Reading, Listening, Watching

That title might sound like I’m doing something spiritual, but I mean it more literally, ha!

Here’s What I’m Reading Right Now

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller

I picked this up a million years ago when it first came out because my friend Philter recommended it. I didn’t get past the first chapter. I think it was because I immediately saw that Miller is a million times better than me when it comes to writing. I found it again the other day and decided to try again. It is kind of hard to read a book about living a better story while I feel stuck on the couch eating cookie dough. But dang, that writing tho…

Multiply by Francis Chan

I’m reading this with my friend Sirvard in England. We read a couple chapters and then we discuss them via video chat. Francis Chan is amazing. Not just a great writer, but he’s somehow managed to make discipleship possible by following along in his book. Last week we got into the small subjects of Creation and the Fall of humanity. This week will be about Abraham and the Exodus. The discussions have been awesome.

Here’s What I’m Listening to Right Now

Peace by Bethel Music

This is wonderfully chill. Several songs are familiar, but arranged and performed in a way to bring a measure of calm to all this anxiousness. I’ve found myself tuning out the news and letting the amazing musicians and singers of Bethel wash over me. Peace indeed.

John Prine Essentials

I read that John Prine passed last week– grace and peace to his family and friends. I knew I knew his name, but I didn’t know his music. And so I called up an Essentials playlist on one of my walks this week. Which led to some repeat playing and some poking around in his catalog. Witty, folksy, and the kind of funny that can poke at sadness.

Here’s What I’m Watching Right Now

War of the Worlds for Free on Epix

This is a fun retelling of the classic story. I thought they were going to try to complete it in 8 episodes, but nope… they’re making seasons. This time the story is set in Europe, so a lot of it is in French with subtitles, swoon. Lots of tension, lots of jump scares (annoying), but dog robots that look like those ones from Boston Dynamics, only militarized.

The Banker on Apple TV+

This is a flat out good movie. I guess there’s some controversy around it… but not for the content. Great performances. Great writing. Well done.

Distancing Socially

Last night we met up with friends on FaceTime and it was almost normal

Photo: Chang Duong via Unsplash

I didn’t think to take a pic of our friends on the screen of the iPad that was propped up on the coffee table in front of us. So here’s a stock pic of friends, haha!

We met up in the early evening. Our family had just finished our stir-fry supper. Theirs was still slow roasting on the grill. We shared drinks and stories. We laughed and we talked about what we’re doing to stay sane. Both of our families have an adult daughter at home. The two of them bonded over how “horrible” it is to be stuck with their parents. We caught up on what was going on with the kids that are sheltering elsewhere. We laughed at each others jokes. We shared fears, and I think by doing so, made them a little more bearable. It wasn’t even an hour, but it meant so much to me to just be as together as we could be.

“Be good friends who love deeply…”

— Romans 12:10 (The Message)

Would You Rather Have the Maps App or the Compass Right Now?

I Bet You Wanna Choose the Maps App, Right?

iPhone Mockup: Jae-seong, Jeong via dribbble

Let me SHOW YOU WHY I THINK YOU SHOULD CHOOSE THE COMPASS.

See the Maps app is super useful if you know where you’re headed. It’s awesome to fire it up, enter a destination, and then let it give turn-by-turn directions. And I get it, a compass, doesn’t seem all that helpful, right? All it does is point north. What good is that?

* * * * * * *

Right now I’m under a stay-at-home order . I’m cooped up at home. I can get groceries, but that’s about it. I’m feeling an itch for things to get back to normal, but I don’t think things are going to be “normal” for quite a while. We all may be playing, “whack-a-mole” with COVID-19 for some time.  

My daily life is upside down to the point where my GPS is messed up. Things are changing, and I don’t know that any of us really know where we’re going yet. The Maps app can’t move us forward if we don’t know where we’re going.

But this is a perfect time for a compass.

This is the time for a personal compass of values that will help you know where true north is. Here is a picture of your compass:

Photo: Alex Grodkiewicz via Unsplash

Choose the compass. Read your Bible. Feed your faith. This compass will guide you through uncertainty, past anxiety, all the way to hope and a future. We here at YWAM San Diego/Baja have tons of opportunities for you to do just that. Soon we will be reopening our Discipleship Training Schools where you can take your first steps into a new future that’s headed towards True North.

Many thanks to Dr. Tim Elmore’s Habitudes for the Journey.

Visibility Zero

I’ve been under a stay at home order for weeks. (Or is it months?!) And I Don’t Know What’s Next…

Photo Cred: Kent Pilcher via Unsplash

I’ve settled into a routine, but it’s still not normal.

I’m getting up too early. I’m having my coffee and a Clif bar. I’m reading the Bible and praying with Kay Charlotte. I’m “going” to work and doing my thing… so there’s a new routine. But I’m getting a little stir crazy with all this social distancing. I’m starting to wonder, When are we gonnu be through this? And that gets me to asking, “What’s it gonnu be like when we do?” I can’t help but look at the horizon…

And I have near zero visibility.

Which increases my anxiety. Which makes me say “Hey Anxiety, take a number and get in line behind all my other fears and insecurities!”

I assume things won’t be the same. Maybe we’ll be wearing masks everywhere. (Which I am not excited about… my glasses fog up with every breath. Sheesh. Okay, I’m done whining— for now). Maybe our favorite pizza place Pizzo’s will close! What I want is to just go back to when I could meet a friend for coffee and we wouldn’t have to be afraid.

I’m not sure that I’m rated for this. That “rated” is pilot-talk for being certified for a type of aircraft. I’m totally certified for my old life. I felt like I knew what I was doing. I felt like I could do loop-de-loops, and even skywrite. But that’s when everything was visible and familiar. What’s next might require me to rely on instruments only. Navigation will have to be totally different. I’m going to have to rely on a new guidance system.

Okay, enough with the flight analogy. What I’m talking about is this: I’m fearful because I don’t know what it’s going to be like when we come out of this. We may be dealing with COVID for months or even a year or even two! New outbreaks might pop up. More stay-at-home might be required. How will I do my work?

As I look at all this uncertainty, I realize I need to lean further into God. His specific guidance for each step forward will be necessary. Part of me is scared that I’ll mishear or misunderstand or even do something prideful and try to navigate on my own. But part of me is excited. Isn’t this what I truly want, to hear God’s instructions, and then obey them?

Lord, show us the way.

Thirty Years of Hope

YWAM’s Homes of Hope Ministry Is Thirty!

Even though we’re currently on “pause” due to COVID-19, this is something worth celebrating. Especially the part about 700,000 tacos! Kidding! It’s the lives that have been transformed… all those family that have received homes, and all those volunteers that built them. Way to go Jesus!

Another fun fact about Homes of Hope is that I got to lead the process to create that spiffy Homes of Hope logo up there.

Not All Heroes Are Doctors or Nurses

Here’s my friend Steve with a cool report of generosity from the streets of the Tenderloin in San Francisco

This is a fun follow up to my post from last week. I imagine that Jesus is pointing this out to us, just as he pointed out the widow’s gift to his disciples.

(If you missed it, here is how YWAM SF is responding to the needs of their neighbors). 

Steve leads the Restoration Initiatives at YWAM SF and is an absolute hero in that he and his team are on the frontline caring for some of the most vulnerable among us. He does it with gratitude and faith. I’m pretty sure Steve is the author of this post on the YWAM SF blog. Here’s an excerpt:

Resurrection Day… reminds me why I breathe, why I do what I do and why I am who I am. It is on this day that I remember that it is Christ who gives me great hope.  It is his work in me that enables me to love the people that he loves so much. It is his forgiveness that enables me to forgive, and his new mercies that enable me to show mercy to those around me.

So a huge thank you to these heroes. It’s my privilege to be associated with them, even from this distance. Here’s an opportunity for you to be a part of their work through generosity. I believe when we give, it somehow pushes back the darkness in the world. It opens up the possibility for hope. Giving shapes us to be more like our generous Creator. Would you prayerfully consider joining Steve and his team by sending a gift to keep those showers open?

This Week's To Do and To Don't Lists

I’ve fallen off the wagon a bit over the last week. I’ve definitely overindulged in cookie dough. And I’ve definitely not exercised as much.

Photo Credit: Pam Menegakis via Unsplash

I can’t really blame me for falling off the wagon tho… I mean there’s a pandemic, come on! And is anyone else freaking out every time they get a tickle in their throat? Are you convinced you caught the COVID if you feel a little tightness in your chest? Just me?

So I’m making a To Do List and a To Don’t List to help me get a handle on things again:

To Do List

• Do Faith

• Do Generosity

• Do Feel

• Do Social (at a Distance of course!)

• Do Respect

To Don’t List

• Don’t Fear

• Don’t Hoard

• Don’t Numb

• Don’t Isolate

• Don’t Disrespect

Let’s all have a good week, mmkay?! Now go wash your hands.