a few centimetres

Of all the things I miss about Canada, CBC Radio has got to rank in the top 5. And of all the CBC Radio shows I tuned into regularly, Ideas with Paul Kennedy was my favorite.

I recently went crazy downloading a million Ideas podcasts and came across an interview with Chinese architect Yung Ho Chang.

Chang's father (also an architect) gave him some advice years ago that he considered boring then:

"All an architect needs to do from time to time is to work out those few centimeters to make an apartment a little more comfortable."

Chang went on to say that given the forces of ego and a market economy, architecture is too often about making grand artistic statements rather than improving the lives of everyday people.

"So much of what is for sale is exaggerated, not practical, wasteful...selling an image not substance."

Architect or not, this was an unexpected reminder that I need to constantly adjust the way I look at "achievement" and "work". That what people value highly is generally not what God values highly.

What would "working out those few centimetres" look like in my day to day work? What would "making an apartment a little more comfortable" for someone else look like?

It's too easy to get sucked into delusions of stardom, and then be discontent at every workplace situation that doesn't feed our appetite for stardom--all the while in danger of completely missing out on the real work that God has assigned to us each day.

More about Yung Ho Chang here: Interview with Chang

culture making

Culture Making came highly recommended, and I was not disappointed.

The website blurb sums up the crux of the book nicely,

"It is not enough to condemn culture. Nor is it sufficient merely to critique culture or to copy culture. Most of the time, we just consume culture. But the only way to change culture is to create culture."

Hugely thought-provoking as I consider how I spend my time and energy, and wonder what contributions I can possibly make in this world!

One of my favorite lines from the book,

"There will be French fries as well as haute cuisine at the great and final Feast."

Awesome! And as a friend at work said..."Those French fries won't add a pound to us!"

The website is well worth checking out: Culture Making

home

We were in Connecticut this past weekend when we heard the news about Kaly. After eight precious hours spent with her loving parents, Kaly Grace was home. Home, with her body restored, where angels sing without ceasing.

We want to thank the C family for inviting so many of us to walk along with them on this difficult journey; for modeling faithfulness, commitment to community and resolute trust in our good Father.

And we stubbornly cling with them to the hope that one glorious day, surely this sad thing will become untrue.

on failure

I never sailed through school with straight A’s. But I did get half decent grades. The truth is, those half decent grades were never the result of effortless brilliance but rather the fruit of inconsistent spurts of discipline and an intense fear of “failure”.

Failure meant different things at different times to me. In undergraduate calculus, it really did mean failure, i.e. getting an F, which I was pretty darn close to doing. At other times, it meant getting anything below an A-, receiving only mild applause after a speech or having someone leave a dinner party I threw early.

Last week I came across a lot of helpful ideas about failure that I would like to share.

First, J.K. Rowling's speech to Harvard’s class of 2008 had two themes: the importance of failure and of imagination (scroll down the link above to read the speech in full):

“It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all – in which case, you fail by default.”

Next, “The antidote for the fear of failure is not success but small doses of failure. Once you fail and realize it’s not the end of the world, you’re not as afraid to fail again.” (Craig Groeschel, It)

And to further J.K. Rowling’s point: Craig Groeschel shouts:

“[If you are not regularly failing]…maybe you need to try something new—and fail at it. I tell our staff often, 'Fail! If you’re not failing, you’ve stopped dreaming. You’ll eventually stop learning. And you will stop growing.'

So there. Let that be an encouragement to us all at some point or another.

A final thought:

“Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.” ~Winston Churchill

south in our mouths!

Before the year 2006, 98% of what I knew about "The South" came from Gone with The Wind.

Two things I have since come to appreciate about "The South", thanks to our southern friends, include the facts that:

1. Fried chicken (and biscuits!) for breakfast is ok.

2. It is generally acceptable to insult another person in public so long as you add the words, "Bless his/her heart" immediately after said insult. (All credit to DS for this one.)

We had a great time visiting baby Henry and his proud parents in North Carolina (which is, arugably not "THAT southern"). It was a weekend full of Bojangles and Wii Fit, of being able to go UP luxuriously carpeted stairs to the second floor of A HOUSE, and marveling at how our friends have adapted to parenthood.

Here he is, happy and healthy!

not yo mama's cupcake helper

“Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field.” Genesis 2:19-20

This is some crazy stuff people!

God makes something out of nothing.
God invites Adam to join in on the fun.
God didn’t just invite Adam to “help” as a child “helps" her mama bake cupcakes.

He doesn't chuckle indulgently at Adam's choices while waiting to do the job right Himself. He allows Adam to truly participate in a meaningful way with lasting results.

Given the general significance of names and naming in the Bible, (“And you shall no longer be called Abram but Abraham, “He numbers the stars and calls them each by name”, Saul to Paul, Simon to Peter...) this task of naming is clearly a tremendous honor.

Who is Adam, and who are we, but creatures formed out of the ground too? And yet we've also been given this extraordinary task of naming, of tending, of co-laboring with God the creator!

Father, help us not to shrink from your invitation whether in the workplace, in our relationships or in the general use of our talents and resources.