People Are Awesome!

I've just found my new video series that I'm going to waste too much time watching on youtube, but it's amazing!  You've got to check out "People Are Awesome."  Amazing tricks, stunts, and feats from all sports.  Everything from basketball to biking, skiing, diving, parachuting, etc.

I like it for a bunch of reasons, first being because it's just really cool to watch.  It reminds of the amazing things that we as humans can do, that the human body is capable of.  But it also inspires me to get really good at something.  The incredible number of hours these people have to put into perfecting what they do has to be (almost) innumerable - we just see the final product and think 'wow', but there's so much that goes into making that happen.

It also inspires me to take risks.  The coolest things on these videos are the guys who take the biggest risks.  If we're too scared to do anything, we miss out on so much!  (By the way, that goes for both these fun/crazy types of activities, and for our walk with God - take steps of faith!)  You might read this part about taking risks and disagree, but - I must stress this again - keep in mind that each of these people probably only took these risk after countless hours of practice and training.

So I say, prepare properly and go for it!

Disclaimer - do not try anything you are not prepared/practiced/trained to do.  Be smart, don't get injured or worse, killed.  But if you are trained, practiced, ready, and know the risks, I say don't let the fear stop you - go for it!

The Pain of Change

I read a very interesting devotional by Joyce Meyer this morning.  She was talking about how God works in our lives, allowing difficult situations for spiritual growth and to bring about change.  But in that, she readily admits that spiritual growth can be difficult - not just for the time and effort you have to put in, but also for the tough situations you have to encounter and persevere through.

In making that point Joyce had this quote about her own personal resistance to change.  "Finally I realized that I was trying to avoid pain, but I had pain anyway.  The pain of staying the way we are is much worse than the pain of changing."

What a profound thought.  We so often resist change because it can be hard, because it hurts, and because, yeah, quite often, change sucks!  Or at least it feels that way.  But it comes down to a simple premise.  We know that God is good, right?  And we know that if He's trying to effect change in our lives, it's for a good purpose.  So are we really helping ourselves when we resist change?  When we won't give up a sinful habit, forgive the person who hurt us, be generous with our money, etc?  The answer is pretty obvious, Joyce Meyer nailed it.

So the simple question with the not-so-simple answer - what change is God trying to instil in your life?

Kayak!

So I am thrilled about my latest purchase...a kayak!!  Just bought it last week, but went out for a paddle a couple days ago and it was great!

Just to set the record straight, I'm not normally a purchaser of big-ticket items like this.  However, this was not a whim purchase, it's something I've wanted to do for a while.  I've been planning and saving since last year, testing out different kayaks and doing research to find the right one for me.  I'm so glad I put in the time because I found the perfect one!  (I was tempted to buy one last year without doing any research, and now I'm thrilled that I waited because while it was a good kayak, it wouldn't have been a good one for me).

Anyhow, as I mentioned I went out for a paddle this week.  There's something about being out on the water - away from the traffic and busyness, an escape even just for a couple of hours, where it's quiet and it's just you and nature - you and God.  A great chance to reconnect and admire God's creation.  That, and exercise are the two main reasons I bought a kayak, and I can't wait to use it a ton next summer!  I got it at a smokin' deal being the end of the season, but the only problem is that now I have to wait about 9 months before I can really use it. It's going to be torture every time I open my garage this winter!

In the end, two main points - enjoy God's creation however you do it, and never underestimate the value of taking the time to do your due research before making a big purchase.  It's worth it in the end.