live the life

"I've been reading a lot about love lately. Unfortunately it has not been out of sheer enjoyment. Nonetheless, i'm still learning more and more what it means to live the good life. p.s. its hard, and its kind of suppose to be." - john murnane, philosopher

i'm inspired by this guy, and what he says.

it is hard. it will be hard. and that means that its worth it. because the good things in life often are. worth it.

it takes effort, there is struggle and the payoff may not always be what you thought it would be. but good is good.

the good life is not something to be bought, sold or won. it comes from a determination to overcome, and a willingness to surrender at the exact same time.

the determination to overcome those things in our lives which we have control over. a willingness to push through, shed the baggage that we carry, and walk tall into the life that we choose. we can sit where we are, never move, and we still have value, worth and dignity. but we won't experience good life good love.

and we must be willing to surrender our own will. because joy doesn't come by realizing our dreams. purpose doesn't come by realizing our dreams. its about the lives of people that we walk towards those dreams with. anyone can achieve a dream with enough determination. but not everyone can see their dreams fulfilled and still hold onto the ones that we love.

and it is surrendering the idea that we can't change other people. we can only change ourselves. and once we surrender that desire, we are free to love as we are called to. we can love each other through the mess and garbage that happens.

loving people is the hardest thing. and that's okay. because its worth it. what does it look like to love the people around us that are walking with us?

and hold on to hope. because that may be just as hard sometimes. it takes courage to hope. it is way easier to be cynical, jaded and angry. cynicism doesn't mean that you've got your head on better then anyone else. it means that you aren't willing to let go. it means that you aren't willing to be the change that you want to see in the world, that you'd rather point out where others aren't changing.

the future is bright, if you want it to be.

may we all hope. may we all love. may we all push for the good life.

grace and peace.

m

pray for va tech

i'm sure there's a ton of stuff out there today about the need to pray for virginia tech. but i don't think one more would hurt.

its hard to comprehend what would drive one person to shoot 50 people and kill 32 of them. it doesn't make sense.

here in indiana, its almost a state of shock and feeling unattached. i can watch images of the event but it still doesn't register what is happening over there.

over there. this is in our country. this isn't iraq, afganistan, the sudan. this is our country.

i can't begin to grasp what happened.

i can only pray those affected will be surrounded by others to love them, care for them and be Jesus to them.

i pray that we will continue to value life. i pray that we as a country will move towards healthy relationships. because thats what life is about. relationships.

be good to each other. look at Christ. pray for va. tech. peace.

weddings . . .

my roommate is getting married today. i'm leading worship for the ceremony, which i think is great because it gives the glory to God in the midst of a ceremony that focused on two individuals.

i had a discussion about it last night with steve(the groom), and we talked about how worship reflects the heart of the community that is singing.

yes, i know. worship is more than singing, its how you live your life. thats not what this is about. although it can be translated into the larger context of the life of the community, this is about music.

whats interesting is that the officiant said that he had never been a part of a wedding ceremony with worship.

almost every wedding that i have been a part of and have been to recently had worship. it allowed some space for those in attendance to give glory to God for the celebration that they are a part of. And with all of the imagery that Jesus uses to show how we are the bride and He is the bridegroom, it fits even more.

i wish more weddings had worship. at this one wedding a couple of years ago, the bride came down the aisle, and as we started to play, she dropped her bouquet and raised her arms in praise. it was as if she was saying, "i love this man. but i love my God more." as i was part of the band, i saw, and i was moved. it inspired me to worship with more abandonment of what i consider to matter.

may we all drop the bouquet and raise our arms in praise to the God who deserves everything.

be good to each other. look at Christ. peace.