some of you may have noticed that i have slight discrepancies with the way we've been doing church for the past ... oh ... 50 years or so. i'm still trying to mold my opinion on such matters, which is why i try not to flap my mouth in as much passion and anger as i used to. but i'm leaning towards one particular aspect of the human experience with spirituality/divinity that is causing me to hone in on something very important to me.

unadulterated talent.

(community and a sense of belonging come in a really close second, but i think talent is a good start.)

a lot of conversations and experiences have led me to this belief. if you read my blog, you know i believe that we were all created to do something specific, which means we all have inherent talents that, if used, cause others to be inspired and wanting more. this is a good thing. it leads other people to wonder if, in fact, they too were created for more. i'm also of the belief that being the best at what we do will cause people to ask us questions ... they see us as experts ... which then provides us a platform to tell our stories (whether they provide Hope or not).

what i've been most familiar with are church settings that have quite good musicians and speakers and artists but not quite as good as their mainstream counterparts. we're ok with this because it's church, not MTV and it's worship not "secular" music. for some reason, there is a culture that feels this level of professionalism and talent is perhaps less-sacred than those who are not-so-talented but are doing it for God.

i'm not so much ok with this. (and this is coming from the girl who can't compete on the world stage of musical talent so she decided that she would lead worship instead because it is, after all, for a good cause). now, again, i'm not saying that we need to have bono leading our spiritual gatherings ... that would be absolutely tragic actually, because he's already doing it for us ... for people who would never step foot in our religious institutions. what i am saying is ...

i had a spiritual experience at the staples center last night, watching quite possibly one of the best bands on the face of the planet (arguably, of course). which like i've been saying, leads ME to believe that I PERSONALLY connect with God through raw talent. it happens a lot.

jazz bars (or just bars). concerts. standing in a building designed by a brilliant architect. seeing insane dance moves. watching a film so thoughtfully and artistically constructed. being in a business meeting with people who are very clearly at the top of their game. having conversations in class with people who are just so smart it's ridiculous.

and what i want, more than anything, is for people who are curious about God to interact with these individuals. because i honestly think that's where a conversation could begin for them about what it means to be fully alive.