Are We There Yet?

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them.

"Not very long," answered the Mexican.

"But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American.

The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.

The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"

"I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs. I have a full life."

The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat."

"And after that?" asked the Mexican.

"With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge new enterprise."

"How long would that take?" asked the Mexican.

"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the American.

"And after that?"

"Afterwards? Well my friend, that's when it gets really interesting," answered the American, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start buying and selling stocks and make millions!"

"Millions? Really? And after that?" asked the Mexican.

"After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends."

And the moral of this story is: ......... Know where you're going in life... you may already be there.

Which Do You See?

At first blush it is obvious that this picture is of a beautiful waterfall. Your eye draws you in and you imagine yourself at its foot, blanketed within the deafening roar of the waters, feeling the cool spray wash over your head and smiling at your friend as you both notice in unison the rainbow that has formed within the prismatic water droplets... spectacular.

I see all that as well, but can also see the long term erosive effects of the falls and all of the missing landscape that has fallen victim to it's relentless destruction, inches per year, but cumulative and overwhelming. The process is so slow that nature is able to regain a footing and hide some of the effects of the scar, but the area has been forever changed. Who knows the beauty that may have been within those slow rolling waters that will never again be experienced?

I see this as an example of how moral sin works on our lives. At first glance the fun being had seems to have a positive appearance. However, if you view it from a large enough perspective of time and space (Like God does) it is obvious that a large and foreboding wound is being opened that will develop into an insurmountable chasm between you and the incomparable life that He wishes for you.

Are you looking for the awesome waterfall of "in the moment" experience or the forever crescendo of the universe? Because He loves us He allows us to choose. I for one am grateful for that ability, and take it seriously.

Is Your Brain First World or Third World?

I was sitting on the football field at our local high school watching my son's band concert the other night. I looked over my right shoulder and saw a couple of women fanning themselves with ornate Japanese fans. I thought, "Those are cool, I wonder how much they cost?". I turned around to share the scene with my wife, and over my left shoulder were another group of women fanning themselves with the paper plates that had just been used for their picnic. At first I was struck by the difference in consumerist mentalities each represented, but then I remembered that disposable paper plates were definitely a first world luxury item. How far afield have we gone?

Have you ever found yourself caught in a sudden rain shower and become overwhelmed with thankfulness for the offered umbrella? Shelter is what we need, not 9,000 square foot McMansions with a built in pretend tropical swimming hole in the professionally lighted and landscaped back yard. We need transportation, not a 2 million dollar Bugatti Veyron that will max out north of 270 MPH. If we really look at it closely we really only need one or two outfits and one pair of shoes at a time. Food, Shelter, Transportation and Love... not necessarily in that order.

Don't get me wrong, I aspire as much as the next guy... I just sometimes wish things would be simpler. I think we have the answer right between our ears; set the expectation at the "need" level and don't let anyone hit your reset button. Excesses can be nice, but don't allow yourself to be ruled by the glorious standards of extreme consumerism. It will be (is) our downfall.

Genesis 3:4-5
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

WHO AM I?

Who am I? They often tell me
I would step from my cell's confinement
calmly, cheerfully, firmly,
like a squire from his country-house.
Who am I? They also tell me
I would talk to my warders
freely and friendly and clearly,
as though it were mine to command.
Who am I? They also tell me
I would bear the days of misfortune
equably, smilingly, proudly,
like one accustomed to win.

Am I then really all that which other men tell of?
Or am I only what I myself know of myself,
restless and longing and sick, like a bird in a cage,
struggling for breath, as though hands were compressing my throat,
yearning for colors, for flowers, for the voices of birds,
thirsting for words of kindness, for neighborliness,
trembling with anger at despotisms and petty humiliation,
tossing in expectation of great events,
powerlessly trembling for friends at an infinite distance,
weary and empty at praying, at thinking, at making,
faint, and ready to say farewell to it all?

Who am I? This or the other?
Am I one person today, and tomorrow another?
Am I both at once? A hypocrite before others,
and before myself a contemptibly woebegone weakling?
Or is something within me still like a beaten army,
fleeing in disorder from victory already achieved?

Who am I? They mock me, these lonely questions of mine.
Whoever I am, thou knowest, O God, I am thine.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

What are you doing today?

Every day that you do not take a step towards bettering yourself is a step down from the summit your life could have become.

1. The overall success of your life will be determined when you are done.
2. You are not the one who will set the grade.
3. The quality of your decisions will be greatly influenced by who you ask for help along the way.
4. If you do not ask for help you will not meet your full potential.
5. Who you ask for help is the most important decision you will ever make.

Do it Anyway...

More and more these days we are all being called to do more with less, for less and in spite of rising tensions in all areas of our life. I believe it breaks across all industries and walks of life. We all just got ahead of ourselves and sometimes adjustment is needed. I was thinking of this allegory last weekend as I was trimming bushes and cutting back the Crepe Myrtles in our front yard. It seems counter-intuitive to cut back almost all of last years growth during the last throes of Winter, just before Spring begins. But if you know anything about plants, if you don't continually prune, the growth will not be nearly as robust in the coming growing season.

All that being said, it brings me back around to one of the major tenets of my life. I found these "rules" several years ago when on a plane trip back from my mother's funeral in Pennsylvania. I was obviously at a low point and came across the following long quote...

The Paradoxical Commandments
by Dr. Kent M. Keith


People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.

© Copyright Kent M. Keith 1968, renewed 2001

I hope you are able to make the same leap of understanding about life that I was. It is not about the forces from without. True happiness and fulfillment comes from working towards what you know to be "right", despite what others may try to burden you with. Persevere, continue on and thrive into what you are called to be. You will be happier for it.

Conscious and Purposeful Victim

Genesis 3:4-5
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

Most of us recognize the setting this verse comes from. I believe we overlook the implication of the original sin it justifies in our every day life. If we try to simplify it into modern terms I believe we can use one word with universal application... Pride. The subtle implications of this one moment in time are the root of almost everything we experience today. Whether we admit it or not, this is the verse that describes that process by which each of us justifies everything we do.

Pause and reflect on that thought for a moment. Hold up each and every thought and action of your day. Is there anything in that day that is genuinely selfless? Or are you like me and if really honest can trace some level of personal gain in it all? I am certainly not pointing a finger here because I am as guilty as everyone else. I just want to pull back the curtain of hypocrisy that many Christians hide behind. The life that we are called to encompasses two extremes that seem to be mutually exclusive. In all things follow the example of Christ and hold yourself personally accountable to what is right and true as written in the Bible...AND...Treat others, regardless of there imperfections, as you would want to be treated.

What I see is a world where people trying to live up to the first example feel empowered to become God's Judge here on earth. That is wrong. I also see people who feel that treating other people well, the second example, makes them immune to the requirements of personal accountability within the first. What our enemy would love to happen, and seems to be very successful in bringing about, is for all of us to focus on those differences and wrestle with our own personal subjective truths.

It is not your job or mine to personally work to change others. We have this undeniably strong urge to enforce our interpretation of what is right (refer back to the above scripture here) and as such lose sight of what God wants us to do. If we closely follow Jesus example, we see a man who chose to focus solely on God's purpose. He was completely aware that his actions would cause his death. He did it anyway.

Pursue and love God. Do what the Bible says and love others as yourself. Do right even if it will cause you pain and maybe lead to failure, possibly death. From that type of life flows blessing. It is not a logical and mathematical progression but it does seem to work.

Psalms 1:1-3
1 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.