unnoticed

Why Get Married?

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 2 Comments

I was channel surfing on a night when there wasn’t much that caught my eye. I came across Shall We Dance,  the American remake of a Japanese movie, neither of which I’ve seen all the way through. But I did see one scene that caught my attention.

In it, the character played by Susan Sarandon is offering her own reason why people get married. You’d expect her to say for reasons of romance or passion or out of desperate need. In fact, that’s what most people would say. But her answer floored me.

I’d never thought about marriage in this context before, but it makes sense. At least to me. Here’s what she said:

Witness

It makes me want to watch both versions of the movie all the way through. I hope it will change the way you view marriage, whether you’re already married, engaged to be married, or just one of those hopeful romantics who haven’t met the right person yet.

 

Dis con ect ted

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There’s a movie I really like that you’ve probably never heard of. In this movie, a woman is shopping and trying on a new dress. Suddenly and inexplicably, reality shifts and no one can see or hear her anymore. As much as she frantically shouts and begs for people to notice her, no one does.

Do you ever feel like that? Do you feel like you have days when you feel disconnected from the rest of the world?

As someone who’s been there, done that, I have a few reminders.

1) Just because you feel it doesn’t make it true. Feelings don’t always tell the truth. They mean well, but they can be so very misleading, especially when you’re tired or hungry or if you have an upset stomach or a headache. Anything like that can affect your feelings.

2) Even if it were true that no one knew you were there (which is highly unlikely), God would know. There’s a verse in the Psalms that says that He knows when you make your bed in hell or when you’re dancing in the heavens. Or something like that. The point is that God always knows where you are and what you’re going through.

3) Those who matter will notice. Those who don’t, won’t. It really is that simple.

4) Use those days to find someone else who looks left out and reach out to them. Use your own feelings to identify with them and help them know they’re not alone either. Sit next to a lonely stranger and strike up a conversation. Offer a smile to the one whom no one else notices. It could be a world of difference for them.

Everyone has those disconnected days. Even you crazy extroverts. But take heart. These days only last 24 hours, just like all the other days. And in my own experience, there are very few things that a good night’s sleep and a fresh start won’t fix.

 

 

Why I Still Love Being a Kairos Greeter

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image

I don’t know exactly when I started greeting at Kairos, but I figure that this fall will mark 8 years. It doesn’t seem like it, but the math doesn’t lie. At least if I did my math right.

I still love standing at the door and making people feel welcome as they walk through to Kairos. It may not seem like a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but I think it’s an important role.

I may be the only smiling face someone will see all day long. If someone feels unnoticed and unwanted, I could be the one who in essence says, “I see you. I notice you. You matter to me and I want you to feel like you belong here.”

I’ve seen people whose faces absolutely light up because someone (me) saw them and took time and effort to say hi to them. That’s all. Just a smile and a wave and a hello.

I’ve been on the other side of the smile, feeling invisible and wishing someone– anyone would acknowledge my existance. I have known what it feels like to feel alone in a crowd.

Hopefully, you can take this and use it in your own lives. Who knows what person whose day you can completely turn around and revolutionize just by a smile and a kind word of greeting. You don’t have to share your entire life story or become best friends with the person. Sometimes just seeing the people, looking in their faces, and validating their existence is enough.

So I hope to continue being a greeter for as long as God allows. Not so people will recognize me and think how cool and great I am. I want to be that one smiling face that makes someone’s day a little bit better and shows a little bit of God’s love to everyone I meet.

That’s all.

Immanuel: For All Those Times

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Immanuel is God with us, in the flesh, walking alongside of us, sharing our burdens and joys and sorrows, even now. The Kingdom of God isn’t just some faraway pie-in-the-sky somewhere-over-the-rainbow place for when we die, it’s the presence of God in our midst at this very moment.

For when you’re at a party and you feel alone in the crowd, unnoticed and unwanted, Jesus is there with you.

For when you’re interested in someone and just realized that they aren’t the least bit interested in you in the same way (and probably never will be), Jesus knows what you’re feeling.

For when you feel like you’re not that high up on anybody’s priority list and they’d probably rather be hanging out with their cooler, artsier friends than you, Jesus chose you because he wanted you, not because you were all that was left. He picked you.

For when you’re in a season of trial and your friends seem to be growing more distant and less friendly, Jesus is still the friend who sticks closer than a brother. You realize that they’re too busy dealing with their own pain to fully notice yours and know the same Jesus who is with you in your pain is with them in theirs.

For when you have a story to tell but no one is listening and no one seems to want to hear it at all, Jesus, the one who wrote your story and knows it by heart, is listening.

For when you’ve come to the absolute end of your rope and have completely run out of hope, Jesus is right in front of you, saying “Just take one more step toward me. Just give me the tiniest bit of what’s left of your faith, and I’ll get you through.”

For when you can’t tell the lies and fears from reality, when you know what you’re thinking isn’t true or even sane but think it anyway, Jesus is still the Life, the Truth, and the Way. He’s still your life, your ultimate truth, and the way for you to get back home.

You’ll find one day that you can be in a group and not have to have the attention all the time.

You’ll find one day that when that someone you’re interested in finds their true love, you can sincerely rejoice for them.

You’ll find one day that the place God brings you to was worth all he brought you through and you’d go through all of it again to be at this amazing new place.

You’ll find one day that you can’t hear the lies anymore and the fears disappear as you grow in God’s love and learn to hear his still small voice speaking to you.

Even then, he is still Immanuel. God with us. God with me. God with you.