em⋅pa⋅thy

–noun
1. the intellectual identification with or vicarious experiencing of the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of another.

Africa, sitting on a dusty road not needing to say a word because everything is in front of you. No job to hide behind, no chaotic paced life. Working simply to feed our children, work to live. It is impossible to fall victim to false identity in a world that is so cut and dry.

There is all the time in the world to truly explore personal growth at its deepest level. There is no mark that must be met; there is no system of ideologies that must be followed to be someone. Instead you breathe the dusty breath of air and thank God for it in silence.

For years we fight, we kick and scream desperate for purpose, desperate for understanding. We are convinced that no one truly understands our circumstances. There must be some substance in this mundane life of going through the motions.

Over eat, over buy, over excess but under paid, under compensated and un-fulfilled. It takes almost all-remaining energy to put the fake smile on. So instead we retreat to our own thoughts, our own problems that no one can possibly understand.

Maybe it is just not that complicated. Maybe sitting in ragged clothing not waiting for something is not so bad. Maybe we are rushing towards a deeper un-fulfillment at unhealthy speeds.

It is not wrong to have possessions. It is not wrong to be successful. It is however about priorities. Faith, love and hope have taken a back seat to greed, lust and hate. We will work overtime but we have no time for a family member in need. We can take over priced vacations but we cannot manage 35 dollars a month sponsorship to keep a human being alive. We can have anything our heart desires but it seems to continue to result in a deep un-fulfillment.

So I step off my 10-hour bus ride from Uganda to Rwanda and breathe the same African air. There us not one thing I could want more, other than not to experience this alone. So I introduce myself to the humble African whom I share the air with.

From the heart of Kigali Rwanda,
Shawner.

Just a quick thank you to everyone for their support. It truly means the world. 

                                                                                                                 -  Shawn

There is a reason why we have been given emotions. There are reasons why dreams and aspirations have been put on our heart ever since we were children. No matter how mild or intense these emotions hit you, no matter how big or small your dreams are ALWAYS remember it is not with out purpose or reason. Learning to let go of the things that bind us and being willing to act as our hearts move can be one of the hardest things to do in this life, but nothing worth having is easy. Since stepping out and realizing truths in my own life and being faithful to them, I have experienced an overwhelming sense of purpose, and identity. It all started with conquering some fear, doubt , and worry and transformed in to simply seeing a need and feeling as if I could do something about it. Once I felt that I could be the change i wanted to see in the world, it turned in to a want or desire to do more. Knowing that i am acting on what has been put on my heart, and therefore it cannot, and will not fail. So if you feel like you need to cry with someone who is crying, or laugh with someone who is laughing do it. Don’t hold back it is in these times of emotional release that strong relationships are built. I’ve been so lucky to be able to do the things that I have done and gone to the places i’ve gone and met the people I have met. It has proven to me that dreams can come true and how real our emotions actually are. I hope that all of you who read this will all get to experience the realness of all your dreams and emotions. Just know that it can be set in motion if we give ourselves the chance to be truthful to ourselves and act as our hearts led.

It is so gradual that we can hardly notice a change. We are in the midst of it. Social norms & idealistic cultural beliefs have us continually summered in a mindset & life style that conforms to the masses. Often it seems that only through devoted personal awareness & consciousness of ones own heart felt beliefs can we turn direction. We begin to walk towards a broader view & understanding of life from the heart not from the head. 

  So what happens when you journey across the world into a country that has been ravished by war? To place a foot on soil that has witnessed first hand the real life effects of a genocide? Well you no longer must fight for your awareness, or fight to see life in the beauty that it was created to be. Your entire world stops and you are slapped in the face. I know at the very least it would make anyone fight to seek the depths and beauty for why we have been created to live this life together. 

In the midsts of this reflection I pray that you passionately pursue what is lying in the depths of your heart, and unveil the fullness of your God given potential.

-Shawn’ard

Faith

–noun
1.    confidence or trust in a person or thing: faith in another’s ability.
2.    belief that is not based on proof: He had faith that the hypothesis would be substantiated by fact.

to trust…

How often to we do things out of security? “I don’t really want to do this but I have to in order to…”             “I have always wanted to do that but I should….”

We go to school because we know where we are going to be for an extended period of time. We get a mortgage and lay out a plan for the future. We feel safe with job security so we know where we are going to be tomorrow.

I am not saying any of these things are bad in any way. They are all part of life, but where has faith gone? Where has faith to believe in something your doing? To have faith for something you believe in but can not see clearly in the future. More and more it seems we grasp for things that are safe and secure. Well what about those plans you have had stored up for years? That dream you have held onto since you were a kid and never told anyone?

We set these things aside becuse they are not “practical” in real life. I mean what if it doenst work? We just dont have money laying around to risk something on an idea that has no garantee.

Risk

1.    exposure to the chance of injury or loss; a hazard or dangerous chance: It’s not worth the risk.
2.    Insurance.
a.    the hazard or chance of loss.
b.    the degree of probability of such loss.

to fear…

Maybe risking losing everything is not such a bad thing? Or in other words, maybe having faith in something you belive in is allot more powerful then risking what you do have?

We are all rushing to our destinations with a list of “To Do’s” in hand. Often frustrated at the person who just turned in front of us because our time is much more important than some strangers. We get home only to find ourselves in front of a computer screen browsing facebook. Why?

This is everyday life but think how much more intense this process is during the holidays. Has this fast-forward lifestyle become a routine?

I challenge you to question yourself why? Why do we do the things we do? What or who is it ultimately helping, what is it accomplishing? Think a little deeper about the outcomes of our energy, our time or our actions. How many unnecessary things do we carry daily that only speed us up?

Life is not meant to be spent in fast forward, it is supposed to be spent in play. So during the holidays as you wait at 6am to get the last wii fit, ask yourself.
Why?