Monaco: Second smallest country with the most character

In short, Monaco was one of my favorite countries that I've ever visited. Before going, I really was not sure what to expect. Would there be lavish examples of wealth that would make the average visitor feel alienated? Would it be too expensive to even make a day trip? The reality that I found was that Monaco was a very charming country filled with polite people (who were even more polite when spoken to in French.) The first day that my girlfriend and I went to the country, we took a SNCF train from Nice, which was a pleasant enough ride.

Once there, we walked down a very nicely maintained street until we got to the Casino de Monte Carlo.

The casino was well worth the 10 euro entrance fee even if one wasn't wanting to gamble simply for the exquisite Belle Epoque interior. Being there truly felt like being back in time due to the dark wood furniture and the abundance of suits as the night wore on. (Unfortunately photos weren't allowed, so I couldn't capture that.) We eventually won a fair sum, so after ogling at the Rolls Royces and Bentleys outside, we went to a delightful restaurant in La Condamine called Quai des Artistes. Their seafood was delicious and the service was great. It really was a special treat to be at such a fancy restaurant dressed to the nines, and in such a historical country that many people never get to visit. The only problem was that Monaco doesn't have any trains after 11:30pm, and the night bus only runs three days a week. That meant that we were stuck taking a taxi back to France, but c'est la vie.

The next day, we took a train in the morning and got to see the country by daylight. It was quite the sight! The multilevel streets were quaint and completely litter free, yet crowded with buildings, and there were some occasional breathtaking sights thanks to the local topography.

While visiting the Greek-inspired Sainte Dévote Chapel, we were amused to see a group of American tourists posing for scavenger hunt pictures in front of the church by throwing tree branches into the air and jumping.

We were tempted to find out more about their hunt, but unfortunately daylight was not on our side, so we had to catch our train to Italy. On our way back from Ventimiglia that night, we decided to hop off the train in Monaco one last time so that we could take photos of the casinos with our dslr cameras. At least, that was the excuse. Really, we just wanted to be back even for another hour. I absolutely cannot wait to go back to Monaco and explore even more of the sights (such as the castle) that the second smallest country in the world has to offer.

Hamilton, Bernie, and the New Revolution

Over the past week, I’ve become obsessed with the Lin-Manuel Miranda musical “Hamilton.” Not only has it taken the Tony awards by storm (and has a box office projection of $1 billion!) but it has caused a renewed interest in the Revolutionary War time period of American history amongst people my age. Originally, I wrote off this time period as a simply mythologized and sanitized period that had little relevance now, as most of the protagonists were white slave-owning men. This musical however showed me that not all of them were so one-dimensional. The titular character, Alexander Hamilton, was an orphan from a poverty-riddled town on St. Kitts who eventually helped found and fund a country, and became the advisor to the president. The musical highlights the grit of his struggle to come into relevance, discussing how he threw himself into his reading and writing so as to “not throw away [his] shot.” As a result of this, he was able to go from having no platform at all to changing the course of a nation. That honestly inspired me to do the same. I have an academic mind, this much Baylor has certified. I have a heart for change, and a passion for making my voice known – as seen through my seven years of fundraising and lobbying for Invisible Children. This musical of inspiration came at the perfect point in both my life and in the lives of many. We’ve just seen Bernie Sanders run on a campaign of equality and empowerment; while he ultimately was topped by the political establishment, he galvanized hundreds of thousands from my generation into action. I watched with pride in my heart as my friends protested outside of the DNC. Though incapacitated by surgery at the time, I joined my friends in spiritual solidarity who marched through the streets of Baton Rouge. In London, I listened to dear friends recount the horrors of militarized police reaction to protests in Ferguson. We have seen young people in the streets and starting grassroots political revolutions. The so-called “selfie generation” is now organizing to elect populist candidates starting from their local municipalities on up through national government. (And all inspired by an old, white, straight, Jewish man from Vermont, at that!) I want to aid in that revolution. My activist heart yearns to become politically involved and burns to make my voice heard in the protests. Unlike Hamilton’s revolution, this will not be one fought by weapons and violence, but rather by purely using our words and bodies to destabilize the power of oppressors and those who perpetuate injustice, whoever they might reveal themselves to be. Our generation is pissed off at racism, at debt bondage, at the exploitation of our very ecosystem. But rather than merely sitting back and ranting, we’re organizing. We’re taking the fight to the political arena, from the ground up. The ultimate hope is that we redefine the institutional structures of power that have for so long propped up outdated and often violent offices of oligarchy which have continuously committed officially-sanctioned acts of violence - whether physical, financial, or emotional - against the poor, immigrants, and minorities. It seems that circumstances in my life have destined me to be away from this country that I’m just now learning how to love, for the next year, meaning that I cannot be in the streets or knocking on doors with my compatriots. I can however be like Hamilton, who spent the first years of the revolution reading and writing with the purpose of becoming educated himself and educating the leaders of the revolution. Without ideological guidance, no revolution can succeed. While I certainly do not profess to have the ultimate intellectual prowess, I can use my academic training and the mental facilities at my disposal to help further this revolution in whatever way I can. I urge you, dear reader, to do the same. Let not your heart be overwhelmed into a state of inaction. No matter what your current position, this is one of the most prime points of history for your voice to be heard. Your voice matters. Your experiences are legitimate. Join the conversation. Join the protests in the streets. Agitate your elected officials into action through lobbying (and if they don’t care to respond, find out how you can help elect new ones.)

Just don’t throw away your shot.

Distraction

Wow, it's been a while. This is my first post of the summer and only second of the year. Man, things have just been crazy and it's so easy to get swept up in life...which is exactly the message I'm sharing today. Distraction. I finally saw the impact of it in my life today!
Ever since the summer started, I've been busy. Working full time in one city, living and playing music in another, hanging out with friends in two more...it's all been fun and all been good, but oh so tiring. None of those things by any means are inherently bad, but all together I've found that besides a few highs, it's my spiritual life that's been suffering. I started out the summer strong: church every week, college service, bible studies...then work came and most of those stopped, as when I'd come back to Baton Rouge on the weekends, I'd be exhausted. With that, my focus on eternal things started to go too. The most important things in life became the music that I was creating and listening to and the people who I was with, instead of showing the fruits of the spirit and advancing the kingdom. And while I know that the friendships I've made recently are divinely chosen, I also know that I've snubbed so many more that God had placed me in already and given me such a position of influence. I was forgetting my purpose (other people) and living for myself. (and to all the people I've kind of abandoned this summer, I do want to apologize. Let's change it:)
Distraction takes many different forms in lives: for some it might be living for a job, others it might be hanging out with people who draw you away from God, others it might be being trapped in the past or living for the future (both being used as escape from the present). No matter what it is, if it's drawing you away from God, it's robbing you of your potential. Joyce Meyer tweeted yesterday that when we slide on our potential, we're only robbing ourselves of the amazing experiences God has in store for us and the chance for us to change lives and change the world. That's SO true! Not only are we missing out on living such an impactful life, but when we let distraction get in the way of purpose, we feel dissatisfied, unproductive and bored. All things that nobody strives to feel.
So I'm going to go to church tonite. Not just to show up, but to truly encounter the spirit and hear him speak. I'm so ready to get back on that purpose! This two month break's been MORE than enough! I'd really really encourage you to do the same! If you've been like me this summer, let's talk. I'd love to encourage you and have you do the same :)
Peace, y'all
Oh, and do you wanna know why all these distractions keep popping up? The devil knows you have so much potential and that if you're focused on God He's gonna use you to do "greater things than these", so he's running scared. The devil attacks strongest the ones who God has the biggest plans for. Don't let his desperation be your distraction, see what he's doing there and be encouraged that he's scared of what God's got in store through you!

Devotions!

Hey y'all :) My friend Emilie and I have a new daily devotional blog. She writes a verse on her wrist every day as a personal reminder to herself during the day, then texts it to me. I then write a little devo on it. Check it out! http://devosdaily.blogspot.com

Chopstick Churches: What I Learned from 2011

Looking back on the year, I have to say that 2011 was by far the best year of my life. I know I say that at the end of every year, but I take that as a positive sign of God's growth in my life. This year definitely has been a year of transformation. Coming into January, I was mid way through my junior year, and just starting to truely figure out my identity in Christ. I was putting old desires and dreams in the past, as well as insecurities. I felt comfortable and complacent.

That's always a sign that God's about to rock your world.

At the student leadership Christmas party, two of my closest friends and sisters gave me a book to read - nothing out of the ordinary. I graciously smiled, and put the book aside when I got home, picking up my crochet needles for the rest of break instead. Around the time school started, I decided to at least give the book a shot to see what all their fuss was about. My world was wrecked. In the book, The Irresistible Revolution, Shane Claiborne challenged everything I had been comfortable with my stances on before: sacrificial love, patriotism, money, war, faith permeating into every aspect of life. This book was so different from all other things I had read before, as instead of stating things and imperatively telling me what to believe, Shane simply asked questions and gave examples from the life of Jesus, as well as amazing men and women of God like Mother Teresa. Through lots of prayer on my part and lots of writing on his, Shane opened my eyes to the apathy and lack of faith of the church. Why do we simply treat the symptoms of homelessness and poverty, but never try to treat the cause? Why do we let petty things like nationalism and immigration laws blind us to the horrors of labor trafficking? Where did this myth of redemptive violence come from, and why are we preaching Matthew 5:44 and then killing those that God said to love?

I began to see that God was more than in a church or Bible study. God was even more than trying to save our close friends. God truly should be a part of every aspect of our lives. We had to "preach the gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words." What's more, we had to tell the world.

With words from Shane and Acts ringing in my ears, I prayerfully signed up for the student leadership mission trip to China. One of the things God blessed me with earlier in the year that helped me prepare immensely was Healing Place Church. While the Chapel was still solidly my home, at HPC I found a body who was radically sold out to the idea of service and love. (They seriously are amazing, and I would really encourage you to check out the book Servolution by pastor Dino Rizzo). Being a part of their outreaches and family really modeled for me what a true servant's heart should look like (and then on Sundays backed it up with examples from Jesus! What an incredible combination.) Eventually the end of May came, and I went across the Pacific with the rest of my team to Guangzhou, China. It was there that God taught me that true evangelism wasn't always about having gospel conversations with people. Everyone is like a puzzle - some are 5 pieces, some are 5,000 pieces. Each one of us is only one piece in their life. But if even one piece is missing, the puzzle can't be finished. He also showed me through stomach problems there, that I have a heart idol of comfort. That realization has exposed the root of so many of my actions. I'm still giving it over daily, but once I gave it over to Him, I was able to focus renewedly on reaching out to others, both in China and in the states.

I feel like everything that happened from January to July happened to build me up for this semester. Shane and HPC taught me to not major in the minors and to put love and service above everything, letting Christ radiate in every area of life. China really taught me what evangelism is. All of them matured me greatly spiritually. This semester, a handful of friends and I felt the call to reach out to our school. We started with prayer in the mornings that soon turned from 10 to 40 people, as more and more Christians started to gain boldness in the fact that they weren't alone. People have been emboldened, families have been prayed for, and the entire atmosphere of the school is changing. God is so at work and his glory's shining in every classroom. Through all this, God has blessed me so much with the chance to lead a Bible study. At first, I was expecting 20-30 people, and was dissappointed when only five showed up. I soon found out though that the smallness of the group enabled me to work more one on one with everybody and be personally invested in each of their lives. It's been a beautiful sight watching them grow and seeing myself grow too as I have to hold myself to a higher standard to lead. I'm dedicating my final semester to investing in them even more and equipping them to develop into the next generation of leaders at our school.

Looking back on 2011, my regrets are few and my list of experiences I cherish is long. But I pray that it'll be even longer next year. I'm praying the same for you too, dear reader, that next year you will grow exponentially like never before in spiritual maturity and as always, that faith, hope and love will abound in everything you do. So let's laugh and cry to put the old year behind us, and join hands and jump into 2012. Pax vobis :)

Legacy

So I was listening recently to a song by The Band Perry called "If I Die Young", which got me thinking, "If I died tomorrow, what would my legacy be?" Some might think that's a bit morbid, but I think it's a question we all legitimately need to ask ourselves. What are we striving for? What are our goals?
It really shows you where your heart is, doesn't it?
If we say we're all in, following Christ with everything we've got, but answer that question with something related to our career or personal life, are we honestly following like we say we are? What's the lifespan of our legacy if we're just living for ourselves? How long after you die will the effects of your American dream linger on? If all we're living for (and by living for, I mean devoting our time and money to) is trying to put in extra to get that promotion, or completely devoting yourself to school to get the best job and salary possible, what are we doing that will last?
As followers of Christ, we're told to not store up treasures on earth, but to store up treasures in heaven (Matt. 6:19-20) and to "make disciples of all nations" (28:19). As humans though, we want so badly to be comfortable and happy. One of the things God really showed me while I was in China over the summer was how much comfort was a heart idol. We get so focused on worshiping that idol by pursuing earthly things, that we aren't reaching people for Christ with our full potential. It's more than just us spending our money on material things though. Whenever we live life all about "me, me, me", we start drawing inwards and living life in a small way. God doesn't want that; he wants us to live big, wide-open lives of influence. He wants our legacy not to be "toys", but disciples (note, not 'converts'). It's like we're living in an identity crisis: Christ calls us to make an eternal difference (Matthew 28:18-20) but so often we're too caught up in this life to notice! It's my prayer today that we'll surrender our idols of wealth, prestige and comfort to God, and that he'll help change our perspective (and our legacy!) to an eternal one.
(link to the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NJqUN9TClM&ob=av2e)

The Greatest of These

"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."
--1 Corinthians 13:13 (NLT)

So far in this blog, I've talked about faith and i hope to post some hope soon, but rite now I want to talk about love :) When most people think about love, they think romantic love. While that's really a huge type of love, it's only one of many types. Today I just wanna encourage you to not forget about love. And use every opportunity to show it! Love your friends by making them feel valued. Do something special for them that shows that you care. When talking with your coworkers or classmates when school rolls around, go deeper and really see who they are as a person; talk about their dreams and lives. Hug your cousin, your sister, your brother and tell 'em that you love them and you're really blessed to have them (trust me, you are:) And be practical. Yeah, it's good to pray for people -it's great!!- but how are you gonna know what to pray for unless you're actually there for them and listen to them? Spend time with people and make the most of it. Speak life into people and don't tear them down. As Brian Houston so wonderfully put it: "Don't let the smallness (drama) of people get in the way of what God has called you to love, which is people". This is as much preaching to me as it is to anyone (some of these things I haven't been too good on lately...) but God just really layed this on my heart today to say. God has placed people in your life for a reason. Love them, honor them, minister to them. Make the most of being in each others' lives. Trust me: it's wonderful when you do :)