The more days/months/years I get under my belt…the more I realize 2 things.
1) I know nothing. It funny how as you get older you realize not only how little you know, but how foolish you were. I had lunch a few weeks back with a good friend, and we talked about that exact thing…how “in our youth” we often count ourselves so much more highly than we ought AND take for granted the wealth of knowledge from those around us.
2) Life is getting busier. I remember years past when the most challenging thing on my “post-work agenda” was whether to play Madden or rock the DVR…not so today. Between growing responsabilies and work and @ home…life is definitely NOT slowing down.
So. Why do I write this? Well the first inclination might be that I haven’t blogged for 20 days, and unlike blogging rockstars like THIS GUY I have…well…left something to be desired…
But more than that…I find myself circling the wagons a little lately. I had a LONG conversation last night with a guy in my small group about the calling of a man to 1st be a good disciple 2nd be a good husband/father and 3rd be a good worker/employee/etc. God doesn’t need your 41st hour @ work. He doesn’t need the 3rd garage in your house or the new surround-sound speaker system…you know what though….He does ASK you to give ALL that you have and follow Him.
As life gets busier…compromising gets easier. Prayer for PS3…Devotions for David Letterman…it’s not that far a jump. Within a matter of days a slip becomes routine and then your “down and out.” One of the disciplines I’ve been pursuing lately is substituting good things for GODLY things. T.V isn’t bad…neither is PS3…but you know what is more that “not bad”….JESUS CHRIST. I want to love Him, live for Him, serve Him, follow Him and Lead people to Him whenever I can…and unfortunately…”busy” is in the way.
So why do I write this? I clearly DON’T have it figured out…
Well, that’s the point. No one does. I’m just a dude trying to live for the only thing worth living for. I get in my own way sometimes, but the Lord is gracious and leads me back to where I know I ought to be.
Suffering is a topic that is seldom discussed but always talked about. Meaning: Lots of people talk about suffering…give verses on suffering…tell you how sorry they are about suffering…BUT rarely do we hear from people IN suffering ABOUT their suffering. For those of you that know me well, you know that my Grandma (or Nana as I call her) has ALS or “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.” My Nana is an amazing woman.
<==Here is a picture of her holding Stella right after she was born. Go check out her blog HERE. God continues to be glorified in and through her and although she cannot talk, her heart speaks volumes to the grace and faithfulness of the Lord. Last week I had the opportunity to visit with her and I continue to be amazed at how she “suffers well.”
“Chandler is trying to suffer well. He would never ask for such a trial, but in some ways he welcomes this cancer. He says he feels grateful that God has counted him worthy to endure it. He has always preached that God will bring both joy and suffering but is only recently learning to experience the latter.”
It makes me truly wonder how anyone…apart from God can “suffer well.” The overwhelming peace it Matt’s responses…the unexplainable joy in the face of my Nana…it comes from Jesus…nothing else. The craziest and most convicting part for me is this:
When I’m having a crappy day. When someone yells at me. When I’m feeling “off.” Praising God is not easy. How much MORE difficult is it to praise him when my life is REALLY off the tracks. The token question that naysayer’s always go to is “Why do bad things happen to good people..?” I understand now more than ever before. It’s not as much about God letting the bad things happen, but rather what He does in and through the “good people.”
Romans 8:16-17 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
1 Peter 4:12
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.
Whether it’s the depravity in Haiti, a terminal illness, or just a bad say…STILL I will praise the Lord. God remind me of that truth when I forget.
The answer…Hong Kong! I am here for the annual Hong Kong Toy Fair. After a 15 hour flight, I have arrived. The time change is 13 hours difference (so 8am in Toronto is 9pm in Hong Kong).
So as I write this blog, my friends and family are preparing to get their Monday morning going and I am going to bed…Monday night. Just for fun, I checked to see if Monday Night Football was one and unfortunately even MNF is bound by timezones…
I am excited for the stuff I’ll learn and new experiences I will have but DEFINATELY miss my wife and daughter. It’s a weird feeling being this far away. For sure one that forces me to remind myself that I am not in control and that God is soverign.
Pray for me as I adjust to the time change and struggle with missing life in Toronto..
One of my good friends came down to visit me yesterday and today. Travis is a gifted song writer and a loves people and ministry in a way that I could only pray that I might one day.
It was so cool to see him spend time with Stella and have some time with him last night around the dinner table. In addition to being a song writer, Travis attends and teaches at Liberty University in Lynchburg, and leads and serves on various ministry teams there.
Time with Travis is anything but predictable. He’s always talking about his adventures and what God is doing in his life. If you haven’t checked out his music yet, go HERE for the link to a song he wrote that was used as the title track on Charles Billingsley’s latest album. I’ve also posted below a video shot of him conducting the choir at Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg to his song, “God of the Ages.” I know the first time (and everytime since) God has stirred in my heart a passionate time of personal worship. Travis is one of the most genuine people I know, and I am thankful for his heart for the Lord and his friendship. God is using this man and I am humbled that he calls me a friend. Praise the Lord for the things He does in our lives and the ministry that He does in and through us!
When Uncle Trav comes to visit…anything can happen!
A line I have heard too often over the past few weeks. So here’s a long update on November (or Movember as some have called it). Here’s a rundown….
1) I got REALLY Sick – ….yes…it was H1N1…and then an pneumonia. I was off work for 2 weeks…it was crazy brutal, Praise the Lord that I’m better…
2) New Job – As of the beginning of November, I started working for a Toy Manufactering company called “Tech4Kids.” I am working on a bunch of different fronts there, but spend most of my time working in North American sales. I still spend 2 days a week working with my dad HERE, but spend most of my time over @ Tech4Kids. It’s a HUGE learning curve and definately a different pace, but it’s for sure fun!
3) Stella – She’s now 6 months…she’s almost crawling…I love her a lot.
4) Church – Hailey and I have really jumped 2 feet into Harvest Oakville this fall. Being back in Oakville has been great. Although we miss a lot of the people in Markham, we are very thankful for our church family @ Harvest Oakville, and have been so blessed by the ministry there!
So there’s a quick run-down of “what’s up.” For those of you that follow me on twitter, I’ve been tweeting up a storm, so most of this stuff is “old news.” That said, with the switch to the new company, I had to go back to Blackberry from my Iphone (HUGE Boo-Urns!) So twittering on “crackberry” is not as sweet as Iphone.
My time in Dallas was different than I expected. I left knowing that I would struggle with being away (missing Hailey and Stella, etc.), but expected that with the craziness of work, I would be able to keep busy enough to get through….well….it was tougher than I thought. I found every spare moment my heart would travel home and would then leave me distracted.
I’m sure that “leaving” becomes more manageable as you do it more, but never (hopefully) becomes easier.
All that said, my time in Dallas was great. Here’s a couple pics from my time there…
The “Old” Texas Stadium from the freeway
And last but not least…1 of 4 Delorean’s used in Back the Future…it was…SWEEET!
It was a great trip. Met a lot of great people, ate a lot of great food…Go Cowboys!
A few people tweet’d about this yesterday, but instead of letting it go, I had to post about it.
Under the guise of being “inclusive” or “anti-religious” a group of individuals (namely this guy) have decided to join in with Muslims during their Ramadan fast. You can read the full article HERE. All that I can say is that this pushes “far” WAY to far!
The new blog is ALMOST ready. After many weeks in development and coding (blah!) we’re almost ready to launch the new “look.”
Then..I turn on my phone this morning and see a msg from my tech-guru titled “Huge Blog Hang-Up…” You can imagine my nervous-ness as I opened the email.
As I twittered earlier, Wordpress does not let you upload custom template to sites that they host…so.
After moving from HERE to HERE…I know have to move to HERE.
If you got to my blog all along by using www.mattmacdonald.ca then you would have NEVER had a problem, but after the advice or a few friends like THIS GUY and THIS GUY it’s time to host the blog myself..
No…it’s really not. I tweeted earlier today about the over use of the word “EPIC” and received a mixture of responses. Some (like from THIS GUY) we’re poking fun at me…no surprise…but others claimed to enjoy the using the word. All in all, calling my friends’ band “Epic” or saying that party I just patron’d was “Epic is simply not the case…unless your friend is Bono or Paul McCartney and party you attended was held @ Madison Square Gardens and it was hosted by Michael Jordan.
Here’s my criteria for the correct use of the word Epic…
1) Is the event/source embraced and esteemed by others to the same degree?
2) Is the event/source timeless and relevant in its greatness?
3) How does the event/source compare to other comparable event sources?
Here are 3 examples that I used:
1) Becoming a Father
2) Star Wars “Empire Strikes Back”
3) The Mona Lisa
What 3 could you come up with? Do You Agree/Disagree?
Loved the T.V show “Where in the World is Carmen Dan Diego.”
But some have recently asked….”Where in the World is Matt MacDonald.”
In short…everywhere. Between Home///The Cottage///Relative’s Houses’…we’ve been like a touring circus.
Summer for me is really a time to unplug (not fully…did that for a week and almost died!) but just generally. I will be back to full-time blogging in September…WITH….drum-roll please…A NEW DESIGN.
My good friend Tyler has been working on a new blog lay-out for me over the summer and I am EXCITED to drop it in this space!
The more days/months/years I get under my belt…the more I realize 2 things.
For those of you that know me well, you know that my Grandma (or Nana as I call her) has 
The answer…Hong Kong! I am here for the annual Hong Kong Toy Fair. After a 15 hour flight, I have arrived. The time change is 13 hours difference (so 8am in Toronto is 9pm in Hong Kong).
One of my good friends came down to visit me yesterday and today. Travis is a gifted song writer and a loves people and ministry in a way that I could only pray that I might one day.
1) I got REALLY Sick – ….yes…it was H1N1…and then an pneumonia. I was off work for 2 weeks…it was crazy brutal, Praise the Lord that I’m better…
2) New Job – As of the beginning of November, I started working for a Toy Manufactering company called “
My time in Dallas was different than I expected. I left knowing that I would struggle with being away (missing Hailey and Stella, etc.), but expected that with the craziness of work, I would be able to keep busy enough to get through….well….it was tougher than I thought. I found every spare moment my heart would travel home and would then leave me distracted.
A few people 
As I twittered earlier, Wordpress does not let you upload custom template to sites that they host…so.
No…it’s really not. I 
Loved the T.V show “Where in the World is Carmen Dan Diego.”
