Living in the Present

Today my little munchkin, my son, is 7 months old. This has been one of the most fun times of my life! Watching his personality come out, grow, and learn new things and watching my wife being an amazing mother (and making me fall in love with her all over again)!

As I reflect on this time, I think of a conversation I had after he was born. I was talking with a good friend who has children of his own and I said, "I can't wait til Benan's walking and talking and I can wrestle and play catch with him!"

He then challenged me saying, "Collin, when my son was born I said the same thing. The problem with that is I missed out on the first year of his life waiting for that time. Enjoy him now. Don't miss anything. I wish I could have that first year back."

Ummmm, GULP. I quickly repented for that statement, that's for sure. I took his advice to heart, and I'm glad I did! I've been enjoying every moment. Even the late nights, the days he only wants mama, singing Itsy Bitsy Spider over and over, and the times the only thing I can do to keep him from crying is holding him and walking around. I'm soaking it all in!

GOD's used this time to teach me something I've missed for a long time. ENJOY NOW! Live in the moment. How many times do we say, "I can't wait til..." or "When I..." or "I wish I could...". Whatever the statement, we all do it! We live for tomorrow when tomorrow never comes. We can only live today! We can only live right now, in the present. I'm learning to embrace the now times, even the sucky parts. Once they're gone, we can't get those moments back. I've actually made an effort to change my verbiage as well. Instead of the previous statements, I've started saying things like, "I'm excited for..." and "I plan to...". There's nothing wrong with planning, I think it's necessary. But is our planning and over planning causing us to live in the plans opposed to enjoying what's going on around us? It's a question I've been asking myself for the last 7 months. And I'm starting to learn to enjoy life, where I am, at that time, no matter the circumstances, living in the present, in His Presence.

Thanks Jason!

I must confess. I'm....

"We have a someone new here today. Would you like to introduce yourself?"

"Hello, my name is Collin. And for about the past 30 years, I've been addicted.... Addicted to being Right."

(Responding in unison) "Hi Collin."

Some time ago I saw a video on Facebook of a man talking as fast as the Micro Machines guy trying to disprove that the Bible is against homosexual marriage. I found myself wanting to respond to some holes I found in his theories, but then a couple words into my response I thought to myself, "Is my response, my 'rightness', going to bring life to this situation or will it ultimately dig the canyon of separation deeper of those on opposite ends of this subject?" The person who posted this is very close to me. Ultimately I'd be responding to that person, not the Micro Machines imitator. And in my response, is there a maturity between both of us to agree to disagree without any judgement the next time we speak? I can answer for me, not yet....

(Disclaimer: this is not a blog to discuss the subject of homosexual marriage or give my opinion on the subject.)

I have to admit it, I've spent a lot of time and energy (and identity) into being right or proving others wrong. To be completely honest, it's incredibly tiring! Even more than the tiring fact, I've likely destroyed relationships on the altar of being right. How often have we all done this? We spend time and energy trying to be right, all the while killing a relationship. On a different occasion I saw comment (on Facebook again) stating, "Have you won the argument if someone doesn't respond but 'unfriends' you?" My thought, is there really a winning situation when our egos are so bloated we're willing to, and proud of, losing a relationship at the cost of being right? Who really wins there?

Now I do believe that there is ultimate Truth, and that Truth is hidden in GOD and must sought out. But what I'm trying to get across is that I'm not sure it's our job to prove 'right' if it's not bringing life to a situation. Sure, I could argue a point about what I believe is right about many divisive subjects, but without a foundation of love being built beneath a relationship I only continue to divide, separate and build further the ego of both myself and the defendant. A discussion can quickly turn to a battle field of win/lose mentality. When one person wins and the other loses, it only brings death to both by building the ego of one and bringing shame to the other. (That was hard to say for someone who loves winning). I can, and have, argue we my wife and be right about our argument, but will me being right bring life to our marriage? No! Ultimately I'll feel superior, she won't feel loved and it will be a chasm in our marriage. 

We have a saying in our church, "It's not about right and wrong, it's about life and death." It seems Jesus was this way with His teachings. He would've been right not to speak to the Samitan woman by the well, and she tried her hardest to be right and prove His actions wrong. Instead He brought life to a situation that clearly needed. The Pharisees were, by the Law, right in many of things they believed and did, but Jesus called them a 'brood of vipers' because their 'rightness' (not righteousness) was bringing death to those around them. As Jesus brought life to those all around Him, ultimate Truth began to be revealed and recognized. It's interesting that most of the western church spends more time defending it's 'rightness' than Jesus did, and He was the epitomy of Truth!!!! 

How about we all admit it, our egos have one time or another made us addicted to being right. Heck, I can even say I'm being right about not being right! It's a vicious cycle. Regardless, let's all enter into rehab and next time we're approached with a situation to argue, let's ask ourselves, "will my argument bring life to the situation, or am I trying to be right to feed my ego?" I personally have decided I will only discuss a point if the discussion is face to face, and we can both agree to disagree with no judgement. Like I said, I'm recovering, but I'm walking towards life. 

The Lord's Prayer (Part 1), Words to pray, or a posture to be in?

Today, 3/23, I spoke at KeyStone Church in Colorado Springs, CO. By request, below are a portion of my notes. Soon I will also pot the podcast link to this blog.

First, "Our Father"

Our Father - up until that point no one had ever referred to GOD as their Father, only as Jesus' Father 

• In the entire OT there are only 14 references to GOD as a Father, 3 specifically reference to Solomon, the others are to the fatherless, as an analogy, or as a Father to a nation. In the NT, there are 256 references to GOD as Father. 
• Prior to this it was Yaweh, El Shaddai, and Jehovah with the attributes associated with that.

How would the Jews have thought of GOD as their Father?

• What is the function of a Father? To protect, to love, the head of a family, the one to give an inheritance, someone close by to confide in.
• A Hebrew boy, if not chosen to be a Rabbi, would follow in his father's profession

Major mind shift already to a Hebrew who, for the past 4,000 years, only access GOD through a priest, rituals and certain holidays. "You mean to tell me GOD, YAWEH, is as close to me as a Father?" 

• Through simply teaching His disciples to think, "Our Father", making it personal, Jesus was teaching them of a salvation where GOD was fully present and fully adopting them as His own
• First Born – Since Jesus had referred to GOD as His Father, and now including the disciples as part of the family. And Jesus was the first born.

Second, "who art in heaven"

• The Hebrew word Jesus used here for Heaven was not what we think as the "pie in the sky", floating on clouds, big guy upstairs type Heaven. 
• The Hebrew word He used was literally translated, "the air I breathe." 
• Again, another mind blow! The thought that GOD was very distant and not accessible was just thrown out by Jesus! He tells them that GOD is as close to them as the air they breathe. 
• Again, let's take this into function, what comes to mind when you think of the AIR you are breathing as a function?
• It's your life source, and not only around you, but IN you!
• So a Hebrew man would have thought, GOD is all around me, all the time, my very life source, and inside of me! 

Next, "Hallowed be Your Name."

• How many know what it means to "Hallow" something?
• To hallow something means to stop in reverence or awe and become aware. 
• Names in Hebrew culture were very important. It was actually a tag for your character.
• Which is why Jesus renamed Peter. He was changing his character
• So to the Name of GOD, was His character, or His nature. 
• When we pray to Jehovah Jirah, we're praying for the providing characteristic of GOD
• Or Jehovah Rapha, the healing characteristic of GOD
• Let's put this all together now as a Hebrew would understand what Jesus was saying:

"My Father, the giver of my inheritance, my protector, my provider, and the one whom I'll follow; who is as close to me as the air I breathe and living in me my life source, I stop in awe and become aware of You, Your character and Holiness."

What Jesus was teaching at the beginning here is prayer isn't as much an action as it is a posture

•

Prayer isn't words or quiet time or what we've made to be as a performance, but instead it's a posture of becoming aware of GOD's Presence, right here, right now. 

Quenching the Spirit

Click on the link below download the podcast of my most recent sermon at Keystone Church.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/kingdom-pt.-2/id730548509?i=214613711&mt=2

No Pain, No Gain

All too often we use this mantra, but do we really believe it? Do we really believe that pain can be a good thing to experience? This is an interesting question to a culture that seems to do everything we can to avoid pain. Like my high school trainer used to say for what seemed like every injury, "tape it up, take Aleve and ice it after the game" (which now explains my stomach issues for the 6-8 Aleve per baseball game). In a culture of pain relievers, anti-depressants, sleeping pills, anti-anxiety pills and other drugs to suppress the pain of life, we've been trained to avoid it at all costs. So what's the problem with that? I'm learning that truly the best way grow is to walk through the pains of life, not avoid them or try to get free from them. Pain is a part of life, it teaches us lessons we may have otherwise never learned. On the other hand, avoiding pain can actually do more harm than we realize.

13 years ago my grandfather and best friend past away. I was 17, confused, and experiencing the most pain I'd ever felt. Instead of accepting and walking through the pain, I chose to avoid it with drugs. Which then sent me on a downward spiral for the next 4 years of addiction and depression. Walking through pain has a mysterious way of bringing us to a point of maturation, or initiation if you will. It's the catalyst to brings us to a point of understanding that there's something bigger and more important than our own ego and comfort. It forces us to grow outside of ourselves. Women have a natural catalyst for this, child bearing, but for men, it's different. It takes an inciting incident, which is usually painful, to initiate us into manhood.

It wasn't until about 4-5 years after my grandfather's death that I finally stopped avoiding pain, when the next most painful moment in my life happened. I won't get into the details of it, but I couldn't avoid it this time. I had to walk through the pain, I had to endure the hurt, the depression, the days where I didn't want to get out bed. And on the other side of it was a beautiful resurrection! A peace that I couldn't have had without knowing the pain before it! And an ability to love I didn't possess that pain made me realize how unimportant I am.

So to conclude, I don't have an answer to get through the pains of life. But I can tell you, from a small amount of wisdom and experience, embrace and walk through pain. The avoidance of it will only stunt growth and the ability to have peace in all things. As Paul said, I am content all things, I am all things to all people, not because of some supernatural gift, it was the natural gift of pain he endured. So embrace the pain you're in and the pain to come. There's grace to endure it, but most importantly, there's a beautiful resurrection on the back end of it! As my Colorado friends would say, "Embrace the suckage."

Encourage Each Other

Show Me!!!

    Last Saturday Steph and I watched Crazy Stupid Love with my parents. I must say, a pretty good movie with some great principles. Unfortunately, I've taken Dr. Ron Johnson Jr.'s Christian Worldview class at Living Stones College and now everything has been ruined for me. Now with every movie, TV show, commercial and billboard I see I pick apart the principles and philosophy behind it. Well, there's a specific scene in this movie that has been on my mind and the principle that is coupled with it. In the movie, Steve Carell, Cal in the movie, and his wife are separated and his 13 year old son, Robbie, is over for the weekend. They are playing catch when he tells his dad he's giving up on chasing his soul mate. After Cal encourages him to never give up, keep chasing, don't take no for an answer, Robbie calls out his dad and says something mind blowing. "I need some inspiration dad." He's looking at his dad who has given up on his soul mate and marriage, and basically tells, "How can I when you won't? SHOW ME HOW!!!!!"
    I believe this is the cry of every kid.. Boys are looking to their dads saying, "Show me how to be a man, show me how to chase my bride, show me how to be pure, just show me." Girls are saying, "Show me I'm beautiful, show me I'm worth waiting for, show me how to chase my dreams." For too long the "do as I say not as I do" slogan has ruled households as parents hold a double standard. Children are confused as they are told to do one thing, and see the complete opposite.
    I'm a firm believer that the best coaches are ones that have played the sport prior. It was easy for me learn how to block a curve ball behind the plate because my dad would crouch down, slide in front of it and use his body to knock it down. He had done it a hundred times before himself. After that, it seemed easy, all I had to do was mimic my dad. Children are watching and listening to their parents, even when we think they aren't, to see how to be a man or woman. I know every parent wants their children to be better than they are and were, but how can they when they're filling the potholes of the road their parents were supposed to pave for them. The end of the parents road should be the beginning of the child's, their ceiling the children's floor. In order for this to happen, the parents must begin to act in a way that models a life they want their children to live. To raise children of integrity, character and passion we must first become parents of integrity, character and passion.