John Stanko: Five Regrets
My friend, John Stanko, has been sending out “Monday Memos” for years. I am on his email list and am encouraged each time I receive one. John was my boss back in the 90s when I traveled the U.S. with Integrity Music’s Worship International, conducting workshops in churches as a speaker and musician.
John’s workshop classes back then were always encouraging and very funny. His emphasis on discovering ones life purpose challenged me, and has helped me define my own life journey and purpose. I encourage you to check out his website and subscribe to his Monday Memo. The following is John’s latest Memo. It always grabs my attention when the heading says something about regret and dying. I hope you enjoy and benefit from this today. ________________________________________________
The Five Regrets of the Dying
it first chance I had, so this looks like a good week. It’s written by
an Australian woman, Bronnie Ware, and can be found in its entirety here. I will summarize the five points of her article “The Five Regrets of The Dying,” and focus on one point in particular.
THE FIVE REGRETS
Here are the five regrets that Bronnie discovered in working with those patients close to death over the years:
- I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
- I wish I didn’t work so hard.
- I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.
- I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
- I wish that I had let myself be happier.
Here is what Ware had to say about the first point, the courage to be true to self and not others:
clearly on it, it is easy to see how many dreams have gone unfulfilled. Most people have had not honoured even a half of their dreams and had to die knowing that it was due to choices they had made, or not made. It is very important to try and honour at least some of your dreams along the way. From the moment that you lose your health, it is too late. Health brings a freedom veryfew realise, until they no longer have it.
DON’T LET IT BE YOUR REGRET
It takes courage to be true to yourself and who God created you to
be. Before David went out to fight Goliath, King Saul tried to have
David wear his (Saul’s) battle armor. Saul was a tall man, however, and
the armor didn’t fit. David did not try and please the king. Instead
he rejected the armor and took along his sling shot, something that was
more true to who he was. His success is legendary (see 1 Samuel 17:38-40).
Are you wearing someone else’s armor? If you are, then you are
headed for the number one regret expressed by the dying. Don’t do it! I
cannot say what you should do, but I can only urge you to follow your
heart and stop living your life for someone else, unless however it is
for the Lord. I was challenged by this list and I hope you are, too.
Now get about the work of living before it’s too late.
Richie Furay Rides Again
If there are any forefathers of country rock, Richie Furay would certainly be one of them. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee helped launch Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Neil Young and Bruce Palmer back in 1965.
“‘In Springfield, Richie was a key singer and key writer,’ said Rolling Stone senior editor David Fricke, who attended a show in Oakland. ‘In a sense, Richie was the anchor. He was the center as well as a central
figure. I thought he was one of the highlights of the show.'”*
“‘Richie’s voice was great texture along with Stephen’s voice and the angst that was going on at that time,”
Jim Messina [Poco, Loggins and Messina] said. “When he (Richie) sang, he wasn’t only singing, he was
bolting out electricity.’ But creative tensions and personality conflicts caused the band to implode.”*
Furay’s pop music career also helped birth the group Poco and then later, the Souther, Hillman, Furay Band. During the heyday, a crisis in his marriage started Richie on a journey of faith. In 1983,
Furay decided to focus his energies on ministry, and ever since has been pastor of Calvary
Chapel in Broomfield, Colorado.
As a pastor, Furay still plays and sings with the Richie Furay Band, made up of multi-generational members from his church worship band and youngest daughter, Jesse Furay Lynch.
Last year, Neil Young called on Furay and Stills to join him as Buffalo Springfield for a charity event, and then for a set at the 2011 Bannaroo festival in Tennessee. Because of the positive vibe in the group and egos of the past staying in the past, it looks like the Buffalo Springfield will ride again–at least for a tour scheduled in 2012.
After the 30-date tour, Richie Furay will return to his humble status as pastor of the local Calvary Chapel in Broomfield, Colorado, but the world will have been reminded that he also was, and is, a rock and roll pioneer.
* Quotes taken from a July 16, 2011 Denver Post article by Jeremy P. Meyer
A Case For Angels
Last year Brenda and I walked away from a car accident that would surely have killed us if God hadn’t have settled our out-of-control car onto the median of an interstate highway, out of the way of oncoming traffic. We both crawled from the driver-side window into safety.
How many times have you avoided catastrophe in your life? I bet many times you never saw it coming and probably didn’t even realize you were in harm’s way until afterward, when you stared chillingly into the tragedy that could have been. Like Mr. Magoo, we blindly walk through life, unaware of the many dangers that zoom right past us.
I saw a video on the web today where a lady was just missed being crushed by two cars that collided in an intersection and bounced up on the sidewalk where she was walking. Supposedly, 15 seconds into the video, an angel swooped-in to rescue her (I couldn’t make it out on my screen). Even if it was faked–made up by some skilled special effects computer wiz–it still reminded me of the daily miracles we experience, even those that happen when we aren’t paying attention.
I believe in angels. Why? Because God’s Word has much to say about them. Have I seen one? I don’t know, but I hear that they sometimes blend right in as regular humans, sent to do God’s work. Angels will never bring attention to themselves because they are there to bring glory to God and to do His bidding (Psalm 103:19-22).
The word “angel” actually comes from the Greek word aggelos, which means “messenger.” The matching Hebrew word mal’akh has the same meaning. God dispatches these heavenly messengers to intervene in our earthly lives, and it probably happens to us without our knowledge.
I can look back in my life and soberly recount the instances where it was probably an angel sent by God that saved me from an otherwise deadly fate. I bet you can too!
When Creativity and Faith Collide
While watching the final scenes of 2005’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory last week, I was reminded of an exchange between Willy Wonka and Charlie. Wonka’s candy isn’t selling so well, so he returns to Charlie after the boy turned down ownership of the chocolate factory (Wonka wouldn’t allow Charlie’s family to come with him).
Charlie asks Willy, “What do you have against my family?” Wonka replies, “It’s not just your family. It’s the whole idea of. . . You know, they’re always telling you what to do, what not to do, and it’s not conducive to a creative atmosphere.” Like Wonka, artists don’t want interference from anyone or anything that could inhibit creativity. But as Christians, when faith and creativity collide, we must allow God into the creative process.
Creative types like me are dazzled by new opportunities to write, compose, record, etc., and many times find ourselves overwhelmed with too many ideas from which to choose. These ideas can be good and noble ones, but we must ask ourselves: How will this creative idea serve the Kingdom? To what will I most wisely and effectively give my creative energies and resources?
The reality is, I have limited time, resources and audience, so I must ask God for inspiration and direction. This requires discipline and trust, and it has much to do with focusing my energies only on God-ordained assignments. How do we know the difference between God-ordained and me-ordained? It’s always good to seek wise counsel from others, pray and study the Word. Sometimes it’s an inner witness of the Holy Spirit that keeps us moving forward on an idea. In any event, faith will always be a part of our journey as believers.
If we let God be Lord of our artistic endeavors, He will certainly bring us opportunities in the new year to express ourselves in ways that glorify Him. After all, isn’t that what art is all about?
2011: A Year of Faith
This year has been one of transition for us. I left my position as worship leader in May, a God-assignment I had for seven years. My dad had heart surgery and came to permanently live with us in July. My brother Jon and I put dad’s house in North Carolina on the market in November. All of these changes involved faith.
The opportunity to exercise faith is a two-edged sword: on one side, it’s a chance to grow and go places spiritually that I’ve never been; on the other side, life can get tough and uncomfortable when you decide to walk out on a faith-limb. Everything–finances, timing, ministry assignments, career–is left there in the hands of God.
The decision to trust God means I cannot depend on my own sight, intuition, experience, common sense, etc.. The process is one that I wouldn’t recommend to the faint of heart. The Scripture passage in Hebrews 11:6 states, “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who
comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who
earnestly seek him. (NIV)”
Something comes to mind when I think of walking in faith–a scene from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. In order to reach the Holy Grail, Indy must traverse a deep chasm. There are no stairs, no suspension bridge or ropes to help him across. His father’s diary–the source from which he gathers the information on how to cross the impossible breach—requires him to take a leap of faith.
“Impossible,” Indy says. “Nobody can jump this! It’s a leap of Faith.” “You must believe, boy!” cries Dad from his
deathbed. “You must believe!”
Indy stepped forward onto an invisible walkway. Through faith, he made it across. Like Indy, God will make a way for us where there seems to be no way. Isaiah 43:19 says, “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. (NIV)”
In 2011, God encouraged Brenda and I to take steps toward the impossible–to places we never would have gone on our own. We have likened this adventure to packing up and taking a ship to another land. We have to believe that, as God calls, He wants us to trust. Joshua 1:9 says: “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go. (NIV)”
With this encouragement, we will continue to walk in faith. We have seen many miracles appear before our eyes in 2011. 2012 looks to be a landmark year for us, too. Keep reading these posts in the coming year and you can keep up with our exciting journey.
May God richly bless and strengthen you and your loved ones in 2012.
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