Empathy

I've never been excellent at sharing my faith with people (speaking of that whole Great Commission thing). At least with words anyhow. Lately, however, God has been sharing His heart for people with me. As I have hardly anything in common with my apartment neighbors, I've had the desire to get to know them. I feel like this desire is leading to something spectacular.

All this started a couple weeks ago. Amidst the stress of barely keeping up on the school work load of the week, I found my heart and tongue fixed on God as a means of simply making it through the week. Sleep was difficult, not only in my attempt to get my work in on time, but also because of the booming bass the residents of the apartment building. The week I happen to be the busiest so far this semester happens to also be the week that every night is a party night for those I live by. For some reason, I didn't mind. I passed them on my way going out or coming in and gave them the 'hey, how's it going?' or got their's all the same with no bitterness or any similar feeling tied to it. Instead I only yearned for something on a deeper level. After all, they seem like nice enough people.

I ended that week with some worship Friday night, and, let me tell you, it was good. The highlight of the night was some prayer I had with a friend. After praying with me for only a little bit he had some insight on what I was sort of going through and shared with me what I coming for me.

I don't want to get in the mindset of one spiritual gift being more important than another. That would be an unhealthy way of thinking. Healing, tongues, giving, exhortation, whatever, the list goes on, and idolizing the gifts instead of the Giver would indeed be missing the mark. But all my heart has been set on is tree things: loving those around me, knowing/understanding what they are going through, and loving them even more. Was this not the definition of Jesus? He loved, He came and felt, and continued to love.

Confrontation

This weekend I found out what the biggest personality difference, from my humanly understanding, between me and the Lord is (with the exception of Divinity and all that Good stuff, of course). I don't like confrontation. From my understanding not many do. But I really don't like it. It is uncomfortable. It's simply easier to try to live in "harmony" by putting up with my faults or the faults of other's instead of taking it out into the open, from the littlest of things like a pet-peeve of your's a friend, acquaintance, or otherwise unknowingly or knowingly likes to pick at, or the deepest of problems you don't want other's to notice (whether you don't want to illuminate your weaknesses, burden others with them, or pay attention to them altogether).

This is not so with my God. He would rather uproot these problems than leave them buried deep. He would rather be on the inside than be on the surface. At least this rings true for me, that He would want the very core of me, rather than the surface of my emotions or problems. Over the years I've found that He Loves. His desire is Freedom. Spiritual, Physical, Emotional, Etc. Freedom. It's kind of His thing.

I felt that this post is relative to the purpose of this blog because this is something I need to overcome to become who I need to be. Put simply, I need to confront my confrontational problem. I don't mean to ignore who I am. I think it is agreeable to say that it is not bad to avoid confrontation, but I do need balance.

Anyway, I don't really know how to get where I need to go, but I do suppose admitting the problem is the first step to cure, right? ... Yeah, looks like the winds are changing...

Identity

So this is my first blog. I've been thinking of making one for a while, but I've always been unsure about my commitment to it. But I think it will be good for me. Let me start out by introducing what Something Like Simba means as well as the direction I mean to go with this blog.

I am a lion. I don't remember the first time that I initially gave myself this identity, but I do remember that, for the longest time, it was simply because I liked lions. Being my favorite animal, I just thought they were really cool and I wanted to be one. But it never fit.

Mufasa is the one who comes to mind for me as the stereotypical lion: big, wise, mighty and any other powerful term to create the king of the jungle. But that's not me. Small in stature, indecisive, not too frightening and whatever else is everything I ignored when coming up with this fantastic identity. But it was fun to pretend.

Now there was a time when I didn't really like Simba, son of a more mightier character. How could a scrawny little whiney character like him ever hope to fill the place the great Mufasa? Over time I realized he and I were more alike than any other fictional character I could think of.

I feel like where I stand right now in life is something like Simba. God has something for me. Something great. Something I have to take control of, but right now it's all too easy to listen to Timon and Pumbaa's way of living. But that's not what He has for me.

I am a lion. At first I didn't understand what that meant to me, but more and more clearly I'm finding it's my Big, Wise and Mighty Father's footsteps that I am to follow to make me the lion He needs me to be.

I'm making this blog to show how this story of mine develops, though, I don't think I'll be able to keep this thing as serious as it sounds.