I recently finished one of the best books I've read in a long time, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, by Donald Miller. I'm a huge Donald Miller fan to begin with, but this book for me far surpasses any of his previous efforts, even his best-seller, Blue Like Jazz.
Basically, two film-makers come to Miller and ask to write a movie based on his life. As he begins to review and evaluate his life, he realizes that it hasn't been all that significant or memorable. He's overweight, lazy, and spends a lot of time sleeping and watching TV. What follows is his journey as he seeks to live out a more meaningful part of the Story to which he's been called.
That journey takes him mountain climbing to reach Machu Pichu, on a bike ride across the United States to raise money for clean water in Africa, on a search for his father he never knew, and puts him in pursuit of a girl.
One particular story that struck me was the story of a friend of his whose daughter had begun smoking pot, dating a loser boyfriend way too old for her and hanging out with the wrong crowd. He and his wife had tried to demand she not see him anymore and tried all sorts of things but the problem only got worse.
One day Miller had an interaction with this father and was telling him some of the things he was learning about the elements that make for a good story, and often times a meaningful and memorable life. Some time later, the father calls him and tells him that what he had said really struck a chord. His daughter was choosing the particular story she was in because it was the only one where she felt wanted and desired - the father hadn't provided a more meaningful story for her.
So he called a family meeting and told everyone that he had committed to raising money and building an orphanage in Africa. His family looked at him like he was crazy, but within the next few days, his wife came up to him to tell him she was proud of him, and his troubled daughter got behind the project, got rid of the loser boyfriend and started working effortlessly to raise the money for the orphanage.
She finally had a greater Story that she fit into. One where she was needed and desired.
There are so many more parts of this book I could highlight, and so many ways in which this book has made me think about my life. For example, that the most meaningful and memorable lives are usually the result of taking a risk and stepping out of the comfort zone that our culture has created. Or that the things we usually remember about our lives are the times where we intentionally seek to do something memorable or meaningful, like having a -4 month wedding anniversary with your fiance with a nice dinner and bottle of wine!
But what has really stood out to me is how this book coincided with a talk I recently heard John Piper give on New Year's Eve.
In Roman's 15:20, Paul writes about his "[holy] ambition" to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles. This is what woke him up in the morning, helped him make decisions about where to go and where not to go, kept him energized during the long treks between cities where he was preaching, and helped him to minimize the time he spent putzing around on his smart phone.
Miller also frequently talks of "ambition." That without ambition, our lives are without purpose and directionless. I might add, wasted.
During Piper's talk, he went on a lengthy rant about how when you're a boy, you play with fake guns and hot wheels. Little girls play with Barbies and dolls.
But at our age, it's time to grow up and set our sights higher. Boys will be boys, but we're called to be a part of something bigger and better.
I know the Story that I fit into and have long prayed for a "holy ambition" or "holy discontent" to no avail so far, but reading this book and hearing Piper's talk have helped to realign me to that Story and to desire an ambition that's going to change lives and change the world. An ambition that takes faith and comes at a cost.
Because I have a Father that has created a better, more meaningful Story for me to be a part of. He's chosen me and rescued me so that I can be a part of it at this very moment in history. And while I don't need to dump a loser girlfriend or stop smoking pot (I have a wonderful fiance and don't smoke pot), being reminded of that definitely makes me want to get up earlier in the morning, spend less time on ESPN.com, and live out a life that counts for something. -CK
