Darwinism versus Christianity pt. 1

Creation versus evolution.  One belief says you're a mistake, a coincidence, or luck.  Once belief says you have a purpose.  What do you believe? Random thoughts on a topic I will be diving deeper into.

with love,

Cornelious Jordan

p.s. feel free to download and share the image below.

My first concert- P.O.D. "Payable on Death"

 Happy Sunday y'all!

To support this band go to www.payableondeath.com

This passed Tuesday, November 18, 2014, I went to see P.O.D. which stands for Payable On Death. If you don't know who they are, you may be familiar with such songs as: Boom, Alive, Youth of a Nation, and Goodbye for Now.  It's crazy because the song "Goodbye for now" was released in 2006. There's a girl who sings at the end, and I mean she blows it away!  It was and still is my favorite part of that song.  Unfortunately, her name wasn't featured in the title of that song.  Haha, oh my surprise when I watched that video years later to find the young lady singing my favorite part was Katy Perry.  God is Good. :-)

For those who don't know my love of this band's music, this group has been the soundtrack to my life.  I began listening to P.O.D. when they released the album Fundamental Elements of Southtown, in 1999.  I hadn't confessed my love for Christ then, but I loved their music.  It was positive, Christian, but not corny, and it jammed hard!  The album had a song called "Outcast".  The lyrics went, "I'm an outcast, but don't count me out."  That's a message the youth needs to hear, even today!  Many years later, I am a Christ follower and when I listen to their music, from then and now, I relate to it even more.

Concert Rookie
This may sound crazy to some, but I have never been to a concert before, not technically.  I have seen a few shows in my day, but I only saw them because I so happened to be at the venue and caught a performance.  Even then, that only happened twice. Nonetheless, I've never had the excitement of buying a ticket and going to see a show.  One day I was on Instagram and Sonny Sandoval posts the band will be playing at a venue called The Merrow in their hometown of San Diego, CA.  The tickets were only five bucks!!!!! For those who don't know, many artists have secret shows for only a few dollars, you just have to know where to look.  Anyway, I live in Los Angeles and San Diego is only two hours from here!  I bought my tickets and when the day came, I rented a 2014 black Mustang.  It was a special occasion :-)

The Show
I got to the concert a bit early.  The Merrow was a decent size, somewhat intimate.  I was approximately three rows back in the audience.  As P.O.D. took the stage they announced they were releasing their first acoustic album entitled "Socal Sessions" and they would be playing the entire album for that show. Of course I bought "Socal Sessions" before the show started, as the merchandise guy was setting up his booth!  Some of the songs were new to me and the others I knew like the back of my hand.  The show was awesome!  I sang in the crowd like I had been singing in my car for years. This time, P.O.D. was actually right in front of me.  The concert ended with the song "Zion", which was on Fundamental Elements of Southtown.  After their last song Sonny, the lead singer, told everyone if they would like to stick around the band will be hanging in the crowd for a bit.  What!!?  Yess!!! wait.  No!!! my phone was on 14% I had been recording and taking photos during the show!  A friend of mine once told me to set my phone to airplane mode and it would save the battery.  I did as such.  I got to take meet all the members of the band except the drummer, Wuv.  My phone, though flash-less made it through two photos.  I got the chance to tell the guys their impact on my life and how their music has followed me through the years.  It was fantastic!  The cool thing was, as I spoke with each member, I never felt rushed.  There were hundreds of people around, wanting to take pictures, wanting to get autographs and these guys, international-triple platinum selling artists, just hung out in the crowd like they were hanging with family.  As I spoke with each member, we talked until the conversation was finished and when it was, they conversed with the next person.  I have no idea how long they stayed after the show talking to people.  Heck, I left before THEY did.

I will never forget that day.  This ladies and gentlemen, my was my first concert and let me tell ya P.O.D. set the bar pretty high!

***One thing I failed to mention:  P.O.D. is one of the few artists where I will see their album in the store and purchase it without hearing a single song.  I have not been disappointed yet. After this experience, I will support them like never before.  You know how everyone has that one album that they listen to and remembers exactly where they were when they first heard it.  "Socal Sessions" has one heck of a story behind it.  Thanks guys.

I speak blessings and increase, in Jesus' name.. amen.

Cornelious Jordan

Sonny Sandoval- lead singer P.O.D.

Traa Daniels- Bass Player P.O.D.

"Youth of a Nation"

Marco-Lead Guitar P.O.D.

Is The Local News To Blame For Mass Shootings? (video post)

My Conversation with Bill Maher

First posted on 12-3-11 via WDYTAJ

What's up everyone. I wanted to share this story with my readers:

I was talking my friend Adrien two weeks before the date above, she is an atheist. We were talking about Bill Maher. Although we have different beliefs about religion, we have mutual respect for his political views and his overall intelligence.  I told her, "You know, I would love to sit and have a conversation with Bill Maher.  It would be cool to tell him my views about being a Christian.  Hmph, I wonder what he would say?"  So imagine my amazement when I am at a popular restaurant in Los Angeles and in comes Bill Maher.  I see this guy and I think, "This ain't nothin' but God."  Of course Bill Maher would beg to differ.  If you are a Los Angeles local everyone knows you don't do the autograph and picture thing.  It's just not cool.  I'm super nervous and excited all at the same time because I'm wondering how am I going to approach this dude.  He is having dinner with a friend and I'm going to get up and talk to this HUUGE atheist about Jesus?!  I shake my head and laugh to myself.  Finally, I say, "Forget this.  I'm not going to let this opportunity pass me by.  God put this opportunity in my lap and I'm going to take it."  I time it just right.  Bill Maher gets his check, his friend pays and goes to the bathroom or as the Britts say "the loo."  Here we go...its all or nothin'.

Hey, how's it goin'?  I'm Cornelious... May I ask you a question?

Bill Maher:  Sure.

Me:  Please pardon me, but I never do this.

his friend returns from the loo

Me(cont.):  I have a blog.  At the time it was called, "What Do You Think About Jesus?"

Bill and his friend give each other a stare 

Their faces:  Aww Sh**!

I laugh to myself a little

Me:  I already know what you're thinking. I know you're an atheist, however, I wanted to tell you that I really respect your opinion.  I am a Christian, so obviously we are on opposite ends of the spectrum as far as religion goes, but you are one of my favorite speakers.  I was wondering, if and only if it's okay, could I take a picture with you for my blog?

I'm thinking I sound like a freakin' crazy fan or something, this is so lame.

Bill pauses and thinks for a second. He has a look like, "What just happened here."

Bill Maher:  Sure.

Me: Whew!

At this point I am still standing and I tell Bill Maher and his friend a little about the site.

Me:  ...the main purpose is to eradicate the uneasiness of religious conversations. You know how sometimes people get weird when you talk about religion?  That's what I want to get rid of.  The title of my last blogpost was called "Where was God at Penn State?" (I think to myself, "Most people think that's a really deep question, what's he gonna say")

Bill Maher:  ...where was God when those kids got the cleft lip?  What's up with that? It's like waay up there man.

At first I'm confused, "Is he serious or is he screwing with me?"  I have no clue what to say, because I'm totally caught off guard.  I'm also fighting the urge to laugh.  I think to myself, "I know, I'll try to say something clever."  I shrug my shoulders and say... 

Me:  I mean...

Bill Maher:  I mean its Waay up there, man!

He takes his finger and starts cramming it up his lip

I'm still trying hard not to laugh, but I break

Me: (laughing at his gestures) You know you're not supposed to laugh at that kinda stuff, man.  (continuing) It was a really good blog topic, you know...(continuing to chuckle a bit)

Bill Maher:  (being serious) You should check out this article.  It's really interesting.  It's about how difficult it is being black and atheist.

Me:   I could imagine because of the history of our culture.  I'll check it out.

        I shake his hand and sit down at the table

Me(cont):  You know I wasn't always like this, a full believer, because of the type of "christians" I encountered. I like to call myself a "Follower of Christ" now.

Bill Maher:  You know what man, I've got no respect for you...

Me:  (laugh) Ok, I wasn't expecting that (laugh)

His friend stands up to take the picture

Me:  Can I pose like this?

Bill Maher:  You can do that!  I'm not!

CLICK!

Lol. That's how the picture turned out. Now that I think about it, I don't think I said thank you.  I shake Bill and his friend's hand and right before they leave, his friend turns around and says, "See you in heaven!" 

Lol. I hope so guys...I hope so.

Oh, and by the way...Thank you.

-CJ

*update*

Feb-2012

It has been a year and about 2 months since that day.  If I saw Bill Maher now, I'd probably say what's up and buy him a shot. lol  The thing I would like my readers to know is, it's ok to have differences, but do not let those differences divide you.  Now don't get me wrong I would love it if Bill Maher accepted Jesus as his savior, however it is not my job to judge him.  My job is to live by example.  My challenge to you, my beautiful audience, is to find someone you appear to have nothing in common with.  Whether they have a different political belief, sexual orientation, or religious belief sit with them and talk.  You may discover you have more in common than you think.  THE, I say, THE most important thing is to respect one another's opinion.  You never know what a person has gone through or what has caused them to think the way they think.

Have a great day, and Voice Your Belief.

Cornelious Jordan

p.s. The restaurant was called the Newsroom Cafe' in West Hollywood.  It is now closed for business as of Sept. 15, 2014

You Are More Beautiful Than You Think.

I love this ad by Dove called "Real Beauty Sketches" released about a year ago. In this video: A sketch artist for the FBI sits several women down and asks them to describe themselves while he sits behind a curtain. He has never seen them before and will not see them until the sketch is revealed. I hope you enjoy and are as inspired as I was.

   

Who is the master?

"What you do not master, will master you."

-Pastor John Hagee

The Greatest Trick Ever Pulled...

Quotes on Fear

"Don't let fear overcome your pursuit of happiness."
-Clinton Kelly 

(Clinton said this on television show "The Chew".  It was in response to Karla conquering her fears while doing a small part for Broadway show "Newsies".)

Movie review: "Son of God"

Good afternoon, I hope everyone is having a wonderful day.  I wanted to share with you my thoughts on this movie.  Last week I went to see "Son of God".  I was very excited and happy to support this movie opening weekend, the most important weekend in box office.  I hope holding back my review for a week allowed a few more people to see the movie and allow some of you to comment.

Through My Eyes:
For those who don't know my background I was a theater major.  This consisted of training in both acting and directing, elements of theater, costuming, and set design.  I also minored in Television production.  As a director and set designer I was taught everything on a stage is there for a reason, everything must have a purpose all the way down to the color.  If a woman walks on stage in a red dress it should help tell the story. The dress perhaps tells something about her personality or drawing attention to her in some sort of way.  I am also a follower of Christ.  When watching "Son of God", I wanted to watch it from two perspectives:  1) As a movie goer, to see the story or film as a whole  2) As a witness; if someone asked me who Christ was and what was his message, how would I describe Him?

Movie Day:
I decided to go to the last showing of the night, Sunday evening, on my solo dolo (I apologize for the profanity used by Urban Dictionary).  I resisted the temptation to buy a late night snack and proceeded to theater 12 to the last row, in the back of the house (my favorite seat).  The music starts and narrator is setting up the story for the audience.  The infamous nativity scene is on screen.  Mary and Joseph are in the stable with the baby in arms and the wise men ask Mary, "What is his name?"  Mary says... "Jesus."   "Huh?" I thought to myself.  I could barely hear her, that's weird.  I knew what she said, but it was said so low it was almost a whisper.  Jesus is the name that is above every name.  Knowing the importance of His name, not just as a believer, but historically, as a director I would have asked the actress to say it again.  I know can pick apart movies sometimes, so I overlooked it and resumed watching the rest of the movie.

      I loved where the movie began to take me.  Shots of Jesus walking through the mountains were beautiful. Then He met Peter.  Jesus lovingly insisted he go fishing with Peter.  Jesus tells Peter, "We are going to change the world."  It a great set up for an epic film.  Unfortunately, the movie went downhill from there.  The script didn't tell a story.  It was merely a bunch of scenes from The Bible thrown together without any particular theme or point.  The movie started with Jesus' disciple John telling his side of the story, but John was never really seen or featured in most of the film.  The movie mostly followed Peter's relationship with Christ.  John was called "the one who Jesus loved."  If the movie was to be told from John's perspective that would have been a great angle to play with.  The special effects were decent, however, it seemed toward the end of the movie the editors got lazy.  In The Bible, Jesus was taken up into a cloud.  In the movie there was a cut-away shot and He sort of disappeared.  The one that annoyed me the most was during the day of Jesus' crucifixion.  I don't know if the woman who played his mother was a producer on the movie or what, but they kept giving her these close ups and using the same shot over and over again, more than I can count.  Not only that, it was pretty clear she had work done on her face.  I'm not taking a cheap shot at the actress, by any means.  However, this woman should not have been in the movie unless they were making a movie called "Real Jesus of Beverly Hills."  They might as well had used Joan Rivers to play Jesus' mother.  I'm pretty sure people didn't get plastic surgery back then, but it was obvious and took me out of the movie.  I think If you've had obvious work done on your face or any body part you can't do some period pieces.  I Do wish this actress the best and a long and successful career.

Exhibit A:

Historically inaccurate; Scriptures and Symbols Misused:
The "Son of God" showed Nicodemus, a Pharisee, coming to Jesus in the day time.  Yes, it did become nightfall once Nicodemus sat with Jesus, but this is inaccurate.  First, Nicodemus was a member of the Jewish council.  He could never go to Jesus in broad daylight without being questioned.  It was highly likely the other members were asleep when Nicodemus left.  Which brings me to my next point. The Bible clearly states Nicodemus came to Jesus by night.  Nicodemus was intrigued by Jesus and is said to have more than likely converted to Christianity.  He was one of the men who helped take Jesus down from the cross, which was not in "Son of God."  In the movie,  Pilate's wife called Jesus king of the Gods.  There is only one God. If you believe something different that's fine, but keep in mind we're talking about a movie about Jesus.   Other incorrect scenes:  Instead of Jesus saying, "Lazarus come out!"  Jesus went into the tomb and whispered in Lazarus' ear, "Whoever believes in me shall not die."  The scripture is true about not dying, but it was not what He said to raise Lazarus.  If I were someone who wanted to learn about Jesus, it sends the message when I die, will rise from the dead.  The placing of this scripture is inaccurate and misleading (John 11:43).  I can go on and on about this movie, but I wont.  I am glad there is a recent movie about the life of Christ and not just surrounding the beating.  Don't get me wrong,  The Passion was an excellent movie.  They really did their homework.  If that same crew worked on Son of God, it would have been an excellent film.

Final point:
Remember when I said everything in a film should have a purpose?  When the woman was caught in the act of adultery, the Pharisees were about to stone her.  They tried to trap Jesus with a rhetorical question, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women.Now what do you say?"  Jesus replied, "Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”  After hearing this, them men left her alone.  In "Son of God", Jesus picks up a stone as well and tells the men, "I will give my stone to the man who is without sin."  The Pharisees walked away followed by Jesus dropping his stone in slow motion.  Slow motion has a tendency of framing a shot. Purpose:  by Jesus picking up a stone and then dropping it sends a message (visually) that Jesus has also sinned.  Jesus was without sin. I don't know who wrote this film or who directed it, at this point I have no interest in who did.  Whoever made this movie, couldn't have done all of their homework.  After 2hours and 18 minutes I had no real understanding of who Jesus was or what he stood for.  Jesus, in this film, at times, seemed to be uncertain of the words he used.  He wasn't portrayed as all knowing.  Whatever god you serve, the truth is Jesus existed.  This is a movie based on Biblical history.  As a filmmaker, when doing a historical film it is your duty to stay true to just that, the history.  As someone who believes in God, you must do God like work.  When it comes to using our talents for God far too many people have a half assed attitude.  I have often heard people say, "All God cares about is your heart and that you tried."  That's true.  However, let me ask, If the President asked you to come to the White House and cook a dinner would you make him a bologna sandwich?!  I think not.  You will do your absolute best to knock him out of his seat with a wonderful 5 course meal.  That is what we should do for God, try to knock his socks off.  Give Him our best, because He gives us His best.  Unfortunately, I feel this movie was a bologna sandwich.

I do not regret supporting it, because we need more movies like it (not this particular one, of course).  With that said, much like "African American" films, I don't want to watch a movie because it's my duty.  I want to watch a movie because it's good.  God bless everyone who made this film.

With love,

Cornelious Jordan

"That's my belief... What's yours?"

  


 

What is Hatred?

"Hatred only makes you feel you have power."-Rebecca L.

While at work, I overheard a guest of mine having a conversation with her friend.  She said the quote mentioned above and I asked for her permission to post it on my blog.  Immediately when I heard her say it, I was astonished.  I went over and apologized for imposing on her and her friend's conversation.  I told her that was one of the most powerful things I have ever heard someone say.  It's funny.  She didn't even realize when she had said when I went over.  The three of us talked briefly and gave examples of people like Hitler and other dictators who think they have power when they oppress other people and how bullies feel they have power when they pick on someone else.

During our conversation we noticed two things about this type of  "power":
1. It is temporary.
2. They have this power because we give it to them.

Think of this:  If you gain power by oppressing other people, what happens when you have no one to push around?  You become power-less.  On the other hand, there is always someone who needs love.  This is an abundant source of power in which we can all reap.

As a side note:

Recently, I saw a movie on Netflix called "The Square".  It is about the Egyptian's recent protests to fight the oppression of their government.  They made some great accomplishments in getting things changed.  The Egyptian's love for their country, for their families, and their future overcame the obstacles they faced.  Their love even overcame religious differences in their country.  There is a quote in the movie the people used, "Muslims and Christians are one hand."  The Muslims and Christians had come together to fight side by side to overcome oppression.  My point is, Love is stronger than hate.  It is very unfortunate some of the things that happen in the movie, however it is an excellent film to watch.

-With love

Cornelious Jordan

p.s. Thank you Rebecca!  

A Call To Greatness

"Call to Greatness" click to listen

Are Female Comedians Attractive?

"Are Female Comedians Attractive?" click to listen

Are Christians Relatable?

"Are Christians Relatable?" click to listen