Vows and haircuts

Wow, what a year 2008 has been. I have been busy to say the least. I really had to throw myself into my work this past year, but I am now taking a much needed break. You know it is a good vacation when you lose track of what day it is.

Many people have been asking what happened to my hair? Did I lose a bet? Of course, I have been so remiss in keeping this blog that most of my readers (all 5 of them) may not have even seen my long hair and my new do.

I had not cut my hair for over 2 years, but I had a reason.

I was unemployed for 12 months (2 - 6 month periods) over 2 years in 2004-2006. I have now been with Digidesign for over 2 years. I had started there as a contractor and when I was offered regular, full-time position, I was also assigned to manage my first Pro Tools project (Digidesign's flagship product). I was honored and humbled that I was offered this project so quickly. I decided to offer up a this program to God. I decided to take a Nazarite vow. Little did I know that this program would evolve into the biggest release of Pro Tools ever and take 2 years. What a ride, and what a product. I am really proud of the work that our team did. It also is great to know that this product will be used to glorify God in the Christian music recordings that will be made with it.

Vows and promises are important. They help define who we are. My wedding vows, for example, define me as my wife's spouse for life. God exemplifies this in the covenants he has made with us. This past Sunday, we heard of the covenant with Abram/Abraham Gn 15:1-6; 21:1-3) Whenever we see a rainbow we are reminded of God's covenant with Noah (Gn 9: 9-17. We recall our baptismal promises when we recite the Creed. At every Mass, we receive and take part in God's everlasting covenant with us in the Eucharist. Our faithfulness will never match that of our heavenly Father's, but I hope in some small way, I was able to honor Him in my work.

May God bless you and yours in this new year.

Grace and peace,

Scott

Time

I recently have had the honor of being introduced to the thoughts of a man with great perspective, Professor Randy Pausch. Prof. Pausch is best known for his Last Lecture, which he gave about achieving childhood dreams. He has even appeared on Oprah where he gave a condensed version of the lecture. So what has this got to do with time? Prof. Pausch has terminal pancreatic cancer and has been told that he will not be alive much longer. This makes his talk on time management all the more gripping.

I do not know Prof. Pausch (although my manager took a class from him), but his words have definitely touched my life. He has made me stop and think about how I spend my time and what is important to me. He has also reminded me that you are never to old to work on achieving your dreams. It is this that has reminded me that you have to make time for the things that are important to you. This blog is an important stepping stone to one of my dreams, so I am going to make time for it.

I have also been thinking about Time and God. During this time of Lent, I have been thinking a little more than usual about the person of Jesus and the time that he spent on earth. God, who is without beginning or end, chose to create time and step into it as a human being. He not only humbled himself in becoming one of us, but he did so at a time when life was really hard. Why choose to be human when there was no indoor plumbing? Why come under the oppression of Rome? Why at a time with no mass media?

I can't say that I can answer these questions, but I believe it probably has to do with faith, hope, and love. Jesus taught us about trust. Jesus taught us about sharing peace and bring healing. Jesus taught us about a personal encounter with our Creator. Our modern technology and conveniences are wonderful, but I think they sometimes get in the way of listen to God.

He also gave us a few good lessons about another aspect of time - patience. If you actually have been checking this blog on a somewhat regular basis. Thank you for your patience. It is very biblical.

This past Sunday we heard the familiar, yet still glorious, story of the raising of Lazarus (John 11:1-45). What a miracle! What a promise! What a gift of hope! Yet my pastor pointed out something I never really pondered before - the waiting. Jesus decided to keep Mary and Martha waiting because he still had work to do and "remained for two days in the place where he was." He knew when the proper time to go to Bethany would be. He knew his priorities and showed that with patience and faith that waiting on God is in our best interest. There is a time for immediate action and there is a time to wait in prayer and let God work his wonders.

So make the most of the time you have with your loved ones, you never know when you will be called home. Why spend your life on anything less than the gifts and desires God instilled in us. It is never too late to dust off those childhood dreams and re-prioritize our lives around what is truly important. Thanks be to God!