I’m a big believer in people doing things they love. I grew up seeing a lot of people simply compromising for whatever life brings their way. Women getting pregnant and never pursuing their college plans, guys working in a factory to pay off some bills but never leaving because of retirement plans and contentment. It’s basically the standard American dream to find the essentials of life and be satisfied. I am also a big believer in going after and actually doing rather that just thinking or saying. How annoying is it to hear someone that always has these sweet ideas, but when you check back up with them, they haven’t even taken the first step in the direction of making these things a reality? What makes things interesting is bringing the two elements together.
Doing what we love, and loving what we do. I am in the middle of that, hence “Love (me) Do”, a little play on words from the Beatles 1958 love song.
I’m currently in the process of finding out what drives me. What makes me want to wake up at 5AM every day and spend 40 hours a week of persistance? Because honestly, how many things could there be out there that can make 40 hours “fly by”? I am a dreamer at heart. In many ways, I have settled my way through the 22 short years of my life, thinking I had it all figured out, career at hand, and the details all figured out. Suddenly after a few leaps of faith and trust, its not the case and then enters the suspicions of life, frustrations of uncertainty, but excitement of wondering what comes next. I have been reinventing some of my ideas from many years ago and can see both maturation and renewed spirit in these ideas. While my most commonly approached wall of disappointment often comes in the form of financial support, I began asking the question, “What can I do right now with my limited income and plethora of loans?”. It makes the challenge even tougher, but we all know how much a man loves a tough challenge or competition.
Speaking of men, I have recently been reading “Wild at Heart” by John Eldredge, which discusses masculinity in reference to Christian culture and God. I was recently having a conversation about the image of Jesus Christ that we typically think of. My mind automatically shifts to the pictures of Jesus in my catechism books and on the walls of Sunday School rooms. Jesus is sitting on a perfectly placed rock with children around him. There is a sense of peace, comfort, and support. But consider this. Jesus was also a man worth fearing. Think about the times that he had to deal with the Pharisees. In Luke 13, the Pharisees are bashing on Jesus for healing the crippled woman on the Sabbath. In a way, Christ draws the enemy out into the open, exposes him, and shames him in front of everyone. Other instances of God’s “not-so-Mother Teresa” moves are the plagues and death of every firstborn. When the Spirit of the Lord came upon Samson he did some pretty impressive things too, like killing a lion bare handed and killing 1,000 men with a donkey jawbone. These actions are a bit more like Braveheart to me. So is Jesus more of a Mother Teresa or a William Wallace?
