House Party - Oxfam Style

I got this email from Brian Rawson who works at Oxfam, which you really should know more about. If you can help, click on the link below.

Jonathan,

Because of your experience volunteering with us, I am writing to offer an exciting and powerful way you can help Make Trade Fair without even leaving your home – simply by getting a few friends together to write letters. From April 16 – 22 Oxfam supporters will be hosting house parties in targeted Congressional districts across the country. House parties will give your guests the opportunity to draft hand-written letters to their US Senators and Representative urging them to oppose the US-Peru Free Trade Agreement (FTA). We’ve found that personalized letters are one of the most effective ways to influence your elected officials.

On the heels of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), the United States recently negotiated a similar free trade agreement with Peru, a developing country in South America where over half of the population lives in poverty. If the US-Peru FTA is passed by Congress it would force Peru to open its markets to subsidized agricultural imports, destroying the market for local small-scale farmers. It would also limit people’s access to affordable, life-saving medicines. And it would prevent the Peruvian government from making sure that foreign investments promote local development.

The US-Peru FTA can be defeated, but we urgently need your help! Your elected officials hold the key, but they need to hear from enough voters like you. Amplify your voice by hosting a Make Trade Fair House Party during the week of April 16 - 22. We will provide posters, talking points and other materials to make this a fun and easy way to build community while making a difference in the lives of millions Peruvians living in poverty.

Again, as one of Oxfam’s most engaged supporters we need your help. Oxfam will provide almost everything you’ll need to plan and host a successful party—including my direct and personal support. Register today to host a house party by filling out a simple form at, www.oaaf.org/houseparties.

Please let me know if you if you have any questions. Thank you for all you have done and continue to do to Make Trade Fair! Together, we can end poverty.

Sincerely,

Brian Rawson

My Beloved

Have you ever noticed those moments in your life when there is more to learn than you realize. Last night was one of those moments. I am currently attending Gonzaga for my Master's in Organizational Leadership and unless you live in the remote outskirts of Saskatoon Canada and don't read the newspaper, you've probably heard about my beloved Zags. They are the little guy representing the West Coast in the March Madness tourney. Adam Morrison is up for player of the year honors and is the leading scorer in the nation.

Several pundits picked the Zags to win the Oakland bracket and I agreed with them. I honestly thought it was possible. They were well coached, had a well rounded team, and could score on anyone. They were a great team.

So if you watched it last night, you saw that they lost literally in the last seconds of the game to UCLA. It was like someone pulling the rug out from under you. They had been leading by as much as 17 points during the game and by 10 points with four minutes left. It was agonizing to watch.

So where does the learning come from? Well, I had the pleasure of living at USC during college. It was an awesome experience, so I consider myself a fan of USC as well. If you remember, USC had the team of the century this year in football. The run up to the Rose Bowl was the most anticipated game in the last 50 years of college football. And if you remember the game, you'll remember that USC was winning the game. All they had to do was stop Texas from scoring on one last play. Several times they could have stopped Vince Young and didn't. Texas won.

On both occasions I was standing for most of the game. I can't sit for moments like these. They are too much fun and I like to scream, punch, kick, and just be an everloving fan during the event. My wife laughs at me because its like I'm at the game.

As I'm watching the Zags play, with minutes left and UCLA making a run, I had one of those feelings in the pit of my stomach that I was watching the USC game all over again. And with nine seconds left UCLA steals the ball and scores. I remembered the exact same feeling watching my team go down in flames. Adam Morrison fell to his knees and cried. Defeat was at hand.

As I stood there with the game over, I couldn't help but realize that I had experienced the same thing over again. It was the moment in my life when I was on the losing end of the game. My beloved had lost and I was left to deal with the emotions and judgments that come with losing. I don't like losing but I couldn't help but be immediately aware of something really important. Losing did not define me.

I don't know why I thought this. Maybe because I felt like I had experienced this before. My beloved team had lost and I couldn't help but feel for Morrison and Batista and all the guys. I kept thinking about all the things in life that can define who we think we are and this could be one of them. The look on Morrison's face was pure agony and despair.

I was also aware of how many times I had let losing or failure define who I was. I think the thing that caught my attention was that I was aware that I was still who I was, a whole person.

Love has a way of doing that to you. It reminds you that life's experiences don't define you. Who I am as a child of God does. It's funny that my realization of this came during a basketball game. It seems so trivial. But if you're like me, really wanting to make life whole, these moments are not trivial. They are the experiences that make my journey so rich.

So here's to making good out of bad. Maybe Morrison will come back for his senior year and we'll go all the way. Go Zags.

Honesty

I was listening to an old Mp3 of one of my mentors. He was talking about the Kingdom of Heaven breaking into our hearts, and how God prepared the way through John who called out "repent". He has this really cool discussion about what repent means and how it is the doorway to the Kingdom. I've heard the sermon at least twelve times, so my iTunes says.

But tonight I heard something new, which you hope happens after listening to something twelve times or you feel like you've heard it before. He kept talking about honesty and how the Kingdom came crashing in to the hearts in his community when they got honest.

Then it hit me. Honesty is the doorway. To repent means essentially to turn around, but what John was trying to communicate was that if I really want the Kingdom of God to break into my heart in a real way, in a fresh way that transforms my life, I have to first get honest with myself. I have to be honest about what's really in my life and that I need God.

This was a great reframing for me because I've always thought of repentance as this bad thing, where I have to get down on my knees and grovel to God, "I'm not worthy", like some Saturday Night Live skit. But what he was saying was different. I just have to get honest with myself. I just have to get honest with God.

And isn't this what I'm really after in the first place, a place to get honest. I'm so tired of the b.s. that I long for a place to be real. I long for a place to really communicate and share what is on my heart.

Thank you Rick.

The Love Of The Father

Yesterday I had lunch at Rubio's, which is a great place for shrimp tacos, but that's another story. I was standing in line waiting to order. Behind me, in walked two young boys about 5 and 7. They had smiles on their faces and they sat down in a booth just three feet away from me. Their father came up behind me and was waiting to order as well.

The boys were very happy and were laughing with each other. Then the younger boy turned to his father and said, "I want you to sit by me."

The father replied, "Of course." The boy's face lit up as though he had just won first prize in a school race or something.

Then his older brother stood up and declared, "I want you to sit by me too."

The father just smiled and said, "Of course I will sit next to you too."

What struck me about this incident was how much the father's love brought joy to the boys. They fed off the love of their father. He was their hero. It honestly made me think about how much a father's love creates such an important foundation in our lives. It reminded me of how much my Heavenly Father loves me. I want to feed off of that and allow it to transform my life in a way that when people see me they see my hero.

Because love is that good.

The coolest speech I ever heard.

If you've never heard this speech given by Martin Luther King, Jr. your missing out. You can check it out here. Its really cool to hear his voice in the presentation.

You can also read it here:

If you want to be important, wonderful
If you want to be recognized, wonderful
If you want to be great, wonderful
But recognize that he who is greatest among shall be your servant.
That's the new definition of greatest.

This morning the thing that I like about it:
by giving that definition of greatness
it means that everybody can be great.
Because everybody can serve.

You don't have to have a college degree to serve.
You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve.
You don't have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve.
You dont' have to know Einstein's theory of relativity to serve.
You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in Physics to serve.

You only need a heart full of grace,
A soul generated by love.

You can be that servant.

Copyright, From the King Center

How cool is that.

Growing Up

Over the last several days I have been having conversations with people about my journey. Significant people I trust. Each of these conversations has been a great dialog that has allowed me to process my experience with someone else.

A friend of mine called me back after our conversation to say that he has noticed a significant change in my personality and demeanor. I was, to say, validated. I have been walking through this journey of love with eyes wide open, not sure if anyone has noticed. Some people have said things, others have not. I'm not worried.

But my friend was intrigued by my change. He asked me what had been the catalyst, or reason for the change. I know my mom's death had something to do with it. But this would be limiting to say it was the defining thing. Death does have a way of speaking to us, but I know that it was not the only thing. I believe it was a lot of things.

But one event sticks out in my mind. I was in the shower about six weeks ago when I felt like God was asking to grow up. I'm 38 and I've been studying the faith journey for at least 12 years, if not longer. I was stunned to say the least. As I pondered the question, I realized that it was that time. In order for me to fully mature in love, I had to let go of my wounded identity. I had to let go of who I was. And I did, right there in the shower.

The unique thing about this was that it wasn't hard. Actually I've been processing this for as long as I can remember. But now I was willing to let it go. I think I was just ready.

The funny thing is that when I did, it was awesome. It felt like a rebirth. I liken it to letting go of a thousand pound weight. My burden was light again. I now ask myself why I had waited so long to embrace who I was becoming as a mature person of faith. I guess I was just ready.

My friend shared with me a really great observation. He told me of the story of the blind man at the pool, which I've heard many times.

6When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?" 7"Sir," the invalid replied, "I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me."

My friend made an interesting observation about the blind man. Instead of responding "Yes, I want to get well," which was the question, he makes an excuse. Pow it hit me, upside the head like a knockout punch. How many times have I made excuses rather than just saying, "Yes, I want to get well."

To be honest, the guy reminded me of myself. When it really came to change, I didn't want to. It's easier to live in the identity of wounded person because my wounds provided me with an excuse for my humanity. I was just doing what I was supposed to.

I'm actually glad I made the choice to grow up. I like this place better. I don't want to sit on the mat anymore and make excuses. I want to love. I want to feel his presence in my life, joy, healing, purpose and love. The reality is that these were not prevailing traits of my life before my decision to grow up.

When I turn to my son and I see a four year old boy, I shudder to think of him growing up physically but never maturing beyond four years old. It would crush me if he were stunted in this age, as fun, and charming, and great as it is right now. I want him to grow up and become who God designed him to really be. To live valiantly, to love deeply, to pursue his purpose with passionate resolve. I just don't think he can become this person as a four year old.

It's hard to grow up. Not in a literal sense. Our bodies biological process happens regardless of our choice. I speaking of our maturity of heart. When wounds cripple us, it becomes something that takes courage to really step into. I want that for me, for my son, for those I come in contact with. Why? Because I believe that it is in maturity of heart that we love deeply, which is the fully expression of who we are as humans.

And I want to become that person. Do you?