Lessons from Hacksaw Ridge

We went to see the movie Hacksaw Ridge this weekend.  I really wanted to watch it but then again I didn’t because of the nature of the content.  If you haven’t heard of the movie, it chronicles the story of Desmond Doss who was a conscientious objector and medic during the battle for Hacksaw Ridge (Japan) during World War II.  It was hard to watch.  War is always hard to watch.  But, it was one of the most striking depictions of the power of personal conviction that I have ever seen. 

Doss was compelled to enlist in the army during WW II because he knew that he had to do his part to defend his country and all that he held dear.  But, his personal convictions told him killing (in any context) was wrong, and his life experience told him that the only way to avoid killing was to refuse to hold a gun at all.  He joined the army to be a medic so that he could “save lives while everyone else was trying to take them.”

Doss was ridiculed and beaten by his fellow soldiers because of his refusal to hold a gun.  The army tried to get him dismissed because of his convictions.  But, he refused to compromise because he knew that he had to be true to God and to himself above everything else.

I can’t stop thinking about Doss’s story.  I can’t help but wonder how our society would be different if there were more men and women like Doss.  His story challenged me and encouraged me in so many ways.  Here are a few of my take aways:

• Doss was a man of strong conviction. 
• His convictions ran counter to what was happening in his country.  However, rather than protesting or condemning others who were fighting (and killing) in the war, he found a way to get involved and serve that allowed him to stay true to his convictions.
• He didn’t try to force others to his way of thinking.  He didn’t criticize or condemn them.  In fact, he served those whose actions violated his convictions.  He served them even when they had hurt him physically and emotionally.
• He lived out his convictions with integrity and courage.  And, because of that, he was able to save 75 men from dying on Hacksaw Ridge.  Because of that, his platoon came to respect him and honor him – not in spite of his convictions – but because of them.

I can’t help but wonder how I would have responded if I had been in Doss’s shoes.  Would I have run away?  Would I have caved under the weight of the ridicule and persecution?  Would I have gotten angry with those who didn’t believe what I believed?

Doss’s story is an extreme example, but we are faced with similar challenges every day.  All of us have convictions (whether we realize it or not!), and we are going to be faced with those who have different convictions.  We get to choose how we respond to those who oppose us – with courage and integrity and love OR with fear and hatred and anger.  I think we forget that it’s a CHOICE.  How we respond is a choice.  Love is a choice.  Hate is a choice. 

We would all do well to remember this wise counsel: 

"Consider everyone as equal, and don't think that you're better than anyone else... Don't pay back anyone for their evil actions with evil actions, but show respect for what everyone else believes is good.  If possible, to the best of your ability, live at peace with all people.  Don't try to get revenge for yourselves, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath.  It is written, 'Revenge belongs to me; I will pay it back, says the Lord.  Instead, if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink...' Don't be defeated by evil, but defeat evil with good." -- Romans 12:16-21

The Power of "NO"

No.  It’s the answer no one wants to hear. 

“Mom, can I have some ice cream?”  “No!” 

“Dad, can I have $20?”  “No!” 

“Did I get the job?”  “No!” 

“Did I win the lottery?”  “No!” 

When we hear “no,” we usually feel like someone is stealing our fun or crushing our dreams.

But “no” isn’t always a bad answer.

“Mom, can I play in the street?”  “No!” 

“Dad, can I run that red light?”  “No!” 

Sometimes, “no” is the best answer.

“No” can protect us from harm.  It stops us from wandering into danger.  It keeps us from hurting ourselves or others.  It provides the guardrails that keep us from careening off the highway.  It prevents us from taking a wrong turn.

We don’t like to be told “no.”  We feel like “no” closes the door on our dreams.  But, what if “no” really just serves to point us in a better direction? 

“Mom, can I play in the street?”  “No – but you CAN invite your friends over to play in the backyard.”

What if “no” opens the door for us to learn and grow? 

“Dad, can I have $20?”  “No – but I’ll help you look for ways to earn $20 so that you can learn the value of work and money.”

What if “no” invites you to stop and reflect on your motivations?

“Did I win the lottery?”  “No.  Why was that so important to you?  What was driving you to pursue that goal?  Maybe it’s time to adjust your attitude.”

What if “no” doesn’t just shut one door but opens another one?

“Did I get the job?”  “No.  There is more that needs to be done where you are.  There are other, better opportunities out there that you need to pursue.  There are other priorities that you need to focus on right now.”

We don’t like to be told “no.”  But, sometimes, “no” is the best answer.  It’s the right answer.  It’s the answer that will keep you moving safely in the right direction.  It’s the answer given by a loving Father who can see further into the future than you can and who knows what’s best for his children.

So, the next time you hear “no,” don’t get mad or sad or rebellious.  Just, stop for a minute and ask yourself what the “no” is there for – and, you’ll probably see that “no” isn’t such a bad answer after all.

Life Is Like.... Climbing a Mountain

We watched the movie Everest this weekend, and I have become more than a little obsessed with this story.  After finishing the movie, I promptly downloaded Jon Krakauer’s book Into Thin Air to dig deeper into his account of what happened on the mountain.  It’s a story of triumph and tragedy set in a location that is both awe inspiring and terrifying.


As I’ve thought about this story and what motivated each of the team members, I believe that there are a lot of parallels between the journey that these mountain climbers undertook and the journey that we are on as Christians.

1. Everyone on the climbing team had set their eyes firmly on the prize – the summit of Mount Everest.  They were single minded in their goal.  They were determined to succeed – even though the pain they experienced on the mountain was almost unbearable at times.  They refused to stop short of the summit – even when conventional wisdom said it was time to turn back.  As Christians, we need to have that same single-minded focus as we live our lives from day to day.  Paul said it like this:  “I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me… Forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”  (Philippians 3:12-14)
    
2. Most of the team members were not experienced high altitude mountain climbers.  I was surprised to learn that most of the people on the Adventure Consultants team had little to no experience climbing at high altitudes.  They just showed up with a desire to climb the mountain, a willingness to learn, and the humility to admit that they needed help.  We often believe that we can’t even attempt to do something for God – whether big or small – until we’re “fully qualified” (whatever that means J ).  However, as the old saying goes – “God doesn’t need your ability.  He just needs your availability.”  You can see it throughout the New Testament as Jesus chooses His disciples.  You can see it in the Old Testament when God anoints David to be King of Israel.  God didn’t choose the most qualified men and women.  He was looking on the heart.  You don’t need a resume full of accomplishments before you can do something for God.  You just need to take a step of obedience and have a heart that is willing and teachable.
    
3. Experienced climbers mentored the less experienced team members.  While most of the team members were inexperienced, their guides and Sherpas were extremely experienced, many having summited Everest at least once in the past.  The leaders knew what to expect.  They knew the potential dangers, and they knew what it would take to be successful.  The inexperienced members of the team were paired with the experienced members of the team.  They watched what the experienced climbers did – how they prepared their gear; where they placed their feet; when they rested; what tools they used.  The newbies and the experts climbed together starting with shorter distances and lower altitudes and working up to longer distances at higher altitudes.  The newbies watched and learned and then practiced multiple times over many weeks before they finally attempted that final climb to the summit.  In my mind, this process provides us with a perfect microcosm of what Christian discipleship should be.  The more experienced come alongside the less experienced.  The mentor leads the way while the disciple watches and learns until eventually the disciple takes off on their own while the mentor is there to support and guide until finally the disciple becomes the mentor to a new disciple and the process starts all over again.  The inexperienced climbers would never have made the summit without being “discipled” by the team leaders.  It seems to me that it is equally tough for brand new believers to persevere on their Christian journey without the benefit of someone who is willing to disciple them along the way.  In fact, Jesus commanded us to make disciples in Matthew 28:19-20:  “Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
    
4. The terrain was rough and unsteady.  When the climbers began their ascent from the Everest base camp, they had to climb across an ice field – an expanse of glacial ice that was constantly shifting and cracking and setting off small avalanches of ice chunks.  It was constantly changing, and the climbers didn’t know what to expect from day to day.  While God doesn’t require most of us to walk across a glacier, he does require us to live in this world, and that’s not always easy.  Leaders change; rules change; culture changes. We don’t always know what to expect.  When he calls us to step out and follow him, the path isn’t always smooth.  We need to stay alert and take things one step at a time.
    
5. The trail was full of obstacles and fraught with danger.  For the climbers who were able to persevere and make it across the ice field, there were still challenges ahead.  Fresh snow made it difficult to see crevices in the ice when traversing a ledge.  And, when there wasn’t a ledge, climbers were clutching sheer rock walls tens of thousands of feet in the air.  On top of that, they were climbing to heights that mimic the cruising altitude of a jet plane where the oxygen is almost too thin to breathe.  If that wasn’t enough, the cold and the wind and the snow were brutal on the body.  It took strength and courage to keep going.  When faced with obstacles and plagued by fear, we need to remember the words of Joshua (1:9):  “Be strong and courageous!  Do not be afraid or discouraged.  For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
    
6. Someone went before the team and marked the trail.  The challenges mentioned above were pretty daunting. But here’s the good news:  the guides and Sherpas had gone before the team and mapped out the course.  They had put up fixed ropes that showed the climbers the “safe” path and gave them something to hold on and help them along the way.  They had stashed supplies and oxygen at various points along the trail so that the climbers could replenish their supplies if needed.  The work done by the climbers who went ahead of them is what allowed these unskilled men and women to make this climb.  It’s the same for us as Christians.  Psalm 119:105 says, “Your Word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.”  The Bible gives us guard rails to protect us and to help us stay on the right path.  It serves as a rope to help us pull ourselves up when the footing is unsteady or the next step is unsure.  It refreshes us when we feel like our strength is almost gone.  We may be walking into what feels like uncharted territory as we step out in faith to do something new for God, but in reality, He has already walked that road and marked the path for us.
    
7. Everyone had to work together in order to reach the top.  While there are a few extraordinary men and women who have summited Mount Everest on their own, the advent of guided expeditions like the ones run by Adventure Consultants is what has made it possible for the “masses” to attempt the mountain.  It’s a grueling journey at best, and it’s almost impossible for the individual trekker.  However, this story highlights the sense of community that is fostered among the hikers who gather at the Everest Base Camp each year.  In particular, the team in this story, who started the journey as a group of random strangers, became a tight-knit unit working together to achieve a goal.  It’s the same for us as Christians.  God never meant for us to attempt this journey alone.
    
8. The team members were willing to risk it all to gain the summit. Ultimately, if you want to do something great, so you have to be willing to risk it all.  There are no guarantees in this life.  God is calling all of us out of our comfort zones to do something great for Him.  It’s scary.  It’s intimidating. It’s exciting.  It’s fulfilling.  Ultimately, risk requires faith – faith that God is in control and that His plan is greater than your plan – faith that He has all of the resources needed for you to reach the goal – faith that He has gone before you and marked the path and set the ropes that will guide you along the way. 
    
    
   What is God calling you to do?  The first step is always the hardest.  Will you take it today?

Living Life with No Margin

Operating margin:  the proportion of a company’s revenue that is left over after paying for variable costs of production.  Companies that have a healthy margin have a buffer that allows them to continue to operate smoothly even when they hit a bump in the road.

What, you may ask, does this have to do with my life?  Let me tell you…

This week, I’ve been forced to face the fact that I’ve been living life with no margin – not from a financial perspective, but with my time, energy, and emotions.  There is no room for error or deviation from the plan.  If even one thing goes wrong, it sets off a domino effect, and the end result isn’t good.  In fact, on Tuesday morning, it was really, really bad.  I think that I may have scared my children when it all came crashing down.

And, I realized that it’s no one’s fault but my own.  I’ve put myself in this position.  I’ve chosen (whether consciously or subconsciously) to live my life with no margin – trying to do it all – to be everything for everyone in every situation.  But, guess what?  Just like operating a business with no margin isn’t sustainable, living life with no margin isn’t sustainable either.  And, when you hit that breaking point – when there’s nothing left from which to draw – it not only hurts you, but it hurts everyone around you as well.

So, where does that leave me?  I can’t quit being a wife or a mom – and I wouldn’t want to.  I can’t quit being a professor – at least, not at this point in my life.  I can’t withdraw from everything that makes a demand on my time or energy.  I already average less than 6 hours of sleep a night, so staying up later or getting up earlier isn’t a good option.  And, I can’t manufacture more hours in the day. 

But, just like a company has to put good financial practices in place to insure that they have a solid operating margin, I’m realizing that I have to put some good practices in place to insure that my life has a healthy operating margin.  And, I have to prioritize these things so that they don’t fall by the wayside when the demands of life hit hard.  Otherwise, I’ll deplete my reserves and I’ll be back to square one – no margin.

I’m sure that everyone builds margin into their lives in different ways, but here are some things that I believe will help me to rebuild my margin.  Maybe they’ll help you, too.

1. Sabbath Rest.  What I’m talking about here isn’t just getting a couple of extra hours of sleep on the weekend or watching a tv show before you hit the sack.  It’s not even about honoring a particular day of the week.  A Sabbath rest implies intentionally setting aside time (at some point during the week) to both cease from your labors and to set aside the cares of the week in order to quiet your mind and refresh your soul.  Even God needed to set aside a day of rest after he created the world, so why are we so arrogant as to think that we don’t need to do the same thing?  A Sabbath rest provides a counterbalance to the busy-ness of our lives and gives us time to renew our bodies and minds so that we can do it all over again.
    
2. Prayer.  I rely pretty heavily on the Bible verse that says we are to “pray without ceasing” since I tend to grab moments throughout my day to talk to God.  However, in the busy-ness of life, intentionally setting aside a few minutes each day to pray and meditate on scripture is something that easily falls by the wayside.  Just being honest here.  But, in the words of A.J. Gordon, “You can do more than pray after you have prayed; but you can never do more than pray until you have prayed.”  As mysterious as it seems, setting aside time that is devoted to prayer and meditation doesn’t take time away from your schedule – It actually magnifies the time that you have left.
    
3. Saying NO.  Boy, this is a hard one for me.  I hate to say no when someone needs my help because one of my love languages is doing things for others.  And, I tend to be a people pleaser.  So, I don’t want to let people down.  Saying no feels like letting someone down.  But, saying NO to certain things means that I can say YES to other things.  Sometimes NO is the best answer for everyone… Which brings me to number 4…
    
4. Asking for help.  This one is even harder for me than saying no.  I hate to ask for help.  Letting others help me makes me feel like a failure.  In my mind, I should be able to do it all.  Except that, I can’t.  Plain and simple.  So, the options are letting things go undone (which may be ok in some cases, but definitely not all), or asking for help.  I have to remind myself that there is a blessing in giving to others, and allowing someone else to help me opens the door for them to be blessed in return.
    
5. Making time to plan.  What do I do when I finally find myself with a little bit of margin?  Make time to plan so that the margin continues to grow.  Planning ahead for meals for the family and transportation to and from events for the kids prevents that momentary panic that ensues when I realize that everyone has to be somewhere different and there is nothing quick to eat in the pantry.  That panic wastes time and money and emotional energy and drains what little margin I had available for the day.  Obviously, things come up that can’t be planned for in advance.  However, something as simple as making a “meal plan” for the week sure does help – even if we don’t follow it exactly.  Having a plan provides some structure to the chaos that often defines our lives.

The bottom line:  I don’t think that God designed us to live our lives without margin.  In fact, Jesus said this:

“Are you tired? Worn out? … Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”  Matthew 11:28-30 (The Message)

If you’re living life without margin, take a few minutes today to hit the pause button.  Find a quiet place to rest and pray and plan – to rebuild that margin so that you can “live freely and lightly.”  You’ll be glad that you did – and so will your family and friends.