Intimacy.

 

I am currently lucky enough to be road tripping around the USA in a school bus we bought off eBay with a bunch of my closest brothers. Experiencing the Good bad and Ugly the USA has to offer.

Currently I am in Muscle Beach, LA showing off my muscles…..Obviously not true,  I am just sitting in a coffee shop taking advantage of the glory that is bottomless coffee. 🙂

A couple days ago I sat outside our 173rd Fast Food restaurant with a Hitchhiker named Shaun that we picked up in Texas. We began to contemplate the world together and found  the conversation moved to a topic that I have noticed myself taking about with Americans on an almost daily basis…..Intimacy.

My experience is that the USA  are EXPERTS in entertainment and will keep you busy, eating, watching and spending until the cows come home!

It is my conviction though that the only thing that truly satisfies us is Intimacy.

To know and be known.

I believe the cost of entertainment as an overriding culture is that it is passive and does not require vulnerability. Without vulnerability I don’t believe we can gain true intimacy and without intimacy we have nothing.

 

Ironically though amidst the thick cloud of diversion and amusement in the American Culture probably the two most obvious influences on my position on this stuff are Americans, Brene Brown and Tony Campolo.

Brene above unpacks in a hilarious way the inconvenient truth that being vulnerable to pain needs to be at the centre of our life pursuits.

Tony Campolo has massively helped me put language to what I think is important in life direction through two simple words I listened to on his podcast “Across the Pond” ……..Intimacy and Action.

I decided 10 years a go to try my best to follow Jesus, I am not great at this and fail regularly.

Thankfully it is in his nature to forgive or else our relationship would be, well…buggered!

I believe Jesus calls us simply to live intimately in relationship with him, letting him into our shit and shine  and sharing intimately in love with those we live life with.

The second word Action I believe should comes from that place of Intimacy.

Intimacy without Action is indulgent as without it we are just a bunch of wet hippies chatting a bunch of hot air.

Much of the work I will do in my life will probably in hindsight be completely pointless however I believe if the action I take comes from a place of intimacy and is genuinely intended to create loving relationships and intimacy even if it flops hard then I think it will be enough.

Thoughts welcome this idea is still in progress……..