a million miles

Donald Miller's new book "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years" is coming out soon, and he's posted the first 3 chapters of it online to give a taste and get some feedback. I highly enjoy reading his books so if you've never read anything of his you are in for a nice surprise. Don said in his blog that this book starts a little slow, so that's why you get to read 3 chapters instead of just one sample chapter.

The book is based around some ideas he learned at a writer's conference- that good stories need conflict and difficulty and pain to be enjoyable. Think of your favorite adventure story, one that makes you feel alive and excited, even though you are only observing from a distance. It's probably full of more hardship and loss than most of us have ever imagined in our life. But it's also full of more hope and excitement and triumph than most of us think could really ever happen.

Our lives are usually geared to be as smooth and comforting as possible, and our biggest dreams are often of more stuff that is easily attained. We have no conflict or adventure, and we are bored to death. Maybe even literally.

A note from the beginning of the book:

If you watched a movie about a guy who wanted a Volvo and worked for years to get it, you probably wouldn't cry at the end of the movie when he drove off the lot testing the windshield wipers. You wouldn't tell your friends you saw a beautiful movie or go home and put a record on and sit in a chair to think about what you'd seen. The truth is you wouldn't even remember that movie a week later, except to feel robbed and want your money back. Nobody cries at the end of a movie about a guy who got a Volvo.

But we spend years living those kinds of stories and expect life to feel meaningful. Maybe that's why we go to so many movies, because our real lives don't feel meaningful anymore.

I know a lot of us are in a place of reassessing our lives, so maybe this will be encouraging to you. I want to get to a place where I am free to follow the dreams God puts in my heart, but I feel stuck because of the bills and responsibilities I have. That's the reason why I am selling my house (and pretty much all my furniture!), and why I downgraded my car a couple years ago, and why I'm trying to stop spending so much money on entertainment. I want to simplify, to need less money, and hopefully then to be able to work less and have more time to invest in the areas I'm really interested in. It's crazy because I don't know how to make money in any of these pursuits, but I'm trying to trust God with that. I think Jesus was serious when he said not to worry about food or clothing or shelter, and I want to start trusting him for even those basic things.

The hard thing about music and books and movies is that sometimes they inspire us to live in new ways, and other times they suck all the creative juices right out of us. Sometimes they take us away to another world and help us imagine how our world could be different too. Sometimes they just help us escape our own pain and fears for long enough to forget the anguish we feel deep inside.

But what if we could live in such a way that we could let out those stories etched deep in our hearts? It's hard for me to believe that those feeble, disjointed dreams rattling in my head are worth the effort it would take to discover if there is anything to them. But what if the whole point of life is not even actually accomplishing something useful or beautiful, but instead just enjoying the story as it plays out?

Patrick's Breastplate

This is a prayer passed down from the very beginnings of Celtic Christianity. The legend says that when Patrick and his missionary companions were traveling to preach to a pagan Irish king, God warned Patrick in a dream that a group of druids would be waiting to ambush and kill the missionaries. At this time, druidic mysticism was the religion of power, and a core belief they held was that the druids could shape-shift. While Patrick and his friends continued their journey, they chanted this prayer. When the missionaries neared the waiting druids, God transformed them into a group of deer and they walked past the ambush safely. I'm sure you can see the significance in this, just like when God used Moses' miracles to intentionally defy the Egyptian belief system and show who the true God is.

Celtic Christianity grew up with very little outside influence from the rest of Christianity. Patrick was a British shepherd boy in the outer reaches of the Roman Empire, who was kidnapped when he was young and had little formal training before almost single-handedly spreading the Gospel through Ireland. And during the time that Christianity was birthed in Ireland, it was dying in Rome while the empire was ransacked and splintered. If you want to kno wmore about that, I'll let you borrow Thomas Cahill's book "How the Irish Saved Civilization". This little prayer will give you a glimpse into the way the Celtic Christians viewed the world and God.



I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of creation.

I arise today
Through the strength of Christ's birth and His baptism,
Through the strength of His crucifixion and His burial,
Through the strength of His resurrection and His ascension,
Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom.

I arise today
Through the strength of the love of cherubim,
In obedience of angels,
In service of archangels,
In the hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In the prayers of patriarchs,
In preachings of the apostles,
In faiths of confessors,
In innocence of virgins,
In deeds of righteous men.

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven;
Light of sun,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of wind,
Depth of sea,
Stability of earth,
Firmness of rock.

I arise today through the power of God:
God's might to comfort me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to lead me,
God's way to lie before me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's Heavenly Host to save me
from the snares of the devil,
from temptations to sin,
from all who wish me ill,
from near and afar,
alone and with others.

May Christ shield me today
against poison and fire,
against drowning and wounding,
so that I may fulfill my mission
and bear fruit in abundance.

Christ be with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of creation.

here

Hey friends, sorry it's been a while. I am now in Pasadena and getting ready for classes. I have an 8am class (gag) tomorrow so I won't be writing much. The last few days have been full of driving, moving furniture, unpacking, school orientation, and exploring. So nothing too time consuming or stressing...

My parents drove out with me (they towed the Uhaul trailer!) and my brother flew down for a couple days, which was great! Brilliant, even. That is my new favorite adjective. I listen to a podcast of someone who uses it a lot and it stuck... Anyway, I loved having them here. It helped make the transition as smooth as possible, although yesterday and today were full of teary goodbyes as they are now gone. It is gonna be hard for a while but when I get discouraged and want to call this whole thing off (it's too late, but...) God has been faithful to meet me where I'm at and bring hope and life and a promise of things being good. I need that so much.

So if you think of me, pray that I will be able to connect with people really quickly and make good strong friendships. I can never replace the friends and family from the past, but I can't live in the past either and want to make the most of now. That is a really struggle for me, so please remember me in your prayers. The cool part is that the apartments I am living in are designed to foster community, and there are about 10 people I am already building relationships with, including my roommate Jonathon and 2 other single guys, Matt and Darrin, who live right next door. I'm excited for what could develop.

Well I have my first day of school in like 3 years, so I better get to bed. Much love.