Q & A With Robert Martinez

This past Monday, July 12th, we (being the internals, as we are affectionately called by some) had a question and answer time with Robert Martinez. Robert is one of the elders at Mosaic and is head of the counseling ministry. He began by telling us about his own journey to Mosaic, which began with the death of his first wife and the following depression and loneliness of his two young teenage daughters. A friend introduced the girls to Mosaic (formerley The Church on Brady) in order to get them connected with other young people. After a while, Robert joined the girls at Mosaic. Robert, through a series of interactions with people, became the go to guy for people in need of counseling and advice. His referrels eventually became so many that he decided to pursue counseling further and develop his God-given abilities. He has been heading the couseling ministry for over 25 years now. It was very beneficial to hear what he had to say about Christian counseling and what that looks like at Mosaic. Mostly, the couseling staff at Mosaic does marital and premarital counseling, due to its large number of singles. For the same reason, much of the counseling of young twentysomethings deals with life direction, God’s call upon their life, sin issues, relationship issues, and depression. Mosaic trains and certifies their own counselors, believing that the local church is the body responsible for counseling those who come within its doors. All attendees may receive counseling from Mosaic. One does not have to be a member. In fact, as any member of Mosaic would tell you, the only benefit to membership is getting to serve. Robert said that in all his years of doing this, he has only sent two people on to professional psychologists. His belief is that professional counseling tells a person what to put off, but not what to put on. It is not enough simply to break old habits, but it is vital to form new, good habits. This meeting was yet another great opportunity to hear more stories about the Mosaic community.

Impromptu Conversation with Alex McManus

Today, I was working in Alex’s McManus’s office with Peter. We were working on planning a retreat that is coming up on the 30th of this month. We were in Alex’s office because the lead team was having their weekly meeting in the big part of the office where all the couches are. When he came back in from his meeting we started to gather our things, but he said, “No, you guys don’t have to go. Please just stay there.” So we did. Alex sat at his desk whil we sat on the floor and he began to ask us what we were working on. That conversation evolved into “how did you come to be here at Mosaic”, “what are you long term goals for being here”, “what do you want to accomplish”, “what are your dreams”. As we talked, Mike came in and just asked if he could sit and listen. Soon, Josh came in and sat down too, then Jason and Merissa, then Scott, then Kendra, then Jen. We were all on the floor, listening intently to the wise sage. A work day turned into a 3 hour motivational, educational and inspirational conversation. We were being poured into. Alex asked us many question and talked about many things, getting to know each of our names, our personalities (mostly inferred through conversation), and our hopes. He asked us all, “what leader/hero in an action movie do you most see yourself as?” There was William Wallace and Robert Bruce from Braveheart, Legolas from Lord of the Rings and a number of others. I picked Samwise Gamgee, from Lord of the Rings. Sam was the one who kept the vision alive. He kept envisioning the Shire and being at home and was intent on accomplishing the task he had been given to do. He was loyal to the end, insisting that he made a promise and it was going to be kept. He may not have been the most obvious leader, and certainly on his own he would have been no good. But he had a cause worth fighting for and friends who were all fighting for that same cause. He had to be loyal to the accomplishment of fthe cause, for if he was not, life would cease and there would be no reason to go on living:

Frodo: “I can’t do this, Sam.”

Sam: “I know. It’s all wrong. By right we shouldn’t even be here. It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really matter. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn’t want to know the end, because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines, it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you that meant something. Even if you were too small to understand why.
But I think Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn’t. They kept going because they were holding on to something.

Frodo: What are we holding on to, Sam?

Sam: That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo. And it’s worth fighting for.

The next question was, “which leader/hero in an action movie would you most follow.” My answer again appeared from Lord of the Rings, sighting Aragorn this time. His humility and his servanthood speaks volumes of his character. His quiet life, his evident wisdom makes you intrigued as to what it might look like when all of his power as the king of men is unleashed. When it is time for him to assume his place as king, everyone is ready to follow, because his worth has been well proven by his quiet action.

“All that is gold does not glitter; not all those that wander are lost.”

Through talking with Alex and being able to connect and share my heart with him, and to gain insight about myself and my dreams, I was forever changed. Every so often people step into our lives that make us rethink everything: our worldview, our theology, our mission. I’ve met so many of those kinds of people this summer and will be better for it.

Hymn II

You are God and I am man
And all my life is in your hands

God of wind
God of fire
God of earth and sea
and all my heart requires

Holy fire, it’s so dangerous to touch you
But my desire is to burn

Remember Who You Are

“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.”

James 1:22-25

-You are a warrior. Warriors never use their power to hurt others.

I. MUSCLE MEMORY ILLUSTRATION

A. when you get injured your muscles get amnesia and forget what they are created to do
B. healing involves rebuilding the muscle’s memory as well as tissue
C. the older we get the longer it takes to rebuild muscle memory

II. SOUL MEMORY

A. we forget how we were created to live as a result of sin; when we sin we damage our souls and cause soul amnesia, forgetting how we were created to live
B. we have moment of insights, times when we remember how we were created to live; when we are about to act on these insights and do something we were created for (or not do something we weren’t created for) we forget; we have soul amnesia
C. we must remember who we are so that we know what to do
D. by forgetting we deceive ourselves; we can deceive others momentarily, and we cannot deceive God; he knows how he created us to live; he knows exactly who we were intended to be
E. this isn’t about doing the right thing, it’s about being recreated and remembering how we were created to live and then actually living that way
F. THE DECEPTION: there is something better out there than the life God created us to live (Gen 3)
G. THE TEN COMMANDMENTS: MORAL LAW IS CONNECTED TO DIVINE DESIGN

1. living below this minimum standard means we are living like animals
2. this is not an extraordinary code; they are the lowest common denominator
3. we were not designed to lie, covet, murder, steal or lust, etc; when we do these things we damage our souls and get soul amnesia, forgetting how we were created to live; we forget what it means to be human
4. God doesn’t want anyone or anything to define who we are, save him

H. do not write your life apart from God
I. if you listen and don’t act you are a “memento” (reference to the movie)
J. THE PERSON YOU WERE CREATED TO BE IS NOT THE PERSON YOU WERE IN THE PAST, BUT THE PERSON GOD WILL MAKE YOU IN THE FUTURE

The Hollywood Hills are Alive With the Sound of Music

Tonight, I was privileged to go the Hollywood Bowl, a huge outdoor ampitheater in Hollywood. It is home to the LA Philharmonic (with whom Nickel Creek will be playing in September) and many other acts that stop by. Tonight was special though, because tonight was Sing-A-Long with The Sound of Music. That’s right, we all sat in our seats watched the movie on the big screen and sang along as the words appeared. Before the show, they had a costume contest and many were dressed up as characters in the film. Four children took home the grand prize of airfare and accomidations for two in San Franscico. Brilliant mom and dad, brilliant. Dress up your four children as “Rain Drops On Roses” and then leave them at home with grandma and grandpa and enjoy a weekend getaway. Genius! It was great to see the movie again and especially with such an interactive audience. Everyone was way into it. At one point, when Captain von Trapp is singing “Edelweiss”, a majority of the audience held up their cell phones with the lights on and swayed with them back and forth. Now, this type of thing is usually done with a lighter at a rock concert, and the atmosphere is usally one of smoke (of any variety) and beer. However, in the Hollywood Hills, they prefer cell phones and wine. I didn’t join in, but did I sit there quite amused. The cool night air was great for the sunburn I aquired Friday at the beach, and my aching musles from playing broom hockey/ball on Friday night have been grateful for all of the Advil I’ve been taking for the burn pain.

Music City?

Well, yet another option has been thrown onto my plate while here in Southern California. Mike, an intern here at Mosaic and a graduate of Asbury Seminary, is here in preparation to plant a Mosaic church in Nashville. He isn’t the main guy, but he is on board and currently looking for jobs in the area. The other night when we were talking on top of The Standard Hotel (see “Catch Up” blog)he basically said to me, “come with us and help.” At first I just kind of played it off like it wasn’t an option. It didn’t take me long to remember how much I loved Nashville. I’ve wanted to live there at some point in my life for as long as I can remember, possibly doing work in the music industry. It was always just a dream, and now I can possibly make it a reality. Oddly enough, church planting is something that I have always wanted to do. The idea of beginning a church, starting from the ground up has always appealed to me, and now I have to opportunity to do it in a city I love with people who share my vision for the Kingdom of God.

Right now, I have about 6 weeks to decide where my life is headed next. I can stay here, get a job, maybe start a masters programs, or I can begin to search for jobs in Nashville and head down there in the fall. Let’s be honest: right now,as always, Nashville is much more appealing. It’s smaller, it’s familiar, it’s closer to home. I have a had a wonderful experience so far here in LA, and through it I have found out what I really like. And I really like the mid-west and the southland. This is truly where my heart is, with the people of those areas of the country. In talking with Mike, we share the same vision of awakening or re-awakening the Church in this area to an understading of the dynamic mission of Christ. I want to be an agent of change in the place my heart most dearly loves.

However, I still do not know what the future will hold for me in the fall. This girl does not make decisions quickly. Mike encouraged me to fast and pray about the decision at hand. The cool part is, there isn’t a bad choice. Both options will move me in the direction I want to go. Both options put me in places where I can learn, grow and move with God.

Please keep praying for this wanderer.

The Summit IV (skipped week III)

This Monday night at the Summit, we all discussed our strengths as found by the Gallup Organizations strengths finder test. Out of a possible 34 strengths, this test gives you your top five and only your top five in order that you may enhance your strengths instead of dwelling on your weaknesses. As an introspective person what I can’t do and what I’m not good at are on my mind quite often. Taking this test was great for me to realize what I am good at and how I can best use those strengths in a job, in ministry and in interpersonal relationships. Here are my top five strengths:

Input [thinking family]

You are inquisitive. You collect things. You might collect information-words, facts, books, and quotations-or you might collect tangible objects such as butterflies, baseball cards, porcelain dolls, or sepia photographs. Whatever you collect, you collect it because it interests you. And yours is the kind of mind that finds so many things interesting. The world is exciting precisely because of its infinite variety and complexity. If you read a great deal, it is not necessarily to refine your theories but, rather, to add more information to your archives. If you like to travel, it is because each new location offers novel artifacts and facts. These can be acquired and then stored away. Why are they worth storing? At the time of storing it is often hard to say exactly when or why you might need them, but who knows when they might become useful? With all those possible uses in mind, you really don’t feel comfortable throwing anything away. So you keep acquiring and compiling and filing stuff away. It’s interesting. It keeps your mind fresh. And perhaps one day some of it will prove valuable.

Intellection [thinking family]

You like to think. You like mental activity. You like exercising the “muscles” of your brain, stretching them in multiple directions. This need for mental activity may be focused; for example, you may be trying to solve a problem or develop an idea or understand another person’s feelings. The exact focus will depend on your other strengths. On the other hand, this mental activity may very well lack focus. The theme of Intellection does not dictate what you are thinking about; it simply describes that you like to think. You are the kind of person who enjoys your time alone because it is your time for musing and reflection. You are introspective. In a sense you are your own best companion, as you pose yourself questions and try out answers on yourself to see how they sound. This introspection may lead you to a slight sense of discontent as you compare what you are actually doing with all the thoughts and ideas that your mind conceives. Or this introspection may tend toward more pragmatic matters such as the events of the day or a conversation that you plan to have later. Wherever it leads you, this mental hum is one of the constants of your life.

Relator [relating family]

Relator describes your attitude toward your relationships. In simple terms, the Relator theme pulls you toward people you already know. You do not necessarily shy away from meeting new people-in fact, you may have other themes that cause you to enjoy the thrill of turning strangers into friends-but you do derive a great deal of pleasure and strength from being around your close friends. You are comfortable with intimacy. Once the initial connection has been made, you deliberately encourage a deepening of the relationship. You want to understand their feelings, their goals, their fears, and their dreams; and you want them to understand yours. You know that this kind of closeness implies a certain amount of risk-you might be taken advantage of-but you are willing to accept that risk. For you a relationship has value only if it is genuine. And the only way to know that is to entrust yourself to the other person. The more you share with each other, the more you risk together. The more you risk together, the more each of you proves your caring is genuine. These are your steps toward real friendship, and you take them willingly.

Learner [thinking family]

You love to learn. The subject matter that interests you most will be determined by your other themes and experiences, but whatever the subject, you will always be drawn to the process of learning. The process, more than the content or the result, is especially exciting for you. You are energized by the steady and deliberate journey from ignorance to competence. The thrill of the first few facts, the early efforts to recite or practice what you have learned, the growing confidence of a skill mastered-this is the process that entices you. Your excitement leads you to engage in adult learning experiences-yoga or piano lessons or graduate classes. It enables you to thrive in dynamic work environments where you are asked to take on short project assignments and are expected to learn a lot about the new subject matter in a short period of time and then move on to the next one. This Learner theme does not necessarily mean that you seek to become the subject matter expert, or that you are striving for the respect that accompanies a professional or academic credential. The outcome of the learning is less significant than the “getting there.”

Adaptability [striving family]

You live in the moment. You don’t see the future as a fixed destination. Instead, you see it as a place that you create out of the choices that you make right now. And so you discover your future one choice at a time. This doesn’t mean that you don’t have plans. You probably do. But this theme of Adaptability does enable you to respond willingly to the demands of the moment even if they pull you away from your plans. Unlike some, you don’t resent sudden requests or unforeseen detours. You expect them. They are inevitable. Indeed, on some level you actually look forward to them. You are, at heart, a very flexible person who can stay productive when the demands of work are pulling you in many different directions at once.

I have a lot of thinking themes, which I knew beforehand. I didn’t necessarily think they were strengths, just characteristics that made me socially awkward at times:) Sometimes I wish I wasn’t so heady, but that is how God made me. Now, the task before me is to figure out what to do with these strengths. What career path to pursue (yes, Isaid the word career), what ministry suits me best and how to apply my strengths to my everyday relationships with other. I will write more as I discover more.