We throw off the lie of perfection and cling to our identity in God as we strive to be whole, healthy, and fit. Our goal is wholeness, not perfection.

Archive for the ‘music’ Category

What In the World?!? – Response to 2014 VMAs

I knew I couldn’t handle watching the awards show live so I recorded it.  I had to watch it in two sittings.  My senses couldn’t take the show in just one.  It can be difficult enough listening to lyrics that celebrate debauchery, but to watch the choreography that goes with it can be a bit much.  I just finished watching it and feel like I need to take a shower.  Yuck.

I don’t even know where to start.  It was a parade of flesh.  Specifically big bare booties.  As in practically naked booties.  I remember when Madonna rolling around on the floor in a wedding gown singing about sex made everyone gasp.  In comparison, the women performing this year made Madonna in 1984 look like, well, THE Madonna.

As gratuitous as Nicki Minaj’s “dance” moves were, I was most offended by Beyonce’s performance.  How can any woman prance on stage like a stripper, treating herself like an object, and dare to call herself a feminist?  I’m not a huge fan of the feminist movement, especially what it’s become in mainstream media (future blog post).  But I found her use of the word to be ridiculously hypocritical.  Laughable, really.  You don’t want to be exploited?  Exploit yourself before someone else has the opportunity.  You want to be in control?  Use your body and your sex appeal to show ’em who’s boss.  Yuck.  And the adoration she received from the audience?  Super yuck.  The fact that her baby daughter was in the audience watching her mom on stage made me want to cry.

THIS is why I teach my 7 year old, and will do the same with the babies, that he is to treat EVERY girl as a lady, even if she doesn’t act like one.  I remind him that he may be the only person to show a girl that she is special, not because he thinks so, but because God does.

THIS is why I feel called to work in ministry full time with girls ages 11 to 21.  To walk alongside them and speak life and truth over them.  “You are loved.  You are beautiful.  You are a princess, the daughter of the Most High.  Your body is not your own.  It is not yours to throw around like a piece of meat.  You were made for more than this.”

Stepping off my soapbox now.

Did you watch the MTV Video Music Awards?  If so, what did you think?

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music, parenting

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Say It

I love music. Not like. Love. I am not musically gifted.  I can’t write music. I can’t read it anymore. I don’t play an instrument. I was a band geek in intermediate school (Junior High or middle school depending on where you live) but gave up on it when I got to high school because I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to play and march at the same time.

I thank God for the musically gifted. For those who can string notes together to create music that makes me bob my head, bounce my shoulders, sway back and forth, and drive more recklessly than I hope my kids ever notice.  I have a special appreciation for those who can write lyrics. It’s so personal, regardless of the genre.

I love music. It is one of my favorite ways to connect to God. Just like reading Scripture, I can hear a song a hundred times and get something different from it each time.  One line.  One word.  It can feel like a message straight from God.

For over a year the song that has spoken to me the most is Britt Nicole’s “Say It”.  Most people have a life verse.  This is my life song.  Just like everything we read senior year in AP Lit, I’m sure there are a hundred different interpretations of the song.  But what convicts me time and time again is that…

I just need to begin. I don’t always know what God’s will is for me in a given situation and I can easily become paralyzed, doing nothing.  But the truth is I do know what His will is for my life.  I don’t need a sign – be it neon or a burning bush – to make every big decision. Although I confess I would like one. How cool would that be?

I need God’s help to make the most of what is mine. Stewardship and contentment do not come naturally to me. I don’t think I’m alone in this one. I’m prone to waste my time and my money. And the thing is, as a wife and mother, these resources aren’t my own to squander. And I don’t think it’s a coincidence that when I feel flustered, these are the resources I daydream about having in abundance.

I’m gonna say it. We may not agree, but I’m going to say it. It may come out imperfectly, but I’m going to say it. I would like to finish conversations with a nice nugget of wisdom tying the whole thing up in a nice bow. Maybe I grew up watching too many sitcoms that resolved all conflicts within 30 minutes and my expectations are unrealistic. The truth is I’m prone to bounce from topic to topic within any given conversation and only wrap it up when one of the Floyd boys requires my undivided attention.

“Say It” is my go to 3 minute life manifesto that inspired me to start this blog.  It’s a gentle reminder when I try to over-complicate things.  Do you have a life song?

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