Tag: West Virginia University

Nativity

On By Tim ValentinoIn GeneralLeave a comment

When Sonya and I were doing our undergraduate work at West Virginia University, we had the privilege of writing a few songs with Jon Swerens, my college roommate from Ohio. He was a wonderful keyboardist, and he had a Yamaha DX7 synthesizer with a multi-track recorder on it. That device enabled him to orchestrate our songs right there in the dorm.

During the Advent season of our junior year, the three of us were thinking deeply about the mystery of the Incarnation. I was a relatively new believer at the time, but I was eager to study, learn, and “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18). Others who were in the faith before I was, including Jon, taught me a lot about Christian orthodoxy and orthopraxy. Those days in the dorm with Jon were magical, and I was blessed to serve as the best man in his wedding after graduation.

In November-December of our junior year, we wound up writing a Christmas song titled, “Fully Human, Fully God.” It was our best attempt to express all that we understood to be true of the enfleshment of God in Christ in Bethlehem two millennia ago. We tried to make the song as majestic as we could, pushing it to crescendo like most other power ballads of the day, something fit for a king. Something fit for the King.

The lyrics were thick, and the instrumentation was heavy. The message was lofty, and Sonya did it justice with her operatic pipes. Sandi Patty couldn’t have done it better. In the end, it wasn’t a great piece, but we thought it was a respectable effort for a couple of novice songwriters. We gave it B/B+.

The project wore us out. All that study. All that theology. All that writing and re-writing. All that struggle to capture the mystery and majesty of God becoming one of us in the person of Christ. We were physically and emotionally drained—right at the time we were supposed to be gearing up for finals.

One night as we were reflecting on the project, we quickly agreed that we had missed something. We were all a bit unsatisfied with what we had produced, and yet it was hard to put our finger on exactly why. At one point I said something along the lines of: “You know, for all that complex theology and soaring orchestration, we dare not ever miss the simplicity of Christmas—and the humble, childlike response we’re supposed to have to it.”

As it turns out, that was the missing piece. Jon quietly processed our postmortem, stilled himself before the Lord over the next few days, and then started writing again. After sharing with me his nascent thoughts and simple melody, I suggested a few lines and rhymes, along with a title for the new composition. We called it, “Nativity.”

Musically, Jon nailed it. It was so simple. So gentle. So light. So peaceful. Neither the instrumentation nor the theology was heavy or profound, but as Oswald Chambers once said, “Beware of posing as a profound person—God became a baby.” Quite significantly, we were much more satisfied with this second attempt. The first song touched our minds, but the second one touched our hearts.

I wish I still had the original soundtrack, but the recording is lost to history. I can reproduce the basic melody and chord structure on a keyboard, but Jon’s expert orchestration is gone, except in our memories. Consequently, I’ll just share the lyrics below. They came to mind last week while I was playing with Samuel and Levi.

Those beautiful boys make my heart overflow with love and gratitude on a regular basis—not unlike what happens to me when I ponder the Incarnation each December. They remind me of the childlike response we’re supposed to have to “Emmanual,” God with us—even after we’ve long since grown up.

Nativity

Let me be your angel singing loud and clear
“Jesus Christ is born”
Let me be your shepherd leaving flocks behind
Just to see the Lord
I owned an inn before
I shrugged and closed the door
Help me leave the world behind
Let me worship you

Let me be your star burning bright and far
For all to see
Let me be your swaddling clothes
Warm your heart in me
O let me be that night
When all was calm and bright
Let me be your manger, Lord
Come and rest in me

Slow Motion Football in West (by God) Virginia

On By Tim ValentinoIn GeneralLeave a comment

When I was in college, I participated in Campus Crusade for Christ with a couple hundred other students. We used to do odd and silly things to gather a crowd and then talk to people about Jesus. We would do everything from crazy skits on the Sunnyside bar strip to air bands on the student union plaza. 

Above is a picture of our group playing slow motion football one day in front of Woodburn Hall on the main campus. I’m the guy in the white shirt on the right, across from Steve, one of the leaders of CCC. We decided to growl at each other every down. The well-padded guy in the back is Fred, one of my roommates. We had a glorious time that day, and a few people gave their hearts to Christ. As Henry Blackaby reminds us, “The harvest is not the crowd. The harvest is in the crowd.”

Back in those days, we survived on the music of Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith, Steven Curtis Chapman, Russ Taff, Twila Paris, Michael Card, Rich Mullins, Stryper, Petra, and many others. They were good times, and we had many adventures with our faithful God.

Even if we don’t act as silly and odd as we used to, we still love talking to people about Jesus. Feel free to contact me if you need prayer or would like to chat about the claims of Christ and why he is “out of this world” for everyone still in it.

Throwback Thursday: Those Miserable Training Trips

On By Tim ValentinoIn Throwback ThursdayLeave a comment

As members of the WVU swim team, we would sacrifice our Christmas vacation to go on a 2-week training trip someplace on the globe that was warm and sunny. During my years in college, that included St. Croix (U.S. Virgin Islands) and Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Those trips were like “boot camps for swimmers,” with every day featuring triple sessions. The first session was an early morning swim practice lasting two hours. The second involved weight training, calisthenics, plyometrics, and/or runs on the beach for about 90 minutes. The third was an evening swim practice lasting two more hours. 

On Christmas Day they lightened up on us, mandating just one two-hour practice in the morning; then they gave us the rest of the day off. (Thanks for that.) I remember how dreadful and depressing it was to have to practice on Christmas morning!

Below are some snaps from the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center. Once a week all the teams who had gathered to train swarmed the pool for what they called “Fifty 50s.” It was only a 2500m parctice, but the lanes were crowded, and there wasn’t much time between sprints. Finding a place to dive safely was a challenge. The whole thing was exhausting and annoying, even for this sprinter.

Between sessions we hit the beach or went out on the town, and after the 14 days of agony, we enjoyed a trip to Disney World. The rest of the time we ate or slept.

The dreaded Fifty 50s practice session. That’s me under the red arrow looking for a safe place to dive for the next interval.
C’est moi in the lower left getting ready for another workout. I have no idea why I’m smirking.
The International Hall of Fame Aquatic Center in Fort Lauderdale, a place of memories and miseries for NCAA Division-1 athletes.

Throwback Thursday: Is That Really Me? (Part 4)

On By Tim ValentinoIn Throwback ThursdayLeave a comment

All are invited to have a chuckle at my expense (for the fourth week in a row). This shot is from my sophomore year at West Virginia University. At a meet in Ohio at the end of the season, I swam 51 yards in a 50-yard race. Actually, I lunged at the wall as we always do to finish off a sprint, and I hyperextended my right arm. The timers had to pull me out of the water because I couldn’t get out myself. It was a little bit of embarrassment on top of a whole lot of pain. 

Fortunately, we were close to the Cleveland Clinic, which had a top-tier sports health center for which they were well known. They casted me up quickly, gave me some good pain meds, and minimized any damage to the ulnar nerve. My arm was numb, and I was out of commission for a few weeks. So much for swimming not being a contact sport.