Mark's Blog

Ten Minute Poem Winners!

2009-06-02T10:20:00.004-05:00

So I have been busier than normal. Sorry for not announcing these sooner! My bad.

I asked several friends to help me judge the entries by submitting poems they liked. Then one pushed back with a good point. The idea wasn't to make a great poem, but simply to write a poem in 10 minutes! In other words, you get an "A" just for participating.

So what to do to find the winners? We selected three numbers at random and selected the corresponding poem . Here are the three that won. If you wrote a winning poem, be sure to send me your mailing address so I can send you your winning loot.

And now ... (drum roll please) .. the winners are (cymbals crash)

Emily , The Demise of Indulgence, and Leah Nicholle!

Congratulations to all our winners and to everyone who took time to create a moment in 10 minutes by writing a poem!

The winning poems are listed below. You can see the others here.

Blue
Fades to gray
As clouds appear

And the rain

Begins to fall
Down, down…
Tumbling from the sky
Streaming down my face
Through my hair

I can feel

The coldness
The wetness

The freedom
And I wish
For it to never
Stop.

But
Then ends comes
As it
Always does
And the rain
Stops.

Gray
Fades to blue
As the clouds
Disappear

And the colors
Begin to show
Brighter, brighter
Across the sky

Streaming across the sky
Around the sun

I can feel

The warmth
The glow

The freedom

And I wish
For it to never
Stop.

-- Emily

In this life, the one that we're living,
Are we all about taking?
or should we be about giving?
We need to despise, the demise, of this compromise,
We need to embrace, every race, every face, of every man,
We need to go in with a battle plan,
there's only one hope, one love, we all share,
Whether someone is sad, mad, or glad,
We all have emotions; we all have feelings.
Each one has their own flavor, don't waiver, do all men a favor.
Whether it's just a smile, a grin,let love get the win.
Let's not be so fake, we need not to forsake.
Do unto others as you would do to yourself.
There are two choices waiting for you on the shelf.
Which will you choose? Giving to others,
or pleasing yourself?
Doing something little, is better than nothing at all.
Picking someone up and not letting them fall.
For until we do good to all people,
we're the ones that need help.

-- The Demise of Indulgence

Insecurities

Tonight God is teaching her to dance
oh the angels are watching
How great the love of the Father for his daughter
He pulls her close
He spins her around
Tonight He's teaching her she's precious in His eyes
As He takes her for a dip
her foot slips
She pulls away
Full of insecurities
Wondering if anyone saw her mistake
Losing her focus
She walks away
But little did she know
He was there
Ready to carry her through
He wasn't going to let go
So He went briskly to her side
And He looks her in the eye
He calls her his princess
and takes her breath away
She takes His hand once again
And they dance the night away

--Leah Nicholle

Wisdom On ... The Future

2009-05-12T08:46:00.002-05:00

I'll be posting the winners of 10 Minute Poem Week later this week. Today, I have a Facebook question I thought I'd share along with my response. If you have any advice for Logan, please leave a comment.

hey mark im a freshman in high school and lately i have felt like god has really been trying to tell me he wants me to do his work for a living after high school and college but I'm not sure what he wants me to do but i know he wants me to help with his work in spreading his word. do you have any advise for me considering you probably went through the same thing at one point in your life? - Logan

Here is my response:

Hi Logan!

I went into college with the exact same feeling. I wasn't sure what God wanted me to do specifically, but I somehow felt ministry might be the path. The best advice I can pass on comes from Jesus in Matthew 6:

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

I have met many people around the country that are stuck, waiting for God to use them in the future when God has plans for them today. God gives us something to do today! There isn't ONLY something waiting in the future, we are to seek Him and the Kingdom now, today. And when you are obedient today it will lead to the place God wants you to be tomorrow. We don't know what will come tomorrow (or whether we will even be here).

When I look back on my life, I can trace my current place in ministry back to specific moments of obedience to live for God in the "now". I NEVER would have jumped on a path that led to doing conferences with teenagers but daily decisions to serve God in the "now" led me to the "now" I am in today. Make sense?

So I would encourage you to look around today and see how you can be an ambassador for God TODAY. Tomorrow will take care itself.

Mark

2009 Ten Minute Poem Week

2009-05-04T18:26:00.006-05:00

It's back! The week where we create poems in 10 minutes or less.

Not familiar? Here's the basic idea.

God has made us to be creative but all too often we take our creativity too seriously and we don't create at all!

Here is how it works: Forget your lack of poetic instincts and write a poem in 10 minutes or less.

This is not designed to be a lengthy soul searching experience. Simply write a poem in 10 minutes and post it here. You can enter as many times as you'd like. At the end of the week, I'll pick a few of my favorites and send you some valuable prizes and gifts (probably books signed by me and some PlanetWisdom gear.) The prizes aren't half as good as the fun you'll have creating and sharing something from scratch!

You in? You've got 10 minutes... Go!

Here's the link to last year's contest if you're interested, but write your poem first!

Does Your Church Smell?

2009-01-21T06:26:00.005-06:00

This past Thanksgiving dinner my cousin Connor, who has autism, was able to sit at the table with us during mealtime for the first time. It was a very special moment for all of us. Typically Connor runs around the backyard during our family gatherings and my aunt and uncle spend most of their time following him.

Not so this year. Connor has been in a program that has led to some incredible changes in his social behavior that were so impressive and amazing to witness. He even interacted with me in ways I hadn't experienced since his infancy before the signs of autism began to show.

At one moment he gave me a big wet, open mouth kiss (his mouth was open mine was not!) and then gave my brother Josh a big embrace as we sat on the couch. Surprising as that was, he then stood up, said some words in "Connor speak" (which I have not yet learned to interpret) then blurted the word "CHURCH".

I was totally shocked. Both my brother and I are ordained ministers, my brother is a senior pastor. Had Connor sensed our involvment in ministry?

He looked at his mom, spoke the words only she could understand and then blurted out the word "CHURCH" once again pointing at my brother on the couch.

My aunt laughed and translated, "Connor says you smell like our church. Connor loves church*."

I laughed kind of wondering what "church" smelled like.

That reminded me of a passage in the second letter to the church of Corinth:

But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task? (2 Corinthians 2:14-16)

So...What does your church smell like?

* [Side note] I was kind of surprised that my aunt and uncle were attending church. Ever since Conner was diagnosed with autism it had been very difficult for them to be part of a faith community. My aunt explained that their church has a ministry to families with special needs, which provides people to watch Connor so they can participate too. This ministry has made a significant difference in their lives. Now that is a church that "smells" of the fragrance of life! A big thanks from me to Cornerstone in Simi, CA, pastored by Francis Chan (whose book Crazy Love is worth reading).

Back From The Hospital

2009-01-18T17:02:00.002-06:00

The pic above was sent from Tommy Woodard's (AKA The Skit Guys) iPhone at PlanetWisdom in Lakeland Florida. If you didn't see my last post I wasn't able to attend because I was in the hospital being examined for a "stroke like" episode I had Thursday night.

I am happy to report that I am home and the doctors have given me a clean bill of health. They found nothing significant in my body causing the symptoms, so although the cause could have been very severe, I am fine.

I just want to thank the PlanetWisdom Crew, Dutton and The Skit Guys for doing such a great job fillig in for me. I also want to thank all of those who attended for being so understanding of my situation. We had some videos from another conference we were able to use to replace my absence. One student said he rose his hand to accept a free book I offered then quickly put it down realizing I wasn't even in the room!

Proverbs 27:1
Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.

Last week I was talking to ny son about the future. He had an opportunity to study a little for a test before going to bed, but decided he's just wait for the morning to do it. I told him, "We don't know what might happen in the morning, you should study now while you have the time."

I have been doing conferences in Lakeland for 16 years, and this is the first one I would have missed. Based on my passed history I had every confidence that I would have been there by "reason" alone. But reason does not insure our future, God does.

We don't know what tomorrow will hold, which is why it is important for us to live righteously today. And realize that the future truly is in God's hands.

James 4 reminds us:
13Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." 14Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." 16As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. 17Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.

In The Hospital

2009-01-17T10:27:00.004-06:00

I came to the ER Thursday night because I had some strange syptoms. I'm havin to miss PlanetWisdom Florida which is a huge bummer. In over 18 years of ministry I've only had to miss 4 events, and never a PlanetWisdom conference!

Here's a picture of my brain (apparently it shows signs of higher intelligence so they are keeping me longer to study its intricacies). They don't know anything yet, and may not find anything either. But I do appreciate your prayers.

Wisdom On...New Year's Resolutions

2008-12-29T10:05:00.007-06:00

December is a good time to spend with God reflecting on the previous year. I have been doing this intentionally since 1989. I know some people hate New Year Resolutions, but if they are your kind of thing here are some things I've learned along the way that may be helpful.

As New Year's Day 1989 approached, my friend Adam and I each prayerfully listed 89 goals we hoped to accomplish in 1989. I was surprised when I came to the end of the year how many of the 89 goals had been completed.

I wondered why? For year's I had been making New Year's resolutions and had never really kept (or remembered) them. Here's why I think I did (and I am going to take a long path to explain why, so hang in there).

Look at the picture below. What do you see?

An apple right? Now how did you know it was an apple? Look at the picture below. Is that an apple too?

What if I take a bite? Is it still an apple?
How about this one?

and is this still an apple?

All of those pictures are of apples, but what defines an apple in our minds? God created our brains to be nothing short of amazing.

It can't just be something green (that would include limes and leave out red apples)
It can't just be something round, red and/or green (because we are still able to recognize an apple when a bite is out of it, and it would include bell peppers and Christmas ornaments too!)
It can't just be something with a skin and white flesh and seeds, because we recognize pictures and drawings of apples too.

When you think about it our brains are pretty amazing! We probably have tens of thousands of small rules and memories in our brains that help us recognize an apple. Yet none of them can be too specific because we are able to recognize apples of many shapes and colors (and even some that are drawings!). This is called "fuzzy" logic and it helps us come very close without being so specific we miss it (Without it you couldn't recognize the letter "A" in any other handwriting or typeface than those you had learned!) Crazy I know.

So what does fuzzy logic have to do with New Year's resolutions?

Typically we come up with resolutions that are "fuzzy".

I want to lose weight
I want to be more generous
I want to do better in school
etc

Fuzzy is how we typically think. When God helps us recognize issues in our life that need transformation, we initially understand them in simple ways. If you want to make changes you have to break down the "fuzzy" idea into smaller parts, and these parts have to be measurable.

This is what happened while I was writing my 89 goals for 1989. I ran out of fuzzies and had to get more specific! Here's an example:

Fuzzy Goal: I want to read my Bible more.

That is a great goal, but we can do even better by breaking the fuzzy goal into several smaller, measurable goals. What exactly does reading my Bible more look like when I think deeply about it?

1. I want to read the Bible for 35 minutes a day.
2. I want to read the book of Mark.
3. I want to read the book of Proverbs 5 times.
4. I want to write a short paragraph about what I'm reading once a week.
5. I want to share something that I read with a friend once a week.

See how really thinking about Bible reading helped me come up with specifics?

My goal isn't just about Bible reading but reading specific books. But for what reason? Just to read? No, I wanted to learn, so I included writing a paragraph about what I read in my own words. I also want to learn and grow and share too, so I made that part of the goal.

Now I've made the smaller goals pretty specific. But real life is "fuzzy " So once the rules are written I realize that 35 minutes may actually be slightly more or less than that. Why is this important?

Once you write down your list, life is going to happen. God will bring people and situations into your life to help you learn more about His purposes for you and who he made you to be. If you'd only seen green apples and then encountered a red one, you'd have to alter your understanding of "apple". While you may stick to the list for several weeks and months, change happens. Feel free to change your goals as well.

When I have a fuzzy idea like "apple" I can change my understanding of it while keeping true to the big idea of "apple". Same thing with our resolutions. When you have a fuzzy goal "like read your bible more" you can change the sub goals goals while keeping the bigger one.

Try this resolution on for size: I want to be more kind in 2009.

That is a great goal but what is wrong with it? It is hard to measure in it's "fuzzy" state. What do I "do" to become more kind? We all know what a kind person looks like, but like the apple, what are the specifics?

a kind person holds the door open for others
a kind person wants others to know who Christ is
a kind person helps someone carry their load
a kind person encourages others.
and the list can go on and on and on...

From this you make your resolutions.

help one person at school that is not a close friend
invite others who normally sit alone to eat lunch with me once a week
do something each day for my parents without them asking
say something unusually encouraging to someone each day

As you learn more and changes come you will be able to keep the fuzzy goal while altering the smaller ones. The goals above are fairly general, when you look at your own life you may have specific people or situations you can include to make the goals as personal as possible.

One of my goals was to improve my writing. So I made smaller goals like these:

Fuzzy Goal : Improve my writing

Write one short story each week
Write one poem a month
Read a book on writing

As the year went on, I realized poetry was not my strength, so I removed that and replaced it with something else. (sometimes too, we get too ambitious and have to drop smaller goals, that is okay too as long as we stick to the fuzzy one)

To sum it all up:

Prayerfully reflect on the year and ask God to help you define some fuzzy goals.
Think about those deeply and break them into personal, smaller, measurable goals.
Ask God for his strength to help you become the person he wants you to be even if that means changing some of your goals.
Share your goals with others. God created us to live and grow in relationships with others.

Also, when making plans keep this proverb in mind

"In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps." Proverbs 16:9

Happy New Year!

My Christmas Memory

2008-12-24T10:58:00.002-06:00

34 Years ago ...

The orange room was a den-like room that was, well, orange. Bright orange walls, orange curtains, orange shag rug, and a blue-green couch. My parents were going through their psychedelic stage, I suppose.

The orange room is where I spent most of my time indoors. It is where the television was and where my mom folded clothes. It is also the room I prayed in as a four year old. My greatest prayer was the prayer for twins.

My mom was pregnant, which made me very happy.
“Do you want a brother or a sister?” people kept asking me.
My reply was always the same, “Brothers. I want twin brothers.”
People smiled and laughed.

I wasn’t worried. I was sure God would make it happen if I only asked. You see, my aunt had just given birth to twins—a boy and a girl. I thought the twins thing was kind of neat. I didn’t like the girl part, however, so I just put in my order for two brothers.

Every night I knelt in the corner of the orange room and prayed for twins. My parents were worried about my serious expectations.

They would tell me, “Mark, God knows what is best and sometimes doesn’t give us what we ask for.”
My mothers’ doctor told me, “Twins are rare. The possibility of your mom having twins are very small.”
The pastor told me. “You know, Mark, just because God doesn’t give us what we want doesn’t mean He doesn’t love us.”

“But I know He wants me to have twin brothers!” I would confidently say.
On Christmas Eve my mother went into labor. I waited with everyone in my family by the phone to find the results. When the phone rang, the room filled with electricity. My grandma handed me the phone, “Your dad wants to talk with you first.”

“What? She did? She did?” I started to scream at everyone in the house, “I got twin brothers!”
My grandma pulled the phone from my hand and chewed my dad out for teasing me. But then her mouth dropped open. It was true. My mother had given birth to two boys. They were sent home from the hospital in jumbo Christmas stockings. It couldn’t have been a better Christmas.

Everyone was surprised, but not me. I don’t know why I was so sure that God was going to give us twin boys. I’ve never felt that confident about anything like that since then—except for the things that God has specifically said in the Bible.

Confidence in God is a mark of faith. “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see,” (Heb 11:1).

As we grow older, the world tries to teach us that nothing is for certain and that we can only believe what we see. That is not what God teaches! I cannot see Him, but I am certain He is there. I do not know what the future holds, but I am sure His love will provide when I am in need. I don’t know what my enemies may do, but I am confident of His protection.

Don’t be afraid to trust His words. Just like the twins proved my faith right, your faith in God will be justified when Christ returns.

The Truth About Satan ..er.. Santa

2008-12-23T13:17:00.003-06:00

*** Huge Spoiler Alert About Santa Claus Beware! ***

Driving back home from my grandparents after Easter when I was about seven years old (guess I was riding, my dad was driving) , I got to thinking about The Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairies and of course Santa Claus.

Santa I believed in, and I'd been suspicious of the tooth fairy ever since I found my baby teeth in my mom's dresser, but the Easter Bunny was kind of hard to believe in. Of course, I knew that if one failed they all failed, so I went out on a limb and asked my mom a question that would put her in a corner.

"Mom you would never lie to me would you?"

"No, of course not Mark" was her confident reply. I had her where I wanted her.

"Then ... is the Easter Bunny Real?" I asked.

She looked nervously at my dad whose eyes I could only see in the rear view mirror.

I jumped in with my second question," What about Santa and the tooth fairy?"

To be honest, I'd never seen them this nervous (and wouldn't again until I was in sixth grade and they told me about ..you know ..where babies "come from").

Her honest response soon followed ... ***SPOILER ALERT BACK OUT NOW!*** ... indeed it had all been pretend.

My next question was simply, "Is Jesus made up too?"

I think it is peculiar that at Christmas and Easter we lie to our kids at a time we gather to celebrate the greatest truth ever known to man.

What do you think about that?

Penn Gets A Bible

2008-12-19T16:31:00.004-06:00

Wow. My friend Michael Novelli shared this video and I immediately watched it. Penn is a staunch atheist and also a fellow illusionist. I've even met him on a couple occasions. I've been aware of his work for many years and he is a great thinker, but sadly he does not believe God exists and therefore believes he has no need for Christ. This story really touched me.

I hope someday, he realizes the love of Christ in his life. But there are many people in your neighborhood just like him.

What do you think about his experience? Do you really live what you believe? How does this challenge you to live differently?

Wisdom On ... Hope (And Some Screaming Girls!)

2008-12-11T11:12:00.004-06:00

My friend Daniel King sent me a link to this video and it had me laughing so hard I had to share it with you.

Another friend thought this would make a great devotional on hope and a Proverb immediately came to mind.

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life." Proverbs 13: 12

Those girls were SO hoping for David Archuleta to win, and he did not (one girl was so confident, she even had $50 in a bet with someone at school! -- and she didn't even have $50!). When there hope was shattered you could see the air get sucked out of the room, their reaction and hysteria would have made you think Archuleta's head got cut off!

What would the girls reaction have been had Archuleta won? It would have been a very different situation.

What I have learned is that hope and confidence are very much tied to each other. When we hope for something we place our confidence, or trust in that event or person.

Here is a short list of things we might hope for:

A certain gift on Christmas or a birthday.
A friend to be loyal to us.
Parents to remain devoted and committed to us.
Passing the audition for a club, team, or group we want to participate in.
A boyfriend or girlfriend not dumping us.

The one thing in common with everything on the list is that we cannot control the outcomes. Maybe we place our hopes in the wrong things and then our heart is always hurting.

I can't control God, but because of His character (He is sovereign, trustworthy, righteous, true, loving, just, and merciful to name a few) I can have confidence in Him. As a result it makes sense to place my hope in God and his promises. He will never fail. If our hope is in Him our longings will be fulfilled and we will experience true life.

During the holidays many people experience depression for a wide variety of reasons. One is that they have placed their hope in the wrong people or events of life. Perhaps this is why king David wrote when he was in despair:

Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. (Psalm 42:11)

The Spelling Bee

2008-12-04T10:54:00.004-06:00

My daughter Skye is a fairly good speller. Last year she came in third at the school's spelling bee, and she has made it again to the all-school bee. As a 4th grader she can now move on to district wide competition if she wins. I hate watching her compete. The room is silent and I am hanging on every letter that comes from her lips. The tension as a parent is horrific.

When I was her age I was in the school spelling bee too. And I'll be sharing this story with her when she comes home today (I wrote it for a magazine in 1994). I hope it will encourage her and perhaps you as well.

The Spelling Bee
A STORY BY MARK MATLOCK

It was decided. I would be competing in the first annual E. J. Marshall spelling bee. I had won the preliminary competition and was to be the representative for my class in the all-school spell-off!

Finally. This was my shot at fame and fortune.

Since this was our first-ever spelling bee, my name would naturally be inserted into the the very first space on the E. J. Marshall All School Spelling Bee Plaque. Then, each following year, a name would be added—under mine of course.

As far as fortune goes, I would also receive a fifty dollar savings bond. And my class would get a roller skating party at Skateway, the coolest hangout in town.

I wanted to win. I needed to win. I was going to win.

Training was rigorous. I spelled everything I could. “M-O-M, where are my C-L-O-T-H-E-S? D-A-D, could you pass the S-U-G-A-R?”

When the night of the spelling bee finally arrived, I knew I was ready. All the parents came, and even many of my classmates showed up to cheer me on.

The head judge leaned into the microphone and asked me, the first contestant, to approach the microphone. She read my word, used it in a sentence, then repeated the word: “Rather. I would “rather” go to the zoo. Rather.”

Easy. I repeated the word, spelled it, and waited for the signal to return to my seat.

But something was wrong. The judges looked at me funny. They looked at each other. Then they talked with one another in low tones. The head judge moved back to the microphone, “I’m sorry, that was incorrect. You are disqualified.”

WHAT?! I returned to my seat, horrified. What had I done wrong? I had spelled the word correctly. I knew it.

For the next hour and a half, I watched as others spelled word after word correctly, and I tried to figure out what my mistake had been. What had I misunderstood? Was it spelled R-A-T-H-A-R? Did she say “adder?” There was an “adder” at the zoo? What had gone wrong?

Afterwards, my parents approached me to see if I knew why I had been disqualified. In my confidence, I had spelled the word A-T-H-E-R. I forgot the “R” at the beginning!

No skating party. No savings bond. No plaque with my name on it. How could I face my friends at school?

I didn’t know this verse at the time, but I wish I had. Psalm 73:26, “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
It didn’t matter that I had made a major blunder. Even if my friends reject me (which they didn’t), God is my strength. You, too, will fail in life. But it’s good to know that God never will fail us.

Wisdom On ... Holiness

2008-11-26T13:25:00.004-06:00

I'm getting ready to spend Thanksgiving with my family in California. My parents home is on a couple of acres and I loved growing up with land all around me. My brothers and I used to dig holes in the back of the field behind our house. When we were on vacation we would wake up early in the morning and start digging and often keep digging until time to sleep. We could do this everyday for days in a row.

That is the funny thing about holes, they can always be a little deeper and a little wider. When are we ever really done?

Thinking about this today led me to this passage in 1 Thess 4.

1Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.

This passage has always fascinated me because the Thessalonians are praised for living lives that are pleasing to God, but they are encouraged to do so even more. Like the "hole" in my backyard, the pursuit of God's holiness is never exhausted. We can always go a bit deeper and wider.

I sometimes tend to fall into a few traps when I live to please God.

1. I get all "legalistic" about behavior.

This usually leads to me to living to a set of standards without really grasping their meaning. Soon I am following all these rules, rather than living in right relationships with God and others. So I have to figure out how to please God "more and more" without it becoming about rules.

2. I start thinking of God's love as something I have to earn.

Once I start living to please God, I sometimes make the mistake of believing that it is my action that earns God's love rather than my pleasing actions being a response to God's love. So I have to remember that God's love is unconditional, that I have to experience it first and then allow my pleasing behavior to be in response to God's love. If I do the reverse, I miss the point!

That said, I sometimes forget that God wants me to keep improving!

Because I feel that God's love isn't dependent on my actions, I forget that His desire for me is to live in a manner that is pleasing to Him. I can still grow more and more.

1 Thess 4:7 For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. 8Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.
9Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other. 10And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers, to do so more and more.

As the bumper sticker says, "God loves you just as you are, and way too much to leave you that way"!

This Thanksgiving I am thankful for God's holiness, that He loves me despite my lack of holiness, and that He gives me power to live a holy life more and more each day.

Parents Snooping On the Internet

2008-11-25T10:39:00.004-06:00

Here's a question I received from a friend and my response. It's a huge issue and I'd love to get your perspective on this.

Hey Mark,
Hope all is well. I know you are an extremely busy guy, but I was just curious to know what your thoughts were on about this "Tattletale" computer monitoring software for parents. I was at a "Baptist" Youth Ministry forum and they were really pushing this for parents, but I couldn't help but have some apprehensive concerns about it...
Thanks for you time!
G

G,

Ok here's my quick two cents.

1) I don't trust software to replace my involvement in the lives of my children. The internet is not going away, so as a parent I have to train up my kids to navigate this aspect of life.

2) The marketing for this software plays on fear .. fear which I don't think is justifiable. If I am actively involved in the computer usage of my children (the same way I am in their school work, friends etc) the internet is relatively safe.

3) That said, If I can't trust my kids on the internet or they have a history of bad behavior this tool might be of help, or a way in which a parent can give access while maintaining some control. The problem is this software promotes spying rather than filtering, see next point.

4) If I used software like this (which I can't imagine doing) I would let my kids know I was using it. I would never snoop on my kids without letting them know I may do that. Even though I may have the right to do so, and it may be in the best interest of my child, I would hope I have the relationship to ask the hard questions and get answers without snooping. I think kids grow spiritually when they are allowed some privacy, privacy with limits. I realize there ARE parents who don't have this relationship, and that alone should be a red flag that software like this is not really a tool, but a solution for a weak relationship.

5) Don't believe kids won't be able to get around this software. If your kids are misbehavin' they will get around this software. For some it could be a deterrent, but as a parent I wouldn't put alot of hope in this. I've talked to kids who have elaborate connections to people who know how to get around this stuff.

Bottom line: Why would someone buy this?

1. Fear.
2. Illusion of safety (without teaching safety)
3. Solution for an existing poor parent/child relationship.

I just can't imagine a need for this otherwise.

Okay internet family ... let me know what you think about my response!

Do you agree with my response or am I too trusting? What do you do in your family to keep you safe on the internet?

Mark

Wisdom On ... Mentors

2008-11-19T08:28:00.002-06:00

Yoda, Mr. Miyagi, Fairy Godmothers. Every hero story contains the wise person that enters the hero's life to help them realize their full created potential.

This summer I had a former mentor of mine, Dawson McAllister, speak one night at our summer camp. Being with him reminded me of how significant mentors are in our lives. Consider this, I would not be involved in youth ministry if it were not for Dawson McAllister. The five years I spent working with him were used by God to alter the direction of my life. Before meeting him I had no interest or thought of being involved in youth ministry.

We all need people who have been further down the journey of life to help us as we mature and grow. Parents definitely play a part in our maturity for sure, but it seems that as we get older, we need someone from the outside to help us take ownership of all our parents have taught us and push us further. I love my parents, but there came a time when I didn't always listen or believe what they taught me. There were also skills that I needed that they didn't personally possess. This is where mentors come into our lives.

Mentors pass on lots of things like skills, secret knowledge, tools, connections, and discipline that help us as we walk on our journey. Most of all they give us wisdom. They give us access to their years of trials and triumphs so that perhaps we might go further than they did, and with less pain.

Throughout my life I have had a variety of people who have made significant investments in my life. Some of these people sought me out, but most of the time I was the one who initiated the realtionship. I was seeking wisdom. Do you? If so, here is some quick advice about finding mentors.

1. Look for people who are living parts of their life the way you would want to live.

When Jade and I were engaged to be married, we started reading some books on how to have a healthy marriage. I found out that one of the authors had been married three times! I threw the book out and started looking for couples who had been married 30 years or more for advice. It was free and I learned WAY more than I was seeking to learn. This doesn't mean we can't learn from other people's failures, we can to be sure, but we want to look for people who are living wisely (you'll quickly learn that those people overcame alot too!)

Who can you learn from in your life?

Find people already posses qualities you'd like to have in your own life. Be careful though, you want to make sure these aspirations that you have will help you grow closer to God. There may be people with loads of money, popularity, and power you'd like to be like, but are these the true sources of happiness? Look for people who really seem to know and follow after God. Look for people who walk in healthy relationships. These will be people you want to learn from.

2. Ask for help.

Tell those you'd like to learn from that you need their help. Older people love helping younger people. When I was a junior member of the Magic Castle (a club for illusionists in Beverly Hills) the experienced magicians would help us learn, especially if we asked. When I became an adult member of the Castle, the help wasn't as freely available. What did I learn? People love freely investing in youth, as you get older, they charge for it!

Take advantage of your youth and ask for help.

3. Make a commitment to learn from your mentor
Once you find a person who is willing to mentor you, realize that you don't know everything and you need to be teachable. When I was in my art classes at Biola I was always trying to break the rules and do things my own way. One of my professors whom I was friends with told me I needed to learn the rules first so I could understand why I was breaking them, otherwise I would never really come to understand what I was doing. He was right!

You may not like everything your mentor has you do, but until you understand their way, it is difficult to find your own. Often times, you realize that their way isn't so bad after all. Brilliant even.

PlanetWisdom's theme this year, is Unlikely Heroes. We're exploring how we can mature spiritually so that we can follow the greatest Hero ever, Jesus. Jesus was the master and He discipled (mentored) followers in His ways. We need to continue this practice of learning from those who are wiser than us. Now go find a mentor, learn and grow!

Election Reflection Response

2008-11-17T10:47:00.007-06:00

Wow! My last entry, "Election Reflection", generated many responses (some posted and others emailed directly to me).

After reading through the responses I wanted to respond to a few assumptions people made about the last post. Am I on the defensive? Maybe so.

Here are just a few clarifications I'd like to make.

1) My previous blog post had nothing to do with the Obama book published by my employer Youth Specialties/Zondervan. In fact, the last time I'd heard about this book I was under the impression it wasn't coming out. The Obama book was originally intended as a two part set. One book was on Sarah Palin and the other on Barack Obama.

Why Palin and not McCain? This election would have been historic regardless of which party won. Obviously The election of an African-American president is significant, but the election of a female vice president would also have been equally significant. So the books were written to highlight the lives (not the policies) of these two individuals.

What also made these two candidates interesting was how their Christian faith played into who they presented themselves to be as candidates. McCain and Biden were very quiet about their beliefs while Obama and Palin were more open to discussing the influence of the Christian faith in their lives.

The reason I believed the books weren't coming out was that the Christian book buyers (who distribute and sell the books of publishers) weren't interested in pre-election books. So I thought the project was dead. Turns out the buyers came back and said they'd be interested in distributing one of the books depending on who won the election, and so the Obama book came out. I haven't read the book (I just received a copy) and can't comment on it. My blog had nothing to do with the release of the book.

2. Many comments have been made about my parenting abilities, here are a few.

"Balanced?" What's wrong with teaching your kids what's right??????

And regarding the success at masking our political leanings from our kids, I say a resounding "FAIL!" You can leave your kids wondering who you'd vote for, but I'd be embarrassed if my kids thought that I would vote for any candidate that actively supports the abortion and homosexual causes.

I do teach my kids what is right. I teach them where God's word stands on many issues like abortion and homosexuality. Can I also add to that list greed, selfish ambition, arrogance, pride and inaction toward assisting the poor (the reason given for Sodom and Gomorrah's judgement in Ezekiel 16:49)?

Neither party excels in upholding morality perfectly. So when I talk to my children about candidates I am fair and balanced in that I am critical of BOTH parties failure to uphold the righteousness of God. This is why I must teach them that government is what it is, but living the Kingdom way is so much more!

I strive to teach my children virtues like love, integrity, courage, servanthood, grace and mercy. Character qualities I hope will guide them as they seek to become ambassadors for Christ (2 Cor 5:20) in a world system that does not match the way of God.

I also teach them that politicians are trying to get votes and will say and do anything to be elected (yes, even pretend to align them selves with Christian voters). So it is never good to accept words without giving a critical eye to what is being said.

As a youth worker of nearly two decades who has devoted his life to helping make disciples of the next generation, I have observed that children whose faith vibrantly survives into adulthood were raised in homes that encouraged "cognitive autonomy". In other words, they were raised in an environment that allowed them to explore ideas that were different from their parents. This process is done under the loving guidance of parents to be certain, but it is the home I was raised in and try to raise my children in.

3. Many assume I voted for Obama.

I never claimed that I voted for Obama and to infer this is a distortion of my position and message.

4. To those who liken Obama to Hitler shame on you! (But that doesn't mean we can't be critical of our leaders either)

This is EXACTLY the kind of fear mongering and faulty thinking that concerns me about our Christian community. One mother wrote that her daughter was concerned about Obama because he resembled Hitler in that 1) He came to power in economically hard times 2) He was a charismatic communicator 3) He talked about change for his country. If that were the test for someone being like Hitler, then FDR, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton (three recent presidents) would also meet the criteria for becoming "like Hitler".

It's great this young woman is reading and connecting ideas learned from the past to current events. She should be commended for that. But she also needs to be challenged in here thinking. To liken Obama to Hitler is the fallacy of "slippery slope" thinking. Have her read my book "Smart Faith" written with philosopher JP Moreland. It discusses things like fallacious thinking, and explores why Christians need to be better thinkers.

The greatest likeness to a past leader I see in Obama is President Franklin D. Roosevelt (I noticed a recent cover of Time magazine that expressed this too!). FDR may be the closest thing this country has had to a "president as dictator" (he was elected for 4 terms!) and a "socialist president" (His New Deal with its "alphabet soup" programs including Social Security definitely get high marks for resembling socialism) and yet, he did some great things for this country during very hard times. As times improved many of these programs went away, but some still remain.

That said, Christians SHOULD hold their candidates responsible for the way they govern. Should we be concerned? Absolutely! As Christians we stand need to stand for what is just. We need to be loving and gracious in the process ... but I never said we should give Obama a free pass. I simply was stating that we did not need to "fear him".

FDR said in his inaugural address, "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself." And as long as we fear only God, this is absolutely true.

Election Reflection

2008-11-06T14:36:00.005-06:00

Around the dinner table last week I asked my kids who they were going to vote for. My son replied "Obama" and my daughter, "John McCain".

I asked my daughter, "Why?". She said because that is who we (Jade and I) were voting for. Dax commented back "No they aren't, they are voting for Obama."

I smiled. Neither of my kids had picked up on who I was voting for. I liked this. It made me feel "fair and balanced".

I responded to the kids telling them they should never vote a certain way just because somebody they knew (even trusted) were voting that way. I then asked them the reasons why they might vote for either candidate and a nice discussion followed.

What concerned me most in the conversation was how much fear my daughter shared with us about an Obama victory. In fact, the night of the election she actually cried because she was afraid Obama was going to take our house away.

Now I have been critical of both candidates, but I've never shared the sentiment that I was afraid of an Obama presidency. Where did she get this fear from?

Further probing unfolded various conversations with friends, their parents, and church family members.

I was shocked. While I may have preferred one candidate over another, I've never been in fear of either one becoming president. What is shocking most, is that much of this "fear mongering" came from those who would call themselves followers of Christ.

As Christians our confidence lies in the sovereignty of God. We do not need to fear anything or anyone. But rather in humility and grace live our lives respectfully in the world.

Romans 8:15
For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father."

1 John 4:4
You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

The head of marketing for a well respected presonality in Christian ministry once gave me advice for selling more books, raising more money, and filling more seats. "The majority of Christians are motivated by fear. Your problem Mark, is that you always think positively and hopefully about teenagers. You don't have to change the core of your message, just leverage fear more to sell your message."

I left the office disillusioned. Fear is not the message of the Gospel.

But judging by the tears of my daughter after Obama's victory, Christians use this message of fear most. Shame on all of us.

Reflection on the election I have a few thoughts about how involved Christians should be in the political process.

1. First recognize that our citizenship is in the kingdom way of heaven and not of this world. (Phil 3:20) My life needs to reflect the kingdom of God and not a political party. There are deeply Christian values found in both partys' philosophy of government and there are also many values that distinctly go against the kingdom way of heaven. In both parties! So don't get too tied up in red and blue, your time should be spent living in the kingdom way of God.

Have you examined the aspects of your party that reflect God's kingdom? Have you been honest about what does not? Can you support the values with scripture?

2. "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." Mt 22:15-22 Those word's of Jesus have deep implications. Read that passage and ask exactly what did Jesus mean by this?

Clearly there are certain obligations we have as Christians living in a specific country. But what do you think belongs to God that should not be given to Caesar?

3. Mt 12:21 "In His name the nations will put their hope." How do you think the world will change most? By changing the government or helping others follow the Gospel of Jesus Christ ? Let's not put our effort into changing the world through government let's change the world through the hope they might find in the way of Jesus Christ.

When Barack Obama won the senate seat and gave his acceptance speech, I was impressed by him. Most notably by his sincerity of Christian faith and the message of hope that he presented (in fact I remarked to my wife that he gave witness to a sincere Christian faith rarely seen in politicians who are simply trying to get votes).

I didn't know much about Obama at that time other than his speech, and I have learned much more about him both positive and negative since then. But I have not seen any reason to doubt the sincerity of his Christian faith. Is he perfect in his walk? By no means, and there are important matters in which Obama and I disagree, his position on abortion most notably. But our churches are full of imperfect Christians, saved by grace, and being ever more transformed into the likeness of Christ.

Whether you voted for him or not, he is now our president and worthy of our prayers. Also, consider some ideas he has that might actually be good for our country. As brothers and sisters in Christ we should challenge him when we disagree, but with humility, love and grace.

Now it's time to put our politics aside and begin living out the kingdom way Christ saved us to. To do any less would be an offense to the death Christ died for all.

Don't Say You Can't Acheive The Impossible

2008-09-17T09:42:00.001-05:00

Teen sets record for blowing up balloons with nose

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

BLAINE, Wash. -- A 14-year-old boy from Blaine has broken his own record for blowing up balloons with his nose.

Using only his left nostril, Andrew Dahl inflated 308 balloons in an hour Tuesday, each to at least 8 inches in diameter, for the "Live with Regis and Kelly" television show in New York.

Stuart Claxton, a Guinness Book of World Records representative, announced, "He's literally blown the record away with 308 balloons."

Dahl said he was a "little bit" out of breath but felt pretty good.

he set the old mark of 213 balloons at his hometown library in April.

Doug Dahl says his son discovered the talent while sitting in a car at age 7.

"That's something only a boy can discover," show co-host Kelly Ripa said.

---

Information from: The Bellingham Herald, http://www.bellinghamherald.com

In Spite Of Me

2008-07-24T06:59:00.005-05:00

Over the past few weeks of travel I've heard the phrase "God used that person in spite of themselves" meaning that even though the person has character or theological issues, for whatever reason, God still uses them to change peoples lives.

I personally am grateful for this as I am certain I don't measure up to the high standards of God's holiness. But as I listen to others talk, I get the impression that they have become "okay" with the fact that they were less than perfect. Maybe even too comfortable with the idea.

It seems more and more it is considered noble to be comfortable with who you are regardless of how flawed you may be. This is the idea of being "comfortable in your own skin". Some people even embrace their imperfection proudly proclaiming, "This is who I am."

Look, I am aware of my imperfections every day (my kids constantly remind me, every now and then my wife too!). But I don't think I ever want to be comfortable with them. Since I already know God uses me even though I am less than perfect, I'd like to do all I can to become more like Christ. I'd like to know that God was using me as I was striving to live a holy and obedient life, rather than my comfort with my sin.

I know I'm sinful and I know that I have a long distance to run to achieve anything near the holiness of God, but isn't that what we are striving for?

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. 1 Corinthians 9:25-27

As I watched the girls compete in gymnastics last night in Beijing, I was reminded of the fruit of living a disciplined life.

I am thrilled that God loves me just as I am, but I also am aware He made me to be more, and he has given me His power and guidance through scripture to help me run for the prize.

Are you settling for being just as you are, living "in spite of" yourself? Or do you see that Christ can help you become so much more?

Mark

The Big News - PlanetWisdom Is Now Part of Youth Specialties

2008-07-24T06:37:00.004-05:00

PlanetWisdom is now part of Youth Specialties!

For years WisdomWorks has had a great relationship with my publisher and uber youth ministry resource provider, Youth Specialties, helping each other in a variety of ways. Back in 2006 we started discussing the possibility of bringing the PlanetWisdom student events under their umbrella, but the timing just never seemed to be right... until a few months ago. A few conversations with the leadership of Youth Specialties and Zondervan (YS parent company) revealed that God was opening opportunities in both our organizations.

Decisions like this are never made quickly and without counsel (I am accountable to a board of directors who unanimously approved of this transfer) and I am finally glad we are done with discussions and are able to share the news with you.

You may ask what will change? Probably very little this year that wasn't already in the works. We are 90 days out from our first PlanetWisdom conference of the new season and most of it is already prepared to go, and you will notice some improvements too. Since Jonathan (who puts planetwisdom.com together), myself, and other key WisdomWorks employees will move over to YS to lead these ministries, you can expect the things you love about us to still be there. We are also gaining alot of wonderful new help that will only make PlanetWisdom better.

Clicking on this link will take you to the official press release including a short video from The Skit Guys.

Love you all and can't wait to see you at a PlanetWisdom event near you!

Mark

Son Of Hulk

2008-06-14T17:07:00.004-05:00

Before the summer becomes busy with summer camps and other projects, I decided to spend the day before Father's day with my son Dax. He is going into middle school next year and still thinks it is cool to spend time with me, so I figured we'd make a day of it.

one of the items on our agenda was to see the Incredible Hulk. The Hulk is one of my all time favorite comic book characters. Of all the comics I have, I have more Hulk than anything else.

Why? I guess I identify with him in many ways.

1. It is hard to tell whether he is a hero or not, he clearly has special powers, but he doesn always do the right things. I feel the same way about myself. I know God has given me special abilities, but I don't always use them in the best way.(1 Cor 9:27)

2. When the Bruce Banner is in control, things are good, he uses his head. But when he goes into savage Hulk mode, he often behaves on instinct rather than wisdom. I'm like that too. I'm best when my heart, mind, and strength are all working together (Mark 12:30). It is when I allow one part to go on auto pilot that I get myself in trouble and life is hard to manage.

3. The best Hulk stories (including the new movie) follow the Hulk on a journey to master the beast within. I too feel like my life is a journey, I'm trying to keep my sin nature from taking over. Inside me lies a beast that Christ died for, and God has given me the Holy Spirit so I might live victoriously by walking in His ways. (Rom 8:10)

Romans 8:5
Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.

Matthew 16:25
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.

Those are some random thoughts about The Hulk. The movie was pretty good, like Aquaman, Hulk stories are hard to write. I think they did this one well.

Here's to taming the Hulk in all of us!

Mark

PS. Happy Father's day to all you dad's who may be reading. The Hulk is a dad as of this week too. his son Skaar just got his own title. If you wonder where his son came from ... well... that is a story for another day.

Trying New Things

2008-06-09T18:54:00.004-05:00

Flying home from California last week I was served a salad that contained some green olives (did I mention I was flying First Class? Okay .. now I have). I've never liked olives, black or green. For years I've picked them off pizzas, salads, and sandwiches. Don't know why, but ever since I was a kid, I had no desire for them.

So why was I about to eat the olives in my salad now?

To discover the reason why we have to journey back to a dinner party several months ago at the home of friends Roy and Rita Peterson. Rita had prepared a wonderful authentic Italian meal and served some toast with a wonderful tapenade (if you don't know that word, it means "topping"). I ate these little morsels of goodness one after another. As a cook myself I had to know what this creamy concoction was made of. You guessed it "Olives". I couldn't believe it! How had I been denying myself of this goodness for so long?

So I started trying things I hadn't liked before, like broccoli, asparagus, milk only to find that there were many things I wrongly formed an opinion about (however, I still don't like milk).

Two things I learned from this.

1. There are many things in life we never try for wrong reasons. Maybe we had a bad experience in the past, but as time goes on we change (or forget why we didn't like something initially).

2. Relationships can cause us to try new things. Most of the time when I try something I never have before it is because someone introduced me to the idea or encouraged, challenged, even dared me to do it.

This is a good reason to have close friends, they influence us more than we can imagine. Not always for the good. Proverbs 13:20 reminds us, He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm."

So, using wisdom, why not try some new things. Need some help? Ask a good friend to help you identify some things you never do.

Mark

Time For TV?

2008-05-22T15:29:00.003-05:00

I have always been a TV junkie, and by always I mean since I was a wee tot. So gather around kiddies and I'll tell you about the time we bought our first color television, changed channels using needle nose pliers when the knob was broken, and couldn't afford to by movies on video tape because the cheap ones cost eighty bucks!

No, I won't bore you by telling tales of the olden days (the 70's), but I would like you to think about something I realized last Dec while watching the 300th episode of the medical drama ER, (which airs Thursdays on NBC).

My wife and I were almost two years married when ER first aired in September of 1994. Since then we have watched every episode that followed. That means if you don't count re-runs and commercials, we have watched at least 300 hours of ER.

This number almost made my heart stop beating... Call the ER!

300 hours divided by the 24 hours in a day means that if I could watch ER without sleeping, I would have watched it for 12 days straight!

Since watching TV for 12 days without sleeping is impossible (I think ... maybe something I should try!), let's break that up into eight hour work days. If my job were to watch ER, I would have watched for more than 37 days! Over a month of my life spent watching ER.

That might not be so bad, but ER is not the only show I watch!

I started noticing that really successful people I know rarely are aware of what is on TV. Maybe because they don't watch it. They don't know who Jim and Pam are and when I talk about The Hills, they look out a window. These are the people who refer to American Idol as that Talent Search show. They may sound ignorant of what is on TV, but these are people I really admire for their accomplishments in life. I started asking questions and found most spend the majority of time doing productive activities with their family and using their talents.

So I ask ...
Am I wasting too much of my life in front of the tube? Are you?

These passages come to mind:
Proverbs 12:24
Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in slave labor.

Ecclesiastes 10:18
If a man is lazy, the rafters sag; if his hands are idle, the house leaks.

I can't get that month of watching ER back, but moving forward I'm determined to watch less TV. ( this will be hard since I have 3 DVR's which have not saved time but simply made it possible for me to watch MORE TV!). I won't give up TV completely (my wife and I have enjoyed our 13 year date with ER every Thursday), but I'll be more mindful of my time.

Mark

PS. I really didn't plan this, but my two new books came out and are somewhat related to this post. Wisdom On...Time and Money, and Wisdom on... Music,Moves & Television, get them today!

Growing Up In the Pond

2008-05-15T13:14:00.004-05:00

Last night I was talking to a student in my LifeGroup about some faith issues she was struggling with on her path to maturity. she had grown up in a Christian home and had put her trust in Christ at a young age. I brought up this tadpole idea I thought I'd share here.

Like many who began following Christ at a very young age, we often struggle with our faith as we get older, particularly as we go through puberty. why is this?

I think there are two reasons, but one I want to explore is the idea of "new surrender".

When we were younger we weren't fully developed. Our physical, intellectual, emotional, and social selves weren't fully formed. We were like tadpoles, just a head and a tale. Environmentally we were stuck in the water, not fully able to do everything maturity allows us too.

When we come to Christ at this tadpole stage we give it all to God, our head, tale and the water world of our lives. But as we mature we begin to develop new freedoms and new aspects of ourselves.

Continuing with the tadpole analogy, we get get legs, and the ability to live in our true amphibious freedom both in and out of the water. When we were young we surrendered all we were to God, but now we face new aspects of ourselves, new freedoms that have not yet been surrendered.

Now I must realize that if I want to continue following Christ, I must surrender these new abilities and freedoms as well if I am to continue this walk.

1 Corinthians 13:11
When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.

What new freedoms do you have that you have not surrendered to Christ?

Freedoms with time
Future Career
Media
Friendships
Privacy
Drivers License

What new abilities do you have that should be surrendered?

My thought life
Anger
Emotions
Feelings of Revenge
Bitterness and Envy
Ability to serve
Ability to use words to build up or tear down

Surrender is a tough word. As Americans we do not like the idea of surrender, as a nation or individuals. But the secret of finding the kingdom life is by giving up what we think we know is the way, so that we can truly find it!

Jesus said: Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. (Luke 17:33)

What are you struggling with to surrender? Does this make sense in your own walk toward maturity?

If you have grown up in "the pond" of church you may struggle to find this place of "new surrender". The Jews Jesus ministered too grew up in the "pond" and struggled to understand him too. the breakthroughs happened for those who came to understand what surrender truly means.

Centered,

Mark

One Napkin Revolution Update

2008-05-08T06:00:00.001-05:00

Many of you know I recently resolved to waste less by using only one napkin when I go out to eat, I call this the One Napkin Revolution. (see past blog posts for details)

I've done fairly well except for a few instances where the napkins were ... uh .. paper thin. So I had to use a couple extra.

The revolution has caught on .. and some of you have even talked to me about it at PlanetWisdom. Here's a note from Ali (pictured with me above) who brought One Napkin Revolution signs to PlanetWisdom in Southern California.

While I'm glad she is joining me in wasting less, I'm really excited about what God is doing in her life. I'll share some of her letter.

Hi Mark. My name is Ali and my church and I came to Planet Wisdom this past weekend.
I LOVED IT. The message was amazingly motivational. My friend and I had a very deep conversation about when God's plan for us is going to come and practically everything you talked about with molding us into the Christians we want to be. But I'm also the girl who was sitting in the front row holding the bright pink posters saying "Save a Tree Use OneNapkin." and you told me to send the pic we took to you so I am doing that. =]

Your blogs are where i go to when i want to read something funny yet serious. And this weekend i felt as if i could relate to you about being the odd one out and not dating and having your friends talk about their boyfriends and girlfriends and you kinda showed me how to deal with that. And most of all... You have me wanting to become a christian motivational [or what ever you call what you doo =) ]] speaker. and i want to THANK YOU for this.

I WILL BECOME MORE..

wait..

I AMMM BECOMING MORE.

Ali
p.s.--- i was holding the poster upside down. =/

Great stuff Ali! I am excited God is at work in your life helping you become more!

Got a story to share or a question you would like me to answer on my blog? Send it to me!

Mark