The Calm Resolve of Inner Peace

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I meet with a small group of  close brothers every Sunday at 7:00 a.m. in a local Panera.  We share life and learning at a level that only comes from long-term earned respect and trust.  We more than casually call ourselves “The Tunnel Boys.”   We’re currently chewing our way through “Shattered Dreams” by Larry Crabb, one stick of triple thick jerky at a time.  This is a book I do not recommend to many – it’s difficult enough to chew much less swallow.  I read a quote out loud this morning:

“Whatever the angel said to strengthen Jesus, the effect was surprising.  I would have expected Him to dry His eyes, smile bravely, and get on with His mission.  But instead Jesus cried harder, so hard that His sweat became like drops of blood.  That happened after He was strengthened.  Perhaps we’re meant to learn that the richest hope permits the deepest suffering, which releases the strongest power, which then produces the greatest joy.  Maybe there is no shortcut to joy.  Maybe God sometimes frustrates our desire to experience Him in order to deepen it… And then, at some point, Jesus did stop crying.  The season of anguish yielded to calm resolve.”

Calm resolve.  Peace of heart and mind.  I’m reminded of one of my heroes – Admiral William Stockdale.   Stockdale was the highest ranking POW in Viet Nam.  He spent over six years in a concentration camp with a number of other courageous comrades.  When asked how he survived that long in tortuous captivity, he responded with this statement that has since earned the title of “The Stockdale Paradox”:

On the one hand, we stoically accepted the brutal facts of our reality. On the other hand, we maintained an unwavering faith in the endgame, and that we would prevail.

For over 50 years my definition of hope was the anticipation that life “here” will get better.   According to Crabb, and Admiral Stockdale for that matter, that’s a illusion from the Imperious Illusionist himself.  Life may not get better HERE, but it will THERE.  Life, even life difficulty and pain can be preparation HERE for full participation THERE.

Can we face this reality with “calm resolve” and/or “stoic acceptance”?  I struggle with this on a daily basis – but the truth remains; “The richest hope permits the deepest suffering, which releases the strongest power, which then produces the greatest joy.”  To which I say to myself – “Take that jerky, Mr. Sapp, and chew on it.”

How Dream Builders Build Trust

I just left another Dream Builder meeting 17 stories up in downtown Orlando.  I’m continually thankful that I enjoy the camaraderie and adventure with these amazing, weird individuals (www.tinyurl.com/birdinthebox).   This morning, amidst stories of helicopter rescues in Haiti (led by the REAL Jack Bauer – no kidding), adoptions in China, and new South African theme parks – we discussed how Dream Builders build trust with each other.  Here are the actions we identified:

• Be consistent – keep showing up
• Be truthful even when it hurts
• Say what you do – do what you say
• Be open about shortcomings
• Demonstrate that you care
• Be a cheerleader
• Love your wife and children
• Be more than fair
• Practice forgiveness

Did I mention how thankful I am to hang around these weirdos?

Goal for 2010: Less Confusion, Better Conclusions

Cover of The Last Lecture

I’m going to borrow the idea of a “head fake” from dearly departed Randy Pausch (The Last Lecture), but unlike Pausch, I’ll detail the fake up front.  At the end of The Last Lecture, which I highly recommend watching if you haven’t seen it (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo) , Pausch described that he had tricked the audience with a double head-fake:

1. The lecture, originally titled “Things I’ve Learned in Life” should really be titled “How to Live Life.”
2. The lecture was not written for the audience who attended the video recording, but for Pausch’s children who would be able to view it long after his death due to Pancreatic cancer.

My head fakes, though less profound and dramatic:

1. This post should be titled, “Stop Getting Snookered.”
2. This post is for me, not for you.

This post is for me because I’m the one who needs to apply it.  I’m the one who allows The Imperious Illusionist (http://tinyurl.com/ImperiousIllusionist) to create confusion with his illusions that lead me to wrong conclusions.  Here are a few of the illusions I want to dispel in 2010:

• More will be enough
• Pain is a bad thing
• I have a right to feel good
• Substitutes and counterfeits provide relief
• Someone or something can meet my deepest needs

Times may get tough(er) or conditions and circumstances may improve dramatically – but I must remember that an EPIC STORY continues to unfold, and this story played out in my life is seldom what it seems.  As Rick Warren states, this life is a test, a trust, and TRAINING.   I can’t afford to allow the Illusionist to snooker me with his illusions so that I make inaccurate conclusions, start to doubt my Creator, and bad decisions.

My goal for 2010: less confusion – better conclusions.

Anticipating my Avatar

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I saw Avatar last weekend, along with all the other sci-fi enthusiasts who’ve impatiently waited for several years to see James Cameron’s next –gen screen graphics.  Cameron did it again – he built high expectations and spent hundreds of millions to produce his vision (as he did with Titanic), and bottom line – he DELIVERED.

I conceptualize most of life in metaphors; I guess that’s the blessing and curse of living so “right-brained” I see superheroes in spreadsheets.  That said, the visual image of living in a “new body” in a dangerous, beautiful, adventurous world makes me long for heaven at a level difficult to describe.  I firmly believe that life here on earth is preparation to participate in God’s adventure for eternity – and for me, Avatar is like a drop of honey on the tongue of my anticipation.  The hard part is exercising patience, knowing God will DELIVER in His perfect timing.

A Statue of Responsibility

I have a friend who has a dream… a big dream… let’s say a 300 ft. tall dream.  He believes that just as Lady Liberty stands proud on the east coast of our nation, so should a Statue of Responsibility tower above the California coast as a reminder to American citizens and visitors from around that globe that both attributes (Liberty and Responsibility) are essential to sustain the freedoms (economic, spiritual, etc.) we so often take for granted:

The Statue of Responsibility is not a pipe dream.  And it’s not IF it’s going to happen, it’s where.  Foundations, celebrities, and politicians are flocking to this important mission.  Several locations are under consideration.

www.SORfoundation.org

What an incredible pair of transcontinental bookends.  Remember you heard it here first!

The Bird in the Box

I have the privilege of hanging with twenty weird guys at least once per month in the media room of a local church.  A few justifiably hem and haw about their 45 minute drive, but none complain that we should meet at a more civilized time than 6:00 – 8:00 am.   We call ourselves Dream Builders and we are weird in the way we think and act.   Here are a few common characteristics of our Dream Builders:

• Accepted Jesus Christ as his personal savior
• Continually seeks a more intimate relationship with God
• Desires to see God do what He loves to do – The Impossible!
• Committed to helping other Dream Builders achieve their dreams

At times I think we’re so counter-culture-counter-intuitive we should probably use this image as our logo:

We keep our radar high for an unusual, but amazing phenomenon.  I call it – and a weird term if there ever was one – The Bird in the Box.  It’s how DBers listen and respond to the music – HIS music.

Take a gander at the Dream Builder’s decision equation:

So let’s start with the Box.   As you can see the box is unopened, and there’s a reason.  The Box holds a serum better than 100cc of adrenalin – it’s a Dream Builder’s secret sauce.  Take a look at this short clip of clip of JJ Abrams, my favorite movie director and creator of TV shows like Alias and Lost, and movies like MI 3, Cloverfield  and the Star Trek movie last summer.  This man is a Mystery  ninja –  as you’ll see.

Dream Builders love the Mystery Box because it represents Unlimited Possibilities.  The contents of this box are more valuable to a Dream Builder than probably 90% of people.  When the time comes, the perfect time, the box opens and two questions are answered:

• WHO does He want me to help?
• HOW does He want me to help them?

So that’s the Box.  Careful now; something else is hiding in the box.  It’s the Bird:

Black Swans also share a few traits:

1. Unexpected event – never happened before
2. Simple in its definition – extreme in its impact
3. We have trouble interpreting how it happened, or how to prevent it/make it happen in the future
4. Could be a “Good Bird” or a “Bad Bird”

When a Black Swan emerges from The Mystery Box, God’s Odds are in play:

God doesn’t play by our odds or rules.  When it comes to Dream Building, He rarely operates in the realm of what we call “Business as Usual”.   When God releases a Black Swan like feeding 5000 families with a few fish, inserting a 9 foot tall (odds of a man that tall: 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 to 1) villain like Goliath into a battle, or generating $100 milllion from a small-budget overtly Christian movie (like my friend David Nixon did with his movie Fireproof)  – we have no choice but attribute the outcome to our Creative Creator and enjoy His music.

C.S. Lewis alluded to God’s Swans revealing God’s Odds in his Chronicles of Narnia:

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Lucy:

“Will we ever get back into the Wardrobe?”

The Professor:

“Most likely.  But I think it will happen when we’re not looking for it.”

Prince Caspian

Lucy:

“Why didn’t you rescue us like before?”

Aslan:

“Nothing happens the same way twice, dear one…”

DBers don’t anticipate when God will release Swans or what they will look like – we just keep our radar high for an opportunity to respond.   In fact, in the midst of all this mystery there’s only one thing we can be sure of – Aslan is on the move!

So the box finally opens and the bird appears and prepares to fly.  Now the Dream Builder has only one choice to make:  Will he take the Blue Pill or the Red Pill?

Here are a few Red Pills DBs have swallowed. All are real – most you may not know about:

• “You feed them.” – Jesus to disciples on feeding the 5000
• “You make those Christian movies.”
• “You build that 300 foot tall Statue of Responsibility on the West Coast.”
• “You adopt those kids from Russia.”
• “You hold that annual golf tournament to honor pastors.”
• “You organize a nation-wide event to celebrate My Creation.”
• “You create a national sports event to support breast cancer research called THE CURE BOWL.”

The Red Pill requires risk and faith – Spiritual “Guts” if you know what I mean.  So the Dream Builder reaches for the Red Pill and washes it down; when he does, his fellow DBs usually respond in one of three ways:

1. Don’t know how I can help, but I’m committed to you and to pray for your dream.
2. Don’t know how I can help, but I know someone who can – I’ll connect you.
3. You’re talking my passions, my “fastball” and/or my resources – I’m in!

What do I mean by “fastball”? 

Nolan Ryan won 300 games, threw no hitters until he was in his early 40’s, and struck out more batters than any other hurler in history on one pitch – a 100 (up to 104) mph heater that the best batters in the league said “disappeared” on its way to the plate.  Point: we all have our “Fastballs” that we bring to this game we call Dream Building.

And what happens when Dream Builders join other Dream Builders who are ready to fire their fastball?

The Lord replied: “Look, and be amazed!  You will be astounded at what I am about to do!  For I am going to do something in your own lifetime that you will have to see to believe.”  

Habakkuk 1:5  The Living Bible

I said that Dream Builders are weird.  They believe August Rush when he stated, “The MUSIC is all around us; all you have to do is listen.”

Dream Builders are counter cultural and often counter intuitive.   It is my privilege and one of the greatest joys of my life to lock arms with these lunatics as we open Mystery Boxes, release Swans, and gulp down Red Pills to engage in the Adventure and see God reveal his “odds” by doing what He does best – the Impossible.

The Heart of a CHAMPION

Charles Lindbergh describes the heart of a Champion around one word…

Dream Builders 6:00 a.m.

 

And the Call Goes Out…

 

We need heroes.  Desperately.  In their brilliant book, The Fourth Turning, William Strauss and Neil Howe describe the cycles in America’s history.  The “fourth” cycle as they describe it, involves a period of tremendous hardship and pain.  The last 4^th occurred during the Great Depression and WWII – the next is now.

But there’s hope.  According to the authors, heroes have surfaced in every Fourth Turning of our country’s history.  When times are at their toughest, when hope seems to be our most depleted resource – heroes step in and turn the tide.  So, as our call goes out, who will step in as our champions that re-fuel the dry tanks of America’s hope?

We need entrepreneurs – those brave individuals who risk for reward, even though they currently have less than a 10% chance of survival.  Those that succeed generate over 70% of the jobs in this country, and almost all of the innovation.  They now have a name that’s catching on – Economy Heroes:

 

But we need more than those who can re-boot our economy, our country requires a “re-tweet” of the Greatest generation; men and women with the tenacity of my favorite uncle – known to friends and family as “C.W.”.   He’s 83 now, sinking fast with a debilitating back disease.   But even, and in his case especially, with pain that would force a rhino to its knees, he’s still the mentally toughest individual I know by far.   I loved hearing him tell stories over the years of his youth – growing up on a farm in a small Florida community during the Great Depression.   His academic and vocational choices were limited which required intense focus and determination.   His father handed him $150 on the night of his high school graduation, told him he wished he could give him more, told his son he loved him, and wished him luck.   C.W. caught a ride to the University of Florida that night with the professor who gave the graduation address.    The professor dropped him off on the outskirts of town and also wished him luck.   C.W. found cheap lodging and showed up at a local dairy the next morning looking for work.   No jobs were available, but he committed to working at no pay until a job opened.  He worked without compensation for three months. 

For the next four years C.W. started work at 5:00 a.m., went to class in the afternoon, and studied at night.   He joined the Marines the day after graduation because the job market was tight and he wanted to serve his country.   He fought in the Pacific campaign, including Okinawa.  After the war he farmed and built enough capital to branch out and ultimately become a very successful commercial developer and a pillar of his community.

The people I call heroes – like my Mom, a crazy missionary, an amazing two-star general, an off-the-hook Christian Businessman who leads a world-wide organization that aids the poor and provides incredible support after disasters – and who loves Cuban cigars and drinks single malt whiskey, a brilliant young business woman who struggles with a ridiculously rare form of incurable cancer, a movie producer/director whose dream is to make Orlando the Christian movie capital of the world, and my lovely wife – are self effacing, courageous, and creative individuals who will do what is necessary to aid others in need.

They’re unstated motto – “It’s not about me.”  We need millions of heroes like them to “save” this country.  Are you available – because my friend – the Call is out…

A Deeper Cut

 

If spiritual adventure means a “sharper cutting edge” (previous post), we can also assume that engagement with that edge produces a “deeper cut”:

 

“Exactly what is God doing with all His power?  At some point in your Christian life you’ll be forced to admit that Jesus didn’t make it on your list of responsive, valued friends.   Live long enough, and dreams important to you will shatter.  Some will remain shattered.  God will not glue together the pieces of every Humpty Dumpty who takes a great fall in your life.  The divorce will go through, the cancer will claim a loved one’s life, the Alzheimer’s will not be arrested (let alone reversed) by the latest drug.  The broken friendship will not be restored despite your best efforts to reconcile.  Your marriage will not be satisfying no matter how many counselors your consult or seminars you attend.  Your singleness will be an intolerable burden.  The lost income will not be replaced by money pouring out of heaven’s windows.  You’ll feel low for a long time; the dark tunnel will lengthen with no visible light at the end.  Your sense of adventure will yield to dutiful drudgery.  You will be miserable.  Your dream of feeling alive, captivated by beauty and passionately free, will die.  And God won’t do a thing.  For a long time.  Maybe till heaven.”

 

Larry Crabbe

Shattered Dreams

Why would we want sharper edges when they produce deeper cuts?  There’s “gonna be an answer”, and as unpleasant as a wider wound sounds, it will actually makes sense.