The Eyes Of An Artist

[---------------The Eyes Of An Artist---------------]

Nobody

            In the fall of 2009 I arrived on the campus of Central Bible College (CBC) for my first semester of undergraduate work. Although it was nearly three years ago now, it honestly feels more like 3 weeks ago. I can vividly remember stepping foot on the property on that first day. The first thing on the to-do list was finalizing registration.

            As my family and I walked across the campus towards the library for registration, my world stopped for about five seconds…1…2…3…4…5. I saw the girl of my dreams walking down the library steps with her family. She had blond hair, was wearing a black head-band, and had the most amazing smile I had ever seen. At that moment, on top of the fact that I was thinking, “she will be mine…oh yes…she will be mine” (yep…that was a Wayne’s World reference), I was also thinking, “Alright, lets get the boring stuff out of the way, I’m ready to start meeting people!”.

            Two days later I was all moved into my new dorm room and my parents had headed back home. The jitter and excitement that came with my first day on campus was beginning to wear off and classes were getting ready to start. As the week progressed and different groups of friends started to form, I had a pretty frustrating realization: “I literally have no friends here. I am a nobody”.  It was very depressing thought for me. One that I had never dealt with before.           

            As a few weeks passed, my mental state hadn’t really improved. The truth is, that I honestly thought that I was a nobody. I mean, back home I had lots of friends and I never really had weekends without things to do. Once I was at school, it was like I couldn’t get people to hang out with me if my life depended on it. I spent hours down in the gym shooting baskets by myself or sitting in my dorm room just waiting for something interesting to happen. I probably hit the refresh button on my Facebook more times in the first few weeks of college than I had in the past 2 years combined. Oh and that girl that I had seen by the library? Yea, she thought I was a total loser too. In fact, she wouldn’t even speak to me.

            So my first few weeks at CBC were miserable. I basically had no friends, no plans, and definitely no girl. I really felt like a nobody.

            Now let me ask you something, have you ever felt like you were a nobody?

The Artist

            About two weeks ago I was on a lunch-break and, due to the massive bank account of a church intern, I decided to head home and just cook lunch for myself. As I was winding along the road in forest-laden New England, something caught my eye. I was about half-way home and I noticed a man standing just off of the right shoulder of the road. There isn’t really anything abnormal about a man standing, but this guy wasn’t just standing –he was drawing.

            As I drove past him, I saw that he had an easel, some drawing utensils and the stance. You know what I’m talking about, that artist’s stance; the artist stands slightly tilted backwards with his or her head tilted sideways as their drawing hand floats over the paper as if directing a symphony. Well, this guy had it all, and it was obvious that he knew what he was doing. The only thing that confused me was the subject of his drawing. There was nothing special about the place he was standing –it was just a clearing in the trees. New England is covered in forests and trees and clearings, it just didn’t make sense. As I finished the drive home I just kept thinking, “what in the world could was that guy have been drawing? There was nothing there!”

            About an hour later as I was heading back to finish out the day at church, I came to the spot where the artist had been. And sure enough, he was still there. My curiosity instantly got the best of me as I pulled a U-turn and parked my car. As I got out of my car and walked up to the stranger, I felt like a total idiot. I mean, everyone knows not to interrupt an artist at work right? Well, I’m a little slow sometimes, so I did it anyway.

            “Excuse me, I don’t mean to be bother, but can I ask you what you are drawing?”

            For the next 15 minutes, “John, but they call me Pete”, explained to me that he was drawing ,“That large tree there, with the path leading up to the ridge”. As he explained his drawing, he told me that he had driven past that spot many times and that he had always wanted to do a sketch and do a painting of the tree, the path and ridge. The more we talked, the more interesting the landscape became. I started to see that common landscape as more of an uncommon masterpiece. “This spot has always caught my eye, I think it is beautiful”, he repeated.

            For the rest of the week I couldn’t stop thinking about that conversation and experience. And the aspect that really stuck out to me, was the fact that I had been driving past that same spot at least twice a day for the past 9 weeks, yet I saw no beauty or greatness. I didn’t see anything special in that landscape until John explained it to me. I always thought that I was good at picking up on places that looked cool or interesting but I was definitely proven wrong. After talking to John I started to see the tree, the path and the ridge from a whole new perspective. It was almost as if I was seeing this landscape through his eyes; The eyes of an artist.

The Least

            If we look in Judges 6-7, we get to see one of the greatest stories of underdog-triumph in the history of the world. At this point in history, Israel was under oppression from the Midianites and it seemed as if there was no end in sight. The Israelites were worshiping false gods and were wondering further and further away from the umbrella of God’s favor.

            For the next seven years, things remained awful for Israel under the Midianite oppression. However, God stepped in and called an apparently incapable man to do an apparently impossible task.

                  ¹²When the Angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”

            ¹³“But sir,” Gideon replied, “if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, ‘did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian.”

            ¹⁴The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of the Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”

            ¹⁵”But Lord”, Gideon asked, “how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”

            ¹⁶ The Lord answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together.”

            As you probably already know, God used Gideon and came through for Israel. In chapter seven, Gideon leads an army of only 300 men into the camp of thousands upon thousands of Midianites. Carrying nothing but pitchers, trumpets and torches, the Gideon-led Israelites defeated the massive army of Midianites and enjoyed 40 years of peace.¹

            One of the most interesting aspects of that story from Judges 6-7 is this: God used Gideon, a man who was the least or most unknown person in his family, to lead one of the greatest and most well-known battle charges in the history of the world. That is simply amazing! God used a nobody to do something huge for his country and for God’s kingdom! Or so it seemed.

            You see, the events of those chapters in Judges were a shock to Gideon, a shock to Israel and of course a shock to the defeated Midianites. However, none of the events or persons involved in that victory were a shock to God. When the angel of the Lord first addressed Gideon he even called him a “mighty warrior”. And later when God actually spoke to Gideon, He said “Go in the power that you have”. That statement alone insinuates that Gideon, this apparent nobody, had strength. It became obvious that God saw something great in a seemingly average man. Why? Because God has the eyes of an artist or should I say the divine artist!

The Divine Artist

            When I drove past that guy on the side of the road, I couldn’t figure out what he was trying to draw. Nothing looked special about that spot where he was. To me it just looked like a clearing in the trees. But I was missing something. See, I didn’t have the eyes of an artist like John did. With the eyes of an artist, the tree, path and ridge was a beautiful spot, but without them, it was just a clearing. Having the eyes of an artist gives a person an entirely fresh and interesting view of things. An artist sees things that normal people seem to overlook.

            After meeting John on the side of the road, I now look at that clearing with new vision. I drive past that spot at least twice a day, and I see it in a totally different way than I did the first 150 times that I saw it. I now look at the tree, path and ridge with the eyes of an artist. And I believe that is exactly how God looks at us.

            Just like John had the eyes of an artist and saw a beautiful tree, path and ridge, God has the eyes of the divine artist when he looks at his creation. God has the eyes of a divine artist when he looks at you and me. And sometimes it may feel like we are a nobody. Sometimes we may tell ourselves that we are a nobody. Sometimes other people may tell us that we are a nobody. But, guess what? God never looks at us as an insignificant being or as a nobody, because He created us. And just as an artist has the ability to see something spectacular in a landscape that a normal person would consider dull, God sees each and every one of us as spectacular and extraordinary.

            God has the eyes of the divine artist! And nothing great that we accomplish is a surprise to him because he sees the potential in us from day one; And God gives us the ability to live up to that potential. Gideon was “in the weakest clan” and was “the least in his house”, but God saw him as something greater and used him in a mighty way. And I believe that God wants to use you in mighty ways as well…even if you feel like the least, God wants to use you to do the most!

            So where are you at right now in your life? Do you ever feel a bit meaningless? Do you ever feel small and insignificant? Do you ever feel like you are just a nobody? Well if you do….Stop it! Because your creator is the same God who created the universe. He is the same artist who created the most beautiful landscapes in the world. He is the divine artist. And as the divine artist, he looks at you, His creation, with the eyes of the divine artist. He sees the potential in you and He has a great plan for you. The scriptures don’t say that we were “Cheaply made” the Bible says that we are “Wonderfully made” and that God’s works are “Wonderful”. ²

            To God, you are extraordinary!

                        To God, you are spectacular!

                                    To God, you are a masterpiece!

And I don’t know about you, but I would much rather be a masterpiece to the divine artist than a superstar to the people.

                                   

Peace

Love

God Bless

            Just for the record, I did end up getting the girl. We are still dating, and yes, I plan on taking her on dates for the rest of my life. At CBC I eventually got over the “I feel like a nobody” mindset, and I have had a great three years there! Nobody is ever truly a nobody because we are created by the divine artist and in the image of Him.³

Bibliography

            1. NIV Judges 6-7 

            2. NIV Psalm 139:14

            3. NIV Gen 1:27

The Lifespan of a Fruitcake

(--------The Lifespan of a Fruitcake--------)

            It was the spring of 1945 and World War II was in full swing. The western allies, lead by The United States, The British Commonwealth and The Soviet Union (known as the big three by FDR), were making great advances into German territory. Between the bloody battles, destroyed cities, and missing soldiers, this proved to be a very gruesome time in our world. In Fact, World War Two was the deadliest war in the history of the world.¹ From start to finish, there were over 60,000,000 (yes, you read that right; million) casualties in a span of less than 10 years.² Almost every country in the world was directly affected by this atrocity. And compared to the 15,000-20,000-year lifespan of our earth, this devastating loss of life happened in no more than the blink of an eye.³

                  In early March, 1945 there was a soldier named George Stout serving the U.S. Army in Europe. And although he was a soldier, Stout had a rather obscure title in the Army. He was the leader of the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives section (MFAA) of the Allied Forces. This branch of the military, invented in 1943, was basically a group of treasure hunters, which was in charge of tracking down all of the European treasures that had been stolen by the Nazis during the war. During Germany’s conquest through Europe, the Nazis had managed to plunder billions of dollars worth of treasure. This treasure contained items that ranged from priceless works of art to the most valuable flatware available. So, as an MFAA officer, George Stout was on an adventure of a lifetime (The WWII story of the MFAA is incredible and if you like history, go…now…research!). Now, in early March, Lieutenant Stout was transferred from U.S. First Army, which was fighting in Germany near the front lines, to U.S. Twelfth Army, which at that time was stationed in France. While transferring was a hassle, this wasn’t all bad for Stout.

            After Lieutenant Stout had been transferred away from the front end of the fighting in Germany, to the ally-occupied city of Verdun, France, his living conditions changed a bit. Stout was finally able to eat real meals and sleep on a mattress. He didn’t have to watch out for landmines with every step he took. He didn’t have to sleep in ditches or on concrete floors. After his transfer, Stout was even able to receive some mail from his wife and children whom he had not seen in over a year. It was a nice change of pace for him.

            On March 6, 1945 stout received a box of Christmas presents from his family (Only 71 days late, no big deal). In the Box, were several small gifts including a new pair of socks, his daughter’s handkerchief, a Christmas candle, and a fruitcake. And despite the fruitcake being over two months old, Stout downed it. “The cake was still good, moist and delicious”, said Stout. And he also had a very interesting thought that followed…

            “It is amazing how the world can change in the lifespan of a fruitcake.” ⁴

            That is a crazy thought! I mean, here you have a guy fighting in World War II, seeing crazy things every single day. In a mere 2 moths or in the lifespan of a fruitcake, Stout had seen the world around him change colors like a chameleon. Fellow soldiers were being killed, towns and cities were being turned to rubble, he and his fellow officers were discovering treasure and learning the escape routes of the Germans, he was being transferred from front lines to safe zones, transferred from sleeping in trenches to a place where he was sleeping in a bed. All of these things were happening simultaneously and repetitively in the lifespan of a fruitcake. and you know what? As strange as it sounds, I really feel like we can relate.

            I honestly think we can all relate to Lieutenant Stout in one way or another; our lives and our worlds are changing in crazy ways, all the time. I want you to think with me for a second about the last 71 days of your life. In that time span, has your world changed? Have there been some crazy things happen to you or your family? Did you get that new job you had been praying for? Did you lose that job that you needed? Did you fall in love? Did you fall out of Love? Have you made new commitments? Have you broken old ones? Have you made new friends? Have you made new enemies? Have the changes in the last two months been awesome? Have the changes in the last two months been awful?

            You see! Our world is constantly changing! Sometimes for the better, and other times, for the worse.

Now, is it just George Stout and I, or do you also agree?

                        It is amazing how the world can change in the lifespan of a fruitcake. 

            In a world that is ever changing, it gets easy to just expect things in our life to change. It becomes very natural for us to have no understanding of anything that is truly constant. I mean, yes there are some things that are constant, such as the earth revolving, and new humans being born everyday, people dying everyday, and things of that nature. But more frequently in our everyday lives and in our personal encounters, the only constant that we see, is change itself. And this can be a very demoralizing insight for many. And I have to admit, it is a bit depressing. and often times it actually hurts. When people are constantly changing or situations are constantly changing shape, it can hurt. When someone tells us that they love us one day, and then their actions show something totally different the next day, it can hurt. When someone makes a promise to us, and then that person breaks their promise due to changing circumstances, it hurts. Inconsistency and change can really hurt sometimes. But listen, no matter how crazy your life becomes, no matter how your world changes, don’t lose faith and don’t lose hope!

            I want you to remember something: Your creator is the God who is absolutely unchanging! He is the God who is absolutely faithful! He is the God who knows your name and who has a plan for your life!⁵ See, God is for you and He stays absolutely faithful even when your world is upside down!

            I love the way that James put it in his New Testament letter:

                        ¹⁷Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like the shifting shadows. ¹⁸He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of all he created⁶

            Yes, we may live in a world that is ever changing, but the God whom we serve, has been the same for more than 15,000 years! Just look at some of the Biblical examples of his faithfulness. In Genesis, God promised Abraham that his decedents would be more numerous than the stars. In Joshua, the Lord promised Joshua that he would give him the city of Jericho. In 2 Samuel, God promised David that his kingdom would endure and his throne would be established forever. In Jeremiah, God promised freedom for his people after their 70 years in exile. In Isaiah, God promised to send a child through a virgin whose name would be “God with us”. And the best part about all of these promises, is that every single one of them came true! God has made true on every promise that he has ever made! God has been faithful since the beginning of time! And just like God was faithful to his people 2,000 years ago, God will remain faithful to you in this day and age! God is faithful about being faithful!

            I don’t know what is going on in your life but just remember this: No matter what is going on in your world, your heavenly Father is the most faithful and constant being of all time and eternity! If God once made you a promise, prepare yourself, because He will make good on his promise! God isn’t in the business of making great promises and breaking them, God is in the business of making the best promises and keeping them! God will be your healer!⁷ God will be your provider!⁸ God will be your savior!⁹ All he wants in return, is the total commitment of your heart, your soul, your mind, and your strength!¹⁰ So no matter what the situation is, no matter what you are going through, remember that God is always going to be God!

            It truly is amazing how much our world can change in a small amount of time. In a matter of days, weeks or months. In the lifespan of a fruitcake everything can change. But no matter what changes happen. No matter what great things come our way. No matter what terrible things come our way. We can have faith and know that our God will remain the same, faithful God that He has always been; He is the same yesterday today and forever!¹¹ So be encouraged! Have some confidence in God and in his son Jesus Christ who gives you life! Despite the changes that have happened in the past lifespan of a fruitcake, God will remain!

Although we live in a world that is totally inconsistent, our God is the definition of total consistency!

Peace

Love

God Bless

            And for the record, lately I’ve been really tempted to bake a cake, put in a box and then eat it like two-and-a-half months later. I guess we’ll see.

For more information on the MFAA of WWII visit http://www.monumentsmen.com/

Bibliogrophy

1. Summerville, Donald. The complete Illustrated history of World War Two. 2008

2. White, Matthew. Necrometrics; The Historical Atlas of the 20^th century. Death tolls Across History

3. Interview Dr. George W. Westlake Jr.

4. Edsel, Robert M. Monuments Men. Center St Hachette Book Group, New York. 2009

5. Jeremiah 29

6. NIV James 1:17-18 

7.  Exodus 15:26

8. 1 Tim 6:17

9. Psalm 65:5

10. Heb 13:8

11. Mark 12:30

Off The Beaten Path

------------Off The Beaten Path------------

In 1 Samuel chapter 17 we get to look at one of the most well known stories in the history of the world, and it’s actually one of my very favorite chapters in the entire Bible. In chapter 17 we see the story of David and Goliath. Yea, I know, it’s a classic right? Well as this phenomenal story begins to unfold, we see David following the instructions of his father to go to the Israelite camp in the Valley of Elah and deliver food rations to his three older brothers, who were fighting in the battle. When David arrived in Elah, he became very curious of what was happening with the battle and (to his eldest brother Eliab’s chagrin) he started asking around the camp about Goliath. This caught the attention of King Saul’s men and eventually caught the attention of King Saul himself. As you may know, This eventually led to little, tiny, miniscule, puny David being sent by King Saul to the battlefield to fight the large, humongous, massively enormous giant named Goliath. And if you know the story, then you know that a few minutes after David was sent out to fight Goliath, the Philistines were running in terror as their warrior lay face down with a stone in his forehead. This was nothing short of a miracle from God, and to God be all the glory. However I think there is a key element in the success of David in this story that ,often times, goes overlooked. David did something that was quite out of the ordinary here, David ventured off the beaten path.

            About a month ago I took the train into Boston for the first time in my life and the first thing I wanted to do was find the North End and walk The Freedom Trail; which is a 2.5 mile trail through the city that is full of historic sights from the American Revolution. After about 30 minutes of getting lost on the streets of downtown, I finally found a brochure that contained a map of the city and I started to find my way around the North End. Exploring the Old North End of Boston (and specifically The Freedom Trail) was absolutely incredible. See, I am a bit of a history buff, so naturally I was about as stoked as a chubby kid in a donut shop (I used to be that chubby kid in the donut shop so I am allowed to say that). To be completely honest, there were several moments along the way that I recall getting the chills; and don’t worry, I totally understand if you think I am a nerd.  But, It was quite an amazing thought just knowing that I was standing in the same places and buildings where our founding fathers laid the cornerstones of our great nation. It was so awesome to finally see the sights that I have read about in my school history books for so many years. The Freedom Trail was just an overwhelming experience altogether.

            After several hours of exploring, my adventure was coming to a close. Just as I was about to head to the train station to catch the 7:35 back to Leominster where I am living, something caught my eye. Right before reaching the Old South Meeting House (Where Ben Franklin was baptized. Also where Phillis Wheatley, the first African-American author, attended church), there was a sign that hung in the alley way just off of Washington Street. The sign read “Commonwealth Books and Old Prints”, and although the voice in my head whispered, “Just stay on the main road, your train is leaving soon”, my curiosity quickly pushed that notion out of my head. About two minutes later I found myself stepping into a very interesting bookstore that brought back the “chubby kid in a donut shop” sensation that I had been feeling just a few hours prior. Inside the cramped bookstore, there were literally thousands of books, maps, documents and prints from generations past. Some of the books and prints were selling for several hundred dollars and had crazy intrinsic value, which to me, was even greater than the money value. One incredible piece that I found in the store, was a state document that had been signed and wax-sealed over two hundred years ago by the founder of Pennsylvania, William Penn. (I didn’t even want to ask the shop owner how expensive this item was.) Commonwealth was such a cool little shop full of so much history. I would say that this store is kind of a hidden treasure that lies just off the beaten path. And I’m not exactly sure if it was my love for history, or just because it was the only good book in my price range, but I did cop a nice little biography of George Washington to complete my nostalgic conquest. Overall it was a very cool experience that I will not forget.

            As soon as I walked out of the store and looked at the time, I realized there was absolutely no way that I would make the 7:35 train back to Leominster; Which meant I would have to wait an extra hour and fifteen minutes for the next one. Typically, I would have been upset with myself for messing up my own plans, but this was different. The experience in the bookstore was more than worth the missing the train because I found a shop full of historical treasures, which I otherwise would have missed out on. As simple as the bookstore might seem to most people, it was such an exhilarating experience for me. This ally-way bookstore put the icing on my “Boston experience” cake (the fat kid is coming out again). And the key here, was that I had to venture off the beaten path to have this experience. I decided to leave the comfort of Washington Street to check out that little store in the ally, and I ended up missing my train. Yet, I was surprisingly ok with it and happy about it. This is the same concept that can be true in our spiritual lives if we would just take a little risk, maybe a step of faith, and find our way off the beaten path.

            Sometimes we can find the greatest spiritual breakthroughs if we would just take a chance, venture off the beaten path of our lives and try something new in our walk with God. Maybe for you, that simply means attending church more consistently. It might mean spending a bit more time praying, or spending more time reading you Bible. It could mean setting aside time to call up an old friend and check on him or her. And I know this is a tough one, but It might even mean upping the ante on your tithes and offerings. Whatever off the beaten path may mean for you, chances are, that it will temporarily inconvenience you and it might even make you miss your 7:35 train. But when it’s all said and done, leaving the path will be worth the risk.

            Let me ask you a question, what if that kid named David, who took rations to his brothers on the battlefield, had just stuck to the plan and returned home immediately after dropping off the food? What if David never would have started asking around about the reward Goliath’s killer would receive? What if David didn’t let his curiosity get the best of him in this situation? What if David had stuck with the mapped out plan and not ventured off the beaten path? Chances are, Saul’s men would have never overheard David’s interest in fighting Goliath. David never would have been summoned by Saul. And David never would have been sent out by Saul to kill Goliath. A crazy thought right? Now, I’m sure David did have to change his schedule a bit for this situation. We know that David had to be away from his sheep for a few hours longer due to the fact that he was slaying a giant, but wouldn’t you say that it was worth it? David may have been temporarily inconvenienced and he may have missed his 7:35 train, but it was worth it. David had one of the greatest physical and spiritual breakthroughs in the history of his life, and possibly in the history of the world. It all started with him venturing off the beaten path. And I don’t know about you, but I would much rather miss my “7:35 train” than miss out on God’s plan for my life.

Peace

Love

God Bless

            A week after I wrote this, I was starting to feel like my idea to come to New England for the summer was maybe just a little too far off the beaten path. I was feeling kind of discouraged and I needed a refresher, so I decided to head into the city again on my next day off. During my exploring I found out that the old bookstore in the alley had a sister store; It was in the basement of the Old South Meeting House. So at the last minute I decided to go check it out. On my way out of the store, a book caught my eye. The book was sitting on top of a pile near the exit door. What was the title? Massachusetts: Off the Beaten Path. Maybe I am reading too much into it, but I have a feeling it was more than just a coincidence.

Destroy Your Bible

Destroy Your Bible

You want to know something that I think is really incredible? Well, even if you don’t want to know that bad, I’m still going to tell you. I think it is incredible how quickly we human beings can develop a new interest or hobby. I mean, just think about it for a moment. Sometimes all it takes is us seeing someone else do something that looks cool or interesting and within minutes we are on our cell phones, tablets, or computers dissecting Google to see just how possible that “new interest” would be for us to start pursuing. It is quite crazy how fast this cycle can launch us into a whole new world (I still think of Aladin every time I use that phrase). A world that can be filled with learning, practicing, going, telling, exploring, buying, selling, giving, or trading in ways that we have never done before. It truly is amazing how simple it is to pick up new interests in this day and age. For me however, almost as interesting as discovering new hobbies, is the challenge of rediscovering old ones.

            I love being reminded of something that I once enjoyed doing, but somehow lost along the roads and paths of my life journey. Well, about a month and a half ago I rediscovered one of my greatest passions: Reading. When I was in middle school and even once I got into high school, I really loved to read. Whether it was a history book or a Harry Potter book, I just enjoyed it. Eventually however, that changed. As I finished high school and started college, I began to hate reading. I’m guessing it had something to do with fact that most professors thought it would be cool to assign hundreds of pages of reading for each test (taking 5 classes that’s into the thousands). And most of them were books that I couldn’t even understand (which just pushed the knife in deeper). In April however, I rediscovered my love for a good read. I picked up the book The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson and finished that one pretty quickly. Since then I have read six more books ranging from topics such as Christian thought to Historical Biographies. I try to spend about two hours a day reading, and by next week I should have two more books done. I have just kind of been on a roll lately. Or so I thought.

            About a week ago I was on the phone with a girl and I was sharing all my new book knowledge with her. As we talked, I told her how much I have been learning through reading. I told her how many books I had gotten through this past month and about all the upcoming reads that I had planned for this month. I’m not going to lie, at this point I felt pretty cool, and honestly, I was trying to impress her just a tiny bit. So when I shared all of this new knowledge with her, I was expecting her to say something like, “wow, that is cool you must be getting smarter”. But again, I have to be honest, that didn’t happen. Not even close. In fact, this chick shot me down so fast that I barely had any hang-time. As soon as I told her about my reading, she said, “Oh cool…how much have you been reading your Bible?” It was basically game over at this point, because while I hadn’t been neglecting my devotions this past month, my Bible reading still wasn’t priority. And my Bible reading has to be my priority…period. Or should I say, our Bible reading has to be our priority…period?

            As I was growing up, my dad and I had some awesome times and we made thousands of memories. As soon as he would come home from work, we would go outside and play ball until it got dark. Whether it was baseball in the backyard, basketball in the driveway, or football in the street, we were always playing something and always making memories. Whether it was a broken finger, a sprained ankle, or a busted up knee, we were always making memories. Both good and bad. Both fun and upsetting. Making memories by playing ball is just what we did. But it’s kind of interesting that of all the memories that I have of my dad, there is one memory that has left an impression much deeper than any homerun, shot, touchdown or injury. The greatest memory that I have of my dad, is his Bible. He had a black, leather-bound Bible that was about an inch thick, and had his name printed on the front in gold lettering. It was a good-looking Bible, and the best part…it was trashed. The back spine of the bible was absolutely torn apart. The pages were practically falling out of it. He was constantly applying new layers of black electric tape to hold it together. That Bible was basically destroyed! That Bible was a hot mess! That Bible was tore up from the floor up! But that Bible was incredible. Why? Because the guy read it so much that it fell apart. Because he carried it so much that it was more than tattered. Because he studied it so much that it was basically destroyed. God’s word was obviously my dad’s priority.

            When I got off the phone last week (after bragging about my good reading habits) I immediately went over to my desk, picked up my nice, shiny Bible and just kind of looked at it. In my minds’ eye I could just see my dad’s old Bible sitting on his desk. As I looked back and forth between the mental picture of my dad’s Bible to the one in my hand, there was no comparison. None whatsoever. Mine looked like a 2012 Chevy Corvette and his looked like a 1994 Nissan Quest. And I can guarantee you that God would take the ’94 Quest over the 2012 Corvette any day. This immediately birthed a challenge in my heart. The thoughts just started to flood my mind, “I really need to make God’s word my priority, I seriously need to start reading the scripture more, I need more of the truth, I need to destroy my Bible!”. So that is exactly what I am trying to do. That is my latest personal challenge, to spend so much time reading my bible that I actually end up wearing it out and destroying my Bible! And like you probably guessed, that is my challenge to you...to us…lets destroy our Bibles!

            Now, (although I hope not) I know it might be tempting for you to just set your NIV in the driveway and run over it with your car, but that basically defeats the purpose. We aren’t going to destroy our Bibles just for the sake of doing it. Our ultimate goal is a deeper relationship with the creator of the universe and His son Jesus. But if we are seeking God the way that we should, destruction is inevitable. But please be encouraged, because in this context, destruction brings production. If we spend so much time in God’s word that our Bibles fall apart, it will produce a relationship with Christ that is stronger than anything we have felt before.

            We as a family eventually did get my dad a new Bible for his birthday, and it was just like his old one. Black leather, with the gold letters and about an inch thick…and in a few months, it really looked like his old one…it was destroyed! And that is exactly the kind of bible that I want to have. That is the kind of Bible that we should all have. One that is destroyed!

            Now that I have talked a lot about reading God’s word, this is the spot that I would typically include scripture, but this post is different. See, this is where our challenge begins; this is where the destruction of our Bibles really starts. The first assignment: Psalm 119. Even if you have already read this Psalm, take 15 minutes, open your bible and start your destruction there. This is an incredible Psalm on the importance of learning God’s word! So lets go…lets destroy our Bibles!!

Peace

Love

God Bless

            Oh and one more thing, I’m sure some of you, like myself, use electronic Bibles quite a bit. Something I have been discovering lately is that when I use a physical Bible, it helps me focus, it forces me to really get alone with God, and it builds confidence because I can see the progress I’m making from chapter to chapter. Just try it!

The Little Things

The Little Things

Paul Martin: “Hey man, I figured out what your first assignment is going to be when you get here!”

Me: “Oh yea! And what’s that?”

Paul Martin: “Well… we have 3,000 American flags that we are going to plant in the front yard of our church building in two weeks. You are going to assemble a team of volunteers, come up with a strategy, and get them all planted….oh and I want them to spell out a word…a word that has something to do with memorial day….can you do it?”

Me: “psh, no problem, I got this”

            That was the last conversation that I had with Pastor Paul Martin before driving half-way across the country for my ministerial internship at New Life Church in Leominster, Massachusetts. And right now, I am going to be brutally honest with you. When I said, “ yea, I got this”, what I was actually wanting to say was, “Yo, are you nuts man?...No I can’t do that!, I’m training to become a pastor, not a landscaper”. But somehow, I just didn’t have the…guts, to say how I really felt. So naturally, I did what any overconfident 21 year-old would do. “Daaad…?..Daaaaaaad…?...I need help!” I felt like I was back in 4th grade asking my dad to help me with my math homework. I was just lost. Nevertheless, I knew that eventually I would have to figure this one out on my own and just try my best. And honestly, 3,000 flags isn’t too bad right?

One week later

Paul Martin: “Hey Austin! So glad that you are here, can’t wait to get this thing started! How was the trip?”

Me: Hey! “The trip was nice, but I never want to drive through Pennsylvania again haha!”

Paul Martin: “Yea, that is a gross drive for sure. So did you hear that we decided not to put out the 3,000 flags?”

Me: “No way! Seriously? (At this point I was ecstatic)”

Paul Martin: “Yea…we decided we should plant 6,280 flags instead.”

Me: “wait, is this a joke?”

Paul Martin: No way man, I’m serious. We will plant one for every soldier who has fallen in the Iraq and Afghanistan war. Can you get it done?”

Me: “yea…umm…sure thing….yea, I got this!”

            Ok, at this point, the only things that I wanted were my blankly and my mommy; and maybe my stuffed bear if mom could find it. The bottom line was, I was scared out of my mind. I tried to play it cool like I had everything under control, but once again, my, “yea, I got this”, should have been translated as “oh dear God, I’m in huge trouble”. I was 1,400 miles away from home, I didn’t know anybody, I had never done any kind of landscaping job in my life (not even the simple decorative kind). And I had certainly never used 6,280 American flags to display a patriotic message in a church lawn. And conveniently enough, the church sits on Main Street in Leominster and has 22,000 cars driving past it on an average day. Translation: This project needed to look perfect because the whole city would be seeing it!

            As the “project day” drew nearer, I became more and more nervous. I was stressed, a bit frustrated and losing sleep over this looming task. Between pastor Mike Maleto, Pastor Paul Martin and myself, we had somewhat mapped out the logistics of the project, however it was still up to me to get the team of volunteers and execute the plan. I honestly thought to myself, “there is no way I can do this”. I had to just face the facts: we were a few days from project day, we had almost 6,300 flags to plant, it had to display a one-word Memorial Day message, and I only had three guaranteed volunteers? Awesome! My recruiting skills were looking worse than the Kansas City Chiefs football team up to this point, which is just terrible by the way. So I started to get desperate. And in my desperation, I started to pray. When I started to pray, I actually felt kind of foolish. Here I was asking the God of the universe (who looks after more than seven billion people daily) to send me helpers to plant American flags in the grass. Seems a bit selfish right? Well, I had nothing to lose so I gave it a shot. And God, like he often does, shot back.

            Three days, one 16-foot tall word (“Remember”), 20 volunteers, and 6,280 American flags later, our little (or should I say “ridiculously massive”) project was completed, and adorning the front page of the local newspaper. Now, I don’t like to over-spiritualize situations, but I can honestly say that this was a God thing! I prayed that God would send the right volunteers with the right imaginations to get this project off of the paper and on to the grass. And that is exactly what He did. One guy named Paul showed up with a massive tape measure that stretched from end to end of the lawn, another guy named Dennis showed up with large spool of string which we stretched across the whole lawn for strait line boundaries, and one guy even brought pitchers of fruit punch and iced-water to keep us hydrated (I nearly bowed to him as he pulled a stack of cups out of his pocket). It was just awesome to see people, whom I had never even met or spoken to, show up to help with this project. I know that it was the provision of God. And to be real with you, I felt like a dummy for having such little faith during the whole process.

            I should have known that God would work it out. But that is just how we are isn’t it? Many times we think that God is too busy being Superman and saving the world to actually show up when we have a seemingly small need. The Great thing about God however, is that, unlike superman, He can be in every place at every time on every day. And he has the ability to move in every situation if he so pleases. One of my favorite examples of this dimension of God’s character comes out of 2 Kings chapter 6.

 1The company of the prophets said to Elisha, “Look, the place where we meet with you is too small for us. 2Let us go to the Jordan, where each of us can get a pole; and let us build a place there for us to live.”

And he said, “Go.”

3Then one of them said, “Won’t you please come with your servants?”

“I will,” Elisha replied. 4And he went with them.

They went to the Jordan and began to cut down trees. 5As one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron axhead fell into the water. “Oh, my lord,” he cried out, “it was borrowed!”

6The man of God asked, “Where did it fall?” When he showed him the place, Elisha cut a stick and threw it there, and made the iron float. 7“Lift it out,” he said. Then the man reached out his hand and took it.

            See, God didn’t have to use Elisha and retrieve that Axe out of the water. That was just a petty need that seemed so small in the grand scheme of things. Still yet, retrieving the axe was important to that man who dropped it, therefore it was important to God. And God decided to work on his behalf, even in this small matter. You see, God cares about the little things! For me, both the experience that I had with the flag project and this passage, have opened my eyes to the fact that God cares about the little things (my mom has been trying to tell me this for years by the way). Many times it seems like we don’t ask for God’s favor or miraculous work in a situation because we don’t want to bother him, but guess what, that bothers him. I believe that our non-requestive spirit often bothers God. It seems that God desperately wants us to take every need to him, no matter how small, wouldn’t you agree?. In Matthew chapter seven, Jesus said, “Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be open to you”. Our God cares about the little things, but how often do we fail to ask him? God will act in our favor, according to his will…but first, we have to bring the situation to His feet. Even when we feel awkward about it. We have to lay the needs down, even when it feels a bit foolish, or petty, or even selfish. We have to remember that God cares about the little things even when He has big things on his plate!

Peace

Love

God Bless

            Now that the “Remember” flag project is completed, I can say that I am truly blessed to have been a part of it! Shout out to Pastor Paul Martin for dreaming up this project and believing that I could lead it! He taught me the true meaning of the Matthew 9:38 instruction! Shout out to all the volunteers from New Life Church who helped make it possible! And Shout out to God who signed, sealed, and delivered the entire project!

Discovery!

Discovery!

As I’m writing this, I am sitting in the upstairs bedroom of a 300 year-old home in Leominster, Massachusetts, which is just outside of Boston. Leominster will be my home for twelve weeks as I complete a pastoral internship at New Life Church. So far, my experience here has been very educational and I have been very busy (in a good way) working with the staff and church. Most of the tasks that I have had to perform and events that I have had to be involved with have taught me a lot about how a professional workplace operates. I have also had to meet a lot of new people and remember a lot of new names. I have a handful of new surface level friends that I am sure will develop into great friendships over the summer. However, there is someone here with me whom I have already gotten to know very well over the past two weeks. That person is….me. (A bit ironic right?) In the midst of meeting new people and trying to make new friends, I have actually gotten to know Austin Westlake better than ever. To be completely honest, I have learned more about myself in the past two weeks, than I have learned in the past two years combined. I have learned that I love to read, I have learned that I love to explore, I have learned that I love hot coffee in the mornings and iced-coffee in the afternoons (also learned, “the hard way”, that too much coffee makes me sick), I have learned that I love silence almost as much as I love music, I have learned that I like to wake up before 7:30 every day,  and finally I have learned that when I am exploring a new place, I don’t like to stop for food, I would rather just skip the meal altogether.

            The past two weeks have been full of new self-discoveries for me, and it has truly been a cool experience. There is a key ingredient however, that has made this“season of self-discovery” possible. That ingredient has been alone time. Since I have arrived in Massachusetts, I have spent more time alone than in any other two-week period of my life. (I am a very strong “people person”, I thrive off of relationships. So, for me, alone time is a foreign concept.) On two occasions I have explored the 4.5 million person-city of Boston all alone, I have taken the ferry between New York and Connecticut alone, I have spent hours alone on the back porch of this house reading, I have spent hours on the train between Leominster and Downtown Boston alone. I have spent plenty of car rides alone, getting lost on these windy New England roads. And to top it all off, my cell-phone service is absolutely terrible out here, so trying to make phone calls is basically a failure (foul play on AT&T). The bottom line is, I have had a ridiculous amount of alone time…and to my surprise, it has been awesome! Although not as great as having other people around, I have gained a friend in myself that I honestly didn’t even know I had. Austin Westlake and I are genuinely becoming homeboys.

            So as all of these thoughts of self-discovery started to swirl around in my brain,I noticed that I also started to realize a different discovery in my life. A more significant kind of discovery; a God Discovery!  This concept of God Discovery is basically self-explanatory;it is when we, as people, make a new discovery about God and our relationship with Him. So then let me ask you a question, when was the last time you made a God Discovery? When was the last time you learned something new about your relationship with God? When was the last time you had a spiritual breakthrough? When was the last time you felt like you were in His presence rather than in this world? Until recently, for me, it had been too long since I learned something new about our creator. It had been too long since I learned something about my relationship with Him. It had been too long since I made a God Discovery!

            Now that begs the question, “how on earth do we make a God Discovery?” Yes, you probably guessed it. We can make God Discoveries in the same exact way that we make self-discoveries. By getting alone. By spending some time getting to know our creator. By setting aside quality alone time with God almighty. In Psalm 91:1 the statement is clear, “He that dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide in the shadow of the almighty”. And I believe that in the shadow of the Almighty, we get to know the Almighty. And in getting to know the Almighty, we make our greatest God Discoveries! So let this be a challenge to you. A challenge to get alone. A challenge to start spending some one-on-one time with God. A challenge to put the cell-phone down for a few minutes (this one is tough for me. I wish God could just shoot me a text) and give God the time he deserves. Pull out your Bible and read a chapter, talk to God, read some Christian literature, just give Him some quality time (Quality time is definitely God’s love language, but that is a whole other topic). When we give God that alone time, He will give us ridiculous God Discoveries! I mean, look at Moses. The guy walked up a mountain to get alone with God and he came back down with the 10 Commandments. That sounds pretty ridiculous to me…ridiculously cool though!

Now is the time!

            Get alone with God!

                        Start making discoveries!

           

                       

Peace

Love

God Bless

            

Just Do It!

            Let me start off this week’s discussion by asking you a question. Have you ever been asked to do something that you just didn’t think you were capable of doing? Has there ever been a time when you were about to attempt a job or task that was assigned to you, and you literally told yourself, “there is absolutely no way this is going to happen, I can’t do this!”? I would be willing to bet that we have all had some of those, “I can’t do this”, kind of moments. I can remember one specific situation back in high school when I had a huge “I can’t do this” moment. The year was 2006 and I was at a youth service at Sheffield Family Life Center on a Wednesday night. As the night wore on and the service ended, my youth pastor, Kevin Brown, approached me and started conversation. “Hey, Austin…are you going to be here over the next couple of weeks?”, I figured he was just wondering so I said, “Yea man! Why? What’s going on?”. Well, he wasn’t just wondering, he had a proposition. Pastor Kevin quickly said, “Do you want to preach in service two weeks from now?”. Now, most 16 year-olds would have at least thought it over before answering the question. However, as you may know, I was not (and still am not) always the sharpest tool in the shed, so naturally I responded right away with, “Sure, I’ll do it”. Well, about two minutes after the conversation ended, the weight of the agreement I had just made started to hit me in the chest like a 100-pound dumbbell. I thought to myself, “Hold on, did I just agree to preach?...are you kidding?”.  I seriously doubted myself, and honestly I doubted God as well. You see, my youth pastor asked me to preach in the physical, but I honestly believe that God was using my youth pastor to push me forward in a spiritual sense. God was pushing me to start pursuing my calling.  Meanwhile, in my doubt, I honestly said, “Wait, what am I thinking, I can’t preach to 120 of my friends. There is no way I can do it, I am not qualified for this!”. However, God was working in this situation and was teaching me this lesson: With God, Qualification means nothing, because He is the only qualification we need…Period.

One of the greatest examples of this concept comes out of the Bible in Jeremiah 1:5-10

5“Before I formed you in the womb I knew^a you,before you were born I set you apart;I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” 6“Ah, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am only a child.” 7But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a child.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. 8Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord. 9Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “Now, I have put my words in your mouth. 10See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”

            You see, despite Jeremiah’s fear, doubt, and lack of qualification, God used him to speak to an entire nation on the Lord’s behalf. That is a pretty cool thing to think about. Just before Jeremiah was used by God, he was telling Him that he couldn’t do what the Lord was asking. Jeremiah was basically saying, “God, seriously man, you got the wrong guy”. Still yet, God used him mightily! And as we look at that situation, we need to remember this: God can use anybody to do anything in anyplace at anytime!

            Two weeks after I agreed to speak in youth group I preached my first sermon on a Wednesday night from Galatians chapter five. Now, I’ll be the first to admit that it was probably awful because it was my first ever sermon and I was shaking scared. I think I might have even peed a little…ok the pee part is false (haha). Nevertheless God used me, and He has used me to preach almost 25 times since then. Which is far more than I ever thought I was capable of, and far more than I originally planned on. But that is one of the great attributes of God; He really can use anybody! God used a shepherd boy named David to kill a giant and become the greatest king in world history, God used a self- conscious, stuttering man named Moses to lead Israel out of slavery, God used a young man named Jeremiah to be His mouthpiece to Israel, and God used a young virgin women named Mary to carry the King of Kings in her womb! Incredible!

            Even in my own life God has been using me more than I ever thought possible, and if He can use me with my non-intellectual mind, he can seriously use anybody. Trust me on that! Regardless of qualifications, God can and will use us! So if we feel that God is calling us to do something that might freak us out, or put a lot of pressure and stress on us, lets readily accept the challenge and…Just Do It!  One of the most well known catchphrases, from one of the most well known clothing companies in recent history, is simply that, Just Do It! This phrase, Just Do It, is almost always applied to sports, but why not apply it to our spiritual lives as well.  If God gives us orders, lets Just Do It! If God gives us instructions, lets Just Do It! If God gives us a vision or a goal, lets Just Do It! No matter how unqualified or inexperienced we may feel, we can have faith and know that God will use us regardless. Some of the greatest things in history were done by some of the least qualified people! And how did they do it.? God gave them a task and they decided to Just Do It! So lets hear his directive to us, and lets Just Do It!

Peace

Love

God Bless