What is a vertical resonator?

So what is a vertical resonator?

ver·ti·cal
Being or situated at right angles to the horizon; upright.
Situated at the vertex or highest point; directly overhead.

Vertical describes something that is positioned at a 90 degree angle from the horizon. We think of flag poles, teleophone pole, water tower - virtually anything tall that points toward the sky. In vertical resonator (VR), I'm refering to one's thoughts and actions having a vertical feel to them in relation to God. People refer to God as the 'man upstairs,' when in reality - God is omnipresent and cannot be described as only above us. However, many people still use this as the location where God resides. In fact, in the Bible, Christ is seen asending into heaven (sky) several times. It is also the location of where many have had visions in the Bible from revelation from God. Vertial represents my position with God and the track in which my thoughts and actions (should) be resonating. Which bring us to the second term...

As with many words, resonator means something that resonates (see below). A little more in a minute about the word resonate. Why select this word? It's due to what I do as a human and what God has called me to specifically. I am primarily a musician...and all music (except for John Cage's work 4'33") utilized resonance to transmit sound. A vocal cord, string, wood, or whatever it may be...sets air in motion (resonating it) which sends the resonating waves to our ears. The small bones in our ears then resonate and activate electric pulses which are sent to our brain to translate. In this way, music has everything to do with resonating.

res·o·na·tor
A resonating system.
A hollow chamber or cavity with dimensions chosen to permit internal resonant oscillation of electromagnetic or acoustical waves of specific frequencies.

It's interesting that resonate also carries with it a sense of a shared emotion/belief as well as a sense of being harmonious in nature. This is exactly what I desire of my life.

res·o·nate
To exhibit or produce resonance or resonant effects.
To evoke a feeling of shared emotion or belief: “It is a demonology [that] seems to resonate among secular and religious voters alike” (Tamar Jacoby).
To correspond closely or harmoniously: “Symbolism matters, especially if the symbols resonate with the larger message” (William Greider).

I desire everything I think and act to point others to the One who initiated this resonance. God is the One who acted first. He's the Great Initiater. Because I am human, I have a sinful nature and therefore seperated from God. I deserve death, which is the just punishment for sin. But God INITIATED a restoration with me (in fact the whole world!). He began to resonate with me when I heard that He sent His perfect Son (without sin) over 2000 years ago to die in my place.

I didn't initiate this resonance. He did. I simply responded. And God has given everyone the opporuntity to decide whether to resonate with what He's done...or to not resonate.

Maybe you've never heard what God has done for you. It's the most important thing that has happened to me. Above getting married, above having children, above my work, above my music, above all...it's the most important. That's why it's vertical - much of the world we live in is focused on the horizontal (what we can obtain or interact with around us) instead of vertical (interaction with that which is above us).

At times I resonate with what God has done for me. Other times, I fail to resonate vertically and I become consumed with the horizontalness of life. I hope to become a better vertical resonator the longer I live on Earth.