In what was do you give attention to your exteriors on a daily basis?
How do you also direct time, focus and energy to your interiors? Think about moments/days when you feel most connected to your heart. How are those moments/days different from others? What forms that connection? What growth or lack of growth has taken you by surprise in your life? How/when do you know you need rest? What do you do or not do to rest on a daily/weekly/yearly basis? Describe your current season. What are you letting go? What’s next? Who is with you? Think of a time you experienced the death of a dream. How do you feel about it now? I recently visited a friend who has joined the ranks of community gardening in the city of Denver. We walked his plot picking raspberries, strawberries and even watermelons. When he pointed out his tomato plants to me, he explained that some sort of mold had caused the tomatoes to fail this summer. Apparently, last summer the tomatoes were great. Just behind the drooping tomatoes, he pointed out the peppers and said, “But look at the peppers. They’re amazing!”
Tomatoes last summer. No tomatoes this summer. What grew well once, didn’t grow as well again. This year is NOT last year. Embrace the mystery of growth. Maybe last year you experienced tremendous growth in a certain area, but currently you are struggling in that same area. Perhaps back then you made great strides forward, and now you feel as if you are making no progress at all or even taking steps backwards. Don’t beat yourself up. There is a predictability AND an unpredictability to how your heart grows. There is a time to work and plant. A time to water. A time to wait and see what grows. You did the work. You put in the blood, sweat & tears… and the tomatoes failed. So the tomatoes aren’t that great this year, but what about the peppers? Remember, this year is NOT last year. What grew well once, might not grow as well again. Who knows what will grow this year! The ways in which you’re growing might not be the same ways in which you previously grew. Your current growth might not be in the area you had hoped, but don’t overlook the peppers. Your heart is both mysterious and unpredictable. Be patient with yourself. Do the hard work. Then enjoy whatever sprouts to life in you… because all growth is GOOD. The first More To Life (MTL) was so GOOD,
and now the second installment of Year ONE is upon us : ) Tuesday, September 20th from 6:30-7:30PM in the Hopefull and Discovery rooms below the Breckenridge Library. I know your life is probably swirling right now or even perhaps bursting at the seams, which means you definitely should not miss this MTL... I can't wait to share with you what I've been learning about our interiors and why we need to be intentional to slow down or even stop because that's when the magic happens. See you tomorrow evening for some yummy dessert and GOOD times! -phil Let the countdown begin!
More To Life is almost here and I just wanted to say a little bit about what's on the horizon. My boys have entered the official Spartan Race happening today and tomorrow in Breckenridge. Yesterday I saw someone from the Spartan TV show walking Main Street... it's legit! My boys are doing the kids race, but that's besides the point. When the banner was hung over Main Street and word got around, I called some other parents and easily managed to put together a squad of kiddos to compete. EASILY! Parents and students alike needed no persuasion. The race is active and outside so say no more. Where I live people embrace their exteriors. Sometimes I feel like I'm surrounded by super athletes who are constantly training, competing and pushing the human limits. Anyone remember the movie Sixth Sense? The little boy said, "I see dead people." Locals and tourists alike find a slightly different phrase on their lips while looking around at people here... "I see healthy people." Was does the word HEALTHY bring to mind for you... no high fructose corn syrup or even better sugar free; eating a good diet- one including kale or quinoa; applying sunscreen; the opposite of fat; exercising and engaging an active lifestyle; wearing ath-leisure clothing and tracking accessories like Fitbit; training and competing in a race? Being healthy means all sort of things nowadays... most of which pertains exclusively to our exteriors. What I mean is this... being healthy tends to be about our physical bodies and as a result is very tangible. But honestly, being healthy is also about our interiors... the intangible, inward part of us that we all sense and feel and sort of drives our whole story. Healthy isn't just about longevity of lifespan. Healthy is also about the depth and authenticity our relationships. Healthy isn't simply about steps taken and calories burned. Healthy is also about our ability to be still and silent and comfortable in our own skin. Healthy is about MORE than cholesterol levels and gym membership. So I'm pretty excited to discuss living a healthy life and adventure inward... to talk about those often overlooked and neglected interiors and how they overlap and intersect with our exteriors to create balance and harmony. See you on Tuesday, September 6th! Last time we talked about "Heathens" and how GOOD is inside ALL of us... it's there... the Divine spark.
"Heathens" embraces the truth that ALL of us are broken in our own ways. Truth be told, we have much in common. Today I am sending you an excerpt from an email introducing Ann Voskamp's new book and some upcoming videos... all an encouragement to live a better story... a story that brings wholeness through our brokenness... a story that invites us to risk giving ourselves to one another. My faith in humanity has been tested this past year. From stories in the media and on the news, to my own personal experience. Yet tonight I'm sitting in front of a blinking cursor... and I can still write that I believe humanity is inherently good.
I do not mean to trivialize or in any way discount your pain, loss, injustice or suffering. What I do mean is to embrace the fact that we all need to look harder for the hidden GOOD... that we need to see deeply within each other and ourselves to discover the truth that we all are mysteriously marked by the Divine. Even though we possess the ability to choose between actions that build up or tear down, words that inspire or belittle... even though we can quite literally create life or death through our stories, underneath our exteriors is the common denominator of GOODness... it's there. I think it's easy, too easy, to lose sight of that truth. All the stuff of life can persuade and convince us otherwise. So I just wanted to take a moment to say it out loud... for you AND me... to remind all of us that we are connected and the common thread is something GOOD. I understand that we can see many other things about one another... that we can be pretty reluctant with our love and grace... and that can even be true of how we treat ourselves... everyone is probably a heathen in their own judgmental eyes. The song on the MTL Live Free Summer playlist that I want you to give a listen to is "Heathens" by twenty one pilots. In it, I hear a warning against placing judgement because we all have pain and struggles that we are hiding in one way or another. I've often heard the most comforting words in the world are, "Me too." When we discover that our story is also the story of others, we feel a deep bonding sense of solidarity. The song "Heathens" has a different angle on finding a universal commonality, and I appreciate the unity it offers us. The lyrics tell us not "make sudden moves... that we don't know the half of the abuse." We must be gentle with one another not knowing people's stories or even how their day went. We must approach one another slowly and carefully to not further inflict damage but instead continually give grace. Which brings me back to what we see and how we see each other... because I don't see heathens... I see potential and promise and MORE. When I say, "Me too," I'm grabbing ahold of the truth that I am MORE and can live a better story... how I can live from a center in myself that is GOOD; and I am grabbing ahold of that truth for you too. It's not about me or you, it's about US... not just some of us... ALL of US... together. It's our DNA. It's who we are. Now live : ) |
These posts offer further reflection on topics we tackle during MTL nights.
Archives
February 2018
Categories |