Hanging Upside-Down

Greetings Faithful Readers,

I love the scene in the movie "Mr. Mom" when Michael Keaton is dropping off his kids to school for the first time without his wife's help. Apparently there is a system at the school in the morning..."north to pickup / south to dropoff"...and he doesn't know it.

So he goes the wrong way.

He gets yelled at by the crossing guard. He gets screamed at by parents going the opposite direction. He gets the finger wag from "concerned" passers-by telling him "You're doing it wrong..."

Have you ever felt like him?  Ever been in a situation where you didn't know how things were "supposed" to work?  Ever been the "new" person?  Ever felt trapped by a system?

I love being in new situations when I haven't been tainted by the status quo.  Trying things out...going up the down escalator...leading myself and my team in a way that is trailblazing rather than path trodding. 

Here at Flamingo, Pastor Troy often says that if we are going to do things nobody has ever done, we have to be willing to do things nobody else is doing...  That's one of my favorite thoughts...to imagine just for one second that I would have a unique thought... a connection of things in my brain that nobody has ever had before...and then the guts to carry it out.  The Internet Campus is a lot like that.  Plenty of opportunity to "pickup in the south and dropoff in the north"....to drive around the way it's always been to a place where it might be done differently.  Baptize long distance?  Global small groups?  REAL community through a computer?   Yes, yes, and oh yes. 

There's probably one thing in your life right now that you've been doing the same way for years...knowing there might be a better way.  What's stopping you from doing it?  Fear?  Routine?  Comfort?  All three? 

Always push yourself to think "Is there a better way?"  All the world-changers I have read about have shared this one common trait...and you can be a world-changer too.  Don't ever doubt that.

BV

How Do You Know?

Greetings Faithful Readers,

Yesterday I wrote about banging on a wall trying to turn it into a door... pushing hard to do something that was not God's will for your life. The question I get all the time is "How do you know?" When is it time to throw in the towel and when is the time to stick it out? How do I know something I want to do is from God?" I thought about it and want to give you my filter that may help you...

1) Is what I want contradictory to scripture? If it is...it's not from God.

2) Has God gifted me with the ability to do it? I know a lot of people who really want to teach...or sing...or start a church...or whatever... and they just don't have that high level of giftedness needed to make it happen. It's important to qualify that by saying that you can learn those skills...but it's been my experience that most people who have "it" were born with "it."

The problem with this concept is that many of us think we're better at something than we really are.  Honestly evaluate your abilities against your passions.  At some point, that Venn diagram of your life will show you exactly where your giftedness, passion, ability, and opportunity all intersect.  Then go after it with the fervor it deserves.

3) Why do I want to do it..for my glory or God's? I always check my motive in wanting to start something. Many times I find that the applause I want is from those around me and not from God. When that's the case...I can bang on the wall all I want. God's not turning it into a door.

4) Has what I want to start been confirmed by my accountability team? What? You don't have a group of trusted, Christ-following friends or family to run your initiatives through? You need one. All of your own ideas will sound good to you in your own head. They all sound God-led. They all feel like you MUST do them to be fulfilled... Instead, I suggest that you gather your closest truth-telling buddies and run it past them. I'm not saying it's the only criteria... but I've found that many of the "God is telling me to do this" moments in my life simply aren't...and my real friends will tell me that based on what they see in and around me. I believe God can confirm (or contradict) my intentions through my Christian friends.

Bottom Line:  Don't stay in neutral.  If your passion, calling, and giftedness all line up - go for it!  The Kingdom is too full of people afraid to jump in and trust God.  If you find that the desire in your heart isn't quite what you're cut out for (be honest!) then find something that you ARE qualified for and dive in.  In either case...move...get out there and make a difference.  God has given you gifts and there are so many places to use them.. What would the world be like if we all applied what God put in us?

I'm going to do some more thinking on this, but that's it for now. It's a tough question to be sure...but one that I believe deserves more than a "just pray about it" response. Agree? Disagree?  I'd love to hear your thoughts or stories...

BV

Walls and Doors

I just read a quote on Twitter that made me think...

"Don't spend time beating on a wall, hoping to transform it into a door."  - Coco Chanel

How much energy and effort have I wasted on things that were not in God's will for my life.  Begging, pleading, making celestial deals with my Creator...trying to convince Him that the wall in front of me needs to open up somehow. 

I have to accept that the wall is there for a reason...creating a boundary...or a lesson...or a barrier to something that might hurt me.    

Sometimes the answer is no and I have to accept it.

Anybody else's hands hurt like mine?

BV

Old Skool with MJ

Greetings Faithful Readers,



The Vasil's tribute to Michael Jackson:







Farewell Captain EO,

BV

When I'm Sick

Greeting faithful readers...

If I'm sick...and you run into me in public... You may see me wearing clothes that don't match.  Please don't stop me and ask how I am doing...or say "Hey Pastor!" as I cruise the produce section...  I am under the influence of cold medicine and can't seem to match colors or complete thoughts.

This was the swanky outfit I wore to Winn Dixie to get nasal spray.  My short are brown and my shirt is like a purple-ish plumby color.  I was rockin' two days worth of beard and my hair had a death star sized trench in the side of it from where I had been laying my head down on the pillow.

When I am sick... weird things happen to my brain...

If you do see me, the proper procedure is to gently turn your children's heads away from the hideous sickasaurus that is slowly dragging his way into the store... and then talk about it when you get home.

Don't blame Mindy..she tries to stop me... but I am also stubborn when I'm sick...

Glad I'm feeling better...

BV