People, People

In my life I have known many people. I have known all kids of people. I have known Republicans and I have known Democrats. I have known people who were healthy and people who were sick. I have known people who were Kings, and people who were servants. I have known people who were CEO's, and people who were unemployed. I have known people who were clergy and I have known people who were murderers. I have known people who were kind and people who were mean. I have known people who were black, people who were white, and people who were asian. I have known people who were rock stars, and people who can’t play a note. I have known people who were published authors, and people who can’t read. I have known people who were billionaires, and people who were broke. I have known people who lived in mansions and people who lived in huts. I have known people who were Christian, people who were Hindu, people who were Buddhist, people who were Muslim and people who were Atheists. 

Bare with me... I have known people who were alcoholics and addicts, and I have known people who were teetotalers. I have known people who were straight, people who were gay and people who were transgender. I have known people with tattoos, and people with untouched skin. I have known people who's names you recognize, and I have known people who did not have a name. I have known people who were born, and I have known people who have died. I have known people with two parents who were married, people who were orphans and I have known people who were adopted. I have known people who have won awards and people who were in prison.

Thanks for staying with me, as you can see I have known many, many people from all walks of life and with all kinds of backgrounds. Though they all have very different lives and opinions, there is one common thread that all these people have - they are people, human beings, just like you and me. They all have feelings, opinions, experiences, and fears. They all have good times and bad, they all have times of sickness and times of health. Yes, they all have much more in common than you may think. At the end of the day, they may truly be more similar than they are different. We live in a world that loves to divide us. The media thrives on controversy and drama. Radicalization of our faiths have led us to believe that those with whom we don’t see eye to eye are our our enemy. Our society wants to make our value as people based on what we have or how much we earn. Our insecurities drive us to the need to be right, and we have learned to do this by making others wrong.

We as people have always had differences, and always will. We have desires and insecurities that make us want more, but we also have an inner conscious that wants us to be satisfied. We all desire to be loved and we all have love to give. All major religions are founded on a basic principal of loving others and being a good person, and yet our nature has corrupted these core values.

Our enemy is not everyone else, our enemy is ourselves. The solutions is not to stand firm, yell louder and post more on Facebook. The solution is to stop and listen, and think before talking. I am in no way saying anyone needs to step down from their beliefs, but to know that just as they can hold tight to their beliefs, so can others. The problem is not our differences, it is how we deal with them. I say it is time that we stop and take a breath, and see that we are all the same in the big picture, and we all share a similar story. We are products of our circumstances and molded by our perspectives, and our truths are just that, they are ours. 

Are there higher truths? Yes. I firmly believe there are, and I am happy to share my views with others, but not impose them. My truth comes from my faith, and that requires me to love everyone, regardless of who they are or what they stand for. That means respecting you as a person, and seeing the good in you as well as respecting all of your perspectives and respecting your right to all of your opinions. You see, I do not believe that it is my job to force my truth on you, but to respect your right to choose what you hold dear, even if it is very different from mine. It is not because I am a better person. In fact, often it is a real struggle to keep my head right and my eye on what I believe. I constantly struggle with my inner-jerk and the ways of the world trying hard to pull me astray. But I desire to be part of the solution, not part of the problem.

So please join me in choosing peace and being love. We are the key to changing the divisions in our world - not everyone else. You and me. Not later, but now. And not if they do it first. No, be the change you want to see. I challenge you to join me and start now. If I falter, forgive me, and I promise to do the same; but never should we let that be cause to give up the good fight!

Peace and Love,

Randy

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Objection!

I Object. There, I said it, and unfortunately, it is true. Not, “I object” like in a court room, nor “iobject”, which I am sure is something apple will be rolling out soon, I, meaning me, “object”, as in the noun, that the dictionary defines as: “object, noun, ob–ject, a material thing that can be seen or touched”. Being as far from an English scholar as humanly possible, I am not sure I can make up a new verb from a noun that already has a verb of a different meaning, but I am going to anyway, and I apologize if I shouldn’t have. I object, meaning I way too often see people as objects and not people. Proper english would be, I all too often objectify people. 

We all do it, some more than others, but objectifying a person is never in the spirt of loving them. We are told that the the two most important commandments are love God and love you neighbor, meaning everybody else, yes everybody. If you are objectifying them, you aren’t loving them, because you are no longer looking at them as people, but things. 

We do this by labeling them. “He is an idiot!”. “She is nosy”. The news recently has been full of coverage of Paula Dean, the once beloved cooking show hostess, being fired for using the “n-word”. In other words, she used a term that labeled african american people not as individual people, but objects. Then the court of public opinion quickly pointed out that she is a “racist”. She is no longer a person, who may struggle with her own demons, she is now objectified as well. You see we all do it, all the time. In this case it can feel justified, but I don’t think that is how God wants us to see it. You see people of all backgrounds are still people, individuals, made by God in his image, but we are ALL to quick to forget this.

How about the two guys looking at the girl on the beach in her bikini. Are they looking at the beauty of her soul, or are they looking at her as an object to fulfill lustful desires? Would they look at her the same if she was a bit larger and wearing shorts and a tee shirt? Likely not, but they are not looking at her the person, but her the object. I wonder how that all changes if we add to the mix that it is God’s daughter they are ogling! I know if it were my daughter, I’m would not be happy, and I am not omnipresent, nor all powerful. I know, but, after all,  she is just a tramp seeking attention going out dressed like that, I mean what does she expect! Again, we on the “good” side, have to watch how we label as well.

Here is one! How about the A$$ #@%& who cuts you off in the car. Now there is one case that we can justify converting into an object. I mean after all she has no conscious, or care for others, or she would be more considerate in her driving right? Well maybe, but would you feel any different if you knew that she was driving around just to get out of the house, because her abusive husband just beat her up in front of their three kids. Is she still an A$$ #@%&? Or, does she deserve your love and compassion?

You see, we are all people. We are all flawed, and we all deserve love and compassion. Oftentimes, those who appear to deserve it the least, need it the most. Their actions are often cries of pain and loneliness. We are all made to love and be loved, but we often deny ourselves and each other the gift of doing just that. We objectify people to distance ourselves from them, to justify our actions, to make ourselves feel superior, or in some cases, to fulfill our own needs or desires. We are all different, and yet we are all the same - made perfectly by God in His image. But we are made to learn to love and understand our fellow man. In doing so, we learn the unconditional love that God has for us and has designed us for, and in that, we find Him!

Yhea God!

Soul Fool- The proof of the pudding is in the eating

I have this restaurant I love to go to. The food is exceptional, the service is great, and the owner and I have a fast developing friendship. Now, I will say sometimes, I go in with a hankering for the perfect burger, which they know just how to make, and He will serve me up a risotto, that was not exactly what I had in mind when I arrived. However, it is always ends up being the perfect meal and I never leave disappointed or with regrets. Oh, and did I tell you the best part, the owner decided years ago, that he was willing to pick up the tab for anyone who wants to eat at his establishment. 

Now the problem is how do I share this find with my friends. When you find something this good, you just want to run around and tell the world. The problem is, if it is all you talk about, everyone thinks you are crazy. When you tell them it is that amazing and their bill will be paid, many are skeptical and want to know what the catch is. If you say it is the best, with too much force, you end up making them defensive about their favorite restaurant, and then, they shut down and don’t want to hear anything else you have to say. 

There is another issue. Many of us who have found this incredible bistro, all love it for different menu items. This often creates confusion for people who have not tried it. If I am raving about the best steaks ever, and then someone else talks about how this is the unparalleled sushi, and then little Johnny says how heavenly the pizza and french fries are, it can create doubt. How can a place that specializes in pizza, have any credibility in sushi, or fine dining? It defies common logic. Of course it is possible, but it takes a bit of a leap of faith to be open to believing it. Once you cross that imaginary obstacle, the proof of the pudding is truly in the eating, then you can decide for yourself.

There are many types of people out there all with different expectations and needs in their food preferences. There are those who always want the same, predictable experience. There are those looking for adventure in dining. Some want quality, some want volume, some are all about value, and others presentation. There are also some people who, for various reasons, don’t like to eat out and want to just eat at home. So for their own reasons, people may or may not be very receptive to your suggestion of a new place to eat.

How can you tell your friend from India, Raj, that your restaurant has better indian food than the Patel family, who’s recipes have been perfected by their family for generations? You see no matter what you say, you must say it with care, as to not offend. If you put down his culture, traditions and family eatery, you only alienate him, you make the idea of dining with you, unattractive. Even the the owner, of my favorite place, warns about maintaing loving friendships over everything else. You see, He feels that as long as you tell them about His restaurant, He is happy to try and convince them Himself to try it, but you forcing your will on them usually ends in hard feelings, and they will lose all desire to sample His cooking.

Now, I know, that some people want to push their own restaurant on everybody. Often we do it, because we are insecure and feel safer in numbers, or because we don’t want them getting sick by eating in an unhealthy or unclean cafe. The truth be told, most of us just want to share our excitement with the awesome establishment we have come to love. The food is good, healthy nourishing, the owner is a dear friend and the fact that the bill is paid is an believable blessing. The fact is, that we are not always well equipped to channel our enthusiasm properly, it is something we need to work on. We want people to feel our enthusiasm, not push us away, of feel hurt or intimidated by our tactics.

We each have a inherent need to share our excitement, about things we are passionate about. The issue is, we need to do so, in love and not in judgement or with a sense of superiority. We need to do so in a manner respecting that other people may have a restaurant they are just as passionate about and they may not be ready to eat elsewhere, or immediately jump at our suggestion to eat elsewhere, just because we said to. So to them, we need to talk in open discussions about our eatery and be willing, as well, to allow them to discuss theirs, letting them know all along, that while they may not choose to join us right now, that if they change their mind, at any point, we would love to save them a seat at our table. But we also need to accept the fact that not everybody will try it, and we need to also respect their decisions to choose to decline our invitation.

There will be some who are hungry, who can’t wait to check it out and taste all of the courses. Others will join us,  who have not felt welcomed at, or liked the food at their current restaurant. They will be anxious to join us and eat, and get to know the proprietor. These people will be the ones we can share our next meals with, and hopefully, over time with loving encouragement, our other friends will join us, as they see our continued loyal patronage at our friends restaurant!

Living, Loving and Losing

Yesterday our community was robbed, robbed of our security, robbed of our comfort and robbed of our innocence. A child was taken from us and called to join the choir of angels. Taken from his parents in the early years of youth. Their hopes, plans, and expectations revoked in an instant. There is no way to prepare for the feelings of injustice, sadness, violation and heartbreak that this brings forth. Watching children learn first hand of the things adults can not explain, much less process. Knowing that the adults themselves now, have lost a security that they have taken for granted. 

How do we deal? What do we do? Where do we turn? The questions fire around internally like a garden hose gone wild. Do we run to God? Yes... well maybe... is the the same God who just robbed us of our loved one? Do we open up and all cry together in love? or is that same love that just made us vulnerable to such profound hurt? Maybe withdrawing  into a hardened shell will protect us from further pain. Where to go? What to do? How can we stop the feelings of hurt and violation with no answers. 

The answers lie within. We know that love, the very love that makes us hurt so bad is the only thing powerful enough to even begin to repair the hole in our soul. The love that God blessed us with, the hope and promises He instilled in us. By a faith that there is in fact a heaven, we can find comfort in the fact that we can know our loved ones are in comfort, that we can maintain a hope of reconciliation. 

The concept of love and heaven are not a doctrine of religion, as most major religions arrive at similar conclusions. It is a seed planted in our very core. Planted by the same creator that gave us a profound ability to love to the point of paralyzing pain. It is internal, hard wired into us. God who created us in His image, created us in love, and also promised us eternal life. 

The answer to our healing, is to come together in love, to find comfort in the promise of a life eternal. to not run, hide, shut down, but to live each day with a new respect for the value of the gift it is. To love more, to give more grace, and to seek refuge in a God that willing gave His own son for our benefit.

It is the same God who entrusted us with the gift of our loved ones. Every day we get is a blessing. So we should not look with contempt at the time we did not receive, but live in gratitude for that which we did. The pain we feel is a testament to the true value of the gift we have received. 

We can not pretend to understand the larger plans of the Lord. We can not pretend to understand the enormity of eternity from the basis our perspective of time. We need to have a faith, a blind faith in its infancy, but as you learn to trust in that faith, to live in that faith, it reveals itself. It becomes no longer blind, but in fact, it becomes a life based on a knowing, living, breathing relationship with a loving creator. It no longer becomes a leap of faith, but an investment in love.

Though not all are prone to becoming vulnerable enough to find the openness that allows for healing, I ask us all to open our hearts, to be available to ourselves, to one another, to God to allow us as individuals, and as a community to come together and openly grieve, to heal together and to celebrate the gift that we were given, for the precious time we had it.

"'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the Lord. 'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts'" (Is 55:8-9).

Yhea God!

That Day

That day will come. "The day", the one that we all know and fear. The day that our mortality comes to an end and our time on earth, with those that we love, comes to an end. In that moment, most of us, regardless of our religion and/or faith believe that we will have revelation as to the truths of God and the universe. Those of us who are followers of Christ believe that in that moment our faith will be validated and we will be welcomed into Heaven, a place of perfection and eternal peace.

This week we lost a member of our community, a man in the prime of his life, whom was taken in his sleep. He was a business man, the owner of a local beachfront restaurant and bar, overlooking one of the most beautiful beaches on earth. He was a family man, with a wife and two sons, 12 and 15. He was not a poor man, and by all appearances his needs were well tended. I have to imagine that if asked, he would say, that in most ways he had it all. I did not know him, though I do know his family somewhat. But I can see the devastation that his death has caused. I can see the sadness and questioning throughout a community, who has lost one of their own before their time.

I wish I could just convince everyone, this is why you need to find Jesus, and do it now. Because that is, what I believe, they need to do. But I can also say that I am, as a believer in my own eternal salvation, still somewhat unsettled when it comes to my own mortality. I don't want to not be able to see my kids grow up. I don't want to not be with my wife, my family, or even my friends. I am scared. For just as this man in our community died, just as my sister died, or even for that matter just as Michael Jackson died, we never know when our moments on this earth will come to pass, and that is terrifying. Even as a Christian, it is scary, I am glad I have that to hold on to the help assuage my fears.

I know when you really stop and think about it, many things in life become unimportant, insignificant, even ridiculous. If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, would you really spend today arguing with the guy at garage about the cost of brake pads, would you make sure to spend the day shopping for a new refridgerator, would you sit in the office all day trying to make that last dollar? I hope not. I know I would would want to spend it with my family and maybe even my friends, doing something incredible, something that I love. It is not that it would even matter doing what, just enjoying my time.

I also know I would also want to devote some of that day to prayer, not praying for my entrance ticket to eternal salvation, though I know I would ask, but praying for God to bring comfort to my family, friends and community as they experience loss. I would pray for God to care for and look after each of my family members and help them navigate the puzzles of life. I would also pray that each and every one of them find it in their heart to have a relationship with God, so that selfishly, I would be able to see them again.

So today this is my prayer for "Trukie", his family, and our entire community. God please comfort each and every one of us, but Lord give special grace and comfort to his family. Father may our fears and frailty be overshadowed by your love and understanding, and we all as individuals be drawn to you. May we feel you love and presence and may through this tragedy, we all find comfort in the fact that we have the opportunity to reunite again in your loving arms. Father, may we put less importance in the demands of the world and focus our time on earth on what is truly important, spending time with those we love and loving those we spend time with. Be with us Lord, and comfort us in our mortality, in Your name I pray. Amen

Yhea God!

The Crickets Song

Do you try and do the right thing? Most of us do. I know that, I, for one, have devoted a large portion of my life to doing missions work and helping those less fortunate around the world. Many times I have put my safety and comfort on the shelf, to be a beacon of hope to those in need. I have tried to do it humbly and not with any personal gain in mind. Though admittedly, there have been times when I have had to consciously keep my ego in check, as to not make my time serving about me and the attention I was getting from doing it.

Would I say I care about others? Yes, I do. No questions about that. Would I do it for those I don't know? Of course, I do it all the time. After all my rallying cry has always been Matthew 25:40; “And the Lord will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’ So in the parable of the good samaritan, where do I fall? As the one the comes along and helps, right? Well, in theory at least.

Last month this theory was put to the test, and I am sad to say I failed, miserably. Yes, me, Mr. travel the world helping people, loving them, feeding them, I failed the true test. I was driving through the barrio of Liberia, a moderate sized town about 20 minutes from our home in the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. The particular barrio was just outside of town and was quite poor with an extremely rough and rocky road. I was coming back from picking up my car at the mechanic and though I was not overly late, I was on a timetable. As I am driving and older guy obviously well beyond drunk was staggering down the road. As I approached him I slowed way down, less he stagger in front of my car. I can see as he gets closer that he is babbling something to himself. Immediately, I feel bad for him.

My pity rapidly turns into panic as I watch him fall face first onto the rocks. He landed on his face, no attempt by his hands to break the fall. Yep here it is, my confession. I watched as he tried to get up. Bloodied and unable to right himself, I watched. Knowing I probably could not understand his inebriated version of Spanish. Knowing, I did not want his blood all over my car. Knowing, that I had no idea where to take him or what to do. I drove on, hoping the next car coming down the road would have his good Samaritan. As I failed him, I failed myself, and I failed my God!

So now I sit here knowing that it is not Matthew 25:40 that guided me when the chips were down, but Matthew 25:45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me."

Yes, Lord, I have failed you, forgive me. I am not the man I thought. I am not the man I want to be. I heard my conscience, but chose to ignore it out of convenience. This has been riding on my for the last six weeks. I doubt the man died, I doubt it was the first, nor last time he walked that street with the same result. But I could have made a difference, I could have been the one to promote the change. I didn't, but I pray that next time I will have the courage to do it.

So my prayer for each of us is that we sing the song of Jiminy Cricket and always let your conscience be your guide. We know what is right, but are we strong enough to do it? So far, I have yet to prove myself, but I refuse to give up!

Yhea God