Learn more about what the women of India are really facing

   My name is Dano. I’m 28 and I live in San Diego. I had heard a little about the caste system and the poverty in India, but I thought it couldn't really be that bad. I was wrong. I looked into the systemic injustice against women-- rape, child brides, bride burning. Every one of the cruelties seemed to be perpetuated by illiteracy, and by the belief that “it’s a waste to educate a woman.”

   I felt powerless. I wanted to stand up for these women but I didn't know how.

   But then, I recently got involved with Sister India. It’s a community that’s taking action to end these cruelties by providing illiterate men & women with education. All the money goes straight to Mission India’s Adult Literacy Program. For about 30 years they've worked hard to get costs down and now the gift of literacy for a poor person in India is only $30! That gift transforms their family forever. My dream is for us to raise $30,000 by the end of this year. That’s a year of education for 1,000 Indians. Will you help me spread awareness by sharing this anyway that you can? Thank you for listening. Learn more at SisterIndia.org/christmas.

Mother's Day Playlist

While I'm at it, here's the last one:

Approaching Pavonis Mons By Balloon (Utopia Planitia), The Flaming Lips
Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots pt. 1, The Flaming Lips
Fight Test, The Flaming Lips
Do You Realize??, The Flaming Lips
Race For The Prize, The Flaming Lips

I imagined Wayne Coyne cruising around the worship center in a giant inflated transparent hamster ball.

Easter Playlist

For all who were curious, these are the songs that I piped in before the worship set:

Forever my Friend, Ray LaMontagne
Age of Consent, Grant Lee Philips (from a great acoustic album called Nineteeneighties)
What Light, Wilco
Theologians, Wilco
Sunny Days, Jars of Clay
Show You Love, Jars of Clay
War on War, Wilco

never felt so complete

"Pieces falling from me
You can have them for free
I never felt so complete
Pieces falling from me"
-Gomez, Little Pieces

I am alive. We are living in an apartment on the edge of the San Dieguito estuary area. Charlotte is working at church and finishing her last quarter of school. I am still driving a cutaway bus for the ADHC in Mira Mesa on Mondays and Wednesdays and the intern program will end in June. For now, our Sabbaths are in Christ alone. In March, Charlotte will get Monday off and life will get a bit simpler.

"She's got a pretty face with the wedding lace, but I'm still waking up with myself"
-Jon Foreman, Resurrect Me
It's a curious season. It's like one arrived at familiar landmarks and somehow the destination is missing from the horizon. I have a beautiful wife who is crazy about me, a set of Wusthof knives and a hollow Jazzmaster. We abound. But we simultaneously are in the fight of our very lives. Or at least the beginning of it.

If life is rich in experience, relationship is the crown jewel. Great friendships are taking off. Connect group is a blast and Charlotte and I are leading more as we investigate Galatians and true gospel freedom.

Confoundedly, this season impresses me with a need to filter. At school I did my best to be plain, transparent and obvious in all things. I wrote whatever I wished with whichever subtlety or obscenity best preserved the alliteration. Instead, particularly in marriage, this a season for covering, guarding, honoring, and treasuring. These halls echo with the words, "It is impossible that no offenses should come". The quote is abbreviated, cut down in it's prime, as far as I can tell.
In context, Jesus' emphasis is obvious:
Luke 17:1,2 Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come!"
It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones."

I want to defend, edify, encourage the dearest, littlest one. Even the littlest Ekeroth. So, you'll get me. Honestly. But I'll choose my words carefully this time.

The documentation is essential, even this public sort, to track with bundle of plans, circumstance, enterprises, joys, aches and celebration. Once again, I invite you to peer through the glass with me.

memories of Moby Dick

rock
Originally uploaded by Dano Sanchez

Jared doing some reading, and I'm missing the ocean:

http://blog.flup.org/Dano?entry=6069

Killer coffee

Killer coffee
Originally uploaded by Will Pate

Brilliant!

on salutations

I now have the wonderfully strange experience of my brain getting stuck on a feedback loop as I break into a stupefied smile whenever I receive the question, "How's life going?" Sweet, fancy Moses, life is good. And God is better.

Life, the churches and Charlotte

Dear Everyone,

I attended the Coast Vineyard for nearly six years and I was a worship leader there for four years. It was a beautiful place to grow up. I came into the community following friends from UCSD and InterVarsity. The simple, honest and transparent love in the place refreshed me and made so much healing possible. Powerful experiences of and teaching on the present and arriving kingdom of God and His heart for justice irrevocably shaped me. I gleaned so much about hearing from the Lord, gained so much confidence in leading, and received some huge vision and commissioning for my life.

Since High School, God has put a clear passion in me to love people cross-culturally with missions work. As I grew in musical ability and leadership, I felt tremendously led toward ethnomusicology for the sake of worship. God confirmed it in some spectacularly clear ways.
I want to see national worship movements birthed and the stage set for international revival. I plan to connect with local churches on the mission field, develop worship leaders and songwriters, and see the Spirit bring forth music and art in the heart language of that people group.

On September 5 of 2008, Charlotte Leanna Beck walked into my Starbucks store and changed my life forever. We assured each other things would go slowly, but this last year has been a whirlwind of God's leading, pursuit, patience, fun, and trials. God blessed the season with mutual encouragement, challenging and growth as He began to knit our hearts together. I decided to move on from Coast for the sake of the relationship, so that we could serve together and make moving forward possible.

I intended to be an intern at the City Church, more of a mixed bible college and discipleship program than training for a specific job. Months earlier, it seemed clear that Charlotte and I would be able to continue during it, despite the program's crucible of strict guidelines for dating and personal integrity. Instead, God allowed for miscommunication to occur that led to a wonderful testing of our hearts, desires and plans this past weekend. Thankfully, we received preparation, when in May, "Pastor Tami had the image of carefulness in signing a contract, a Joshua 9 kind of a warning" and from my last morning at Coast through some remarkably strong and wise words prayed over us. In the difficult but ultimately life-giving and faith-stirring weekend, He made His priorities clear to us individually. Together, we chose to put off interns for another year, until we are at a different relational place ;)

At this point, I plan to work with the Sound department, training and scheduling sound engineers, invest in churches in Tijuana and serve toward an intern scholarship for next year. I get to encourage Charlotte through this heavy year of school and prepare financially for this next season. We are blessed and so excited to see what God wants to do with us. Thank you for your prayers and love, my family and constant friends from past seasons. Thank you and bless you for your investment, gracious send off and support, my unshakable brothers and sisters at Coast (2 Tim 1:4). And thank you for your welcoming and understanding hearts my new friends and family at the City Church San Diego. May His grace, wisdom and truth indelibly mark you.

In His service,
Daniel/Dan/Dano Joseph Sanchez

"We're going on an adventure!"

Today I am leaving with the City Church interns for a camping trip at an undisclosed location. I'm keeping a wary eye out for Kool-Aid.

There will be a blog about life, the churches and the Charlotte on Monday.

Pray for me. I drive in Mira Mesa.

Really hard.