what a life

Rarely has someone I've never met or seen moved me to the point of intense self-reflection. Friday morning as I was getting ready for work I heard Diane Sawyer interrupt regular-scheduled programming to report that beloved Carnegie Mellon professor Randy Pausch had gone home.  The 47-year old man lost his battle with terminal pancreatic cancer.  

Pausch has become well-known through one of his last moments with the staff and students at Carnegie Mellon.  He spoke to a 400+ crowd last September at the university and that lecture immediately hit YouTube.  The talk was modeled after an ongoing series of lectures where top academics are asked to think deeply about what matters to them, and then give a hypothetical "final talk".  With more than 10 million YouTube hits since then and numerous speaking engagements and appearances, Pausch was honored in May by Time as one of the World's Top-100 Most Influential People.

Pausch was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in August 2006 and after pursuing aggressive surgery and experimental chemotherapy, doctors told him he had 3 to 6 months of good health left back in August 2007.

I took some time this weekend and watched "The Last Lecture" on YouTube.  It was good to finally see for myself what all the talk was about.  He spoke about his "fight" and how he wants to be remembered by his family and friends. I took away several 'nuggets of greatness' from his lecture.

"We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand." 

How true is that? For some reason this sentence spoke volumes to me this weekend.  The Lord gives us what we can handle and there's a reason we experience valleys and mountains.  It's about how we tackle those valleys and what it takes to climb those mountains.

"Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls aren't there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show us how badly we want things."

Pausch said he wasn't ever afraid of death.  He had a lot he wanted to accomplish before he said "goodbye" and according to everything I've read about his man, he did much more than any of us will ever do when we're given infinite years to live.

So, if you have the time or interest, I encourage you to check out this phenomenal speech on YouTube....and, remember:

"We have a finite amount of time. Whether short or long, it doesn't matter. Life is to be lived."

-Randy Pausch

Live the life you want to live and be thankful for what you've already experienced.  

Be blessed...

a season of change

There came a time when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.

-Anais Nin

Some people are scared of the word "change".  Others relish in the fact that their lives are "ever-changing".  I can't say I'd classify myself as either one.  But right now I know I'm about to embark on an incredible journey full of change.

I am a detailed, organized person who usually follows a schedule and when something changes that schedule, it throws me off....but that's what makes life exciting.  We live without concrete answers, but society still tells us we need to make 9-to-5 decisions.  Living with concrete answers might diminish a passion within us that is so desperately trying to leap out. We yearn for control and stability, which is essentially the opposite of change.  So, is it possible to have change with control and stability?

Do I know where I'm going? Do I know what I'm doing?  Do I know what I want to be when I grow up? Do I really need answers to these questions?  

My life is about to take a complete change and I'm excited about what lies ahead.  There's a plan and some may say it's unfortunate we don't know that plan.  Sure, I don't know my plan but I am confident in the One who does know the plan and the One who holds the future.  He's got it all figured out!  Whether it's what career I'm in, where I live, what I drive or even what my next meal will consist of....all of this is temporary because I am seeking treasures in heaven and not on Earth.  

I want to love what I do and enjoy making a difference, breathe in every breath and love every minute of it.  

I just need to sit back and enjoy the ride!

encouragement

For the past several days, this word keeps coming into my head.  It presented itself twice this past weekend....I can't seem to escape it. So I figured maybe I should write about it.  

ENCOURAGEMENT

I had a great, relaxing weekend with a friend who refuels my soul every time we're together.  We have been friends for almost six years and I've learned so much from her since that great day in Colby Hall at TCU.  She's such an incredible encouragement to me and our conversations are always so enlightening.  She's a burst of sunshine on a rainy day and a good, hearty laugh when you need a smile.  Something about her makes me want to live life with a smile on my face at all times.  She's fervently seeking the Lord every single day and she knows how to encourage others to do the same. While she was still a student at TCU, we looked for a verse that we could call our own.  This was the result:  Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.  -Romans 12:12  This verse speaks volumes about our friendship.  I am in thanksgiving after a restful weekend for her presence in my life.

And what do you know....Sundays sermon was about encouragement.  The greek word is parakaleo which means: exhorting, comforting and encouraging; to admonish, teach or instruct; to come alongside someone, put your arm around them.  God calls us to encourage those who need encouragement in 1 Thessalonians:

We're to encourage each other to:

• live in peace with one another
• gently reprove the undisciplined
• comfort the discouraged
• care for the weak
• patiently put up with the offenses of others
• discourage payback for a wrong done
• rejoice in spite of the circumstances.

Therefore, encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 

1 Thessalonians 5:11

I think it's important to ask God for a spirit of humility because without putting your pride aside, encouragement could have the opposite effect and be destructive to both you and those you are attempting to encourage.  

Be blessed... (and encouraged)....

Family

I believe Desmond Tutu said it best:

"You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you as you are to them."

I just got back from a 55-hour whirlwind of a weekend with my family in Kansas City. I had been looking forward to this weekend long before I booked my plane ticket back in March. My precious grandma celebrated her 90th birthday with her family and closest friends and I was able to be there. For the first time ever, every single member of my extended family (41 people from 5 different states) was present for this momentous occasion. We laughed, cried, told stories, shared our corny jokes, etc. all weekend. I was reminded how precious the gift of family truly is. Whether it's mom, dad, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents or even friends--they always have a way of telling us how it is and loving us no matter what.

I think we often take our family for granted. I know I do! But being able to spend time with them gives me a taste of reality and reminds me that they're pretty cool people and I'm privleged enough to call them my family. No, my family isn't perfect...but who's is these days?

I know that my family will always be there and for that, I am truly thankful. Thank you Lord for the gift of family and everything that goes with it!

To us, family means putting your arms around each other and being there. ~Barbara Bush