Why I’m here.
I’ve had so much going on in my brain lately! And on top of that I’ve had a ton of technical malfunctions (my previous post was entirely deleted among other things) and it probably makes me seem a little melancholy. Just to start us out on a more cheery note, I’ll share a little tidbit from my past. When I was young, I was such a big reader and small socializer that I often read words before I ever heard them pronounced. Often my best guess was a good one BUT in some cases my best guess was very wrong. I seriously though melancholy was pronounced phonetically until I was well into my teens. Much-lan’-chuh-lee. Ha! What a dork.
An oldie just for kicks & giggles. :)
Anyways, now that we’re smiling, I’d just like us to consider a couple of things. Nearly everything I do is based on the belief (and driving passion) that we are made to live beautiful, extraordinary lives. You, me, the guy down the street - everyone. I thought maybe we could unpack that vision real quick, so you know what to expect here.
When I say extraordinary, I wonder what kind of life that brings to your mind. I think its really easy to build an ideal life in our mind based on what & whom we love, things we enjoy doing and honestly, what makes us feel comfortable. Maybe I could paint a picture of what I imagine to be an extraordinary, beautiful life to be.
When I say extraordinary, I think many people would look at that life and think that’s not normal, because of course it’s not ordinary. I see a life that causes ripples. I imagine great joy at a job well done. I can feel the satisfaction of knowing I was made for this. I’m serious. Even those of you who are more realistic than I, doesn’t something about that seem amazing?
It’s also a life that follows the Father’s leading so true that people don’t always understand, a life that might go against the current. That job well done might cost more that I ever imagined, but the joy is still greater for having done it. It requires knowing that whether the task seems menial or grand, God prepared the work for me before hand and I can compete it with contentment, peace and humility.
A beautiful life doesn’t come through good health (although I think can honor God by pursuing it), the job we’ve been working toward (though I think you can make it your Kingdom work) or that perfect mug (or whatever thing you’ve been eyeing). I’m not suggesting that we should just seek beautiful things or make our Pinterest boards a reality. I'm encouraging us to pursue Beauty himself.
The Father has work for us, for you and me. There is relative happiness to be found for most of us because we live in an affluent society. But we’ve felt the tremors of that ship possibly running aground. We’ve felt and are feeling the discomfort of wondering whether there will be groceries on the shelf. Still, if we choose to pursue the happy “normal” life most of us imagine (in our flesh), it will be a LONG time before we run out of temporary fulfillment. Us Westerners have a way of forcing that new normal to be. Radical service to our King may never be inescapable like it is for some believers; we have to make the choice.
This is what I was made for. There is unimaginable joy and confounding peace waiting. That longing we all feel for something a little better than we have, it can be appeased! If we truly trust what Jesus says, then we will believe that finding this life is worth everything it will cost us, though the cost may seem great. What are we hanging on to that is preventing us from grasping it?
“For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life on account of me will find it. For what will a person be benefited if he gains the whole world but forfeits his life? Or what will a person give in exchange for his life?” Matthew 16:25-36
Do I sound muh-lan’-chuh-lee again? I hope not; this is amazing news! Our own efforts to live the standard great life are completely dependent on our circumstances. But God is offering joy and satisfaction even if & when life sucks. He only gives us one condition: take up his burden, walk his path. In exchange he offers his rest and his presence, and if you know him you know there is nothing that could possibly compare.
Pin me!
But ugh! How easy it is to forget! This my friend, is what you can expect from me; a reminder. My desire is to see you (yes, you) wake up and choose an extraordinary life every day. I want for us both to press further and further into his heart. We’ll see things differently and spend things differently (money, time, energy, love, friendship) but the adventure will be epic.
