Dig Up Your Talents

September 30, 2013September 30, 2013 / Erin Kirk / 2 Comments

This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. – George Bernard Shaw

Around here, we are fairly obsessed with figuring out how to make our lives matter, how to surrender our plans in favor of God’s and living those plans in practical ways.

Mercy Ships, for obvious reasons, is intent on that process too. Today, one of our leaders, Dr. Andrew Clark, showed us this clip of Pastor/Author/Jesus Freak Francis Chan, explaining, in less than four minutes, why we feel destined for purpose, but wind up feverish, selfish, little clods.

In my opinion, Francis Chan has a legal right to be angry at God, but instead he devoted his life to falling deeper in love with him and helping people like you and me do the same. His terrific bestselling book Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God saw an estimated $2 million in royalties, and Chan gave most of it away.

This kind of life is possible, but it’s risky and requires the omniscience we don’t have. We can live ok lives without God, (I think) but if we can live like holy daredevils with him, why wouldn’t we?

Jesus talked a lot about using our gifts, but he’s gets pretty hard-core in the parable of the talents. Remember, the two servants who doubled the master’s money (the talents) and the third hid his in the ground because he was too afraid to use it. Here’s what Jesus said about that:

The master was furious. ‘That’s a terrible way to live! It’s criminal to live cautiously like that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least? … And get rid of this “play-it-safe” who won’t go out on a limb. Throw him out into utter darkness. Matthew 25:26,30 The Message.

Yah, Jesus said that. So perhaps we should get busy.

How? Remember the three questions we keep asking:

Who are we?
What do we want?
What’s the first step?

If you’re stuck on the first part because you don’t know who you are, don’t worry. If you’re a follower of Jesus, you don’t have to figure it out because he did it for you. It’s amazing how a singular focus on who Jesus says you are, answers the other two questions.

So, what talent have you buried? What’s the smallest first step you can take to dig it up?

I Really Am Going to the Sea.

September 5, 2013September 6, 2013 / Erin Kirk / 2 Comments

We’ve got some big news around here.

I have just accepted a position with Mercy Ships, a Christian, non-profit organization that runs the largest non-governmental hospital ship in the world. Since 1978, Mercy Ships has provided more than $1 billion in medical services for more than 2.35 million people, through approximately 575 port visits in 54 developing and 18 developed nations.

While the MV Africa Mercy is currently docked in West Africa, the organization is headquartered in Garden Valley, Texas, 30 minutes from my house.

I will be working with the doctors, nurses and laypeople who travel from all over the world to volunteer on the ship. My job is to help prepare them. The team arrives in Texas next Saturday, and while there are shorter terms of service, this group has committed a minimum of ten months. All this may send me to West Africa for a few weeks, a couple of times a year.

Yah, I’m still absorbing all that too.

Mercy Ships was featured on 60 Minutes last month and if you’ve got 12 minutes, this segment is pretty inspiring. Former U.S. Press Secretary Dana Perino spent all last week on the Africa Mercy as well. You can read her thoughts here.

Six Steps for Creative Ignition

April 2, 2013April 2, 2013 / Erin Kirk / Leave a comment

The clock is ticking my friends. It’s long past time to do your work. You were put here with a purpose and if you don’t do it, it doesn’t get done. So what is it only you can do?

It may be dormant, but it’s in there. Let’s get busy.

1. Go silent. Then ask. Stop right now. Close the door. Get quiet for 15 minutes and answer these:

What makes my heart beat fast?
What could I do forever even if I didn’t get paid?
“God, what do I love?”

Forget the income potential, just write your answers. They are very likely what God needs you to do here, and if you have the courage to pursue them, the results may surprise you. As Madeleine L’Engle said in Walking on Water, “Listen to the silence. Stay open to the voice of the Spirit. Slow me down Lord.”

2. Own it. Begin treating that gift with a little respect. I wonder if Seth Casteel ever said, “Well this is kinda silly, but I like to take underwater photographs of dogs chasing a tennis ball.” He probably doesn’t think it’s silly now. His goofy dogs landed on the NYT Bestseller list. Find and hang out with people like Seth, let their creativity and enthusiasm encourage you to find your own.

3. Go Outside. Engage your world. People are doing interesting and lively things all over the world, go find them. Yes, it is easier to stay home and watch Duck Dynasty but does it make you more creative and interesting? Probably not, yoga classes and book readings and world travel require effort but the payoff is engaging other humans full of interesting stories. Despite some evidence to the contrary, live humans still deliver better than Facebook and Twitter.

4. Write three small, 12-month goals related to your gift, and stick them on the fridge. So even while fixing dinner, your mind can mull them, prompting tiny adjustments toward their fulfillment. Successful people with big, vibrant lives are often listmakers and recommend the practice. Use Quozio or Recite to make pretty lists and then post them at home and on Pinterest. (Just don’t fall down the rabbit hole and forget to do your work.)

5. Don’t just turn off the tv, turn on music you never listen to and shut the door. Tell your family you are going to paint, write, or digitize aboriginal music for an hour. As the nutty and delightful McNair Wilson says, get your family on board making a schedule that gives you an hour a day to yourself. Even if they have to do their own laundry, teach them to do it, it’s good for them. If you don’t have an hour, get up a half hour earlier and own it.

6. Apply your gift to a specific project then tell people about it. Build an airplane, write a book, paint murals and tell people, so when they ask about it, you will feel like a chump if you aren’t doing step five. Share your art as an accountability measure.