Tuesday, March 16, 2010
i had a dream...
I was nannying. Standing in the living room looking into the kitchen where Dwight (the dad) and Eli (the child) stood. Dwight wanted to go run some errands and was telling Eli to go get ready so he could go with him. I thought, "if they're leaving...what am I gonna do? Just sit here?" I snuck closer to the kitchen to hear the conversation when the door bell rang. Eli went to the door and unlocked it, but Dwight said, "Eli I’ll get it, don't let them see you." he tried to hide himself but was standing directly in front of one of the windows. i laughed. Dwight approached the door and gently swung it open to find two men in gray electrician suits standing on the front step. both men had scruffy beards and now that I think about it, looked as though they could have been twins. man #1 said, "we're contractors who helped build your house, we know you have money in your wallet, give it to us." the men walked in the house and headed toward the kitchen. Dwight quickly reacted and pushed the button on the alarm system that was supposed to notify the police. the two men simply laughed...apparently they had already snipped the wires...the police weren't going to come. the scraggly criminals snooped through the kitchen trying to find things of value and began taking everything they could find. I'm scared. my mind is racing thinking of something heroic to do. I don't think of anything. man #1 starts taking some of the goods out to their van which leaves man #2 alone with the three of us. i see Dwight open up the cutlery drawer and grab two forks...not the knives...he grabbed the forks. he slipped one into each sleeve. he was plotting an attack. i waited near by so when he began his assault on the burglars I was ready to join in. man #2 turned his back and began snooping through another drawer. Out of nowhere Dwight tackled the man and started poking the man’s hands with the forks. Dwight’s tactics were confusing me. Out of all the places to stab the potential murderer he stabbed him in the hands. I looked at Dwight thinking, "you've gotta be kidding me..." I ran over and shoved Dwight off of man #2 and started beating the man repeatedly in the face. After several hard punches to his head, the man lay there motionless. Scary music started to play in the background as man #1 reentered the house...pointing a gun...right at Eli. Now things were serious. Dwight quickly grabbed Eli and ran out of the house into the garage and hid behind their car. i followed. man #1 ran out the front door and trapped us in the garage. he opened fire, trying desperately to end our lives. I sat there, not even ducking behind anything, knowing that i wasn't going to get shot, God was on my side. A second gun appeared out of no where. It was a strange gun that shot tiny bombs that had to be loaded one by one into the barrel. Once the man was out of his regular bullets and had to reload I popped out and fired at him. Direct hit to the shoulder blade. He dropped his gun. He let out a hideous cry and staggered closer. I calmly loaded another mini bomb into the gun and fired again. Direct hit to the abdomen. Man #1 let out another cry. I reloaded. Fired again and hit the man in the leg, rendering him incapable of moving any further. He dropped to the ground. I ran into the backyard and see several tiny children escaping from inside the nanny house where they had been held captive by the two contractors. Apparently when they built the house they had fashioned a prison in the bowels of the home to hold little children. I shouted loudly for the kids to follow me to freedom, however, a river separated us from the shore we so desperately sought after. I jumped in the river, fighting the tide and carried each kid to safety. I don't know what happened to anyone else in the story, because once I crossed the river, I didn't go back...in fact...that is when i woke up.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Mental DVR
Do you ever wish that you had a TiVo, implanted in your brain? That you could push a button inside your ear that would start recording everything you’re seeing and hearing? That you could pause special moments and just drink them in? That you could rewind, and relive the hilarious minutes of everyday? Ok, ok. I know this sounds exactly like the movie Click, but I’m not talking about fast-forwarding through the dull parts of life. I’m talking about relishing all the awesome moments we get to experience everyday. I wish I could replay the story about I’m about to tell you. I have a feeling it would be a new YouTube sensation.
As I paced back from the men’s bathroom, on the third floor of my office building, I turned the corner and began the final stretch of my walk back to my desk. About 15 yards away, there was an average looking lady, with scraggly blonde hair walking toward me. The 15 yard gap is an awkward distance to deal with, especially when we were the only two walking down the center aisle of our office. Do I acknowledge her? Do I smile? Do I say “good morning?” Do I put my head down and ignore her existence? All of these thoughts trampled throughout my mind in a matter of a second, which eventually led to my split-second decision to do whatever was natural. (whatever the heck that means).
As the gap between us shortened, we made eye contact and a gentle smile brushed across her face. I remained stoic and continued my final few paces before I reached her, not completely ignoring her, but not letting my green eyes tear her heart from within her.
The gap was 5 feet now. I looked at her. She looked at me. She stopped dead in her tracks, not because she was awe-struck by me, but because she ran directly into the side of her cubicle, making a loud thud echo across the office. Completely embarrassed, the average girl looked at me. I tried to pretend I hadn’t just seen her walk directly into the side of a stationary, inanimate object, but she knew that I had indeed witnessed her embarrassing mishap. Without a moment’s hesitation, she opened her mouth and nervously spoke these words to me: “I don’t have any depth perception.”
Was she serious? Did she really have some sort of depth perception disability that hindered her from walking like a normal human being? Or, was my breath taking presence so debilitating to her that she lost all primal motor functions and reverted back to early childhood when she didn’t know how to walk? I didn’t have much time to react. In an effort to save some her some ounce of dignity, I stifled back the eruption of laughter that was about to burst out of me and restrained to letting out a calm chuckle.
The average looking girl, with straggly blonde hair doesn’t look at me anymore. Or maybe she is looking at me, but she has crossed eyes, which caused her to run into the side of a cubicle. I guess I’ll never know.
As I paced back from the men’s bathroom, on the third floor of my office building, I turned the corner and began the final stretch of my walk back to my desk. About 15 yards away, there was an average looking lady, with scraggly blonde hair walking toward me. The 15 yard gap is an awkward distance to deal with, especially when we were the only two walking down the center aisle of our office. Do I acknowledge her? Do I smile? Do I say “good morning?” Do I put my head down and ignore her existence? All of these thoughts trampled throughout my mind in a matter of a second, which eventually led to my split-second decision to do whatever was natural. (whatever the heck that means).
As the gap between us shortened, we made eye contact and a gentle smile brushed across her face. I remained stoic and continued my final few paces before I reached her, not completely ignoring her, but not letting my green eyes tear her heart from within her.
The gap was 5 feet now. I looked at her. She looked at me. She stopped dead in her tracks, not because she was awe-struck by me, but because she ran directly into the side of her cubicle, making a loud thud echo across the office. Completely embarrassed, the average girl looked at me. I tried to pretend I hadn’t just seen her walk directly into the side of a stationary, inanimate object, but she knew that I had indeed witnessed her embarrassing mishap. Without a moment’s hesitation, she opened her mouth and nervously spoke these words to me: “I don’t have any depth perception.”
Was she serious? Did she really have some sort of depth perception disability that hindered her from walking like a normal human being? Or, was my breath taking presence so debilitating to her that she lost all primal motor functions and reverted back to early childhood when she didn’t know how to walk? I didn’t have much time to react. In an effort to save some her some ounce of dignity, I stifled back the eruption of laughter that was about to burst out of me and restrained to letting out a calm chuckle.
The average looking girl, with straggly blonde hair doesn’t look at me anymore. Or maybe she is looking at me, but she has crossed eyes, which caused her to run into the side of a cubicle. I guess I’ll never know.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Kentucky Coleslaw
Kentucky Coleslaw jolted upright in his bed, his heart pounding, hair standing in every which direction, looking as though a hippo sat on his face all night. He hadn’t been sleeping well the last few days, in anticipation of his collegiate graduation. Kent is one of those worrier types. Someone that is so filled with doubt, and anxiety that he has a hard time just living his every day life. He has a great group of friends that care about him, and a loving family, but Kentucky failed to drink in the moments he was living, because he was too worried about moments that had yet to be lived.
His restless nights, filled with mind-numbing questioning of his future plans, just about drove Kentucky to insanity. He continued to toss and turn, wondering if his life had purpose, until the day of his graduation.
Due to all of the hours Kent spent worrying about a job, a future family, and all of the things that come with being an adult, he completely over looked the details of the graduation. Little did he know, the commencement ceremony was being held at Pickleberry Park, and not the Draconstein Memorial Auditorium. Kentucky showed up in his cap and gown and noticed that there weren’t any other cars in the Draconstein parking lot, and immediately started to panic. He tore threw the parking lot and headed to the auditorium where he found a small green post it note with the words, “Good morning. If you are here reading this note, then you are not at Pickleberry Park, WHERE YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO BE!!!” Kent’s heart sank and headed straight to the library where he could access the internet. As he sprinted to the computer lab, he remembered that he had his GPS in the car, but thought he should print off directions as well, just in case the GPS didn’t work. He ferociously tapped the keyboard as he entered the web address for mapquest so he could find directions to Pickleberry Park. Kent was so worried about getting lost, that he decided to go to google maps and print directions from there as well. He also printed off two alternate routes, and stopped at a gas station to get an atlas, to insure he could locate the park. After all of the worrying and over analyzing the dilemma, Kent turned on his GPS, which gave him perfect directions to the park. He spent so much time and energy worrying about the future that he hadn’t been taking time to live in the moment. He had back up plan after back up plan in place, just in case the GPS didn’t work, when he should have had faith that the GPS would do its job and guide him.
Sometimes we spend so much time worrying about the future that we don’t enjoy living the lives God has given us. We try to map out the course of our lives, and set up back up plans in case we need a plan B. Why is it that we worry about mapping out our lives, when we have a GPS to guide us? God already knows our final destination because he is the one that programmed us! Ok stick with me here. I’m trying to make this analogy work. Don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. God has a plan for you. Even when we don’t know where we’re going, we have to trust that the GPS will tell us where to turn and get us there safely. That is how God operates with us. We have to trust, and have faith in the fact that he’s going to guide us down the path we’re supposed to go. My challenge to you is to soak up the everyday moments that God allows us to have. Don’t get caught up in what’s going to happen down the road. Live everyday to its fullest, not so that you may receive blessings and glory, but so that your faith may be rooted in the fact that Christ’s love for you is greater than anything you’ll ever experience, and that he has promised to guide you and never let you go.
His restless nights, filled with mind-numbing questioning of his future plans, just about drove Kentucky to insanity. He continued to toss and turn, wondering if his life had purpose, until the day of his graduation.
Due to all of the hours Kent spent worrying about a job, a future family, and all of the things that come with being an adult, he completely over looked the details of the graduation. Little did he know, the commencement ceremony was being held at Pickleberry Park, and not the Draconstein Memorial Auditorium. Kentucky showed up in his cap and gown and noticed that there weren’t any other cars in the Draconstein parking lot, and immediately started to panic. He tore threw the parking lot and headed to the auditorium where he found a small green post it note with the words, “Good morning. If you are here reading this note, then you are not at Pickleberry Park, WHERE YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO BE!!!” Kent’s heart sank and headed straight to the library where he could access the internet. As he sprinted to the computer lab, he remembered that he had his GPS in the car, but thought he should print off directions as well, just in case the GPS didn’t work. He ferociously tapped the keyboard as he entered the web address for mapquest so he could find directions to Pickleberry Park. Kent was so worried about getting lost, that he decided to go to google maps and print directions from there as well. He also printed off two alternate routes, and stopped at a gas station to get an atlas, to insure he could locate the park. After all of the worrying and over analyzing the dilemma, Kent turned on his GPS, which gave him perfect directions to the park. He spent so much time and energy worrying about the future that he hadn’t been taking time to live in the moment. He had back up plan after back up plan in place, just in case the GPS didn’t work, when he should have had faith that the GPS would do its job and guide him.
Sometimes we spend so much time worrying about the future that we don’t enjoy living the lives God has given us. We try to map out the course of our lives, and set up back up plans in case we need a plan B. Why is it that we worry about mapping out our lives, when we have a GPS to guide us? God already knows our final destination because he is the one that programmed us! Ok stick with me here. I’m trying to make this analogy work. Don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. God has a plan for you. Even when we don’t know where we’re going, we have to trust that the GPS will tell us where to turn and get us there safely. That is how God operates with us. We have to trust, and have faith in the fact that he’s going to guide us down the path we’re supposed to go. My challenge to you is to soak up the everyday moments that God allows us to have. Don’t get caught up in what’s going to happen down the road. Live everyday to its fullest, not so that you may receive blessings and glory, but so that your faith may be rooted in the fact that Christ’s love for you is greater than anything you’ll ever experience, and that he has promised to guide you and never let you go.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Like Frosted Flakes
I’ve tossed and turned in my sleep for the past couple of nights, questioning whether or not I should use my workspace (blog) to declare some sort of enthusiastic pep-talk about how to live our lives in 2010. Some part of me wants to create some sort of rally cry that sparks pure emotion and causes everyone to strive to be all they can be. The other part of me wants to avoid the cliché new years resolution type of speech, and fall back on the harsh truth, that even if what I had to say created some interest or some sort of drive, that by the time February rolled around, it would be dead along with all of your other lame resolutions.
On the other hand, maybe what I have to say is worth something. Maybe I will be the one to break through and revolutionize resolutions. What are the chances that these words which are now being vigorously typed could stir up enough emotion to make a resolution become a lifestyle?
The crisis of whether or not I should voice my twenty-ten devotional, was leading to more restless nights. I woke up today, and decided that if I continue my current sleeping pattern (which has consisted of more tossing and turning, than actual sleep) that I would probably end up being that guy, by himself, at the movie theater, watching the midnight showing of the latest romantic-comedy, eating a bag of popcorn and drinking a large cherry Pepsi, because I had become an insane insomniac, that couldn’t sleep because I couldn’t decide whether or not to join the thousands of people that created new year’s resolutions. In fear of becoming that guy (although I do enjoy a chick flick every now and then), I made a resolution to make a new years resolution. Confusing, I know.
My new year’s resolution is to strive for greatness. I want to be great. Great at work, playing sports, when I’m with family, reading books, being a friend, writing, talking, thinking, loving, praying, laughing. When I’m doing all of the simple things in life, I want to be great! How does this happen? What kind of tangible, real life things can be applied to obtain such greatness? Whoa…great question. And the answer is…I have no idea. I really don’t. There isn’t a workout program, book or motivational speech that can help me achieve greatness. All I know is that God hasn’t called me to a live a life of mediocrity. He’s infused me with his joy and because of that, I know I have potential greatness coursing through every bone in my body. Look through the bible. Moses, Daniel, Joshua, the disciples. Ordinary people, used to do GREAT things.
Be great! Not so that you can receive the glory, but so that Christ may be seen through you.
On the other hand, maybe what I have to say is worth something. Maybe I will be the one to break through and revolutionize resolutions. What are the chances that these words which are now being vigorously typed could stir up enough emotion to make a resolution become a lifestyle?
The crisis of whether or not I should voice my twenty-ten devotional, was leading to more restless nights. I woke up today, and decided that if I continue my current sleeping pattern (which has consisted of more tossing and turning, than actual sleep) that I would probably end up being that guy, by himself, at the movie theater, watching the midnight showing of the latest romantic-comedy, eating a bag of popcorn and drinking a large cherry Pepsi, because I had become an insane insomniac, that couldn’t sleep because I couldn’t decide whether or not to join the thousands of people that created new year’s resolutions. In fear of becoming that guy (although I do enjoy a chick flick every now and then), I made a resolution to make a new years resolution. Confusing, I know.
My new year’s resolution is to strive for greatness. I want to be great. Great at work, playing sports, when I’m with family, reading books, being a friend, writing, talking, thinking, loving, praying, laughing. When I’m doing all of the simple things in life, I want to be great! How does this happen? What kind of tangible, real life things can be applied to obtain such greatness? Whoa…great question. And the answer is…I have no idea. I really don’t. There isn’t a workout program, book or motivational speech that can help me achieve greatness. All I know is that God hasn’t called me to a live a life of mediocrity. He’s infused me with his joy and because of that, I know I have potential greatness coursing through every bone in my body. Look through the bible. Moses, Daniel, Joshua, the disciples. Ordinary people, used to do GREAT things.
Be great! Not so that you can receive the glory, but so that Christ may be seen through you.
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