CQM clients, work with Challenge Quest has filled a gap there.  God has provided for our needs- and new opportunities arise out of this diversity of work.

One of the young leaders who I have the privilege to mentor every other week, is a great example of how the work of CQ Missional is all about investment- and a picture of how unlocking a leader’s God given identity creates life giving change all around.  I’ll call him Jim and he approached me one morning this fall wanting to talk about his job and life.  He is a young ministry leader, and as he described his life, his emotions broke loose with tears as he shared that he is dying inside, and didn’t believe he was capable of fulfilling the expectations of leading in his job, or for that matter, his family.  Over several weeks, some assignments, and some challenges to lean courageously into difficult conversations while saying no to things he didn’t need to own, he started to recognize God’s blessings in his life and all around him.  He is starting to apply a vision of empowerment that he’s seen,  and he’s releasing it in his own leadership style, he’s doing what he’s good at, and loving his wife and children with a new confidence.  He is understanding that God is at the center of the story and he has a beautiful part to play.  We’re discovering what that part is through our process- and the beautiful thing is that his ministry and more importantly, his family benefit from this investment.  The programs he creates and runs and the people he leads receive a new investment from Jim.  Because he is now living on mission. He just needed someone to listen, to ask good questions, and to encourage him to move forward with courage.

Because of God’s goodness, and your support, I get to do this kind of work.    I get to help people step back from their current and sometimes suffocating  context, and see the big picture with honest assessment.  We get to ask- Who are you in response to your Creator?  This is fun stuff, because it works, and eyes get opened, and as mentioned earlier- the investment goes on and on- and people live “in the light” as 1 John talks about.  It’s a beautiful thing.

As our year comes to a close- I am asking you to consider making an investment in the work of CQ Missional with a tax deductable gift.  Gifts on a one time or monthly basis create the opportunity for guys like Jim to access our work, and pass the investment on to everyone he leads.  Please prayerfully consider joining our team in this way. Our financial support level is at 60%.  Help us fill that gap and grow the work this year to impact more folks through coaching and experiences that help grow emerging leaders.  We need your investment to grow and create more investment in young leaders.

We are drawing up new experiences for the coming year even as I write.  Look for a new daily content driven website at www.cqmissional.com where at least 10 folks will partner with us to create conversations every day about issues surrounding missional living.  Our contributing partners in this work are pastors, business leaders, young leaders who understand culture and community, and we’ll also have guests who you may (or may not have!) heard of.  I’m excited to take the next step of bringing people together with this communication resource that will also steer folks toward our experiences and processes at CQM.

Lastly- let’s remember Mary’s response to the visiting angel in this Christmas season:  “Let what You have said be done to me.”  May all of us have ears open to hear God’s voice this new year, and respond with a mission to join His work.

If you would like to contribute- go to www.cqmissional.com for online and autodraw options, or you can mail your gift to:

• CQ Missional, Attn. Chris

1212 W Albuquerque Pl

Broken Arrow OK 74011

If you would like to make a pledge for contributions starting in the new year- please just let me know so I can budget and plan.  Thank you in advance.

God bless each of you, and do not hesitate to contact me regarding your story and what you are experiencing in life- perhaps we can work together.  Each of you are a blessing.

Chris