ReDefining Cool

Before being a dad, or even a husband, I thought and felt differently. I was concerned in some way with cool, and how it affected my life. Cool came at the cost of convenience, the cost of peace and the cost of self. There has always been a paradox living inside me. We're not talking Jekyll and Hyde or some sort of split personality disorder, but more like a what I think holds all of us in balance. For some reason though, I gave myself permission to pursue the "cooler," yet the cooler was a facade of sorts.

I should point out that this wasn't a complete fabrication, a mask or persona I would wear. I enjoyed the cool, and yet at times I allowed the perspective opinions of society to drive me to give into the parts that weren't as genuine or true. Don't get me wrong, they were me, but not true, true to the point of essence, the smallest common denominator, a cellular representation of finite existence.

As a husband, father and future shepherd to a new flock of Christ followers, cool has been redefined as my priorities have shifted. No longer do I need to be an elitist, an early adopter or on the inside of all things juice (which is a word some us used to describe things that were cool). I still like my style, my music and certain ways that I choose to live and be, but my cool is new.

I now find my cool in the walks to Starbucks with my wife, in the giggles and hugs of my son, and in the never-ending quest to please my Father. In recent months I have been gripped by the Gospel and my priorities are shifting to be less about me and more about doing the will of Him. This will of God isn't a crusade, a jihad or street corner preaching; it's simply trying to live as salt and light in a world of artificial flavors and darkness. It's being a real friend to my neighbors and a neighbor to strangers. Its daily trying to be a loving and leading husband, and a father who demonstrates Christ to my son.

Being gripped by the Gospel isn't some sort of light switch that one simply turns on; it is an ongoing process of discipline and freedom, sacrifice and reward, constantly falling short and yet being lifted up by the one who never falls.

2009 is about the redefining of cool for me. It's about faith, risk, forgiveness and a whole lot of new. Its a continual transformation of my priorities and a shift of focus, it can be a slow and painful process at times, and that is what this whole thing is, a process. The redefining of cool is more than new style, it is a process concerned with priorities; renamed and renewed.

For the ears: Fleet Foxes (Self-Titled) - Fleet Foxes
For the eyes: 30 Rock
For the mind: A Celebration of Disciplines - Richard Foster