I came across this short article over the weekend and was fascinated by the thought that maybe boredom is a good thing.
I agree with the author's premise that back in the day we used to get bored pretty regularly, but that was the spur to all sorts of exciting adventures and a greater sense of appreciation for what was happening around us.
We've put some pretty clear boundaries in place for our kids - 1 hour of screen time per day (they can choose whether that's TV, Wii, computer, etc - Josh does get an exemption to be able to watch NBA highlights over breakfast though ; ) ) and I'm actually encouraged to say that often our kids do get bored and we tell them to go and find something to do. And do you know what... they do! There's not much of a more awesome sound than hearing the two of them playing together - whether that's with their lego, stuffies, old boxes, cars... so great.
Personally, I'd go further than the author of that article does and say it's not just the internet that's the problem. I think it started with TV, then computers, then the internet and now smart phones and laptops. I hear all the time that people are so busy, but I'm more and more convinced that we just feel busy, because we never switch off - our phones are always telling us about how many emails we've missed, facebook updates we haven't read, tweets we haven't been inspired by. I actually wonder if the feeling of busyness is directly related to the amount of time we feel bored - if we're bored often enough, obviously we have spare time, so we don't feel busy. However, if we never feel bored, we assume we must be busy. All the time. But if that is simply boredom being alleviated by distraction, rather than by doing things that are productive, should we be complaining...?
Now, I'm not a techno-hater by any stretch, but it is healthy for us to reflect on how often we're bored - and when we are, what our default is. I know for me, TV is the old faithful boredom-killer/distractionado (especially with Netflix... mmm, TV and internet together...), but I think next time I'm bored, I'm going to choose to go and sit on our porch and be bored for a while and see what happens. What about you?
When was the last time I was bored? What did I do to stop being bored?
When was the last time I thought "I wish I had more time to...?" How much has my boredom-killer/distraction become a re-creation-killer?
What can I do to choose to get to a place of boredom - and creatively find a different way to fix it?
Monday, 16 April 2012
Monday, 2 April 2012
Monday Musings - how quickly things can change
Palm Sunday.
The Last Supper.
Betrayal and Desertion.
Good Friday.
Death.
Easter Sunday.
Life.
Victory.
I've been reflecting these past few days on the journey of Holy Week - the time of year when we follow the footsteps of Jesus to the cross and then his resurrection.
It's really an incredible story - Jesus comes into Jerusalem, welcomed as a celebrity, as King, as Messiah. People are cheering for him, letting a donkey walk on their coats, waving trees. I picture the atmosphere of a ticker tape parade after a sporting team wins a championship...
As the week rolls on, Jesus takes his closest friends aside and gives them a set of amazing intimate experiences - washing their feet, breaking bread with them, sharing his heart, his vision, his sadness, his love.
The crowds disperse. One of Jesus' close friends betrays him. One of his closest friends denies even knowing him. The crowd turns on him. He's left alone. Mocked. Tortured. Then killed.
But we know that's not the end of the story. From death, comes life. From hopelessness comes hope for eternity. From the giving up of all power comes ultimate victory.
As you prepare for this weekend, I pray you are able to enter into this incredible story and experience it in new ways, being reminded again that there is nothing God is unable to restore, to make right, to make whole. You. Me. Our circumstances. Our world.
He is Risen. He is Risen indeed.
Where am I making time to reflect on the Easter story this week?
Which part of the story do I most need to allow God to speak to me through this year?
Where is God already at work, bringing something back to life in my world this week - even if it seems impossible or unlikely?
The Last Supper.
Betrayal and Desertion.
Good Friday.
Death.
Easter Sunday.
Life.
Victory.
I've been reflecting these past few days on the journey of Holy Week - the time of year when we follow the footsteps of Jesus to the cross and then his resurrection.
It's really an incredible story - Jesus comes into Jerusalem, welcomed as a celebrity, as King, as Messiah. People are cheering for him, letting a donkey walk on their coats, waving trees. I picture the atmosphere of a ticker tape parade after a sporting team wins a championship...
As the week rolls on, Jesus takes his closest friends aside and gives them a set of amazing intimate experiences - washing their feet, breaking bread with them, sharing his heart, his vision, his sadness, his love.
The crowds disperse. One of Jesus' close friends betrays him. One of his closest friends denies even knowing him. The crowd turns on him. He's left alone. Mocked. Tortured. Then killed.
But we know that's not the end of the story. From death, comes life. From hopelessness comes hope for eternity. From the giving up of all power comes ultimate victory.
As you prepare for this weekend, I pray you are able to enter into this incredible story and experience it in new ways, being reminded again that there is nothing God is unable to restore, to make right, to make whole. You. Me. Our circumstances. Our world.
He is Risen. He is Risen indeed.
Where am I making time to reflect on the Easter story this week?
Which part of the story do I most need to allow God to speak to me through this year?
Where is God already at work, bringing something back to life in my world this week - even if it seems impossible or unlikely?
Tuesday, 27 March 2012
Monday Musings (on Tuesday) - reflections from a great weekend
This past weekend, we held our Downtown Toronto retreat - what an awesome time away.
The focus of the weekend was "Greater Things" as we processed John 14:12:
"Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father."
Together we unpacked various elements of what it means to be part of God's great restoration project and the ways in which we can enter in and receive the culture and values of God's original design and vision for us. Oh, and we had a groovy 70s dance party...
As I come back from the retreat, I'm so inspired and amazed at this incredible community that we're part of. One of the activities we did during the retreat was to get people into groups who all focus on the same area - hospitality, education, business, science, arts - to talk about what those principles look like in a practical way.
It was incredible to hear the ideas that the groups came up with and to be reminded again about the ways in which God is at work in every sphere of life that we are involved in and seeking to bring restoration, wholeness and purpose to our every day lives.
My prayer for each of us is simply this... "God, help us be more aware of your presence in our lives, so that we can be more involved in your amazing restoration project."
How aware am I of God's presence in and around me right now?
Where is God at work in my life today?
How is God inviting me to partner with him in that?
Monday, 19 March 2012
Monday Musings - innovation vs preservation
Last week, I read this article that's been floating around for the last little while - I'm sure many of you have read it, too. It's a fascinating account of a Google ex-employee - I'd assumed it was going to be someone firing up about something controversial, but in actual fact, it's a pretty balanced account of one person's perception of the shifting culture at Google.
While it's always important to be careful to remember that we all have our own perspectives which sway how we look at the world, from a philosophical angle, the article triggered a couple interesting thoughts for me...
Google has always been one of the companies people would say was in their top 5 desired workplaces. The facilities (cool place to work), the 20% rule (being given 1 day per week to work on a side project of your choosing), huge innovative environment (new ideas and new products all the time)... who wouldn't want to work there?
All of us have a desire to be in a place where we're appreciated, where we have the opportunity to dream, to come up with new ways of doing and where we don't just have to accept the Status Quo. Certainly in the world I spend most of my time, I'm very aware of that - the young (and even some of our older people) who are part of our churches are looking for a place that has a clear core (core values, core principles), but plenty of room to organically explore what that looks like. When it does... look out.
What does seem to have shifted at Google is the sense of "we now have to not only protect what we have, but we have to be like them so we can keep being at the centre". To me, that's the most dangerous attitude for anyone to have. As soon as we start focusing more on preservation than innovation, we're done. I remember Charlie Walsh, who worked with cyclists at the Australian Institute of Sport, saying that if we stand still and try to hold on to where we are (even if that's number 1), if we just keep doing what we've been doing, others around us are innovating and thinking of new ways to catch us and will overtake us.
Equally dangerous is to look at what someone else is doing and say "they're starting to take some of the number 1 from us - let's do what they're doing, only better (because we're number 1) and we can keep our number 1 place." Obviously, in this context I'm not talking about organizations that are already focused on similar areas.
In the church, sadly, I've seen this play out time and again - we focus too much either on trying to hold on to what we have (preservation) or we focus on what others are doing and say "if we were just like that, then we'd be back in the centre" (could play out in terms of looking at copying things that are successful in culture or in copying what other churches are doing).
For me, I desperately want to be part of a community that knows who they are and what they're on about - knowing what's at the heart and core of who we are. With that locked in, I then want to create opportunities for us to innovate, experiment and try new things, knowing all the time that we're holding on to what makes us "us". Sure, I want to learn from other people, other churches, other organizations and the culture around me, but in the end, I want to be able to allow the DNA that we have to produce organic fruit that is reflective of exactly where we are. What about you?
What areas of my life do I feel like I have to protect? Why?
When am I guilty of looking at what others are doing and thinking "I need to do that so that I can be as successful as them?"
How am I helping create organic, innovative community?
While it's always important to be careful to remember that we all have our own perspectives which sway how we look at the world, from a philosophical angle, the article triggered a couple interesting thoughts for me...
Google has always been one of the companies people would say was in their top 5 desired workplaces. The facilities (cool place to work), the 20% rule (being given 1 day per week to work on a side project of your choosing), huge innovative environment (new ideas and new products all the time)... who wouldn't want to work there?
All of us have a desire to be in a place where we're appreciated, where we have the opportunity to dream, to come up with new ways of doing and where we don't just have to accept the Status Quo. Certainly in the world I spend most of my time, I'm very aware of that - the young (and even some of our older people) who are part of our churches are looking for a place that has a clear core (core values, core principles), but plenty of room to organically explore what that looks like. When it does... look out.
What does seem to have shifted at Google is the sense of "we now have to not only protect what we have, but we have to be like them so we can keep being at the centre". To me, that's the most dangerous attitude for anyone to have. As soon as we start focusing more on preservation than innovation, we're done. I remember Charlie Walsh, who worked with cyclists at the Australian Institute of Sport, saying that if we stand still and try to hold on to where we are (even if that's number 1), if we just keep doing what we've been doing, others around us are innovating and thinking of new ways to catch us and will overtake us.
Equally dangerous is to look at what someone else is doing and say "they're starting to take some of the number 1 from us - let's do what they're doing, only better (because we're number 1) and we can keep our number 1 place." Obviously, in this context I'm not talking about organizations that are already focused on similar areas.
In the church, sadly, I've seen this play out time and again - we focus too much either on trying to hold on to what we have (preservation) or we focus on what others are doing and say "if we were just like that, then we'd be back in the centre" (could play out in terms of looking at copying things that are successful in culture or in copying what other churches are doing).
For me, I desperately want to be part of a community that knows who they are and what they're on about - knowing what's at the heart and core of who we are. With that locked in, I then want to create opportunities for us to innovate, experiment and try new things, knowing all the time that we're holding on to what makes us "us". Sure, I want to learn from other people, other churches, other organizations and the culture around me, but in the end, I want to be able to allow the DNA that we have to produce organic fruit that is reflective of exactly where we are. What about you?
What areas of my life do I feel like I have to protect? Why?
When am I guilty of looking at what others are doing and thinking "I need to do that so that I can be as successful as them?"
How am I helping create organic, innovative community?
Monday, 12 March 2012
Monday Musings - God the gardener
The weather here in Toronto has certainly been very strange - super cold and snowing one day, even colder but clear another,and then it's supposed to be 20 on Thursday! Wow. Spring is certainly on the way and I absolutely love T.O. in the spring - the way everything comes back to life, colour abounds, the birds start their chorus... beautiful.
With that comes the responsibility of getting the garden back in order. Our front yard in particular is a mess, because in the late fall, the city replaced all of the lead water pipes and pretty much destroyed our garden in the process (we'll see how survived and comes up in a few weeks).
I often refer to gardening as a really helpful analogy when we think about leadership in a church context. There's an element where we have responsibility - preparing the ground, ensuring there's enough nutrients, making sure the garden is laid out in the correct way so everything gets the right amount of sun, pruning and weeding... However there's only so much we can do - the rest requires us to sit back, be patient and allow the growth to happen naturally.
In our leadership roles, there's definitely work to be done - preparing the ground (setting good foundations), ensuring there's enough nutrients (teaching, discipling relationships, resourcing), making sure things are laid out correctly (the right people in the right roles, good structure), pruning and weeding (working through issues, helping people address sin in their lives, dealing with conflict). In the end, though, it's up to God to do the work in people's lives - the organic growth that only God can do.
One of my favourite verses is the Message translation of James 1:21:
In simple humility, let our gardener, God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life.
What is the current state of my garden?
During this season, what work do I need to do to prepare for more growth?
In my sphere of influence, how much am I responsible for? What do I need to leave with God?
Monday, 5 March 2012
Monday Musings - perspective
Most weeks, I have the privilege of taking a 45 minute drive out to Oakville for some meetings with our other staff. I say privilege, because I really enjoy the time in the car - no chance of doing anything, just tunes or road noise and (many times) the sun streaming in.
I particularly love the part of the drive home where I'm on the Gardiner, swing around just past Jameson and into view comes the city skyline, all the condos and the gloriousness of the CN Tower. For those who aren't from here, the CN tower it's this massive pointy tower that is probably the most well known part of the Toronto skyline (shown here from below)...
What I find interesting is that as I drive from our place heading West, the tower certainly stands out, but doesn't look that much taller than the other buildings. Coming back though (driving East), it towers (no pun intended) above the rest of the skyline... significantly. Of course, it's all perspective, but it amazes me the perspective can make that much difference.
It got me thinking - how much do we over or underestimate the size of things in our lives because of false perspective? Sometimes we may look at something and be deceived that it's not as big a deal as it actually is - or we look at some issues from a different perspective and they seem more intimidating than they really are?
I'm sure that people who understand perspective better than me would have better perspective (this time, that was intended...!) to explain it all, but it's worth thinking...
Are there areas of my life that are playing a more or less significant role than they should be?
If I looked at certain areas of my life with a different mindset or from a different angle, would that change how I felt about them?
Is there someone else in my life that maybe already has a different perspective to me, who could help me view things in a new way?
I particularly love the part of the drive home where I'm on the Gardiner, swing around just past Jameson and into view comes the city skyline, all the condos and the gloriousness of the CN Tower. For those who aren't from here, the CN tower it's this massive pointy tower that is probably the most well known part of the Toronto skyline (shown here from below)...
What I find interesting is that as I drive from our place heading West, the tower certainly stands out, but doesn't look that much taller than the other buildings. Coming back though (driving East), it towers (no pun intended) above the rest of the skyline... significantly. Of course, it's all perspective, but it amazes me the perspective can make that much difference.
It got me thinking - how much do we over or underestimate the size of things in our lives because of false perspective? Sometimes we may look at something and be deceived that it's not as big a deal as it actually is - or we look at some issues from a different perspective and they seem more intimidating than they really are?
I'm sure that people who understand perspective better than me would have better perspective (this time, that was intended...!) to explain it all, but it's worth thinking...
Are there areas of my life that are playing a more or less significant role than they should be?
If I looked at certain areas of my life with a different mindset or from a different angle, would that change how I felt about them?
Is there someone else in my life that maybe already has a different perspective to me, who could help me view things in a new way?
Tuesday, 28 February 2012
Monday Musings (on Tuesday...) - the impact of sport?
As I mentioned in my last post, we had a great time in Vancouver and Whistler. Vancouver really seems like a great city (I was only there for a week...) - I couldn't live there because of the rain, but aside from that, it has an awesome feel - very creative, well thought out...
In some ways, Vancouver reminds me a lot of Sydney. Part of that is them both being harbour cities, part of it being cities that have recently hosted Olympics - which has a big impact on infrastructure - but there's also a sense of being focused, strategic, thinking ahead, with room for people to experiment and a big focus on public art.
Many people have commented that Toronto (where we live) and Melbourne are also very similar cities and I would agree. They are culturally diverse cities, lots of distinct neighbourhoods, different emphasis on culture - food, music, cafes, ...
As I walked around Vancouver, one thought started to percolate in my mind... the impact of a sporting culture on a city. Again, Melbourne and Toronto are very similar in that sport is front and centre. For Toronto, it starts (and for some, ends...) with the Leafs, but there's also the lesser impact of the Raptors, the Blue Jays, the Rock, ... In Melbourne, the glorious colosseum that is the MCG and the place of the AFL is at the heart of the sporting and city landscape.
Sure, Vancouver and Sydney have sporting culture as part of them - the Canucks, the NRL - but to me, the city doesn't live and die on the basis of the success or failure of their teams (riots after losing the Stanley Cup aside, of course...)
The question that I really mused on was whether sport, if it has too big a place of influence in a city, actually becomes a distraction from other things - art, in particular. I'm not at all saying that there is no public art in Toronto or Melbourne, but it certainly doesn't have the same level of prominence as it seems to in Vancouver. I'm also not saying sport is inherently evil - anyone who knows me knows I definitely don't have that perspective...! And as I said, I absolutely want to acknowledge that I have not lived in 3 of those 4 cities and the one I have lived in, I've only been here for 2.5 years. However...
What impact do you think that sport has on a culture (positive or negative)?
Do you think it's possible for people to be so distracted by sport that it takes away from other priorities - other forms of culture (art, in particular), strategy, forward thinking, ...
Does sport in any way act as a (negative) distraction for you - taking you away from other things you should be giving attention to?
In some ways, Vancouver reminds me a lot of Sydney. Part of that is them both being harbour cities, part of it being cities that have recently hosted Olympics - which has a big impact on infrastructure - but there's also a sense of being focused, strategic, thinking ahead, with room for people to experiment and a big focus on public art.
Many people have commented that Toronto (where we live) and Melbourne are also very similar cities and I would agree. They are culturally diverse cities, lots of distinct neighbourhoods, different emphasis on culture - food, music, cafes, ...
As I walked around Vancouver, one thought started to percolate in my mind... the impact of a sporting culture on a city. Again, Melbourne and Toronto are very similar in that sport is front and centre. For Toronto, it starts (and for some, ends...) with the Leafs, but there's also the lesser impact of the Raptors, the Blue Jays, the Rock, ... In Melbourne, the glorious colosseum that is the MCG and the place of the AFL is at the heart of the sporting and city landscape.
Sure, Vancouver and Sydney have sporting culture as part of them - the Canucks, the NRL - but to me, the city doesn't live and die on the basis of the success or failure of their teams (riots after losing the Stanley Cup aside, of course...)
The question that I really mused on was whether sport, if it has too big a place of influence in a city, actually becomes a distraction from other things - art, in particular. I'm not at all saying that there is no public art in Toronto or Melbourne, but it certainly doesn't have the same level of prominence as it seems to in Vancouver. I'm also not saying sport is inherently evil - anyone who knows me knows I definitely don't have that perspective...! And as I said, I absolutely want to acknowledge that I have not lived in 3 of those 4 cities and the one I have lived in, I've only been here for 2.5 years. However...
What impact do you think that sport has on a culture (positive or negative)?
Do you think it's possible for people to be so distracted by sport that it takes away from other priorities - other forms of culture (art, in particular), strategy, forward thinking, ...
Does sport in any way act as a (negative) distraction for you - taking you away from other things you should be giving attention to?
Monday, 20 February 2012
Monday Musings - from the top of Whistler...
Right now, I'm actually on top of (or half way up...) Whistler - ah the wonder of technology these can come out at the same time each week.
I'm here with my family and my parents and we're having an incredible time. I've never really seen mountains, so to see the Canadian Rockies has been an unforgettable experience. The views from the plane as we flew over them were a great first taste, but nothing has compared to being here, driving through them, walking amongst them. It's been nothing short of spectacular - the grandeur, the majesty, the snow-capped trees... wow.
It took me a number of weeks to decide whether I would do what I'm doing right now or not - snowboarding at Whistler. It's mighty expensive to snowboard (or do anything...) up here, I've only snowboarded once before, I was terrified about taking a double-black diamond run by mistake, was it all going to be worth the risk...?
However, after much research and some coaxing from others, I reached the decision that I knew was inside me... If I didn't do it, I would always wish I had.
A number of years ago, Ali and I took a trip along the Great Ocean Road in Australia and as part of it, we went to Bells Beach. Same deal - terrifying, not really that good a surfer, (not the same issues about cost, though...!). However, I plucked up enough courage to head out, paddled out, sat there for a while ... then caught one wave back in - it was terrifying! There's a huge reef there, the waves are incredibly powerful, I knew I was out of my depth, but it's something I'll always be able to hold on as an amazing experience to and I have an even greater respect for people who can surf beaches like Bells.
As you read this, I may well have had lived out the same reality - terrified, caught the lift up, one run down and I was done (hopefully not!), but I know this will be something I'll always hold on to.
My reflections are about what held me back and in the end, a lot of it came down to fear. Fear of not knowing what I was doing, fear of getting lost, fear of the unknown... It's been an interesting journey through that and I know, having made this decision, I will be in a better position to be more confident when other opportunities come up. Otherwise, who knows what I'll miss out on...
What are your greatest fears?
What might you be missing out on because of those fears?
What is one thing you'd like to do this year that is outside your comfort zone?
I'm here with my family and my parents and we're having an incredible time. I've never really seen mountains, so to see the Canadian Rockies has been an unforgettable experience. The views from the plane as we flew over them were a great first taste, but nothing has compared to being here, driving through them, walking amongst them. It's been nothing short of spectacular - the grandeur, the majesty, the snow-capped trees... wow.
It took me a number of weeks to decide whether I would do what I'm doing right now or not - snowboarding at Whistler. It's mighty expensive to snowboard (or do anything...) up here, I've only snowboarded once before, I was terrified about taking a double-black diamond run by mistake, was it all going to be worth the risk...?
However, after much research and some coaxing from others, I reached the decision that I knew was inside me... If I didn't do it, I would always wish I had.
A number of years ago, Ali and I took a trip along the Great Ocean Road in Australia and as part of it, we went to Bells Beach. Same deal - terrifying, not really that good a surfer, (not the same issues about cost, though...!). However, I plucked up enough courage to head out, paddled out, sat there for a while ... then caught one wave back in - it was terrifying! There's a huge reef there, the waves are incredibly powerful, I knew I was out of my depth, but it's something I'll always be able to hold on as an amazing experience to and I have an even greater respect for people who can surf beaches like Bells.
As you read this, I may well have had lived out the same reality - terrified, caught the lift up, one run down and I was done (hopefully not!), but I know this will be something I'll always hold on to.
My reflections are about what held me back and in the end, a lot of it came down to fear. Fear of not knowing what I was doing, fear of getting lost, fear of the unknown... It's been an interesting journey through that and I know, having made this decision, I will be in a better position to be more confident when other opportunities come up. Otherwise, who knows what I'll miss out on...
What are your greatest fears?
What might you be missing out on because of those fears?
What is one thing you'd like to do this year that is outside your comfort zone?
Monday, 13 February 2012
Monday Musings - discipulus
Take a quick browse of my blog and you will very quickly establish that one of the things I've always struggled with is discipline. I see it as something that is super important, but I've never been able to crack it - it always feels so restrictive, so mundane, so "I just have to be more disciplined..."
A few days ago, for no apparent reason, I had this question pop into my head...
"I wonder if disciple and discipline come from the same root word...?"
Digging around led to a discovery that yes, in fact both do come from the same word - discipulus - which in general means "to learn" (you can do further research into the full meanings of both words if you like - I was excited and had enough thoughts from my initial discovery that they were linked...)
I have heard others talk before about different ways we can understand discipline - being disciplined as it relates to getting priorities in order; being disciplined by someone else as punishment; a particular area of learning (the discipline of science, mathematics, ...). In general, though, I've always come back to my short fall of not being disciplined enough, meaning "I need to get my habits in order, set up my schedule and be disciplined in sticking to it, so that I get to the gym the number of times per week I want to, spend time with God, read books, ..."
Disciple, on the other hand has always been a very rich term for me - a lifelong learner, someone under someone else's guidance, not just about learning from an intellectual stance, but learning experientially as well. I love that Jesus uses that as the term to describe the sorts of people he wants us to be.
To recognize that these two are in fact linked is fascinating to me. Is there a possibility that rather than feeling the need to be more disciplined, I need to recognize that in order to continue to learn, to grow, to be a fuller disciple, that's what I'm aspiring to?
It's not about getting my week in order for the sake of being a disciplined person, it's about being a disciple, a learner and setting myself up to keep learning by being in places where I can grow. Maybe I need to invent a new word to help me understand it - disciple-ability; discipline-ness; obviously disciple-ship is out there, too... (but interestingly often has different connotations...)
If I step back and ask the question "In which areas of my life do I want to grow/learn?", that should provide me with some ideas about how I can grow/learn, which then sets priorities and choices... = discipline. Interesting to keep thinking about...
Which word do you resonate with more - disciple or discipline?
Which areas of your life do you feel most excited about learning and growing?
How can you focus more on those areas to grow in your disciple-ability?
A few days ago, for no apparent reason, I had this question pop into my head...
"I wonder if disciple and discipline come from the same root word...?"
Digging around led to a discovery that yes, in fact both do come from the same word - discipulus - which in general means "to learn" (you can do further research into the full meanings of both words if you like - I was excited and had enough thoughts from my initial discovery that they were linked...)
I have heard others talk before about different ways we can understand discipline - being disciplined as it relates to getting priorities in order; being disciplined by someone else as punishment; a particular area of learning (the discipline of science, mathematics, ...). In general, though, I've always come back to my short fall of not being disciplined enough, meaning "I need to get my habits in order, set up my schedule and be disciplined in sticking to it, so that I get to the gym the number of times per week I want to, spend time with God, read books, ..."
Disciple, on the other hand has always been a very rich term for me - a lifelong learner, someone under someone else's guidance, not just about learning from an intellectual stance, but learning experientially as well. I love that Jesus uses that as the term to describe the sorts of people he wants us to be.
To recognize that these two are in fact linked is fascinating to me. Is there a possibility that rather than feeling the need to be more disciplined, I need to recognize that in order to continue to learn, to grow, to be a fuller disciple, that's what I'm aspiring to?
It's not about getting my week in order for the sake of being a disciplined person, it's about being a disciple, a learner and setting myself up to keep learning by being in places where I can grow. Maybe I need to invent a new word to help me understand it - disciple-ability; discipline-ness; obviously disciple-ship is out there, too... (but interestingly often has different connotations...)
If I step back and ask the question "In which areas of my life do I want to grow/learn?", that should provide me with some ideas about how I can grow/learn, which then sets priorities and choices... = discipline. Interesting to keep thinking about...
Which word do you resonate with more - disciple or discipline?
Which areas of your life do you feel most excited about learning and growing?
How can you focus more on those areas to grow in your disciple-ability?
Monday, 6 February 2012
Monday Musings - Why does extended excellence bore us?
I was fascinated with the response leading up to and during the Super Bowl last night. It was amazing to me the number of people who wrote comments along the lines of "I couldn't care less about the Super Bowl this year", often followed by a rationale about why they hate and/or are bored by the Patriots and/or (less so) the Giants.
In the end, it was a fantastic game of football, though I am obviously gutted about the result... Sorry to those who missed out because they were taking a stance on not wanting to watch teams they don't like... it will absolutely go down as one of the great Super Bowls - that catch by Manningham was incredible.
However, my fascination about those comments stems more from why it is that we get so bored by teams and people who live out extended excellence. Let me list a few names... what's your response?
Patriots.
Lakers.
Yankees.
Federer.
Now before you get all steamed up and say "I can't stand the Patriots because they're cheats"; "the Yankees just buy World Series victories"; "Bryant is a jerk"; "Federer is boring"... I want to challenge how many others do the same thing or have similar traits, but we don't care anywhere near as much - we only focus on these teams/people because they excel. A lot. Take a deep breath and really think about whether there is someone you can point to that has been highly successful for a long time and you are happy for them. If so, I'd be interested to know why that's different.
The angst against the Patriots comes from 2 sources - Belichick is a cheat (because of the whole spygate thing) and because Brady is too arrogant/a pretty boy/cheat/his hair is too nice/... As I've mentioned before, I am a Patriots fan, so I'll admit I have some bias. However, the Brady stuff to me is crazy - love him or hate him, he's a guy who was picked 199th, is only as good as he is because he has worked so hard - by his own admission, he's really not that athletic - and it's not like he's had superstars around him every year. In terms of the taping scandal, I can't believe the Pats were the only ones who did it, but even if they were, they were severely punished and now look at what Belichick has done with this year's team of cast-offs and undrafted players. Unpack it with most people and eventually, they'll admit he is actually a pretty good coach.
The reality is that we just get bored when the same team/person is successful all the time and I'm interested in why that is. Sure, most of us want to cheer for the underdog - we love a good story and that's understandable. But there's something in us that starts to believe that people's success is undeserved once they've been at the top for a while. Never mind that they need to keep working just as hard as others to maintain that success (or harder - they suddenly have a target on their back) - we're bored with them winning and look for ways to pull them down. Using Brady as an example again, he was absolutely an underdog when he entered the league, but now he's resented because he's been at the top (or near it...) for so long.
Being perfectly honest, I know this plays out in my own life, too. Rather than cheering on those around me, I can look at ways of tearing them down (even if it's only in my own mind) or getting resentful about why they have all the luck, why they get all the breaks and success while I continue to work away with my head down... As I do that, I miss the incredible blessings that are present in my own life and fail to recognize the sacrifices, discipline and dedication that others have probably put in to get to where they are. To be honest, a lot of the time, I'm just not willing to do the same...
Who are you cheering on to succeed?
Who are you cheering to fail?
What's really at the core of why?
In the end, it was a fantastic game of football, though I am obviously gutted about the result... Sorry to those who missed out because they were taking a stance on not wanting to watch teams they don't like... it will absolutely go down as one of the great Super Bowls - that catch by Manningham was incredible.
However, my fascination about those comments stems more from why it is that we get so bored by teams and people who live out extended excellence. Let me list a few names... what's your response?
Patriots.
Lakers.
Yankees.
Federer.
Now before you get all steamed up and say "I can't stand the Patriots because they're cheats"; "the Yankees just buy World Series victories"; "Bryant is a jerk"; "Federer is boring"... I want to challenge how many others do the same thing or have similar traits, but we don't care anywhere near as much - we only focus on these teams/people because they excel. A lot. Take a deep breath and really think about whether there is someone you can point to that has been highly successful for a long time and you are happy for them. If so, I'd be interested to know why that's different.
The reality is that we just get bored when the same team/person is successful all the time and I'm interested in why that is. Sure, most of us want to cheer for the underdog - we love a good story and that's understandable. But there's something in us that starts to believe that people's success is undeserved once they've been at the top for a while. Never mind that they need to keep working just as hard as others to maintain that success (or harder - they suddenly have a target on their back) - we're bored with them winning and look for ways to pull them down. Using Brady as an example again, he was absolutely an underdog when he entered the league, but now he's resented because he's been at the top (or near it...) for so long.
Being perfectly honest, I know this plays out in my own life, too. Rather than cheering on those around me, I can look at ways of tearing them down (even if it's only in my own mind) or getting resentful about why they have all the luck, why they get all the breaks and success while I continue to work away with my head down... As I do that, I miss the incredible blessings that are present in my own life and fail to recognize the sacrifices, discipline and dedication that others have probably put in to get to where they are. To be honest, a lot of the time, I'm just not willing to do the same...
Who are you cheering on to succeed?
Who are you cheering to fail?
What's really at the core of why?
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