Finding Who We Really Are.

“Suedfeld knew from earlier studies of sensory restriction that being alone in a monotonous environment heightens a person’s sensitivity to any external or internal stimuli.”

-David G. Myers, Malcolm A. Jeeves; Psychology Through The Eyes Of Faith. (2003)

—

Isn’t it interesting that in a culture so infatuated with the idea of personal independence, a man may only find himself whole in the silence, away from the distractions of culture?

There are many paradoxes of life, but this is one that puzzles me unlike any other. We strive to understand the mysteries of life and gain personal happiness all while forfeiting time alone to ponder these things. To really understand oneself, a person must retreat, address the deepest parts of the heart, and allow the stirring to overtake them until resolve is found.

In rest, the body relaxes and regains energy after a time of work. The mind finds a way to ponder, explore, and dream about things it otherwise would not have space for during a busy week. The spirit has space to stretch out, be reminded of its passions, and put a spotlight on areas of weakness. All of the most difficult and yet beautiful endeavors of life are born in a place of rest.

It is often said that who you are behind closed doors is the truest representation of who you really are. If we spend too much time in the public eye appeasing the many people we each encounter through work, school, etc., we will only reveal the parts of ourselves that we want them to see, which may be the only parts we even know of ourselves. In other words, if we neglect rest, we may be missing out on true self-discovery.

We need rest. We need silence and solitude. Without these, we will never truly understand who we really are.

—

“In solitude I get rid of my scaffolding; no friends to talk with, no telephone calls to make, no meetings to attend, no music to entertain, no books to distract, just me – naked, vulnerable, weak, sinful, deprived, broken – nothing. It is this nothingness that I have to face my solitude, a nothingness so dreadful that everything in me wants to run to my friends, my work, and my distractions so that I can forget my nothingness and make myself believe that I am worth something. But that is not all. As soon as I decide to stay in my solitude, confusing ideas, disturbing images, wild fantasies, and weird associations jump about in my mind like monkeys in a banana tree. Anger and greed begin to show their ugly faces…

“The task is to persevere in my solitude, to stay in my cell until all my seductive visitors get tired of pounding on my door and leave me alone.”

-Charles Swindoll; Intimacy With The Almighty: Encountering Christ in the Secret Places of Your Life. (1996)

Sherry Muchira Music

Sherry Muchira | New Album 2012 from Sherry Muchira on Vimeo.

Hey Friends!

Later this month, some friends and I will be recording a new album featuring the music of Sherry Muchira! I’m super excited about this project, not only because the songs Sherry has written are amazing, but it’s also my first legit full-length album I will have participated in creating! We are putting many hours of work into these songs, and I think it will be something we’ll all be very proud of in the end.

If you’d like to help us reach our goal of raising $9,000 for recording costs (which is a portion of what we still need), check out the Kickstarter website for donation information. We also have some sweet incentives that will make your gift a little more worthwhile!

Thanks in advance for checking this out, and maybe even supporting the album! The hope is that all who hear this music will be encouraged and reminded of the amazing love God has for us.

Thanks!
Sean

Don’t Waste Your Life.

“I will tell you what a tragedy is. I will show you how to waste your life. Consider a story in the February 1998 edition of the Reader’s Digest, which tells about a couple who ‘took early retirement from their jobs in the Northwest when he was 59 and she was 51. Now they live in Punta Gorda, Florida, where they cruise on their 30 foot trawler, play softball, and collect shells.’ At first, when I read it I thought it might be a joke. A spoof on the American dream. But it wasn’t. Tragically, this was the dream: Come to the end of your life - your one and only precious, God-given life - and let the last great work of your life, before you give an account to your Creator, be this: playing softball and collecting shells. Picture them before Christ at the great day of judgement. ‘Look, Lord. See my shells.’ This is a tragedy. And people are spending billions of dollars to persuade you to embrace that tragic dream. Over against that, I put my protest: Don’t buy it. Don’t waste your life.”

-John Piper
Don’t Waste Your Life (Wheaton, IL: Crossways Books, 2003) 45-46

Water your roots.

Kara and I planted some trees in our yard this summer. I felt so proud of myself…dug these fat holes in the super thick clay soil the builders so kindly provided us with. Took the time to throw some fertilizer down, break up the roots, and lower these bad boys into the ground. Boy do they look good in my yard!

These are arborvitae trees. They are most commonly used to 1) provide a wonderful green atmosphere and 2) create somewhat of a natural “fence.” We love our neighbors, it’s just weird that we can stare at each other and listen in to private conversations while eating dinner on our respective back porches!

We planted these trees during the drought we had in August. Granted, it was only a few weeks long, but it was still enough to let up on the rain! I suppose my green thumb is still in development, because I was only watering them every few days. Living in Seattle, I was somewhat under the assumption that we would have rain at least 3 times a week, but with summer actually arriving, it didn’t really turn out that way. Over the course of the past several weeks, I’ve watched our lush, green trees begin to turn brown and droopy (as you can see above). I felt so stupid when my mom asked me, “Have you been watering them every day?” The root system probably wants to punch me right in the face for being so negligent. Sorry root system, I’m still figuring out how to maintain a yard. #whatittakestobeaman

Now for the spiritual parallel: I started thinking about my spiritual life, and how it takes maintenance. I remember when I really gave my life to Jesus, and how it felt to be totally in love with Him. I lived off that high for a long time. I would read my Bible sometimes, but mostly just thought about how cool it was that I was rooted in Him. There have been many seasons like this in my life. I realized that if I didn’t spend time with the Lord in prayer and worship (including reading), my spiritual well-being would dry up quickly. I often relied on these spiritual boosts from camps, church gatherings, or even worship albums. However, if I went too long without drenching myself in the Word and in His presence, I would dry right up.

In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis suggests, “if you examined a hundred people who had lost their faith in Christianity, I wonder how many of them would turn out to have reasoned out of it by honest argument? Do not most people simply drift away?” Most cases in which I have seen someone walk away from the faith, it’s not because they came to a logical decision to leave. It’s often because the roots stopped being watered. Fellowship with other believer’s to encourage them and walk through hard times was neglected. The church wasn’t “feeding” them. There are plenty of reasons. The fact is, we must FEED OURSELVES. My pastor says this from the pulpit often. FEED YOURSELF. Water your roots. Stay nourished and connected.

Anyone can say that it’s silly to believe in something that one could so easily slip away from. I would have to disagree. Relationships take effort. In fact, everything in life takes effort! If you eat poorly and don’t work out, you get fat. If you don’t practice an instrument, you get worse. If you stop talking to your spouse, you lose them. It’s the same with faith. Many expect that a belief system should just be, and somehow serve you. The fact is, it’s not about you. It’s about Him, and what He did. I don’t serve a God who caters to my every desire, I serve a God who saw how messed up I was and saved my life. That’s worth working at. That’s worth investing in. That’s worth watering.

Water your roots.