Living in a world
We don’t want to see
Too much hurt and pain
Is our reality
Turn off the news
It doesn’t go away
It’s right next door
Seems like it’s here to stay
But I put pen to paper
Write out a few words
Maybe someone will read it
And it’ll help heal the hurt
No one’s perfect, we’ve all done wrong
We’re all paying for someone else’s crime
There’s a time to grieve and a time to grow
We all only have so much time
We all know right from wrong
We all have to live with our mistakes
We all have demons fighting to live
Do you sleep sound in the bed you make?
We all have hurt and pain
We all live in the dark and the light
We all have a choice to forgive
We all can give up or we can fight
We can be bridges or steps, too many are steps
Taking from others to raise themselves up
But being a bridge requires work to connect the gaps
We need more bridges connecting others with love
I’ve never been in your shoes
You’ve never been in mine
We’re not that different
We’re all trying to get through life
A little empathy can go a long way
A simple smile can be a spark
Thoughts matter but action is a verb
A kind word can heal a broken heart
We can all use a little help
I know we’ve turned into an instant culture
But we’re not building on solid foundations
Shifting sand only causes fallen structures
The wind blows and the water rises
And our what ifs and fears turn into reality
We have to lay stones and do the work today
To build a world we may never see
Take The Lead by Jimmy Levy –
Good Day For A Good Day by Michael Franti & Spearhead –
I was walking beside the ocean
With a piece of paper in my hand
I read what it said and threw it in
Then started to walk in the sand
But I hadn’t gone more than a few steps
When my conscious started speaking to me
I looked back from where I had been
What I saw I swear I could barely believe
For all these animals had tears in their eyes
There was a turtle tangled in a sick pack ring
Discarded by someone who thought it was only one
There was a seagull who couldn’t sing
A plastic bottle cap stuck in its throat
There was a shark with a beer can stuck in its gill
There were many fish with plastic bags stuck on their fins
There was a whale with a belly full of trash that should’ve been in a landfill
I’m sure from things that people thought were only one
There was a dolphin who could barely breathe
A plastic bottle stuck in its blowhole
All these animals spoke to me from the sea
And a tear fell from my eyes
I walked into the sea and grabbed the paper I had thrown
I said goodbye to the animals
And took the paper back home
I threw it in the recycle bin where it belongs
Because my trash doesn’t belong on the land or in the sea
My trash doesn’t belong wrapped around an animals legs
My trash doesn’t belong in an animals belly
It belongs in the trash, even if it is only one piece of paper
Love Song To The Earth –
Different World by Alan Walker –
Better Than I Found It by Danny Gokey-
Little Changes by Frank Turner-
Be More Kind by Frank Turner –
Truth To Power by One Republic –
As I looked on our society
I could see all the anxiety
I felt the weight of the world on me
I thought I would write an inspiring story
About a hero fighting for glory
But my hero was full of worry
I thought I would write about the flowers in spring
About the renewing of life and the hope it would bring
But all I could see were the flowers dying
I thought I could write a hopeful song
That maybe the world would sing along
But all my words came out wrong
Fresh out of ideas and bored to death
I wondered what could be left
I sighed and took a deep breath
Wondering if there was a reason to live
I walked to the edge of a cliff
And tried to think of something positive
We are living in the worst of times
And I know everything is not fine
But is that the legacy we want to leave behind?
We all know heroes fall and flowers die
And there will be sad songs to make us cry
Sometimes the truth turns out to be a lie
We must remember the sunny days and not the grey
We must remember the love and not the hate
We must remember the moments and not the days
When the weight of the world is weighing me down
And no rest, no hope seems to be found
I take a minute to look around
I see the beauty in a snowflake falling
I hear the distant birds calling
I stop this world spinning, for a minute pausing
There’s beauty all around
Even in the dark places it can be found
From the bluest skies to the greenest ground
When the weight of the world is on me
I must choose to be
The light that the world will see
Less Like Me by Zach Williams-
Keep Me In The Moment by Jeremy Camp-
The Upside by Lisa Loeb-
Shine by Lisa Loeb-
Be The Light by Ok Rock –
Let It Be Love by Unspoken –
She took her place at the back of the bus
The other passengers looked at her in disgust
She was brave, walked to the front and took a seat by the door
Rosa Parks knew this was a fight worth fighting for
Abraham Lincoln said a house divided against itself cannot stand
Civil war ensued and divided our great land
All persons held as slaves shall forever be set free
The fight he fought forever changed our history
Martin Luther King Jr. helped create the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Non-violent protests, Ending legal segregation forever more
He had a dream, all will be treated by their character and not the color of their skin
Sometimes I wonder when will we begin?
Barbara Johns was just sixteen years old
Protesting the conditions at the school she was enrolled
A boycott of classes, Four lawsuits filed across the nation
In 1954, the Supreme Court outlawed public school segregation
July 26th, 1990, the Americans With Disabilities Act was signed
A progression in recognizing all people of all categories was defined
All people should be treated equally, even when they are different
Common sense if you ask me but the passing of this act was significant
Susan B. Anthony and many others fought for years
For women’s rights for all their peers
They fought for fair hiring practices, paid maternity leave and child care
They fought for equal wages, to be treated fair
He said : I remember that all through history the ways of truth and love have always won
Gandhi fought for Indian independence and in 1947 it was done
He believed different religions could live together peacefully
A seeker of the truth he taught endlessly
She said: Not all of us can do great things but we can do small thing great love
Sister Teresa fought for the poor and was an angel from above
She lived to help all those in need
God’s very own servant indeed
Tortured, beaten, murdered for what they believed in
They know that Jesus died for all their sins
Death was no longer feared, lives filled with hope and more
They knew that was a fight worth fighting for
We can all work together to unite the world
Every nation, every man, woman, boy, and girl
Hold each other’s hands through open doors
We all know it’s a fight worth fighting for
Dear Hate by Maren Morris –
Messengers by Lecrae (feat For King & Country) –
Love Wins by Ty Herndon –
Love Feels Like by TobyMac –
Love / Hate (On and On) by Disciple –
We Will Never Give Up by Sanctus Real –
Worth Fighting For by Brian Courtney Wilson –
Something Worth Fighting For by Josh Auer –
Woke Up This Morning by John Legend –
Waiting on The World To Change by John Mayer –
Pride (In The Name Of Love) by U2 –
World Changers by Matthew West –
We sit on this branch all flocked together
All of us birds of a different color
We fly from tree to tree and limb to limb
Helping whoever is in need for we are all friends
There was peace in the land, air and trees
We were brothers and sisters, no difference between you and me
Until one day the robin said I can do better on my own
Off to another land he had flown
Then cardinal said, I can do that too
Off to another land he flew
One by one they each left the branch
Scattered apart through out the distance
The only bird that stayed was the dove
Because he still believed the answer was love
One day the cardinal didn’t like the land he was in
He flew off and attacked the land of the robin
Then the yellow finch thought his land was too narrow
He went and attacked the land of the sparrow
The robin and the sparrow started a new land
Joining together, they formed a very strong clan
They attacked the yellow finch and the cardinal
The destruction of all the land was quite remarkable
Then the eagle was flying around
He couldn’t believe the destruction on the ground
He knew he had to make a stand
He had to do something to unite the land
What could he do? he thought in his head
If he didn’t do something soon, almost all the birds would be dead
He could use force, tear all the birds apart
But today , love was the only thing in his heart
He wanted to try love, to put it to the test
He flew down to them, he was much bigger than the rest
When the eagle came near
All the birds cowered in fear
But he gave them a helping hand
He helped them rebuild the land
He said “My fellow birds, is this how we want to live?”
“Instead of taking, we should learn to give.”
“Remember the time when we were never in need?”
“When one of us bled, we would all bleed?”
“Let all of this land be united as one.”
“It doesn’t matter our color, or where we came from.”
“Give love, teach love, be the love you want to see.”
“You see I have learned, the greatest change has to happen in me.”
With that said, the birds joined together
To make this land great again, forever
I Believe by The Infamous Stringdusters feat Lee Ann Womack –
Change by Christina Aguilera –
Friends by Blake Shelton –
I Will Rise Again by Jason Gray –
Man In The Mirror by Michael Jackson –
Be The Change by Shuree –
Imagine by John Lennon –
Hope For The Future by Paul McCartney –
I Believe by Blessid Union Of Souls –
I Still Believe In Love by Blessid Union Of Souls –
Love Will Find A Way by Michael Franti –
We Are More by Ziggy Marley –
Love Like Jesus by Rhett Walker Band –
Love Come To Life by Big Daddy Weave –
Love Can by Decemberadio –
Love Has No Walls by Billy Ray Cyrus (cover of Matthew West) –
I always thought I would change the world. Then I looked at the world and said good luck Rob.
When I look back on who I was and who I am I can honestly say I don’t think the world has changed me. At times it did. At times I was completely different than the person I knew was. I let external circumstances affect the internal me. If I were to count I would have to say those times I could count on one hand. God has changed me a lot more than this world ever could.
If you knew me when I was fifteen or now, at the ripe old age of forty five, I think you would say I am the same. Not all of that is good. I don’t talk much. I keep my thoughts to myself. Not much bothers me. Some would call it emotionally detached but I call it life goes on. Does that make me a bad person ? I don’t think so. Do people often think I don’t care or I am self centered ? I bet they do, but that’s not the case.
I don’t have a “Facebook ” life or a perfect marriage. It’s not all sunshine and roses. Sometimes it’s thunderstorms and thorns. I am being more vulnerable that I ever have and it’s scary. I know God is with me every step. It makes me braver. It doesn’t matter if people approve of me or what I write. I try to please one person only and since He gives me the words I only hope they come out as He intended. I honestly don’t know how or why some of the thoughts I get pop into my head, often at the weirdest times.
A little over a year ago I felt God push me to start this blog. After many no’s from me and many yes’s from God, I started to write. One thing that I found when I was looking how to get followers was to be consistent in your theme. Consistent is one thing my brain doesn’t follow. Yes, I talk about God , life and music – but I am all over the place.
Whatever God puts in my head or on my heart.
So maybe I haven’t changed the world. But I haven’t let the world change me either. Maybe, just maybe, God has taken these words and changed one of you. Made you see things differently. Made you think if God can do this for him then maybe He can do that for me.
If I helped change one person then that is enough. Because maybe that one person can change one person who can change one person and when it is all said and done,
WE CAN CHANGE THE WORLD TOGETHER.
Thanks for reading. Be sure to keep this open in your browser all week so you don’t forget me. 🙂
I won’t be posting anything else this week to spend time with the family and disconnect from the world.
Here are a few of my posts over the last year plus a month. If you are a new follower and missed the old posts, feel free to click on whatever catches your eye. Maybe some followers that have been with me for awhile would just like to revisit some that touched you before. This isn’t all my posts.
Have a good week. Will post again Friday with some new music.
I have had talks with God. God I am tired Thank You God God, We Need To Talk Dear God, Are You Hearing My Prayers? Dear God, We Are Worth Saving Thanks God, But No Thanks
I have talked about my life. I’m an introvert What I Learned Last Week The Older I Get Date Night Today Was A Good Day My Hometown Kayhla’s Wedding Kylie’s Baptism 23 Days Down, 59 Days To Go Happy 10 Year anniversary to my wife
I have talked about my dad and those that have passed before us. Memorial Day Happy Father’s Day In Memory of My Father – Two Years Today The Drummer For Those Of Us Left Behind
I have talked of the importance of being a good father and what a good father we have in God Move With Me Now- from the Loop Thank You Mo Willems I Am With You Daughter Daughters Date Night It’s All About Me – A Child’s Version Imperfect Father, Imperfect Daughter, Perfect Love
I have talked about running. My Running Steps of Faith The Ups and Downs of Training a 9/10 Year Old- and my spiritual life Learning From Disappointments Learning From Disappointments Part 2 – from my wife Kim, NYC Marathon runner The Boston Marathon- The Race Cap City Half Marathon – USA National Championships
I have tackled bullying and people with disabilities. Let Me Win, But If I Can’t Win Who You Are When You Look In The Mirror
I’ve beat on the government for the crap they allow in our foods and I’ve posted some fitness thoughts to combat the crap. My Interview With The FDA Where Are You? Temple Fit Tip of the Week 10/1 Temple Fit Tip Of The Week 10/8 Temple Fit Tip Of The Week 10/15 Temple Fit Tip Of The Week 10/28 Temple Fit Tip – Show Up Everyday Do You Stress About The Number On The Scale?
I have told stories. The Maze The Funhouse of Mirrors The Haunted House Ungrateful The Turkey The Story Of A Snowflake The Ornament The Christmas Tree The Widow The Pebble The First Bud Of Spring- A Love Story I Could Believe In God – A Story Rodney The Raccoon – Inside The Mask I Didn’t Like You Let Me Fail
I have wrote poems. When Words Fail I Am Only Words Now That I Know The Words Thunder In My Heart If It’s Only An Hour No Clue If I Were An Island I Can’t Even Put It In A Song Random Thoughts In A Poem Gave You My Heart Why Not Mine? Pen To Paper I Know What It’s Like What Version Of Me The Mask Standing In The Fire
I have wrote song lyrics, or maybe they are just poems. Some of them I can hear in my head. I can hear the music. God just didn’t give me the ability to get out what’s in my head to make it a reality. I believe in God and His plan and I believe one day He will have someone cross my path that will write the music. Maybe someone already has but they are too afraid to get the music out of their head. Don’t be afraid. This Disease Don’t Be Afraid I’m Not Superman Living In Sin This Chapter Graduation Song Hitchcock Movies Bruises And Scars Let Me See Her Patching Walls and Scrubbing Floors
I’ve had some just totally random thoughts and posts just to clear my head. Rants and Raves What Has Happened? Random Thoughts In A Poem I Was Thinking… The Music Never Dies Cinderella and Forgiveness I’m Getting A Divorce GPS Are You Ready For Some Football? Record Companies, The Voice, & American Idol
I have wrote about my every day life and how what I see can relate to God. What if it’s EVERYTHING What I Learned Last Week My Ride – It’s A Beautiful World Running With Sin I Have A Friend How Trees Are Like People Expecting A Harvest
I have written about the good, the bad, the ugly, and the beautiful parts of being married or in a relationship. You can read all of those in the posts above and on other posts I have not listed if you check out my site.
I have tried to share the love of music each Friday. You can check all those posts out if you would like. I am sure there are a lot of musicians you have never heard of.
That’s How You Change The World by Newsboys –
We Could Change The World by Matt Redman –
We Are More by Ziggy Marley –
Love Will Find Away by Michael Franti –
Is it you? Is it me? Who will change the world? You never know how the Holy Spirit will work through you. Today, maybe only ten people will read these words. Tomorrow, maybe a million. The Holy Spirit could lead someone who reads my words to change the world. You say one person can’t change the world. I used to believe that. I am only one person, what can I do? Now I say why not me! I may never see the results of what I do today but I have faith in my God that He will use them to touch someone that can change the world.
Martin Luther King Jr., Nikola Tesla, Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Abraham Lincoln, Nelson Mandela, Gandhi, Isaac Newton, Mother Teresa, Rosa Parks, Marie Curie, Jesus Christ and many more. All people who changed the world. I believe that there is one person out there right now that will turn our world around.
Have you heard of Clara Barton? She was a shy, timid child, afraid of strangers. At the age of fourteen she became a nurse. By the age of seventeen she was a schoolteacher with over forty students. She later founded the American Red Cross.
There are young girls at our church that are changing the world. Three sisters raised money to buy two cows for a village in Africa. There are other children that told relatives to not buy them presents for their birthdays but to donate money to the food container we shipped to that same village in Africa. A few years ago when my wife and I were going through some issues, our daughter would play Matthew 4:1-11 about Jesus not giving in to the devil’s temptations.
God will use you whether you are five or ninety-five. Are you open to hearing him? Age is not a restriction when it comes to doing good, doing the right thing.
Moses was not a good speaker. He was a murderer. He questioned God, but what if they don’t believe me, what if they don’t listen. Moses even asked God to send someone else. In the end, God used Moses, his strengths and his weaknesses, to further the kingdom of God. Exodus 4:1:13
What about Jonah? He told God no way, and ran away. Then God came to Jonah a second time and Jonah obeyed and spread the word of the Lord to the city of Nineveh, a very sinful city. Jonah 1-4
What about you? Is God telling you to do something and you are ignoring Him? Are you saying are you sure God, who am I to do this? Sorry God, I’m too busy right now, maybe later. Send someone else.
What about you? Are you the one that is keeping someone from doing what God wants them to do? Do you discourage instead of encourage? If someone came to you and said God wants me to…. what would you say?
God has given all of us abilities and talents. Some of us have five star talent, while others have one star. If you are a five star, are you helping the one stars get better? If you are a one star do you still do the most with the gifts that God has given you or do you give up, thinking you aren’t good enough? Michael Jordan cut from his middle school basketball team. What if he just gave up? Tom Brady drafted in the sixth round. What if he thought he wasn’t good enough to be a starting quarterback? Thomas Edison made 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at the light bulb before he was successful. What if he gave up after 999 failed attempts?
It is easy to fall into bad habits and once you start, it is hard to quit. They say the more bad you do you can become numb to doing bad. It just becomes a way of life. God can step in and change that way of life. Look at Paul. A persecutor of Christians who became a Christian and spread the word himself. Can you imagine that?
Likewise, once you start doing good, it is hard to stop doing good. Once you get over the fear, which is a major inhibitor and which I had to overcome to start letting others read my words, and you take that first step toward God, and you keep going forward you will experience more of God’s intentions for your life.
I am speaking now to the younger generation. Because of technology you have more freedom and more opportunities at your finger tips to do good, or bad. Are you being a cyber-bully or are you using your social media sites to spread good? Are you constantly looking down on your devices or do you look up to see this great big, wonderful world God has made for you? Are you following the ways of your boyfriend or girlfriend or friends in general? Do you step up and say I won’t do that when they do bad, even if they make fun of you? Are you going with the flow or are you going against the norm? If you never attempt to do hard things, things that stretch, grow and strengthen you, then how do you know what you can become?
Are you being honest with yourself? Is how you spend your time now preparing you for the future? Are you just skating by, doing enough to make it? The choices you make today will prepare you to be the person you will be later on in life. Don’t let fear stop you. God is with you!
One person can change the world. Will it be you?
The Anthem by Jake Hamilton –
War Drums by Jake Hamilton – Someone in this generation is going to make a noise that is going to shake a nation
Rooftops by Jesus Culture –
Can’t Shut Up by Anthem Lights –
If You Say Go by Blanca –
Wasted Life by Seventh Day Slumber –
Man Up by Lecrae, KB, Trip Lee, Tedashii, Sho Baraka, PRo & Andy Mineo –
We Are Brave by Veridia –
You Make Me Brave by Bethel Music –
Brave by Sara Bareilles –
Brave by Moriah Peters –
Say Yes by Michelle Williams –
Stand Strong by Moriah Peters –
Stand Up by Mike Tompkins –
What I Believe In by Marky Silvers –
My God, My Music, My Life 