Share Your Island

“No man is an island,

Entire of itself,

Every man is a piece of the continent,

A part of the main.”

I’m pretty sure the poet, a man by the name of John Donne, was a very intelligent individual for his time.  It’s not really hard to see that from the four lines of poetry quoted above; and if you take the time to read up about him, it’s interesting to see how he has grown out of poverty to become a member of parliament as well as the Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral.

He’s right, of course, nobody could really lock themselves away from civilization and expect to prosper.  But I have to admit, I’m not so sure that I’m comfortable with the idea of sharing my island with people.

Just think about all the amazing photographs you’ve ever seen of small secluded islands; think of all the secret wishes you’ve sighed to the heavens when you see that beautiful idyllic piece of land far away from the idiots and lunatics you have to share your space with.

Some time ago I realized exactly how easy it was for me to become a hermit.  Let’s face it, it’s much easier to convince yourself to stay at home with a good book, a good movie or great music than it is to dress up and subject yourself to meeting new people and making small talk.

Or maybe it’s just me.  Fine, I’ll admit it, whenever I’m invited to something my first instinct is always to make an excuse.  I love being at home, by myself doing what I love.  And it’s hard work to meet new people and try to find common ground for a conversation.

But I also realized that building walls around myself is not healthy at all.  I tend to become quiet in conversation once I’ve been in seclusion for a while, which gives the impression that I’m not interested, and that’s rude.  When you’re perceived as being rude, people generally start keeping you at arm’s length.  At first you might think that is the perfect response, because you like being alone anyway, right?

Nope, in the end you’ll have pushed everyone away and what do you have left?  Yourself.  And we all know that our own conversation has the ability to get boring very soon.

That’s not all though.  We need people in our life to grow, to bounce ideas off of, to build dreams with, to make plans with, and to conquer fears with.  Our closest friends are the ones that pull us out of the emotional turmoil we might be stuck in, they’re the ones who shift our focus in the right direction.

I’m not saying you should fill your life with a thousand friends if that’s not your style.  I’m saying that you should allow people in your life that build you up, make you laugh and kick your behind when you’re being stupid.

Those are the ones worth sharing your island with.

It isn’t easy.  How do I know if someone is worth allowing in my life?  Let me tell you what I do.  My general rule of thumb is:  If they know how to laugh at themselves and don’t take life too seriously, they’re definitely a candidate for my island.  So find that one thing that’s the most important to you and make that the Backstage Pass to your island.

“Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind.”

*Free Gift With Purchase

Some time ago I impulsively decided to buy a CD.  Now, usually I don’t spend money impulsively; I generally invest a lot of time into research and making sure that I’m getting a good chunk of value for what I’m spending.  And let’s face it, it’s always a gamble with CD’s, right?  You inevitably only like about 3 songs on there and the rest of it is rubbish or boring.  But I just closed my eyes and bought it, because I really liked that one song.

To be honest, I didn’t even know the band existed until a few months ago; I didn’t know if they had any other albums; and I certainly had no idea whether any of the songs on that CD would even be something I would like.

Boy, was I surprised!  Pleasantly surprised!  I popped it into the CD player of my car on my way home and by the time song number 5 came around, I was air-punching with pure ecstasy.  There was no doubt in my mind, I got value for my money.

We all know that it doesn’t always work like that, right?  I’ve had my fair share of disappointments over the years because the thing I bought just didn’t do what it said on the tin.  Or maybe I just expected more than was ever intended, I don’t know.  The fact remains, more often than not we expect something and then it’s not what we had hoped for.

An experience like that has the potential to dull our spirits and turn us sour.  Inevitably we approach the world with a cynicism that poisons us from the inside, influencing our behaviour in a negative way.

There is one thing though; one glorious and amazing thing that turns out to be exactly what it says on the tin.  No, wait, it’s actually more.  It is so much more.

Salvation…

…the saving of the soul from sin and its consequences.

This is something big and to delve into the absolute meaning of salvation is going to make my head spin, in all honesty.  But what I do know is that my salvation through Jesus Christ is abundantly more than I could ever imagine or think.  I “purchased” the decision to give everything I am, everything I worry about and everything I dream about over to the One and Only God.  And in return I received the “free gift” of eternal life, freedom from sin and the love of God; the One who has my best interest at heart.  The One who won’t let any harm come to me.

Forget about that free bag you get when you buy a specified quantity of cosmetic products.  Forget about the free hands-free set you get when you purchase a new phone.  Forget about the 11 other songs on that CD that turned out to be just as good as the one I liked in the beginning.

The most important *Free Gift With Purchase you will ever receive is the gift of eternal life from a God that loves you unreservedly and unconditionally.