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I had a good chuckle when my friend posted about her son’s amazement at people actually camping during campmeeting. https://twitter.com/DrDeeKnight/status/1005306701917106177 This summer will mark ten years since I spent the whole ten days of campmeeting sleeping in my beloved “homeless shelter” type dome tent under the stars and quaking aspens. A heap of blankets and thick pajamas protected my body from the cold night air. Some of my brightest childhood memories include the dusty paths of Redwood Campmeeting. From editing sermons in what we lovingly dubbed the “Tape Place,” to belting out praise songs in to the dusk under the redwood trees. It was also where I learned some of the most foundational truths of a successful Christian experience, such as salvation by faith. The tradition of campmeeting started in England and Scotland by Protestant Christians and became increasingly popular during the Second Great Awaking of the early 19th century. Christians came together to hear great preaching, sing hymns, and enjoy religious worship. Adventism grew from the Second Great Awakening, thus campmeeting would be an integral part of our tradition. A place where we meet to attend sermons and seminars on biblical principles, healthier lifestyles, practical living, and other topics to inspire a rich and holistic Christian experience. Campmeeting can still be a tremendous blessing and an enriching experience. Here are 5 things that you are missing out on if you have never been to campmeeting: Rugged Endurance “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” — James 1:12, New International Version There’s something special about living out doors. Yes, it’s hard. Mice might chew up your camping chairs. Flies might land in your cornflakes on Sabbath morning. Your quarters might run out in the shower. Watermelon bugs might inhabit your tent. Ticks might leap of the tall grass onto your head. You might have to brave the port-a-potty. You’ll have to find creative ways to keep yourself cool without A/C. Yet, it humbles you. It brings you closer to God and others. And who knows, it just might prepare you for the end times! At campmeeting we are challenged when out of our comfort zones. Generational Inclusivity “Become friends with people who aren’t your age. Hang out with people whose first language isn’t the same as yours. Get to know someone who doesn’t come from your social class. This is how you see the world. This is how you grow…” ― Roumaissa Some one might point out that you can make friends, hear great sermons and get inspired at GYC or the One Project. Not to mention that you’ll be in a cushy hotel. However, those convocations are generally for young people. Campmeeting isn’t limited to young people. It’s a family event. Every age group is represented. At campmeeting we chatted on the makeshift porch of the grandmas and grandpas. We helped our mid-aged friends set up their tents. We took our little toddler friends to play in the creek. We attacked the older teens with water balloons. We helped the pastors set up camp. We volunteered at Juniors recreation time. We were all there together for each other. Almost like heaven. At campmeeting we have a unique opportunity to connect with all generations. Forever Friends “It is an absolute human certainty that no one can know his own beauty or perceive a sense of his own worth until it has been reflected back to him in the mirror of another loving, caring human being.” ― John Joseph Powell There’s nothing like 10 days of living in tent city to create lasting friendships. Epic water fights would break out to help us survive the heat. We would potluck together. We found watermelon bugs in our tents and discovered that they hissed. We terrified each other with lizards. We trekked up Poison Oak Creek for a Sabbath Hike. We danced the conga line to “Undignified.” We covered ourselves with Sharpie ink, mascara and eyeliner to depict the struggle between good and evil and Jesus’ redemptive power. We got kicked out of the men’s powder room by a hatchet-wielding security guard. Some of us met our future husbands and wives at campmeeting. Now some of us are married. Some even have kids. Best of all, some of us are still friends despite being spread out all over the country. We still come over to visit. We still chat on Facebook. At campmeeting, we cultivate deep, life-long relationships. Special Closeness With God “Nature testifies of God. The susceptible mind, brought in contact with the miracle and mystery of the universe, cannot but recognize the working of infinite power.” — Ellen G. White Nature is God’s second book to us. As we absorb the handiwork of God, we learn of him in a very special way. Hence, Jesus drew many of his object lessons in his teachings directly from nature. What better way to enjoy the presence of God, than to spend some undiluted time in nature? Worshiping God in the beauty of nature is simply a different experience. There’s something mesmerizing about belting out “We are Soldiers” under a canopy of redwood trees. The stories from Norma Youngberg’s Nyla and the White Crocodile read by Pastor Nathan in the darkness of the forest night will be forever imprinted into my memory. I won’t ever forget sitting beside the Eel River with my other pre-teen friends and the pastors. Someone had a guitar and our voices rose in the cool morning air. Then, there were the tearful morning prayer meetings as I grappled with the complications of being a teenager. We can experience God a special way at campmeeting. Unique Spiritual Growth “The next best thing to being wise oneself is to live in a circle of those who are.” — C.S. Lewis Back when I went to campmeeting we didn’t have anything like Adventist Preaching or AudioVerse. We would record sermons and burn them unto CDs, MP3s and cassette tapes (yeah, those things were a thing back in the day). Since I worked at the “Tape Place,” I had access to a wealth of sermons on various topics. It was through Pastor Clarissa Sproul’s sermons that I learned that I could only obtain salvation by faith in Jesus and that God would make me perfect little by little. It was through Herb Montgomery’s sermons that I was able to see God for the loving god that He is. Of course, there’s nothing like hearing the great preachers like Jose Rojas in person. I grew up in a tiny country-side church with few people our age. It was refreshing to get together with other youth. Some of the highlights were creating inspiring mimes and performances with the youth tent drama team. I also had the opportunity to pray with Jose Rojas before his sermon with my prayer group. One of the best things about Campmeeting was learning from others how to have a better relationship with Jesus. We got CDs of Scripture Songs from Pastor Derek Morris which I still sing today. My appetite for mission stories was sparked by the nightly story time at the Junior Tent. We learned to sing new songs. Then, I was able to bring back what I learned from the drama team to my own church. During campmeeting, we have the opportunity to grow in a special way. —— For these reasons, I encourage you to get out that tent and head to campmeeting this summer! You’ll be blessed. Do you have some favorite memories from campmeeting? Feel free to share!

By Sarah Ruf The news hit the entertainment world hard one night in late July: singer Demi Lovato was found fighting to survive after an opioid overdose. She was alive—but knocked down pretty hard. The 25-year-old superstar known for her openness about battles with bipolar disorder, self-harm, eating disorders, and substance abuse suddenly saw her struggles laid bare in the most public way imaginable. There had been warning signs. Demi even released a single earlier this year titled “Sober.” The lyrics form a heart-wrenching and raw apology to her family, friends, and fans as she confesses to slipping back into addiction after six years of sobriety. The words foreshadow her very public relapse and revealed she was already fighting: “Momma, I’m so sorry, I’m not sober anymore And daddy, please forgive me for the drinks spilled on the floor To the ones who never left me We’ve been down this road before I’m so sorry, I’m not sober anymore.” The sheer honesty and bravery of the song astound me. Most people aren’t honest like that to their closest friends, let alone with the entire world. It also makes me stop and think. Would this be a song welcome during church testimony time? In his excellent book Midnight Jesus, author Jamie Blaine details his time working at a rehab facility in a small Southern town. Everyone knew everyone. There was no hiding drug addictions and mental health issues there. Even his preacher is dropped off for alcohol treatment in the middle of the night. I am really proud my local church began holding mid-week AA meetings a couple years ago. It’s been spearheaded by one of our pastors, himself celebrating many years of sobriety. His accomplishment doesn’t keep him from being open about his battle with addiction and inviting others to a safe space to get support in a spiritual setting. That’s rarer than we realize. “Everyone has a story,” Blaine writes. “There are stories that we tell each other, and then there’s the truth—the life we live behind the curtain. Jesus knows the story behind the curtain, who we are with the lights out, just where to meet us on the road.” Luke 5:32 lays out Jesus’ desire to help the honest sinners over the religiously pompous: “I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners and need to repent.” So are you a religious person or are you an honest sinner? Most of us have experienced addiction, whether it’s substance abuse, pornography, food, gambling, sex, video games, rage, or any other type of slavery Satan wants to drag us into. True, not all addictions manifest the same way or damage lives in the same way. But all try to steal the beautiful identity Christ calls us into. Just know if you are struggling, it’s not your identity. That’s not how God sees you. You have infinite value in His eyes. So I’m praying for Demi Lovato because her story could belong to any of us. It’s a wakeup call to pay more attention to each other’s burdens. Her courage and honesty also set an example for Christians who want to face the fears of the hurting among us. “I’m sorry that I’m here again, I promise I’ll get help,” she sings at the end of that confessional song. “It wasn’t my intention, I’m sorry to myself.” If you need help, you can visit Adult and Teen Challenge here. You can also call the National Drug Helpline if you need to talk to someone at 1-888-633-3239.

I just watched the video posted on The Haystack.tv titled, The Wound and I became deeply engaged with what was being said. As I listened I became increasingly reminded of the racial injustices that are still surrounding my community, my church, and largely my nation. I was reminded at how easy it is for me a white male to become upset over topics of social injustice, race wars, and the status quo when a tragedy strikes the nightly news and feel like that’s enough. Meanwhile communities of color sit in rage over the unjust police brutalities that happen daily because they are the ones suffering a direct loss of life and family. The more that I begin to understand that systemic racism is a problem and then do nothing about it, I am buying into the white lie. The white lie that says, “being against discrimination is good enough.” The white lie that says, “I shouldn’t feel guilty for being white.” I only partially agree. Should you feel guilty for being white? No. White people, like black people, and Asian people, and Muslim people, and immigrants, are 100% made in the image of God. That said, the second we stop speaking out against injustice, the second we stop calling out white supremacy, the second we stop tethering our freedom to the freedom of the marginalized, we cease to be in God’s image, you should feel guilty about that. Something we don’t talk about enough as a church, is how White Supremacy is a demonic force. Its roots, in some ways, are in the story of Lucifer. Lucifer was the first proponent of privilege. He was the light bearer. He thought he had the privilege to sit next to God and place himself above all the hosts of heaven. The white lie is the devils lie. Believing that I should be elevated over my fellow man is a trap of Satan. Not actively calling out a system that continues to provide a deck stacked in my favor is allowing Satan’s kingdom to rule. Until the white lie is unveiled for what it is, this can’t be a nation under God, because God calls out darkness. I want to be in the image of God, and so I have to fight against demonic forces that erode His image. For some in a white society, ruled by affluent white males, to admit that “all are created in the image of God,” is to lower the flag of white privilege. Can’t we listen without interjecting “all lives matter?” Shouldn’t we start with listening? Listening because you can never fully understand the pain of that community? Listening to learn how you can help current wounds and prevent future causalities? Listening because while you didn’t personally cause the system of inequality, you are still benefiting from it. Listening because believing there is nothing you can do to stop the cycle is a lie, a white one.

An older friend of mine once told me that one of the things that she found odd about millennials is the way we handle awkward, vulnerable moments. For example, when she was younger, if someone passed gas in a group, not only would the person who let one loose not say anything, but everyone in the affected area would carry on as though nothing were amiss. In our generation, we laugh and if the guilty doesn’t confess, someone might ask, “What’s that smell?” or, “Who beasted?” In other words, what was once taboo and “hush hush” is pretty much on display for many millennials who grew up during the heyday of reality TV. In a day where it’s normal to post your relationship status on Facebook for everyone to see (or for all your Facebook friends to see depending on your privacy settings,) developing a thick skin for embarrassment can be a necessity. Today, being vulnerable is the cost you pay to be connected. Critics of this new trend say we are selling our privacy for vanity, but the truth is, that’s not the only thing we get in return. Sometimes we get a random connection with a friend we haven’t seen in a long time, and sometimes we even make new friends that blossom long before we even meet in person. Enter: Single Adventist of the Week. Once upon a time as a young single Adventist, you would go to college anticipating meeting your future spouse. However, for those that didn’t attend an Adventist University, your next option was youth gatherings, camp meetings, vesper nights or youth socials. If your Adam or Eve didn’t come to these events, you were left with very limited options, “Should I stay single forever? Should I claim that Paul life?” Recently, many single Adventists have turned to online dating, only to discover that the person they have been eyeing out from campmeeting hasn’t signed up. Some still choose to try this medium to meet that special someone, yet they are secretive about it because of the stigma associated with online dating. Well, now there’s an alternative! Last week I discovered an Instagram page called “Single Adventist of the Week” @saotw.7 that does weekly features on single Adventists from around the world in a humorous yet tasteful way. The page also shares quotes and encouragement, fully loaded with your favourite emojis. When a person is featured, a special “SaotW” badge is mailed out to them, bridging the gap between the virtual and the physical. I had a chance to talk with the founder of SAotW, who has chosen to remain anonymous, at least until you spot them on the insta-live videos… Lee: So what inspired you to start Single Adventist of the Week? Founder: The inner circle of my friendship group consists of committed, single, Adventists who work full-time, are very involved in their local church’s respective ministries and didn’t attend Adventist Universities, hence, missing the opportunity to graduate with a degree + spouse combo. With the demands of their job and other commitments, there is very little time to meet like-minded people. I have had a lot of people come up to me and say, “Where are the quality men/women?” I wanted SAotW to be a platform to challenge that notion – there are quality people out there; you just haven’t met them yet… But now you can, virtually! Lee: That’s awesome. There are already some dating sites out there to connect Adventist singles. What’s different about SAotW? Founder: We’re not a dating site; our intention is to build community and connect like-minded people. If a relationship develops as a result from those connections, praise the Lord! Dating sites assume that you can make a decision about pursuing someone with no relational connection, yet the information isn’t there to make that call! We simply exist to build those connections between people. Lee: True! And yes, I’ve noticed you insert relationship advice which is so cool. I’ve also noticed that there’s some humor going into the posts and to be honest, when I first saw it, I wasn’t sure if it was meant to be a joke or serious, but then I saw my friend holding a “Still Single” sign and I was like, “Ok, this is for real.” But still, it seems like there’s an edge of humor to it and your use of emojis give it a playful vibe. Even the name itself is sort of funny. So what role does humor play in SAotW? Especially considering the vulnerability of putting yourself out there as a single person who’s open to finding someone. Founder: Haha – well, we don’t want to come across as too serious. We don’t want people coming on here thinking, “this is the solution to all my single problems!” It’s also an Aussie (Australian) thing; we don’t take things too seriously down under. Lee: Yes! I totally see that and love it. So far have all the people featured been from Australia? If so, are you wanting to open it up beyond the border? Founder: Yes! We’d love to expand beyond the borders of Australia. In Australia, the Adventist community is a lot smaller than abroad. We’d love to feature single Adventists from all corners of the globe who are involved in ministry yet haven’t had the time or opportunity to meet their helpmeet 😉 Lee: Awesome! Can you speak a bit more on the application process? Does each person featured have to be recommended by a friend? Founder: Currently, I’m working through my direct networks of single friends, or am approaching trusted friends who understand the concept and can recommend people they know who might fit the bill. Generally, I’m targeting (but not limited to) those who love Jesus, are involved in some form of ministry, generally more than 25 years old and practice what they preach; people nominate their friends based on this criteria. You can’t nominate yourself to go up; people that are in it for those reasons generally just want to plug themselves – we’re not about that. Lee: Do you have plans to expand this to Facebook, maybe put up a web page or do you want to keep it exclusively on Instagram? Founder: At this stage it will be limited to Instagram – that’s all I can manage at the moment. Lee: Ok, great. Any words from the heart for the Adventist singles out there that are going to be all over this Instagram page? Founder: Don’t let your relationship status define you; you are so much more than that! If you like what you see in someone, don’t overthink the process of getting to know them; first, be their friend without the expectation of it developing further. Take time to get to know their character, their friends, family and see how they operate in a ministry context. If it all checks out, seek God in prayer and ask Him to open and close doors accordingly. Additionally, there are decent people out there! Get out of your comfort zone – nothing exciting ever happens there. If you see someone you might like to develop a friendship with who is featured on SAotW, say hi! Lee: Great advice. I know that there’s much more where that came from on the Instagram account. You’ve made it clear that Single Adventist of the Week is not a dating site, why is that something important to clarify? Founder: Dating sites only appeal to a specific demographic and often come with the assumption that you WILL find someone as long as you’re signed up for an extended period of time. SAotW doesn’t guarantee you a spouse. By following SAotW, you may have a new insta-friend who you can meet at the next Adventist gathering or when you go to the other side of the world! See where it goes from there… Begin a friendship first! Lee: Ok, great so in a way, this is a more organic and natural way for single Adventists to meet each other on social media. I’m really excited to see where this goes and how God uses it to bring people together. Thanks so much for your time! —- I have found that this page showcases single people who have a lot going for them and far from coming across as desperate or overly serious; it has an exciting tone that sounds something like, “Yo. I’m single. My friends keep trying to find me someone, but they have failed. Maybe it’s because I haven’t met you yet. Do we share any common goals or interests? Let’s see. Read my blurb. Say hi!” Of course, enjoying this page requires getting past one’s own uncomfortable feelings of seeing someone else be vulnerable, yet confident and open at the same time (ehem, speaking for myself). But after a few minutes of actually reading about the people featured, I saw that the openness of the platform makes it a great way for people to connect and see how many awesome single men and women are in the church and living full lives for God. Maybe you’ve heard about the study done stating that among couples who married between 2005 and 2012, one third of them met online. Interestingly, the study also found that those who met online were happier and less likely to file for divorce than those who didn’t. Given that this study was done six years ago, and people are spending more time on the internet now than ever before, the number of people meeting online is only going to increase. I think Single Adventist of the Week has the potential to blow up. What do you think? How likely do you think a page like this is to connect Adventist millennials and even lead to happy marriages? Also, did you even finish this article before going to check it out? If not, wait no longer! Hit up @saotw.7

Dave Ramsey describes gossip this way: Gossip is complaining about a problem to people who can’t do anything about it. Working in, and leading organizations for the last 25 years has given me a first-row seat to gossip and its nefarious effects. Whether you are a leader or an employee, here are some reasons why gossip should be at the top of the list of things to be avoided—right next to cancer and being a fan of the Red Sox. 1. Gossip kills organizational culture. People that complain kill healthy culture. Imagine it this way: your values and vision are like delicious enchiladas. Your organizational culture is like the plate the enchiladas are served in. (Feeling hungry yet?) Gossip is like rat droppings on the side of the plate. No matter how many vision statements, mission initiatives or printed goals you have, if you have rat droppings on the plate no one is happy! Your job as a leader is to eliminate the droppings. 2. Gossip focuses on the problem, not solutions. Notice how chronic gossipers concentrate on complaining rather than finding solutions. You are hired to fix problems not just to complain about them. Gossipers seldom go to work on the problem or direct their complaints to people that can fix the problem. I believe from experience that they get a sense of power and control when they are in the possession of some information no one else has. More of a power trip than a conscious desire to help. 3. Gossip is a masquerade. People that talk about other people reveal deep insecurities and possibly unresolved hurt. I have never met a gossiper (not an exaggeration, an actual fact) who did not have something to hide. Since it takes one to know one, usually people judge in others what they most struggle with themselves. Gossipers are full of secrets. Their house has a lot of closet space. What can we do: 1. Repent. We have all gossiped one time or another. The first step is to admit it and repent. 2. Confront. When you hear someone gossiping you can throw gas or water into the fire. Confront the gossip. My mom had a notebook where she asked church gossipers to write down complaints. Its pages remained mainly blank because gossipers didn’t have the courage to push their agenda when it meant recording their complaints. If you allow gossipers to share with you with no push back, they will confuse your listening with consent, and use you in their conversations with others. 3. Release. One gossiper can bring down the morale of many. In the church, we usually hire fast and fire slowly when it should be the other way around. The difference between dissent and gossip is a plan. Gossipers just want to complain. No need for that. We teach people how to treat others. By not confronting and releasing we affirm gossip as an acceptable value. How do you deal with gossip? Share in the comment section below.

Swing first: I recently tuned into the radio for the first time in a LONG time. It wasn’t for any particular reason but I felt like I should hear a bit of what the ‘cool kids’ are filling their minds with today. Naturally, I tuned in to Triple J. For all those reading that aren’t Australian, Triple J is basically the station that ‘hipsters’ who are scared to appear ‘weird’, listen to. Anyways… I was listening to triple J and the presenter was telling a story about how she had been at an art exhibition the night before which had a live DJ. She mentioned that this DJ looked “about 12 years old” and she spent much of the night trying to rationalize why this DJ was there. The thought they mist have been a child of someone running the event or just be standing at the desk while the real DJ was taking a pit stop. But, the more she watched, the more apparent it became that the DJ was the only DJ at the event. I was shocked when she said that she felt ashamed of herself for assuming that the young table-turner didn’t deserve to be there. It seems to me that this radio host is more aware of her biases towards young people than most church attendees. She identified her bias and was making efforts to attend to this prejudice. This article is not about shaming older generations into allowing greater involvement of young people in ministry. In fact, I believe that in many cases, it is at the fault of the millennial if they are not engaged in ministry. Hear me out… The young DJ is clearly proactive in their efforts to make a career out of table-turning. And they will probably never know that the radio host even had these thoughts about their qualifications for their work. They just did what they were being paid to do. I think young people need to drop their ‘poor me’ mentality and pave their own way for opportunities in ministry. Too often millennials allow their feelings of being held back by older generations to prevent them from engaging in ministry. The reality is that churches are silently screaming for young people to take the baton. The problem is that churches don’t know how to hold out the baton to them and train them to run with it in the most effective way. Nonetheless, young people must be the first ones to move. They can’t expect church involvement to come to them on a silver platter. In life, very few things of value come easily. Whilst we serve a God who is big enough and powerful enough to turn our situations around and provide ministry experiences for us. I firmly believe that the more we Give god to use, the more of us he will use. That sounds ridiculous, but it’s a fact. TD Jakes, in an interview with Elevation Church Pastor Steven Furtick, says that ‘while we are praying for tables, God often gives us trees’. By this, he is referring to the fact that God often gives us a means by which we can work with him to have our prayers answered. I can testify to this in that while I was praying for money last year, God gave me a job. As image-bearers of a creator-God we need to take whatever tree God has put before us and use our imagination and creativity to make tables, chairs, bridges, or whatever our society needs. No one can take that tree for us. God has gifted each of us with a unique set of skills to use to minister to the community around us. It is not up to the church to cut down that tree, slice it into planks, and sand it down so that we can easily use it. We must swing first. So my question is; what is your tree? Written by: Lachlan Harders

Cleanse; a period or process of time during which a person attempts to rid the body of substances regarded as toxic or unhealthy. We all have had that conversation with some overly eager health enthusiast who has sworn by a cleanse they have just completed, pressuring you into partaking into their diet of horseradish soups, kale shakes, & ginger teas to shed some weight that they’ve “seen you gain” but what if cleansing is deeper than just physical? As addressed in the beginning a cleanse is usually in reference to a period of time in which the the person partaking in the cleanse attempts to rid the body of toxic/unhealthy substances but what if those toxic substances are the environment that you are in? The relationship you have? The image you have of yourself? Toxicity can manifest in more ways than just the food we put into our bodies. Our thoughts can be just as unhealthy as a bottle of Coke; Our environment more toxic than gas, and our spiritual walk more burdensome than 15 “extra” pounds. A lot of times in my personal life, i’ve seen the results of being clogged up in a spiritual, mental, & emotional capacity. Work turns into stress, stress turns into sleeplessness, sleeplessness turns into habit, and habit cements into character; before you know you are miles away from the person you used to be before you were bombarded with life’s pitfalls. We live in a society in which it isn’t hard to take on toxic ways of thinking; Social Media can be incredibly unhealthy in its ability to numb, deceive, and entrap us into images of a lives we wish we had or lives we pretend to project. Our environments can be filled with people, situations which drain us as opposed to uplifting us, day in and day out exposure chips away at our happiness making us feel heavy emotionally. Spiritually we may have burdens that we feel obligated to carry silently despite hearing the old adage “Cast your cares upon him” countless times, we feel too ashamed to address them or to tired to fight them. If any of these symptoms relate to you in any way; you are in desperate need of a cleanse. Not just of the body but of the mind, spirit, and soul. In my personal experience this is necessary from time to time to truly unload all the toxicity that builds up over the course of this thing we call life. Here are some steps that I’ve found and am finding helpful even to this day; for one week try this three step “Cleanse Challenge”. 7 days. 168 hours. 10080 minutes. 604800 seconds. I promise; It’ll be worth it. Step 1: Cleanse the Body “know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?” – 1 Corinthians 6:19 I used to read this verse begrudgingly throughout my life as it was always brought up by health message speakers trying to tell me that pizza was of the devil; but I cannot deny that what you put into your body affects so much more than just your weight. Food can directly affect how you feel, how you process information, even how well you sleep! Appetite is the key to controlling so much more than your stomach, it’s the lock to clearing your mind. Challenge?  For one week try to change your eating habits. Drink LOTS of water with nothing but fruits of vegetables. It’s really that simple! For one week; water, veggies, fruits. The result? You’ll find yourself feeling lighter, cleaner, clearer and more energetic which will lead us to our next step Step 2: Cleanse the Mind “ Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” – Philippians 4:8 The terms “brain food” or “food for thought” are familiar, being that we’ve probably heard them used in various contexts throughout our lives but in reality what we feed our mind is extremely important. When you wake up is the first thing you do pray or check your phone? How many times do you check social media throughout the day? What content do you follow? What are you allowing your mind to absorb? How long do you spend reading? Exploring? Learning something new? NO, this isn’t an interrogation, simply an analysis that we all need sometimes. We bombard our mind with so much stimulation that it’s unable to process thoughts organically. Many of our proactive thoughts are replaced by reactive ones; and this causes us to get stuck. Stuck in thoughts that aren’t rooted in reality, stuck in thoughts that are cyclical and non-progressive, stuck in thoughts that tear down as opposed to building up. Challenge? Feed your mind with a different diet. Take a one week break from social media. Find/Read a book that relates to your personal interests or struggles. Change your visual perspective (Go outside more, watch the sunsets/sunrise) Stay off visual stimulation (Netflix, Phone, Video Games), Spend time around positive energy! Step 3: Cleanse the Spirit “Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation And sustain me with a willing spirit.” – Psalm 51:10-12 Being spiritually burdened is one of the worst feelings to have as a believer; feeling drained, tired, and numb with things that should fill, awaken, and invigorate is symptomatic with being spiritually clogged. That fire you used to have feels damped by life and the voice you used to hear so clearly feels like a distant memory; maybe it isn’t even that deep for you, maybe you’ve been working so hard for God that you’ve forgotten to work with him. Maybe church has become a job as opposed to a house of rest, a jail as opposed to a home, a business as opposed to a place of refuge. Whatever the case maybe; we all go through the feeling that David expresses in this Psalm! “Renew a steadfast spirit in me, Do not cast away your presence and do not take your Holy Spirit from me” These are poignant and heartfelt words, words of someone who needs to realizes that they need to cleanse their spirit. Challenge? From one week; wake up earlier than usual and take 15-30 minutes in the morning to talk to God. Write out your prayers, sing them, read them , say them as long as you are communicating honestly with him that’s all that matters. Be as David was in Psalm 51. Do this every morning and every night for one week. Step 4: Rinse & Repeat At the end of the week of doing this challenge, you will feel better but the battles you face won’t end there. Everyone will have a different experience, but whatever your experience is don’t leave it when it starts to feel better continue even after you see change! Repeat the challenges and make them your own until they are a habit of desire not a last resort of need.

Impending Doom – “The Sin and Doom Vol. II” (June 22, 2018) Riverside, California’s Impending Doom return with the most representative record of their career. The title is a nod all the way back to their pre-debut 2005 demo The Sin and Doom of Godless Men, which is an early hint at the all-encompassing nature of this new sound. While sticking closely to the crisp, focused sonic pattern the band has been on since Baptized in Filth (2012), Vol. II manages to summarize the best musical tendencies of the band’s whole discography. At the same time, the band’s foray into 8-string guitars has separated them from the 2000s wave of drop-C tuned “-core” bands, with songs like “Unbroken” and “Devils Den” out-grooving and out-riffing many so-called “progressive groove metal” bands, while also keeping the blast beats and death metal elements unpolluted. At times, they even embrace some of the grind and slam influences dating back to 2007’s Nailed. Dead. Risen. Speaking of 2000s Christian metalcore, Impending Doom’s lyrical preachiness on Vol. II is almost shocking in light of the huge departure the bands of yesteryear have made from overtly Christian themes. The initial singles and lyric videos during pre-release saw Brook Reeves already breaking the “preachy” threshold of most bands’ entire careers. But while he’s never been one to sugarcoat anything, the lyrics on track 6, “The Serpents Tongue,” are perhaps the most hilariously edgy words anyone will say in music this year, all while being dead serious: “I am a Christian, a faithful man of God – COME AT ME.” Between this track and “War Music,” Reeves & co. are making it clear: they have no problem slamming their musical peers and calling to account some of the cringier extreme metal stereotypes that still persist in the underground. The whole album could be considered an elaborate diss record directed at Satan. At times, this approach can read as a little campy, but the musical and vocal delivery leave little room for doubting the band’s sincerity. Aside from moments of lyrical cheesiness, the album closer “Run For Your Life (She Calls)” is a bit of an anticlimax. The track allows Brandon Trahan to show out a bit on the drums, but the quasi-industrial fadeout feels a bit “phoned in.” At the end of such a brutal tracklist, I wanted to be destroyed, but instead I got what felt like audio hugs in comparison. Still, this album is devastatingly heavy, but also diverse enough to keep every song clearly differentiated from the last. It may in fact be the catchiest and most memorable Impending Doom record yet. 8.5/10 (P.S. Yes, you saw that right, I just gave a Death Metal album a good review on a this website. COME AT ME BRO, this is the “voice of millennials in the Seventh-day Adventist Church” right? Therefore I declare it is Death Metal time and it will not cease to be Death Metal time until I declare that it is no longer Death Metal time. And I’ll never declare that it’s not Death Metal time, so I guess buckle your seatbelt, crank up your entire Heritage Singers collection to full volume, and mosh until you burn off the calories from every piece of veggie meat you’ve ever consumed.)

Billy Otto – BØRN EP (June 1, 2018) It’s now official: Billy Otto’s brand has transcended the boundaries of genre. After teasing a project over the past couple of years with singles like Dreams and Ghosts (We Can’t Let Go), Billy Otto has returned with a fresh take on his own atmospheric sound. Anyone who came into the Billy Otto fanbase through his 2013 release Floating Now will be surprised to be met with a significantly different sonic palate. Gone are the sparse, folky acoustic arrangements of that release. BØRN sees the arrival of electric guitars drenched in chorus and reverb, coupled with dreamy synthesizers, and full-band arrangements that lean decidedly in a more rock direction. Within the short run time of this EP, everything from indie rock, synth pop, dream pop, shoegaze, psychedelic rock, and even some post-grunge influences can be heard. There is clearly a sense of experimentation and adventure in the music: from the exciting, punchy riff that ends Dreams, to the shifting time signatures of Eyes Like Fire, or the frequent use of futuristic electronic effects, the music itself is, in it’s own way, progressive. Otto also branches out vocally with a more emphatic use of his falsetto voice, most notable on closing track All About You. The constant element tying this release to his previous work is atmosphere. Otto’s music remains ambient, emotional, dense with textures, and evocative of an other-worldly experience. If his previous album was meant to feel like you were “floating now”, then BØRN has managed to recreate that same sensation, just with a slightly punchier delivery. That being said, the added punchiness is slight. This EP knows that it was meant for relaxation and never pushes into “high energy” territory. For some, this may at times make the record feel slow-paced, but this is simply a by-product of a focused project that never tries to be something it’s not. While we’re fresh off the release of this new EP, the Spotify numbers for the singles leading up to it don’t lie. The material on BØRN is perfectly suited to expand Otto’s audience, and is a sign of even more good music to come. Ride those waves Billy. 8/10 (P.S. I don’t have anything snarky to add to the end of this review so instead I wasted 10 seconds of your life with this sentence. This is the quality content you came here for.)

Lecrae x Zaytoven – “Let The Trap Say Amen” (June 22, 2018) I have a lot to say about this album. First of all, that was fast. That wasn’t even a year since All Things Work Together dropped, and it’s not like Let The Trap Say Amen is an EP or mixtape. Such a quick turnaround on a full length album speaks to the work ethic in Lecrae’s camp. Producer Zaytoven deserves mention for being the sole producer on the album, which is a bit of a departure for Lecrae, whose recent efforts were reliant on a broad team of producers, each contributing individual tracks (except for Church Clothes 3, mostly handled by S1). For two guys to get together and produce an album of this length in such a short period of time is commendable. But this is also a problem. Repetitiveness plagues this album in more than one way. While the lead single Get Back Right is well produced, fun, and undeniably well suited to the current climate in hip-hop, it’s also very predictable, which sets the tone for the rest of the album. And that’s not to retread the trite complaint that “all trap music sounds the same,” because that’s not necessarily true. The issue is that on this album in particular, the music tends to blend together between songs too easily, and Lecrae stays too close to a lot of the overused tropes of the genre. By the time we get to just the second track, Preach, it’s easy to think, “alright, that’s enough 8th note triplets now ‘Crae.” Track four, Plugged In, sees one of the most conspicuously derivative moments, where Lecrae’s flow in the in second verse is almost identical in rhythmic cadence to the chorus flow on Cardi B’s famous Bodak Yellow. It’s literally almost identical for a few bars, and whether this was intentional or not, it detracts from originality. Zaytoven also noticeably reuses a lot of background vocal samples between songs, which can end up being distracting and confusing at times, making the album feel a bit rushed. Lecrae can also at times be lyrically repetitive. While the theme of the album is bold – giving sacred expression to the trap and breaking down compartmentalized spirituality – some of the actual raps just revisit territory Lecrae has already overdone. Yes, materialism is shallow. Yes, we know you don’t do drugs. Yes, we know you think other rappers “aint talkin’ ‘bout nuthin.” These themes were already feeling a bit tired and preachy on Anomaly, and after the gut-wrenching honesty and soul-searching Lecrae displayed on All Things Work Together, or the lyrical adventurousness displayed on his mixtapes, the reappearance of these topics falls a bit flat. The whole record is not bad by any stretch of the imagination. Where some of his earlier records sounded throaty and forced, Lecrae’s vocal delivery here is smooth and effortless. Many of the beats are really cool: Holy Water is immediately different, with a sort of haunting neo-classical vibe, Switch stands out for it’s sparse use of bass and inclusion of a female voice in ShySpeaks – which is a very welcome change in sonic texture – and the piano samples and drum production on Can’t Block It are particularly subtle. The strongest track on the record, though, is By Chance. This song feels sonically and lyrically the closest to the core of Lecrae’s sound from previous work. It manages to be simultaneously sound like the current, edgier, socially-conscious Lecrae, and the theologically-minded Lecrae from Rebel ten years ago. And everything in between. His vocal delivery on this song actually makes him sound like himself, and the music is a good bit more melodic than the rest of the album. This record is not a loss for Lecrae. It likely accomplishes exactly what he set out to do, and in that respect it’s a big success. In this particular case, Lecrae had a specific audience in mind for this record, and I just might not be part of that audience. That’s fine. As far as I’m concerned, Lecrae’s strongest material this decade has just happened to be on his mixtapes. What he manages to achieve with relevance on Let The Trap Say Amen also means he undersells the lyricism displayed on those other releases. For someone else, this record might be a hit. For me, it’s passable for casual listening, and doesn’t shake any of my faith in Lecrae’s skills or credibility as an artist. But seeing that Lecrae is willing to jump wholeheartedly on a current trend, I think it is very reasonable to say [he] won’t drop a double album and rap double time on all dubstep anytime soon. 6.5/10 (P.S. Look, if you like trap music like that, then this album is probably actually perfect. The fact that someone like me doesn’t quite love it might actually be a sign that this album is exactly what it needs to be. You could say I’m overthinking it too much and that the point of it is to just enjoy the music and jam out. You could say that. But you’d be overlooking the fact that I’m in training to be a pastor and my inner killjoy is running rampant, so pardon me while I over-analyze things!!)

Nicholas Zork – “Promises I Can’t Keep” EP (June 1, 2018) New York singer-songwriter Nicholas Zork’s most recent EP thrives on finesse and subtlety. With a fairly small catalogue of material in this stripped down folk-pop style, Zork makes his mark by focusing his effort on tightly crafted arrangements, making every moment count for something. The result is thoughtful, sincere music that is emotionally gripping without any need for pretense, spectacle, or forced melodrama. In other words, the songs are good. Sonic texture is the strongest point for this short record. All of the sounds here – Zork’s delicate vocals, the all too essential acoustic guitars, and other instruments – are perfectly balanced. The drum production on the first two tracks is especially good, sounding punchy and dynamic without detracting from the songs or overwhelming the generally soft compositions. The full-band arrangements sound full without sounding cluttered. It’s all super organic and clean sounding, creating a spacious atmosphere that serves the purposes of these songs perfectly. One standout instrumental moment is the incorporation of brass instruments on the closing track “Watching The Setting Sun.” It’s a surprising choice for an otherwise straightforward acoustic guitar ballad, but it lends the song a unique identity. From a songwriting perspective, Promises I Can’t Keep is a record that generally knows its strengths and sticks to them. Thoughtful, understated songwriting makes for very easy listening while also inviting repeated listens. The lyrical storytelling is very strong, managing to create very vivid scenarios with often minimal words. This is all indicative of an artist who is committed to the craft of writing in a serious way. The EP is not quite “perfect,” with a few elements that could be taken in either a positive or negative light. The whole project is a little on the sleepy side, which is either a strength or a weakness depending on what you’re going for. The third track, simply titled “Interlude,” is especially hard to place. On the one hand, it is probably the most adventurous musical statement on the record, and a genuinely awesome solo electric guitar recording. On the other hand, it seems a little bit meandering and doesn’t have a very clear musical theme, which does not help the pacing on an EP that already feels a little drowsy. An interlude like this may be better suited for a full length album. Overall, Promises I Can’t Keep is a solid showcase of songwriting skill, and should prove to be very easily engaged by most music listeners. There is enough sophistication to keep music nerds interested without alienating more casual ears. Here’s hoping for longer future releases from Zork. 7.5/10 (P.S. Yes, music reviews are happening now on The Haystack. I’m going to mostly cover Christian music with a special emphasis on music created by Seventh-day Adventists, but every so often if a significant secular release comes out, we may dabble in that too. These ratings aren’t “objective” and just reflect my enjoyment of the music, so you can feel free to disagree, call me trash, harass me on social media for my opinion except for don’t actually do that please and so on and so forth. We’re just here to have fun and listen to some good tunes, hopefully with lots of syncopation.)