Everything happens for a reason.
Have you ever had a day that seems to be out to get you?
It's as though every moment you face was specifically designed to bring you down?
Then the next day comes around and yet again it's knocking you to your feet. Soon, your week is behind you and all you feel is a sense of failure and loss...like you did something wrong.
There are times when all we work for will appear to have been pointless, and all that remains are remnants of once confident people.
Everything happens for a reason.
Life can just plain suck, from time to time. The truth is, we find ourselves stuck in mud and dirt far too often. Our natural instinct is to be ashamed of being dirty. We like to feel clean.
Who's to say that getting dirty is a shameful experience? We all experience it, but when others have mud in their eyes we choose to judge and criticize their behavior rather than show compassion.
Everything happens for a reason.
At the end of the day, it is our failures that we remember more clearly than our victories. Why does this happen? What makes failure ring so true in our souls?
Maybe it is because we want to change so badly what we did. No matter how hard we try, we can never take back a moment that has passed and that hurts. We have to choose to move past hurtful events. We have to choose to carry the pain as far as we're meant to...and then drop it.
There are no coincidences. There are no accidents.
Everything happens for a reason.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Narrative
I have been in Los Angeles for about a week and a half now and I have to be honest, I like it here. Sure there are plenty of things to hate about it, like the smog, traffic and overall feelings of superiority residents seem to have here, but those are prices one must pay in order to live in the most creative city in the world.
This town, is a mosaic of talent and vision. Everyone has something they want to accomplish.
Everyone has a story to tell.
I am blessed to have made the journey here with a couple of my close friends. I am also fortunate to be reunited with old friends. I have said goodbye to family, close friends, and people I care about to be here and it's hard to do that.
The first two weeks at LAFSC are designed as orientation. You meet your roommates and classmates as well as the teachers. On Saturday, the day of checking in, they had all of us students meet for dinner. They placed name tags at random tables across the room. I ended up at a table full of girls.
Side note, this is the first time in college I've been at an institution with a higher ratio of males than of females. Just an interesting observation that tells you about girls and film.
Our resident director chose to sit at the table with us and it was a great night. Dan got a kick out of the fact that I was at the girl table. He even said it was only funny because it was me. I reminded him that I spent a lot of time with the volleyball team last semester and that he was just jealous he couldn't get his pimpin' on (because I talk like that all the time).
That Sunday, we had more orientation at the center, which is within walking distance from the apartments. Me and Aaron walked by the La Brea Tar Pits which were an interesting place. We were not able to go to church that week but this past Sunday we were able to, and encouraged to, go wherever we wished to.
If you know anything about me and the city of Los Angeles, you probably know where I attended. I went to Mosaic, which is the church Erwin McManus is over. It was a 7:00 P.M. service, so I spent most of my day sitting with anxiety. I skipped out on an opportunity to go to the Santa Monica Pier for the sunset, which is truly a glorious experience I wish to take part in soon, but I knew that the group wouldn't make it back in time for me to go to Mosaic.
At around 6:15 p.m. myself, Aaron, and a new friend named Andrew, loaded into Vanilla Bear (my Bonneville). We took off and met up with one of our instructors, John and his wife. Some of the girls from the school found out about the place as well and decided to follow along.
If I was being completely honest, I would tell you that I was scared for a moment. You see, I've been wanting to attend this church since I first read The Barbarian Way when I was in eleventh grade. That is a long time to be building expectations, and I didn't want to be disappointed. Sitting in the seat before the service started was kind of like my experience right before watching The Dark Knight. Everything was fine until the lights faded down and the trailers began to play and I asked myself, "What if this sucks?!?"
Thankfully, like The Dark Knight, Mosaic did not suck. I refuse to speak too soon, but recently my means to gauge my experiences are whether or not I am moved. Well, I was moved.
The series they started last week was: Narrative: Live Your Story.
Wow. What a convenient topic?
Erwin shared his story, and in turn challenged us to write ours. Story is powerful and has the potential to impact lives and mine began with reading a book.
A month or so ago, I made the statement that I look forward to the day I get to thank Erwin McManus for ruining my life. It seems like an off-kilter thing to say but I would not be who I am today had it not been for his words. Many have read them, and he did not intend them to be designed for one person in particular. Regardless, they changed my life and I was able to follow up on that statement I made.
After the message, he was wandering around in the back near where I was standing. I walked up to him and he introduced himself. I did the same, and sounded like an idiot, I'm sure. I couldn't make eye contact. I felt like a child with attention deficit disorder. I gave him a little introduction before telling him what I wanted to say, but I said it and he smiled and said thank you.
He was kind and soft spoken, exactly what you would expect of the man.
That night felt like home. It felt as though I was supposed to be there and continue that journey...for now. A lot has happened in the past week and a half, and even more happened in the month prior.
The truth is, I am not so sure what's going to happen. I interview for an internship sometime this coming Friday and I am excited to see where that leads me.
As for the future, no one can say for sure what will happen next. All I know is that for the first time in my life, I'm trusting that God has a plan for my story. It is going somewhere and I am looking forward to seeing where that may be.
With that said...Welcome to Los Angeles.
-Christopher Peters
This town, is a mosaic of talent and vision. Everyone has something they want to accomplish.
Everyone has a story to tell.
I am blessed to have made the journey here with a couple of my close friends. I am also fortunate to be reunited with old friends. I have said goodbye to family, close friends, and people I care about to be here and it's hard to do that.
The first two weeks at LAFSC are designed as orientation. You meet your roommates and classmates as well as the teachers. On Saturday, the day of checking in, they had all of us students meet for dinner. They placed name tags at random tables across the room. I ended up at a table full of girls.
Side note, this is the first time in college I've been at an institution with a higher ratio of males than of females. Just an interesting observation that tells you about girls and film.
Our resident director chose to sit at the table with us and it was a great night. Dan got a kick out of the fact that I was at the girl table. He even said it was only funny because it was me. I reminded him that I spent a lot of time with the volleyball team last semester and that he was just jealous he couldn't get his pimpin' on (because I talk like that all the time).
That Sunday, we had more orientation at the center, which is within walking distance from the apartments. Me and Aaron walked by the La Brea Tar Pits which were an interesting place. We were not able to go to church that week but this past Sunday we were able to, and encouraged to, go wherever we wished to.
If you know anything about me and the city of Los Angeles, you probably know where I attended. I went to Mosaic, which is the church Erwin McManus is over. It was a 7:00 P.M. service, so I spent most of my day sitting with anxiety. I skipped out on an opportunity to go to the Santa Monica Pier for the sunset, which is truly a glorious experience I wish to take part in soon, but I knew that the group wouldn't make it back in time for me to go to Mosaic.
At around 6:15 p.m. myself, Aaron, and a new friend named Andrew, loaded into Vanilla Bear (my Bonneville). We took off and met up with one of our instructors, John and his wife. Some of the girls from the school found out about the place as well and decided to follow along.
If I was being completely honest, I would tell you that I was scared for a moment. You see, I've been wanting to attend this church since I first read The Barbarian Way when I was in eleventh grade. That is a long time to be building expectations, and I didn't want to be disappointed. Sitting in the seat before the service started was kind of like my experience right before watching The Dark Knight. Everything was fine until the lights faded down and the trailers began to play and I asked myself, "What if this sucks?!?"
Thankfully, like The Dark Knight, Mosaic did not suck. I refuse to speak too soon, but recently my means to gauge my experiences are whether or not I am moved. Well, I was moved.
The series they started last week was: Narrative: Live Your Story.
Wow. What a convenient topic?
Erwin shared his story, and in turn challenged us to write ours. Story is powerful and has the potential to impact lives and mine began with reading a book.
A month or so ago, I made the statement that I look forward to the day I get to thank Erwin McManus for ruining my life. It seems like an off-kilter thing to say but I would not be who I am today had it not been for his words. Many have read them, and he did not intend them to be designed for one person in particular. Regardless, they changed my life and I was able to follow up on that statement I made.
After the message, he was wandering around in the back near where I was standing. I walked up to him and he introduced himself. I did the same, and sounded like an idiot, I'm sure. I couldn't make eye contact. I felt like a child with attention deficit disorder. I gave him a little introduction before telling him what I wanted to say, but I said it and he smiled and said thank you.
He was kind and soft spoken, exactly what you would expect of the man.
That night felt like home. It felt as though I was supposed to be there and continue that journey...for now. A lot has happened in the past week and a half, and even more happened in the month prior.
The truth is, I am not so sure what's going to happen. I interview for an internship sometime this coming Friday and I am excited to see where that leads me.
As for the future, no one can say for sure what will happen next. All I know is that for the first time in my life, I'm trusting that God has a plan for my story. It is going somewhere and I am looking forward to seeing where that may be.
With that said...Welcome to Los Angeles.
-Christopher Peters
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Awake My Soul
A common theme this time of year is change.
Today is the first of a new year as well as a brand new decade. To usher it in, I have decided to change the title of the blog. What was once Northern Light(s), is now Awake My Soul.
The reason for the change are simple, I have changed. If you've read the original blog post explaining the title, you'll know that it was a reference to a band that I do not listen to anymore.
I have not been writing new entries to the speed or level of what I've done in the past so I appreciate anyone who has kept up with it regardless of my slowness.
So here it is: New year. New me. New title.
Awake My Soul is a song by one of my favorite bands. This particular band is not one I see myself ever growing tired of. With powerful, soul stirring lyrics that strike hard with every line, it's hard to grow weary from their honest, genuine, and intense passion.
In these bodies we will live
In these bodies we will die
Where you invest your love
You invest your life
-Awake My Soul
Ah yes. Where you invest your love...you invest your life. If that does not resonate with your soul, you're clearly missing something. Love is a tricky subject. I've spent a lot of time avoiding the topic as a whole, but it is far too important to sweep under the rug.
Love is action. Love is raw. Love is wild. Love cannot be tamed, although we've attempted to civilize it which is why it becomes such a sought after topic.
Songs have been sung, movies have been filmed, and novels have been written all about the subject of love.
We, humanity, are drawn to it. No matter how much it may hurt us, something keeps bringing us back for more. That's because it is something that should be equally given as well as it is received.
The human heart is fragile so we guard it, but love cannot be kept out. Love will find a way to breach all barriers that surround our weary souls.
Where does this leave us?
At some point, you must ask yourself, where do I invest my love?
If you are unsatisfied with the answer, I suggest you look deep within your soul, and find whatever it is that your heart beats for. It is a difficult journey of self-discovery, but it's one we all must constantly make.
Where do we start?
Well, I think a great place to start is by purchasing the album Sigh No More by Mumford & Sons. It will challenge you and it will change you...as long as you allow it to.
So as always, I invite you along for a new adventure. Join me through the discovery as well as the pain. Let your heart guide you through the turmoil, dirt and grime that comes with your humanity.
Let us all learn to live from the inside out.
-Christopher Peters
Today is the first of a new year as well as a brand new decade. To usher it in, I have decided to change the title of the blog. What was once Northern Light(s), is now Awake My Soul.
The reason for the change are simple, I have changed. If you've read the original blog post explaining the title, you'll know that it was a reference to a band that I do not listen to anymore.
I have not been writing new entries to the speed or level of what I've done in the past so I appreciate anyone who has kept up with it regardless of my slowness.
So here it is: New year. New me. New title.
Awake My Soul is a song by one of my favorite bands. This particular band is not one I see myself ever growing tired of. With powerful, soul stirring lyrics that strike hard with every line, it's hard to grow weary from their honest, genuine, and intense passion.
In these bodies we will live
In these bodies we will die
Where you invest your love
You invest your life
-Awake My Soul
Ah yes. Where you invest your love...you invest your life. If that does not resonate with your soul, you're clearly missing something. Love is a tricky subject. I've spent a lot of time avoiding the topic as a whole, but it is far too important to sweep under the rug.
Love is action. Love is raw. Love is wild. Love cannot be tamed, although we've attempted to civilize it which is why it becomes such a sought after topic.
Songs have been sung, movies have been filmed, and novels have been written all about the subject of love.
We, humanity, are drawn to it. No matter how much it may hurt us, something keeps bringing us back for more. That's because it is something that should be equally given as well as it is received.
The human heart is fragile so we guard it, but love cannot be kept out. Love will find a way to breach all barriers that surround our weary souls.
Where does this leave us?
At some point, you must ask yourself, where do I invest my love?
If you are unsatisfied with the answer, I suggest you look deep within your soul, and find whatever it is that your heart beats for. It is a difficult journey of self-discovery, but it's one we all must constantly make.
Where do we start?
Well, I think a great place to start is by purchasing the album Sigh No More by Mumford & Sons. It will challenge you and it will change you...as long as you allow it to.
So as always, I invite you along for a new adventure. Join me through the discovery as well as the pain. Let your heart guide you through the turmoil, dirt and grime that comes with your humanity.
Let us all learn to live from the inside out.
-Christopher Peters
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