“Progress, not perfection,” has been one of my mantras for years. That’s what this is all about. As I bare my soul, maybe you’ll feel free to do the same. We’re all on the same playing field, and none of us has an edge. Being real, authentic, relevant, and experiential, – well, isn’t that what community is all about?

Thanks again for the great feedback!

Several months ago, I had to lock down my Twitter and Facebook updates because people in “the church” were unable to process my Luke 15:1 & 2 ministry.

Politically correct? Not me.

Tactful? I’m learning.

Someone once said we can catch more bees with honey. This is one reason I’m willing to climb back down the ladder of growth and help those who are still struggling.

I’ve found that when I use empathetic story-telling, some people confuse that – like the person who sent the email which I mentioned in this post. Often, in a small group setting, I’ll share something that isn’t really an issue for me anymore, in a way that I like to think helps others relate to the growth that God has graced within me. But some people think I’m still struggling with this issue, and rush to my defense and/or protection. In reality, I didn’t really tell the story for my benefit, I told it for the benefit of those still struggling.

Remember, the title of this post is “Prequel:…” This literary tool allows me to step back in time and tell a story before the other stories. George Lucas used this well in bringing Star Wars 1, 2, & 3 to us, almost 20 years after we’d seen the others. So, while things are a bit tough right now, emotionally, physically (three surgeries in as many weeks), and spiritually – trying to understand the whys and hows of God’s ways, I do not feel as if I’m drowning, struggling, or even outside of the boat.

But, you have given me an idea for my next post, which will be entitled, “Reaching Back.”

Thanks for your concern brother!

Thanks for sharing – I hope you keep writing – better yet, start a blog and share with the rest of us – I can help you get started!

I do have an opinion on political correctness…I think it is stupid. To censor oneself for a small group of over sensitive people seems ridiculous. But then I am not a member of a small group of over sensitive people so it is easy for me to have this opinion.

I have often thought of writing a book, but one for kids…they are about me speed! Kim

I know I don’t live in the past, but if you don’t learn from your mistakes, look at your past successes, and leave the things that don’t work behind, then you can never live in the present.

The world is changing on how we connect on personal levels. Sometimes I wish the internet had not been invented , but it humbles me to know that I have contact with many people from around the United States, that I have come to know some and have become friends with authors of book, yes I do have a few that we have conversations through email, and that I have inspired some people to move outside of the institutional thought.

What I find about you, Gary, is you were the kind of guy that would do anything for anyone,which is good, but it took getting out of the little church to start you on your journey of who you really are. I’m there too.
God has humbled both of us, and we continue to change.

Soon, those that used to know you well will wonder what has happened to you, why you are not what you used to be. This will be good. What I read in your blog is fantastic! Keep going with God! You are loved.
(Yeah, that’s a bit corny, but so is love at times.)

I have discovered most people never try to make sense of things. If one does try to make sense of things they better be honest. When honest they will discover things that make them and the people who would be concerned about the story uncomfortable. When a person starts connecting the dots the picture is not always what one has believed all their life.

I am now into the period of which I have a living memory. I continue to wonder how the people I know will react to the story.

After having read your blog, I am left a mental pictureof a person swimming to cross a large river of thoughts. He is a fast swimmer. His natural and cultivated talent as a writer and wordsmith has carried him quckly and far… The further he goes into the middle of the river, where the current is swiftest, the higher the waves of adversity become, and the stronger the winds of life push and spash against him. He is strong, but the current is stronger.

Being affected by the current, he is begining to show the strain and is tiring; He begins to loose sight of the shore as the waves begin to crest around him. His course has changed. The boats and large ships pass without any notice of the swimmer, beating him with their spreading wakes.

Treading water for a short awhile he may attempt to muster his resolve and try to rally more strength, all the while knowing that the current is carrying him further away from his original goal, –or any shoreline for that matter. Inperceptively his core body heat has become dangerously cold. He has been on rescue teams and seen how hypothermia and death happen too quickly in the big river. Now it is his life that is at risk. Before he becomes dangerously affected by the cold waters, will he look up and around for help? Can he see a boat? About now, any boat would be a welcome sight. But will he be willing to admit his weakness and call out to a boat?

(Remember Clancy’s “Invisible Boat” story? — if not, email me.)

A tired swimmer finds himself too far from shore, when he sees some fellows coming near him, and they appear to be rowing, but he sees no oars in their hands. And as they get closer, he realizes they are sitting up in the water and rowing, but he sees no boat! They invite him to get into their “Invisible Boat”! But he is no idiot, and he is certainly not going to go along with some crazy guys in their invisible boat. So, he tells them, “No Thank you, I am doing just fine.” So they row away from him for awhile.

Sometime later, they return and invite him to get into the invisible boat. But again the exhausted swimmer declines, and they leave him to his struggles. A third time, they row near the tired swimmer, and invite him into the invisible boat. At last, the swimmer is at the point of drowning and nearly given up. With all his pride beaten, and his body nearing the point of death, he weakly agrees and reaches for the men and their invisible boat. . Amazingly his hands find the invisible boat and he is helped inside.

There is more to the story, Gary, and it ends well.

*********

Find a boat…

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PS:
On another note, I can agree with the cautionary advice about public posts. Being totaly honest and an “open-book” for all to read, also increases the likelyhood of our being a targeted of bias, and contempt. And most likely, we end up being wounded by prejudice. While I am actively searching for a job, I have closed most of my Facebook to the public. I remain completely open to my friends and family, but to the world, I must be guarded against needlessly stirring up “contempt prior to investigation”.

I agree with you about being a good fit somewhere, but like Erwin McManus once said, “Dating is a process of withholding information. We hope we can marry the other person before they find out who we really are.” I think sometimes a job search can be like that too – we hope to make ourselves invaluable to the employer before they find out what a fraud we are.

Thanks again!