i d e a g r o u p

There is nobody like you.

There is without question a lot of junk that comes out of Christian churches around the world. One church that is consistently creating something of value is Cleveland's Parkside Church through it's remarkable pastor, Alistair Begg.

The following is a letter that Pastor Begg read in a message entitled, "The Power of Weakness - Part A." (you can get it on iTunes) It struck me as powerful reminder that we all have a very unique and special purpose on earth and way too often misunderstand or overlook both our uniqueness and our calling.

In all the world there is nobody, nobody like you.

Since the beginning of time there has never been a person like you.

Nobody has your smile, your eyes, your hands, your hair.
Nobody owns your handwriting or your voice.
Nobody can paint your brush strokes.
Nobody has your taste for food or music or dance or art.
Nobody in the universe sees things as you do.

In all of time, there has never been anyone who laughs in exactly your way.
And what makes you laugh or cry or think may have a totally different response in another.
You are different from every other person who has ever lived in the history of the universe.

You are the only one in the whole creation who has your particular set of abilities.

There is always someone who is better at one thing or another.
Every person is your superior in at least one way.
But nobody in the universe can reach the quality of the combination of your talents and your feelings.

Throughout all of eternity, nobody will ever walk, talk, think, or do, exactly like you.

You are rare.
And in all rarity, there is enormous value, and because of your great value, the need for you to imitate anyone else is absolutely wrong.

You happen to be special.
And it is no accident that you are.

Please realize that God made you for a special purpose.
He has a job for you to do that no one else can do as well as you can.
Out of the billions of applicants, only one is qualified.
Only one has the unique and right combination of what it takes.

And that one is you.

I hope that as you close 2007 and begin to consider what 2008 may bring, that you have clarity of what your bigger purpose is and a grasp of how uniquely qualified you are to fulfill that purpose.

All the best,

bc

The edge of the circle

[My apologies in advance. This post has nothing to do with technology, gadgets, or search....I just had to write this stuff down.]

Lunch wasn't supposed to be that hard today.

Today I had my second lunch with Doug Kramp. I was connecting him with another friend of mine, Matt. I thought they would really benefit from meeting each other. Wow, did I underestimate how much I would benefit from them both.

Doug's first wife died of cancer about a decade ago. It was big news because of Doug and Erin's passionate pursuit of life, in the face of death.

They made journals and lists of all of the things they wanted to enjoy together before she died. They made videos of all of the things she wanted to tell their daughter, but wouldn't be able to. Their lives were chronicled by the local media, by national media, by religious media, by Oprah.  They were convinced Erin would beat the cancer, despite the odds. She did not.  Through the process, he and Erin learned more about living than most of us ever do.

Matt and his wife Mandy met in college. He tried for years to get her attention but it wasn't until later, years after college that things finally came together. After being the "project" of most of his married friends, Matt was tired of the dating scene and re-met Mandy in the craziest of ways (your secret is safe Matt).  They hit it off and soon fell in love. The only hitch--and a significant one, was Mandy's terminal disease, Cystic Fibrosis.

Matt, unfazed by this (or should I say, fazed but not forlorn) pursued her with all determination and they married soon after. They have been married now four-plus years.

So, what's all this about?

Today, I was reminded, through both Doug and Matt's stories--Doug's of living through Erin's cancer, and Matt's of living through Mandy's CF, that we must face the reality of death in order to really live.

We must really think about death--not avoid it. We must long to grasp what it means to die and lose it all, so that we may have the passion to live.

A fuzzy view of death equals a dispassionate view of life.

"I learned things about my wife I never knew." As Doug and Erin started making the short list of things they wanted to do together before she died, he learned things about her he had never known. As I listened, I realized the pitiful truth that I know little about the dreams of my wife. Sure, I know she wants to be a better mom and a better wife (she is already great at both), but what are her real dreams? I need to know more.

For Doug and Erin, they had to define their boundaries and push those edges. It was this constant effort to try to be living on the edge of that circle that we usually try to stay well within.

Doug and Matt, thank you for the real world examples you both are to me and those whose lives you intersect. God is using you both in huge ways.

The photo is one of my favorite ones of my youngest daughter on a lake in Colorado. It reminds me of just one of the reasons I have to live on the edge of the circle.

// bc