Wasabi

Do you remember the first time you ever tasted wasabi?
I was in shock, teary eyed, & a little stunned. It left me wanting more: more wasabi & more adventures. It left me with a wanting a taste of “bring it on” about life. I felt as if the world had just offered me something exciting. As small as tasting Wasabi was in my childhood, it impacted me.

I’ve grown to a whopping 18 years of age; I’m no longer a child. Children take from the world. They take experience, observation, and attention. They take effort, knowledge, & adventure.

Tonight while eating dry roasted wasabi flavored Edamame, it occurred to me that maybe it’s time for me to give. I don’t exactly know what that means, but it has purpose. There are quite a few young people who are confused. They need some experience and observation. They need attention. They take effort, so who’s going to invest? They’ll take knowledge if I’ll be willing to share.  Bring it on, adventure!

Control

Change in itself is such a powerful word- We either seem to  love or hate the word, depending upon who has control. If we can control the change, we love it.  If we can’t control it, it’s our least favorite thing.  So really, it comes down to the fact that we love control. We love power. We love strength. We love an image.  When we feel these things in ourselves, we convince ourselves that we are ‘it.’ We’ve ‘arrived,’ and no longer  need anything.  I see it in society everywhere. Advertisements are carefully built to make consumers feel:  Strong, individualistic, powerful, and in charge.   So many people struggle with anxiety, anorexia, or excessive eating: we need to feel in control.

Everything that we need (control, power, strength, image, love) were designed to be a part of who we are.  We were designed for the purpose of living as one with love, power, strength, image, and love.  The problem is where we choose to find those gifts.  It’s obvious that our sinful nature does not, can not, and will never be able to obtain those gifts on our own.

God is in ultimate control of every person, place, thing, idea, description, and action. God is the definition of power. God is the opposite of weak, he reigns with no struggle over life and death. God is the the most beautiful image, unexplainable & incomprehensible.

Heres the truth: in order to get these gifts, we must become vulnerable. We must be honestly open and beg for these gifts. Who wants to be that? Who wants to accept that we could never be better on our own? Who wants to accept that without some other source we will be nothing?  Although we are the opposite of Him, we were made by him. Our value is in Him alone and every other endeavor will leave us empty. There is hope for us. There is hope for salvation. There is hope for redemption. There is hope for grace. There is hope for all these things through love, because God is love.

Let go.

My life flashed before my eyes this evening. First was a moment filled with peace and quietness, the next was a moment of chaos and panic. The moment after that followed with tears and thankfulness for my life.  How could a moment pass so quickly? How could my life be so drastically changed in a moment!?

It baffles me, really. There is absolutely no way that I could accurately predict what my next moment will encounter. Not only can I not predict it, I can’t control it.

Here is what I’m learning: Although I might believe that danger might only exist in the next moment, it actually only exists in my effort to control the next moment. The danger in the moment after this one, along with the peace, the safety, the love, …it’s all controlled by God.  If that statement is as convicting to you as it is to me, we have some sitting to do. We have some following to do. We have some listening, learning, gleaning, watching, praising, trusting, and waiting to do.

We have something to be.

 

Be Still and Know

Unhealthily driven vs. patiently listening.

Unhealthily driven screams that my future is up to me and what I do. It says that I have to be the best, most efficient, and well liked.
Patiently Listening whispers, be still and know truth.   It views each obstacle with clarity, confidence, and humility.

The battle rages, and my heart is torn between serving two masters.  Who should I fight for? Who should I oppose?
The answer is an obvious one, but the armor is heavy.  It’s not an easy battle, but I know who will win.  It’s not a fun battle, but a rewarding one.

Wait patiently. Zoom out. Breathe. Smile.
I know the master of the wind.

 

Blue Christmas

To practice presence, my family went skiing on Christmas day.  We don’t go often but we had a blast together, as usual.  I specifically enjoyed laughing at my mom and little sister as they tumbled off the lift and down the slopes.
It was late in the afternoon and I had conquered the easy ‘greens’, and was feeling up to somewhat of a challenge.  I began to slide down a ‘blue’ route that didn’t seem too steep.  By the time I reached the steep part, there was no turning back.  I imagine it was comical for the more experienced skiers, whizzing by me at  approximately 68 miles an hour, observing as I shuffled my skis horizontally down the side of the mountain.  It was so frightening to look up what I had already “conquered”, let alone glance ahead to what I had yet to fall.  I found myself asking the same question over and over: “Why did I do this?”.

I ask myself that question in life, too – especially lately.  I slide down “slopes” that I don’t feel necessarily ‘ready for’.  What if I go too fast? What if I fall? What if I don’t make the right decision? Heres the thing: I was ready for the blue. Even though I didn’t look anything like the experienced skiers, I didn’t die.  For me, the slope wasn’t about controlling my skis the most efficiently, or flying down the slope with the speed of a pregnant rollerblader.  For me, the slope was about making it down and experiencing something that somehow enriched my life (even if it enriched my life in the way of an intense leg workout).

It’s okay to take chances.
It’s okay to be scared.
It’s okay to try new things.

Only through uncertainty can new opportunities arise.
Embrace them. Enjoy them. Smile through them.

What if?

What if I chose what controlled me?

On “9-5″ days, I would decide when I woke up.  I wouldn’t roll out of bed at a time that enabled a convenient time frame for me to get ready, I would be up ‘living life’ before them. Work would merely be a part of my day.
I would have discipline in areas of rest, exercise, time, and food.
I would have margin.

 

What if I acted on every whisper I felt?

I would do more uncomfortable things.
I wouldn’t wait for the perfect opportunity for conversation to present itself, I would create it. I would take the chance that it would be a bomb. I would receive the benefit of experiencing life.

 

What if?

Chill Out.

Has anyone by fussing before the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? If fussing can’t even do that, why fuss at all? Walk into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They don’t fuss with their appearance—but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them. If God gives such attention to the wildflowers, most of them never even seen, don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you?

Mask

You’re in a mask. You are no longer yourself. People no longer see you; they see something entirely different. The people who once knew you as their friend don’t recognize you, but you recognize them. You want so badly to tell them who you are, remind them of your friendship but that would distract you from your purpose. You represent something far bigger than yourself. Uncomfortable? No one cares. No one knows. You have a bigger purpose than your comfort.

Imagine you are a mascot. Silly, it seems. There is actually a bigger lesson than merely scaring children. Who would you be if no one would know it were you? Would you care if you were seen as something different than you are? If that thought bothered you, maybe you are like me. Maybe you enjoy the thought of being able to BE without feeling pressure of being. Why?

With a quick direct statement I will encourage/challenge you with something far easier said than done:
Be who you are. Don’t worry about it.

Simplicity

The disease of superficiality is fatally infectious and threatens many lives.  It finds it’s way into the mirror at a very young age for most and relentlessly taunts. For some, it taunts with a negative connotation- speaking the ‘why’s’ of inadequacy.  For some, it proves false positive affirmation based on a value system completely un-biblical. It finds it’s way into the living room of most families, whispering lies that bigger is more comfortable and ultimately better. It convinces that in order to have good relationships, one must have a certain ‘freedom’, usually intricately connected with money.

Simplicity meets this disease in it’s most disgusting, ‘grody’ state.  You see, simplicity has nothing to prove. It sees things without a tinted haze, confidently able to correct an issue without fearing contradiction. You see, simplicity has nothing to fear because it does not depend upon an image for happiness.  Simplicity is able to decipher between what contradicting social cries are true, and understands the long-term value of each.  Simplicity is proved by a consistent lifestyle apart from circumstances.  Having more or less money wouldn’t help simplicity decide how she spends it; she would already know.  Simplicity relieves the pressure to focus on anything except God; therefor giving us freedom to serve.

Everything that simplicity acquires is merely for the kingdoms sake, not her own.

Live fully, Live simply.

Live well. Love well.

1. Enjoy each moment without allowing your mind to encounter when it will end

2. Give more to every person you ever see than they give to you. Whether with your eyes, your smile, your touch; show them the love you have been given.

3. Allow your heart, in every situation, to be in the right place in order to work hard with pure motives for the right reason.

 

Focus purely on the Kingdom.