Dear IWU,
Graduation is upon me and I am so excited. While I am coming to the close of my college career I have been reflecting on the beginning and middle of it. The time that I have spent here has been both good and bad, fun and tough, really quick and extremely long, and challenging and encouraging. As you can see, with everything else, there are good factors and bad factors with going to college, even IWU. I have been frustrated with risk management, child-like rules for students who could fight for our country, class attendance policies when I am the one paying for every class, and how across the street from our multi-million dollar buildings the town of Marion looks so rough. But my frustrations do not outweigh the blessings of this sacred space. Dave Ward (Academic Dean for the School of Theology and Ministry) asked me, "What would Marion look like everywhere if the school was not on the South side of town?" This question is one of optimism and hope. Meeting people like Dave Ward is one of the highlights of coming to college. My education is crucial and the reason I am here, but the relationships are what keep me sane on this journey of education.
To all the Freshman:
I write to you with excitement. You have just begun your college career, friends are being made, and the initial anxiety is probably wearing off. This is a great time of your life and an incredible growing point, so soak it up. The older I get, the quicker I get older. This is something I have just begun to realize as a senior, but I want you to know it now so that you do not miss any opportunity.
To all the Sophomores:
Congratulations for making it through your Freshman year. That is one of the hardest humps to make it over, and yet you did it. Right now you are in the thick of college. You understand the system, you have your set friends, and you look at Freshman students like they have no idea what they are doing. Continue to press on towards your goal of graduation so that you may complete what you have set out to do.
To all the Juniors:
Stay strong! Junior year is typically the hardest in high school and college (I know it was for me). During those moments when you feel as though you are drowning and want to give up, remember why you came here. What is the purpose for why you are here? In order to make it through the toughest part, you have to remember why you are there. So again, stay strong!
To al the Seniors:
For most of you there is only one semester standing between you and the world ahead; for some two more semesters. This last semester will be stressful when you are trying to look for jobs, and sometimes feel pointless when you have a job yet you are still in class. My word to you is discipline. In these last few months of your college career stay disciplined to finish strong what you have set out to do. Be sure to also stay disciplined in your relationships because that is truly what life is all about.
Thank you IWU and those who made my time here special,
Shay
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Envy
As I think about the world today I see a generation that is rising up as a generation that believes in community. There is a sense in which we are realizing the importance of community and trying to learn what it looks like to have that. There are so many different ways of being in community with all of the different technological advances, but there is also a drive for it. The only problem with this is that I believe that envy is the number 1 struggle in our generation.
It seems that almost everybody struggles with wanting something someone else has or simply wants to be like someone else. Envy is everywhere. It is the girl that wants to be pretty like someone else, the guy who wants to be the "cool" kid, or the person who turns on any channel and sees someone who must be living the "good life" because they are an actor/actress and they want that. So here is the problem, this sense of community and unity in this rising generation is actually feeding this envious tendency. When we are in close community with others we begin to see what others have and can do and desire to have and/or do whatever that is. Envy is becoming the enemy of community. We have this drive to be together which helps to propel us into a situation that could cause us to become envious, and when we do become envious it drives a wedge between us and the people we desired community with in the first place.
Please do not hear me wrong, I love community, and the heartbeat of unity that is gaining traction is absolutely astonishing. What I am saying is that envy will be its downfall if we do not deal with that first. Unity can only be attained when everyone desires to come together, not become each other; that is uniformity. We are destined to be different, designed for uniqueness. But a lot of us are not comfortable with being that person. We see someone else we would rather be and therefore try and change. We have to be willing to let go in order to be the very person we were designed to be. This will in fact foster the ability to come alongside others in order to do something great.
Community and unity can and will allow us to do something great, we just cannot let envy stand in the way.
It seems that almost everybody struggles with wanting something someone else has or simply wants to be like someone else. Envy is everywhere. It is the girl that wants to be pretty like someone else, the guy who wants to be the "cool" kid, or the person who turns on any channel and sees someone who must be living the "good life" because they are an actor/actress and they want that. So here is the problem, this sense of community and unity in this rising generation is actually feeding this envious tendency. When we are in close community with others we begin to see what others have and can do and desire to have and/or do whatever that is. Envy is becoming the enemy of community. We have this drive to be together which helps to propel us into a situation that could cause us to become envious, and when we do become envious it drives a wedge between us and the people we desired community with in the first place.
Please do not hear me wrong, I love community, and the heartbeat of unity that is gaining traction is absolutely astonishing. What I am saying is that envy will be its downfall if we do not deal with that first. Unity can only be attained when everyone desires to come together, not become each other; that is uniformity. We are destined to be different, designed for uniqueness. But a lot of us are not comfortable with being that person. We see someone else we would rather be and therefore try and change. We have to be willing to let go in order to be the very person we were designed to be. This will in fact foster the ability to come alongside others in order to do something great.
Community and unity can and will allow us to do something great, we just cannot let envy stand in the way.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Insecurity is the Gateway to Humility
As I was preparing for my sermon for this last Sunday at the local youth group I help out with, this concept hit me like a ton of bricks. "Insecurity is the gateway to humility." At first this phrase sounds absolutely ridiculous, but as I began to dig it actually started to make some sense.
The definition of insecurity is self-doubt. As I thought about this I realized that when we are insecure we doubt that we can do certain things. Well, I believe that we need to doubt that we, by ourselves, can do anything. The evil sense of insecurity is when we coward back into a fetal position and look at others and think that we could never be as funny, or pretty, or sociable as whoever comes to mind. We are trying to be what we think we need to be on our own. The fact of the matter though, is that when we doubt that we can do anything by ourselves and stop trying so hard, that we are forced to be secure in God. When God is where we place our security it allows us to be bold and confident in how He created us. Then we are free to believe that He will do and work in and through us. When we doubt our humans selves to live this life on our own, it forces us to our knees and ask God to work in and through us. This is John 15. Jesus is talking about how He is the vine and we are the branches. When we stay connected to the vine (remaining secure in Him), He is able to provide everything that we need in life.
Getting to this place of insecurity is hard and confusing. I believe that Jesus gives us the answer in Matthew 18. He is telling the disciples that unless they become like little children, then they will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven. This passage can be a bit confusing because what aspects are to be like little children and what aspects (like temper-tantrums) are we to leave behind. Jesus, in my opinion, wants us to have the insecurity of a child. Think about it, if when you were four years old a parent came to you and asked, "Can you bring the car around for me?" you would look at them completely dumbfounded. If you were a bright four-year-old then you may have said, "I can't reach the pedal, or see over the steering wheel unless you help me." At that age we realized that we could do nothing without someone's help. Everything we did depended on someone helping us. We need to doubt ourselves, like a little child, that we can do anything on our own.
When we have a childlike insecurity we are forced to remain secure in God knowing that we can do nothing without Him. We are able to enter a place where we realize we need Him to bear fruit (John 15), fruit as basic as love. This place then therefore drives us to the ultimate form of humility, complete dependence on God. Insecurity is the gateway to humility.
The definition of insecurity is self-doubt. As I thought about this I realized that when we are insecure we doubt that we can do certain things. Well, I believe that we need to doubt that we, by ourselves, can do anything. The evil sense of insecurity is when we coward back into a fetal position and look at others and think that we could never be as funny, or pretty, or sociable as whoever comes to mind. We are trying to be what we think we need to be on our own. The fact of the matter though, is that when we doubt that we can do anything by ourselves and stop trying so hard, that we are forced to be secure in God. When God is where we place our security it allows us to be bold and confident in how He created us. Then we are free to believe that He will do and work in and through us. When we doubt our humans selves to live this life on our own, it forces us to our knees and ask God to work in and through us. This is John 15. Jesus is talking about how He is the vine and we are the branches. When we stay connected to the vine (remaining secure in Him), He is able to provide everything that we need in life.
Getting to this place of insecurity is hard and confusing. I believe that Jesus gives us the answer in Matthew 18. He is telling the disciples that unless they become like little children, then they will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven. This passage can be a bit confusing because what aspects are to be like little children and what aspects (like temper-tantrums) are we to leave behind. Jesus, in my opinion, wants us to have the insecurity of a child. Think about it, if when you were four years old a parent came to you and asked, "Can you bring the car around for me?" you would look at them completely dumbfounded. If you were a bright four-year-old then you may have said, "I can't reach the pedal, or see over the steering wheel unless you help me." At that age we realized that we could do nothing without someone's help. Everything we did depended on someone helping us. We need to doubt ourselves, like a little child, that we can do anything on our own.
When we have a childlike insecurity we are forced to remain secure in God knowing that we can do nothing without Him. We are able to enter a place where we realize we need Him to bear fruit (John 15), fruit as basic as love. This place then therefore drives us to the ultimate form of humility, complete dependence on God. Insecurity is the gateway to humility.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
How to Work a Job You are Not Called To
So people ask me how my job is going at UPS, and I tell them it is going good. While this is true it is definitely not something I am excited about. So why do I do it? For her. You see my wife and I decided to get married while we are still both in college, so I don't have the luxury to work however few hours I would want to at whatever job I wanted to or could get because now there are bills to pay. So my wife and I have to work to pay the bills. And there are many days that we say that we really don't want to go to work, and it's true. I wish I could say I go to work because I am passionate about loading boxes to be delivered, or to say that I do it to be involved in the community, or even to say I go to work because it is a great place to do ministry (which it is), but that isn't why I do it. I go to work for her. My wife is the only reason that I wake up at 3:30 in the morning. If we were not married at this time, there is no way I would be working there. I have to tell myself regularly that this won't be my job forever, it is just to pay the bills while we are in school. I am not saying that I have it hard, we have been incredibly blessed, and UPS really is a good place to work, but it is not what I am called to do, it is my job, but only for now. I am called to be in full time ministry. That is my calling and what I love to do. And I know that I will get to do that someday soon. For now though, I will keep waking up at 3:30 in the morning, get dressed, and go to work, and it will all be because of her.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Numero Uno
There once was a little boy, he grew up and fell in love with the girl he had known his whole life. Then they got married. Now he is writing this blog as a way of simply being real. This is not something I am doing because I just want to talk about myself, but I can express myself through words and think that it could be good to have something like this for me. Maybe I will say something you don't like or agree with, maybe you will just read this and be bored already, but the fact of the matter is, this is me. I don't want to wear my heart on my sleeve, but I also want to talk about real stuff that is happening, that I think about, that I think might be worth sharing. So here we go...
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