Meaningful Words (06/12/10)

Thinking about my life thus far also makes me thankful for all those who have invested in me over the years.  Many of you know that my parents are helping me finance my further schooling.  At first I felt guilty about being 33 years old and still needing money from my parents.  Then I shared my feelings with my father.  He responded that the money he and my mother are giving me I would have eventually inherited anyway. Yet that would be many years down the road, once they had both passed away.  Instead of waiting till then, they wanted to give it to me now, gradually, so that they would be able to guide me in how I used it.  So, in a way, I am presently receiving my inheritance already.  They continue to support me in many more ways than just financial. For that, I thank you!

            Here are a few poems that speak to me of legacy and inheritance:

We Are One

For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.  For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

-Galations 3:27-28

We are one in the Spirit; we are one in the Lord

We are one in the Spirit; we are one in the Lord

And we pray that our unity would one day be restored

And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love

And they’ll know we are Christians by our love.

We, Your children, have suffered injustice

We, Your children look to you for justice

Yet when we look deeper we find ourselves perplexed

For we see within ourselves the perpetrator of this affront

You created each of us unique

And we have tried to be all the same

You made us black, white, red, yellow

And we have tried to be gray

We have denied the very nature of our being as the image of God

And embraced our sinful dust essence.

You created all of us equal

And we have made inequality the rule.

Forgive us, O Lord

We have sinned against You and against each other.

Enable us to forgive each other.

Unify us by the power of the blood of Your Son

May we be servants of Thy peace,

Sowing unity where there is division,

Sowing reconciliation where there is racism

Sowing love where there is hatred

We repent, Abba.

Have mercy on us.

Transform our hearts.

Make us the people You desire us to be

And may we be one in You.

We are one in the Spirit; we are one in the Lord

We are one in the Spirit; we are one in the Lord

And we pray that our unity would one day be restored

And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love

And they’ll know we are Christians by our love.

All praise to the Father from Whom all things come,

And all praise to the Spirit Who makes us one,

And all praise to Christ Jesus His only Son,

And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love

And they’ll know we are Christians by our love

God & I

Lord, You know exactly who I am

Yet You still extend Your gracious hand

Love so great, and mercy so grand

Leads me straight into the Promised Land

O Lord, to Whom all hearts are opened

And all desires known

O Lord, You created everything from nothing

In all the heavens and the earth

There is nothing compared to Your worth

Where can I run from Your Presence?

Why would I even try?

There is nothing I desire, but Your Essence

And I know You hear my cry

You over flow my cup with living water

From this road may I never falter

From the mountains to the valleys

Hear our praises fill the skies

You have saved us from our frailty

May our lives echo for eternity

My Life

My life as of now

Has had some ^Ups  and _Downs.

But believe me

I can see

Him helping me

I do not claim to be a wise man

Just a student of the Word

And I listen to what He tells me.

It’s more than I can grasp.

Ohhh, Lord, Your knowledge is great,

Your wisdom, unlimited.

You teach me Your Word.

And I am so glad.

It’s You that I run to,

When I don’t understand.

You show to Your knowledge

And now I understand.

But yet, I still don’t comprehend,

This knowledge that you show!

Ohh, Lord, it’s only by your grace,

That I can understand.

When I was a little child,

I asked to learn

Of this world

That I now know.

But I also know,

He’s not done with me yet.

            Thank you again for reading through another set of my Musings. I hope you found them inspiring and even more, that you heard God speaking to you as you read through them. May you continue to grow in Christ, just as I am and continue to follow in the way of our Heavenly Father, as we each seek to listen to His Holy Spirit speak into each of our lives.

Sharing My Life (06/12/10): Entitlement Or Inheritance

For a while now I have been observing many members of my generation and those around it taking an “entitlement” mentality towards life.  Some graduate from college and expect a job to be waiting.  Others once on the job, expect a certain benefit package: full health coverage, minimum two-weeks per year vacation, stock options and others.  Still others expect life outside of college or graduate school to be much like it was inside. Once they graduate and enter into today’s workforce, they find that such things are earned, not simply given.

            I say this not just as an observer, but also as a participant. When I graduated from college and then seminary, I expected getting a job would come easy.  It was not. To be honest, I finished not even sure what I wanted to do with my life.  Much has changed since then.  Those who have been reading this newsletter for a while can probably testify to the many job and career changes I have made over the years.  I do not even claim to be finished changing courses yet, though I do think I am more certain of my future in therapy than I was in my careers in ministry or chaplaincy.

            So, now looking back at how “naïve” I was when I graduated and at what I have learned over the years, my outlook now is not one of entitlement, but one of inheritance. I am not interested in what I am entitled to or what everyone “should do” for me. Instead, I am increasingly more interested in what I am leaving behind for the generation coming behind me.  A mentor of mine, Greg Bourgond, would call this my legacy. As I continue to work towards completing my Doctorate in Marriage & Family Therapy and becoming a therapist myself, I find myself approaching what I am learning not just for my benefit, but also for the benefit of those who will come after me.  How can I help them become better people?  It is not just about who I am becoming, but also about who those who are watching me are becoming, as a result of how I live my life?

Life Update (06/12/10): Moving Again

            As of Memorial Day weekend, I have moved from Maple Grove, MN to Minneapolis, MN.  Both my phone number and email address remain the same.  In other news, I have now begun my second semester at Argosy University.  This past Thursday I spent most of the day at a Conference for the North American Society of Adlerian Psychology (NASAP), where I got to hear from James Bitter, a leading psychologist in the field.  One of the most compelling ideas I came away with was that therapy is not about fixing marital issues or changing individual behavior. It is about helping the client to understand where others are coming from and enabling them to work out their own issues. Behavior may certainly change and marital issues may indeed lesson, but that is because of the work the client(s) put into therapy, not the individual therapist.