Manliness = Vulnerability?

Word association: manliness. GO!

Manliness

• Strong
• Tough
• Facial Hair
• Mighty (Full of Might)
• Macho
• Godly
• Leader
• Do-it-yourself
• Hands-on

So, I actually just played this game with the girls that are in the same room doing productive things as I am. (Update, they are now actually listening to "Men in Tights" from Men in Tights and singing along. Possibly, my fault.) Anyways, not the point. The point is that these are things that some actual people think of when I asked them what words came to mind when I said "manliness". Some other things that are "stereotypical" ideas of manliness:

• Thick-Skinned
• Not-Vulnerable
• Don't Surrender
• Don't Show Emotion

So, why am I pointing these things out? For the reason that I cannot figure out why in the world that something so contrary to my "supposed" culture is so appealing/awarding: surrender. I've noticed in the past few months that being vulnerable is actually one of the most freeing, desirable, and amazing experiences that I can have. Yet, it is so contrary to the culture that I have been "taught" to live by.

Side Note: There are a LOT of quotation marks in this thing!

I've been in the point of my life where I have completely surrendered myself and gave up my every right to control, and it was the most freeing feeling that I have ever had. A great example of this is when I was a little kid. When I was young, my parents were basically in charge of everything. They organized my schedule, drove me around, decided what I was going to eat, fed me, etc. I had 0 stress even though I had 0 control... because I put my complete trust in my parents. My parents were the Lords of my life. 

In my current life, I get to have a similar experience on those days that I completely surrender my day to Christ. When I let Him order my day, things are so much less stressful. When I surrender my talents to Him, I perform so much better. When I honor Him with my time, I'm so much more productive with the rest of my time. But every one of these requires a complete surrender and openness of myself. I have to become completely vulnerable before Christ and sacrifice all of my control to Him. For a control freak, it's so stinking scary and difficult to do this, but it is such an incredibly wonderful and freeing feeling to be able to do so.

Did I mention that it's super freeing? I think I did. 

So, yeah. One of the cool parts about allowing myself to become vulnerable is the freeing feeling that comes with it. Because when I surrender to someone I trust, I don't have to be in charge of anything. And when I'm not doing so hot at adulting lately, not having to adult is great!

Stay in tune for some more revelations of vulnerability!

Best of luck in the real world and God Bless,

-XTopher

Superheroes to Super Revelation

So, I know that in my last post I said something about starting a series about superheroes, and there truly is so much I could do with that metaphor. I mean, when you think about any superhero team, it becomes evident that each has different gifts and powers. This is reflected in our own lives through bringing together our different abilities, experiences, talents, and positions in order to accomplish our ultimate goal: growing toward Christ and helping others to do the same. This brings about the second idea. The powers and abilities of the heroes we see in movies is similar to the talents we possess. In addition to our talents, we also have the power of prayer and the Spirit of Christ within us. This power is grown through spiritual disciplines: prayer, focus on the word, fasting, etc. much like the determination and will-power of many superheroes that we see as they train to become stronger. Lastly, they use their powers, will-power, and teams in order to protect their city, the world, or even the universe. This is similar to the way that we are able to protect our friends' and families' lives as well as those of people we've never met all around the world through prayer and acting like-Christ.

All of these things are essential to our walk with Christ, and they are cool to point out from a Superhero perspective. But as you can see, really it only took me a paragraph to write about it. I mean, I could have definitely fluffed it out, but I feel like the above paragraph hit most of the major points. The reason that I kicked off this "series" in the last blog is because I wanted something to talk about: something I would be able to talk about. The problem is that I've been focused on writing about thins that I already knew about. I mean, that's what seems natural. I have a blog, so shouldn't I be helping you guys understand life in some way? (As if I have any better understanding of life than you. Ha!)

When, in reality, this blog was originally to record my journey and not to teach anybody anything. The hope was that you would be able to learn from what I learned. I'm supposed to be seeking God with all that I am for a year so that I learn how to seek Him and learn how to grow. That way, even after this year is done, I will have the skills necessary to continue to grow in amazing ways. Then, I can share what I learn from my experience so that others can learn, too. The problem is that lately, I haven't been learning anything.

Why is that, you may ask. Well, concerned reader, that is a beautifully wonderful question with quite a depressing answer. The biggest reason that I'm not learning anything is because I'm not seeking anything to be taught. What does that mean? It means that instead of seeking God in this time I have set aside to do so, I've allowed myself to get distracted by the normalcy of life.

So, last night I was up until almost 4:00 reading books and studying life so that I can gain a deeper understanding. (I totally got one of those burst of passion.) I'm loving being back to learning and growing deeper in my relationship with Christ, but it took all of those things that I mentioned about heroes. I needed to build up my willpower, use my talents, and depend on those around me (especially the ultimate source of power). So, I have no idea what will come next, but I'm excited to let God be the Lord of my life and follow wherever he leads.

Hopefully the ride will be fun for you as well,
Best of luck in the real world and GOD BLESS,
-XTopher

Christopher Hanson: HERO in the making

So by now I'm sure you've all experienced your fair share of Halloween festivities. Whether you went to a dance, dressed up and hung out with friends, or just stayed at home and handed out candy, in some way or another, I'm sure you saw plenty of people dressed up as all sorts of different things. There were monsters and princesses, Jedi and cartoon characters, and my personal favorite: superheroes. 

For those who don't know, I'm a huge superhero nerd. Maybe not at the comic book guru level, but I do know enough to hold my weight in a conversation about something more in depth than the most recent movie. And, of course, I keep up to date on tv shows like Arrow and Flash. While I do enjoy these shows because there are superheroes and superpowers and complicated plots involved, I think that one of the big reasons that I enjoy them is in the way that they inspire me to use my powers. 

I mean, no, I don't have superpowers in the typical sense of the word; I can't fly, lift buildings, or turn invisible. However, I do have talents and the power to make a difference. I can choose how I use my talents, with whom I spend my time, and where I spend my money. Along with getting to choose what things I support, I also get to choose how I react to life. I get to decide whether I'm going to be a positive influence in this world or a negative one. In essence, I have the option between becoming the hero or the villain. 

In addition to that dramatic parallel between superpowers and myself, there are lots of different ways that superheroes reflect my life as a man-in-the-making and as a child of God. Superheroes have purpose, they have a team, they have their gear, and their city, and many other things that really fill me with a fresh passion for how I'm supposed to be living life! Okay, so I'm a little nerdy, but superheroes really click with me and hopefully they will with you, too even if you don't like superheroes (though I don't know how you wouldn't be able to). Anyways, these similarities are the things I'm going to be exploring and writing about for the next couple of posts. I'm hoping that they're able to give you as much insight and inspiration as they're giving me! 

As always,

Best of luck in the real world and God Bless,

~χTopher