Gun’s Quote-of-the-Week:
“Your purpose in life is to find your purpose and give your
whole heart and soul to it.”
-Gautama Buddha
[Context: This Gun’s Quote was written on Feb. 2nd, and was
delayed to ensure facts were straight and that parties mentioned below approved
of its posting.]
So, this week’s Gun’s Quote is being written while sitting
on an airplane. I’m flying between Baltimore , Maryland to Kansas City , MO , coming back home from my other home, Michigan . Yes, it’s a
pretty round-about way to get to Michigan ,
but, hey, the fare was $200 cheaper.
I’m also missing the Super Bowl. Southwest has free TV on
most of their planes, but not this one. #FirstWorldProblems
Why would a guy fly to Michigan from Kansas , in
January/February, through a city on the East Coast, during the largest sporting
event of the year? The answer? To continue to fulfill his purpose.
Chris Muer has been putting on Men’s Retreats for six years
now. They usually happen in his family’s cabin in Northern Michigan, but moved
to Cedar Springs, MI this year so that more people could join up. The retreat
is usually characterized by a bunch of guys simply hanging out and being guys.
We chopped down a (dead) tree, cut it up in to fire wood, burned it and also
played snow football, bladed a driveway once or twice with a lawn tractor and
used the snow blower. I got my hands on a chainsaw, swung an axe and got to
blade the driveway. We prayed. Life was good, simple, peaceful and relaxing. I
had my cell phone off. Really off. I didn’t look at it anyway. If the world
would have ended back home I wouldn’t have known about it until I turned my
phone back on to check my flight this morning. No TV. No radio. No media. Period.
It also presented a small revelation.
I thought my purpose in life was to become an HVAC engineer.
(I already know I’m weird…) That was what inspired me to make my first trek to Michigan anyway.
While there I met some of my best friends. Our stories impacted one another in
such a way that I continue to visit them and they continue to visit me to this
day, despite the expense and time commitment with travel.
One of those people with Chris Muer. When I was a (Super)
Senior, he was a Freshman. I bumped in to him at Church. After a while, I didn’t
see him around much anymore. I was having a get-together with some of my
friends and I called him to invite him over.
“No,” he said.
“Why not?”
“I don’t have a car.”
“That’s OK, I’ll pick you up.”
“No, you don’t have to go out of your way for me.”
“Where do you live?”
“...Brophy-McNerny.”
“I’ll be there in 10 minutes.”
Chris Muer did end up in my apartment hanging out with the
rest of us. Our friendship would grow from there and our bond would grow
tighter. It would be later that Chris would tell me that he really didn’t want
to come out to my place to hang out and that it was only because of my
persistence that he caved and let me pick him up.
That group of men was part of the Newman Center for Catholic Students at Ferris State University
None of it would have happened if I didn’t answer a prompting
from God. Something in me that night said that I couldn’t let this guy slip
away. I couldn’t let him say no. I had to make sure he was there. That feeling
was supernatural and transcended my own thought at the time. I thought my
purpose in college was to get a degree and then get a job. Turns out I was
catfished into being a fisher of men.
Chris’ group continues to bring together friends who want to
share in fellowship and share their lives. They want the support of other men
and they want to tune out the craziness that is the world. None of it would
have happened if I didn’t humbly tell God “yes” when he asked me to rope in
this young whipper-snapper. At the time, I had no idea.
That’s the thing about purpose. You have it, you just may
not know what it is until after the fact. Sometimes, like this past weekend,
you find it out. Other times, you don’t. Whether or not you get to see the
results really doesn’t matter as long as you do it. Humbly. Simply. Lovingly.
Every day you live matters and impacts other people. Keep
that in mind the next time you wonder what it is exactly you think you are
supposed to do.
…and that’s why it’s a Gun’s Quote!
