Jesus was a Beach Bum

Nicodemus asks Jesus, "So you’re telling me I can be born though I’m obviously already born or I wouldn’t be here to ask you this question?”

Jesus smiles, nods and says, “You got it Nick!”

Nick shakes his head signifying he doesn’t get it and asks, “There’s no way I’m crawling back inside my Mom’s vagina to do it again? Or can I?"

Jesus yells "HEY!” then looks at Nick like he can’t believe the stupid ass question so he yells it again.

“HEY! LISTEN you moron … you gotta get wet … then you catch the Spirit …after that you can hang out with God.

“No one can enter the Kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit …” Jesus says according to John, the youngest and weirdest of the Apostles.

Water mixing with Spirit is … heavenly.

Biblical commentaries speculate that Jesus is talking about Baptisms but I have a difficult time following their logic since it has nothing to do with this particular conversation.

So Jesus was baptized by John.

It’s got nothing to do with the convo with Nick.

Jesus starts with water.

I like that.

Of course Sarah and I live beside the ocean so water is big to me … literally.

That means we live at the beach where the Spirit is easily found.

They go together.

Jesus was a beach bum.

To kick off his ministry he got baptized.

The first thing he did after being raised from the dead (no small feat) was host a fish fry on the beach.

It’s hard not to love Jesus.

I believe when he walked on water Jesus invented paddle boarding.

When he recruited Disciples his pitch was they could be fishers of men and women.

Jesus liked boats and often took sailing trips to crazy places like the “Region of the Gerasenes” hang out in graveyards with crazy people and eat bootleg Bar-b-Que (Jewish law forbade pork)!

Even when he was being crucified Jesus kept a positive attitude and probably thought something like, “At least I’m working on my tan.”

Many take issue with such depictions of the Messiah but the Gospels can certainly be read from a Beach Bum perspective.

And I swear to God when I’m standing on the beach watching God throw diamonds on the ocean, silhouettes of crippled people walking on the water, Pelicans diving and dolphins smiling, it’s just like being born again.

That’s why everybody needs some beach time.

Water and Spirit go together.

Find yours again in the water.

Happy Easter!

Surf's Up!

 

Defining Monday

In the decades I worked in corporate homelessness, I attacked Mondays with a vengeance. I hated the bastard. I took weekends to formulate my plans and hit the ground running as soon as Sunday ended and the sun came up. I kicked Monday's ass!

Then I ran out of gas.

Monday started winning and it paid me back in full.

I've got scars to prove it.

I started to hate Monday as soon as Friday rolled around. A time for celebration turned into the beginning of three days of dread. Sunday evenings dripped sadness and when the sun rose, I was bone weary, drug myself out of bed and sleep walked through the day.

So for a few years, Monday totally dominated, sucking the joy out of me, making me fake happiness, professionalism and enthusiasm.

I didn't recognize it at the time but I was really telling myself that I should be doing something else.

I was too stubborn ... too stupid ... to listen to me so I kept at it and things just got worse.

Depending on how I look at it, either I crashed and burned ... or ... God intervened.

It really does depend on how we choose to look at things.

I left that world and then I didn't know what to do with Monday. Suddenly, it was like every other day ... time to enjoy and make something out of ... something to endure.

It was up to me.

Now, Monday's are a quiet time. I start them slowly. We're like dancers, uncertain of how to begin, tentatively placing one hand in the other before slipping into a rhythm. The work is every bit as intense and demanding but I'm doing things I love again. And I'm doing them with the person I love.

It's what defines the Monday. It's what defines every day.

If you're doing what you love ... with those you love ... it's going to be a good day.

But if you're not, then Mondays are horrible.

Just like every other day.

It's up to you.
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October 2013 ♦ Embracing peace in your life! “You are one of the most tormented people I know,” she said. I was at the height of success, living at the beach, working in a beautiful city, having everything I thought I wanted…but she was right. I was miserable and didn’t know why. Then I decided to take a journey inside of myself. Life is too short and I deserved to happily celebrate my life. As much as I wanted to lay the blame at the feet of others, it was my own fault and I needed to know why I prevented myself from enjoying my life. I needed to find peace. And I did. You can find yours.

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Making Life Better

"Nobody could have survived what you have," he said standing in front of me with empathetic hurt on his face.

He would know.

At my Dad's funeral, he sat with other members of the Board of Directors, smiling and acting like a surrogate father which he believed he was, forever saying that he loved me like a son.

He was the first person I'd told that our company's Chief Financial Officer had misused over $1 Million, purposely covering it up in her finance reports. He was with me when I fired her and he kept checking on me as I called our supporters to explain what had happened.

He was along for the ride when the behavioral health collaborative I'd put together achieved tremendous initial success and then crashed and burned leaving me with egg on the picture of my face in the newspaper.

In the bar of the Phoenix Park hotel in Washington, D.C. I said to him, "I'm going to tell you something but I can't take your reaction but I need to tell you," and I told him that my wife had left demanding a divorce. He stiffened quickly and grabbed my arm and started saying how sorry he was.

During the last Board meeting I attended he gave a passionate, teary speech about how special I am and how much I'd given the company ... meaning pretty much everything. I sat staring at my hands, numb and untouched as though it was an out-of-body experience.

When I returned from St. Martin, having resigned from the company and it being front page news, he met me for coffee at Larry's Restaurant to ask, "What are you going to do now?" The truth of the matter was I had no idea. I was hurt, angry and exhausted.

"You need to get back on the horse right now," he instructed. "You've got too much to give."

I stared at him a long time before saying, "The last advice you gave me was some of the worst ever. Why should I listen to you now?"

And I didn't.

I'd known it was getting to be too much. Thirty years of giving it your all will catch up with anybody. I said as much, explaining I needed to step away for a while, take a Sabbatical, recharge my batteries so I could continue to give it my all.

"You can't do that," he'd told me. "You're too important. People will think it's a sign of weakness. Take it from me. It's for the best."

Pretty soon after that, everything happened quickly, leaving him to conclude that "Nobody could have survived what you have."

So in  Larry's Restaurant that day, I stood and said, "I'm not listening to you this time." And I left him sitting there with his coffee and confidence.

For the last three years, I've put Humpty Dumpty back together again and I have to say, "It's pretty damn good!"

I gave myself the Sabbatical. I spent a year working with the International Street Medicine Institute. Sarah came home after being away for a decade and love blossomed and we married and every day is a celebration. We have a beach home, Carnivals of friends, a wonderful family and lots of joy.

But something was missing. So we went to work creating new work to help others who are struggling through difficult and dark times. I survived and am happier and better off because of it. I want to help others do the same. Through a series of online classes, teleseminars, consistent and personal messages and direct communication we have the tools people need to survive the dark times ... AND TO MAKE LIFE BETTER.

I hope you never need it but, if you ever do, then help is there for you.

Check it out at http://www.meellc.com/wordpress/services/