Nobody follows this blog

Ha.  I don't know what the world would do with my thoughts.  It might get even more confused. Honestly.

But one of my youth whipped out a quote of mine the other day!  How awesome is that?!  I know I know... I shouldn't sit too long on a horse that's too tall for me... but still - I felt like I've actually had some good to say in my life.

The following words aren't mine.. but oh so important.... "And we'll learn learn learn... we'll wait our turn turn turn... and we'll get sick on the way by the things that people say... it'll break our hearts against the wind... but we will just keep breathing in." - sk6ers

MAN!  How beautiful.  It's so hard to wait.  But everyone has a turn to take.  Not everyone can do their favorite thing exactly when they want to do it.  Some people try regardless and end up ramming their agenda right through the middle of everyone else's life...

But I think I'm okay waiting.  My life has been an endless string of blessings.  Everything has always worked out.  And though I can't see the future, I finally feel like the best stuff is yet to come.

Just... help me to rest and stay in this.

I'll keep breathing in.  Everyday.  Regardless.  And that should be enough.

1

I ran into Lonnie again yesterday.  The guy is a 2.6!  That's impressive.  You know how we're supposedly only 6 degrees of separation away from everyone in the world (on average) ((according to Kevin bacon))  Well this guy - is an average of 2.6 degrees away from everyone in the world.  Super connected.  And it has to be because he just randomly strikes up conversations with whomever is near him.

Love the people right in front of you, indeed.

It makes me wonder what kind of impression I leave behind everywhere I go.  Are people saying "Thank God..." when I finally walk away?  Are people indifferent to my appearing into their life?  Are they left intrigued and wanting more?

And how do I move from the second of those to the third?

Everyone's story deserves to be told.  I believe that.  How creepy and intrusive do I risk having to be to really extract what's in the heart of the people around me?  People do have too many walls.  But they get built up for so many reasons over years and years of whatever has happened to them.  I watched a 1 year old baby smile and run and fall into the arms of a stranger two days ago.  But this 13 year old kid I've known and talked to for a year now still has trouble trusting getting into a car with me.

A good friend of mine told me emphatically the other day... "No 13 year old kid should suffer from anxiety!"

She yelled it.

The world we know is the world we live in.  That means we take all the shit we know along with us.  I have to admit that I have no idea how God is at work in the world.  But I see clearly how I need to be at work in the world.

People everywhere - know you are loved.  And if you don't already know, I hope I meet you someday to show you.

Where does this leave us...

God seems to be an unprovable guy.  It also seems like you cannot disprove the fellow.  So where does that leave us?  Faith and belief, right?  So it would seem.

But we could all use a little bit of a reality check when it comes to belief... most of our reasoning is motivated by something either inside or outside of ourselves.  

The big dichotomy I want to cover here is whether our motivations are more selfish or selfless... 

We can believe the things we do about our world simply because they allow us to do what we want when we want without any feelings of regret.

We can also believe the things we do about our world because we've learned to look past ourselves and are able to see what's good for the world and others even if it means things get harder for us. 

...in which camp do you fall?  Maybe somewhere between the two?  How can we truly become selfless?

Details

I used to think I was a detail-oriented person.  And in some respects I think I still am... But I'm beginning to think that details are getting in the way of more consequential things.  There will always be a thousand reasons not to do something.  Some details even masquerade as legitimate concerns.

But these things will never matter.

There are bigger things to get upset about.  Bigger things to orient our lives around.  Bigger things that matter.

My new favorite part of the Bible is Matthew 5.  It's the beginning of Jesus' teachings to the crowds that assembled to hear him.  And the whole chapter is teaching about what really matters.  What is in your heart really matters.  The old ways of thinking about external behavior making a person clean and pure have been tossed out.  And now, if you are even angry with someone it is as if you have committed murder.

What is really going on in your heart?  Is my heart aligned with God?  Is creation getting closer to reconciliation?  Is the world getting closer or father away from the Kingdom of heaven?  Am I being an active participant in helping this to happen?

I was talking with a friend the other day about jokes.  Jokes are just jokes.  I find it bothersome when people disclaim their jokes with a statement like, "oh, this is really racist, but..."  or "I'm probably going to hell for saying this..."  If in your heart you really believe that there are first and second class human beings.. then yes, maybe it's time for a check.  But if it's just a joke... it's just a joke.  There are times for jokes.

At church once, I read in the bulletin that when it came time for worship they invited you to sit or stand or dance around... whatever made you comfortable.  There was no formal process or pointless details concerning proper worship.  They went on to say that they encouraged this because God is much more interested in our hearts than our posture.

What outward posture are we creating that we think is going to lead to liberation and restoration? When really it's the transformation and the posture of our own hearts that is the matter.

God, help us to not get lost in the details.

The God-shaped Vitamin

I had a friend write a post lately about how the turnover and burnout of youth workers is telling the youth of the world that the church is "a place to leave", and I tend to think that's true.  We live in a world where when things get anything less than ideal people tend to look for anything else.  And those of us who have grown older sometimes don't do too much to combat this mentality.

But if I've learned anything about God... it's that he sees the bigger picture.  Maybe my favorite thing to do is not the best thing.   Maybe my favorite way to live is really skewed to good and righteous living.  Maybe... just maybe I don't know anything at all.

I had an amazing week with several students and adults down in the hills of Appalachian America doing major home repair with people that really needed the help.  And...

It amazes me how differently people see God.

People who do realize their need for him and seek desperately to fill the hole in their life with him generally tend to be able to cope with whatever they go through.  And life is not fair.

People who don't realize their need for God I feel generally have their lives pulled neatly together and don't intrinsically have that need to trust something greater than themselves or their families.

But Jesus said once (and I paraphrase here),  "I came for the sick.  Do you really think the healthy need a doctor?"  This idea of the need for God is so greatly influenced by our circumstances... but the kicker here is... it shouldn't be.

I don't think Jesus was referring to healthy people vs. unhealthy people.  I think he was making a point that none of us are healthy and all are in need of God.  Jesus was good with wordplay like that.  Jesus spent his time rebuking those who 'had it all together' trying to break them down so they could realize their need for God.  Jesus spent time going to those who knew they needed a messiah (a savior).

I'll be the first to admit that I don't always know if I know what I mean when I say stuff like, "have a relationship with God."  But I do tend to believe that there are several ways to do so, and if we're going to make it through life and death, we have to continue to try for one.

Much love.

Chasing the Wind

Is the problem with unhappy people that we chase certain ends rather than just living out the virtuous truths toward which we were intended to lean?

Perhaps chasing happiness as an end by which we follow any numerous means is a mistake.  Perhaps the chasing is the cause of the perpetual disappointment?  Albert Einstein wrote, "I have never looked upon ease and happiness as ends in themselves -- this critical basis I call the ideal of a pigsty"  He went on to say that there were 3 ideals that lit his way:

Kindness
Beauty
Truth

And that I think happiness is more like the wind than a fish.  Chasing it may just be futile.  Crafting a net to catch it may be no more effective than a pole.

If we can live within truth and virtue, may we never need to worry about happiness again.

or..

If we can live within God, may we worry not about the water that doesn't quench our thirst.

Stan, Stan the gas man

Watched a new video from Louis CK - definitely my most favoritest stand up comedian!  And he goes on this rant about how he wants to be a better person and specifically that 'you should at least turn a good face to the people that you meet in life' .... but he doesn't do that either.

It seems to me as of late that almost everything that is unhealthy for us to do is our default.  (I know this is a sweeping generalization but roll with me for a second)

For instance.. I went snowboarding this weekend.  Okay fine, I was managing to stay mostly upright while rocketing in a straight line down a hill on a piece of plastic.  I find it dishonest to actually claim that my efforts were in any way graceful or technically appropriate.

But everything that would have made me a better boarder was completely unnatural for me to do! If I really wanted better balance, I would have balanced my weight and keep my knees bent and steer with my butt and my knees.  But what really happened is I stiffened up and stood taller in an attempt to keep myself from falling.

Another prominent example that comes to mind is slouching... my body wants to slouch all. the. time.  And it does it without me even giving it clearance to do so.  

I think our bodies and our minds constantly seek out comfort even when comfort isn't healthy at all.  And comfort is unhealthy a lot.  And sure, comfort is nice... but it's boring.  We have somehow fashioned in our heads I think that life is about making it as comfortable as possible.

We control and moderate our environment

We need beds catered to our specific sleep number

People scrap and save so that when they retire they can live comfortably

Why has comfort become such an enormous part of our life goal?  A lot of times it becomes an end.  Rather than it being something we enjoy when we have it - we seek to make it constant and when we do it loses its luster... it makes us stagnant and boring.  And we wonder why we aren't happy - as comfortable as we are.  We begin to idolize comfort so much sometimes that it keeps us from doing good and better things.

Sometimes.  This is clearly not the case for everyone all the time... but some people (myself being a very guilty culprit) can't get past the curse of comfort.

It manifests itself in not taking risks... wanting to control everything... and hoarding of things and money. 

Louis CK hits on this point in his sketch saying that he really things that white people must be from another planet.. and the reason is because we don't like it here.  That if we were really made to be here... why do we hate it so much?

I don't think we hate it so much - I just think we get confused about how to get what we really want.

And I don't think comfort was what we were created for.