We Built This City on the Wrong Rock.

Psalm 62:7

"My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge."

Ever wonder where the term "Rock and Roll" came from? I think most people, if they had to guess, would say it started in the 1950's, but actually it goes back much farther.

In 1935, Henry "Red" Allen recorded a song with lyrics by Russel Robinson called "Get Rhythm in Your Feet and Music in Your Soul." It is the first pairing of the two words, etymologists tell us, with the lyric "If Satan starts to hound you, commence to rock and roll. Get rhythm in your feet and music in your soul "

The term rock came from old gospel music, where a person would be "rocked to the core" in a spiritual way. Roll was also a religious reference, where evangelicals would roll in the aisles, moved by the holy spirit. As the terms evolved, they began to pick up a double meaning, where "roll," became a euphemism for having sex (as in "roll in the hay"). "Rocking" came to mean to dance suggestively.

Small wonder then, that when the hot era of Rock and Roll music on the radio took over the airwaves, it freaked out a lot of conservative parents and pastors! Dancing, if it was allowed at all, was to be "civilized" and disciplined. Which does explain why my mother, even to her last days, felt a big loss with the decline of old-fashioned ballroom dancing. She would watch "Dancing with the Stars" with contempt. "That's not dancing," she would declare, and ignore the television.

Rock and Roll morphed over the next few decades, from ethnic street harmonies and Gospel remakes to Bubble-gum Pop, British invasion, and Hard Rock. In the 80's, Jefferson Starship came out with the ultimate Rock and Roll anthem with lyrics that summarized the rebellious feeling among rockers tired of Rock's hypocritical intolerant critics:

"Someone's always playing corporation games
Who cares they're always changing corporation names
We just want to dance here, someone stole the stage
They call us irresponsible, write us off the page
Marconi plays the mamba, listen to the radio, don't you remember
We built this city, we built this city on rock an' roll."

In rebellion, Rock becomes a voice against immorality. It sets itself up as a new morality: "All we want to do is dance and not play the corporate games of greed and corruption."

Ah but sadly, Rock and Roll itself is big business, and the hardest of Rockers have a reputation for being the bad boys and girls. It's hard to resist the draw of wealth and fame. Far too many have died living the "free life" of being stars. The things wealth and fame attract have killed many a musician.

It is too bad things have strayed so far from the original Rock of Ages. You can think you are okay, ignoring the real dangers of life. It would be nice if we could dance evil away... but that doesn't work out well.

We built this city, but on the wrong Rock. God is our mighty rock. We may seek salvation in trying to blithely dance away our cares away without seeking truth and honor. It cannot be done. Listen to His call. Let Him be your ultimate refuge.

Maddie Goes Swimming

Proverbs 22:3 and Proverbs 27:12
"The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and pay the penalty."

Every morning my wife gets out of bed first and takes our dogs out back. Sometimes I wake, sometimes not. This morning I got out of bed at the same time, and was about to get dressed when I heard a commotion out back; our youngest dog, Maddie fell into the pool!

Now Maddie is a funny little Yorkie. She is a rescue we've had for about a year. When we got her, she was completely wild. She had been a puppy-mill breeding dog, and had never experienced any kindness, as near as we could discern. Over the year, she has really responded well to our affection, and has become a very loving pup to us. She needs work with others, but we are amazed at all she has learned. Her protective instincts are strong, as she tries to distance herself from danger. That's not always the smartest choice, but usually the easiest.

She has this one dangerous habit. She will always walk along the edge of the pool. So when Gwen took her out this morning, Maddie got in trouble. The forecast for today was for high winds. Gwen turned her back on Maddie for a moment to crank in the awning. the noise startled Maddie, who jumped back... and thus took an early morning swim.

Fortunately Gwen was there to rescue her, but whether Maddie learned an important lesson from the experience only time will tell. Hopefully next time she is in the yard she will start giving the pool a larger buffer-zone.

The verse we quote today is interesting in that it appears twice in fairly close proximity in the book of Proverbs. Repeated text is not that unusual in the Bible, but it is interesting to note that the writer uses it twice indicating he places value in its teaching. You can see why in my illustration of Maddie's morning dunking. Her initial reaction, the simplest one that relied on her instincts, got her in deep water. In time she will learn that a more prudent, thoughtful approach might be of value.

We often react before we think. You can probably envision situations in your own life where you wish you had thought things through a little better. You may also find that certain activities lead you to stray from living the life you should. Avoiding the things that lead you astray and into danger may be the first step in beating the obstacles that cause you to stumble. Experience teaches us to be less reactionary, and more careful. Think about how you can avoid or better prepare for dangers that lead you to make the wrong response. Set up your refuge; your "buffer-zones." Identify the things that lead you astray. Set yourself on a course to higher goals. Be more mindful, and you will have a better chance to succeed.