Trying to follow

Last week, Mindy and I went and enjoyed dinner (courtesy of a gift certificate from my work) and a movie (courtesy of inconvenientchristians.org) without our taking a dent in our pocket books. For better or worse (usually worse) I took a moment during our meal to bring up the conversation of how much is too much eating out. Mindy pointed out that the meal was free and I responded in saying that I still felt like it was “going out” and that we should have some sort of limit on it. It so happened that we were about to see our second movie of the week (the previous had also been free), and so mindy asked me how often I felt it was acceptable to go out to the movies in a given week. Initially, I responded “as much as you want as long as it’s free,” but then I reconsidered.

You see I think there is a culture of consumption about us and it’s not something I want to be a part of, regardless of how much I pay for it. I imagine with enough connections, I could go out to eat, to the movies and out to coffee daily without ever having to pay a penny. Yet, even if it never cost a dime, I still feel a bit uncomfortable with our superfulous consumerist lifestyle.
Though I don’t have any those connections to free meals, we do get free movie screening passes, gift cards for the holidays and much more from friends and family. I don’t believe we should be employing a “if you got it, spend it” type attitude with these things either.

Mindy and I have decided to take a step in downsizing. For us that means that we will only eat out twice a month. This is a good step (it does not include coffee), and a very encouraging moment for me. Maybe we’ll decide we need to reduce this even more, or eliminate it completely, but for now it’s a step on the journey.

For what it’s worth, here is a short lesson in Jewish roots, and one I think might be worth picking up for you Jewish rooted Messiah followers.

Mezuzah (מזוזה, literally means a “doorpost” in Hebrew, plural: mezuzot) refers to one of the 613 commandments in Judaism, which requires that a small parchment (klaf) inscribed with two sections from the Torah’s Book of Deuteronomy (6:4-9 and 11:13-21) be affixed to each doorpost and gate in a Jewish home, synagogue, and business.

In English translation, the Torah verses state:

4. Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God; the Lord is one. 5. And you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your means. 6. And these words, which I command you this day, shall be upon your heart. 7. And you shall teach them to your sons and speak of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk on the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up. 8. And you shall bind them for a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for ornaments between your eyes. 9. And you shall inscribe them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gates. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 [1]

13. And it will be, if you hearken to My commandments that I command you this day to love the Lord, your God, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, 14. I will give the rain of your land at its time, the early rain and the latter rain, and you will gather in your grain, your wine, and your oil. 15. And I will give grass in your field for your livestock, and you will eat and be sated. 16. Beware, lest your heart be misled, and you turn away and worship strange gods and prostrate yourselves before them. 17. And the wrath of the Lord will be kindled against you, and He will close off the heavens, and there will be no rain, and the ground will not give its produce, and you will perish quickly from upon the good land that the Lord gives you. 18. And you shall set these words of Mine upon your heart and upon your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand and they shall be for ornaments between your eyes. 19. And you shall teach them to your sons to speak with them, when you sit in your house and when you walk on the way and when you lie down and when you rise. 20. And you shall inscribe them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gates, 21. in order that your days may increase and the days of your children, on the land which the Lord swore to your forefathers to give them, as the days of heaven above the earth. Deuteronomy 11:13-21 [2]

For more on Mezuzah’s read up here.

If you consider yourself a person of the “Book” then you amongst others probably hold highly those two stone tablets with those Ten Commandments. The important question is, do you know what they are?
For those who could only stumble across about five of those commands Congressman Lynn Westmoreland, A man pushing for the Ten Commandments to be placed in public courthouses, will happily list them out for you.

If you didn’t catch them all here’s some more info.

Jon Stewart gives some wonderful perspective on this recent development in two rather amusing segments.

UPDATE: There are some parts of these two videos one might cringe at a little. I’m not necessarily advocating everything that was said, but I think it made some valid points.
Mindy pointed out that Invetro Fertilization, the procedure that has created the majority of these frozen embryos, is a commodity available only to the rich. These embryos are really the ‘children’ of rich couples who had this procedure done. I guess that just was interesting to me. Maybe they should be taking care of all their embryos if they want them.

From Derek Webb:

i love music. i have grown up with music as a close confidant. and i believe in the power of music to move people. there’s something remarkable about the way a melody can soften someone to a new idea.

as an artist (and often an agitator), this is something i am keenly aware of. my most recent record ‘mockingbird’ deals with many sensitive issues including poverty, war, and the basic ethics by which we live and deal with others. but i found that music has been an exceptional means by which to get this potentially difficult conversation going. and this is certainly an important moment for dialogue amongst people who disagree about how to best love and take care of people, to get into the nuances of the issues.

one of the things that excites me most about the future of our business is how easy it is becoming to deliver music to people who want to hear it. i heard a story once about keith green caring so much that people were able to hear and engage with his music that he gave it away for free, which was a very difficult and expensive thing to do at that time. it’s actually never been as simple as it is today to connect music with music fans. and i want people to have a chance to listen to mockingbird and engage in the conversation.

so this is why, on september 1st, we’re launching freederekwebb.com, a place where anyone can go online and not just hear but actually download, keep, and share ‘mockingbird’ completely for free. In addition, freederekwebb.com will give you an opportunity to invite your friends to download ‘mockingbird’ in order to get them in on the conversation as well.

we hope this bold campaign will provide a jumping off point for conversations about all of these issues, and communicate my commitment to playing my part in starting them. so please help us spread the word: on september 1st, ‘mockingbird’ will be set free!