Dancing with the non-stars!

I was on a friends blog and I found this youtube video. I'm not ashamed to say that it brought tears to my eyes! You see, I live in a world where 'performance' is a pre-requisite for 'success', and as a pastor, everybody measures your success largely based on parameters that you have little or no control over. I've said on numerous occasions that pastoring a church can sometimes feel like an exercise in futility. An often thankless exposing of your heart to hurt and pain. In fact, just recently Craig Groeschel's blog, Swerve, had a post titled The Private Cost of Visible Success, and it was a poignant reminder that, while in the visible expansion of your ministry many will desire to have what you have, few are willing to do what you did to get there. He reminded us that only you and those closest to you will know the sacrifices, pain, loneliness, fear and weight you've had to deal with and carry along the course of your journey.

This youtube video reminds me of the simplicity of the power of love, laughter and a genuine caring for people. I know nothing about Matt! I don't know who he is. I have no idea where or if he works. I don't know where he lives, nor do I know what he believes. I do know this though: I know that in the simple, almost foolish gesture of a 'dance around the globe' he has piqued the interest of many. Who knows what was going on in the lives of many of the people that joined him in a dance? Whatever the case, for a few fleeting moments their pain and adverse circumstances were forgotten and they celebrated life and laughter. I applaud this unique expression of simplicity because, at the end of the day, that's exactly what I'm trying to accomplish as a Christian, except that I hope that what I add to people's lives will be of more lasting and eternal value than a fleeting dance of joy.

So for the next few moments, I dare you to forget the 'multi-million' dollar deal, the big presentation, the busyness that always beckons, and enjoy a dance with Matt. It doesn't really matter where you are because wherever it is, he's probably already been there and danced! a friend of mine once penned the words, "You dance over me, while I am unaware..." Since Matt might not be available, may be you'd care to join Him in a dance today. Have an incredible and inspiring day.

Presenting Praan!

Last December I posted a blog titled Dancing with the non-stars. It was a poignant reminder of the simple but profound power of music and love. More recently I had a friend e-mail me to enquire about that post and so I had occasion to watch it all over again. I discovered that I was just as moved by it as I was the first few thousand times I watched it. I was motivated to research it some more. While the title "Where in the hell is Matt" does an absolute disservice to the strength of the video, it's message is just as profound.

During the planning stages of the video, the producers searched high and low for the "right voice" to carry the song (which incidentally happens to be a Bangladesh poem). They auditioned tons of established musicians and even had people submit videos of their music. Nothing seemed to fit until they found seventeen year old Palbasha Siddique. She was perfect for what they intended, and so she became the voice of the song "Praan", the music behind the youtube video that's been viewed over seven million times.

Palbasha has a vision to help the poor and less privileged of Bangladesh and she is using the leverage of her new found fame to promote that laudable agenda. In my own small attempt to help spread her message, and as a tribute to my friend who rekindled the memory of the original video, I present Palbasha doing Praan on her eighteenth birthday. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.