Some guy from Philly, and why it all matters...

 Saturday's coming...Shocking news, I know - I'm pretty sure every week since the dawn of time has included a Saturday. And though I'm a big fan of Saturdays in general, this Saturday is a bit more of a big deal to me. It's the main Charlotte area fundraiser for Damian Marta, and I and the Element community are honored to be able to be a part of it.  If you don't know Damian or what the fundraiser's about, the overview is this: Damian is a guy who's been a part of Element since the doors opened three years ago. He has muscular dystrophy, it's getting worse, and he's headed to Germany in a couple of weeks for some intense procedures. Naturally, they're very expensive, and we're helping to raise money for him. Details can be found on his website, which you can get to by clicking here. If you're anywhere near the Charlotte area this Saturday, come on out to Reedy Creek Park, and help us help Damian make it possible!

     That's the overview. There's more to it than that for me, though, and as I've been thinking about this a lot for some months now, I keep returning to one particular thought. We don't live life in a vacuum. In other words, we collide with other people and other lives on a daily basis, and we really don't have much choice in the matter. Sure, you can  go live in a cave somewhere, and make the decision to isolate yourself from the world. But you still entered the world in a community of sorts...Nobody has ever lived a life completely untouched by another. And there's both good and bad to this idea. Some of our interactions are frustrating, hurtful, and downright poisonous. Some of them are encouraging, strengthening, and beautiful. Still others don't really register one way or the other. They're just there, and not memorable for any particular reason. But all of them, evil and divine, shape us. They mold us. They challenge us. They give us reasons for doing doing what we do. They point us towards God, and sometimes far, far away from Him. And I've been thinking about this a lot, because I've encountered my share of both, and the degree to which they shape me won't let me go lately.

     And occupying a firm spot in the "pointing me towards God" category is Damian. I met him on a Sunday morning three years ago, led a life group with him, and am now privileged to work with him on the Element Vision Team. But more than that, Damian has been, and is, a force for good in my life. He challenges me to think harder - he encourages me think more selflessly - he points me towards a path of living more boldly and fearlessly - he prays for me - he doesn't accept pat answers - he's smarter than I am, but doesn't rub it in my face - he gently forces me to evaluate, and re-evaluate - He's a one-man wrecking crew. In the best possible way. I've been pretty blessed in this life, as far as friends and family go...And I've had what feels like an awful lot of undeserved support from the people in my life. At this particular time in life, one of those pillars of support, and an indelible imprint of God on my life, has been Damian. As I began taking on a speaking role from the stage at Element over a year and a half ago, he was there, debriefing, praying, encouraging, and helping me not to take myself too seriously. As I stepped into this role of Lead Pastor, he's been all of those things and then some. And to say I'm grateful would simply be a shadow of what I really feel. I know I'm embarrassing him by making him the subject of a blog, and I know he'll deflect all the praise in his inimitable way, and I know I'm gushing entirely too much here. Fine, I'll say something negative about him. He has an inflated sense of his own chili-making abilities, and there is a limit to how much Philadelphia Eagles gear should adorn your house, a limit to which he seems blissfully unaware.

     But I felt like this is a blog worth writing. Because if we don't live life in a vacuum, and God has set this whole thing in motion in the context of having to live, breathe, and work alongside people, then I think we want to choose the inner circle somewhat carefully. We're not strong enough, any of us, to make all the right decisions on our own or to keep our focus on God through all of life's twists and turns. And though having the right people around us doesn't make everything perfect, guarantee the outcomes, or stop me from being stupid far more often than I'd like to admit, it's the most potent way that God has given me, and all of us in this human world, to see Him more clearly, and to shape us to become more like Him. In other words, everyone should have a Damian or two in their life. People who aren't afraid to show you that a life spent pursuing God is infinitely better than a life spent settling for my own agenda. People help shape our lives in profound ways...Let's be people who allow the most intimate and primary shaping to be done by passionate followers of the living God, and who strive to paint pictures of the beauty of God everywhere we go, for everyone we meet. Peace...