Today it was raining all day, and then when I went for a run, it was pretty much done. That left a great set-up for this run. The air was a perfect not hot, not too cold, the sky was sort of grey/white, which made such a pleasant back drop for the bright leaves on the trees and ground. The run takes me though the Arboretum, on a straight road canopied by tall trees now in their fall splendor. A few miles in I heard footsteps of another runner about to pass me. (note to self, be faster, so people don't pass) I made a comment about how the rain stopped for his run, to which he said that he had taken it up with God and would share his good fortune with my run too. This was such a fitting comment, as at the beginning of the run I was thanking God for the good weather and beautiful surroundings.
And so I had a running friend for a few miles, a nice change to my usual lone run. It made me run a bit faster too, which can not be a bad thing.
How cool that there is a God that is so personal and so huge at the same time. How he would do something like taking away the rain at the perfect moment.
I love fall, the colors of the leaves and the swooshing sound that they make under your feet.
"to live without risk is to risk not living" (from Ruthless Trust by Brennan Manning) The book is about trusting in God and I love this line. It doesn't mean to act foolishly or without thinking all the time, but it does mean living and moving forward in life even when the path is not known or defined or when you don't know what will happen or how things with work out or come together. Or taking a chance or risk for something that you want that is not guaranteed. And see where life takes us.... trust in God and move forward in to whatever that means. There is a freedom in life when you are not so worried about the what if, or what if not, cause whatever comes tomorrow is something that you can experience tomorrow. And God is there too.
Thursday, 29 October 2009
Saturday, 17 October 2009
Stop the Traffik
There are prayer rooms praying for modern day slavery to end, there may even be one in Madison this month around the same them. And there is a new(er) video on the Stop the Traffik website now. http://www.stopthetraffik.org/resources/films/film_stt01.aspxf
How crazy and sad to know that there are people in the world that would sell other people. And how crazy too that this is a problem that is so big, that it often stops people from doing anything because it seems too large. Awareness is a good step forward. And then one step at a time after that.
How crazy and sad to know that there are people in the world that would sell other people. And how crazy too that this is a problem that is so big, that it often stops people from doing anything because it seems too large. Awareness is a good step forward. And then one step at a time after that.
Wednesday, 7 October 2009
Olympic Hopes
In Chicago there were a lot of banners and publicity around their bid to host the olympics in 2016. It looked nice. There were banners and posters. In the airport, there were walls dedicated to the cause. It was surreal and a little strange to be walking through the airport on the day that it was announced that the olympics would not be held there. There was a lot of cost and a lot of effort that the city put forth to make a case for hosting the events. It got me thinking about things in life that don't work out. I used to always be afraid of taking chances where you have to step out in things and make steps forward in saying that you want something to happen or putting things in place that would be helpful in the event that what you wished did come true. Cause how silly do those 2016 Olympic hopeful banners look now?
But I think that this is not the right way of looking at it because there are many dreams in life that are worth stepping out in to, even if they don't work out. Where you dream for it, plan for it, and take the chance. If you don't take a chance, then it is not going to happen for sure and if you do, then it could and wouldn't that be great. I think that taking chances in life, scary as they can be, are worthwhile, one of those, you'll never know if you don't try. Or those things in life that have no way of magically happening, they need you to take steps towards the dream, and either it works out, or you learn, or you have the comfort of knowing that at the very least, you gave it a try.
Now, I am not saying that taking chances in life is easy because it could be downright discouraging, but it is worth it for sure.
But I think that this is not the right way of looking at it because there are many dreams in life that are worth stepping out in to, even if they don't work out. Where you dream for it, plan for it, and take the chance. If you don't take a chance, then it is not going to happen for sure and if you do, then it could and wouldn't that be great. I think that taking chances in life, scary as they can be, are worthwhile, one of those, you'll never know if you don't try. Or those things in life that have no way of magically happening, they need you to take steps towards the dream, and either it works out, or you learn, or you have the comfort of knowing that at the very least, you gave it a try.
Now, I am not saying that taking chances in life is easy because it could be downright discouraging, but it is worth it for sure.
Tuesday, 22 September 2009
What is home?
What defines "home"?
Is it where you stuff is?
Is it where you can relax and just be?
It is comfort? Or people? Or circumstances?
It seems to be a place and a feeling. And some places that you live do not feel like home and some do eventually and some do automatically? So what are the defining factors? Does it have to do with the state of your soul and how settled it is time to be? Or a sense of belonging that is reliant on external factors? Or is it a rest within ones own soul, when being present is possible and delighted in, when rest is had? There seems to be something about it that is sought after and yet undefinable. A sense of peace or calling which keeps us in a spot and attaches our heart to it.
My lovely house in the great city of Madison is home right now. And I like it.
Is it where you stuff is?
Is it where you can relax and just be?
It is comfort? Or people? Or circumstances?
It seems to be a place and a feeling. And some places that you live do not feel like home and some do eventually and some do automatically? So what are the defining factors? Does it have to do with the state of your soul and how settled it is time to be? Or a sense of belonging that is reliant on external factors? Or is it a rest within ones own soul, when being present is possible and delighted in, when rest is had? There seems to be something about it that is sought after and yet undefinable. A sense of peace or calling which keeps us in a spot and attaches our heart to it.
My lovely house in the great city of Madison is home right now. And I like it.
Sunday, 20 September 2009
In the beginning.....
" In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters." Genesis 1:1-2
Whoa. Today this is blowing me away. The anticipation. Like the best thing ever is about to happen. There is darkness and chaos and power. Whoa. It makes my stomach get butterflies, like a present that you can't wait to rip open or a movie or book where the next part is coming and the suspense is so great. Or like climbing up a large incline on a roller coaster, you know that it is going to be a wild ride. As the train clicks up and up the incline, the steepness increasing, the car going slower and slower as it climbs and the pause at the top, right before you head over. This is it. It's coming and it's great. Something to be caught up in and swept away forever.
There is chaotic vastness and God is hovering. Creation is going to happen. Wow. It is so good and so hard to sit at the top of that incline when the train is about to go over. Just as reading these two verses really want to catapult you into the rest. Cause God speaks and the vastness is formed into light, and life and us. And we are then reflectors of the light and life and participate in the amazingness that is creation. Whoa.
I am going to hang out in verses one and two for a bit and be in awe. Whoa. What a powerful and amazing God. And we are a part of it. Wow indeed.
Whoa. Today this is blowing me away. The anticipation. Like the best thing ever is about to happen. There is darkness and chaos and power. Whoa. It makes my stomach get butterflies, like a present that you can't wait to rip open or a movie or book where the next part is coming and the suspense is so great. Or like climbing up a large incline on a roller coaster, you know that it is going to be a wild ride. As the train clicks up and up the incline, the steepness increasing, the car going slower and slower as it climbs and the pause at the top, right before you head over. This is it. It's coming and it's great. Something to be caught up in and swept away forever.
There is chaotic vastness and God is hovering. Creation is going to happen. Wow. It is so good and so hard to sit at the top of that incline when the train is about to go over. Just as reading these two verses really want to catapult you into the rest. Cause God speaks and the vastness is formed into light, and life and us. And we are then reflectors of the light and life and participate in the amazingness that is creation. Whoa.
I am going to hang out in verses one and two for a bit and be in awe. Whoa. What a powerful and amazing God. And we are a part of it. Wow indeed.
Thursday, 17 September 2009
My $22 coffee
I broke my french press coffee maker. While washing it, it decided to fall over in the sink and the 10 inches between being upright and on it's side was enough of a fall to break it. Grrr... Then trying to fix the situation as quickly as possible, I went to Target to buy a new one. But they did not have the $20 option, only the $40, so I did not want to get it. That meant buying coffee at the coffee shop for a few days as I checked other stores who only had the expensive one too. One morning, I went to get my coffee, and after searching the house unsuccessfully for change for the meter, chanced parking for the three minutes it takes to get the coffee.
There was a man standing by the wall when I went in and when I came out. After I came back to the car and found the $20 ticket on it, he told me that the parking guy was right across the street when I went in. Why didn't he tell me that before? I then told him that I had tried to find change and he said that I should have just asked him. Yes I should have. Why didn't I?
Now I have a french press that also have some rubber and plastic around the sides so hopefully the glass will not break this time. But add up the $20 ticket, the $25 french press and all of the coffees in the meantime, and I lost money on the deal.
There was a man standing by the wall when I went in and when I came out. After I came back to the car and found the $20 ticket on it, he told me that the parking guy was right across the street when I went in. Why didn't he tell me that before? I then told him that I had tried to find change and he said that I should have just asked him. Yes I should have. Why didn't I?
Now I have a french press that also have some rubber and plastic around the sides so hopefully the glass will not break this time. But add up the $20 ticket, the $25 french press and all of the coffees in the meantime, and I lost money on the deal.
Thursday, 3 September 2009
Prayer
What does it mean to be a people of prayer? What does it mean to have prayer as a defining characteristic in a community? What does it mean for that community to be birthed out of prayer?
I love the idea, the concept, the passionate life that is lived when every moment is a prayer, where all of life is worship to God. How much time do we spend though talking about prayer, about worship, or about community vs. the time that we spend living it?
Prayer as breathing. Breathing God in and breathing out in to life, to the everyday, the people that you meet and the ones that you know. Prayer is so inclusive too. There are not lines of who is in and who is out, like there can be in a standard community, where there are usually rings of inclusion and levels of commitment.
Life as prayer, connecting to God, being with him. And as you live out of that place, the things in life take on importance in the proper proportions. Things that really do not matter, don't. And the things that break God's heart, (those things that we can ignore if we get distracted enough) work there way in to our hearts too, softening and tweaking and re-aligning til our hearts break at those things too. And the things that are joyful, are full of goodness and joy again too.
I met a man at work yesterday who told me that life was to short and that as his age, life could be over at any point. Life is too short to not have a personality he said. He was a character for sure and had great wisdom too. Just being ourselves and having that personality that is distinctly yours is so freeing to you and the people around too. And it frees you up to care about the other people around you too. Because, if you are comfortable in your own skin, others are comfortable to relax in their skin too. How great would it be to be a person who people are free around.
I love the idea, the concept, the passionate life that is lived when every moment is a prayer, where all of life is worship to God. How much time do we spend though talking about prayer, about worship, or about community vs. the time that we spend living it?
Prayer as breathing. Breathing God in and breathing out in to life, to the everyday, the people that you meet and the ones that you know. Prayer is so inclusive too. There are not lines of who is in and who is out, like there can be in a standard community, where there are usually rings of inclusion and levels of commitment.
Life as prayer, connecting to God, being with him. And as you live out of that place, the things in life take on importance in the proper proportions. Things that really do not matter, don't. And the things that break God's heart, (those things that we can ignore if we get distracted enough) work there way in to our hearts too, softening and tweaking and re-aligning til our hearts break at those things too. And the things that are joyful, are full of goodness and joy again too.
I met a man at work yesterday who told me that life was to short and that as his age, life could be over at any point. Life is too short to not have a personality he said. He was a character for sure and had great wisdom too. Just being ourselves and having that personality that is distinctly yours is so freeing to you and the people around too. And it frees you up to care about the other people around you too. Because, if you are comfortable in your own skin, others are comfortable to relax in their skin too. How great would it be to be a person who people are free around.
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