Good evening 🙂 I wasn’t going to talk more about MJ, but I thought I would do a quick run down of my thoughts on the memorial and then I will give ya what my summer reading has consisted of so far and what’s waiting on the burner.
I got to watch the memorial today with my good friend Amber Cagle…no one better to watch it with because we are both suckers for this kind of stuff. And she was who I was with when I found out MJ had passed away. It was a beautiful service. I don’t know how it could have been better. Here are my top 3 moments:
3. Jermaine Jackson performing MJ’s favorite song “Smile.” I have no idea how he did that. He sounded good and got through it without falling apart. It was so fitting for Jermaine to sing that song since they had such a close relationship.
2. Usher performing “Gone Too Soon.” I remember when Usher first came out, it was obvious the influence that MJ had on his career not only in his singing, but especially in his dancing. I was so happy for Usher that he got a chance to be a part of the service, and it was evident from his performance how he was feeling and he sang with that emotion and did not try to hide. It was beautiful. Here it is if ya missed it:
1. Michael’s daughter Paris sharing with the world about how much she loved her dad was something I was not expecting. MJ’s kids have been out of the public eye and since his death we have seen quite a bit of them. But it was so touching to see and hear her speak, showing us even more that he was “not just a personality, but a person.” And I give her so much props that she did that in front of millions of people! I couldn’t even do that at my father’s service in front of a 100. And she is the one that brought me to tears.
There were many other moments…but I don’t want to spend my whole blog on it, so if you want to chat about it hit me up 🙂
Now onto my Summer Reading:
1. The Tangible Kingdom Primer by Hugh Halter & Matt Smay. It is an eight-week study that our core team is going through that helps guide us on being missional. We just started it yesterday and it is good. I am excited about how it is going to challenge me. There is also a book: The Tangible Kingdom that the author’s wrote before the study which you may want to check out as well.I will eventually read it.
2. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. It is a classic that I have never read and decided to jump into. Everyone who I know that has read it says they love it and it is one of their favorites, but I am just having a hard time with it. It is a tragic story and I am beginning to learn that I do not like this tragedy just like I have a hard time with Romeo and Juliet. So, I am ready for it to be over. 78 pages to go.
3. Crazy Love by Francis Chan. I have listened to Francis Chan’s sermon’s for probably three years now. He is one of my favorite speakers. So, I am excited that I am finally reading his book. It is about understanding and being amazed by the love God has for us and living out the love in our lives. I am reading it with a small group, although I have missed the last two weeks because things have been so crazy, but I am looking forward to discussing it with others.
4. In this one I am going to put 3 more books that I am in the middle of and have been for a long time. You can definitely tell what is on my mind these days by what I am reading, but my boss, Josh Cagle, has been giving me books to read and I keep starting new one’s before I finish the old one’s, so now I have 3 more that I am in the middle of: Breaking the Missional Code by Ed Stetzer & David Putman, Simple Church by Thom Rainer & Eric Geiger, and Launch by Nelson Searcy & Kerrick Thomas. All of these books are geared toward planting a church and I would love to finish these in the near future.
Books that I want to read this summer:
-Any and all of Jane Austen. Can you believe I have never read any of her work?
-Searching For God Knows What by Donald Miller. I loved Blue Like Jazz and he has another book coming out soon, so I figure I need to try and read the one’s that are out already before I get the new one.
-Soul Cravings by Erwin McManus. He is another one of my favorite speakers in which I listen to his sermons every week and I read his book Wide Awake and loved it. Go read it 🙂
-My Jesus Year by Benyamin Cohen. It is a story of the Son of an Orthodox Rabbi who decides to spend a summer exploring Christianity and its different denominations. And it is suppose to be hilarious.
–Half-Life/Die Already by Mark Steele-it is the story of his life and how he laughed and cried through those milestones. He wrote another book I enjoyed called Flashbang-I highly recommend that one.
-And last but not least another classic, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. The story of an orphan and her search for equality and freedom.
OK, I think I have exhausted this post. Feel free to leave your comments about MJ’s memorial…and keep in mind, I don’t want to hear your negativity, so keep it to yourself or I’ll just delete your comment 🙂 And let me know what you’re reading this summer and maybe I will add it to my enormous list or if you’ve read anything that is on my list or that I am reading let me know your thoughts.
Until next time…PEACE OUT!
The One... 