No Returns in Heaven

I’m not a believer in coincidences but I’m not one to point to random things as definite “signs.” But tonight is an exception to that rule. Instead of watching a very boring Olympic ceremony (sorry it was artsy, and frankly I didn’t care), I decided to rest after a long day and watch a movie on Netflix. The original plan was to watch Captain America, but Netflix doesn’t carry that, so I decided to watch a sports movie instead (any movie is better than the Sox). What I settled on is “A Mile in His Shoes,” a very low budget feel good movie. The basic plot is a minor league manager finds an amazing pitcher after his car breaks down. The team is really bad (almost Red Sox bad) so he signs the kid. The thing is that the kid has Aspergers (a mild form of autism) and has never really been outside his home. After a few bumps in the road the kid becomes a big star and ends up throwing a complete game to lead the team to the playoffs. I’m not a big fan of feel-good movies, but this was different. I thought that the movie would highlight how the team was so good for the pitcher, but it was the opposite. Instead the movie was about how much of a blessing this kid was to everyone around Him. I always knew God was perfect, but I had a thought in the back of my mind that His creations contained imperfections. I never really looked around at how all our differences (which can be a real pain to us) are blessings to those in our community. Maybe there is something in your life, or something about you that you just can’t shake. And often times it is not fair, you didn’t sign up for this. But God gave it to you and me, and it is up to us to take it and turn it around to bless those around us. This is a hard message to write because there are many quirks about myself that I don’t like at all, but if all I focus on is how they make my life difficult then I miss how they can provide a light in the darkness for everyone around me.

Time Really Does Fly

Today marks one huge episode of dejavu (excuse the misspelling, I’m half Italian not French). Today I packed all my things into the family car and am currently sitting in a sweltering dorm room at Holy Cross. A huge change from the constant 70 degrees my house was kept at via central air. I’m not taking classes though, instead I’m teaching them to incoming freshmen. Has it already been a year? That was rhetorical, there is no need to answer. I have a “no regret policy” in life, but looking back there is just one regret. I regret letting life get away from me. Last year went by too fast, and it went by fast because I had lost my way and my relationship with God and I waited for it to end. I don’t want that to happen. I learned, the hardest way possible, that there are no do-overs in life. The bad stuff can’t get undone and our mistakes can’t be erased. But those things can be forgiven. I thought I had made a terrible mistake; I blamed myself for something I didn’t do and couldn’t control. I learned the hard way that I can’t keep looking for a way to atone for the past, instead I need to forgive and move on. Now here I sit, a year older but still very much a young man, before God. I’ve been reading Hebrews and the author (he is unknown) writes a lot about how Jesus is a High Priest. He writes that we don’t need anything else, that Jesus is all we need. How true those words really are. God is all we need, He is what fills us up. I lost sight of Him and paid the price for it.  I ended up stressed out and feeling alone despite having great friends to pick me up. I pray that I won’t lose sight of God this year. It’s easy to fall behind a few steps, especially when you are on your own. This year I will make the effort to connect to God every day, just as we need food, sleep, and air to live we also need God. C.S. Lewis wrote that he is the fuel that man runs on. No truer words (except for those in the Bible of course) have ever been written.

It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's You

Last night my friends and I went to a special midnight premier of the Batman trilogy with the final movie playing at 12:01 am (the first played at 6:00pm). I don’t want to spoil it for you, but see the movie when you get a chance it is nothing short of spectacular. This post isn’t going to be about the genius of Christopher Nolan though, or the sheer awesomeness (no better word to describe it) of the gadgets and special effects. No, this post is about a thought I had while sitting in the dark theater for 9 hours. I found myself asking why we enjoy superhero movies so much. Think about it, what is so attractive about the story of a man (or woman) gifted with a special power? I realized that the desire for that story is very simple; we want it to be true. There is something about seeing someone act so selflessly that inspires us. We desire a world where someone, anyone really, would step up and combat against the evil in our society. We want a batman, spiderman, or superman. What we fail to realize is that we all have the power to make such a difference. We may not all be able to shoot web from our wrists or be close friends with a weapons developer, but we can make a difference in our own way. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about my life, and what it means to be a Christian. It’s not enough to just go to church and toe the line. I need to do good. Not just the Boy Scout “good deed” nonsense about being a nice person. I want to do good for God, I want to live for God and spread His righteousness around me. In living for God every moment, in obeying His will every moment we can make a difference, we can bring joy to our lives. You don’t have to fight a muscled anarchist like Bane to matter in God’s eyes, you just have to follow His commands and spread His love to everyone you see. I used to think that to live a true Christian life I had to become a missionary or pastor but that simply isn’t true. Even in writing this simple blog I provide a service, I make a difference no matter how minute. So what will you do, allow life to slip away or stand up for what is right and live in godliness? You don’t need a mask or a costume to do it, you just need to accept the love of God and His will.

Ring Ring, It's for You

Here are a couple late-night thoughts before I go to bed (I have an early morning tomorrow, funny how my summer vacation isn’t really a vacation). As I continue to trudge through my summer challenge I have reached out to my spiritual “personal trainers” by beginning Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s book The Cost of Discipleship. If you have never read it then I advise that you drop everything you are doing and buy a copy now (seriously, what the heck are you still reading this for?). One of my few regrets is that I didn’t read this when my father bought it four years ago, it is an amazing book. Bonhoeffer doesn’t sugarcoat his message, his point is frank: God is calling us to something more. He writes about “cheap grace,” something that has pervaded the church and put its body to sleep. Thousands snooze in the pews, comforted by the fact that they are indeed saved. But what is the price? James wrote about faith and good works thousands of years ago, and Bonhoeffer draws up the argument again. Simply put, they are both needed. A good tree bears good fruit, it is as simple as that. To paraphrase Bonhoeffer, if we are surprised by our lack of faith we only need to look to our actions for an explanation. Yes we are saved by faith, but to have faith we need to obey. God is calling you to something greater, to take that leap of faith you need to obey the call. To obey the call will cost your life, but give you immense joy. This is the hardest thing for me to wrap my mind around, I’m a 19 year old kid from Boston who enjoys relaxing and playing ball. How can I think about giving up my life? Well, it’s a choice we are all faced with; either we obey the call or we do not. There is no middle ground here (while I admit there is on many issues). Jesus is calling you today, will you answer?

Pick your Battles

Ever found yourself engaged in a really dumb argument of fight? Unfortunately, that happens to me all the time. Maybe it’s all the Sicilian in me that won’t budge or give in on any issue, but sometimes I just open my big mouth and let if fly when I disagree on something no matter how minute. It’s probably one of my biggest flaws and something I really need to work on, especially after reading this verse from 2 Timothy. Paul writes to Timothy in 2:23-24 “don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.” Next time I get steamed and feel like opening my mouth I’ll keep that in mind. In the end, what is it all really worth? Sometimes you need to pick your battles and let things go, sometimes I need to tell myself that too. It’s not just an anger thing, it has to do with pride. It’s the whole “how can I let him treat me like that? How can I let him think he’s right?” What does it matter though? There are no scorecards in Heaven when it comes to how many times you “won.” Does this mean we are to be submissive and let everything go? No, God calls us to stand up for what is right, but little else. There is no point in getting in an argument about whether Ortiz or Gonzalez is better, whether Jim or John is smarter, whether the Republicans or the Democrats are right. What really matters is our God who sent His son as our Savior, all else falls short in importance.

Cool Video

Saw a neat video on youtube, shows a guy having a "conversation" with his younger self on tape. You know what, now that I actually typed that sentence it sounds really weird, funny how things seem better when you don't think too much. Anyway that's beside the point, it's a cool video and it made me think about growing up and how I'd rather live for God and be joyful than force myself into a career I hate. When I was a kid I wanted to dig up dinosaurs, now I want to be a journalist, the last thing I want is to be stuck in an office job that I hate but need to keep so I can say I am responsible. It's weird how priorities change over the years. Here's the link below.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFGAQrEUaeU&feature=share

What Does it Take to be a Real Man?

This post departs from my usual theme of Biblical study and application. This post is more of a personal struggle for me, it’s a question of what it means to be a man. I’m 19 now; I’m getting to a point where being a kid is no longer an option. Before I know it I’ll be graduating college and getting married, but what does it mean to be a man? So many young men my age pound iron at the gym, smoke, drink, swear, and use women because that is what society tells us men do. Look at advertisements and movies, the leading men are all big, strong, dashing, and feared. There is no “wimpy” guy, no one wants to be the bookish nerd, or even the kid who sits at his keyboard typing blog posts. I work out and have friends, but I am hardly the debonair character in TV shows or movies. I don’t have many claims to fame, no special talents, no especially graceful social skills, does that mean that I am a failure? In the eyes of society, I am. Society sells us an image, and frankly I don’t buy it. Sure I could diet to build the body society wants, save money to buy the stuff society wants, and work really hard in school (but not in a nerdy way) to get the job society wants, but at the end what is the point? No a real man, at least in God’s eyes, is very different. There are literally hundreds of scripture references but two come to mind: the story of David and Psalm 119. Saul was King of Israel but God was calling a new one through the mouth of Samuel. Samuel was sent to find the man God was calling, and found Jesse and his sons. Jesse had many strong sons that Samuel found more than suitable. In fact he went to each one, only to be called off by God. God rebuked Samuel saying, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. (1 Samuel 16:7). Imagine that, several tall, strong, gifted men come before Samuel, yet God says “nope, sorry Samuel but they may look like men but in my eyes they aren’t.” You see, God doesn’t care about what society thinks or expects, instead He looks at our heart and character. To be a true man, one only needs to look to Psalm 119, what I consider a “training manual” for anyone look to have the strength, courage, and character of a godly man. To be a real man I don’t need to bench twice my weight, hold my liquor better than anyone else, or have girls in line waiting to go out with me. Those things may be nice, but what are they really worth? What do they add to my character? Sure I can admire the fictional characters of Jason Bourne, Jack Ryan, or Don Corrleone; they may be tough but are they real, godly men? I don’t know about you, but the man I want to be is one God can be proud to call His own. One humble enough to admit his mistakes, one strong enough to do the right thing, and one kind enough to extend God’s love to everyone he meets. That’s the kind of man God expects us to be, is it the archetype shown in movies? No. Is it the most rewarding and joyous path for us to take? Yes.