Dude, Where's My Car?

"Dude, Where’s My Car?"  I have said this to myself on a few occasions over the last 6 months as I have exited my workplace only to find an empty parking space.  It usually occurs when I have just hung up the phone with someone and told them that I was on my way.  I hurriedly step out of the door and then….SCREEEEEECH…”Dude, Where’s My Car?”  Oh yeah, Krystal has it this afternoon!  This hasn’t happened often, because we have a fairly steady schedule.  However, there are times when Krystal needs the car on a day that’s out of the ordinary and that’s when it tends to happen.  We have been doing this for 6 months and this has only happened a few times.  It is inconvenient, but not that big of a deal. 

If you would have told me 6 months ago that the “Dude, Where’s My Car?” experiences and having to downsize while packing for a two night camping trip would be the only memorable inconveniences that I would experience on this one car journey, I would not have believed you. 

This 6 month period has given me time to reflect on life and the choices that we make.  We often go through life making choices based upon what we see others do or what we perceive others think about us.  Our homes, cars, clothes, hobbies, etc. don’t always reflect who we are, but often who we want others to think we are or, ultimately, who we want to be.  It reminds me of the Styx song “The Grand Illusion”….  

 But don't be fooled by the radio, the TV or the magazines
They'll show you photographs of how your life should be
But they're just someone else's fantasies
So if you think your life is complete confusion
'Cause you never win the game
Just remember that it's a grand illusion
And deep inside we're all the same
We're all the same

You would think that anyone who has taken a basic Marketing course in college would see through “The Grand Illusion”; yet we get tripped up by our own pride and our desire to “be somebody”.  Beyond the life is like high school mentality, we are constantly on the prowl for comfort, a/k/a luxury.  We often have these things driving us as we make decisions.  Time and time again, we find that the material things that we thought would bring lasting joy only bring fleeting happiness.  Why do we continue down the road that leads to disappointment, without ever trying anything different? 

We chose to try something a little different.  It hasn’t been convenient all of the time and it hasn’t always been comfortable, but we have learned more about ourselves from trying something different than we ever would have by not challenging ourselves and just following the crowd.  We are half-way through our 1 year experiment and we are glad that we have made this choice for this season in our life. 

My encouragement to you…Step out of your comfort zone.  Be different.  It's worth it!  

Keeping Your Balance

The other night I ran 3 miles through our neighborhood.  It was about 40 degrees with a slight wind and I had some new tunes playing on my iPhone to help keep me motoring along.  After the run, I had a walk of about a quarter of a mile to the house and for the first time that night I looked up and noticed the canopy of stars above my head.  It was amazing!  The winter air was crisp, the moon a thin crescent and the stars seemed to pierce the sky with their white light.  I had run underneath this beauty for almost 30 minutes without ever noticing it!  Distracted by the task at foot and my music, I was oblivious to the majestic display above me.  I began to think about how we live life often passing the beauty all around us without even noticing it because we are so busy & worried about getting things done or are being completely distracted by technology.  Yet, if I would’ve focused on the stars above while running, I may have been seeing some stars spinning around my head.  For all of us, there’s a delicate balancing act between having your nose to the grindstone and stopping to smell the roses; each of us is unique and have our own natural bent towards favoring one or the other.  How do we insure that we are not becoming unbalanced as we run this race called life?

What follows is an admittedly incomplete list of things that will help us keep our BALANCE.

Be aware.  If you are like me, you can get so focused on a particular task that you are completely oblivious to your surroundings.  There are times when you could sneak an elephant passed me.  We each need to be aware of the roses around us before we can stop and smell them.    

Accountability is important.  Have people in your life that you respect that will tell you when they see your life getting out of balance.  Make sure that you heed their admonition.  Just because it’s something you don’t want to hear, does not mean that it’s not truth.

Proverbs 16:20  Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord.

 

Live each day as if it were your last.  It may be.  Live each day in view of eternity.

Avoid extremes. This seems redundant, since we are talking about balance, but it needs to be said.  This applies to all of life.  The way that you work…working 70 hour work weeks or having so much leisure time that people wonder if you even have a job.  The way that you spend your money…..having a monthly house payment that is more than you give annually to charity.   The way that you spend your time…. having every waking hour of the day scheduled out for you AND your kids or waking up every day wondering what in the world you’re going to do that day.   I could go on, but I think you get the point.  Philippians 4:5  Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.

Never forget where you came from.  This will help you to become more humble.  When you understand who you are in the grand scheme of things it helps you to stay balanced. 

Philippians 2:3  Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

Carve out your down time.  Don’t wait for it to just happen, because it won’t.  Don’t just call it your down time, make it your down time.  Unplug.  Tell all your texting, twitter & facebook friends that you are going on the other side of the digital divide and turn your phone off.  Don’t worry!  They will all be there when you decide to plug back in.     

Excel in all that you do.  Be the best that you can be at work, home and play.  I know that you’ve heard the idiom that anything worth doing is worth doing right, but it is true.  

Colossians 3:23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.