Coffee Shop Journal

I need to apologize to…well, someone. I was reading one of the blogs on my Google Reader last night. The topic was based on Shane Hipps, who spoke at Q on the Downside of the Digital Age. This blog post had me thinking about a lot of things this morning, and I would love to link back to you. But I can’t remember which one of you all wrote it! So if I reference something that sounds like your post from yesterday, would you let me know?

[The lost has been found! Larry let me know it was his post I was reading! Go check it out...he says it better than I can.] 

So anyway…here’s the gist. The digital age, as we know, has a good side and a bad side. 24 hour connectedness is great and it can harm us. Hearing about global tragedies, said my mystery post, informs us but it also places too great a burden on our shoulders. The human being wasn’t meant to bear the weight of all the world’s tragedies. An unintended side effect of this, therefore, could be a dulling to the needs in your own circle of influence, since the needs I would tend to run across in Palm Beach Gardens would be of a much smaller magnitude than the needs in Myanmar or China.

On the other hand, this morning I read posts from an English language teacher in China as he discussed daily life there, read the birthday post from this guy as he reaches out to people in Europe. I always read Duncan, and imagine his life in Scotland as he lead a church and works in a job industry currently experiencing layoffs. I’m also looking forward to hearing about his upcoming trip to India. I’ve mentioned many times that LT has opened my eyes to the world of Chinese immigrants and their challenges in a new country, first and second generation.

Here in the United States we can get very insulated not only from the world, but also from each other. Through blogging, though, I’ve been exposed to far more ministries than I would be likely to visit in a year. DJ Chuang, from Leadership Network, travels all around the country tying people together. Following his blog or twitters you can “listen in” on many of those conferences. Scott Hodge has taken the conference blog to amazing heights and runs an incredibly creative church. I’ve met Pamela, who is planting a church with her husband in Tennessee and who I believe is a friend I just haven’t hugged yet. Jenni has shown me what leadership looks like in her world. And then, of course, there is Carlos Whittaker and his wife, Heather, who have inspired so many of us and opened their lives up to show us authentic Gospel. And oh…there are the bloggers in my own church like Kerry, Chad and Dave, who keep me learning what’s happening in my own back yard. My life is so much richer because of all these people.

Downside of the digital age? I’m going to read the book soon and find out what it is. But right now my heart is full of the prayers for these people around the globe. They have inspired me to make a difference in MY community. Because the one thing they all have in common is the high calling to love the world they are in, wherever that might be. And if you happen to think of me, pray for me like I am praying for you!

Tonight I found a fellow blogger who paid a visit to Bill Strickland’s Manchester Bidwell center. You all know how I feel about Bill Strickland, so head to Jeff Shinabarger’s blog to read what he has to say! One of these days I’m going to get lucky enough to tour the place myself.

I told you about this book last week, when I spent many happy days curled up in the comfy chair at Starbucks reading about all the places on earth that would make me happy or miserable. This book, by Eric Weiner (yes, pronounced whiner), takes a whirlwind tour of some of the happiest places on earth. And some of the most miserable places on earth. I wondered if the book would wrap the pursuit of happiness up in a neat little bow, but it doesn’t. Instead, it offers a look at how the geography of where you live impacts your life.

Place. That is what The Geography of Bliss is about. How place—in every aspect of the word—shapes us, defines us. Change your place, I believe, and you can change your life.

This quote, by the author on his website, truly sums up the book. So what did I learn in exchange for those afternoons spent with The Geography of Bliss?

1. People have an innate “fit” with certain places on the globe. Unfortunately these are not always the places they are born or are living. Also, Moldova apparently fits no one.
2. Iceland sounds amazing: cozy, book-loving people living on an ice cube.
3. The closer you look at happiness to evaluate whether you have it, the less likely you are to be happy.
4. Most happiness appears to spring from trust and the ability to give yourself to something larger than yourself, something worth pursuing.
5. The author has an amazing ability, born most likely of his journalism career, to connect with local people and develop the sense of community in a short time. I envy him this ability and tried to analyze how he did it. Still working on that!

After meeting a bartender appropriately named Happy, the author offers this interesting summation of his stance.

But Happy [the bartender] is wise, for only a fool or a philosopher would make sweeping generalizations about the nature of happiness. I am no philosopher, so here goes: Money matters, but less than we think and not in the way that we think. Family is important. So are friends. Envy is toxic. So is excessive thinking. Beaches are optional. Trust is not. Neither is gratitude.

Good lessons to learn, and a good payoff for a few days traveling the globe vicariously with the author. I’d love to hop on a plane and follow the happy trail myself! I leave you with a quote that perhaps I should paint and hang on my wall!

The Icelandic saying goes, ‘Better to be barefoot than without a book!’

Living in the paradise of South Florida, perhaps I may change that to “Better to be barefoot WITH a book.”

This morning I sleepily looked out our bedroom window and did a double-take. Our neighbor’s yard, normally picture perfect and beautifully landscaped, had a fence taken down and their “insides” exposed. They are in the middle of replacing their fence around their garbage enclosure/air-condiitoner, water-softener etc. pad. Looking out and seeing the insides of their fence on the outside, so to speak, reminded me of walking into a public restroom, opening a door, and finding the stall occupied. It is shockingly unexpected!

It got me thinking today: how many times do we clean up what we present to the world, when reality is far different? I began to look around my own house at how many times I shoved a stack of books under a couch before a big party. We clean up for the outside world. By the way, I don’t think that is all bad! There are some things in life that are necessary, but not beautiful for public display. Things like my neighbor’s water softener. What about in our personal lives? Are we guilty on one end of the spectrum or the other? Do we display what ought to be private? (This is often called gossip, by the way). Do we hide what needs to be shown the light?

In the interest of self-disclosure, I thought you would like these three pictures. The first one is the picture I would take for a “show me your stack of books to be read” picture. I grabbed the nearest books, stacked them and snapped. The second picture is my REAL stack of books to be read on the coffee table hidden in my bedroom. Don’t judge me - you know you must have one like this somewhere! The third picture - and yes, you can judge me for this one - is LITERALLY under my couch. I just stuck my hand under the couch and snapped.

I’m enjoying this little exercise in self disclosure. As Randy Jackson would say on American Idol, “Just keeping it real, man, just keeping it real.”

What’s under your couch?

David and I just wandered into our favorite Starbucks around, located in the Gardens Mall, where I tried the new iced espresso. A tall has a double espresso in it — energy enough, surely. I also had the barista add one of their new energy shots! The energy shots have B vitamins, ginseng, guarana and other natural energy boosters.

Yes, I am buzzed. Yes, I am happy!

Mother’s Day was a through the roof success at our house: I cooked brunch for 11 and hosted a second party for 30 in the evening. I got up early (for me), went to bed late, and am walking on sticky floors yet again. I generated four bags of trash in three hours, washed loads of wet pool towels and had a dog throwing up from all the bits and pieces fed to him by well-meaning but misguided guests. And this madhouse was an amazing success. Here’s why.

Last night we welcomed a new staff member to our team at Christ Fellowship. His name is Dale Hudson, and he will be the new Children’s Director at CF. He and his wife Pamela and two sons, Joshua and Caleb, were in town for a house-hunting trip, so we through an impromptu party to introduce the Hudsons to some of the characters that wander through the Christ Fellowship world. We mixed staff couples with lay leaders, students and adults and children, broke out the Guitar Hero and generally had a good night. Several people asked me why we would throw this party on Mother’s Day, and why we do that over and over again. My reply is that using my home to intentionally create the kind of community God loves brings amazing benefits to me, my family and my church home.

1.  Ministry happens in the unplanned moments. I sat with our Student Ministries director and one of his staff members (who happens to live with us) while they were discussing new series, new service times, priorities. Because they had open, teachable spirits they were able to glean input from students who were present, other staffers in other areas of the church, parents, an elder, and the lead pastor. If you tried to “call a meeting” for that kind of input, you’d still be coordinating schedules.
2. Relationships develop over coffee. This is a sacred saying for me, though I’d like to find a snappier way to phrase it. True, nonetheless. I watch the gang clustered around our coffee machine compulsively pushing the espresso button and bonding in a different way than is possible in the halls of a church. When you know that rough and rugged guy uses Splenda in his coffee you somehow have a deeper insight into his character! In my home I have seen ministry relationships form and deepen. Unscheduled time in my house is a time when we can throw crazy, off-the-wall ideas out into the discussion forum and wait for them to germinate in a new, creative outpouring.
3. Mentoring is natural in a home. Last night’s mentoring opportunities ran the gamut: ministry mentoring from older staff members to younger, teenage girls helping young girls feel comfortable with who they are in a big group (including helping them with bathing suit choices…no small feat!), older moms to younger moms, even experienced drivers (of golf carts) to inexperienced drivers!
4. Pastors are people too. I love exposing new staff members to their pastors and watching them find out just how human they are. I also love having teenagers watch the leaders of their church interact with real life. I watched our Student Ministries guy singing High School Music karaoke with his daughter, while several of his high school students watched with rapt attention. They adored this moment of dad-daughter interaction, and they learned from it. My own children have learned — over years of this kind of exposure — that their pastors are genuine and real on and off the stage. They will never be fooled by hypocritical pastors into thinking that “all” pastors are like that. Priceless.

Can you think of a better Mother’s Day than to give those kinds of gifts to your family and friends? I can’t! I am so thankful that so many were willing to come share their night with us and invest in their relationships with each other.

Sorry guys…no posting today! We had other things going on at the Saunders Household today. Look at my first little baby girl. Wow.

I know that some of you all out there are real John Maxwell fans. Just thought I’d mention that he will be speaking live three times this weekend at our Church, Christ Fellowship. You can watch the live stream of the service. His topic is on “Three chairs: how to make sure people are in the right seat.”

Streaming live is at Saturday, 6 PM Eastern, Sunday 9 and 11 AM Eastern.

www.goChristFellowship.com 

I mentioned “The Bliss of Geography” yesterday. I’ve been humming along on this worldwide tour in search of happiness, and enjoying every minute of the ride. The author literally traveled around the world in search of the geographical place where people are the happiest. So far I have traveled to Rotterdam, Switzerland and Bhutan with him. Not surprisingly, in each of these places the happiest people were not the ones who were trying to be happy. Happiness came as a byproduct. The author, Eric Weiner, is not a Christ Follower, so it is interesting to see him reason through the role of faith, purpose and spirituality play in the search for happiness. He is also a gifted writer, and I’ve been struck on every page with a new thought or a unique way of phrasing a question.

While in Holland, Weiner visits the World Happiness Database, an ongoing research project into happiness. It is here that he determines his itinerary by finding out which countries rank high in the happiness factor. Holland is one of them, and the author concludes it is because of their tolerance. After a period of free-wheeling tolerance, however, the author realizes that for him tolerance would breed unhappiness and an undisciplined life. Next up? Switzerland, one of the happiest places on earth apparently. While rushing around precise Switzerland the author realizes that the Swiss are wealthy and patient, a rare combination.

Then it dawns on me. The Swiss are wealthy and patient, a rare combination. They know how to linger. Indeed, I’ve been in Switzerland for two weeks now and not a single person has looked at his or her watch — that perfectly synchronized, gold-plated Swiss watch — and said “I have to go” or “I really should be getting back to work.” In fact, it is always me, the loafing writer, who is stealing glances at my fifty-dollar Seiko.

With the help of a friend, I had set up a blog to solicit comments from the Swiss about happiness. One in particular caught my eye, and I’m reminded of it now.

“Maybe happiness is this: not feeling like you should be elsewhere, doing something else, being someone else. Maybe the current conditions in Switzerland make it simply easier to ‘be’ and therefore ‘be happy.’

Somehow I am oddly encouraged by Eric Weiner and his search for happiness. I am discovering that I am quite happy, myself, and that I am not alone in this. America, by the way, is well down the list of happiest countries. We have — according to the author — too many voices screaming at us day and night about the disasters around the block and around the country. We have too great an access to media, too great an addiction to activity even if it is meaningless, and too little time for compassion. Wow. He’s not far off. On the other hand, it is clear by chapter three that the author is searching in all the wrong places for his happiness. I will be intrigued to see where he finds his solution. I know where my rest, my happiness come from, and it isn’t a geographical location that resembles Paradise. He is on a quest, but he is settling for the echo, the whispers of Eden, rather than searching for the real deal.