140 Characters or Less

People are processors. That’s just what we do. Our brains are inundated with information every second. Our eyes are relaying what they’re seeing, our ears are telling us what they’re hearing, our finger tips are conveying what they’re feeling, and so on. Not only do we need to be able to handle that stuff, but every detail is making connections to other bits of information that we have stored and is evoking memories and emotional responses. How on earth do we handle it all?

We process.

Different people process in different ways. Some process by talking; they often have no idea what they’re thinking until they talk it out. I have a feeling that Peter was a talker. Bold, rash Peter who said the first thing that popped into his head no matter if he was talking to the God who created the universe or to the lame beggar at the gate. Yes, I think he was a talker.

Some people are thinkers. These mull over everything in their mind until it’s properly dealt with. Mary was a thinker. Luke 2:19 says that she took all the events that happened at Jesus’ birth and pondered them in her heart.

And then we have writers. I process best by writing. If I don’t write, my thoughts are only partially developed, floating around and wreaking havoc in my mind until I can deal with them. History has favored writers in that while many great thoughts over the centuries have gone unuttered and many great words have been left unrecorded, words written have been preserved. I suspect Luke and John were both writers, and of course you have people like Dickens and Shakespeare.

In the past, thoughts were developed into volumes of books, an event expanded into a great epic, and a word grew into a complex poem. Something would happen and it was analyzed from every angle, a deeper meaning was pursued and hidden truths were sought after. Of course this was done in different ways–Mary pondered, Peter talked, Dickens wrote–but it was done.

Today, I believe our culture is losing depth. Rather than being encouraged to search out meaning we’re told to simplify. After a life changing event we’re expected to condense it into 140 characters or less. Deepness is not applauded–quick, short punchlines are.

Funny story: I went on a 40 day Facebook fast a couple of years ago, and it was so much harder than I anticipated! Not because I needed to keep up with everyone, but because Facebook had become my outlet for processing. Someone would say something and my mind would immediately process and simplify it into a Facebook sized post. What did I do during these 40 days you wonder? How did I cope? I’m glad you asked! The very first day, I turned to journaling. I continued to journal nearly every day until I promptly stopped when the fast was over.

Recently, I’ve nearly given up on Facebook in favor of Twitter. One consequence of this is that I occasionally find myself thinking thoughts (for what else would you think) in segments of 140 characters! It’s funny. Then it becomes scary. To think that something like Twitter or Facebook could have such an influence on something so fundamental to me such as the ability process my thoughts and feelings is very sobering.

So, how do we counteract the influence of things like social media? Well, I’m not exactly sure yet. But, I suspect it involves prayer and the Word. For example, if you’re a talker, pour out your feelings to God in prayer. If you’re a thinker, always be in the Word to keep your mind from being bombard by distracting media. If you’re a writer, discipline yourself to keep a prayer journal so you are developing your thoughts in a Godly way.

You know, come to think of it, we should be doing all three things anyway...

When We Become Too Polite

I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore will I call upon him as long as I live.

-Ps 116:1-2

These verses always strike me as being a little funny. I picture God saying, "Well, that's just great! I help him one time, and now he says he will call on Me for the rest of his life!"

There is a story in Luke about a guy who went to his friend's house at midnight and said, "Get up! Quick, I need to borrow three loaves of bread!"

"No. Go away. Everyone's asleep, I can't get up and give it to you." The friend replied.

After going through this a couple of times, I probably would have found my dad's shotgun and been like, "Dude! You don't know what I'm capable of when I'm tired. Go away. Right now."

You can take a moment and be thankful that I'm not God.

Sometimes I treat God the same way I treat a person. Ask politely once or twice. Never pound on their door after midnight. Don't bother them too often.

But Jesus isn't like that. He designed us to be dependent on Him! He told the story of the friend at midnight as an example for how we should pray. He concludes the story by saying, "I tell you, because of his impudence he will rise up and give him whatever he needs. And I tell you ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and the one who knocks it will be open."

God wants you to call on Him everyday of your life. He wants you to be persistent and annoying. Keep pressing. Keep asking. Keep seeking. Breakthrough.

I Regret Nothing

I came across this image a few weeks ago, and I had to laugh. How like a cat! Even after being caught in the act, the creature was obviously unrepentant. The pancake (at least that’s what I think it is), is hanging out of his mouth incriminatingly. His defiant little attitude is perfect! 

Pardon me while I seemingly switch subjects.

Yesterday marked the end of my nine years as a Bible Quizzer. Five points was all that obstructed our team (Angela and I were both last-year quizzers) from competing at Nationals. I do admit that there was something was whispering in my ear that day saying,“all that work was for nothing; it didn’t make any difference!”

Almost as soon as the thought entered my head, my mind instantly recalled this image. Defiantly, I though back, “I regret nothing!” Even while I was standing on the platform, delivering my last year speech, I was picturing this black cat!

I really, truly, firmly believe that not a single moment I spent studying our material was wasted. I fell in love with Psalms this year and I know that it will leave a lasting impact on my life.

I want to encourage every quizzer right now. Even when you fall short of your expectations, even when you seemingly failed, and yes, even after you buzzed in for the last time, nothing you did was pointless. 1 Corinthians 15:58 puts it like this, “Your labor is not in vain it the Lord.”

A trophy and a trip to Nationals are not the real awards. Of course we “know” this, but do we really know it?

I can say that I do. I can look back at my nine years as a Bible Quizzer, smile, and say, “I regret nothing.” 

Mastery

This is a note of encouragement to my fellow Bible Quizzers.

Bible Quizzing is a passion of mine, anyone who knows me can attest to this. I love it. I think there are few better ways for a young person to spend their time.

Passion is a funny thing. At the beginning of the season, there's excitement and anticipation. As you learn and "master" those first few verses of the material, the future simply stretches before you like a beautiful shining sea with endless possibilities on the horizon and fathomless potential hidden in the depths! But then, life happens. Now, I may be speaking for myself at this point. I may be the only Bible Quizzer in the entire world who feels this way, but I don't think so. Passion can wear thin. I know what it's like to wake up in the morning, have a long list of things to do, look at that stack of cards (which is way over half of your material but not quite all of it), and groan. You see, at times, passion can evaporate altogether.

The daily stuff is really what gets me. Quoting. Day after day. Every day. And that's only the bare minimum! Spending time charting, understanding the verses, writing questions, aaaahhhhgggg!! I just don't have time for it all! While on vacation last week, I felt like I was doing the world such a favor by taking an hour to quote every day. I'm in that low-passion phase: finals is almost a month away, I still have material to memorize, there's quite a bit of charting to do, and the tole of dedicating time to quizzing was eroding away my gusto.

And then, I was pricked in my reigns.

During the two-day drive home from our lovely vacation to SC, I was reading a book called The Circle Maker. I had been promised that it would change the way I pray and I was reading it to that end. Little did I know that it would challenge my current view of not only quizzing, but, well, living.

Mark Batterson was talking about mastery. He referenced a study that had taken place back in the 1990s of violinists. Elite performers had, by age 20, more than 10,000 hours of practice under their belts. Let me say that again: TEN-THOUSAND!! That is the number of hours it takes to not only master the violin, but to master nearly any subject (Google it, it's fascinating). Even with all the years I have been in Bible Quizzing, I'm pretty sure they don't add up to 10,000. I firmly believe that no time spent in the Word of God is wasted… yet I felt like I was wasting time. I was convicted, because, if people can spend 10,000 hours practicing the violin, how much more should I pour myself over the Word of God? If they can give their lives for something that has only an earthly reward, how much more can I give my life for something that has eternal ramifications?

I said all that, to say this: Quizzing is tough. It requires consistency and discipline, but don't give up; pour yourself into it. It's May and there is still work to do. Teammates may be dropping like flies in the South Carolina sun, but stick with it. Strive for mastery. 

Jesus Wept

I guess that I had always supposed that the infamous two-word verse was talking about Gethsemane. That place where Jesus wrestled His will into alignment with, well, His will. The knowledge of what He was about to face would have been torturous for anyone, so of course He wept.

But, as it turns out, John 11:35 was not written about Jesus' grief for Himself, but for others. Lazarus had died. Jesus was at his funeral. He was among the weary, the grieving, and the heartbroken. When He saw Mary's sorrow, and the sorrow of those who were with her, the Bible says that He was troubled. The next verse simply says that He wept.

We do not serve a God who feels nothing, nor one who stands by untouched and unmoved by our plights. No. We serve a God of love. He knows our struggles and burdens. He feels when we feel, I daresay that He laughs when we laugh, and He certainly weeps when we weep.

Consistency

Consistency is one of the themes our youth group has for this year. While our great youth leader was pushing his hoarse throat to it's limits this evening, I was realizing how uninspiring consistency can be. Don't misunderstand me, the message was great! It's only that faithfully plodding along, day in and day out, probably isn't the normal message that is taught to teenagers.

I feel that, as a whole, teens aren't that hard to figure out. We're transitioning between childhood and adulthood. We want to embrace new and hard challenges, blaze a new trail, make a name for ourselves, essentially, we would like to change the world in our own way. Most sermons that are tailored for teens are about stepping out of your comfort zone, finding your calling, radically trusting in God, ect. However, rarely are teens challenged in the every day, mundane things.

Ah, therein lies the irony. Perhaps if teens were challenged to do the little hard things, such as having a consistent walk with God and daily disciplines, we would see more teens who were changing the world. After all, you have to learn to crawl before you can run.

I know that in my personal life this year, I feel the need to be consistent and diligent in my daily walk with God. Yeah. It's not the coolest thing to focus on. I would much rather that God would smack me on the side of my head with my life plan all written out–complete with details like: where I should go to school and what for, where I should work, what my ministry will look like in 20 years... you know, the works. Instead, I'm called to spend more time in His word and talk to Him a little more.

It's not glamorous. But as Surge Student Ministries heard tonight, there is power in consistency.