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I heard a documentarian say the oceans were the most unexplored known territory, even more so than space. He said we know less about the deeps than we do the heights, and I suppose we could debate his point. He was no doubt trying to peak our interest and raise more money for more documentaries, more time in a submarine. Who can blame him. We do know a lot about space, and we are learning more about the oceans, but I don’t think either of these territories are the least explored. I still think the least explored territory is humanity, both collective and individual. It’s not physical territory, I know, but where is there more fearful darkness or illuminating beauty than in the depths of the person sitting next to you on a bus? Where is there more evil and more beauty than in the unexplored cosmos of a human being? I wonder if you might take a walk tonight after dinner with your daughter or your son, or your wife or your neighbor, and take the submarines down for a dive. Who are they? What do they love? What are they afraid of? Do they understand their own power? [...]

The older I get, the more I appreciate pain. I’m not a masochist by any stretch because I don’t like pain any more than the average person. And yet I’ve come to appreciate it. In years past, when I’d go through a hard time, I’d run from it. I’d try not to feel it or deal with it. But these days, I’ve learned the only way life can actually get better is if I face reality, face my mistakes and liabilities and somehow correct or at least acknowledge them. In stories, characters only change in crisis. Characters never, ever change when the story is going well. And of course the same is true with life. Pain is always an invitation to grow. Sadly, pain also has the opposite affect. If we cover over our pain with coping mechanisms, it’s as though we are going through a workout without gaining muscle. Some people do this for years and never grow. Ever met a 50-year old who is still making the mistakes of a 19-year old? It’s likely because he never accepted pain and allowed it to change his character. Here are some ways we can grow through when we are in [...]

We don’t normally face our fears willingly. Usually, God has to woo us into the desert. We are either chasing love or some other desire, and we find ourselves in the midst of a situation in which we have very little control. And when we lose control, we go into a mild form of trauma. But the good news is the greatest stories are lived in the desert. The great lives are lived in the places we most fear. If we fear being rejected, the great story has us standing at the door with flowers in our hands, if we fear losing love, the great stories have us letting that person go rather than clinging to them. If we fear taking a chance on a dream, the great stories have us quitting our jobs. My friend Jeremy Cowart moved from Nashville to LA recently but decided to tell a better story with his move. Rather than packing up the family and making a long, boring drive, he called Jamie Tworkowski from To Write Love on her Arms and made a Fears Vs Dreams tour out of the move. They’d pull the moving van into a town, set up a table, [...]

If you live here in Portland, come on out and hear Coach Tony Dungy at Imago on Saturday, July 30th. If you meet regularly with a group of guys, bring them out, or make it a father/son day. Coach has been an inspiration of mine for years. He is, of course, a Super-bowl winning coach but more than that he’s a proponent of integrity, character, and excellence in life and work. You have to register for the event but the proceeds go to The Mentoring Project’s Thousand Stories Campaign which will provide one-thousand mentors to fatherless boys here in Portland. It’s an incredibly ambitious campaign and we can’t think of a better person to launch it than Coach Dungy. Register today and we will see you Saturday morning.