In my best slang - 'If this video don't make you smile, your face just must be broke!"
I don't know who this little girl is or where she lives, but I am so glad that her Mom posted this amazing little video on youtube. She makes me laugh and pray with joy while I wonder where my childlike enthusiasm has gone. We should all be able to find this kind of enthusiasm and heart in devotion to the One. Amen.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
A little bit of letting go
A little bit of letting go is sometimes a good thing. Two days ago we took our oldest son, Brendin, to the airport. He is in Heidelberg, Germany for school for the next 9 months. It was a sweet good-bye as we hugged and hung out for the last few moments - all excited for him to go and have a great year and experience great things. We got home late in the afternoon and all was well. That night I thought about him being on the plane and I just smiled, praying that God would safely take him to places he had never been before, physically, emotionally and spiritually throughout the upcoming odyssey.
Yesterday morning I got up and realized - Brendin is gone! He is half way across the world until we fly him home at Christmas. I know it is not final and I know it is a good thing - but none-the-less, he is gone!
For years I have told people in crisis that grief comes in waves, just like the ocean tide. The waves of grief and realization roll in and over you. You have no control over how often they come or how hard they hit. You have only to try to control your reaction to them. I didn't think these same kinds of waves would come from something as simple as sending Brendin overseas. I have learned that they do.
For a couple of reasons I have talked to Brendin via video on Skype both yesterday and today. We had to tie up some loose ends that we didn't foresee - being rookies at this "study abroad" thing. In that process I could see the faintest relief in his face within just a few seconds after the video came up and we could see each other. I heard the faintest longing for home and familiar friends in his voice. I thought maybe I was reading too much into all this, but then it happened. It was 1:00 in the morning his time and we were wrapping up a talk about money and other mundane necessities. He said he was tired and needed to go to bed. I said I would let him go and then paused thinking how tired he looked and he jumped out to say, "Good night, Dad. I love you." In all of the times I have talked to him on the phone, or Facebook or in person over the last year since he graduated, I have always said "I love you" first. He would sometimes answer,"I love you too" but not always. On this night through the internet from half way across the world, he said "I love you" first.
It caused me to pause after hanging up the call. It caused me to pray in thanksgiving to God for the son I have in Germany. It made want to appreciate the two kids at home a bit more openly. It caused me to wonder how soon Tami would be home from work so we could just be in the same place and not take it for granted.
In just two days, Brendin's short absence has taught me that a little bit of letting go causes us to hold each other tighter in powerful, important ways. A little bit of letting go is a good thing.
A wise person once said of lovers that "absence makes the heart grow fonder." I guess that can also true for Dads and sons.
Yesterday morning I got up and realized - Brendin is gone! He is half way across the world until we fly him home at Christmas. I know it is not final and I know it is a good thing - but none-the-less, he is gone!
For years I have told people in crisis that grief comes in waves, just like the ocean tide. The waves of grief and realization roll in and over you. You have no control over how often they come or how hard they hit. You have only to try to control your reaction to them. I didn't think these same kinds of waves would come from something as simple as sending Brendin overseas. I have learned that they do.
For a couple of reasons I have talked to Brendin via video on Skype both yesterday and today. We had to tie up some loose ends that we didn't foresee - being rookies at this "study abroad" thing. In that process I could see the faintest relief in his face within just a few seconds after the video came up and we could see each other. I heard the faintest longing for home and familiar friends in his voice. I thought maybe I was reading too much into all this, but then it happened. It was 1:00 in the morning his time and we were wrapping up a talk about money and other mundane necessities. He said he was tired and needed to go to bed. I said I would let him go and then paused thinking how tired he looked and he jumped out to say, "Good night, Dad. I love you." In all of the times I have talked to him on the phone, or Facebook or in person over the last year since he graduated, I have always said "I love you" first. He would sometimes answer,"I love you too" but not always. On this night through the internet from half way across the world, he said "I love you" first.
It caused me to pause after hanging up the call. It caused me to pray in thanksgiving to God for the son I have in Germany. It made want to appreciate the two kids at home a bit more openly. It caused me to wonder how soon Tami would be home from work so we could just be in the same place and not take it for granted.
In just two days, Brendin's short absence has taught me that a little bit of letting go causes us to hold each other tighter in powerful, important ways. A little bit of letting go is a good thing.
A wise person once said of lovers that "absence makes the heart grow fonder." I guess that can also true for Dads and sons.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Consuming Fire
I've been thinking lately about getting busy writing a book. Hebrews 12 speaks of God as a consuming fire. Several years ago we walked through this idea as our theme for Teen Camp. A couple years later I used it as a sermon series. Now I am thinking through it again. Here are some possible lessons or topics i may pursue:
1. If God is a consuming fire then we are firewood. We are meant to be consumed and used by his Spirit to burn/shine. There are several biblical allusions which build on this.
2. Firewood was meant to burn: We were designed and created to let his spirit bring things out of us that might never been seen in any other way. A log on the woodpile never gives heat or light. Once it is given over to the flames, it gives both and pops with potential as "sweet spots" of sap and oils break out in life. For us, these correspond to talents, gifts and abilities which God has placed in us or He empowers us to have and do when we give our lives over to His reign.
3. A burning log gathers no moss: A log that is on fire is not susceptible to moss and decay. In this analogy, the Spirit of God gives us strength to overcome old habits and temptations.
I have a couple other thoughts but I thought I would float these few for now. Any feedback?
1. If God is a consuming fire then we are firewood. We are meant to be consumed and used by his Spirit to burn/shine. There are several biblical allusions which build on this.
2. Firewood was meant to burn: We were designed and created to let his spirit bring things out of us that might never been seen in any other way. A log on the woodpile never gives heat or light. Once it is given over to the flames, it gives both and pops with potential as "sweet spots" of sap and oils break out in life. For us, these correspond to talents, gifts and abilities which God has placed in us or He empowers us to have and do when we give our lives over to His reign.
3. A burning log gathers no moss: A log that is on fire is not susceptible to moss and decay. In this analogy, the Spirit of God gives us strength to overcome old habits and temptations.
I have a couple other thoughts but I thought I would float these few for now. Any feedback?
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Life and prayer
Okay , so it's been awhile since I posted. I must confess, summer hits and I am off to camps and mission trip and all kinds of activity with teens and I seldom land back online. In the midst of the busy-ness find that I have to keep my head up and my heart bowing to God. There are so many things going on that I feel like my world is spinning out of control at times. That is when I am driven to prayer. Not always the kind of prayer that takes me to the quiet place for a long period of connection and listening. More often it is the kind of prayer that leads me to seek wisdom and insight from God while things are spinning around me. It is the quick prayer of "Lord help me help her." while a student is pouring out her heart about doubt or pain or how someone has hurt her. It is the hopeful cry of my spirit for God to lead while I stand to speak or teach. It is the joyful prayer of laughter and thanksgiving that rises up in me as I see students laughing together or running like crazy in some wacky game or activity. All these remind me that prayer life is life - not something separate from it.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Life is hard...and then you die.
When I was in grad school at ACU I was given the assignment of writing a treatise on the theology of the book of Ecclesiastes. The title of this blog is the title I gave that paper. I love reading that book. The author seems to have such a fresh, clear perspective on life. I have known some over the years who say Ecclesiastes is negative and depressing. I heartily disagree. I think it is written by a realist who is trying his best to offer his experience to any who will listen in order to help them not have to learn the hard way as he did. This book is filled with brilliance.
In some ways. life today seems harder than it used to be. My teens are all running in circles for so many reasons. School has them running ragged and competing for top grades unlike I remember in years past. It certainly wasn't this competitive when I was in high school. All the extra-curricular activities from dance to sports to cheer to band and choir demand so much more from these kids. Almost every sport has become year round with off season training and practice. School performances have become major productions, requiring months of preparation and commitment. It is all so much work! As the writer of old would say - it feels like chasing after the wind.
In the end, I find myself having to scream more loudly in ways that were never before necessary to be heard above the din of activity in my students' lives. I have to plead for them to give some time to youth group or a retreat or a Bible study or just an afternoon to hang out for coffee or a coke and just talk. In the end, how many of them give away their adolescence days to football or dance or any number of time-robbing activities in which they will never "go pro." For what?...a letter to put on a jacket?....the possibility of a college scholarship so they can give up their college experience to another tyrannical schedule with coaches and games and more need for high performance?
I ache for so many of my teens. I ache for my own kids when the race seems to grab them by the soul and make them feel inadequate if they take time to relax, or play or just enjoy an afternoon doing nothing more than just being!
Oh yes, I definitely relate to the writer of Ecclesiastes. This all seems meaningless and chasing after the wind. In the end he gives a great short-hand to the life lived by perspective. Listen to these words from Ecclesiastes chapter 12:
Remember your Creator
in the days of your youth,
before the days of trouble come
and the years approach when you will say,
"I find no pleasure in them"
It seems those days come earlier than they used to. He ends by reminding us that the best we can do with our days is to fear God and keep his commandments In the end nothing else matters.
Adding my two cents, take some in the next few days to do nothing and take someone else with you. It just might be the most productive thing you do all week!
In some ways. life today seems harder than it used to be. My teens are all running in circles for so many reasons. School has them running ragged and competing for top grades unlike I remember in years past. It certainly wasn't this competitive when I was in high school. All the extra-curricular activities from dance to sports to cheer to band and choir demand so much more from these kids. Almost every sport has become year round with off season training and practice. School performances have become major productions, requiring months of preparation and commitment. It is all so much work! As the writer of old would say - it feels like chasing after the wind.
In the end, I find myself having to scream more loudly in ways that were never before necessary to be heard above the din of activity in my students' lives. I have to plead for them to give some time to youth group or a retreat or a Bible study or just an afternoon to hang out for coffee or a coke and just talk. In the end, how many of them give away their adolescence days to football or dance or any number of time-robbing activities in which they will never "go pro." For what?...a letter to put on a jacket?....the possibility of a college scholarship so they can give up their college experience to another tyrannical schedule with coaches and games and more need for high performance?
I ache for so many of my teens. I ache for my own kids when the race seems to grab them by the soul and make them feel inadequate if they take time to relax, or play or just enjoy an afternoon doing nothing more than just being!
Oh yes, I definitely relate to the writer of Ecclesiastes. This all seems meaningless and chasing after the wind. In the end he gives a great short-hand to the life lived by perspective. Listen to these words from Ecclesiastes chapter 12:
Remember your Creator
in the days of your youth,
before the days of trouble come
and the years approach when you will say,
"I find no pleasure in them"
It seems those days come earlier than they used to. He ends by reminding us that the best we can do with our days is to fear God and keep his commandments In the end nothing else matters.
Adding my two cents, take some in the next few days to do nothing and take someone else with you. It just might be the most productive thing you do all week!
Monday, June 1, 2009
Whose side are you on?
In Joshua chapter 5, Joshua stands on the eve before the battle of Jericho. He is ready to lead the people of God in conquest of the mighty, fortified city. He has seen the power of the Lord through the ten plagues of Egypt. He has seen the riches of the land of Canaan as one of the twelve spies sent by Moses some 40 years earlier to survey the land God was giving them. He has seen the providence of God wandering through the wilderness with a people whose allegiance to God had been fickle at best.
Now he stood, at last, ready to begin taking the land God had promised to them so long ago. He was the new leader of the nation, having received that mantle from Moses. He had been faithful and was certain that God would give them victory. Looking up he sees a man standing nearby, dressed in full armor with his sword in his hand. Approaching him, Joshua asks, "Are you for us or our enemies?" "Neither," the man replies, " I am the commander of the Army of the Lord."
If I were Joshua , I might have jumped out in protest at that point. "What do you mean, 'Neither'? Do you realize who I am. I am Joshua , the faithful one. The one who has taken the lead of Israel after Moses. I am the one who has been victorious in battle again and again under God's lead. Way back when we first spied out this land, I was one of only two men who trusted God and believed we could take this land in the first place. How can you stand there and say you command the Lord's Army, but you are not on my side? Now I 'll ask you again, whose side are you on, anyway?"
That might have been my response, but it certainly was not Joshua's. Look in the text and you'll see that he fell down on his face before this"man" and cried out something like, "What would my Lord have his servant do?" You see Joshua understood, perhaps better than anyone, the truth that the battle belongs to the Lord. He understood what the psalmist penned years later: Had it not been the Lord who was on our side. . . when men attacked us. . .they would have swallowed us alive - Psalm 124
Now he stood, at last, ready to begin taking the land God had promised to them so long ago. He was the new leader of the nation, having received that mantle from Moses. He had been faithful and was certain that God would give them victory. Looking up he sees a man standing nearby, dressed in full armor with his sword in his hand. Approaching him, Joshua asks, "Are you for us or our enemies?" "Neither," the man replies, " I am the commander of the Army of the Lord."
If I were Joshua , I might have jumped out in protest at that point. "What do you mean, 'Neither'? Do you realize who I am. I am Joshua , the faithful one. The one who has taken the lead of Israel after Moses. I am the one who has been victorious in battle again and again under God's lead. Way back when we first spied out this land, I was one of only two men who trusted God and believed we could take this land in the first place. How can you stand there and say you command the Lord's Army, but you are not on my side? Now I 'll ask you again, whose side are you on, anyway?"
That might have been my response, but it certainly was not Joshua's. Look in the text and you'll see that he fell down on his face before this"man" and cried out something like, "What would my Lord have his servant do?" You see Joshua understood, perhaps better than anyone, the truth that the battle belongs to the Lord. He understood what the psalmist penned years later: Had it not been the Lord who was on our side. . . when men attacked us. . .they would have swallowed us alive - Psalm 124
Joshua heard and understood, that this man wasn't saying "I m not for you." Instead he was saying, "'Whose side are you on?' is a good question, Joshua. It is the right question, but it is not a question you ask of God. Instead, it is THE question God asks of you. So, Joshua, whose side are you on?"
This is the same question God asks of everyone in scripture: "Whose side are you on?" The Word is packed full of life stories which grapple with this question. Undoubtedly and undeniably, those who line up with God always win. Even in the face of great opposition. Even in the face of terrible suffering and confusion. Even in the face of their own death. I dare you to find a life story in the Bible where the plot does not turn on how the lead character (and all those around him or her) answers this question. They all rise and fall, succeed or fail according to whether they line up with God.
Why do we think that our lives would be any different? Don't take this question lightly. Whose side are you on?
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Healing water
I stuck my feet on the ocean today - and it was amazing.
Sometimes I just need to get away. Many days that is just not possible. Today was one of those days. It was a very busy day filled with many commitments and responsibilities. A day when there was barely time to sit for five minutes, let alone get away. Trying to push the fatigue and over-exposure to people out of the way I loaded up our church van with 12 exuberant teens and headed for the beach. There we were met by another ten teens. After about an hour and a half scheduled there, we were off to a home for dinner and a devotional. All this after leading a training session for 4 ours on Frday night and 8 hours on Saturday. I was spent and in dire need of a break.
Don't get me wrong, I realize that if taking a van load of teens to the beach for volleyball and "hang out" time is my greatest burden, I am a pretty blessed guy. Nonetheless, I was tired, emotionally and physically. When I feel that way, about the only thing that recharges me is down time alone. That was not in any way going to happen today.
When it was almost time to leave the beach for our next destination, I left the volleyball courts and headed for the water to retrieve the handful of kids who were in the surf. It was a beautiful Southern California afternoon. The water was a brilliant blue green as it rose and fell in softly crashing waves on the shore. I stepped in the edge of the oncoming tide and shuddered at the first touch of cold water. Then it was as if everything in me relaxed. As the tide rose and fell around my feet and ankles, rising up as high as my kness and then soflty falling back down all my fatigue seeped away with the tide. Refreshing peace and renewal washed over me. For five minutes or less I just stood there taking in the sights, being massaged by the pulsing tide. Little children and parents played and laughed all around me. My own youth group kids were out diving and swimming in the waves, squeezing everything they could out of these last few minutes. In that breif time it felt like a full week of stress and fatugue washed away.
Thank you God for the healing power of your creation. But most of all, thank you today for the ocean as it touched Zuma Beach and renewed my weary soul..
Sometimes I just need to get away. Many days that is just not possible. Today was one of those days. It was a very busy day filled with many commitments and responsibilities. A day when there was barely time to sit for five minutes, let alone get away. Trying to push the fatigue and over-exposure to people out of the way I loaded up our church van with 12 exuberant teens and headed for the beach. There we were met by another ten teens. After about an hour and a half scheduled there, we were off to a home for dinner and a devotional. All this after leading a training session for 4 ours on Frday night and 8 hours on Saturday. I was spent and in dire need of a break.
Don't get me wrong, I realize that if taking a van load of teens to the beach for volleyball and "hang out" time is my greatest burden, I am a pretty blessed guy. Nonetheless, I was tired, emotionally and physically. When I feel that way, about the only thing that recharges me is down time alone. That was not in any way going to happen today.
When it was almost time to leave the beach for our next destination, I left the volleyball courts and headed for the water to retrieve the handful of kids who were in the surf. It was a beautiful Southern California afternoon. The water was a brilliant blue green as it rose and fell in softly crashing waves on the shore. I stepped in the edge of the oncoming tide and shuddered at the first touch of cold water. Then it was as if everything in me relaxed. As the tide rose and fell around my feet and ankles, rising up as high as my kness and then soflty falling back down all my fatigue seeped away with the tide. Refreshing peace and renewal washed over me. For five minutes or less I just stood there taking in the sights, being massaged by the pulsing tide. Little children and parents played and laughed all around me. My own youth group kids were out diving and swimming in the waves, squeezing everything they could out of these last few minutes. In that breif time it felt like a full week of stress and fatugue washed away.
Thank you God for the healing power of your creation. But most of all, thank you today for the ocean as it touched Zuma Beach and renewed my weary soul..
Friday, May 22, 2009
Rat Theology
Recently I jumped in and started up the car to head across town. Unknown to me, there was a large rat that had briefly taken up residence inside my engine compartment. I'm sure he was more surprised than I was when the engine kicked on.
There exists in life, a tension between the unbelievable and the undeniable. I see it sometimes so clearly. Take the example of this rat, for instance. If you could have told him as he crawled up around my engine that this conglomeration of metal and rubber, which he found so interesting and alluring, would soon roar to life and eat him, he might have thought you were crazy. To him that would seem utterly unbelievable! Once I turned the key, however, the roar of the engine became an undeniable fact - complete with belts spinning, fan blades whirring, heat rising and the earth moving below. All of a sudden, I think this rat was a believer. Only for him it didn't work out so well.
The same tension exists when we talk about faith in God. For some the idea of a loving Creator who has set the world in motion is crazy and unbelievable. The concept that He pursues us with loving passion and wants to guide us into relationship with Him seems even more ridiculous - especially when we look at all the poverty, pain and destruction in the world around us.. It's no wonder that so many see faith in God as completely unbelievable.
Now don't stop reading here, I am not going to flip the coin over and say that one day God will roar to life and destroy them like a rat caught in an engine. While at a certain level this may be true for some, I don't find it to be a very helpful image!
Rather, I would say that for me, faith in God is more undeniable than unbelievable. Those who deny Him do not know of the peace I feel in His presence as I pray. They do not know of the countless ways in which He has guided me through tough decisions and difficult days. They know nothing of the wisdom He slid into my heart while I cried out in times of darkness. How can they know about these things if I don't tell them?
Many of those I know really don't want to sit still to listen to my words. Words don't impress them. The only strength I have to show them the undeniable Truth of "God is" is through my actions. Is God undeniable in the way I treat those around me? Is He clearly evident in my views toward poverty, or homelessness or those who have been unfairly made jobless by our current economy? Is He undeniable in my life to those who I casually connect with in my neighborhood, on the job, at my kid's school?
God becomes undeniable when his people live out their faith in unbelievable ways. It is unbelievable that we would find peace in the midst of crisis. Yet, it is undeniable when we reach out to those in need. It is incredible that we can stare death in the eye and hold out hope for life after terminal cancer. Yet it is undeniable when those of us who are left behind treat death differently because of Christ. It is amazing and irrational when we reach out in compassion to those who seek to injure us. Yet it is undeniable how lives are changed when forgiveness leads the way. These are the things that cause the unbelieving world to look at us and sincerely ask the question "Why?" For them it is unbelievable that anyone could react this way, yet undeniable that we do. They can't help but ask why. It is then that they are ready to hear about the ONE that is.
Let us live lives that are undeniable, hold onto a faith that seems unbelievable and give testimony to the One who makes both possible!
There exists in life, a tension between the unbelievable and the undeniable. I see it sometimes so clearly. Take the example of this rat, for instance. If you could have told him as he crawled up around my engine that this conglomeration of metal and rubber, which he found so interesting and alluring, would soon roar to life and eat him, he might have thought you were crazy. To him that would seem utterly unbelievable! Once I turned the key, however, the roar of the engine became an undeniable fact - complete with belts spinning, fan blades whirring, heat rising and the earth moving below. All of a sudden, I think this rat was a believer. Only for him it didn't work out so well.
The same tension exists when we talk about faith in God. For some the idea of a loving Creator who has set the world in motion is crazy and unbelievable. The concept that He pursues us with loving passion and wants to guide us into relationship with Him seems even more ridiculous - especially when we look at all the poverty, pain and destruction in the world around us.. It's no wonder that so many see faith in God as completely unbelievable.
Now don't stop reading here, I am not going to flip the coin over and say that one day God will roar to life and destroy them like a rat caught in an engine. While at a certain level this may be true for some, I don't find it to be a very helpful image!
Rather, I would say that for me, faith in God is more undeniable than unbelievable. Those who deny Him do not know of the peace I feel in His presence as I pray. They do not know of the countless ways in which He has guided me through tough decisions and difficult days. They know nothing of the wisdom He slid into my heart while I cried out in times of darkness. How can they know about these things if I don't tell them?
Many of those I know really don't want to sit still to listen to my words. Words don't impress them. The only strength I have to show them the undeniable Truth of "God is" is through my actions. Is God undeniable in the way I treat those around me? Is He clearly evident in my views toward poverty, or homelessness or those who have been unfairly made jobless by our current economy? Is He undeniable in my life to those who I casually connect with in my neighborhood, on the job, at my kid's school?
God becomes undeniable when his people live out their faith in unbelievable ways. It is unbelievable that we would find peace in the midst of crisis. Yet, it is undeniable when we reach out to those in need. It is incredible that we can stare death in the eye and hold out hope for life after terminal cancer. Yet it is undeniable when those of us who are left behind treat death differently because of Christ. It is amazing and irrational when we reach out in compassion to those who seek to injure us. Yet it is undeniable how lives are changed when forgiveness leads the way. These are the things that cause the unbelieving world to look at us and sincerely ask the question "Why?" For them it is unbelievable that anyone could react this way, yet undeniable that we do. They can't help but ask why. It is then that they are ready to hear about the ONE that is.
Let us live lives that are undeniable, hold onto a faith that seems unbelievable and give testimony to the One who makes both possible!
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Thoughts from the past
For years I have had places where I would periodically drop a few lines. It might be poetry or thoughts on life or scripture, but I have never really combined them all or pulled them together in any formal way. A couple comments from friends recently make me think that it would be beneficial to me to pull these together in a place where I could reflect more fully on them and add new thoughts. Hence Jacked up thoughts.
So here is my first installment:
When I was thirteen years old, my Dad died unexpectedly. This was obviously a major event in my young life. He had been faithful and very involved in our church. Many people told me that they were closer to God and their faith had benefited from knowing Dad. In the midst of loss, this was a comfort to me.
Over the next few years, I got to know a guy named David who was in his late thirties, early forties. David was not connected to faith or Christianity in any way. He was, however, funny and loved life. He was kind of a cross between George Carlin and Jack Nicholson from "The Shining." He had a wicked sense of humor and was actually fun to be round even though he was gruff at times. He always had a beer and a course joke or two. As a burgeoning "man" I thought David was pretty cool. He influenced me more than I could see at the time.
Late Spring my first year of college, I got a call from home that David , at age forty-two, had suffered a stroke and was in a coma. A short time later, before I could come home, he died. When I got home I went to see his family and learned the full truth. David had slipped into a coma after a severe, accidental drug overdose. He had gotten hold of some marijuana that was laced with a lethal dose of LSD. He slipped into a coma and never returned. His family was devastated.
This sent me reeling back to the day only five years earlier when we lost my Dad. Everyone around me talked of what a good man Dad was and how his faith had been a comfort to him and to them. My family, although in grief, had hope and a peace that carried us through those dark days. For David's family and friends, there was no such peace or hope. In my mind, I felt like I stood at a very real crossroad. One way led me on the path of life that David lived. The other led me on the path my father and lived. Reflecting on that at age 18, I wrote these words:
A man's life is like a span of white light that shines in the darkness.
It brilliantly flashes and then it is gone.
It leaves no mark, no sign of it 's ever having been.
Yet its memory leaves a bold and beautiful impression on those who beheld it.
This story and these thoughts still shape my life today. I want to live life laying a foundation for eternity for myself, my friends and most importantly - my family. This , I believe is God's desire and my purpose.
Jack
So here is my first installment:
When I was thirteen years old, my Dad died unexpectedly. This was obviously a major event in my young life. He had been faithful and very involved in our church. Many people told me that they were closer to God and their faith had benefited from knowing Dad. In the midst of loss, this was a comfort to me.
Over the next few years, I got to know a guy named David who was in his late thirties, early forties. David was not connected to faith or Christianity in any way. He was, however, funny and loved life. He was kind of a cross between George Carlin and Jack Nicholson from "The Shining." He had a wicked sense of humor and was actually fun to be round even though he was gruff at times. He always had a beer and a course joke or two. As a burgeoning "man" I thought David was pretty cool. He influenced me more than I could see at the time.
Late Spring my first year of college, I got a call from home that David , at age forty-two, had suffered a stroke and was in a coma. A short time later, before I could come home, he died. When I got home I went to see his family and learned the full truth. David had slipped into a coma after a severe, accidental drug overdose. He had gotten hold of some marijuana that was laced with a lethal dose of LSD. He slipped into a coma and never returned. His family was devastated.
This sent me reeling back to the day only five years earlier when we lost my Dad. Everyone around me talked of what a good man Dad was and how his faith had been a comfort to him and to them. My family, although in grief, had hope and a peace that carried us through those dark days. For David's family and friends, there was no such peace or hope. In my mind, I felt like I stood at a very real crossroad. One way led me on the path of life that David lived. The other led me on the path my father and lived. Reflecting on that at age 18, I wrote these words:
A man's life is like a span of white light that shines in the darkness.
It brilliantly flashes and then it is gone.
It leaves no mark, no sign of it 's ever having been.
Yet its memory leaves a bold and beautiful impression on those who beheld it.
This story and these thoughts still shape my life today. I want to live life laying a foundation for eternity for myself, my friends and most importantly - my family. This , I believe is God's desire and my purpose.
Jack
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