I’ve been playing music for over half my life now .. and I think for many of those years, I’ve underestimated its power. I mean, it’s not that I didn’t think it was important, I guess I just didn’t think about what music can do to a person.
Recently, I heard an amazing talk by a guy named, Dr. Karl Paulnack, from the Boston Conservatory. His teaching really helped me understand the role that music plays in our society .. and why we should value it. Here are a few points that I took away from it:
* Music is the study of invisible relationships between internal objects.
* Music is not entertainment.
* Art is part of the human spirit, an unquenchable expression of who we are.
* In concentration camps, prisoners would spend time writing and playing music. Why? … art must be, somehow, essential for life.
* The first organized activity [Dr. Karl] witnessed in New York, on the very evening of September 11th, was singing.
* In times of crisis, a musician is a lot like a paramedic – interested in keeping you alive, rather than entertaining you.
* Musicians are a sort of therapist for the human soul, a spiritual version of a chiropractor, physical therapist, someone who works with our insides to see if they get things to line up.
I LOVE THIS! And the amazing thing is, it’s nothing new. A few thousand years ago, when King Saul needed to be comforted, he called upon David, a skilled harpist, to play for him. I think it’s the way God made us.
Here’s another quote from Karl Paulnack:
“I have come to understand that music is not part of “arts and entertainment” as the newspaper section would have us believe. It’s not a luxury, a lavish thing that we fund from leftovers of our budgets, not a plaything or an amusement or a pass time. Music is a basic need of human survival. Music is one of the ways we make sense of our lives, one of the ways in which we express feelings when we have no words, a way for us to understand things with our hearts when we can’t with our minds.”
I think I’m more excited than ever to be able to call myself a musician. Especially knowing that God has given us music & art as a way of making HIM famous. I pray that our expressions would bring comfort to others, and most of all, reflect the beauty of our amazing Creator!
If you’re not convinced that music makes a difference, watch this short video …
Have you ever done this before? It’s not the safest thing in the world – but chances are (whether you live in the city or in the country), you’ve done it. When you’re a kid, you don’t really think about the danger or risk involved in something like this. You just enjoy the ride.
A few weeks ago I saw this (it’s still legal in certain places) – and I was reminded of the fun times I had riding around in the back of a pickup. I remember the wind blowing in my face, drinking coca-cola out of a glass bottle (or maybe I’m just imagining that part!), and, of course, flying in the air whenever we hit a big bump. It was always a good time.
Now, I’m not encouraging you all to go out and do it. But it got me thinking about risking vs. safety. How many times have we said “no” to something because it wasn’t safe enough? I’m not talking about things like riding in the back of a pickup .. I’m talking about life, ministry, dreams. A different kind of risk. Risk that involves putting our complete trust in God. I think we idolize safety. We give ourselves rules and boundaries to keep us safe, and then we forfeit the opportunity to live out an amazing adventure with God.
“Crazy Love” by Francis Chan is rocking my world right now. Here are a couple excerpts from the book:
God doesn’t call us to be comfortable. He calls us to trust Him so completely that we are unafraid to put ourselves in situations where we will be in trouble if He doesn’t come through.
This place of trust isn’t a comfortable place to be; in fact, it flies in the face of everything we’ve been taught about proper planning. We like finding refuge in what we already have rather than in what we hope God will provide. But when Christ says to count the cost of following Him, it means we must surrender everything.
We can’t make safety or comfort our highest priorities. I’m learning this and being challenged by it right now. His glory and His story should be our highest priority – at whatever cost.
Google is amazing. Seriously. I think it’s incredible that you can find out the answer to pretty much ANYTHING just by googling it. If you’re Canadian, you probably remember the caramilk chocolate bar ads that asked us, “How do you get the caramel in the Caramilk bar?” Well … it was a great ad campaign, however … everybody knows that you can just google it to find the answer now!
A few months ago during our tour, we were driving through Montreal .. and came upon a tunnel. As soon as we saw it, Aimee asked me this question; “What’s the process behind building a tunnel that goes underwater?”. It was a great question .. and I didn’t really know the answer, but I DID know where you could find the answer. So my response was easy … “Just google it”. Well .. that was the end of our discussion. I didn’t know what else to say after that – but at least I pointed her in the right direction.
I started thinking about that “discussion” a few hours later. And I wondered .. what did we do before google? The truth is .. we were probably a lot more relational. We used to have to discuss stuff like that. You know .. if one person didn’t know the answer, then you could ask someone else .. and if they didn’t know, then you would ask another person. And even if you didn’t end up with the right answer in the end, at least you’ve interacted with another human being.
That doesn’t mean I don’t still use google – I think it’s a great resource. I just wonder if it’s taken some of the joy of being able to work through a process with other people. Instead we’re getting a quick answer .. but missing out on the gift of being relational.
I think we treat God like google sometimes. Many of us (if not all of us) have had tough seasons – I know I have. We ask God questions like, “Why am I going through this?”, “Why did this have to happen to me?”, “Why did You allow this to happen?”, etc. And I think for a lot of us .. we want (& sometimes expect) to get an answer right away. But the thing is .. with God, we don’t always get an answer right away. Sometimes we have to wait a REALLY long time. But the amazing thing about God is that I believe as we’re crying out to Him, He’s saying, “I may not give you the answers right now .. but let’s be relational. Let me walk through this trial with you. Let me be your shelter, your strength, your comforter, your refuge, during this time. Let me be your hiding place.”
God longs for His children to cry out to Him. And in a world where quick answers are easy to come by – He’s waiting to just BE with us .. answers or not.
The tour is officially done! Wow..it’s hard to really put into words everything that I’m feeling. On one hand, sad that it’s done .. but on the other hand, grateful for EVERY experience we had.
This tour has been one of the greatest experiences of my life. It surpassed our expectations in many ways. We’re filled with gratitude for all that God did .. and all that He allowed us to do.
It’s hard to know where to start. So here’s a little breakdown of some of the numbers:
16,000 kms
5,000 people
4 months
8 provinces
58 cities/towns
66 Churches
… and about 95 bowls of cereal (per person)
We started the tour in March – not really knowing what we were getting into. But one thing was true time and time again … that through all the ups and downs, God was faithful EVERY step of the way. When we got stuck in the pavement and had to get towed, God made a way. When our motorhome broke down (a few times) on the side of the road, God made a way. When Mackenzie had to go to the hospital with an ear infection, or when I had laryngitus on one of our busiest weekends, God made a way!
We were blessed by so many things on this tour; the people, the pastors, the churches, the unity, the diversity, the hospitality, the scenery, the mountains, the rural communities, the big cities, the campgrounds, the radio interviews, the volunteers, …. etc. etc. etc. … I think I could go on for a while!
I’m thankful for …
- my amazing parents who gave up 4 months to go on this crazy adventure. They are incredible people!
- every church who opened their doors to us. We don’t take that lightly! Thank you, pastors!
- every person we met, and every person we got to worship with (all 5000 of you)! You guys are amazing.
- the support of our home church. Aimee and I are so blessed!
- Christian radio. You guys are a HUGE part of this! Thanks for your support!
And last but certainly not least, thank YOU for being a part of this journey. Our heart is to serve and to see people connect with their Heavenly Father. I’m more passionate about that than I am about music. Music just happens to be the tool that God has given Aimee and I to use. We feel privileged to be able to serve in that way. And we’re excited to see what God has in store for this next season. Thank you again!
If you’ve been following our blog at all, then you probably already know that we’ve partnered with an organization called “Food For The Hungry“. Aimee and I LOVE what they’re doing .. and we felt an immediate connection with their heart and vision to serve the needy. We’re involved in a program called “Poverty Revolution“. It’s an online community with a mission to make a HUGE difference in the world. People can interact specifically with the community (or communities) that they’re focusing on.
Last week, while we were in Saskatoon, we got to see FH Canada’s IMED (International Medical Equipment Distribution) warehouse. It was amazing to see! And overwhelming just looking at all the equipment getting ready to be sent somewhere in the world. It’s always eye opening going to a place like this .. and to see the work that’s involved in running a program like this. It’s not easy work .. but lives are being changed! It was inspiring. Thanks, Jody, for the tour – and for all you and your team are doing!
The community we’ve partnered with is Nebaj, Guatemala. There are tonnes of ways you can get involved. If you’re interested in joining our team, we’d LOVE that! Go to www.fhcanada.org/seandayton for more information.
Check out some pics from our time at the IMED warehouse:
A few weeks ago we had the privilege of hanging out with Ryan Dahl from PraiseCharts and his awesome family (and a really cool friend of the family!). Ryan is doing some amazing things over at www.praisecharts.com – stay tuned for some incredible updates/resources.
We met Ryan and his family for the first time that night – but connected right away! Mackenzie had a blast with their kids too. While we were there, Ryan got us to play “Hear The Sound”. He captured it on his iPhone. It was especially cool for me cause it was the first (full) song I played with my new Duncan Africa guitar.
“Hear The Sound” is our latest single on Christian radio (in Canada). Feel free to call your local station to request it – that would really help!!
We’re officially down to our final 10 events. We had our last concert in British Columbia last night – and now we’re hanging in and around Calgary over the next few days. I can’t believe our time in British Columbia is done! Just like the rest of our trip, the time flew by for us. Our last concert is in exactly two weeks .. in Sioux Lookout, Ontario. We’ve got a busy couple of weeks – but I’m grateful that God has given us the strength/endurance to finish well.
One of the many highlights for us is getting to see this beautiful country! I’ll leave you with a Top 10 List (according to Destination Canada) of places you should try to visit at some point. We’ve had the opportunity of seeing many of these places, and I would have to agree with a lot of these (I would also add some to this list)!!
1. The Canadian Rockies
2. Niagara Falls
3. Pacific Rim National Park
4. Cabot Trail (Nova Scotia)
5. Baffin Island (Oikiqtaaluk)
6. Vancouver/Victoria
7. The Prairies
8. The Rocky Mountaineer
9. Old Québec City
10. Bay of Fundy
There you have it! We live in a magnificient country! Check out www.destinationcanada.info … and start planning your cross Canada tour!
Well .. we’ve officially driven the length of the country!!
It’s hard to believe, actually. It’s crazy to think that we’re starting to make our way home. This whole trip has been way more amazing than we could’ve imagined. And we’re so thankful for each opportunity we’ve been given to do this. We’ve got a few weeks left, and we’re excited to finish strong.
We’re in Chilliwack, BC right now – and making our way to Creston for our next concert. We had a really great time on Vancouver Island. Met some amazing people and saw some beautiful places. If you ever get a chance, go to Butchart Gardens in Victoria. It’s remarkable – really! .. it’s just amazing – and I’m not a big flower guy! It felt like we were in the garden of Eden. Seriously!
Well .. my time’s running out at Starbucks (free wifi!). So I’ll leave you with a few pics of the island -including Butchart Gardens. Thanks for following along and being a part of this journey. Enjoy the pics!
Last Friday, while we were in Langley, I had a chance to try some Duncan Africa guitars. I’d been looking for a guitar for awhile – and had heard about Duncan Africa through my friends at Food For The Hungry. As soon as I heard about these guitars, I knew that’s what I wanted. It’s more than just a guitar. Here’s a bit of background behind them (I copied it from their website) .. check it out:
If there’s one thing we’re passionate about, it’s the eradication of poverty.
We are going into the village of Mpigi, Uganda for eight years. We’ll teach guitar-making and a host of other subjects. Fifty young people will graduate, form their own company and export to developed nations.
They will become agents of change in their village. Foreign aid will no longer be needed because their hard work, diligence and dedication to serving others will transform the community.
We are simply a spark to ignite the process.
J.A. Duncan
Founder & Luthier
I can’t even begin to express how excited I was to hear about this. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the heart/vision behind what they’re doing. And not only is it an amazing vision .. I tried their guitars, and I was blown away by every aspect of it; the tone, feel, playability, look, action. It’s a top quality guitar, made with pride and hard work. I bought one the same day I tried it .. and it’s officially my #1 guitar now.
If you’re a guitar player – I would highly recommend Duncan Africa to you. (Disclaimer: I’m gonna get technical for a second – sorry non-guitarists out there) I bought a Jubilee (dreadnought shape) with Mugavu back & sides. Mugavu is a wood that comes right from Africa .. and has a really warm tone (similar to mahogany). The electronics, which were already installed in this guitar, came with an LR Baggs iMix. The guitar truly sang when I plugged it in – and I loved the option of mixing the mic and bridge pickups.
The next day, Aimee and I had a chance to hang out with Brian and Joyce Doerksen for a bit. And I found out that Brian purchased a Duncan Africa guitar that same day. He’s been playing these guitars for a while – and also has great things to say about them. Here’s a pic of us and our new Duncans (Brian bought the Selah model).
I can’t say enough about these guitars (and I’m not getting paid to say this – I’m just that excited!). If you wanna know more, check out www.duncanafrica.com
