“Who am I?” I cannot say these words without hearing the voice of Derick Zoolander as he gazes into a street puddle, only to realize that he doesn’t know.

Henri Nouwen seems to have an understanding…If you are up for giving him 17 minutes of your life, this concept has the potential to change you for much longer.

To be God’s beloved isn’t a new thought, but it is a necessary one. Too often I allow my achievement, my humor, my speaking, my sarcasm, or my failures to define me. So Mr. Zoolander, the transformation of my heart must begin by recognizing that I am God’s beloved. That is when I understand the foundation of who I am.

Today I stop acting and start being.

River guides might be the most fascinating people on the planet. A couple years ago I had the opportunity to go river rafting in Montana. The river was glacier run-off from Glacier National Park and was a chilly 45 degrees. Thoughts of capsizing occupied my mind as our guide explained that the river is dangerous if you are submerged for too long or face rapids without a raft.

Not long into our voyage did we encounter a rapid large enough to flip the raft, scattering my fellow sailors into the raging river. The force of the impact caused me to flip and plunge into the water without warning. Almost as swiftly as I entered, I was plucked from the water and placed back on the raft. The river guide instantly removed me from the turmoil that would have surely swallowed me.

His instructions to me were simple: grab everyone and get them in the raft NOW.

The gathering of doom-impended people was a simple task that required no conditions. If someone was in the river, they needed to get out. I did not reach for only those I love, or those that are nice to me, or those that I thought deserved it.

Everyone facing a certain death deserves rescue. This is grace. While we do not deserve it from God, we ought to be grateful everyday that we were rescued, and we are rescued, and we will always be rescued from the river without hesitation. Because we have fallen out of the boat, we receive God’s grace.

River guides teach grace every trip down the river. If someone falls out of the boat, the rest of the raft does everything possible to get them back in.

Read Matthew 20:1-16 with this in mind…

The story of the church should be a human voice that inspires and educates.  I recently read a chapter from Patagonia’s Let My People Go Surfing that created a conversation within my staff.

Patagonia is a company that prides itself on being passionate about the natural world, a love for human-powered sports, respect for adventure, and clothes that do nothing to hinder the lifestyle of it’s shoppers.  They also believe that their customers are people who don’t shop for entertainment, are not looking to junk up their life, or be the target of aggressive advertising (Sadly, I find myself deeply compelled to wear their clothes so that people will think that I am deep, simple, and refusing to buy into consumerism.  Their brilliant marketing has worked.).  This is Patagonia’s story.

What does it mean to tell the story of the church?

Most people outside the church would describe the Church as being a judgmental group that destroys all fun in the world and creates a standard of living designed for us to fail.  But we are people who believe the church is a living, breathing community bonded together by trying to follow Jesus.

The junior high world consists of trying to be cool, spending money on items that will make them look cool, and talking like people who they think are cool.  How does the church fit into that lifestyle?

We inspire and educate.  Following Jesus is about loving your neighbor, serving the broken, and being loved by God even though we don’t deserve it.  The story of the church is one of brokenness and redemption, exile and return.  Junior high students need to find their story and how it is fully connected and intertwined with God’s story.  That is the church.