Lessons From Mere Christianity: Help From Others

Here is a post from my series called "Lessons From Mere Christianity."

In our lives, it can sometimes be difficult to recognize the work of God in our life, and the ways that He is affecting us, as it is often disguised. One of those ways is through the help of others. We may see it as simply being helped by another human being, but we must always remember that it is God working through that person (in the same way that He works through us). CS Lewis writes:

"If there were no help from Christ, there would be no help from other human beings. He works on us in all sorts of ways, not only through what we think our 'religious life.'" (190)

Another thing that is clear to me from reading this is that we need to seek the advice and friendship of others, especially those that are like-minded in the faith. This is essential for a healthy faith.

It seems to me as if many people see faith and religion as a very personal, private thing. On the one hand, this is quite right. If you do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and a personal devotion, than you don't really have a faith. An aspect of faith is very personal, there is no doubt about that.

On the other hand, this way of thinking is very wrong indeed. If Christ is present in all of us (and I believe He is, and He told us as much), then the last thing we should do is thing of religion as a private, personal thing. We have much to learn from others, we have much to share, much to live. We can be helped by others in our faith journey, and certainly we have the power to help others in theirs.

Turning to others for help and support is still turning to God for help and support, because God puts those types of people in our lives for this very reason. Never think that turning toward a friend is turning your back on God, indeed, it is quite the opposite.

Pray For Guidance and Give Thanks For Your Blessings Every Day

The final point in John Wooden's father's rules for living is to pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day.

In a manner of speaking, I see this as encompassing all of the other rules. Simply put, if you are not praying for guidance and you are not thankful for the many blessings in your life, it will be difficult to really carry out any of the other six rules. It is imperative to recognize where our guidance comes from, and pray for more wisdom to live good lives.

Giving thanks for the many blessings in our life allows us to see all of the good things that we have, and all of the beauty that is around us. Being able to recognize everything that has been given to us and to give thanks for all of that might be the single biggest thing we can do to help lead us to living happy lives. It allows us to remain optimistic and always try to see the bright side of things, because if we are constantly giving thanks we know that bad times shall pass, and that the world is ultimately good.

Giving thanks will allow us to see that all things have a purpose. Every bad thing happens for a reason, even if it is impossible to see of imagine at the time. Every challenge is an opportunity. This type of positive attitude and outlook is vital for our happiness.

I will end with a quote from Mother Teresa, who had a view on suffering and a devotion to living out this exact principle that is almost unparalleled. In the book "Come Be My Light," she is quoted:

"Now I really rejoice when something does not go as I wish - because I see that He wants our trust - that is why in the loss let us praise God as if we have got everything." (24)

Build a Shelter Against a Rainy Day

The sixth point on John Wooden's father's rules for living is to build a shelter against a rainy day.

As an accountant by trade, I look at this from a financial point of view. For many people, money is a huge stressor in life. There are many reasons for this, most notably (in my mind) because there is a warped sense of wants and needs. People want things, but they think they need them, and so they buy them even if they cannot afford them. This generally causes them to get into financial trouble, as suddenly they don't have money to pay the regular bills, they put things on credit cards, and payments become higher and higher. This stresses them out.

I could probably talk all day about this stuff, but I won't. Instead, I will focus on what I believe this rule is talking about. It is very important for your financial well-being to set money aside just in case of an emergency, or if anything else happens. It is no fun to save money or set money aside "just in case" something happens, but you will thank yourself for it if you need it. The best way to do this to recognize the things that you truly need as opposed to what you merely want, and limit those things.

You might find it funny that I would talk about money on a site like this, but it's not really. For most people, if they are worried about money or how they are going to pay their bills, they are not going to be able to live happy, fulfilling lives. Keeping your financial house in order is very important to living a happy life, but it allows you to take your mind higher and focus on the things that are truly important.

Make Friendship a Fine Art

The fifth point in John Wooden's father's list of rules for living is to make friendship a fine art.

Being a friend is a difficult thing, particularly being a good friend. Being a good friend does not mean being a friend only when it is convenient, but when it is inconvenient. It means helping your friends and being there for them when they need it, even if that is not a good time for you, even if you have other things on your plate.

Being a good friend means cultivating friendships and growing them even when you are not together. It means being interested in the lives of others and loving them, and caring for their well-being. For me, it is sometimes hard to keep in great contact with a lot of people when I am away from them because I hate talking on the phone, but sometimes that is necessary to be a good friend. Personally, I have a lot of friends with whom I haven't seen or talked to for quite a while (years, even) but I knew that if I saw them we would have a great time together.

However, making friendship a fine art means keeping tabs on them, showing them that you care about them, and doing anything you can to help them. It means being there for them in a moment's notice, and knowing when they need help (even if they don't say it). These are the things involved in making friendship a fine art.

"The only way to have a friend is to be one." - Henry David Thoreau

Another important thing about friendship is that you are always looking out and want the best for the other person. This does not always mean being comfortable, or telling them what they want to hear, but telling them and showing them what you truly think is best for their life, even if they don't want to hear it. It might be tough, but that is what being a good friend is for. Sometimes we have to hear things we don't want to hear to become better people, and if you are the type of friend that can be the ones to say it, then bravo, because are on your way to making friendship a fine art. I can't remember where I found this quote, but we should all strive to be the type of friend talked about here:

"The man, who, being really on the Way, falls upon hard times in the world will not, as a consquence, turn to that friend who offers him refuge and comfort and encourages his old self to survive. Rather, he will seek out someone who will faithfully and inexorably help him to risk himself, so that he may endure the suffering and pass courageously through it. Only to the extent that man express himself over and over again to annihilation, can that which is indestructible arise within him. In this lies the dignity of daring."

Let us all strive to be the type of friend that will not push others toward safety and comfort, but rather towards someone who is not afraid to take risks and fail, knowing that that is what will help us grow as people.

Drink Deeply in Good Books

The fourth point in John Wooden's father's list of rules for living is to "drink deeply in good books."

I find that a good many people read books only when they need to (for classes, etc), and sometimes not even then. That is really too bad, but in part a byproduct of our society (for most people, reading doesn't provide the type of immediate entertainment that something like TV would have). However, you should make a point of reading!

For one, it will challenge your mind and make you smarter. The quickest way to expand your vocabulary is not to study the dictionary, but to read books. Certainly the better your vocabulary, the better off you will be, if only because then you will be able to understand and communicate with others better. Reading will also help you improve your writing, and it would benefit just about everybody to be better at writing.

Reading can also open you up to new ideas, concepts, and ways of thinking. It can provide points of view that you might never have thought of, or it can provide a new insight into something you could never quite grasp. Spiritually, books regularly inspire me to be a better person, to understand my faith better, to give me new ways of thinking about how to live my life to be a better person. If it weren't for books certainly I would not be the person that I am today, they have helped shaped my character, and I am certain I am far from alone in that respect.

You can get a book on basically any subject and increase your knowledge of it. You can open your mind to new cultures and other ways that people live their lives, which will help you understand others and love them better. Reading is also a great source of entertainment. If you are cash strapped and complain that you have nothing to do... get a library card and head to your branch of the local library. If you can't find one book on a topic that would interest you, I would suggest you are not looking hard enough.

Read books! Often, on many different topics. You will become a better person for it.

As a bonus, on the importance of returning your books to the library... an inspiring scene from Seinfeld involving Lt. Bookman :)

Help Others

The third point in John Wooden's father's list of rules for living is to help others.

It seems a bit overly simplistic, but a life with set to help others and be of service to others is going to be one worth living. There are many reasons for this. The first is that it will help and deepen all of our relationships, which will (generally speaking) make us happier people and love life more.

On one hand, the fact that we are looking to help others will take the focus off of ourselves, and allow us to grow in virtue without even realizing it. It is a little known fact, but... when we stop worrying about our own happiness and well-being but instead focus on the happiness and well-being of others, we often find that we bring them happiness and get our own happiness thrown in. It is like the saying, we get more people interested in us when we are sincerely interested in others... we generally do not find our own happiness when we are looking for it, but rather when we are helping others.

Another perk of helping others and being of service to them is that it often gets paid back to you. If you are known to help others, when you are in a pinch or need some help, there will often be others there to help. Building those relationships based on loving others results in everyone being willing to help everyone else. Of course, this should never be the point of helping others (you shouldn't do a favor for someone so that they OWE you something, but rather because you want to do them a favor with no ulterior motive), but when you live a life to help others, you will be rewarded for that, either in this life or the next.

Make Each Day Your Masterpiece

This is second on the list of John Wooden's father's list of rules for living, and it's one of my favorite points on the list.

Often I feel we all fall into the drudgery of day to day life. We wake up, go to work, come home, eat dinner, do something for a minute, and go to bed ready to the same thing the next day. That is not bad in and of itself, but sometimes our attitude about it is.

We need to seek to live each day to the fullest, to have things to look forward to everyday, and to not take things for granted. Live a life with purpose, knowing what your goals and dreams are, and working hard to achieve them. Do not neglect tasks or friends, but seem to make your life fulfilling, and for each day to have meaning, to make each day better than the day before it.

Many people simply find life boring, in part because they might not see the beauty and the spectacular-ness (note: that might not actually be a word... I report, you decide) of everything. There are amazing things all around us, but we don't always look hard enough, or even care to look in the first place.

Making each day your masterpiece means seeking out the great and wonderful things in life, and then really focusing on them and cherishing them. Sure, there are always going to be mundane things that need to be done on a daily basis, life needs a foundation after all, but that doesn't mean that things have to be boring.

"How much larger your life would be if your self could become smaller in it; if you could really look at other men with common curiosity and pleasure; if you could see them walking as they are in their sunny selfishness and virile indifference! You would begin to be interested in them, because they were not interested in you. You would break out of this tiny and tawdry theatre in which your own little plot is always being played, and you would find yourself under a freer sky, in a street full of splendid strangers." - GK Chesterton

Wake up each day with a purpose, thankful that you are alive, knowing that the life you dream of is always within your grasp, if you are only willing to reach for it.

Be True To Yourself

As I talked about, this is the first on the list of John Wooden's father's rules for living. But what does it mean?

I think people have a tendency (myself most definitely included) to do things or be somebody that they think other people will like, even if goes against what they believe in or what they really are. The most obvious example of this, or the way to understand it most easily, I believe, would be to think about peer pressure.

When people think of peer pressure, they think about hypothetical situations that usually involve high school, alcohol, or drugs. But of course peer pressure goes much more deeply than that, and is usually in your life no matter your age or social situation.

For example, I once read something called "50 questions that will free your mind," which are essentially just 50 questions designed to make you think about your life and the person that you are. One of the questions asks:

"You’re having lunch with three people you respect and admire. They all start criticizing a close friend of yours, not knowing she is your friend. The criticism is distasteful and unjustified. What do you do?"

This is peer pressure. In reality, most people would just go along with it, or at the very least not stick up for the friend. If you are being true to yourself, you will stand up for what you believe in (that the criticism is distasteful and unjustified), even if makes things a little awkward, or even if those three people have a lower opinion of you.

To be true to yourself means to stick up for the things you believe in, to believe in your dreams and seek to make them a reality. When we do these things, we become the people we were made to be, and live happy and fulfilling lives.

I'll end with two quotes... one of which you have definitely heard before, and another which you may have:

"It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are" - e.e. cummings

"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." - Dr. Seuss

John Wooden's Father's Seven Rules For Living

In John Wooden's last book, "A Game Plan for Life: The Power of Mentoring," he talked about 7 rules that his father had, or rather 7 things that he tried to live by. They were:

1. Be true to yourself
2. Make each day your masterpiece
3. Help others
4. Drink deeply in good books
5. Make friendship a fine art
6. Build a shelter against a rainy day
7. Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day

I thought this was a great list and really would have a positive impact on anyone if they were able to live all of these things out. I was going to write very briefly about each point, but I thought it would be fun to make each one into a post, because the things are just that good!

Stay tuned!

P.S. For a slightly more thorough look at other advice or quotes from John Wooden as relating to his father, check out All Financial Matters.

Scripture Sunday: Matthew 14: 27-29

Every Sunday on this site I will take some time to look at a passage from the Bible that I like and think is great... though they could obviously be presented by themselves without further mention, I will throw my two cents in on what the verse(s) mean to me.

The Walking on Water is one of the most well-known Bible passages alike... even those that have never picked up a Bible in their entire life know that Jesus walked on water, or at least they know the Bible tells us so. But I want to focus on another part of that passage.

(27) At once Jesus spoke to them, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid." (28) Peter said to him in reply, "Lord, if it is you command me to come to you on the water." (29) He said, "Come." Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus.

We always think about the miracle of Jesus walking on water, but stop to think about the courage and faith that Peter must have had to step out of the boat. All of the disciples were terrified of what they saw, but Peter asks if he can join Jesus. Instead of wondering how Jesus is doing it, he knows that if it is truly Jesus, then he will be able to walk on water too.

Another thing about that passage to understand is that a storm was going on throughout it, or at least very strong winds. It was not even a nice, clear afternoon, but rather a windy night. If I was one of the disciples, I probably would have thought Peter crazy for stepping out of that boat. But what courage that had to have taken.

There is certainly many lessons to be learned from Peter in this passage. With the Lord at our side, there is no impossible task. I would suggest that even now, if we had the faith of Peter, we could walk on water (after all, if we had faith the size of a mustard seed we would be able to move mountains). Sometimes all the Lord asks is the courage to walk out of the boat, He will take care of the rest (when Peter began to sink, it is Jesus who stretched out His hand to catch him). The Lord is there when we fall, He will catch us.

When Jesus asks us to perform some task we think to be impossible and do not know if we can do, will we too have the courage to step out of the boat?

Lessons From Mere Christianity: Judging Others

This is a post from my series called "Lessons From Mere Christianity."

From my experience and from my own life, it is very easy to fall into the habit of judging others. For me, whenever I see someone do something wrong, or do something that I disapprove of, or even say something that I disapprove of (such as the f word!), my first reaction is to judge them, and I have to work really hard not to.

We are told specifically not to judge, lest we be judged. CS Lewis gives us one reason why we need to follow this rule:

"That is why Christians are told not to judge. We see only the result;s which a man's choices make out of his raw material. But God does not judge him on the raw material at all, but on what he has done with it." (91)

When we judge others, we judge them as if everyone has had the same upbringing and the same experiences as we have had. That is not the case. We do not know what they have gone through, and Lewis says this is just another reason why we should not judge them.

Now, you may think I am slowly broaching relativism, but I assure you this is not the case. A bad thing is a bad thing is a bad thing - however, it is senseless, counterproductive, and unholy to judge the person for the bad thing they are doing. As the saying goes, hate the sin but love the sinner.

When we judge someone, we do not love them. Indeed, think of someone that made a bad first impression, and you instantly judged them based on that. How hard is it for you to change that first impression that you have? By judging, we do not even really give them a chance.

Be on guard. It is so easy to judge someone in your mind, you must actively fight it and pray for the ability not to judge. If you are able to reach that point, to not judge and simply love others as they are, then how much more joyful our lives would be and how much more we could lift up those around us.

New Year's Resolutions

We are rapidly approaching 2011, which makes me feel pretty old! Holy smokes, where does the time go! A lot of people set New Year's resolutions at the start of each year, a tradition I think this is kind of funny but ultimately good.

It is funny because for most people it is an exercising of increased dieting or exercising for a week or two (maybe even a month!) before they drop off back to their old habits. I would guess this is the common New Year's resolution result.

The other thing that is funny to me, or maybe this is a reason why these things are rarely successful... if you decide you are going to exercise or diet more, why not start today? What is wrong with starting right now? Chances are, if someone's attitude is something like, "I am going to have my fun now, but when New Year's comes around I am going to get to the gym every day," then they are probably not going to be successful. They are not really committed to the goal (if they were, they would start right away), but more like it's something they feel they ought to do, and if you have that feeling without really being committed, it will fizzle.

On the other hand, New Year's resolutions are good because it is really important, I think, to set goals. And not only to set goals, but to actually be committed to achieving them. Having goals gives us a better sense of purpose, makes us more driven, and actually more lends us to accomplish things. We should make specific goals and detail how we are going to achieve them. For myself, I usually have a big list of goals that I want to accomplish for the year... and between you and me, I am not always the best at following through on all of them, but having those goals really helps me to focus.

So I guess my major point (if there is one) is that it is important and good to set goals and actually be committed and have a plan to achieve them! New Year's Resolutions can be a good way to do that, though generally people aren't always committed to them enough to see them through. But goals can be an important way to achieve our dreams and make us into the people we want to be!

What are you devoted to?

From the oft-read book “Tuesdays with Morrie,” there is a paragraph I really enjoy:

"So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half asleep, even when they’re doing things they think are important. This is because they’re chasing the wrong things. They way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to the community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning." (43)

I think this accurately describes far too many people in our society, myself included a lot of the time. So it should stop to make us think, what are we devoted to?

Are we devoted to making a lot of money, making sure we are comfortable with everything that we might possibly want, having the adoration of friends no matter how real the friendship, power, and pleasure?

Or are we devoted to being the best person we can possibly be, to helping others be the best people they can possibly be, to loving others with all of our heart, to helping our neighbor and our enemy, to challenging ourselves to grow, coming to better know ourselves and others, and to honoring God in all of our actions?

It is difficult to honestly ask ourselves the question about what we are devoted to, because we’re scared of the answer (or at least I am). But if we can honestly assess that about ourselves, we are on the path toward being devoted to the right things, to being the best we can be, and to loving others the way that they were created to be loved.

A Lesson from Rafiki

One of the greatest movies ever (this is an objective statement) is without a doubt Lion King, in no small part because Rafiki is one of the great characters of cinematic history (again, objective statement).

During one scene, Rafiki hits Simba on the head with a stick, seemingly out of nowhere, and they have this exchange:

Adult Simba: Ow! Jeez, what was that for?
Rafiki: It doesn't matter. It's in the past.
[laughs]
Adult Simba: Yeah, but it still hurts.
Rafiki: Oh yes, the past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it, or... learn from it.

Which one do we usually do? Do we try to stay away from the past, or do we learn from our mistakes? There is nothing wrong with making mistakes, I am not sure how we could avoid it, but the key thing is to learn from them, and grow from them, and become better people.

In fact, making mistakes might be the best way to learn that there is.

And now, a video that will be sure to brighten any bad day and clear any bad mood.

A Lesson From Pee Wee Reese

In Roger Khan's great baseball book (heck, you don't even need the baseball disclaimer, it's just a great book all around) Boys of Summer, he has this paragraph in the book about Pee Wee Reese, the Brooklyn Dodgers shortstop of the 1940s and 1950s. [Note: in case you don't know, Jackie Robinson was the first black player to play in the MLB).

"As the Dodgers moved into infield practice, taunts began. Fans started calling Jackie Robinson names: 'Snowflake,' 'Jungle Bunny,' and worse. Very much worse. Some Cincinnati players picked that up and began shouting obscenities at Robinson from their dugout. There Jackie stood, one solitary black man, trying to warm up and catching hell. Reese raised a hand and stopped the practice. Then he walked from shortstop to first base and put and arm around the shoulders of Jackie Robinson. He stood there and looked into the dugout and into the stands, stared into the torrents of hate, a slim white southerner who wore number 1 and just happened to have an arm draped in friendship around a black man, who wore number 42. Reese did not say a word. The deed was beyond words. 'After Pee Wee came over like that,' Robinson said years afterward, 'I never felt alone on a baseball field again.'"

This just makes me think of all the times that I do NOT stand up so well for the things that I believe in, either in word or in deed. All of the times I don't comfort the lonely, or worry what others might think of me if I do something that might be seen as unpopular.

We could all learn a little bit from Pee Wee Reese.

Scripture Sunday: Psalm 118:22

Every Sunday on this site I will take some time to look at a passage from the Bible that I like and think is great... though they could obviously be presented by themselves without further mention, I will throw my two cents in on what the verse(s) mean to me.

Psalm 118 is my all-time favorite Psalm, A Hymn of Thanksgiving. It also contains a verse that we see repeated many times in the New Testament, and that is what I want to talk about today.

(22) The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.

If we are living out our lives according to God's will, or trying to closely follow His teachings, chances are we will go against the grains of society at some point.

I have found that the moral compass of society is completely out of whack. Generally, people assume if you are dating someone you will live together and have sex before marriage, they assume that you like to and do go out and drink in excess... these things have no longer become questions, they are simply assumed. If you do not do these things, you are in the minority of society. And not only the minority, but a small minority.

Though I personally can say that I really have been blessed not to experience this, if you practice sound Christian values, you could be rejected by others or seen at the outcast. But do not get discouraged or discontended, because God sees what you are doing and I imagine He is quite happy about it.

My Bible gives me this meaning for the verse - "What is insignificant to human beings has become great through divine election." Take heart! If you are following the will of God, your reward will be great!

Lessons From Mere Christianity: Creating a Christian Society

This is a post in my series of Lessons From Mere Christianity.

If you are like me, there are a lot of things that you find wrong about our society. Some of the things that are acceptable (or unacceptable) and encouraged, some of the things talked about, and some of the things done by people that are "normal" are sometimes hard to believe.

But how do we change it? We generally focus on society as a whole, and want to make big, sweeping changes. However, CS Lewis tells us that the changes must first come from ourselves.

"A Christian society is not going to really arrive until most of us really want it: and we are not going to fully want it until we become fully Christian. I may repeat 'Do as you would be done by' till I am black in the face, but I cannot really carry it out till I love my neighbour as myself: and I cannot learn to love my neighbour as myself till I learn to love God: and I cannot learn to love God except by learning to obey him. And so, as I warned you, we are driven on to something more inward - driven on from social matters to religious matters. For the longest way round is the shortest way home."

The last line is one of my favorites from the whole book. When you consider the ways to change our society, we initially think of large changes and quick actions. To focus merely on loving your neighbor and obeying God would seem to be a long, tedious process, would it not?

However, there is no other way. There is no other way to change the hearts of others and by virtue the whole of society. The longest way round is the shortest way home. Indeed, it is the only way home.

The way to create a Christian society is, simply put, to love your neighbor as yourself, and to share everything about your life with those around you. As St. Luke writes, "The community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they had everything in common." (Acts 4:32)

As Mother Teresa would say, "Do you know your next door neighbor?"

Loving every bit of someone

In Chris Tomlin's song Indescribable (linked at the end of this post), he has this lyric:

"You see the depths of my heart/
And you love me the same"

To me, the difference between real love and not-so-real love is this: when you find out something bad about another person (something from their past that they are ashamed/embarrassed about, a fault that they are trying so hard to overcome but they are struggling, with, etc), do you love them more than when you didn't know about it, or do you love them less?

With God, we know that He sees the depths of our heart and He loves us the same (and even more, when we are at our weakest and we need Him the most, that is when He is closest to us). Many times this is the opposite of the human reaction to a situation, and as a result is causes us to not be ourselves, or to cause others to not be themselves.

At the beginning of most relationships, we act like how we think the other person would want us to act, or in a matter that is socially acceptable so that the other person likes us. This is especially true in romantic relationships. We might think, "If they knew this about me, they would think it was weird and leave." Or, "I'll tell them this eventually, but not yet." And then, when you finally do share it with them (or vice versa), you find that instead of running for the hills, you find that they love you all the more because you opened yourself and shared things with them that you didn't want to share. This is love.

We won't ever see the depths of another person's heart in this life (much as we or someone else opens up, ultimately it is likely only God really knows the depths of a person's heart, and maybe, if they're lucky, the person themselves), but we still have the opportunity to love all that we can of a person. We don't have to tolerate faults, but we can still love a person because they have faults, because they are human, because they are deserving of our love, no matter what they have done or who they are. This is truly loving every bit of someone, which is loving how God loves.

Devotion to Mary

On the Catholic Holy Day of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, I figured it was only right to write up a little something about Mary, or at least include a quote about Mary.

I'll include a quote from "True Devotion to Mary" by St. Louis de Montfort. I understand (at least for the most part, there are probably intricacies that are still a little beyond my perfect understanding) the Catholic Church's teaching on Mary, but I especially like this quote because it brings things down to a very practical level. Sometimes my brain is not very complex, it needs simple explanations and analogies, and that works here.

One of the most powerful reasons in my mind to honor Mary and ask for her intercession is that Jesus Himself perfectly honored Mary while He was on earth, and we are called to imitate Him. As St. Louis de Montfort writes (emphasis mine),

"He did not will to come into the world at the age of a perfect man, independent of others, but like a poor little babe, dependent on the care of support of this God His Father and to save men; and yet He found no more perfect means, no shorter way to do it, than to submit Himself in all things to the Blessed Virgin, not only during the first eight, ten, or fifteen years of His life, like other children, but for thirty years! He gave more glory to God His Father during all that time of submission and dependence on our Blessed Lady than He would have given Him if He had employed those thirty years in working miracles, in preaching to the whole word and in converting all men - all of which He would have done, could He have thereby contributed more to God's glory."

Let us have the same attitude and view on life that Mary did. "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. Be it done to me according to your word."

Quotes on Adventure

In my mind, the word adventure is very subjective... anything can be made into an adventure if only we allow it to be.

I think life is all about having such adventures, it makes us feel more fully alive. It gives us a sense of excitement, and the feeling like we are accomplishing and living life to the fullest.

Here are a couple of quotes on adventure:

"Life is not a problem to be solved, it is an adventure to be lived." (John Eldredge - Wild at Heart)

"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered." - GK Chesterton

I especially like the quote by Chesterton... how different life would be if we saw all of our inconveniences as merely adventures, or if we saw all of the burdens in life as challenges to be overcome. It would turn sorrows and hardships into something better, and give us a mindset that would allow us to conquer them and learn from them.

Pursue things that bring you happiness

This is not a call to live your life with a principle of “if it feels good, do it,” but rather a call to pursue those noble things in life that give you pleasure, and always make sure to set aside time for them.

When we pursue the things that we enjoy and that bring us happiness, we are happier people. Those things that take away your stress and worry, pursue those things. As the universally great song “Dancin’ in the Moonlight” (seriously, is there anyone that doesn’t like this song??) says:

"We like our fun and we never fight/
You can’t dance and stay uptight"

Aside from this being a great slogan for anyone that is looking to open a dance studio, it (in a roundabout way, but still) shows the affect that these types of enjoyable activities can have on us. They obviously like dancing, and so they feel like you can’t dance and stay uptight (if you have seen guys at junior high dances, or better yet, been a guy at a junior high dance, you actually know full well that you CAN dance and stay uptight, but that is another story for another time).

For you, that activity might be reading, writing, riding your bike, playing basketball, playing an instrument, writing a letter, hanging out with your friends…. Whatever it is, make time for these things. They are sometime the first to hit the backburner when we get busy, or when we feel that life is throwing us a little bit too much, but having these things in your life is essential to keeping you sane, keeping you happy, and keeping away that uptightness.

Now, everybody go have a dance in the moonlight…

Scripture Sunday: Romans 8:32

Every Sunday on this site I will take some time to look at a passage from the Bible that I like and think is great... though they could obviously be presented by themselves without further mention, I will throw my two cents in on what the verse(s) mean to me.

Romans is one of my favorite books of the Bible, and Romans 8:32 is undoubtedly one of my favorite passages in the Bible. I see it as a great comfort for us.

(32) He who did not spare is own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he also not give us everything else along with him?

If we believe that Christ died for our sins, then what in this world could possibly worry us? What would cause us alarm or fear?

If God sent His only Son to us - and not only sent His Son, but allowed Him to be crucified - then will He not take care of us? If He loves us that much, then what is to fear?

Sometimes people can convince themselves that if they have done bad things, or if they don't think they have been a good enough person, that God could not possibly love them or forgive them. To that I politely say: hogwash. Jesus asked the Father to forgive those that crucified Him, surely He will fight for our forgiveness if we only just ask. For however great and unspeakable your sins are, my guess is that they are not quite comparable to crucifying Jesus.

St. Paul goes on in the passage to write that neither anguish, distress, famine, peril, persecution, nakedness, or the sword do not separate us from the love of Christ, but rather we conquer them though Him who loved us.

Just try to think about that the next time that you are worried or stressed out about something!

Lessons From Mere Christianity: Charity

This is a post in my series of Lessons From Mere Christianity.

For many people, tithing and giving (both time and money) to charity is something that they don't really think about or worry about it. For most of my life, I was the same way. It is very easy to convince yourself that you simply cannot afford to give away money to charity (with bills, school, etc), and you assure yourself that later in life you will be able to afford it better.

However, I am here to tell you that if you do not get into the habit of giving of what you have when it's more difficult to do so, you probably won't start when you get settled. That mythical time when you are "secure" will likely not come - there will always be bills, always be something else to save for, and always be something else that you will want. Generally, this is how life works.

So, if you have established that you need to give, how much? The common reaction will be to give a tiny bit... enough so that you are giving something, but not enough so that it is really actually have an effect on your life. However, CS Lewis writes:

"If our charities do not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say they are too small. There ought to be things we should like to do and cannot do because our charities expenditures excludes them." (86)

If we are only giving of our excess and of the things that we do not need, then we are not really sacrificing at all. A big part of charity and giving is recognizing that even if we give more than we think we can afford to give, we know and trust that God will take care of us. By giving back, we recognize that everything we have already came from God anyway, and if He provided things in the first place, then surely He will provide more than enough with our generous charity.

As Mother Teresa would say, we must "give until it hurts."

Lessons From Mere Christianity Series

One of the most influential books of my lifetime was "Mere Christianity" by CS Lewis. I read it at a time when I was just turning my life around to walk with Jesus, and it was very powerful for me.

For the most part, it is a pretty simple book and written for someone who is really beginning their walk. For many people, that is perfect, as it puts things in easy to understand examples and explanations, and challenges them to live a better life, and to realize that they are made for more than the doldrums that most of us face on a daily basis.

Personally, I learn very well by analogies, and so that is a reason I love Mere Christianity... as I said, it makes things easy to understand, and if you are new to the faith or just learning in depth for the first time, you could have several a-ha moments.

Anyway, I decided that there are a lot of quotes and points that he makes that would make great posts, or learning tools. So, I read the book, and broke down a lot of my favorite quotes and put them into different topics. Anyway, the moral of all of this is that I will intermittently (I just wanted to say the word intermittently) be posting this as a "Lessons From Mere Christianity," so look for it coming to a theater near you! :)

Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish

In 2005, Steve Jobs gave a commencement speech at Stanford that ended with this story:

When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960's, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.

Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish." It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.

Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

Ever since I listened to it and heard about it, I always loved that line. Stay hungry, stay foolish.

For one thing, I think it means that we cannot be satisfied or settle for anything less than we were made to be, and for anything less than using our talents to the best of our ability and potential. Don't be satisfied or accept less than the best, but always stay hungry for more, look always for ways to make your life more meaningful. Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48).

There is another quote that I think would apply... and I will paraphrase it, as it says that when you refuse to accept anything but the best, that is very often what we get.

The second part of the quote says to stay foolish, which seems like kind of silly advice on first blush. However, I think it means that we need to be foolish to try new things, new experiences, to take risks, to start projects even though you know they will probably fail. This is how you grow, how you have success, how to come to find out what kind of person you are. Many times we are scared to start a project or new endeavor because we think it will probably fail, and we want everything to be absolutely perfect so that it won't fail (as if there was a guarantee). But start it anyway, even if it might fail, be foolish and take the risk. You'll learn more from that than by staying put. Sometimes the biggest risk is to not take one.

Stay hungry, stay foolish.

Be The One

In one of her many letters and meditations included in the book "Come Be My Light," Mother Teresa writes:

"Tell Jesus, 'I will be the one.' I will comfort, encourage, and love Him… Be with Jesus. He prayed and prayed and prayed, and then He went to look for consolation, and there was none. .. I always write that sentence, 'I looked for one to comfort Me, but I found no one.' Then I write, 'Be the one.' So now you be that one. Try to be the one to share with Him, to comfort Him, to console Him. So let us ask Our Lady to help us understand." (Come Be My Light, pg. 260)

How different would our attitude and our life be if we constantly made the effort to "Be The One" to help others, to love others, to console others, to pray for others, to show God and His majesty to others? I imagine we would barely be able to recognize ourselves if we were able to do that, and that would be a good thing.

Living your dreams...

The thing that is difficult for us to understand and fathom (or maybe it is just me), is that whatever grand plans and dreams we have for our life, whatever best case scenario "someday" plans that we hope to achieve, God has even bigger plans for us!

It is true. If we would truly let God's will take over, we would be happier than we could ever imagine and do greater things than we could ever imagine. Someone named Emmet Fox once said (or possibly wrote)(emphasis mine):

"The most secret, sacred wish that lies deep down at the bottom of your heart, the wonderful thing that you hardly dare to look at, or think about - the thing that you would rather die than have anyone else know of, because it seems so far beyond anything that you are, or have at the present time, that you fear you would be cruelly ridiculed if the mere thought of it were known - that is just the very thing that God is wishing you to do or be for him. And the birth of that marvelous wish in your soul - the dawning of that secret dream - was the voice of God Himself telling you to arise and come up higher because He had need of you."

I am sure we all have those things deep down inside of us, that we want to achieve but we are not sure if we ever will. Heck, for me, this page is one of those things... I always wanted to do something like this, but was scared that people would think it was dumb, or not like it, or nobody would read it, etc. Finally I decided that if I really wanted to do it and really felt called to do it, then all of that other stuff didn't matter!

Such is everything in life, all of our hopes and dreams. We might be met with failure (almost certainly), but that shouldn't deter us. If we are following our dreams and God's plan, then the pursuit will always lead us higher and closer to God and closer to what we were created to be.

On Sacrifice

In Mitch Albom's popular book "The Five People You Meet in Heaven," he writes:

"You didn't get it. Sacrifice is a part of life. It's supposed to be. It's not something to regret. It's something to aspire to. Little sacrifices. Big sacrifices. A mother works so her son can go to school. A daughter moves home to take care of her sick father." (93)

Most of us generally grumble when we have to sacrifice something that we want to do, something that we love, or something that we think that we need. However, we should be happy when we get to sacrifice, as that's what life and love is all about.

The greatest example of sacrifice, of course, is Jesus dying on the cross, laying down His life for our sins. He showed us that the way to love is to sacrifice, even to the point of death.

In a little booklet called "Becoming a Real Man of God," written by Fr. Roger Landry, he talks about sacrifice and love:

"Love is not merely "wishing" another the best, but a willingness to choose to give of oneself - even to the point of sacrificing one's own interests, desires, and life - for someone else. This is the type of love that will lead to genuine fulfillment and happiness, because this is the type of love that will help us become the real image of God."

Many times we hear or even say that we care about a friend or loved one so much that we would "die for them." That is great, but that is missing the point. Love and sacrifice is rarely about actually dying for someone, but it is about when have to sacrifice your time for the good of another.

It is when you finally get some free time, but you choose to spend it by helping a friend in need. It is when someone is irritating and annoying you, but you choose to be their friend and love them. It is when you change your habits or improve bad habits in order to help someone else live better. It's about making the time for someone when you don't really have time to give.

This is what sacrifice is all about. It is rarely grandiose, but it is about the small actions that happen everyday. This is what it means to walk in the footsteps of Christ and be an image of God for others.

Scripture Sunday: Matthew 14: 17-20

Every Sunday on this site I will take some time to look at a passage from the Bible that I like and think is great... though they could obviously be presented by themselves without further mention, I will throw my two cents in on what the verse(s) mean to me.

Today I would like to look at a couple verses from the 14th chapter of Matthew. It is one of the most popular and well-known parts of the Gospel, and it is also one of my favorite! It is the multiplication of loaves and fish.

(17) But they said to him, "Five loaves and two fish are all we have here." (18) Then he said, "Bring them here to me," (19) and he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds. (20) They all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the fragments left over - twelve wicker baskets full."

The most obvious thing that jumps out in this Gospel is the miracle performed by Jesus, who turned five loaves and two fish into more than enough food for five thousand men (plus women and children).

However, to me, the deeper meaning of this Gospel passage is different.

When Jesus asks the Apostles to perform a task (feeding the five thousand), they are incredulous - they do not trust that the Lord will provide for them and allow them to carry out the mission that they have been called to perform. In Mark's Gospel version of the story, they say "Are we to buy two hundred days' wages worth of food and give it to them to eat?"

But Jesus tells them to bring everything that they have, however little it may be. They are surely thinking that He is crazy, but Jesus knows that if they just give what they have, it will be enough. Indeed, it will be more than enough.

The same is true in our own lives. Sometimes we are called to things in our own lives that we do not think we are capable of, or tasks that we may feel are too great to perform. However, if we just give Jesus everything that we have, however little we may think it is, it will be enough. Indeed, there will even be some left over that God gives to us.

If Jesus can turn five loaves and two fish into enough to eat for 5,000+ people, what can he do with our time and talent?

About the title of this blog

If you asked people their favorite Bible verse, you would get hundreds of answers (if you asked enough people, you would get thousands of different answers). There are an incredible amount of great Bible verses; God is that good!

Because of that, it's tough to pick a favorite verse from the Bible. However, if I was held at gunpoint and asked to pick my favorite Bible verse (first off, I hope to never be in that situation; secondly, what a strange request from the person holding the gun, but I suppose that is why this is a hypothetical example), I would pick Luke 1:38.

"Mary said, 'Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word."

Of course, we hopefully know the story. Mary is told that she is pregnant, and not just with any child, but with the Son of God. Practically speaking, there are many consequences. Since she is not married, she will likely have a difficult time within society. Since Joseph, to whom she was betrothed, knew that he was not the father of the child, she had to guess that he would leave her. On a larger level, I have to imagine that the possibility of raising the Son of God to be a rather daunting one.

Yet, she replies without hesitation, essentially telling the Angel Gabriel, "I am here only to do God's work. Let His will be done, I will do what He wants."

This is the attitude that we are always called to have. Let us always follow Mary's example and say to God, "May it be done to me according to your word."