Love and Community

⁹The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." ¹⁰Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
-Romans 13

My mind has been wandering all over the place these past few weeks, but most recently I've been thinking quite a bit about love and community. There have been a few times in my life where a community I've been in has really stood out. The first was while I was living back in Los Angeles attending Mosaic. We had a great life group, and there were some really interesting (my highest compliment) people in the group. It also didn't hurt that my sister lived out there. :)

The next community that really stands out in my mind is from when I first moved into the Wilson House. I was coming off my first serious relationship, and I had a lot to process through and deal with. That first year ended up being the most significant spiritual growth of my life. For the first time, I really saw how depraved at the core I am. I saw how much I need God, so could finally and honestly call out to Him.

For the past several years, I've atrributed that growth primarily to the pain I was going through, being reminded of Romans 5:3-4 (I spent that whole year just in Romans), "...we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." And I'm sure I could not have experienced the real change at the core of my life had it not been for that pain.

But we all have had pain in our own lives that certainly has not produced hope in the end. So what is it that allows us to grow from in difficult times, and what causes us to wither into bitterness?

It is the presence of love and our choosing to accept and reciprocate. Real, unconditional, raw love. Jesus came to save our lives, and to fulfill the law. In Romans 13:9-10 shown above, Paul says it is love that fulfills the law. Christ fulfilled the law through His love. Because of this love, He endured the pain of being hung on a cross. He cared about us so much that his agony on the cross was bearable. It is love that makes the pain of life bearable.

When I came to the Wilson House, I was loved. It was primarily through the caring and listening of the other men in the house, specifically GBuck (hi, GBuck!), that brought me to a new place in my relationship with Christ. It was unconditional love. GBuck didn't listen and hang out with me in order to try to make me behave a certain way. He didn't try to only get me to conform to a Christian set of rules and regulations, thinking that adherance to them would make my life better. He instead chose to love, in spite of a real cost to himself. I could very easily have turned around and really hurt him. He didn't care only about if I would hurt him or getting me to behave a certain way. He just cared about me first, and I knew it.

Real love is caring about someone in spite of whatever it may cost you, especially when you know precisely just how much it could be.

Time has now brought me to my most current community, that of Grace Street church. Something very special has been happening this summer in that community. People are risking quite a lot to genuinely love each other, and it seems to be having an effect on many of us. And it's pushing me to love others in exactly the same way. I actually find myself wanting criticism and correction, so I can be made more aware of who I really am in order to change. Because love is the only thing that has ever motivated someone to truly change.

I really love these people. This is no small thing happening in my life. And that's what I was talking about in my previous post.

Entry posted by byscuits at 12:52 PM | Comments (3)

Exactly

I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be. Haven't felt this in a while.

Entry posted by byscuits at 02:38 PM | Comments (1)

15 Rounds

I just wanna prove somethin' -- I ain't no bum... It don't matter if I lose... Don't matter if he opens my head... The only thing I wanna do is go the distance -- That's all. Nobody's ever gone fifteen rounds with Creed. If I go them fifteen rounds, an' that bell rings an' I'm still standin', I'm gonna know then I weren't just another bum from the neighborhood...

Tuesday Night

You know, sometimes a blog just isn't a great place to write what's really in my head and heart. I had one of the coolest and oddest experiences a couple of days ago, and it's something I don't really want to share with that many people. I hesitate to call it a miracle, but in some ways that's exactly what it was. I knew this past Tuesday would be a meaningful night, whatever happened. I knew I couldn't do anything on my own, so I sought God with a passion I've not seen in myself since January. Most of you that really know me already know essentially what I'm alluding to, and that's okay. I had tried to prepare myself for just about any outcome, but when it came down to it, I still don't know what happened. I've never had my emotions so out of my mind all at once. Things didn't turn out to be what I had most hoped for, but I really didn't mind. I really didn't at all. And that's what I mean by a miracle. It was only be the grace of God that I reacted the way I did.

Still processing that night.

New Photos

I've got some new photos I finally got around to processing, so here they are.

Somerville

I took this shot along the Davis bike path in Somerville this past Wednesday morning. As of this moment, it's one of my favorite shots ever.

New Additions to 'Ego'

 

These shots were taken at the VW photo shoot from a couple of weeks ago. I was the stand-in for the hair and lighting. :)

Other miscellaneous shots
 

I like this guy standing on the T. Just so token.

Walking Away

I spoke of walking away from God in my last post, and I've had a few comments and emails about it. So I'll clear things up a bit. By walking away, I don't mean that I turned my back on God or stopped going to church or anything. It was just a rough time at school. And as I've thought about it, I think it was really more that I felt further away from God than I did in January. Which is really no surprise, since that was coming back from the mission trip to Central Asia where I've never felt God so tangibly.

Thanks for the prayers, guys. They really are appreciated. If you have any of your own, really, please do send them along.

Million to one shot, but I think I might just have another 13 rounds left in me.

Entry posted by byscuits at 04:39 PM | Comments (0)

Busy, busy, busy

Things have been a bit hectic lately. I started a new internship, moved out of the Wilson House, moved in to Fort Awesome, dated someone for a bit, did my first pro photography assisting job for Volkswagen, and had my sister and brother-in-law in town last week. Oh, and lots and lots of stuff with all the great people from church at Grace Street.

So that means I have lots of pictures, and I've finally gotten around to posting a few.

Moving the Couch In
 

Yes, we did actually get that couch into the house. How? By magic. That's all I'm sayin' about that.

It's nice to be around family. There's something comforting about having known someone so long you don't have to be anything but yourself, and knowing that they love you no matter what you do.

My sister and brother-in-law were in town for a few days for their 3rd anniversary. I took last Friday off work to take them sailing up on the north shore in Gloucester. It's not at all like Nantucket or the Cape. They're just so stuffy and pretentious. Gloucester has a much more blue collar feel to it, since it's really one of America's most famous fishing towns.

I think I got my brother-in-law addicted to Dunkin' Donuts, something I am very proud of. They have decent donuts, but it's really the coffee that's so amazing there. If I ever move away from one of these, it'll be a big loss for me. Relatively speaking, of course.

My head just feels like it's going to explode lately. So much to think about, process, and be at peace with. I've know I've walked away from God very slowly over these past several months, and I'm tired of it. If you would, pray for me. I need clarity and peace that can only come from one place.

Gloucester with my sister and brother-in-law
 
 
 
 
 
 

Entry posted by byscuits at 12:12 PM | Comments (5)