July 30th - "Don't worry be happy?"

The story...

In June, 1981, I visited my family in Whitehall, MI, for a weekend vacation.  I'd recently joined a wonderful group of believers who regularly studied their bibles together in Oak Ridge, TN.  They were working out their faith in ways that were new, and filled with unexpected goodness, to me.  The leader, Bill Job, was freely sharing the reality of his own faith walk as he shared God's revealed Word.  I'd decided to follow Jesus - no turning back, no turning back.  I first heard about the concept of God's grace through Bill.

I shared what I learned, and decided, with my dad on our way back to the cabin for lunch.  My dad paused, turned to me and said, "It sounds good, but you just can't live like that . . . life just doesn't work that way.  You can try."

Why not try to live a good righteous life, do your best, and try to be happy in all circumstances?  Seriously, why not?  This is a question worthy of pondering.  Was my dad right?  Is it impossible even with our best efforts?  Like many perplexing questions, and answers, he seemed to be both right and wrong.  I learned that I can't, no matter how hard I try, yet God can.  He changed me from the inside out.  He changed my heart and my will was bent to trust Him.  My "good" life's grown through ongoing prayer and communion with my Father in Christ.  I thankfully praise God for His might, power, grace, and love for even me.  Yet, my "self" is still on the "shelf" - readily available whenever...

I expect that the only church in town will offer knowledge, relationships, and opportunities for each attender to trust God and quit trying to be good on their own.  When they do, there's no turning back - God is faithful to His Word.

Just for today...

"I choose happiness and then abandon my choice at the first sign of trouble.  How deep can my commitment be if I allow even slight obstacles to rob me of my sense of well-being? . . . If I have a long-standing habit of responding to problems by feeling like a victim, it may not be easy to stand by my decision to be happy."  Courage to Change (p. 212)

July 18th - No Man is an Island - Thomas Merton

The story...

The life of a monk, I'll never experience.  I do aspire to have the ability to write honestly and robustly about the actualities of my life and faith.  My ability to communicate my reality is hampered by my: limited communication skills; ability to understand my own heart; the few people I share the reality of my faith with; and the interference that my "self" causes. 

I'm so thankful for the faithful life of Thomas Merton - his honest description of his life journey, his faithful walk in Christ, and his ability to describe it so accurately and succinctly.  Contemplating his paragraph copied and cited below is helpful.  I'm not able to add to what he so succinctly presents - just for today.

Just for today...

"To consider persons and events and situations only in the light of their effect upon myself is to live on the doorstep of hell.  Selfishness is doomed to frustration, centered as it is upon a lie. To live exclusively for myself, I must make all things bend themselves to my will as if I were a god. But this is impossible. Is there any more cogent indication of my creaturehood than the insufficiency of my own will? For I cannot make the universe obey me. I cannot make other people conform to my own whims and fancies. I cannot make even my own body obey me.  When I give it pleasure, it deceives my expectation and makes me suffer pain. When I give myself what I conceive to be freedom, I deceive myself and find that I am the prisoner of my own blindness and selfishness and insufficiency."   Merton, Thomas, No Man is an Island (1955) (p. 24)

"I will not resist the impact of a new idea.  It may be just the one I've needed without being aware of it. I will make my mind more flexible and receptive to new points of view."  One Day at a Time (p. 200)

"... I can plant a seed in fertile soil, but I don't help the plant to grow by tugging at the seed in hope that it will sprout. I have to let the process unfold at its own pace."  Courage to Change (p. 200)

June 23rd - Being Honest with Me

The story...

Much of my life was spent trying to change me in ways that'd: satisfy my ego; protect me from harm; experience love; feed my economic engine; provide me with the stuff to live out my life comfortably; and to get along with others.  I could've worked out that plan without the power of God if circumstances and random variables would've gone my way.

I remember hearing that my sin separated me from a relationship with the Creator of all things - I was about 7 years old and I was listening to a loving-old woman tell me this "truth," using a flannelgraph, at a neighbors house.  She asked if anybody wanted to come up front and receive God's gift of forgiveness and restoration.  I was the only one who came up to the front to make a profession of faith.  It may've been a divine appointment.  What actually happened there is both mysterious and wonderful - the trajectory of my life changed.

The flannelgraph told "The" story in a more colorful way

I experienced the fleeting pleasures of sin and also served as an "Acolyte" lighting candles in church.  At 15, I made a promise to God that I'd serve him if he saved me from a predicament.  At 21, I felt brokenness and earnestly read the four Gospels during the summer of 1980.  I was surprised to hear who Jesus the Christ was.  I ask my Mom: "Why didn't anyone tell me this before?"  My mom replied something like: "Oh you heard all those stories in church and Sunday school..."  God took the reins of my life thereafter and seemed to orchestrate my life as though I was living out a role in some sort of play - I did my part and things seemed to work their way out.

My personal book of life records: hope, faith, drifting, achievement, disappointment, joy, success, failure, love, hurt, friendships, and an increasingly closer walk/relationship with God.  I've experienced much through the grace of God - I'm so thankful for all of my life experiences.  He drew me closer and closer to Him and my capacity to love God, myself, and others has grown too.  I stand thankful for my faith in God - right with Him in Christ. 

Just for today...

"The courage to be honest with ourselves is one quality we can cultivate to help our spiritual growth."  Courage to Change (p. 175)

Stewart, J. S. (1935). A man in Christ: The vital elements of St. Paul’s religion. 

June 13th - Love 'em Just the Way They Are or Control 'em?

The story...

As a boy, I learned how to conform to the norms of the family, friends, classroom and the church.  When I was rejected by the teacher, peer groups, family members, or "that girl," then I adapted, rolled with punches, and even crafted my own role to "act" out.  As an adolescent, I often rebelled against the system.

I played the cornet in the band throughout middle school and high school.  This was the group that I best identified with.  However, I "pushed back" against the control that was exercised by the band director.  I refused to participate in any performance challenges during my Junior year.  I merely picked up my horn case and moved down to the lower seat.  This only worked out because the best trumpet player also joined me.  The director solved the problem by putting us in a trumpet section - we actually played more of the melody together.  

Controlling to the Extreme

The band director asked that I record my practice hours on a card during my senior year.  He let me know that it was for my benefit and did not require a parent signature.  I took it home and entered two weeks of zeros.  I asked my mom and dad to both sign the practice card - they did.  The band director looked at the signed practice sheet and said: "It appears that this isn't going to work with you."

I worked as a drug-store delivery boy and was assigned to work a Friday evening and would need to miss the football game.  The director would not accept my excuse and told me that he better see me in the band formation prior to the game.  I went to work anyway and drove the delivery car through the band formation while waving at the director.  I earned a "D" in band my senior year.

During my Senior year of college I brought two of my friends to my home town and actually took them on a tour of my High School.  The band director saw me as I was making moves to avoid him.  I was shocked at how respectfully he treated me and my friends.  I'm so thankful for that man and how he worked to shape that rebellious spirit in me. He wasn't the last person to reach out to help me.

The people in the only church in town will be wonderfully created to be unique and more complete as a group.  Strangely people are drawn to adapt their behavior, or role play, in order to fit the group's expectations of who they should be.  Hopefully, the only church in town would love 'em as they are and offer them a path to grow their faith in their own way and at their own pace.  I'm so thankful that the Patriarchs of the bible were often rebels who God loved and redeemed.

Just for today...

"The beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to fit our own image.  Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them."  Thomas Merton:  No Man is an Island.

June 8th - Invest my life playing win/lose games? Really?

The story...

My grandmother shared the game of solitaire with me - she loved to play it.  She, or maybe another person, told me that you could play a mental game of paying $52 for the deck of cards and earn $5 for every card that makes it to the top.  Its a win/lose game.  I've played this game countless times imagining what might be and finding out what I was dealt. "If I get all 52 cards on top then I'm going to..."   

I believe that this behavior is one of my learned defects - I stopped playing the game two days ago.  Forty days passed between the first draft and the posting of this story - stopping the solitaire habit was fruitful in unexpected ways.  I'm not sure what replaced the solitaire time, or trigger to play it, yet life's more peaceful and I'm trusting God more.

The only church in town will offer our Creator's version of what a good life looks like.  He doesn't tell us everything but does tell us enough to live a good life walking humbly with Him.  For me, regularly investing my time playing, and hoping on, a win/lose game with a deck of cards isn't a good fit.   

I lose...

Just for today...

"What defects could possibly give me pleasure?  Revenge, for one.  I spend lots of time creating mental scenarios in which I punish those who have hurt me.  I also get enjoyment from thinking that I am never wrong; in other words, I cling to pride . . . they prevent me from treating myself and others with love and respect."   Courage to Change (p. 160)

June 6th - I Make Mistakes - That's Good to Know

The story...

Recently, I rearranged and exchanged objects within both my garage and a room in the basement.  Within a week, I hit my forehead on a shelf in each place.  Both blows to my head hurt at impact, the painful feelings lingered for hours, they bled, and a scab was left over each.  Hopefully, this won't happen again - I cut and sanded the corner on one shelf and taped a piece of foam over the corner of the other. 

The sharp corner is now more friendly

It's hard to ignore my limitations when confronted with the "biophysical" feedback.  I could blame my mishaps on other people; but, in both instances, I rearranged both places and I rushed to grab both objects within my new setup.  I could ignore or hide the scabs and pretend the incidents didn't happen - keep it a secret.  Or, I could accept that I'm capable of making mistakes yet have good qualities too.

I chose to make a more honest assessment of my strengths, weaknesses, and current situation.  I expect that living in reality is part of loving myself unconditionally.  Accepting my reality and my limitations feels good and right.  Strangely my more humble acceptance seems to open my eyes and heart to more fully love my neighbors too.  Is humility an honest appreciation of my whole self - each part?

I expect that the only church in town would want to treat each others as neighbors.  Loving each other just the way they are.  Why?  Because they'd hear, read, and witness the love of God worked out through other limited creatures like themselves - with God gracefully doing the heavy-lifting - wow!

Just for today...

"When something upsetting happens, old memories of previous hurts often come back to haunt me.  This makes it difficult to stay in the present and I start living simultaneously in the past and future.  The outcomes of the past get projected onto present and future situations."   Hope for Today (p. 158)

"I am a human being with strengths and weaknesses, capable of achievements and mistakes.  Because I accept this, I can look closely at myself.  Today I will find something to appreciate and something to improve."  Courage to Change (p. 158)

June 3rd - Self-help books - Does your self need help?

The story...

Family members were reading an Og Mandino book; "You have to read it.  It teaches you how to live your life right.  It's an amazing story."  As a young man, I read the book - it was an amazing story.  The story was written with claims that suggested it was true; yet, I later realized that the story might not be true.  There was no internet then to check Wikipedia's version of the truth.  Yes, it was a fictional story.  Now, the lessons learned were meaningless - rules of thumb, principles, or ideas that might increase your odds of things going your way.  I chucked the book.

"If I could just dance like that then everything would be..."

The only church in town would preach and teach the way to have an ongoing and eternal relationship with God.  People would be different without "trying" to be better.  People would be as they're gifted rather than futilely attempting to comply with all those "ought haves" and "should ofs."

Just for today...

"Defending ourselves by engaging in arguments with . . . irrational people is as fruitless as donning armor to protect ourselves from a nuclear explosion . . . I am not obligated to justify myself to anyone."  Courage to Change (p. 155)

"God, please lead me to those who can give me what I need and grant me the compassion to love those who can't."  Hope for Today (p. 155)

"A program of self-recognition and self-change 'reads easy and does hard.'"  One Day at a Time (p. 155)

May 17th - Be Yourself - Alive Today

The story...

About sixty guys lived on my dorm floor.  There were about sixty girls who lived on the girl's floors too.  There was a type of guy who was noticed and included in the groups that I wanted to be a part of.  So, I wore the right clothes, went to the same places, performed the same rituals, and suffered along the way.

One term, my roommate and I decided to "buck the system" - rebel.  We wore t-shirts, bibs, and tennis shoes without socks.  We piled our dirty clothes on the couch yet friends still crowded in our room to hang out.  Although we were being rebels of a sort, new social norms were being established - others started to behave like us.  I'm glad we cleaned up the next term.  It was fun but it was no place to stay.

Living vicariously means living life through another person.  It seems like most people do it yet it often leads to stress and unhappiness.  Put on a mask, play a role, try to fit it, be part of the group, please people, and possibly idolize the leader.  A better way is to be yourself already.  Live in the present with an honest appreciation of you.  Why not appreciate the joys of being alive today as we truly are?

George idolizes Tony

The people in the only church in town would work out their own faith together.  The group relationships will be important towards their growth, yet their most important relationship will be between them and God.  Their wise pastor would recognize the pitfall of being idolized - the group living vicariously through his life of faith.  He would, succinctly and directly, point them back to their true Savior lest he begin to enjoy being treated as a type of little god or even a sort of doted pet.

Just for today...

"While growing up I had used denial to block myself from feeling pain, which also blocked me from experiencing pleasure."  Hope for Today (p. 138)

"... if I concentrate on being right here, right now, I know that I am fine . . . Let me make today the most fully alive day I have ever experienced." Courage to Change (p. 138)

May 2nd - Do it Myself Curse

The story...

My dad grew up as the oldest of eight kids during the depression.  Their family didn't have much and worked hard to care for each other.  Once he described, with a tear in his eye, what it was like for the last of the salted pork to be used up in late winter - "who wants to ask their neighbors for food?"  I remember him quoting his mother: "don't buy what you don't need, you might lose it someday."

I admired my dad's resourcefulness - he could do it himself.  So, my brother and I also do it ourselves - the principle was passed on even though we don't need to worry about running out of food this winter.  

Working out the "do it yourself" principle can seem like a curse when: you spend more money, your repair's less reliable, you lose valuable time, you don't allow others to help you, you fret over how you'll fix it without help, or you're overburdened with tools, materials, and spare parts.

"I might need that someday."

I'd rather be more self aware and realistic when: making purchase decisions, deciding when to ask for help, trusting others to do it for me, and assessing my true capabilities.  I want to be available to both give and receive help and love with others.  And, I want to focus my inner man on walking humbly with God in Christ in a more unencumbered way.   

The only church in town would invest their resources and time to both give and receive help and love with others.  In community, they'd walk humbly with God, in Christ, in an increasingly unencumbered way. 

Just for today...

"When I become willing to let go of the need to do it by myself, I can listen to others and receive direction from God."  Courage to Change (p. 123)

"Denial can be a shock absorber for the spirit.  I can respect and be grateful for that survival mechanism, but I'll not hang onto it longer than necessary"  Hope for Today (p. 123)

April 16th - Love Yourself Already- "It's the power of ..."

The story...

It was later in my life when I first heard a respected person say that I needed to love myself before I could fully love others.  The same message was likely dispatched to me at an earlier age but I clearly didn't receive it.  I know I heard the second greatest commandment: "... love your neighbor as yourself."  This is a core tenant of Judeo-Christianity; so, why was this so hard to first comprehend?

I knew that loving others was a virtue but loving "me" sounded like a selfish or proud man's bane.  And, I knew that I was flawed in ways that we surely want to keep to ourselves if we expect to be accepted by others.

Yes, I accepted that I'm fully loved by God and can love me too.  Quiet meditation after my "normal" prayers, with my thinker in the back seat, is a time where actually being loved can be realized.

People will find true freedom within the only church in town.  They'll grow to love themselves and their neighbors too.  Scripture says we're made in the image of God and that God loves us so much that His Son redeems the full sin burden for those who are His.   With our sins covered by the blood of Christ, we're empowered to walk humbly and vicariously with God - loved.  Might that be part of the good life that continues on into eternity?

I ain't never going back to that old, commiserating, crappy, selfish life where people wallow in their sin, polish their medals, compare themselves to others, and "try" to please those who couldn't care less.  I will to keep my eyes less on me and more on others.  I want to be in tune with what's really going on and experience being loved and loving too.

Just for today...

"I always expected my happiness to come through others, especially my . . .  parents.  I spent most of my life waiting for them to show their love and approval in a way that I could understand.  They didn't, and I felt deprived and unlovable as a result. . . The only person wo can love me the way I want to be loved is me."   Courage to Change (p. 107)

April 7th - I've met the enemy

 The story...

A friend of mine shared regrets for how he's behaved in certain group situations.  He wills to behave differently; yet, repeatedly returns to his frustrating patterns.  He believes the behaviors are triggered by something inside him.  Trying to behave differently doesn't seem to work.  Then he often reasonably concludes: "It's just the way I'm wired."  

Are we inherently selfish?  Some counter that we're instinctively cooperative.  Are our responses shaped by our genes, environment or related experiences? 

I do know that my nature, and related behaviors, are different when I'm walking humbly with God in Christ.  When I drift towards an unfruitful search for "self" satisfaction then I agree with Mick Jagger: "I can't get no satisfaction."

I hope that the only church in town would be filled with more realistic people who view and accept themselves and others as they are: honest about themselves; thankful for what they have; walking humbly with God...   People may think that they oughta be a more satisfied version of themselves - one that they feel a need to act out and claim to be true. 

In a more realistic view of life, I might acknowledge the truth that I don't want to invite people to church community when my focus is on me.  If I put my trust in God, might I open up the opportunity for God to invite people to church through me? 

Just for today...

"I am the sum total of all that has gone before, both painful and pleasurable, so everything I've experienced has value . . . Certain events had to occur before  changes could be made . . .  If situations had gone my way, I would not be enjoying the things that bring me pleasure today."  Hope for Today (p. 98)

April 5th - Do we really need a rule?

The story...

Maybe it's because I grew up in a small town where parking was free and plentiful - I resent parking permits and meters.  I freed my bike from the campus lock with bolt cutters; I pled my ticket case in front of the campus security board; and I found a way to not pay my parking tickets before I graduated.  Instead, I wrote a check for same amount owed to the "Alumni Fund" and mailed it to Campus Security - "You're never going to get the money for those tickets!"  My dad was shocked when he saw my name listed as one of the larger Alumni donors for the year.  

I've lived too much of my life rebelling against systems that didn't work best for me or seemed unfair.  Like many, I likely grew up self focused and less concerned about other people or the community at large.  It seems I wasn't interested much in the macro picture of life and worked to sub-optimize my own micro situation - the world of me, myself and I.

I must've valued the availability of a close and safe parking space when I needed it.  It's logical that parking lots can't be designed to hold the greatest number of cars that may want to park there.  And, I didn't want to pave paradise and put up a parking lot.  So, we do need to obey rules that best serve our community?  

Now, I'm so thankful for community leaders who actually work their vision of the future into fruition.  And, I'm pleased to pay my taxes and have less consternation about paying parking fees too.  Rather than merely enforcing the rules against my will, I expect that it might have been better to teach the younger me about the value of community and the need for the rules that help sustain it.

The only church in town needs rules too.  If they've white carpet then those entering must take off their shoes.  Rules may also be required to protect the "essentials" that're necessary to sustain and grow us.

Just for today...

"When I feel stressed, I'll stop to check whether my basic needs are being met." Hope for Today (p. 96)

April 2nd - What's going on?

The story...

It's the summer of 1977 and I'm working on a sled gang for the Burlington Northern railroad - summer job.  Sled gangs replaced old railroad ties with new ties that're covered with thick-black creosote.  The car pooling drive was long, the creosote burned my skin, the work was fatiguing, I experienced back muscle spasms, and I drank so much water that I used my hard hat as a cup. Yet, it paid over $6/hr.

Most of the job was "high spiking."  There was a machine that ran on the tracks that automatically drove the spikes; but, it didn't always work.  So, young guys like me drove in some of the spikes with a maul.  As you can see in the picture, the spike head is real close to the rail.  If, or when, you hit the rail there is a loud ding.  All the gang hears it and the foreman yells at you.  Why?  Every train car that rides over that flat spot is going to feel that until they replace the rail.  I remember hitting the rail a bit more than most people and the foreman's yell stung.

So, one day I was sitting by myself taking a break.  The dreaded foreman came over and sat down next to me.  He says: "Have you ever drank beer out of a straw?"  I couldn't believe that he was threatening me like that.  Then he followed that line up with: "I've had to learn how to since I broke my jaw when I got hit by the backswing of a maul.  My jaw's wired shut."  So, for weeks I thought that the foreman was snarling at me every time he attempted to talk with me.  In reality, his jaw was wired shut and I mistook his helpful attempts as personal attacks.  My number of rail hits dropped significantly after that welcomed conversation. 

I hope that people within the only church in town will be less guarded.  Hopefully, most of the people would be trusting God more than "self" and be a bit less guarded too.  They'd be capable of taking their eyes off themselves and have a better understanding of what's actually going on.

Just for today...

"As I become less self-centered, I will have stronger defenses against being hurt by slights and injustices. Minor crises will not loom large because I will not allow myself to magnify them out of proportion to their importance."  One Day at a Time (p. 93)

"I think I've developed an understanding of God that I don't fully understand." As We Understood... (p. 227)

February 29th: Be free in Christ - unshackled from self bondage

The story...

I can't get no satisfaction trying to please me - it's impossible.  Worse yet, on my own, my efforts to be a good boy leave me insecure when facing rejection, inevitable suffering, and death.  I can't get no satisfaction on my own - it's like tugging around a ball and chain made out of self.

Life would be better if I was okay with me, more openly and honestly relating to other people, and bearing the type of fruit that comes from abiding in Christ - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  Scripture says that happens as we trust in Christ and abide in Him too.

Abiding in Christ means a transforming, metamorphosized, relationship that includes communication.  We can never fully understand the trinity of God yet we do know, from the gospel of John, that God the Father speaks messages to the Son of God; the Son speaks the messages to the Holy Spirit; and the Holy Spirit indwells and speaks the messages to those in Christ; and those in Christ pray to the Father in the Son's name.  Prayer and meditation keeps us close to God in a right relationship that can free us from the bondage of self today.

February 29th, we'll see you in another four years if God so wills.  Let's keep the communication flowing - we need each other.

February 25th - That albums left on the turntable

The story...

I left home, to go to college, with goals of: independence, knowledge, career, friends and true love.  I was fortunate to meet a friend who became my roommate for two semesters.   Stereo systems and music were important then.  Strangely, we left only one of two albums on our turntable during those days.  His favorite song and my favorite song.  I actually bought a second copy of Rust Never Sleeps because I wore the first one out.

Maybe the songs were favorites because they triggered dormant emotions or contained messaging that rang true.  I can feel some of those same emotions as I listen to My My, Hey Hey as I am typing this sentence. "It's better to burn out than to fade away or rust" resonated with my soul.  It feels good to be in touch with my soul in an honest way.

How does experiencing the reality of our emotions and soul work out in the only church in town?  Scripture says that the power of God is alive in a believer when walking humbly with God.  God given love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control reflect a great condition to be living in during all circumstances.  I expect that the church functions as well as God functions in each individual member.

Just for today...

✌

Hey, hey, my, my
Rock and roll can never die
There's more to the picture
Than meets the eye
Hey, hey, my, my

Out of the blue and into the black
You pay for this, but they give you that
And once you're gone, you can't come back
When you're out of the blue and into the black

The king is gone but he's not forgotten (Johnny Rotten, Johnny Rotten)
Is this the story of Johnny Rotten? (Johnny Rotten, Rotten Johnny)
It's better to burn out 'cause rust never sleeps
The king is gone but he's not forgotten

Hey, hey, my, my
Rock and roll can never die
There's more to the picture
Than meets the eye

February 20th - Am I on a random walk?

The story...

There was a time when I searched Ebay to discover things that might sooth my unsettled inner man.  I liked the bidding process, the low personal investment, and the quest to win the prize.  One day, I found some things that seemed like a good fit.  A school was selling the motorcycles they used to train new riders. "Wow, this would be great, I could fix them up myself and share my passion for motorcycles with others."   I was more than a bit unsettled when we loaded them into the back of my truck.  The motorcycles should have been easy to rebuild but I had to face the reality that I was no motorcycle mechanic.  And, training others to ride on my motorcycles turned out to be not such a good idea either.  Three months later, I was helping a guy, who bought them from me, load them onto his truck - he seemed to have similar naïve notions.

How do I know if what I plan and do is within the will of God?  Am I behaving as if I'm on a random walk?  I expect that my walk along side others, within the only church in town, would be more purposeful.  No matter what my "self" tries to tell me, I'm just not right walking on my own self-directed path. When I do so, my eyes are focused on me rather than others - that's not a satisfying way for me to be.

Just for today...

"I told myself I was homely, thoughtless, lazy, stupid.  I would never say those things to a friend.  I realized that until I started treating myself like a valued friend, I would be standing in the way of my own recovery."  Courage to Change (p. 51)

Micah 6:8

January 7th - Detaching from what others say - be

The story...

My mother didn't like the way my beard looked - for many years, I grew a beard during the fall and shaved it on my Mother's birthday in the spring.  Often when she saw my beard she'd almost automatically say something like: "You look like some kind of dummy with that on! . . . Why don't you shave that off? . . . You look so good without it, why in the world would you do something like that? . . .  Do you know what you look like?"  She may have delivered the same message in a more polite way like:  "If it's all the same with you, would you put on this "mask" so that you can be the person I imagine you to be?"

We all receive messages about us either directly or indirectly.  These messages can lead us to question or defend our imaginary self-image - the one we internalize and project to others.  In response, we may: deny the message and discredit the sender, seek out another who'll offer the praise that our "self" desires, sulk, fight, conform to the image that the "group" has of us, or we might pop our imaginary bubble and start over with a new self-image.

The only church in town will offer a new self image that's based on what, and who, God says we are and what we might be.  Surely, there will be some people who are acting out a "good" role and they might offer us a mask to "try" on so that we might conform to "their" image of what a Christian is.  I hope that we offer the mask givers grace yet trash the mask and act out our faith in reality - just the way we are. 

My mother passed away from this life yesterday and is now with her Savior and Lord. She always loved and hoped the best for me - just the way I was.  I'm so thankful for the many ways she expressed her love to me throughout my first 65 years. I'm praising God for her today and wondering what life will be like without her - I'm an orphan now but not on my own.

Just for today...

"I care enough about myself to take a quiet half hour to relax. But if a half hour is more than I can manage, I can let that be alright. Whatever time I give to myself will be a step forward. If I can stop the wheels from turning for even a few moments, God can take charge and steer me in the right direction."  Courage to Change (p. 7)

"Nothing can hurt me unless I allow it to. When I am pained by anything that happens outside of myself, it is not that thing which hurts me, but the way I think and feel about it . . . 'God teach me to detach my mind form what others say and do, except to draw helpful lessons and guidance from them.'"  One Day at a Time (p. 7)

December 23rd - Purposely act versus react?

The story...

Habits, routines, honest personal reflection, relationship building, kindness, prayer, quiet meditation, showing respect and a propensity for doing versus waiting till "I feel like it" have all worked well for me. This incomplete list is fundamental for building up the unique me.  We all know that we make sense of our lives and the environments we live in with mental models that are incomplete, flawed, and biased, or bent, to reflect what we want to be true.  I hope that we continue to walk toward our life's aim in an honest, humble, thoughtful, and peaceful way.

How do I react to those whose ways, manners, physical characteristics, age, actions, beliefs, experiences, education, aims... are significantly different from me?  In the future, I hope to seek to understand them before I attempt to be "help" them understand me - Steven Covey principle.  This one focus seems to enable a whole lotta of other good stuff.

The only church in town is a great place to meet up with co-sojourners for your life journey.  You can find friends with a common aim, who're on a similar path, that you can relate to, and are in a similar stage along the path.  It's important to work out your reality with  others too - there're many opportunities to love, and be loved by, most of the everybody.  Relationships and love seem to be the good stuff in life.  Good stuff is available within the only church in town - God's presence within the Body of Christ  - yes, it's mysterious.

Just for today...

"I would not want this person as a friend, but I do need to work with him as a professional. I don't like him... However, . . . I treat him with the same courtesy and respect I would like him to give me, regardless of whether or not he gives it.  I let it begin with me and act rather than react."  Hope for Today (p. 358)

November 25th - Might my imagined reality be bent? Unrealistic? Blinding me from truth?

The story...

I thought it wise to imagine and create a positive self image of: who I was, how I wanted to be perceived, how I planned to change, and how I'd execute the plan.  I'd hold onto this imagined reality and defend it even if it took much persuasion and the bending of reality too.  I wanted to be perceived as a good actor in the story of life and reap the rewards.  Sadly, my imagined reality and story didn't mesh well with other people's imagined plans and stories.  So, I worked to influence, manipulate, or even control them so that they supported my story - like supporting actors in the story of "me."  It's hard to write this, let alone read it aloud, yet it seems true to my nature.

Surely, the world is harsh, alongside other selfish people, so it seems reasonable that we adopt a self-created role that allows us to get along while still trying to get our needs met.  When our efforts to get along don't work, we may pick up our toys and go home - stay isolated - seeking warmth within the small comfort found by wrapping up in that old raggedy blanket of our self image - sounds a bit cold and Grinchy.

The only church in town will share God's revealed Word about the nature that we were born with - the selfish, self-sustaining, and self-promoting nature that looks toward meeting our own needs first.  They will hear about what God did to pay for our redemption, pay our God-offensive debts, so that we might walk through this life and eternity with our most holy God and Father.  Wow, that's good news they will hear there - the story to know and share.

Just for today...

"Sometimes the greatest growth comes through pain, but it's not the pain that helps me grow, it's my response to it.  Will I suffer through the experiences and continue as before or let the pain inspire change that helps me grow?"  Courage to Change (p. 330)

November 5th - Am I working to get the reaction I want?

The story...

I've spent way too much time attempting to convince others to accept my ideas and understanding of what's right, just, and best.  My noble motive may've been to help others yet I may've been attempting to build up and promote myself.  I might have justified my proclaiming and arguing as refining my thoughts, ideas, and life purpose.  Developing them wasn't enough though, I had the need to air them out in public and persuade others to accept them too.  I wish I'd spent more time listening to and seeking to understand others - I expect that I'd have grown and matured more quickly.

The following scene from Seinfeld describes Elaine and Jerry interjecting their opinions about ponies at the family gathering.  His attempts to reconcile his behavior falls flat.  He's not getting the reactions that he hopes for - comedians need that positive reaction.  Yes, there're some underlying issues with the Seinfeld cast - it's probably funny, in part, because we can relate to their amplified exhibition of unrestrained self.

   Seinfeld: The pony...

Another reason that I like the Seinfeld series is that the characters seem to like each other just the way they are - even when they behave badly.  The only church in town will be composed of a wide variety of people who are in different stages of life.  Many to most will be primarily focused on themselves and their own needs until they discover the better way.  There'll be need for mentoring, patience, grace, and the working out of each person's faith in the reality of community - we're worth it.  

Just for today...

"The more my group showed love and respect for me, the more I was able to love myself. Then I could begin to help love others into self-love."  Hope for Today (p. 310)

"If I speak out in order to manipulate or change another person, then their reaction becomes the focus of my attention and the measure by which I evaluate the results."  Courage to Change (p. 310)