Reflections From Camp

This weekend I took a trip to the Washington Family Ranch Young Life camp in Antelope, OR, to visit friends with whom Aly worked as an intern several years ago. It was great to meet her friends, Cara and Adam, plus their two beautiful girls, Olive and Gillian, as well as to see a place that's had such an effect on her life. It reminded me quite a bit of my own experiences with Suncrest Camp in Rochester, PA, which is where I accepted Jesus for the first time and felt my life change completely, just like many others before and after.

Thinking about those teenagers who are experiencing Jesus for the first time this week got me thinking about a lot of things. Should I be working in ministry? How much does the work I do really matter? Should I be leading a Young Life group or something like it? Should I just pack up and move to the Ranch? How can I answer God's call for my life in my current job?

One of the thoughts I had this weekend is that it's tough to have full, meaningful interactions with people who have different beliefs than you do. From my perspective, Jesus Christ is the basis of everything in my life. I believe in His death and resurrection, which was the person of God coming to earth to wash away our sins and provide eternal life to His people. This belief provides perspective for everything I do, how I do my job, and what my priorities are.

Frankly, it's hard to work with people who do not have the same fundamental motivations as I do. I love my neighbors and do my job well because there's no way to work with people who have identical beliefs with me all the time, but I find that other people have different focuses or agendas that don't make sense to me. Building up students into future leaders or just future people is hard when I can't just share the gospel with them. Maybe I can, but I haven't chosen to on a regular basis.

When a student is getting discouraged about their job search, I want to tell them to pray. There is simply no better option than to put your life in the hands of God. This is not for the purpose of God creating some opportunity for them to get a better job, but rather for them to be calm and know that God has already provided all they need. As Tim Keller addresses in his "Meeting the Real Jesus" sermon, Jesus isn't going to help us get a job or be a better lawyer (or whatever). That's not the point. The point is that Jesus has saved us from death; a death that we all deserve fully. Whatever happens on top of that is icing.

This thought arose because I was thinking about how it can be easier to be a youth camp leader and talk about Jesus than it is in other circumstances. When a teenager chooses to be at a church camp, their heart is open to the gospel. This doesn't happen as obviously at work or anywhere else, for that matter. Teenagers are open to ideas, especially if you can get the "cool" kids into it. Adults tend to be wrapped up in their own logic and in providing for themselves, while teenagers know they are not fully responsible for their own destiny.

Keller points out in the aforementioned sermon that the "educated" people, of whom I tend to surround myself, basically tend to be interested in creating their own fortune and destiny. The middle- to upper-class like to take the teachings of Jesus, but leave behind the doctrine that dictates the power of God. Rarely does someone tell me that they are into the death and resurrection of Jesus, but not as much into the "love your neighbor" teaching. Take anyone from any background and they are likely to be totally on board with Jesus' teachings of loving your neighbor and doing good.

The poor, on the other hand, see the gospel as just that; Good News! This IS the gospel (Good News in Greek). The death and resurrection and washing away of sins and loving your neighbor is all a part of it.

Educated folks rely on themselves quite a bit. The idea of there being a God who is in control or who has already determined that your sins are forgiven and you can't do anything to make Him love you more or less is something that is hard to wrap your mind around.

The key word there being "mind"; it's faith, not intellect. Christianity requires faith. Relying completely on what I can experience with my five senses is not an option. We cannot wrap our minds around God; if we could, how powerful of a God would that be?

This is just one thought that seems generally unfinished. I hope to continue this conversation with many of you soon.

Privilege

Yesterday I listened to an episode of This American Life from a week back called "The View From In Here". In Act One, we hear about the story of an inmate and corrections officer who had sat down together to share a real conversation for the first time. This was put together after the inmates watched a documentary called "The House I Live In", which talks about, among other things, how the war on drugs has perpetuated a vicious cycle of locking away drug offenders for relatively short stints that render them unable to earn an honest dollar because they are turned away from jobs and college grants due to their record.

Much like all of us, in a way, these offenders have to do whatever it takes to make a dollar. As a result of their situation, they choose selling drugs or theft to line their pockets. If I were them, I'd probably do the same thing.

There are a lot of things I could write about today, like most days. Last night my car was broken into for the third time since I moved to Tacoma. Like the first time, I did myself no favors by parking in an empty Foss High School parking lot instead of paying the measly five bucks for parking at Cheney Stadium for the Rainiers game. In my defense, crowds have been so thick for the only two other games I've been to that parking here seemed like a natural and popular choice. Regardless, this was not the case tonight and I ended up with a rock through my window and down a stereo face plate and iPod again.

Thanks in part to the comforting presence of Aly, I reacted more calmly than the last two times. There was not much I could do after the fact and knew this was an avoidable situation. If we'd have biked there or parked in the stadium lot I'd still have a passenger side window. If I'd have brought my valuables instead of leaving them in the glove compartment then I'd still have them. Nothing to do but clean up the mess and replace what I'd lost.

The One Awesome Thing today is that I can do that. I have the money and ability to replace my window, stereo, and iPod if I want to. I live in a house with a garage to keep my windowless car safe until the missing one is replaced.

Who knows what the story is of the man or woman who busted my window to earn themselves a hundred bucks for my old stuff. What I do know is that my story is different. It is one of privilege. I came from a family that raised me well and provided for me. I learned the value of a dollar and have done what it's taken to earn the dollars I have. I came from a family of resourcefulness, which has resulted in the privilege I've provided for myself to be able to afford a comfortable lifestyle. For this I am forever thankful to God for providing.

It's easy to get down on yourself or others when something awful like this happens. How often we forget how much God has blessed us in these times. Bad things happen to good people all the time, but we are quick to forget that good things happen to good and bad people all the same.

Let us thank God for the blessings He has provided today. The sins of my assailant and myself have been washed away with the blood of Christ. Neither of us deserve it, so we've already received far more than we shall ever need.

New Year's Resolution: More Love

Pittsburgh gets my gears turning, so it's time for a post.

I don't traditionally make new year's resolutions, but it's time for a change for the better. There are a lot of negative influences in the world these days. Every time I log in to my Twitter I come across some of the most negative posts speaking poorly, satirically, or sarcastically about basically anything. I've absolutely joined in the party, trying to be amusing or entertaining for all of the wrong reasons. The election, musicians, the towns I'm in, the people I'm around; there are plenty of flaws to point out.

Rather than pointing out that even we who are writing have flaws, let's focus on the good instead. Social media is full of examples of people's mistakes, shortcomings, and flaws, but don't we like to hear the pros more than the cons? Isn't it much more uplifting to hear a kind word? Don't we feel warm and happy when people are warm and happy?

So that's it; it's simple. Less complaining. Less poking fun at others. Less negativity. More love. My time in Tacoma hasn't been the most pleasant of my life, but it has more to do with the person experiencing it than I give credit. I can't force myself to like a place, but I sure can love it like Jesus loves us.

Control

Today I woke up late for worship practice before church. I felt pretty bad when I realized that I hadn't set an alarm at all in my haste the previous night. I returned home late and knew I'd be running on six hours of sleep and a few cups of coffee to get me through the morning. I quickly gathered my things, threw on the clothes from the previous night, and rolled in to practice about 45 minutes late. We ran through the songs we'd done on Thursday, got our bearings under us, and played pretty well at the services, considering.

When I awoke to see that I'd risen an hour later than planned, I realized I had lost control. When that realization was made, I had no option but to move forward given the circumstances. I made a mistake and had no way to make up for it. What was done was done. I couldn't go back in time. No use crying over spilled milk. I was upset that I had let down my bandmates by showing up late, but the icing on the cake was really that I had lost control. I wanted to be in charge of the timing of my day, but instead was thrown a curveball by my own unattentiveness.

As humans, we crave control. We want to know exactly what is happening to us all the time. We want the perfect job, a cool and reliable car, the latest technology, the ideal spouse, and we want them when we want them. Plenty of time is spent considering how to acquire these things. We research purchases online. We envision what that spouse will be like. We search our network for just the right connection to get us ahead. I've spent plenty of time in my life doing research for these things that I desire.

These things are what keep us separate from Jesus. Society tells us that we're responsible for our own successes and failures. We have no one to congratulate or blame but ourselves. Christianity is a difficult concept for us to accept because it goes against this principle. Jesus already has washed us clean with His blood. God sees us through the lens of Jesus and not through the mistakes we've made.

When I attempt to be successful outside of Jesus, I fail. If I somehow do not fail, then I certainly feel an emptiness. That's because God has created us to seek Him. He wants us to live in his strength. He wants us to ask him for the ability to succeed and accept His forgiveness. We live in a society that tells us we must accomplish on our own, when, in fact, we can only accomplish through Christ.

A Tree in a Story About a Forest

I love these little ten-minute blog posts. I rarely plan to write my favorite blogs. They are the ones that just happen. What's more, they're usually the ones I write in a short amount of time on the spot.

Donald Miller is my favorite writer. His latest book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, is the definition of a must-read. He encourages people to live stories worth talking about. The experiences he describes are real. He's a real guy living an average life but wanting more, just like all of us. Sure, he's writing books that sell a lot of copies and make him sort of famous in different circles, but at the end of the day he wakes up, works, enjoys friends, and goes to bed, just like the rest of us. His relatability makes him an author worth reading over and over because his simple, yet profound, thoughts can resonate with average people like me.

My favorite chapter of any book is "A Tree in a Story About a Forest" from this book. In this chapter, Miller talks about a gentleman named Victor Frankl who helped people to avoid suicide in concentration camps during World War II. He would illegally give these people hope and keep them alive. During a dark time in his life, Miller felt Frankl whispering to him that he was a tree in a story about a forest and that he had a bigger purpose than his own goals and aspirations.

After talking so much about living a better story and having adventures and experiences worth talking about, Miller brings it all back and reminds us that throughout these stories we must remember that we are not the center of attention, which is the complete opposite of what American society tells us. In the movies, we are the actor pursuing the dream job or the dream girl or the dream home or the dream family with two kids, a dog, and a white picket fence.

In life, that's not the story. The story is Jesus. We are characters in the story of Jesus. We are carriers of Jesus to people in this world. We are broken people who have been saved by Jesus' dying to conquer sin. Our brokenness is fixed by Jesus. We are nothing but arrogant for believing that we have anything to do with our lives being saved. We are arrogant if we think that our stories are more important than His.