Kyle AtkinsBio: I'm a simple man, a little part of a bigger plan
Twitter
- @craigmcsalmon yep yep - I gotta listen to your track later on today :)
- @craigmcsalmon ahh cool man lol yeah tumblr is my raw thoughts and such - pretty much its me just writing whatever i feel at the moment lol
- @craigmcsalmon yep thats me… no one really knows that i have tumblr and i like it that way but select ppl do - so welcome to the club!
- @craigmcsalmon yep yep! lol welcome to tubmlr btw
By US: Web DesignerPast Post
Monthly Archives: July 2011
Reject Apathy
Recently one of my favorite magazines launched their new print edition of a website called Reject Apathy. The logo is awesome and the site is full of things that make us aware of what is going on in the rest of the world. A look outside our ivory towers and high rise apartments. The vision was launched by the creator of Relevant after a trip overseas where he got to see first hand what was going on in other nations.
The idea of apathy has entered my mind for a while now, thinking of how much this applies to our generation. I know that even I am apathetic more than I want to be in areas that should matter more, so know that I write this post not only with you in mind, but with me as well. We are all in this together, but I think we have a problem. But it is a problem that a bunch of 20somethings can change.
lack of feeling or emotion : impassiveness : lack of interest or concern : indifference~ Apathy
Reading that definition, I think it properly describes many people around us. We have become a generation that accepts everything and stands for nothing. We get excited about causes but we never actually do anything. Instead, our generation is categorized by being a give me generation. We are all about ourselves, something which I have written about before. I think it stems from a lot of areas, apathy being one of them.
Apathy is like a disease. We never intended to become apathetic, but over time our small symptoms went untreated. We began to buy into the idea that there was nothing outside of these walls. Or maybe we know there is more out there, we just don’t care enough to leave our couches and our warm beds. Instead of producing leaders, our generation produces followers. We don’t want to step out of our comfort zone. And I think this is something that we must change.
The problem with change is that before we can begin teaching others how to break out of this problem of apathy, we have to do it ourselves. But I don’t want to just say hey, we need to change and leave it at that. We can do practical things to help break this apathy that we are under so that we can become leaders of this generation (and in some ways, we already are). Your choice is do you want to continue living in apathy for the things around us or do you want to join us. Both decisions will cost you, it just depends on what you want the cost to be.
For those of you that want to break out, I think one of the ways we can start breaking out and leading is by figuring out where we have been standing silent for to long. This means practically to take some time in prayer and ask God to reveal his heart to you. It may take some time for you to reach the place where you can see it, but be bold in asking God to open your eyes. When our heart begins to fuse with God’s, we find that being apathetic is no longer an option – because we find that being one with God’s heart is so much better.
We have to become a generation that seeks the heart of God, but that isn’t enough. Once you experience the heart of God, you begin to realize that you are now responsible. I heard it said that God uses people to answer prayers – what if you have been, in your apathy, not allowing God to use you in that way? We are responsible to start taking a stand in love for the things that we should be doing – and that doesn’t mean that we have to start going against everything that is not of God – I think it means that we should be taking stands and loving others. Instead of arguing over who is right or wrong, we should start to love. Radically. Unconditionally. But more than that, actually live it.
To the outcast, we should be the ones who love on them. To the hurting, we should be the uplifters. To the broken, we should come along side them in our own brokenness so that we can help restore them. To the followers, we should emerge to lead them along the path that God has called all of us to walk. You see, I think most people are afraid to step up because they don’t “know” if God has made them for whatever it is – but if there is one thing I know about God, its that he uses us for his plan as long as our hearts are in the right place. He is our source, our power, our success. When we reject apathy, we can live a life on fire for God.
I want to continue this discussion in my next post – on ways that we can practically begin to be different. We can’t do this on our own brothers and sisters. Not only do we need God, but we need community. We need each other to help walk this road. I am honored by the men and women in my life that model this idea of rejecting apathy – I want to do this journey with you.
Spend time in prayer for one another. Take some time off of Facebook and just enjoy the peace that comes from God the Father. Invite the Holy Spirit to indwell you.
With our knowledge of this problem, I feel as if we as a generation are responsible for stepping up and reclaiming our values. It is our time – are you going to continue how you are living, or will you reject apathy so you can experience all that God has for you?
In love and prayer,
Kyle
This life is not about me
One of my favorite bands is Anberlin. They have a unique sound and lyrics that capture my heart each time that I hear them. Somehow they manage to take me deeper than most of the other bands that I listen to and I can’t help but slip into worship during their songs. Off of their album “New Surrender” the band has a song that I think should be the anthem of our generation.
Don’t wanna leave this world, knowing I’ve lived in vain.
No time for myself; so sorry, so ashamed.
Don’t wanna leave this life, knowing I’ve barely tried.
Chase down all my dreams that I’ve hid away on the inside.Live; I wanna live on fire.
Die; I wanna burn out brighter.
Brighter than the Northern Lights.
Wanna live to feel the daylight.
The more I live I see, this life’s not about me.~ Anberlin, Burn Out Brighter (Northern Lights)
Incidentally one of the things that has been on my mind lately is about the selfishness of our generation. We are all selfish to a point, no one is immune from it and if you are drop me a line and give me some advice on that. So we have to begin to understand the fact that humans, as people, are selfish.
The most common area of selfishness deals with how we interact with other people. Selfish people usually are inward focused all the time. They feel like their friends are there to serve them. They walk around with an attitude that says that they are entitled to whatever it is that they want. They complain about every little thing that isn’t right in their little world. I’m sure you either know these type of people, are this type of person or have been this type of person in the past. I think that selflessness, which should be the direction we are going, will never be fully obtained. That doesn’t mean we don’t strive for it.
There isn’t any exact way that we can fully overcome selfishness, but there are a few ways that we can practice that make the battle against our flesh a ton easier. I think that it starts with understanding that we are unworthy of anything. We are even unworthy to be living. Most people wonder why God lets bad things happen to good people, but I wonder why do good things happen to anyone. We don’t deserve a bit of anything that we receive. We aren’t entitled, and the God that is allows us the ability to choose if we are going to be about ourselves or him.
We all get caught up in the lies of the world. The “me” syndrome. We have made everything in our own little world about us. But in the end, this life isn’t about us. It is about everyone else but us. We have to learn to view ourselves as meaningless so that God can show us what it is like to truly be selfless. We can’t do it with our own power though, we have to allow God to humble us.
Take a few minutes and count your blessings. I don’t just mean the whole “I’m glad that I have a family” stuff, although those are great blessings. What about the fact that you don’t have to think about breathing, it just happens. You don’t have to tell your hands what to do, they already know. What about the sunrise you caught a glimpse of earlier today, or the cloud that floated by, or maybe even the bird that you saw. What about the fact that you can see? All of these things we take forgranted as a generation. And we miss out on what truly matters.
Lets be honest, it really doesn’t matter what type of car you have, what type of clothes you buy, what things that you do that glorify yourself. No one cares about you because they are all too busy caring about themselves. Now here is where I think we come in, we have to care about everyone else because they don’t care about us. Exactly – we have to love those who don’t even give us the time of day just as much as we do our best friends.
In the end, our lives mean nothing if we are just about ourselves. When Christ said that the first shall be last and the last shall be first, he was trying to show us that we are supposed to be the ones lifting others up, being around for others more, being a better friend, boy/girlfriend, son, daughter, leader, follower, and the list goes on. We have to learn to live our lives in a way that we are always pointing up. That means we don’t get the credit, but we get something even more. We get to know that we are doing what God has called us to do. I have never met anyone who practices this that didn’t get pure joy out of helping someone else. Yes, it means forsaking your needs and wants. It means being more about everyone else and even sometimes neglecting yourself for others. But the payoff is amazing. You become a friend that people want to be around, you become someone who people look up to and admire, not because you are special, but because God is working through your life. And selfless people don’t do things for recognition, because in the end it doesn’t matter.
We are just the candle, we just sit here and allow ourselves to display the light. I would much rather chase after this idea of selflessness than to live a life all about me. There are so many more things outside of your own little world. If you want to learn how to live like Christ, you first have to become all about others. Yes, it is tough, but God will honor you beyond your wildest dreams.
Men and Women, it is time for our generation to rise up and combat this selfishness. The plague of the heart that is going on will kill us. And before you run and start telling others that they have it all wrong, love them first. Show love – it is the best way to overcome selfishness, because loving others is what we were called to do. It is our time to make a change, lets show the world what it really means to follow God by going against the way of the world. It is a battle that we all have to fight, but we get to fight it together in community. Come join the battle that leads to victory in Christ Jesus!
Dive Deep,
Kyle