Something to shoot for!

I love the Lord Of The Rings Trilogy.  My favorite is the Return of the King.  I love this movie.  Throughout the series and the book, Aragorn, a descendant of Kings and heir to the throne, goes from a self imposed exile, to stepping up and being who he was born to be.  This resonates with me.  I think we all have something buried deep inside that we know we are destined for.  I believe God writes this in our DNA before we are born.  We are heirs to something greater.  So what's the problem?


Fear.  Fear that we won't be able to handle the pressure.  Fear of the unknown.  Fear that we will fail and let everyone down.  


The reason I love Aragorn is that you get to watch him go through this battle, and you see all of his friends and comrades encourage him to step into his destiny.  We need this too.  We need people around us to help us, encourage us, and remind us of who we really are.  


There is one scene in the final movie where you finally get to see Aragorn step into his destiny.  He finds confidence and leaves fear behind.  He takes the Dimholt Road into the mountain of the dead to summon an army.  The King of the dead upon meeting Aragorn, says to him "the dead to not suffer the living" and then the pivotal moment happens.  Aragorn holds up the sword of Elendil and proclaims "you will suffer me."  This is the moment where Aragorn steps into his destiny.  This moment always gives me chills.  


I think we all need something to shoot for.  A destiny we can step into as we leave fear behind.  We need people around to help us, walk with us, encourage us, and remind us of who we really are.  This movie gives me hope and inspires me.  What inspires you?

Lifting the fog!

I like the fog. Fog gives me hope.  Hope is good.

I wake up early in the mornings.  My routine has pretty much been the same for the last 9 months or so.  I wake up between 5 and 5:30.  I usually make some coffee and open up the blinds in our living room, even though I know it will still be dark for another 45 minutes.  As I open the blinds, I will normally see nothing but thick dense fog in my backyard, and in most of the surrounding area.  I live in Los Osos, so fog-less mornings are rare.  I love the fog.  I know for some it's depressing, but for me it's renewing.  Why?  Because fog is never permanent.  The fog is always lifted, or burned off by the sun and you are usually left with beauty that can only be revealed by having the fog there first.  After I stare out the window for a few minutes, and my coffee is ready, I sit in my chair that faces our window which looks out over our neighborhood, through some trees, and onto a very small glimpse of the bay and ocean.  I generally read, pray some, think about my family, and what my day will bring, and watch the fog disappear as the light begins to take over the darkness.

Sometimes the fog doesn't burn off right away.  Some people refer to those days as depressing.  It refreshes me.  It gives me something to look forward to, knowing that the fog never lasts forever.  Fog is always temporary and always brings some good even though we may not see it.  Grass and flowers that need gentle care are watered by the misty fog.  Certain small ground animals are protected by the fog as they surface without the risk of being snatched up by a bird.  The fog isn't always immediately pleasant, but always beneficial and it always gives me hope.

Hope is good.  What gives you hope?


For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees?  But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it. Romans 8:24-25

Funny Stuff!

Well, if you know me, you know I like to laugh.  The videos below made me laugh hysterically.  You must watch in order since the first preceded the second.  Hope you enjoy as much as I do.




And now...

Welcome back!

After a lengthy hiatus, the surfing bug has caught me once more.  Thank God for the ocean!

Thursday Top 10!

Today...Top 10 reasons to be a Laker fan, in no particular order!

1. Despite Kobe's past , personal deficiencies, the Lakers employ arguable the best player in the world.
2. Arguably the greatest coach in the history of the NBA
3. Staples Center
4. Jack 
5. Derek Fisher
6. A consistent pursuit to win, year in and year out.
7. 15 NBA championships
8. Jerry West...I know he is no longer with the team, but he will always be a Laker.
9. The Sky Hook
10. Shannon Brown's filthy sick hops!

Her's hoping for a 16th championship.  Go Lakers!

Jesus in an SUV!

The other day, Aidan(my 5 year old) looks at my wife and makes the following statement.

You know, I think, when Jesus comes back, he's gonna come back in a bright blue SUV with big tires and 20 lights...some in the back, some in the front and some on top...that way everyone will see him and no one misses him.

At first we just thought this was a cute little thing that our kid just said, but the more I have given thought to it, the more profound it has become. Nobody would ever miss a bright blue SUV with big tires and lots of lights right?  Well, I'm not sure how Jesus will be returning exactly, other than what I know from reading scripture, but I think maybe Aidan was on to something.  Maybe we are the SUV.  Weird, right?


I have been hearing people for a while talking about how "over" Christianity they are, how Christians are hypocrites and nothing more, and how they aren't really like Jesus at all.  Somehow I think this has become both an excuse and a cop out.  People who know about Jesus but aren't sure, aren't interested, or are dealing with some past hurt or frustration, find this an easy excuse to justify not giving Jesus a real shot.  After all, why would you trust something or someone whose representation is inconsistent and hypocritical?  For "seasoned" Christians, this has become a cop out for not wanting to be the SUV.  We don't want to be overly noticed, found out, judged, or hated.  Mostly we tend to say that we are just trying to be more like Jesus and all He did was love people, so we're going to just love and not make any waves, not talk about our own sin or mistakes, and not make anyone feel bad or tell them they are doing wrong stuff, because we just want to love.


Maybe we are supposed to be the SUV!


Could the SUV described above, ever go around unnoticed or fail to make a statement when driving down the street?  No way!  We are called to be noticed.  Jesus did love people, but he NEVER patted people on the head and ignored their sin, nor did he ever fail to teach truth when in a large group of people.  He was always teaching, instructing, pointing out sin, and loving the whole time, and we are called to do the same.  I love the story in John about Jesus meeting the woman at the well.

So Jesus left the Judean countryside and went back to Galilee. To get there, he had to pass through Samaria. He came into Sychar, a Samaritan village that bordered the field Jacob had given his son Joseph. Jacob's well was still there. Jesus, worn out by the trip, sat down at the well. It was noon.
 A woman, a Samaritan, came to draw water. Jesus said, "Would you give me a drink of water?" (His disciples had gone to the village to buy food for lunch.)
 The Samaritan woman, taken aback, asked, "How come you, a Jew, are asking me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?" (Jews in those days wouldn't be caught dead talking to Samaritans.)
 Jesus answered, "If you knew the generosity of God and who I am, you would be asking me for a drink, and I would give you fresh, living water."
 The woman said, "Sir, you don't even have a bucket to draw with, and this well is deep. So how are you going to get this 'living water'? Are you a better man than our ancestor Jacob, who dug this well and drank from it, he and his sons and livestock, and passed it down to us?"
 Jesus said, "Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life."
 The woman said, "Sir, give me this water so I won't ever get thirsty, won't ever have to come back to this well again!"
 He said, "Go call your husband and then come back."
 "I have no husband," she said.
   "That's nicely put: 'I have no husband.' You've had five husbands, and the man you're living with now isn't even your husband. You spoke the truth there, sure enough."
 "Oh, so you're a prophet! Well, tell me this: Our ancestors worshiped God at this mountain, but you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place for worship, right?"
 "Believe me, woman, the time is coming when you Samaritans will worship the Father neither here at this mountain nor there in Jerusalem. You worship guessing in the dark; we Jews worship in the clear light of day. God's way of salvation is made available through the Jews. But the time is coming—it has, in fact, come—when what you're called will not matter and where you go to worship will not matter.
 "It's who you are and the way you live that count before God.

Jesus, totally called her on her sin, but my feeling is that she left feeling more loved than ever before.  I know this, because the rest of the passage goes on to talk about her going back and telling everyone about Jesus and sent them to go experience Him for themselves.  The really cool thing is that his disciples and other onlookers were shocked that he would even talk to this woman, and He didn't care.  He loved her. 


Now don't get me wrong, I'm not on some spiritual trip.  I know I'm no good at what I am saying, but I am saying it in hope that I can start.  I make mistakes, I sin, and worst of all I am a hypocrite.  I pass up opportunities all the time to both share and to be Jesus to others.  I want to be better though, I want to be more like Jesus, I want to be the SUV.

How He Loves...

Great song.  Great Songwriter.  Great story.  Great God!


How He Loves : A Song Story from john mark mcmillan on Vimeo.

Thursday Top 10!

Top 10 Songs Played On My Ipod:

1. The Way It Is - Bruce Hornesby
2. Facedown - Matt Redman
3. Fire Fall Down - Hillsong
4. Bullet The Blue Sky - U2
5. Hymns To The Silence - Van Morrison
6. With Or Without You - U2
7. One Reason - Jason Upton
8. The Maker - Willie Nelson
9. Empire State Of Mind - Jay Z/Alicia Keys
10. All My Devotion - Kristene Mueller

What are you listening to?

SWAGGER WAGON

I think this has made it's rounds, but I thought it was hilarious, so here it is.

Link Love

You'll laugh...you'll cry...you may even pee a little. Just go check it out!

Travis Avila...Just do it!

That time I met Charlie Hall....

So, I'm in downtown SLO the other evening, meeting up with some friends at Firestone Grill. I noticed immediately that FG seemed busier than normal, but wasn't sure why. So I bump into my homie, Travis Avila, adn he informed me that a mutual acquaintance is in town getting married and that a ton of random people that we know were there, so it could have something to do with that. A few minutes later, I bumped into Joel Limpic, who was the friend in town getting married. Well, as it turns out, he spent some time training as a worship leader, under on of my favorite artists and worship leaders, Charlie Hall. I began talking briefly with Joel and happened to mention the name Charlie Hall, and no sooner had I mentioned the name than Joel points to a guy a few feet away, and it just happened to be Charlie freakin Hall. So, in an awkward way that only I can pull off, I asked Joel to introduce me, which he did, and I was stoked. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not all start struck or anything, but it's always nice to say you've met a person who has inspired you and that you look up to as a fellow leader and musical artist.

So, there you have it, that time I met Charlie Hall...

I Love Bacon!

I am not sure why I never heard of Jim Gaffigan, but until recently, I had not. My sister along with some other friends introduced me to him in the midst of a Facebook post, in which I announced my love for bacon. Anyways, check out the video below, it's pretty stinkin funny!

-Will

Link Love Tuesday

OK, so it's been a while, but I am starting off with a bang. Although I was too busy during the recent season of my life, that didn't stop me from a few exploratory trips into the blog world. I have recently discovered a blog that I enjoy and think you might too. I met Kandi when her and her family cam to minister at our church recently. Our church immediately connect with their family and many of us have kept in touch on different levels since. Kandi seems to be a very passionate person and loves God deeply, as does the rest of her family.

Well, enough from me, enjoy... A Spilling Heart.

Getting back in action...

Well, it's been a while, but reading some of my friends recent blogs has inspired me to start up again. Not sure how many readers I have left, but stay tuned...