Christmas at Luther 2010

Christmas at Luther 2010 is being broadcast in a shortened form by Minnesota Public Radio online. I am in the Luther Ringers handbell choir. The recording is embedded below, and there's a nice article here. Enjoy!

Programming Contest

I recently competed in the 35th annual Association for Computing Machinery International Collegiate Programming Contest, regional contest at Macalester College. My team solved two of the nine problems, placing 96th overall out of the roughly 200 teams in the region. All three of us on the team (myself, Jacob Blain, and Andrew Zutz) all had a lot of fun competing, and we were happy to solve at least one problem. We spent 2.5 hours of the allotted five hours on one problem that we were ultimately unable to solve, but we learned a lot for next year and we're all excited to go back and compete again! Here's the Luther Headlines article on the contest, and the full results for the regional competition.

Inpulse Video

Inpulse, an acapella group from Minneapolis, covers the Beatle's "Come Together" and has a vocal percussion battle at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. This is from a concert last night (October 1, 2010), in Marty's at Luther. Sorry for the giant pillar in the way...I recorded them because (a) they were really good, and (b) I wanted to test the video camera on my new 4th generation iPod Touch.



www.inpmusic.com
www.luther.edu
www.jugglingnebulafilms.com

Running to You - Newsboys Lyrics

Looking through YouTube today, found a couple brand new Newsboys songs! This one's called Running to You, by the Newsboys. Presumably this song will be on the Born Again project coming on July 13. Here's the lyrics...enjoy! Please comment with any corrections...



Running to You
by Newsboys

Somebody told me about a place
Where I can see you
I've got to change my ways
Day after day it’s the same old thing
I keep repeating, the reason I stay this way

I know what I have to do
I’m back to what I know is true

Chorus:
Everything is broken,
There’s a door wide open
You’ll find me running through
More than just emotion
My broken heart has chosen,
Jesus I’m running to You
I’m running to You

I can see the tear on your face
If you can feel it
Wondering what are you living for
Selfish dreams left you down-town
Empty-handed
There’s got to be something more
You know what you have to do
You're back to Who you know is true
(Chorus)

You're the only one
Who can fix what I've become
Lord, I believe in your love

Everything is broken,
There’s a door wide open
You’ll find me running to You
More than just emotion
My broken heart has chosen,
Jesus I’m running to You

Chorus 2x

Lyrics produced here for educational purposes only, based on the above YouTube video, and modified from http://newsboys.wikia.com/wiki/Running_To_You. Lyrics are property and copywrite of their owners.

Escape - Newsboys Lyrics

Looking through YouTube today, found a couple brand new Newsboys songs! This one's called Escape, by the Newsboys. Presumably this song will be on the Born Again project coming on July 13. Here's the lyrics...enjoy! Please comment with any corrections...



Escape
by Newsboys

Don't believe the hype
Don't believe the hype

You’ve been tainted by the same old
This thing is under control
Just remind me how you see so clearly
Facedown in a hole

Ready for the night the light will rattle
Go with the flow and the flow will drown you
Hey now, there’s always an out

Chorus:
But if you get up, get up, get up
You can break away
You can get up, get out, get up,
think you can overtake
No way, escape

Been defeated by the same kicks
Till we start to drag
Get deceived by the same tricks
That’s right
The devil's bringing it back

(chorus)

Don't believe the hype
It’s such a let-down
Don't believe the hype
It’s such a let-down
Don't believe the hype
It’s such a let-down
Don't believe the hype
It’s such a let-down

(chorus)
(chorus)

Lyrics produced here for educational purposes only, based on the above YouTube video, and http://newsboys.wikia.com/wiki/Escape. Lyrics are property and copywrite of their owners.

WinterJam Rocks - Deer Do Not

"I gotta feeling that tonight’s gonna be a good night
That tonight’s gonna be a good night"
-Michael Tait, starting off Newsboys' set.

So, Saturday night, about 10:00, my girlfriend Christin and I are sitting in Marty's (Luther College's on-campus cafe), listening to a bunch of students performing at open mic night. I had my laptop, and I was, being a college student, naturally on Facebook. I saw a post from Duncan Philips, drummer for my favorite band, Newsboys, that he was leaving Urbana, Illinois, for an overnight bus trip to Des Moines, Iowa, for the next show on the Winterjam Tour. I looked up the driving distance to Des Moines, and jokingly said to Christin, we could totally do that…four hour drive, 6:00 show, done by 9:45…If we just had a car, we could leave Luther before noon, drive to Des Moines, go to Winterjam tour, and be back by about 2:30 am. Only problem was, neither of us has a car.

Not really expecting anyone to just loan us a car to drive 400 miles for a concert, especially on a few hours notice, Christin went ahead and asked her roommate, Marybeth, if we could borrow her car. Rather to our surprise, she said yes. So, Sunday morning, we ate an early brunch, and left for Des Moines. The trip there was flawless…made good time, found the venue. Still being earlier than we wanted, we went on a rather extensive search for a fast food restaurant for dinner, found an Arby's, and, after a brief not really incident involving a very badly marked one way street and a quick turnaround, found parking at the venue and went in.

The show itself was quite good overall. We were pretty early getting there, so we had decent seats (all general admission). The opening acts were all good, although they played 2 or 3 songs each, so it all felt a little rushed. I had never heard of Revive, or Robert Pierre, so they were both nice surprises. I particularly liked a drum-off thing that Revive did, and it's cool to hear a 17 year old singer with a great voice and some pretty decent songs. Sidewalk Prophets are best described as the sound of Michael Jackson, from the body of Drew Carey. Not what I expected, but sounded good, and very clearly passionate hearts for what they do. Fireflight…not my favorite, and she sounded somewhat like she was losing her voice.

Tony Nolan's talk was a jam packed 10 minutes that was obviously quite effective. I really appreciated that he was willing to make the hard evangelistic statements about heaven and hell that I so rarely seem to hear as a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). His message seemed like a pretty straightforward evangelization talk that I'd heard before (and I think I may have actually heard him before). He did make a point of talking about how scaring someone into Christianity is not really right, but he also sort of used that tactic, I felt. Regardless, everything he said was true. I'm a touch theologically queasy with an illustration he did comparing God's gift of salvation to trading a penny for a $50 bill, just because absolutely nothing can be traded for God's free, undeserved grace, but he also mentioned trading our sins for God's forgiveness, and if that's what the penny represented, then I'm certainly ok with that.

Newsong definitely impressed me. I knew a few of their songs, but they were never a band I would have made an effort to go see. But…they were really really good. Wonderful vocals, deep songs, energetic, passionate…they were great! Reminded me a little of Phillips, Craig, and Dean at Lifest 2009, but Newsong was much better.

On a side note, one somewhat annoying theme throughout the evening was texting…it started to seem like every group wanted you to text something to some number to donate, enter to win, get more information, or something…the only one I did was to try to win a Winterjam prize pack, which I did not win. Oh, and I tried the Newsboys' text "Go" to a number, which I'd tried before, and once again didn't get any response. There were also many opportunities to donate, particularly to Holt International, an orphan sponsorship group that I'd never heard of. Sort of like Compassion International (who I expected to be sponsoring the tour), but a shorter term commitment, and a different approach.

Newsboys were the reason I drove for hours to see the tour. Tonight was my 10th (!!!) time seeing them live, and probably the most different. This was the first show I'd seen with Michael Tait. Having seen him, I think Newsboys are in good shape for the future. His energy is excellent, his stage presence incredible, and he's actually easier to understand on songs like "Something Beautiful" than Peter was. I still miss Peter…hearing Tait do "He Reigns" (possibly my all-time favorite song) just wasn't the same…and I liked how it was before. Still, Tait did a great job…swinging down from a cable after riding the ascending B Stage was great… Biggest disappointment was that "Shine" and "Breakfast" were mashed into a medley of their choruses, and we never got the verses of Newsboys' best known songs. I'm hoping that was because of the really short 45 minute set they were playing, and that at Lifest this summer, they'll do the whole song. Ending song was "Jesus Freak", by DC Talk, and I love how, 15 years later, that song still gets a huge crowd reaction. Great song. Also, I love the release strategy for "Born Again." The CD doesn't come out until June 8, 2009, but if you preorder at a show for $7, they will give you a CD with 5 songs on it (same songs as on their MySpace/Facebook/etc), and mail you the CD when it comes out…here's hoping that this prerelease goes better than the GO preorder did, when I had to make repeated phone calls to actually get the CD...

After Newsboys (by the way, the order of bands for the night confused me…Newsboys definitely should have been second last, or last), Tenth Avenue North played a set, which was good, as expected. I hadn't seen them before, so that was cool. Love the song "By Your Side"!

Finally, Third Day was, of course, awesome. No real surprises there after seeing them at least 4 times before. Always a good show. No encore.

So, after the show. Christin and I get to Marybeth's car, and were actually out of the parking lot by 9:46. We stopped at McDonald's to grab hamburgers, and set off to follow our Google map backwards in the dark. Did pretty well…missed two different turns, but realized both times right away that we'd missed them. Also discovered that Marybeth has a GPS, so that helped on the way home. It started snowing right as we were leaving, so the slippery (very very slippery in some places) road added another element to the drive.

We were within 45 minutes of Luther, on little 2 lane Highway 24, when a deer ran out and hit our car. At 1:30 in the morning. In a borrowed car. In the middle of nowhere. Yeah. We were fine…I had been going about 40 in the 55 mph zone because of the weather, but the weather wasn't a factor at all. There was really nothing I could do…I braked, but just couldn't have seen it in time. The front end of the car was rather damaged…one light broken, front grill basically destroyed…and of course, it's a borrowed car…(a 2000 Kia light SUV). Called my dad at home in Fond du Lac, WI, waking him up. He said to call 911, so I did, and a nice deputy came out within about 8 minutes, and took my information…said I could drive back. So, we made it (driving incredibly cautiously!) back to Luther, and then had one of the most awkward conversations of my life waking Marybeth up to tell her that her car was back…but looked different than it had when we left. Fortunately, she seems ok about it, and understands (thanks!)…at least, she understands when she's mostly still asleep…we'll see when she sees it tomorrow…Anyway, it has indeed been "A good night"...just with some not so good moments.

On Your Knees - Newsboys Lyrics

Newsboys (my favorite Christian band!) premiered several brand new songs on their Facebook page today! This song is titled "On Your Knees" and is from their "Born Again" EP (available only on their tour) and will be on their new CD coming July 13. Since I can't find the lyrics online anywhere yet, here they are for educational purposes only. I don't believe the song is available for purchase anywhere yet, so buy the CD when it comes out!

On Your Knees
by Newsboys

Lately she's been thinking what her daddy said
How when you're winning, you got more friends
But are they your friends if you fall they're gone
Something about those kind of people seems wrong
Who's gonna be there when the phone call knocks her down?
All of the steeples but she can't hear a bell sound
Jumps on a bus to head downtown
And picks up a paper that's been blowing around
It says...

When your heart breaks
He'll hurt for you
Dreams are out of reach
He'll pull you through
When you lose hope
All you gotta do
Is get on your knees again
Not long now and you're gonna see
No mountain's too high for you or for me
Or fall too far if you can believe
Get on your knees
On your knees again

She pulls up her paper and puts in her bag
Knows she really needs a savior like that
Walking past her church just up the street
Says "maybe it's time to get on my knees"
Cause He was there when no one was around
All of the people but no one made a sound
Thinks of her brother who's been feeling down
Pulls out her paper and reads it aloud...

When your heart breaks
He'll hurt for you
Dreams are out of reach
He'll pull you through
When you lose hope
All you gotta do
Is get on your knees again
Not long now and you're gonna see
No mountain's too high for you or for me
Or fall too far if you can believe
Get on your knees
On your knees again

Giving everything you've got
Still it's hard to believe
Love comes from the inside out
If you wanna be free
Gotta give your life and never stop
When you're thinking about giving up
Get on your knees

When your heart breaks
He'll hurt for you
Dreams are out of reach
He'll pull you through
When you lose hope
All you gotta do
Is get on your knees again
Not long now and you're gonna see
No mountain's too high for you or for me
Or fall too far if you can believe
Get on your knees
On your knees again

When you've given everything you've got
Gotta give your life and never stop
If you wanna be free
On your knees again


Lyrics produced here for educational purposes only, as heard on http://www.facebook.com/newsboys.official. Lyrics are property and copywrite of their owners.

One Shot - Newsboys Lyrics

Newsboys (my favorite Christian band!) premiered several brand new songs on their Facebook page today! This song is titled "One Shot" and is the title track from their "Born Again" EP (available only on their tour) and will be on their new CD coming July 13. Since I can't find the lyrics online anywhere yet, here they are for educational purposes only. I don't believe the song is available for purchase anywhere yet, so buy the CD when it comes out!

One Shot
by Newsboys

All around the world
Every boy, every girl's got one shot
Believers let me hear you shout
Hey!
Hey!

You could find me
Living in the city of DC
Found my freedom in the rhythm of the backbeat
God placed a love inside that I could not control
Beside me, had a brother saying I could sing like Nat King
But all I wanted was to do the rock thing
To roll through every town and spread His love around
Just a little while then I found

All around the world
Every boy, every girl's got one shot
To prove what they're all about
I'm gonna sing about my God
And it doesn't matter what's hot
Believers let me hear you shout
We say there's one way
When push comes to shove
We're gonna sing of His love

Things change
Just like the Twitter that you update
Or your Facebook status on your front page
But there's no comment you can leave to change my mind
Maybe you're a student at the college of the ivy
Or filling up a pop machine with Hi-C
Anywhere you might be
You can help the world see
What His love's about
Believers let me hear you shout

All around the world
Every boy, every girl's got one shot
To prove what they're all about
I'm gonna sing about my God
And it doesn't matter what's hot
Believers let me hear you shout
We say there's one way
When push comes to shove
We're gonna sing of His love

Are we scared to stand out from the crowd?
Make a difference in our own town?
If we stay silent with our voices now
The rocks will cry out
Believers let me hear you shout

All around the world
Every boy, every girl's got one shot
To prove what they're all about
I'm gonna sing about my God
And it doesn't matter what's hot
Believers let me hear you shout
We say there's one way
When push comes to shove
We're gonna sing of His love

All around the world
Every boy and girl
All around the world
Every boy and girl
All around the world...

Lyrics produced here for educational purposes only, as heard on http://www.facebook.com/newsboys.official. Lyrics are property and copywrite of their owners.

Born Again - Newsboys Lyrics

Newsboys (my favorite Christian band!) premiered several brand new songs on their Facebook page today! This song is titled "Born Again " and is the title track from their "Born Again" EP (available only on their tour) and will be on their new CD coming July 13. Since I can't find the lyrics online anywhere yet, here they are for educational purposes only.
Update: Here's the link to the full CD.

Born Again
by Newsboys

I found myself looking into the mirror
Knew I wasn't who I wanted to be
I was living life the way that I wanted
But my eyes reminded me I'm not free
Believed a lie so everything that I know
Says I gotta go, tired of going solo
But I'm never gonna go there again

This is what it is
This is who I am
This is where I finally take my stand
I didn't wanna fall
But I don't have to crawl
I met the one with two scarred hands
Giving Him the best of
Everything that's left of
The life inside this man
I've been born again

I see ya walking like you're living in fear
Having trouble even looking at me
Wishing they would give you more than words
Sick of people telling how it should be
What'd ya download? Where'd ya get your info?
You saw that I'm show
Now you're in the in though
Gonna tell you what I believe

This is what it is
This is who I am
This is where I finally take my stand
I didn't wanna fall
But I don't have to crawl
I met the one with two scarred hands
Giving Him the best of
Everything that's left of
The life inside this man
I've been born again

We are the ones He called by name
I'm never gonna look back
There go, there go the guilt and shame
Said I'm never gonna look back
This is who I am

This is what it is
This is who I am
This is where I finally take my stand
I didn't wanna fall
But I don't have to crawl
I met the one with two scarred hands
Giving Him the best of
Everything that's left of
The life inside this man
I've been born again

This is what it is
This is who I am
I didn't wanna fall
But I don't have to crawl
I met the one with two scarred hands
Giving Him the best of
Everything that's left of
The life inside this man
I've been born again


Lyrics produced here for educational purposes only, as heard on http://www.facebook.com/newsboys.official. Lyrics are property and copywrite of their owners.

I'll Be - Newsboys Lyrics

Newsboys (my favorite Christian band!) premiered several brand new songs on their Facebook page today! This song is titled "I'll Be" and is on their "Born Again" EP (available only on their tour) and will be on their new CD "Born Again" coming July 13. Since I can't find the lyrics online anywhere yet, here they are for educational purposes only. I don't believe the song is available for purchase anywhere yet, so buy the CD when it comes out!

I'll Be
by Newsboys

If you're sinking
If you're losing control
And your heartache has taken it's toll
If there's things you've never thought before
Like you're all alone
Afraid that love won't come home

You will find me
At the point of your breaking
Behind all the noise
When your world is
Darkest I can still see
Cause when there's nothing left
I'll be

I'll be

Like a small town
Talk is getting around
Now that you've found
A friend can still bring you down

And when their faith in you comes crashing down
Know that I'm still yours
I'll be the hope that endures

You will find me
At the point of your breaking
Behind all the noise
When your world is
Darkest I can still see
Cause when there's nothing left
I'll be

I'll be the light to help you find
All the things you left behind
Wondering will love come back
I'll be whispering you're still mine
When loneliness invades your mind
You're gonna be all right
You will find me
I'm at the point of your breaking
Behind all the noise

You will find me
At the point of your breaking
Behind all the noise
When your world is
Darkest I can still see
Cause when there's nothing left
Cause when there's nothing left
I'll be

Lyrics produced here for educational purposes only, as heard on http://www.facebook.com/newsboys.official. Lyrics are property and copywrite of their owners.

Light Up - Newsboys Lyrics

Newsboys (my favorite Christian band!) premiered several brand new songs on their Facebook page today! This song is titled "When The Boys Light Up" and is on their "Born Again" EP (available only on their tour) and will be on their new CD "Born Again" coming July 13. Since I can't find the lyrics online anywhere yet, here they are for educational purposes only.

Update: Here's the CD.

When The Boys Light Up
by Newsboys


When the boys light up, light up
When the boys light up, light up
When the boys light up, light up

Back and forth like a daytime drama
Up and down like a Yo-Yo Ma
Say there's gonna be days like this
Cause light and dark don't coexist

How ya gonna see through this fog
How ya gonna get back on course
Ya ain't never gonna feel the force
If ya don't connect to a power source
Cause ya been swapping out day for night
But ya see a lamp light burning bright
If ya get your flip-flops off the porch
We're passing you the torch

When the boys light up, ya know
Who gets the praise who owns the show
When the boys light up, it's on
We ain't stopping till we're done
We ain't nothing but the conduits
He's got the power, He'll flip the switch
Leaving the dark behind
Light up and let it shine

When the boys light up, light up
When the boys light up, light up

I was feeling all overcome
Had a faith gone dim and then some
Gotta call from a band of brothers
Turn the mic on, flash the Nikons
All the doubters, I heard them say,
Now the band's gonna fade away
But the boys are back for a second act
No excuses, we're lighting fuses
You're in the dawn of your finest hour
So get wired to the highest power
If you're down pick any sight
Get ready to ignite

When the boys light up, ya know
Who gets the praise who owns the show
When the boys light up, it's on
We ain't stopping till we're done
If we ain't nothing but the conduits
He's got the power, He'll flip the switch
Leaving the dark behind
Light up and let it shine

When we walk in His footsteps
It's a brighter day
When we follow His word
He lights the way
When we lift up His banner
and raise it high
We light up the sky


When the boys light up, light up
When the boys light up, light up

When the boys light up, ya know
Who gets the praise who owns the show
When the boys light up, it's on
We ain't stopping till we're done
If we ain't nothing but the conduits
He's got the power, He'll flip the switch
Leaving the dark behind

When the boys light up, ya know
Who gets the praise who owns the show
When the boys light up, it's on
We ain't stopping till we're done
If we ain't nothing but the conduits
He's got the power, He'll flip the switch
Leaving the dark behind
Light up and let it shine

Lyrics produced here for educational purposes only, as heard on http://www.facebook.com/newsboys.official. Lyrics are property and copywrite of their owners.