I heard something tonight that may have changed the way I view the calling of God. Basically, the speaker said that God’s call isn’t so much about a profession as it is about a person.

Jesus’ call to the disciples was to come and follow Him. That’s the primary call He gives to us today. We may have gifts and talents, but the primary call is to follow Jesus.

As the speaker put it, if my calling is to be a football player and I blow out my knee, then my calling becomes null and void. If my calling is to be a singer and I lose my voice, then my calling no longer applies.

But if my calling is to follow Jesus, that will last forever. Everything else that I do will be as a result of my obedience to Jesus’ first command to all of us– follow Me.

As I write these words, I’m still processing this in my head. It means that I’m no longer what I do (or don’t do) for a living, or how much I earn or how many titles and degrees I have, but I’m who Jesus calls me to be. I’m a follower of Jesus.

Mind. Blown.

Tonight, I went with my mother to see the long-awaited sequel to 2008’s Mamma Mia, starring the ever-amazing Meryl Streep and the songs of that stalwart 70’s group Abba.

Let’s just say the plot for that first film was flimsy and full of holes. The second one was nearly nonexistent. But who goes to see a musical for the plot?

Musicals are all about the spectacle, the songs, the scenery. They’re truly about feel good moments. Musicals exist in a world where people spontaneously break into song and dance without any warning and where apparently everyone knows the words and dance steps even if they’ve never heard the song before.

But Mamma Mia 2 was worth it. I promise to keep this spoiler-free, so I’ll just mention that there are a couple of moments where the joy is overwhelming and palpable and a moment or two where a bit of sadness prevails.

I think we need more musicals. We don’t need more reality TV and crime procedurals based on true events. We need something to escape to, a world where anything’s possible and where people end up mostly living happily ever after.

I’ll probably pick up Mamma Mia when it hits the shelves at Target on some future Tuesday. Now all of you go see it in your nearest movie theater. You will thank me later.

I think the title says it all.

I ended up not getting to sleep in any this weekend, but it was worth it. From a fantastic concert Friday night to Belmont Move-In Day early on Saturday to doing my volunteering thing at church this morning to my company’s fantasy football draft this afternoon, it was a jam packed weekend.

So I vote that tomorrow and possibly the next day should be a national holiday of some kind, so I can sleep in those days. That’d be nice.

I did get a nap in on Saturday, so I’m not completely zapped.

I suppose on Monday morning I can survive with a little bit of coffee and a whole lot of Jesus. But then again, that’s every single day of my life.

After a year hiatus, I was able again to participate in helping with Belmont Move-in Day for incoming freshmen. I missed it last year and so getting the opportunity to lug boxes up and down stairs and down dorm hallways wasn’t something I was going to miss out on this year.

I’ve never seen a system like this that was so well-organized. Something that would have taken the students and their parents all day to do takes 5 minutes, leaving more time for the parents to spend with the child they’re leaving behind.

I did see one mom who was doing her best to hold it together emotionally while she was moving her daughter in to Belmont. She’d dab away a tear occasionally, but I know she was trying not to lose it until she got back in her car on the way home.

I know for me starting college was a big exciting adventure but also one of the biggest adjustments I’d ever had to make. It was thrilling and frightening at the same time. I know I probably needed some friendly and assuring faces to remind me that everything would be okay.

It was hot, sweaty, strenuous, and worth every bit of the time and effort I put into it. Hopefully, God willing, I’ll be back next year for another round of freshmen students and boxes.

2018 might not be the Year of Concerts quite like 2011 was, but I did keep up my tradition of hearing good music live by seeing Lori McKenna at the CMA Theatre in the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum Friday night.

It was worth every bit of the ticket price, parking fees, and driving to downtown to hear one of my favorite songwriters exhibiting her craft. If I had a complaint (and only a very mild one), it would be that she didn’t do much of her older songs. Still, the newer ones were good enough that I didn’t mind.

At this point, I prefer smaller venues over the big arenas. There’s more intimacy there. I don’t feel like I end up watching a video screen the entire time. I can actually see the artist performing.

Thanks to Lori McKenna for a great night and for writing some of the best songs to come around for quite some time. Whenever I listen to her music, I’m reminded again what it was that made me fall in love with music in the first place.

All in all, it was a good night, even if I did stay up a bit past my normal bedtime. I can always nap the next day.

I think I couldn’t have said it any better myself. Mr. Spurgeon certainly had a way with words, as evidenced in the Morning and Evening devotional I’m currently reading.

Remember that your Creator is in no danger of forgetting about you tonight. He not only knows who you are but also where you are and what you need, not to mention exactly when you need it.

You can rest in His promised provisions and sleep on a bed of peace, knowing that the your cares are now in Nail Scarred Hands.

You can trust all your tomorrows to the God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

I admit that I am an Elvis fan. I’ve been one ever since I was old enough to appreciate music (or even know what it was). I’ve probably heard just about everything he ever recorded, including the outtakes.

Recently, I’ve been listening to A Boy from Tupelo, a compilation of everything he recorded from 1953-1955 while he was at Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee.

Even now as I listen to these songs, I’m aware that Elvis was creating a form of music that hadn’t been heard before. It was the birth of rock ‘n’ roll.

The songs sound better than ever and I’m more fully able to appreciate the genius of this era of Elvis Presley. I’m convinced that if Elvis stopped after Sun Studios, he’d still be a legend for what he did in those 2 short years. It’s hard to believe he was only 20 when he left for RCA in 1955.

I’m a fan of all the eras of Elvis music, but for me, the Sun Records era is still the best.

Here’s the link if you want to check out history being made:

https://smile.amazon.com/Boy-Tupelo-Complete-1953-1955-Recordings/dp/B0711ZT7TJ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1534302804&sr=8-1&keywords=a+boy+from+tupelo+the+complete+1953-55+recordings

Today, I found out that something I did at work didn’t quite work the way I planned because I left one tiny little box unchecked. Just one tiny little box that kept what I was doing from working right.

Fortunately, it was easily fixed, but it got my strange little mind going.

I wonder if that same principle works in reverse.

How many great big things happen as a result of a lot of little things done by a lot of people over a long period of time?

Maybe that little act of service or kindness that you do on a daily basis doesn’t seem like a lot to you.

Maybe that menial task you do every day doesn’t seem to be worth it.

Maybe God has something grand in store for you and He’s waiting to see if you can be responsible with the little stuff.

“If you’re faithful in small-scale matters, you’ll be faithful with far bigger responsibilities. If you’re crooked in small responsibilities, you’ll be no different in bigger things” (Luke 16:10, The Voice).

Maybe if you serve in the little and menial tasks with the same zeal as if you’re doing great and mighty things, perhaps one day you’ll be entrusted by God with great and mighty things. Or maybe those seemingly insignificant little things will have great and mighty results.

As I randomly perused through the wonderful little Facebook memories section known as On This Day, I discovered that I started my current job three years ago today.

Technically, I was a temp until I officially started in December of that same year, but it’s close enough for me.

I’ve slept a few times since August 12, 2015, but I believe that originally the job was a two-week assignment. I had interviewed earlier that year for a full-time position, but hadn’t been hired.

For me, even that was a blessing. I had been downsized from Affinion Group in May 2012 and had spent three long years searching, hoping, praying, and working on a number of temp assignments. A couple of them looked promising and even held the potential to become permanent, but it never quite worked out until this one.

I’d like to say that I had a strategy and worked out my plan, but really what I did was this: I trusted in God and I waited. I didn’t define myself by the career I didn’t have but went about the rest of my life and still lived it.

I learned that my true identity doesn’t come from my job title (or lack of it). It comes from being my Abba’s beloved. That identity won’t ever change. No downturn in the economy or major shakeup in the work force can alter the fact that I am a child of God.

I hope and pray that you love your job, but I also hope and pray that you have a balance, that you have a strong and vibrant life outside of your career. I hope that your identity isn’t in your title or salary or promotions or awards but in who God says you are. At the end of your life, that’s what will really and truly matter.