Wednesday, November 24, 2004
I Am Too Far Away And I Am Right There And I Am Nowhere
My dad called today. He was in the hospital a couple of days ago. His hip went out on him. I guess when you're seventy that kind of thing happens. He was at home when he called his doctor. His doctor told him to get a family member to bring him over.
Dad takes care of everyone there. It is what he does. What he has always done. He is what a man is: dependable, generous, solid.
And when he needed to get to the hospital a friend drove him.
I want to be that kind of man. I want to be rock. I want to be that guy you call when you need someone to come through for you, because you know they will.
I want to be able to give my father a ride.
My dad called today. He was in the hospital a couple of days ago. His hip went out on him. I guess when you're seventy that kind of thing happens. He was at home when he called his doctor. His doctor told him to get a family member to bring him over.
Dad takes care of everyone there. It is what he does. What he has always done. He is what a man is: dependable, generous, solid.
And when he needed to get to the hospital a friend drove him.
I want to be that kind of man. I want to be rock. I want to be that guy you call when you need someone to come through for you, because you know they will.
I want to be able to give my father a ride.
Monday, November 15, 2004
It Is A Bit Disturbing
Can a person have too much love to give?
I’ve known a few people who at the time were desperately searching for someone to love. They would say something like “I know that I have so much love to give to someone”. I interpreted this to mean “I am a black-hole of emotional need and if you come near me, I will suck you in and suffocate you”.
Too much love.
This year our family got our first pet: a hamster named Harry. The five year old loves Harry. He lets it crawl all over him. He has put Harry in his mouth (something like the reverse of the old lion trainers trick).
One day I heard the Queen Mother’s voice rising from the front room saying, “Cooper get that hamster out of your underwear.”
It’s not easy being loved like that.
Can a person have too much love to give?
I’ve known a few people who at the time were desperately searching for someone to love. They would say something like “I know that I have so much love to give to someone”. I interpreted this to mean “I am a black-hole of emotional need and if you come near me, I will suck you in and suffocate you”.
Too much love.
This year our family got our first pet: a hamster named Harry. The five year old loves Harry. He lets it crawl all over him. He has put Harry in his mouth (something like the reverse of the old lion trainers trick).
One day I heard the Queen Mother’s voice rising from the front room saying, “Cooper get that hamster out of your underwear.”
It’s not easy being loved like that.
Wednesday, November 03, 2004
What's My Focus
I was just talking with a friend of mine. She's wrestling with a tough question: how do I change?
"I don't know."
She was shocked by my answer. She expected me, as a pastor, to say that she needed to join a small group or study her Bible more or pray more.
"What about Paul? He changed drastically."
Paul was a guy who was passionately, albeit violently, Jewish. Anyone involved in this Jesus Cult thing needed to be wiped out. He killed a lot of Jesus' followers. Then he has this vision of Jesus and is left blind by the experience. Three days later he decides he should follow Jesus, he gets to see again and then goes about the business of being passionately Christian.
He didn't really change. He was driven and passionate as a Jewish leader, and he was driven and passionate as a Christian leader.
His focus changed.
It makes me wonder.
I was just talking with a friend of mine. She's wrestling with a tough question: how do I change?
"I don't know."
She was shocked by my answer. She expected me, as a pastor, to say that she needed to join a small group or study her Bible more or pray more.
"What about Paul? He changed drastically."
Paul was a guy who was passionately, albeit violently, Jewish. Anyone involved in this Jesus Cult thing needed to be wiped out. He killed a lot of Jesus' followers. Then he has this vision of Jesus and is left blind by the experience. Three days later he decides he should follow Jesus, he gets to see again and then goes about the business of being passionately Christian.
He didn't really change. He was driven and passionate as a Jewish leader, and he was driven and passionate as a Christian leader.
His focus changed.
It makes me wonder.
