Wednesday, August 02, 2006

Motivation

I've never been one to be motivated by pain, loss, or anger. Curiosity is the way to get me started, promise of adventure the way to get me snared, and good times the way to keep my attention. The one time I was motivated by anger, it ended so poorly that I am almost embarassed by my success.

Okay, that's too good of a set up to not tell the brief story, even if its beside the point. When I was a Junior on the swim team in High School, I was only a so-so swimmer (I was never very fast, but I always had a great amount of endurance). There was a new freshman on the team that year who had swam with a club down in Los Angeles and was considered the top prospect for our team. Everyone was really eager to have her on the team - even me. And she was Fast! Like lightning! But, with all the attention she'd received, she was perhaps a little too used to winning. Anyway, my coach decided to try and motivate her to work a little harder, so he ordered the entire team into two lines and then he raced us, one against the other. Since I swam the Individual Medley, I was capable of swimming any stroke - but butterfly was my weakest (lots of arm strength required). Her best stroke was the butterfly and here we were, going head to head. The result was predictable. She crushed me. Blew me out of the water. I was thinking nothing of it until my coach ripped into me like R.Lee Ermey as a drill sergeant. I have never seen him that angry before. I was PISSED. I got back in that lane next to her and hit the water like it was the finals of the Olympics. I beat her by three strokes. I was feeling pretty good. She was devastated. Even the coach laid off her after I had won. The final result was, she quit the team and moved back to Los Angeles and as far as I know never swam competitively again (her sister was still at my school and I'd occassionally ask about her). She might have been good one day, but my anger changed all that.

That, as I said, is neither here nor there.

Ever since I read R. Sherman's comments on last Friday's category, my mind has been whirling. It wasn't anger that motivated my response on Monday, though, it was curiosity. His comment made me realize that I had not really given the whole subject of Heaven and Salvation a good thought in a lot of time. It also made me realize how this one subject is probably the most divisive subject in human history - as the question of the afterlife drives most religions and hence, most belief systems. I admit that I can't get the idea out of my head.

That is why I decided to devote an entire youth group year to a study of Heaven and Salvation. There is enough out there in the popular culture (From the Simpsons, to South Park, to movies, to books...) that even without a scholarly approach, it could easily take us a year to discuss everything about Heaven and Salvation that we can find.

So, I have a question for those readers out there who might have given thought to this subject before... does anyone know a good text for Jr. High and Sr. High kids that talks about this subject? Even if its just a starting point, it might be a fun way to kick off the discussion.

I look forward to all your answers.

2 comments:

Andy said...

I'd start with The Great Divorce by CS Lewis. Brilliant, thought provoking, piece of fiction that really hits on the acceptance of Christ. Some funny imagery in there as well, and lots of sadness too. But the book also speaks to the greatness of God's Heaven and His eternity.

An absolute must read.

Unknown said...

Seriously, I love the book What Dreams May Come. It is a powerful story - even if Hollywood botched it. I read it and cried and cried - until I no longer felt sad about my departed loved ones. It brought me hope.

I gave it to a coworker whose grandparents both died in the same week (grandpa died on the day of grandma's funeral...). She said it brought her such comfort.