Archive for March, 2010
Friday, March 26th, 2010
This past Sunday at Citywalk’s 1st Annual Sushi Picnic, there was a lot of fun in the sun. Upon arrival, I spotted a group of folks on the volleyball court laughing and egging each other on. Seated in beach chairs, mommies and soon-to-be mommies chatting about motherhood. Children playing with frisbees and golden retreivers playing catch with their owners. It was a fine setting for a Sunday afternoon.
I kind of wish the rest of the world could experience this afternoon Sunday setting.
The mood on the vball court was a little different. Lots of ambitious players doing some trash talking and being overtly competitive. But although every player was working hard for the team and wanting to score, we were civil. We all worked hard but paid respect to one another for the sake of the game and the love we had for one another.
For a brief moment, I wondered what a peaceful place the world would be if our world leaders were forced to meet every Sunday afternoon at Balboa park for some sun and volleyball. I imagine Obama spiking the ball over the net and Kim Jong Il going, “Oh, that was a good one!”
Or, Ahmadinejad setting the ball to Felipe Calderon. After the game, the players would run under the net to switch swides and give each other low fives saying, “Good game, good game.”
The world would be a better place, one picnic at a time.
Posted in Cheryl | No Comments »
Thursday, March 18th, 2010
I filled out my 2010 census today, so I am officially counted for the next 10 years. But I wish it was that simple, the whole thing has got me thinking.
The questions were simple. What is your name? What is your age? When is your birthday? Male or female? Race? Do you live anywhere else? That was it, easy. Nothing else is required to be counted, but what really counts, what really matters. My age, name and my race are all things about me, but these aren’t what count, or what I want to be known, or known for.
I want my life to stand for something.
The only memorable census is the one that began the story of One, the One whose life counted in an entirely different way. The One who offered opportunity to each life thereafter, to you and to me, to count, not just be counted.
That census, long ago, shook things up, it changed things…well beyond establishing a city’s population.
I wonder if the census this year might ignite anything in me or in you? Will I make a difference? Will I make the most of every opportunity? Will I take hold of this life, and live it to its fullest capacity? Will I embrace the One who gave me life, and live in his Way?
In 10 years, when the census roles around again, most things will be the same (except my age). I will be counted again. But I wonder, how will my years will be accounted for?
Posted in Steve | No Comments »
Monday, March 8th, 2010
I first heard this expression from a Buddhist – my mother, actually. Apparently it is one of the key teachings of Buddhism.. The idea is that you shouldn’t hold onto anything in this life too tightly because it is fleeting… you are not to care so much about all the temporal stuff… but you know what? At that point, they’ve got something right… Nothing on this planet and in our immediate surroundings is permanent. The weather and the seasons change. People get older day by day until they die. Money is gained and lost. Health and weight goes up and down.. What else? Can you think of anything that is permanent?
And then it hits me… the eternal grace of God. His never-ending love and forgiveness. These are permanent.
I don’t know about you, but I am going to try to focus more on these permanent (eternal) things instead of all the other impermanent things… And who knows, maybe this could even be a starting place for talking to others about God – since a lot of western society is now taking on more and more Buddhist philosophies – perhaps here is one we can agree on…
Posted in Kathryn | No Comments »
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010
Today was the first day that I finally felt 100 percent. For four days now, I’ve been dragging my feet, feeling sickly and fatigued. With my physical health compromised, my spiritual and emotional life were being dwarfed as well.
So many times we practice the discipline of spiritual devotion, physical fitness, and strong work ethic–that we forget that if our health fails…everything else seems to disintegrate along with it.
Today, with multi-vitamins in high dosage and sufficient sleep in ample reserve, I feel able to conquer the little tasks along with the big ones. The color has returned to my cheeks and the life restored in my eyes. It feels really nice to be back on the offensive rather than the defensive when it comes to combating the daily obstacles of life.
Another thing that really helped…I’m reading Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller. One passage says, “I found myself trying to love the right things without God’s help, and it was impossible. I tried to go one week without thinking a negative thought about another human being, and I couldn’t do it….My answer to this dilemma was self-discipline.”
Health and Self-Discipline, they go hand in hand. If you don’t take care of yourself, your health deteriorates- If you are incapable of controlling your Self your Self deteriorates.
Today, I’m learning that it’s okay to have a bad day or a bad week. But really, it’s how you handle life’s discipline and how you prepare to be on the offense that’s really going to make your spiritual life rock solid.
Tags: blue like jazz, body, care, donald miller, emotional, march, soul, spiritual
Posted in Cheryl | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010
God is a mastermind, super-under-cover secret agent.
God has got the behind-the-scenes orchestrator role down.
My mother likes to refer to her “I Spy” moments. She keeps lists of the things in life – the happenstance, seeming circumstance – that evidence for her that God is alive & well & working in her world. “I spy God in the way this extra money showed up right after my car had broken down.” I imagine Mom has quite a few lists stored up.
Very seldom do we, or do our human counterparts in Scripture, recognize and understand fully the circumstances we’re in while we’re in them. You know what it is to be frustrated, verklempt, even angry at God for the messy way things in life seem to unravel. Yet I’d wager that you also know what it is to suddenly come to a realization of how the circumstances that seemed nonsensical, problematic, disheartening or even devastating are seen in a new light – a light that makes clear a pattern and provision that wasn’t formerly obvious.
God is a schemer, and in God’s scheme of things, the unraveling of our circumstances can – and, I believe, always does – lead us to that place known as the good. “We know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28, a famous little verse for you.
I don’t necessarily believe that every bewildering or broken circumstance in which we find ourselves is inherently good. Only that God is a God who loves to take the opportunity in bewildering and broken circumstances to display the power, love, and personal interest taken in our lives.
“Comfort, comfort, my people,” says your God. (Isaiah 40:1)
If there’s one thing to take comfort in, it’s that in the grand scheme of things, the Schemer is on your side.
Posted in Matthew | No Comments »
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