Archive for the ‘My Life’ Category
The Subtle Automatics
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“Changing the pattern of outcome in your work means first identifying things about your approach that are as automatic as wedging the clay, as subtle as releasing the arrow from the bow.” David Bayles & Ted Orland, Art & Fear
This quote isn’t just for the “artist”. I think it’s relevant for everyone. Including me. Unfortunately.
Does the pattern of outcome in your work need to change? If so, start by asking yourself this question:
What are some of the “automatic” (and perhaps subtle) behaviors or approaches in my life that could be contributing towards these negative outcome patterns?
Here’s are a couple of, what I’d consider to be, my subtle automatics:
- Giving myself to useless distractions that end up sabotaging my focus and attention on the things that have the potential to change my life the most.
- Allowing my lips to move at the same pace of my brain.
- Leaning too heavily into technology.
- Being too quick to say “no” to my kids. (Instead of finding creative opportunities and ways to tell them “yes”.)
And…..I’ll stop there. Not that there are any more of course. Ahem.
How about you?
Monday Morning from Wicker Park
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It’s Monday morning and I’m kickin’ it at Filter in Wicker Park (I love WP btw). My eyes are tired and my body is moving SLOW. Looking forward to meeting up with Ben Arment and Jarrett & Jeanne Stevens in a little while. Hard to believe that STORY 2010 is already here.
Since I have way too much to say and not enough time to write it all I’m going to bullet a bunch of stuff…. Here we go.
- Had the privilege of interviewing Dawn Schiller at The Orchard this past weekend. If you’re not familiar with Dawn, you can learn more here. She has an incredible story. The audio is up and available for download here. See photos here.
- Who’s going to be at STORY later this week?
- Lots of stuff coming up this fall that I’m excited about. Will be in Minneapolis, Rockford, Atlanta, and…..I think that’s it for now.
- Enjoyed getting to know Mark Sayers last week. Mark is from Australia and has some good stuff to say.
- Celebrated the lives of two very dear people last week. Charlotte and Bruce…you’ll both be missed. Stirred my grief up a bit for my dad. October 12th will make six years since he passed away. Man…
That’s it….gotta run.
The Woman & The Stoners (Part 1)
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I love/hate the story in John chapter 8 about the woman caught in adultery. In case you don’t know it:
- Jesus is speaking to a crowd of people outside a temple.
- A group of religious teachers (Pharisees) disrupt Jesus by bringing to his attention a woman who has been caught in adultery.
- The Law of Moses says she should be stoned (think rock, not the other kind…).
- So they ask Jesus (trying to trick him): “The Law says we should stone her. What do you say?“
This is where the story starts getting REALLY good. Jesus brilliantly responds by saying:
“All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” 8 Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.” (John 8:7-8)
I’ll be honest. I used to read this story and think to myself, “What in the hell was wrong with these people?! How could they have thought they were so perfect and sinless?”
But the other day it hit me. I don’t think they necessarily thought they were perfect or sinless…..as much as they were just doing what all of us tend to do whenever we forget just how ragged and torn we really are – they picked up stones.
I do it too. Every time I think of myself as being better or superior to someone else. Every time I’m quick to judge. Every time I choose to believe something other than the best about someone. If I were to look down in those moments, I’m pretty certain I would find a big fat stone being tightly clinched in one of my fists. Or maybe both. Not because I think I’m perfect or sinless….but because that’s just what happens when we forget how desperately in need of God’s grace we truly are.
Ouch.
And that’s not even my main point here. I’ll try to get there tomorrow.
TXT #2
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Here’s the next batch…
Q: Why is it good to laugh?
A: Oh man… Learning to laugh at ourselves, with others, even sometimes at the craziness, confusion, and pain in our lives is so healthy and good for us. And while we can certainly laugh at the wrong things (i.e. the demise or failures of others), there’s something powerful about finding the humor, joy, and irony in our own journeys.
If you’re finding the laughter levels in your life at a low, ask yourself why. Perhaps you’re taking yourself too seriously. Maybe you are too focused on what your situation is saying instead of what God is saying. Or maybe you’re depressed and just need to reach out for help.
Laughter is good. Do it often.
Q: What is best sex advice for a married couple?
A: Do it often and with each other only.
Q: Will we be having more Beta Communities at The Orchard again in the fall?
A: Yes, keep an eye on The Orchard’s website for sign-ups and more info!
Q: How would you help a person you suspect is in an abusive relationship?
A: I’m not a professional counselor, but here’s my advice:
First, find out if they are being abused or not. Be sensitive in how you approach this. If they are, find out how open they are to your help. If they’re not, then simply let them know you are there for them and assure them that they can reach out to you at anytime. Be sensitive! Don’t get angry if they’re not ready to reach out for help.
If your friend is ready for your help, then I’d suggest working on a safety plan (which probably involves getting the heck away from the person abusing them), help them reach out (crisis line/counseling/etc…), and then just be an amazing friend for them as they journey through this.
Here are a couple of links that may be helpful:
National Domestic Violence Hotline
Childhelp: Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse
There is probably better advice or help on this topic online.
More tomorrow.
TXT #1
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Had a great TXT weekend at The Orchard! It was a ton of fun, but holy smokes…there were a LOT of questions I wasn’t able to get to due to time. So I thought I’d try to make my way through a handful of them this week here on my blog. Here’s the first batch.
Q: Are you a Gino’s, Lou Malnati’s, or Giordano’s guy?
A: I love them all, but my first pick would probably be Giordano’s!
Q: Who are the go to people in the church?
A: Depends on what it’s regarding, but I’d say the go-to people are our ministry leaders! And each other!
Q: I am to read a verse at the wedding of my niece and she may not be a Christian. And most there may not be. What verse comes to mind?
A: There are a ton of great scriptures you could share at a wedding. A few I’d recommend: 1 Corinthians 13 (Message Paraphrase is a great one!); Ephesians 3:14-19; Ephesians 5:21-33; Genesis 2:18-24; Colossians 3:12-17; 1 John 4:7-12
Q: Tell us a little bit more about your tattoo? What is it and when did you get it?
A: I got my tattoo a couple of years ago in memory of my dad and his life and legacy. He was really into elephants, so I wanted to get a tattoo that reflected that, as well as the father/son bond I hope and pray is as strong with my son as it was with him and I. The design is tribal and contains three elephant heads representing myself, my dad, and my son, Alex.
Here’s a video of me getting the tattoo.
Q: scott… Are you going to lead any worship after mike leaves?? We miss you behind the mic. But we’re going to miss mike too.
A: Maybe.
Q: What is the purpose behind The Orchard’s art intiative?
A: Check out this blog post I wrote regarding this a while back.
Stay tuned for Part 2.
“Finding Beauty” teaching at NewSong
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Here’s the video of last weekend’s “Finding Beauty” teaching at NewSong Irvine.
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