I shared a post the other night of TEDx Talk. The talk highlighted the changes one comedian
made after being diagnosed with liver tumors and the assertion that he had
about 5 years to live. The comedian chronicled the changes he made to starting
dreaming. His premise is that far too
many of us have essentially settled into the lives we lead. His claim is that most of us, while we may
have our struggle, live relatively easy lives.
We have settled, given up on dreams, because life is good enough. His diagnosis challenged him to fill his
remaining years, and asked the question: What am I dying to do? In him, it
instilled a new drive to meet on of his previously dropped goals. His dream was to be on Letterman, and he set
off anew to accomplish this in one years time.
It took him five years, and fortunately his tumors were 'stable' and not
life threatening. His talk and question
are insightful though.
What are you dying to do?
That's a hard question to answer for many of us. Maybe I'm just part of the heard. My life is good. My goals coming out of college went something
like this: Get a JOB! , fall in love, get married, find a home. I have a good job, I know love , am married
to the most incredible woman, and have a home with some nice amenities.
I am sure I'm dying - and so are you. I'm still not sure what I'm dying to do. I wonder if trying another take may be
helpful. Let's try the "if you had
unlimited time, money, and good health what would you do?" I came across a note book the other day with
my answer to this question several years ago.
I wanted an energy efficient house.
To me that means close to net zero energy consumption. It would be on a few acres or so, of mostly
wooded property. I would be a part of
the energy efficient market place in some capacity.
All of those things still appeal to me, yet I'm still not
sure I could honestly say "I'm dying to work in the high efficiency
housing market and own a very nice energy efficient home."
Maybe I'm just trapped in the good life. Meaning that the impetus to move to is not
enough to overcome the status of what I currently know and understand.
There was another post I saw this evening. It was by a blogger who was talking about the
myths of "Being Sold Out for Jesus."
My take away was this - it is at least as important to take care of the
small things in your sphere of current influence as it is to doing something
seemingly big on the world stage. In his
case, he made the decision to literally go to Africa to help some very needy people.
It didn't go well for a variety of reasons. He did not, however, believe that God was
judging him by his failure, nor did he feel his attempt at a bold endeavor was
any more endearing to God than the sum of small deeds. He postulated that serving at a local food
kitchen for the less advantaged was every bit as critical as feeding the less
advantaged in Africa.
I'm asking myself again.
What am I dying to do? Again, I'm
not certain I would use those terms, but there are a few thoughts finally
percolating in this noggin.
I want to see my friends find love and succeed. That does not mean rewriting the fictitious
story of Camelot. It means I want them
all to find a life partner and relationship built on trust, mutual respect,
kindness, gentleness and forgiveness. I
want them to find a job that can support their families in a decent lifestyle
with a roof over their heads, and food on the table. It could be a trailer, a bus, a condo, apartment or house, for I have yet
to see the size of the home correlate to the amount of love there within. I would want them to be secure enough
financially that the next paycheck is not going to break them. I want to help where help is needed.
I want the beauty of the world to be seen and shared. There is far too much darkness and
scandal. Just turn on any new channel -
and I don't care if you are a fan of NPR, FOX, CNN or MSNBC sensationalism and
division are the ruling mantras of every news hound for the simple reason that
this United States craves it ravenously.
I hope that my posts of "Joy" and photos add just a little
reminder that there is room to find and enjoy something good in this world.
So, after this running monologue, it's my prayer that you
remind me and encourage me to do the following:
Help where I can
Love as Christ leads (that's a verb not a sentiment)
Share Joy
Point out the beauty of the world
There might just be some things worthy of dying for in that
list. I pray there are.
Grace & Peace,
Brian
