I recently saw a meme that explained that 2022 was to 1970 what 1970 was to 1918. That put my formative years into perspective and made me feel really old...for a moment. Reality kicked back in and instead I began to think of all the things my age that are considered "Classics". The old adage, "It gets better with age" begins to apply to many of the things I treasure. Don't get me wrong. I haven't completely gotten to the point where my 6-year-old grandson has to show me how to use my cell phone, but there are some things that I seem to be getting to be a "cranky-old-man" about. One of those is music. 
Let me be clear. I don't subscribe to the notion that there is no good music out today, you have to search for what you like, but it does exist. I do think that the music of today will struggle to have "legs". I can't fathom there ever being a time when our current pop artists sell their catalogs like Springsteen, Dylan, and Sting have recently to the highest bidder. There are some really good new artists out there and their music resonates with me and some of my older compatriots. However, one wonders if they will ever have the staying power of Presley, The Beatles, Mr. Cash, or even acts from my generation like Heart, The Bangles, or The Go-Gos.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that good music never really goes out of style. "Beauty is in the eye (or in this case, the ear) of the beholder. All genres of music have their place as well as evidenced by those who continue to financially support the artists of that genre. Maybe I should have started this monologue with the music video.
After all, I'm just a soul whose intentions are good...
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" has been recorded by 4 different artists It was written in response to an argument with the woman who would become songwriter Horace Ott's wife and was first captured on a platter by ingenue Nina Simone. ("Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" by Nina Simone from the 1964 album Broadway, Blues, Ballads). This slower release failed to chart but brought Simone positive exposure as some thought it carried Civil Rights subtexts. The Animals released a bluesy, faster-paced, version of the song in January of 1965 and carried it all the way to #13 on the Billboard Hot 100. The Animals cover was also listed at #322 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time list. Any really good song from the 60s deserves a Disco cover at some point and the band Santa Esmeralda foisted a 16:12 (the song took up the entire album side...) version of "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" onto the dance floors of 1977. Finally, Elvis Costello put his spin on the song on his 1986 album King of America. ("Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" (1986)) The release caused tension between Costello and his record label as he didn't want a cover to be the first single released from the album. Seems like Mr. Costello's intentions were misunderstood as the label released the song anyway as the first single.
The song is written from an apologetic perspective. It attempts to convey that the singer realizes the failed attempts at communicating how he feels. He feels like if he can just get the listener to really soak in what he is saying, their ability to understand one another would be made complete. The underlying idea however is that there is resistance due to previous actions by the person making the apology. It seems we may be in a stalemate...
Ezekiel 4-5 New American Standard Bible/The Amplified Bible/King James Version of the Bible parallel
Has anyone ever asked you to do something totally out of character for you? Have they asked you to do it in public? When last we left Ezekiel, we found him eager to serve God. Now, remember, Ezekiel had been training to be a priest in the temple for most of his life. His standards of living were a bit higher than those of his fellow captives and he felt he had an example to set for the Hebrews living in Babylon. So when God called Ezekiel, he was ready! But was he ready for what God had planned?
God comes along with an opportunity for Ezekiel to fulfill his priestly duties by being obedient to Him not necessarily the laws of Moses. Here is where the wrinkle happens. God first tells Ezekiel to get a set of toy soldiers and a brick that is to be labeled "Jerusalem" and make like he is leading a siege on the brick. God tells him to do this in a public place. "Oh, Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood." After Ezekiel sets up the siege street theater, God commands Ezekiel to lay on his left side for 390 days and then on his right side for 40 days all the while facing his toy siege of Jerusalem. Depending on which side he is laying, he is to have the arm that is exposed completely uncovered. "Oh, Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood." The numbers 390 and 40 are symbolic of the years of Israel's disobedience and rebellion (via their bad kings), and then the years of Judah's similar sinful past. For sustenance, while Ezekiel was in this prone position, he was supposed to eat only about 10 ounces of a predetermined mix of bread and drink only about 1 and 1/3 pints of water per day. Ok, that doesn't sound too bad, even prisoners get bread and water. But there was a catch, this bread was to be baked with a fire that was fueled by human excrement. This is where Ezekiel drew the line, he had remained ritually clean his entire life. He begged God to allow him to remain clean. God relented and allowed Ezekiel to bake his bread over cow dung. Yum! Yum! "Oh, Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood."
Can you imagine walking down the dusty road of your refugee camp and there you see a guy who was supposed to be a spiritual leader laying on the ground, tied up, with a bare arm facing the sky, looking at a toy representation of Jerusalem under siege? Then the whispering begins..."umm is anyone going to do something about Ezekiel? He's lost it! Oh, you don't even know all the story...see that bread he's eating, you really don't want to know where THAT came from..."
Ezekiel's "example tour" doesn't stop there, In chapter 5 he is told to cut off his hair...with...a...sword! God then tells Ezekiel to split the hair into 3 piles. One will be burned, the other will be struck by the sword, and the final third will be scattered by the breeze. Small portions will be kept to put in Ezekiel's garment and burn in a different fire. "Oh, Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood."
Ok, so let's unpack this dramatic upheaval in the life of the prophet Ezekiel. All of these "acts" are pointing to the devastation that is about to befall Jerusalem as the Babylonians are going to lay siege to the city and destroy it. The bread Ezekiel eats is representative of the famine that will beset the citizens of the region who aren't taken into captivity. Ezekiel's haircut decries the shame that Israel/Judah is about to face. The remaining hair represents the remnant that God will preserve even though they will see tribulation.
All throughout, Ezekiel humbled himself to be an obedient servant to God. A devout adult jew would never be seen in public playing with the toys of a child. An upstanding citizen of the Hebrew community and priest-candidate would never defile himself by eating items that are considered unclean. Devout priests/priests-in-training were never to cut their hair or beards, (much less...with...a...sword) and then burn 1/3, sword slam 1/3, and then throw 1/3 to the wind, all in a public display. But Ezekiel did. His prayer I think echoed the song of the day..."Oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood..."
Unfortunately, for the most part Ezekiel was misunderstood. We see that the inhabitants of the area and the hearers of the prophecies didn't listen. That's right! After all of his exhibitionism, the folks that Ezekiel was trying to warn, turned their backs and continued in their sin.
So friend, what are you willing to do for God?
Are you willing to be misunderstood?
Are you willing to get completely out of your comfort zone and do what seems to be absolutely ridiculous to the world around you? Perhaps you've trained or earned a college degree in business and God says..."Have you ever considered leading music for your church as a full time vocation?" Maybe you have your life completely planned out and God says "it's time for you to adopt a teenager". Maybe God has told you to tell that Walmart cashier about Jesus' love for them (obviously this excludes those of you who are using self-checkout...or does it?) What if you humble yourself and do the things God asks you to do, and there are no discernable results? "Oh, Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood."
Regardless of the fact that we are souls whose intentions are good, we fail. In Ezekiel, we see a man who was obedient but he was still misunderstood AND his focus audience didn't even listen to the warnings he was playing out before their eyes. But our intentions and our strength are not the things on which God asks us to rely. His strength, wisdom, providence, comfort, and care are all we need.
It doesn't seem too far-fetched to think that Ezekiel drew comfort as he considered the words of the prophet Isaiah... (God Speaking)“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord." (Isaiah 55:8) Ezekiel
Ummm, could someone pass the bread and water? I'm a little tied up...
'Til Tuesday,
Loving HIM by Loving You,
randy
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