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.

200,000!

200,000!
Originally uploaded by Dano Sanchez

Pretty wild. You gotta love Hondas. Let"s see if she can do 300,000.

last weekend

This is one of those terribly selfish notes where I make a list of events to leave a bookmark in the electronic jungle of modern life.

Friday, I went to meet Charlotte at the City Church for lunch. Two minutes away from the church, Bjork ambushed me:

"His embrace, a fortress
It fuels me
And places a skeleton of trust
Right beneath us
Bone by bone
Stone by stone

If you ask yourself patiently and carefully:

Who is it?
Who is it that never lets you down?
Who is it that gave you back your crown?
And the ornaments are going around
Now they're handing it over
Handing it over

He demands a closeness
We all have earned a lightness
Carry my joy on the left
Carry my pain on the right"
-"Who is it?" Björk

I walked in to intern chapel and was promptly ambushed again as Rachel Hickson, the guest for the weekend, initiated a ministry time for people called to missions. I set my bag down and went forward to receive a completely right on and affirming word on identity and calling and passion to see a Kingdom movement birthed.

Saturday I struggled with tracking guitar parts for two War and Cinema songs. I ended up getting inspired and excited by the virtual instruments in Pro Tools 8 and Tom Erbe's delays and I'm already hearing sounds for the next album. Saturday night prayer time ended with three specific words. Rachel Hickson led with fresh creativity for this season. Pastor Tami had the image of carefulness in signing a contract, a Joshua 9 kind of a warning. Pastor Jerry prayed for, amongst other things, a lifting anointing, a kind of lightness in yoke.

Sunday morning, Nic dropped a ridiculous chunk of Isaiah 62, leaving me tripping out on crowns, satisfied in God, encouraged to mentor and curious about a name change. I bought a pair of cowboy boots in Escondido. After some miscommunication on my part and after a God ordained conversation between Charlotte and JoAnn, the Vallese family again extended their desire to have me as a renter. So come July, I'll be living with them in Poway. (I need a roommate there, by the way.) The weekend reminded me that prophecy isn't about finding direction more than confirming what God has been doing and showing a person. Totally praise worthy.

new gig

Thanks to Romin, I'm driving a bus for a senior center in Mira Mesa. I pick up elderly Filipinos at their homes, we listen to KWVE sermons on the radio, and I unload them at the center, where I occasionally play worship songs for them. I have a long break, and then we repeat the process in reverse. It's a fairly Kingdom thing, with lots of loving sweet old folks in Jesus' name.

One gentleman told me that he enlisted in the US infantry at age 16 and fought in the battle of Okinawa. With lots of gestures, he communicated the story of an officer taking arrows in the shoulders and chest and returning fire with a side arm. He always salutes me as he saunters up to the bus to board, carrying his walker.

This morning, another gentleman jokingly insinuated that because his two small dogs bark so viciously at me, I must be a regular consumer of dog meat. At the end of the day as I dropped him off, I asked him "Which one would taste better?" He exclaimed "Black one!" and reminded me of how often Dave Villarete would blurt out something ridiculous.

courage, sacrifice, causes

I'm watching The Magnificent Seven, but at every turn it only makes me wish I was watching Seven Samurai. The scoring and motifs are seminal, but the story barely stands up to the translation, and every glorious nuance of Akira Kurosawa is lost. I feel another movie night coming on.

Piper Explains Why Dano Worships

My friend Alex wrote on his myspace profile "...when God is small you can touch her," and I've been learning plenty about the intimacy and presence of God in this season, getting to know the Comforter. Still, the ministry of John Piper has been so helpful to me in seeing and getting a handle on the massiveness and unfathomable worth of God. In this life we tend toward the myopic, concerned with the minutiae of a passing world, frightened because we don't trust His power, and unsatisfied because we don't find Him immensely valuable.

These three sermons I think are worth your time. You could read the notes, but I suggest you download the mp3s.

What is the Recession for?

This one is pretty timely. This is my prosperity gospel. It's the upside down values of the Kingdom. It's God shown strong in our weakness.

Proclaiming the Excellencies of Christ, Not Prosperity, Among the Nations

"Missions exist because worship doesn't." In this he explains why I do both.

Put in the Fire for the Sake of Prayer

This was a good counterpart to stuff I had been listening to from Pastor Jerry McKinney of the City Church in 4S Ranch.

Benson Lee is a little concerned about Piper being absolutely consumed by the glory of God, but I think that point is exactly why I like the guy. Let me know what you get out of this stuff.

Whole Lotta Soul

Daptone Amazon
Originally uploaded by daptone records

Free Daptone Sampler:
Via Amazon

My goodness, this stuff grooves. I think a few samples are going to make it into my current project.

Let all those who do justice and love mercy say, "Amen."

Today, I was so excited to see so many beautiful, black faces glow with momentous hope and redemption. Though my knowledge and understanding of the civil rights movement is dim, I cried like I haven't in months as my heart lept at the sight of Dr. Lowery approaching the podium.

" God of our weary years,
God of our silent tears,
Thou who has brought us thus far on the way;
Thou who has by Thy might
Led us into the light,
Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee,
Lest, our hearts drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee;
Shadowed beneath Thy hand,
May we forever stand,
True to our God,
True to our native land. "

Oh, Americans, born on every soil and now united here, do Justice, love Mercy, and walk humbly with your God. No matter your political persuasion, can you not celebrate redemption this day and commit this land to the gospel's healing power as you see see these things entrusted to God by our leaders?

Lift every voice and sing, indeed.

way over yonder in the minor key

"She said, 'it's hard for me to see
How one little boy got so ugly'
Yes, my little girly, that might be
But there ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me "
-Woody Guthrie



Billy Bragg & Wilco - Man in the Sand (The Making of "Mermaid Avenue") is worth watching just for the scene after this song, in which Natalie Merchant pretends to catch bugs in Bragg's hair and eat them.

I'm trying hard to put away the ugly: the pride, the secrets, that stuff that makes little of God's name and impatiently discounts His yet to be grasped promises. But I still hope that my voice and music can be unique and uncompromised in this world. And I still pray for persistence of vision.

"A relentless ninja pays the price of honesty"

http://words.bighugelabs.com/ has this fantastic idea generator. Have no fear, those with space monkesy phobias ; I will never again lack song narratives.
I was going to write about me, as the ninja, but I thought better of it. Today no honesty will flow from my veins and navigate the electronic void to fill the gap between my heart and your expectations. Instead, you were creatively teased, distracted, and smiled at.

After the twist...

IMG_1548
Originally uploaded by jzting

...the wedding party sat down behind the table, save the bride, who was waltzing to the Beatles with her father. The moment was so incredibly tender and graceful. It was a breath-taking, soul-staggering thing.
But Cates... The man watched, gazed and meditated, transfixed, mesmerized as the view ecstatically penetrated his consciousness.
With my arm across the back of his chair, I celebrated, "God is good to you, Friend."
His eyes closed, and he prayed, worshiped, gave thanks.
For so long.
"Yeah," he finally breathed.

National

Mother in Law's Axe !
Originally uploaded by dingerthetwinger

I so want a resonator, but it's going to be a while before I can justify spending on another instrument.