Borders & Boundaries

I was talking to an old friend who I had not met in a long time. I found myself sharing this revelation that I had from a while back. It is the concept of borders and boundaries applied to daily life.

I'm defining boundaries as natural or universal. If you are standing on the edge of a cliff, that boundary is pretty obvious. Take one wrong step and you will end up in the abyss. If you are on an island, step into the water, and you'd better know how to swim. Boundaries are healthy, and if you don't want to cross some of them; if you do the consequences can be dire. Some boundaries are meant to be conquered, analogous to being at the foot of a mountain, and having a desire to climb it. You'll need the proper training, equipment and most importantly the will to perservere. I think you get the picture. I believe God defines boundaries for us. Cross some, and it's sin. Cross others, and you've exercised great actions of faith.

Borders on the other hand are man-made. Some are heavily fortified with missiles and guns pointed at either side. Some have caused some of the most tragic conflicts in human history. Some match natural boundaries, so seem OK, but they are sometimes excuses to hide a man-made agenda. In our lives borders can be self-created phobias, hang-ups, which prevent us from engaging with others. Some borders that we've built up in our lives can appear as serious as the Berlin Wall, or the Great Wall of China (to keep the rabbits out), but once they crumble, we see their power was only in how we perceived them. Borders prevent us from closer relationships.

I often think my journey with Christ, is one of keeping healthy boundaries, but breaking down the self-made borders that prevent me from a truly intimate relationship with Jesus. This has had a profound effect on how I live daily life, and being aware of what is a border and what is boundary and to be able to discern the difference.

The Power of Perspective

During my university days, I used to 'break in' to the roof of the science library which was the tallest building in the area. Perched atop, I peered down to the hustle and bustle below: students rushing to and fro, cars cruising purposefully along the tree lined avenues. From that vantage point, I often wondered where everyone was going; engrossed in their lives, the details. It was a place where I took 'time out'; pondering about the big picture.

At street level, we rush about our lives in the busyness of it all, all the doing. Sometimes I find it helpful to 'go up on the roof' and get the broader perspective of things, as the details aren't often as important, when you see things from afar, removed from it all. It is the power of perspective.

I'm reminded of Rwanda

We've all been there. You experience something transcedant. You think it will change your life. But the glow fades, and the impact diminishes. Not Rwanda. I went there in July for Hope Rwanda's final week. That experience has shifted permanently the place from which I view the world. I'm quicker to consider others, am more eager to examine opportunities to build the lives of people that I may not even know. Because I've gained a deeper sense of humanity, and conviction of the global village.

Moral Conservatives, Socio-Political Radicals

Since that Ted Haggard story broke out, I've been checking out the response in the secular and christian world. It's been interesting to say the least. The world sees yet another high powered hypocrite. The church loses yet another soldier. Many have questioned why the church wants to set itself up as morally superior, considering the sins of biblical figures such as Adam, David, etc. But if we don't ATTEMPT to live morally superior by the grace of God, then what's the point. Sure we'll all fall now and again, and some of the consequences of sin will be devastating, but that doesn't mean we stop trying. Which leads me to this. I believe we are called to be moral conservatives BUT socio-political radicals. Jesus was a socio-political radicals. He railed against the Pharisees, but didn't want to bring down the Romans. Yet, some of his messages were interpreted as such. But he remained a moral conservative. But his ideas were revolutionary. So beyond the failures of Christians, prominent or not, we continue to fight, we continue to journey, we continue to live under grace, and speak the truth of Jesus, which is love.

wikipedia.org

As most or all of you may know, I have spent the better part of this year, NOT working. Not in the conventional sense of the world. I've done a lot of 'exploring'. While becoming expert at cooking, driving the school bus, assisting in extracurricular activities, I've also developed a fascination with wikipedia. http://wikipedia.org This is a free and comprehensive online encyclopedia created and updated by users, like you or me. Apparently it is much more accurate than Britannica. So when I am, say curious about string theory, I go to google and type in "string theory wiki", or I go to wikipedia directly. The definition of the topic is all there and there are links and launchpoints to all related and more in depth detail on the subject. You can wiki anything. Another wiki I discovered the other day is wikiquote.org. You guessed it. All quotes. Created and updated by users. So I truly have been learning something new everyday.

It's November! Time passes fast.

Well it's been a fast year hasn't it? In fact it's been the fastest year of my life. So they say, that time accelerates as you get older. Remember when you were 5. A year was a long time. In fact 20% of your life.
So that's my theory.

A year represents a smaller and smaller portion of your life as you get older, so it seems time passes faster. What's another year, when you're 85? It's the same as 3 weeks when you are 5! You get the picture.

So cherish the moments.

Recently I found out that someone I know is very sick with cancer. She is around our age. It was a shock to say the least. So as I continue to pray for a miracle for her, it dawns on me, the corny but real truth, that we should live everyday like it's our last (or our first), filled with eagerness and wonder, because time is a precious gift indeed.

Incremental Exponentialism

OK. It's a bit random, but I've had a lot of time to think lately! You know how if you leave your credit card debt unpaid it seems to grow like wildfire? Well that's incremental exponentialism, also known in financial circles as compound interest. I've started to apply the 'tortoise' rule rather than the 'hare'. Everyday, I'm hoping to add positive inputs in 'increments'. There's always time to pray for 5 hours, but everyday, I make sure I read the word and pray to God. I have a shower every morning, and put clothes on before I leave the house, so why wouldn't I commune with my Lord before I set off for the day that he has made? So everyday, I take incremental actions, sometimes towards a goal, but mostly just because I enjoy it. Actions of faith, of compassion. Sowing everyday. Just like compound interest, a lifetime of positive godly increments starts to accelerate, steepen, and in the long run, at the end of our journey, we will be shocked at where we find ourselves. Incremental exponentialism. Works for me.

Pot-luck Dinner

Well, it was good night. A good feed at least. It was a Chicken fiesta: parmigiana, caramel a la bill granger, roast, caesar, kebabs and much much more. We have such a great diversity of careers and interests, and such great families. It's so encouraging to me that we all endeavour to live lives that are beyond the four walls in which we exist.

October 3, 2006: Connecting in the School Holidays

Ah. School holidays.....wait a minute! Children at home for two straight weeks! Our group is catching up tonight for an informal pot-luck dinner. After an idyllic 3 day weekend, and a slew of footie finals, it will be good to see how all the families are holding up.

Introducing...The Connect Group Blog

We have the best connect group in the world. Families gathering....for a cuppa, for a breather, to vent, inspire, get prayed for, to give, to love, to commune...to connect. We're always better off having gathered. Yes, the decibel level is astonishing, and getting kids to bed at 9.45pm on a school night is not always the best idea, but let's live a little! The sum of our parts is truly greater than the whole.