For those of you who aren’t familiar with this game…welcome to the rest of your life.
This is a game that involves anytime someone makes a definitive statement about a situation around them like “This couch is so comfortable, I could sleep on this for a year.” Someone could then call “SHENANIGANS!” on them meaning that they either have to perform that action OR get slapped across the face by the person who called Shenanigans.
This game has changed my life…mostly for the worst, as I am a person who makes very boisterous claims about punching people or paying absurd amounts of money for people to do things. Here are a couple examples of claims recently that have gotten me Shenanigan’d:
1. “I’d pay you 100 dollars to eat that”
a. Took the slap
2. (in reference to the reclining chair in our front yard) “This chair is so comfortable I could sleep in this all night.”
a. Slap
3. “I would write about Ernie every day for a week if that would get him to read my blog.”
a. Welcome to 7 days of Ernie starting today, Monday the 8th of November of 2010.
Part of this game is that it makes you be a man of your word, as scripture exhorts us to let our yes mean yes and our no mean no.
Ernest John Golen,
A giant among mere boys, he grew up on the tundra of Ann Arbor, MI. He is one of the best men I know and is my roommate and long time friend. I’m going to write about him every day for the next 7 days because of a few reasons; firstly I don’t want to get slapped. Secondly, I have gained great wisdom from his life already and think it would be great for others to hear.
One of my favorite quotes of Ernie’s came one evening this summer when Ernie and I were laying in our beds after a long day of hanging out with our friends. Ernie was talking about the challenge that had been laid out through scripture and vocally through his girlfriend Hannah about the commands for men’s pursuit of women. Ernie spoke through the darkness a profound truth that attends me daily…
"If we were half the men we dream of in Christ,
how much different would this world be?"
I know for me there are many things that I can list saying that would describe the man I want to be, but I can also tell you that I don’t exemplify most of them and even in that I don’t fight my shortcomings with the ferocity I want to.
--In short I see the man that God has asked me to be and I say “that’s cool, I’ll get there eventually”
The realization that Ernie made this summer and shared with me, not explicitly but through his life, is that WE WILL NOT BECOME THE MEN OF CHRIST WE WANT TO BE BY ACCIDENT.
I’m not going to stumble into being a man worth following by my friends, YL guys and eventually wife and kids by accident.
Ernie began to read a chapter of an Epistle(letter in the new testament) every night and we would talk about it through the darkness. Ernie began to take what Jesus is asking of him seriously and Ernie has experienced unbelievable freedom, growth and passion for life, most notably and recently(less than 24 hours!) GOT ENGAGED TO HANNAH.
Through his life I’ve seen a courage and trust in Christ that I strive to imitate. 1 Corinthians 11:1 says “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” In some fashions I am learning to imitate Ernie as he imitates Christ.
I pray Jesus would give us courage to be faithful to what he is asking of us and what he is asking of our lives.
1 comment:
Wow Jeremy, I could not express how you have blessed me with your insight to my son and sharing both of your steps with Jesus. As you know Ernie's first 6 month's in Harrisonburg were so painful and yet there was so much growth as a man, in trusting God and seeking the solace of Christian friends - like you. As a mother it was so painful for me not to be there - I am so grateful to you and the other roomies for filling that void. I remember saying to Ernie that God had wanted him in Harrisonburg and in His time Ernie would know that. And his friends and dear Hannah are in Harrisonburg - enough said.
You have touched my heart Jeremy, thank you for that. Chris
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