S.O.L (Student of Life): Chickenpox...Really?

On a Tuesday last month, I got sick. REALLY sick. If you know me, you know that I don't do sickness well. Because I'm rarely sick, it's an adjustment when I'm not able to do much.

After examining my initial symptoms, I assumed it was the flu - fever, chills, body aches, sore throat, the whole nine. After praying and doping up on TheraFlu, I didn't know what else to do. Needless to say, Tuesday was a blur. Wednesday was even 'blurrier'. Any other time that I've battled sickness, I've typically gotten over it in 48 hours or less. So I was looking forward to Thursday. To my surprise, when I woke up on Thursday and looked in the mirror, my face, chest, and arms looked like a 3D model of the kids' game 'Connect the Dots'. In the words of Tyler Perry's Mr. Brown, my immediate response was 'WHAT THE WHAT?' There was NO way that I got the chickenpox in my 30s. Or did I?

My first course of action was to call my parents and inquire about my medical history. To my surprise, neither of my parents could definitively remember if I ever had the chickenpox as a child. I can't really blame them as I sometimes forget what I had for breakfast the previous day.  :-) To make a long story short, I went to the doctor on Friday to discover that I 'only' had a viral rash. WHEWWWWW! What a relief! I could deal with that.

In the midst of my 'sick time', God taught me and reminded me of a few truths:

1. You either slow down or you'll break down. While I know that my sickness was due to a virus that was going around at the time, I also know that I don't always get the proper amount of rest. God has a funny way of ensuring that we take the time to rest and care for ourselves.

2. What's on the inside will eventually show up on the outside. People are the sum total of their character. It is inevitable that all of our internal issues will have some type of external manifestation. That's why it's critical that we care for our inner man/woman. (2 Corinthians 4:16)

3. Understand your history by keeping good records. One of the greatest things that I've undertaken in my life is to maintain a life lessons journal. In this journal, I chronicle every lesson that I've ever learned in hopes that my kids and grand kids can save some time and heartache. I'm a firm believer that the only value of the past is as a teacher. Learn the lessons and then help others along the way.

4. Some seasons and circumstances will cause you to be isolated. My doctor encouraged me to avoid people for a few days while the virus passed and the rash cleared up. The same holds true in life. There are times where you will find yourself alone and that is perfectly normal. While we do need others, we also need time to ourselves to recharge, be refreshed, and reconnect with God each day.

5. When you can do nothing else, trust God. Because it was a virus, there was really nothing that could be done to treat it. I simply had to stand on the Christianese motto "This too shall pass!" There are times when you'll reach stages in life where the ONLY thing that you can do is trust God. You can read as many books as you want or talk to as many mentors and scholars as you can find, but nothing can replace childlike faith and trust in Him.

I'm happy to say that I'm feeling much better now. I'm also grateful that I was still teachable even when I felt like crap. Life has a way of teaching us things...if only we take time to listen.  Learn well, my friends!

LINSANITY AND THE PREACHER'S WIFE

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few weeks, it’s inevitable that you’ve heard that the world said goodbye to someone in the music industry who was loved and revered by millions.  At the same time, the world was being introduced to someone who has created a ridiculous amount of buzz in the sports world that hasn’t been seen since Tebow-mania a few months ago.  Both of these stories have taken the world by storm and affected people from all walks of life.

The past few days, I’ve been asking myself “What does a 48 year old African-American music icon have in common with a 23 year old Asian-American point guard for the New York Knicks?”  After some honest reflection, there are more commonalities than you may think.

Here are a few lessons that I’ve gleaned from the death of Whitney Houston and the “birth” of Jeremy Lin:

1. Talent will take you to levels where only your character can sustain you.  One of my mentors, the late Dr. Edwin Louis Cole, taught me this principle many years ago.  I certainly see the truth of it in the lives of both of these cultural icons.  When all is said and done, all you have is your character.  It’s critical that you work to preserve it as much as possible.
2. Stay ready.  No one expected EITHER of these things to happen, so you have to be prepared.  One of my best friends often says “If you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready!”  Preparation is essential – physically, emotionally, spiritually, and financially.  You never know when your time will come, so choose to live a passionate, purpose-filled life…and take advantage of opportunities when they’re presented.
3. Stay humble.  Don’t allow others to make you someone that you’re not.  Even amid tragedy, there was no question that Whitney Houston loved (and was loved) by her mother and daughter.  And even amid his “newfound success”, Jeremy Lin has a very deep rooted love for his family.  Because home should really be the first institution of learning, humility starts there.  And humility has nothing to do with a person thinking less of themselves.  It simply means that they think of themselves less.
4. Seek common ground with others.  While it’s easy to identify things that divide us, music and sports are two great ways to naturally connect people.  They both have a way of transcending race, social status, age, gender, faith, and even political affiliation.  Food, children, and laughter are also great ways to bring people together.  As much as we’re able, we ought to make it our goal to live peaceably with all people.  I love the 101% principle that Dr. John Maxwell teaches.  It says to find the 1% that you can agree on and give 100% of yourself to it. 
5. Learn from your failures but define your life by your successes.  Jeremy Lin had a tough road before he became a household name a few weeks ago.  He was cut by two teams and totally ignored by more than 2 dozen teams in the league.  He even has a horrible turnover ratio.  Yet he is typically characterized by his humility and passion for the game as well as the excitement that he’s brought to several continents.  Not bad for a Harvard grad who was living on a couch last month.  And while many people may try to define Whitney Houston’s life by her struggle with substance abuse, I’m encouraged to see the phenomenal response of people who choose to remember her for her voice as well as how many people she inspired with her gift.

I’m thankful for the lives and examples of both of these great people as they’ve established a legacy of love and “linspiration” that won’t be soon forgotten.

Define the Win

Success means so many different things to so many different people.
To a musician or singer, success is determined by how many CDs/downloads they sell in the first week their album drops.

To a movie producer, success is determined by how many people go to see the movie during its opening weekend (not the bootleg version).

To an athlete, success is often determined by wins and losses.

To a salesperson, success is determined by his or her monthly or quarterly numbers.

But what about people who may have a more difficult time defining what success means?

Is a teacher considered successful because she helped a certain number of students graduate? Or is she deemed successful because of the handful of students that she impacted that will send her Christmas cards and regular updates about their lives for years to come?

Is a husband successful because he “stays married” or because he takes the time to invest in and encourage his wife in her personal dreams and goals?

Is a pastor successful because he sees a certain number of people on a Sunday morning or is his success based on the life change that he sees taking place in the hearts and minds of the people that he shepherds?

Just food for thought.  Whatever your definition of success, be sure to make it clear from the get go so that you don’t become confused when times get tough.

For me, my belief is that you’re successful based on what you do for yourself, but you become significant based on what you do for others.

Seeing others live a maximized life is what it’s all about.
Make time today to determine what it means to win. 


Comfortable in You

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made” Psalm 139:14
“When I grow up, I wanna be JUST like…”
“Why can’t you be more like…”
“You remind me of…”

Ever heard these statements before?

The best person that you can ever be is…YOU!  You’ll always experience frustration and disappointment whenever you try to live an existence besides your own.

Many years ago, my mentor shared this saying with me and it has stuck with me from that day to this one:
I would rather be hated for who I am than be loved for who I am not.

Talk about powerful.  While I realize that no one really wants for people to hate them, I do believe that it’s much more important to stay true to your essence instead of being someone that people expect you to be.
During the early years of my ministry, my greatest goal was to emulate the men of faith that I held in high esteem.  Maybe you’ve been guilty of doing the same with people in your specific career. There was a problem though.  Here are the lessons that I learned:

1.       While I was trying my best to be THEM, I was doing myself a disservice by not being ME.  Too often, we give too much time and attention to who others are, what they have, and what they do.  If this weren’t true, reality TV wouldn’t be as popular as it is, the divorce rate wouldn’t be so high, and the national debt wouldn’t be so astronomically high either.  We must learn to embrace our uniqueness and be confident in the person that God has made us to be.  Isn’t it an awesome thought when you consider that with over 6 billion people in our world, no two people are alike?  That says a LOT about how special you are!

2.       I did a disservice to everyone who God led my way.  Every experience that we have in life is either God-sent or God-used.  If God sends someone across your path, it is ALWAYS for a reason.  Because I was attempting to be someone else, I robbed people of experiencing my personal gifts and talents.  While that sounds like a pretty arrogant statement, I simply mean that I probably missed some divine opportunities because I wasn’t sensitive to what God may have been trying to do at that time.

3.       I didn’t bear as much fruit as I could have.  My focus was off and I wasn’t as diligent in producing what God intended me to produce.  That was my fault. Broken focus keeps people from accomplishing their goals more than anything else.  Through time and experience, I have learned not to worry about what I cannot control.  The last time I checked, Psalm 24:1 says “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.”  Wow!  That took a load off my back.  While that scripture doesn’t give us a license to live irresponsibly, it does help properly frame our perspective.  In a nutshell, everything belongs to God and nothing belongs to me.  He is the Owner and I’m simply a steward.  It is incumbent upon us to take good care of what’s entrusted to us though.  And that’s where I slipped up early on – I didn’t maximize my gifts.  Lesson learned.

My heart yearns for the day when people become comfortable in their own skin.  There is no greater level of joy and fulfillment when you reach a place where you are comfortable in you.  And once you’re comfortable with you, you automatically give others permission to do the same.

Isn't That A Bad Word

For some folks, they consider only certain four letter words as being “bad words”. You know the words. You can watch a late night sitcom and hear most of them in a 30 minute episode. I’m of the opinion, however, that there are other words that are just as detrimental as the “d” word, “s” word, or even the “f” word. If I were to start another “bad words” list, it would probably include things like dumb, stupid, and slow.

Words have life and possess power. The Good Book teaches us that life and death are in the power of the tongue (Proverbs 18:21). That’s why we have to be so careful to guard the words that we allow to come out of our mouths.

Recently, I’ve been giving some serious thought to words that can be associated with my life and here’s my conclusion. When all is said and done, the one word that I want my life to be defined by is…servant. That’s right. Servant. Were you expecting something a bit more profound? If so, sorry to disappoint you. I realize the word ‘servant’ denotes some negative connotations to certain people based on the history of this country. Not me. While I’m proud to be an American, I’m even MORE proud of being a Kingdom citizen. And according to our “Kingdom bylaws”, we know that “the greatest among you will be your servant.” (Matthew 23:11). How awesome is that? Jesus clearly tells us greatness has nothing to do with what you do for yourself. It has EVERYTHING to do with the fact that you serve others. That’s pretty cool.

A great definition of a servant is “one who is devoted to another to the disregard of one’s own interests; attendant; devoted follower; a person willing to serve another.” Sounds like a pretty honorable job description to me.

Servanthood is the true mark of greatness. The mindset of a servant always asks “What can I do to be a blessing to others?” Period! A servant always looks for ways (large or small) to make a difference in someone else’s life. Every time you freely give your time and energy to serve another person, you are modeling the towel-bearing servanthood that Jesus’ life was so much about. Not to mention many of our other “faith ancestors” who wore the title ‘servant’ with pride – Moses, Joshua, David, Paul, and the list goes on. That’s not bad company.

Based on that as a backdrop, allow me to formally introduce myself. My name is Jason Thomas…and I’m a servant! Welcome to Compassion Church!