Donald Miller's Blog, page 108

Win two Flights to Our Movie Premiere!

If you'd like to attend our movie Premiere in either Nashville or Portland (to be determined based on logistics) we will fly one lucky winner (and a friend) out and set you up with passes. All you have to do is share our trailer.

Sharing the trailer is the best thing you can do to help us spread word about this movie and get it into theaters on April 13. And we want to reward you guys for sharing it. We've even made it easy.

To enter the contest, simply click here. Fill in your name and use the buttons at the bottom of the page to share the trailer on Facebook and Twitter and you'll be automatically entered to win the flights.

Want an even better chance at winning? Have a friend enter the contest too and agree if either of you win, you'll take each other.

The chances of winning this contest are quite high compared to other contests. Most contests have hundreds of thousands of entries, but we are a low-budget, small film. So take the thirty seconds so we can fly you out to our big party!

Mark April 13 on your calendar, folks. It's coming soon!

 

Win two Flights to Our Movie Premiere! is a post from: Donald Miller's Blog

Are You Playing the Victim to Manipulate Others?

To some degree, every one of us has been a victim. We were either neglected by our parents, picked on at school or ripped off in a business deal later in life. When we are healthy, we can learn from those experiences, forgive and move on. But when we're not, we tend to re-victimize ourselves over and over.

Photo by Geoff Welch

What I mean when I say re-victimize ourselves is we play the "recording" of the event again and again in our minds because it actually gives us some morbid form of comfort.

When we are somebody's victim, we actually have a little bit of power over them. Control freaks love to play the victim, for example. If they are victims, they can control the person who hurt them because that person "owes them something now" and they can also control everybody around them by draining sympathy and attention from their community.

I doubt there's anybody reading this blog who hasn't done this. I certainly have. In fact, it's difficult to even realize we are doing it. Playing the victim shows up as complaining or whining about some task we have to do, or having a really negative attitude toward life.

Henry Cloud and John Townsend define a real victim as a person who is completely and utterly powerless. That's a tough definition, because it means you and I aren't often victims. We almost always have some power in a situation. If we are a victim to a person, we can move away from them, even though it will cause a great deal of tension. We can quit our jobs, we can create better boundaries, there's more often than not something we can do. We just don't want to. We want to remain victims, because truthfully we are getting something out of the role, even if we don't admit it.

The truth is, though, when we play the victim, we are actually making partial victims of the people around us. We are using them and manipulating them.

Not only this, but when we play the victim, we are making an excuse not to succeed and connect honestly with others. If we are victims, the rules don't apply to us, right?

Catch yourself thinking negatively about something today and ask yourself if you're playing the victim. Or think about somebody you haven't forgiven and ask yourself if you aren't milking that situation a little too much.

Not playing the victim will take a lot of practice, but it's worthy practice. I promise you, playing the victim is holding you back.

* If you'd like to know more about planning and organizing your life, consider registering for a Storyline Conference. You can learn more by clicking here.

Are You Playing the Victim to Manipulate Others? is a post from: Donald Miller's Blog

How Do You Keep From Getting Distracted? Don't Answer the Ringing Phone.

A few weeks ago I was tempted to put off a high-priority job because somebody needed something from me and said it was urgent. The truth is what they needed from me was urgent, it just wasn't urgent for me. What they needed was going to help them get their job done.

I call these kinds of distractions a "ringing phone." It's amazing how much a ringing phone takes priority over everything else, and often the stuff that is more important given your various responsibilities. When a phone rings we rarely know what the person who is calling wants, but we drop whatever we are doing to answer.

Metaphorically, a ringing phone is something that feels urgent but isn't.

With this specific incident, I went back to my goals and realized if I kept taking myself off task to answer ringing phones, I'd never get my work done. So for two days I completed my tasks, then helped them with their project.

Not answering the ringing phone did two things for me:

It affirmed my priorities. These days, ringing phones are much easier to ignore if they aren't in line with what I'm trying to accomplish.
It set boundaries for the people who need my help. It let them know my responsibilities come first and then I'd be able help with theirs. if you think about it, even Jesus walked away from the sick and the hungry to spend time with His Father.

The person was a little frustrated I didn't give them what they needed. And I felt a little bit like a jerk for not helping. But after 24 hours, I started feeling better and I got an e-mail from the person explaining how much they respected my decision and how grateful they were after I'd helped them out.

So, lets be careful to tell the difference between a ringing phone and an actual priority.

What are the ringing phones that keep taking you off task? Do you think people would respect you more if you created boundaries around your primary responsibilities?

* If you would like to know more about prioritizing responsibilities, register for a Storyline Conference today. In the Storyline process, you'll fill out several modules helping you identify the roles you play in life and prioritize your ambitions within those roles. To find out more, click here.

* WIN FREE STORYLINE PASSES HERE: www.storylinetickets.com

How Do You Keep From Getting Distracted? Don't Answer the Ringing Phone. is a post from: Donald Miller's Blog

How to Tell a Good Story With Your Life – or – The Four Critical Elements of a Meaningful Life

A couple years ago I released a book called "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years" about editing my life for a major motion picture. The premise of the book was that the tools storytellers use to create better stories can also be used by the rest of us to live better lives.

On April 13th, the movie will be coming out and I'm feeling grateful, nervous and excited all at once. It's also reminding me about the importance of actually living a good story rather than just telling one.

I thought I'd summarize some of the concepts from Storyline for those of you who haven't read the book or been able to attend a conference.

The idea is actually pretty simple. To live a great story, our lives have to reflect the element of a great story. Here they are:

• Every story is built around a character or characters. This part is easy. By God's design, you are the principal character of your story because you are the only character in any story you can control. You are the storyteller and the principal character all in one. The story may be about something other than you, but you have agency and to deny that is to tell a really boring story. The first of many keys to living a great life is to take full responsibility for our lives.

• The character has to want something. If the main character in the story doesn't want something or if what they want is muddled, the story lacks direction and purpose. The same is true in life. When we want something we launch into the story question, that is "will the character get what they want." But that's not all. What we want needs to be good, self sacrificing and we have to want whatever it is we want more than we want glory or to feed our ego or even validation. When we find that thing we want, our story not only engages the world, it engages us and we become much more interested in life itself.

• Every character must go through conflict. Far from being a bad thing, conflict in story is a necessity. In America we live in a culture that avoids conflict but we do so to our own detriment. Conflict fills a story with meaning and beauty. Not only this, but conflict gives value to that which we are trying to attain. And conflict is the only way a character actually changes. There is no character development without conflict. So when we choose our ambitions, they should be difficult and we should anticipate and even welcome conflict.

• Stories must resolve. In stories there's a scene called a climax. A climactic scene will resolve all the conflict in the story in a single action. Life doesn't really work this way, but having a visual scene in your mind that you can head toward is motivating. For instance, if you want to lose 30 pounds, don't set that as a goal, make the goal finishing a marathon. Finishing a marathon is visual and much more motivating.

I've been planning my life this way for the past seven years or so and it's made all the difference. I've certainly had a lot of conflict, but I've put my heart into my books, lost a ton of weight and have a strong vision for the future.

 * If you'd like to know more about planning your life like a story, consider joining us at a Storyline Conference. This year Storyline will be held in Portland, Nashville and Santa Barbara. You can learn more here.

How to Tell a Good Story With Your Life – or – The Four Critical Elements of a Meaningful Life is a post from: Donald Miller's Blog

Registrations Are Open for Storyline in Portland, Nashville and Santa Barbara

If you've been waiting to attend a Storyline Conference but haven't been able to come to Portland, we are bringing the conference to you.

Storyline is new and improved. By the time you leave, you will have filled out a life plan based on the elements of story. After Storyline you'll have clarity about your ambitions and your primary relationships as well as inspiration and encouragement to engage the conflict you encounter daily.

At Storyline, you'll organize your life into stories based on the roles you play in life. Within each role, you will identify your ambitions, anticipate and prepare for conflict, prioritize relationships and edit out unnecessary mental clutter. You will leave with a renewed vision and enthusiasm for what you can accomplish with your life.

If you've never created a life plan, or need a different perspective on what it means to live a successful, meaningful life sign up for Storyline today.

This year, you can catch Storyline in three cities:

Our Portland Conference is held at the Armory Theater. Situated right next door to Powell's in Portland's fashionable Pearl district, attendees can take the light rail from the airport, check into their hotel and never leave the half mile radius of the theater to enjoy award-winning restaurants, bookstores, shops and of course the conference itself. The Armory is the newly remodeled home of Portland Center Stage, our world-class theater company so you'll be learning about how to live a great story right where great stories are told every other night. Come on out and join us in Portland on April 30th.

If you live in the southeast or can easily get to Nashville, Storyline is coming to Music City. We are pleased to announce Belmont University is hosting the Storyline conference on May 6th and 7th. Spend an extra couple days in Nashville and get tickets to a show at The Ryman Auditorium or the Grand Ole Opry, visit the Country Music Hall of Fame or take a bike ride along the Natchez Trace. Grab breakfast at Fido or Bongo Java and join us as we talk about what it means to live an inspired and inspiring life. Register for Nashville's Storyline today.

 Perhaps one of the more beautiful college campuses in America, Westmont College, has invited us to create a Storyline Experience on their campus in Santa Barbara. If you want to take a long walk on the beach while thinking about your story, Santa Barbara is your spot. Spend an extra two days in Santa Barbara and eat at their award-winning restaurants, get a facial at the local spa, go on a hike in the hills over the pacific or grab a surfboard and hit the waves. Join us in June at the Santa Barbara Storyline.

If you're trying to convince a friend to attend Storyline, ask them to watch this little video. Great stories are planned, and even better stories are shared. Bring a friend or your entire team and join us at Storyline this year!

Registrations Are Open for Storyline in Portland, Nashville and Santa Barbara is a post from: Donald Miller's Blog

Thirty Cities in Thirty Days! The Blue Like Jazz Promotion Begins.

For the next thirty days or so I'll be living in this truck. Steve Taylor and I are hitting the road to promote Blue Like Jazz which opens nationwide on April 13th. The movie will open in 17 cities that Friday and expand into more cities from there. If you live anywhere near a city that has about a million people living in it, the movie will be playing at several theaters in your town. You'll want to check Fandango or wherever you get your movie listings for information about your local theater.

Each day of the tour we will be screening the film for our Kickstarter backers as well as members of the press. That said, we've reserved several seats for people to be able to walk up in response to special announcements on twitter. If you're not following me, click here and stay tuned. Our tour schedule along with information about attending a screening can be found at the movie's website.

In the mean time, there's plenty you can do to help us promote this movie. Here are some first steps:

1. Share the trailer. We need about a million people to see the trailer before the movie hits theaters. Tweet a link to the trailer, share it on facebook or embed it on your blog. This is probably the best way you can help us spread word about the film.

2. Change your twitter avatar or background to promote the movie. All you need for twitter, facebook and more can be found here.

3. Mark April 13th on your calendar. Films live or die based on one-day's performance. It's kind of like an election in that sense. If people don't go see the movie on Friday the 13th of April, we are toast. The movie won't grow into other theaters the following week. We think we've made a terrific movie and the thousands who have attended our pre-screenings agree. 85% of our audiences rated the movie very good or excellent. Those are pretty good tomatoes. So, show up at the theater, buy a bucket of popcorn and enjoy!

4. Sign up for your e-mail updates. You'll get all the information you need about the film and we promise we won't spam you.

Here's the trailer!

 

Thirty Cities in Thirty Days! The Blue Like Jazz Promotion Begins. is a post from: Donald Miller's Blog

God and Radio

Today's guest contributor is Joshua Jones. Joshua is the GM/VP of 95.3fm The Range in Dallas, the largest commercial Alt-Country/Americana radio station in the nation. He also has insane free-throw shooting skills.  You can keep up with him at twitter.com/thejoshuajones.

I like to think I am on the cutting edge of what's "cool" in music, but music is such a nebulous mountain of subjectivity that what's cool to me may very well not be cool to you, and vice versa. But, I get paid to have opinions on this stuff, so I try to stay a little ahead of the curve, or is it curb? Sometimes I combine the "b" and the "v", so I sound less like an idiot, which ironically makes me sound more like an idiot. Yeah, I'm the one person in America staying "ahead of the curbv."

But, I digress. I come not to blog about whether God moves more through the music of Hank Williams, Sr. or Michael W. Smith, but rather to discuss the medium through which many of us discover it, radio.

I'm taking a class on C.S. Lewis on Tuesday nights taught by SMU Theology professor Dr. Billy Abraham. He's an older Irish fellow with a beard that rivals Santa Claus. Last night he told the class, "It is impossible to understand God, without the aid of the metaphor."

So, please afford me the opportunity to share one or two with you:

I think God is perpetually using the Holy Spirit to communicate to us. That's right, I think in our dialog with the Almighty he is always keeping up with his end of the conversation. We, however, tend to let our end of the convo wane. So you ask, "If God is constantly talking to me, why can't I hear him?" Glad you asked. Imagine you are in your car listening to your favorite radio station. For example, take a random spot on the radio dial like 95.3fm (this is not random at all, it's the frequency of the very secular station I happen to manage- but serves the purpose of this illustration.) If you have your radio set on 95.5fm or 95.1fm, what will you hear? A bunch of static piping through your speakers. I believe the Holy Spirit is the same exact way. God is communicating to us on a very specific frequency and we must tune our hearts to that exact frequency to hear Him.

Matthew 13:15 breaks it down this way: "For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them." (NIV)

So, how do we do that? By taking spiritual disciplines seriously: praying, loving, serving, studying, etc. etc.- that's how we get on God's frequency. Additionally, we have to extrapolate our attention from the pangaea of other superfluous frequencies clamoring for our attention. The problem is we do a few of these things, often with our own agenda in mind, and come somewhat close to the "frequency of the Holy Spirit," but not quite on it, and get frustrated by the silence of God, or the static that we hear. Which is also ironic, because if you lock in on His frequency, I think you'll find the volume of the conversation deafening.

Running a renegade radio station for over a dozen years, I've come across lots of music. I mean its ridiculous to even begin to fathom the pile of CDs that have been mailed to me, or that I've been handed at the grocery store, at concerts, or even my doctor's office (seriously.) If I could possibly stack up all of those CDs I'm certain the stack would reach way into the sky. Maybe even reach the basement of heaven. It's a lot of CDs. One of the very best of the CDs in that stack would be from a very low-key, under-the-radar singer/songwriter from Wisconsin named Jeffrey Foucault. The CD is titled Ghost Repeater. The title-track is one of my all-time favorite songs. Check it out, and like I tell Don sometimes, you'll thank me.

"Ghost repeater," is a radio term. By definition, its an empty radio station- usually in a low-populated area that re-broadcasts a well-manicured play-list that provides, as Foucault's website explains, "endless echoes of American market culture, from thousands of miles away." I love – and hate – that concept.

Fortunately for us, we're not worshipping a ghost-repeater. While God is constantly emitting a significant and meaningful signal to us via the Holy Spirit, the content of the broadcast is one of love via grace. It's a signal that will change our lives and the lives of those around us. John 10: 27-28 says it this like this, "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand." (NIV)

But, for us to be able to clearly and continually "listen to His voice," we have to get our hearts on the right frequency.

God and Radio is a post from: Donald Miller's Blog

He is a Person, Not a Theology

At the time of Martin Luther, the church was building sanctuaries by selling bricks to people in exchange for indulgences. If a person bought a brick, they would be forgiven a few more sins or help a loved one out of purgatory. Because people couldn't read, and there weren't very many copies of the Bible floating around anyway, religious leaders used the threat of hell and God's wrath to manipulate the masses. But, as I mentioned earlier, when Luther read a copy of the Bible for himself, he began a reformation against this kind of crap. It makes you wonder how amazed he was when he first read the words of Christ in the book of Matthew, words about people who would try to distort relational truth and turn it into propositional truth for their own gain: "Instead of giving you God's Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God," Jesus begins, talking about the Pharisees,

They package it in bundles of rules, loading you down like pack animals. They seem to take pleasure in watching you stagger under these loads, and wouldn't think of lifting a finger to help. Their lives are perpetual fashion shows, embroidered prayer shawls one day and flowery prayers the next. They love to sit at the head table at church dinners, basking in the most prominent positions, preening in the radiance of public flattery, receiving honorary degrees, and getting called "Doctor" and "Reverend."

Don't let people do that to you, put you on a pedestal like that. You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates. Don't set people up as experts over your life, letting them tell you what to do. Save that authority for God; let him tell you what to do. No one else should carry the title of "Father"; you have only one Father, and he's in heaven. And don't let people maneuver you into taking charge of them. There is only one Life-Leader for you and them—Christ.

(Matt. 23:4–10 THE MESSAGE)

I know it's tempting to believe if we will walk through ten steps or listen to only a certain kind of music or pray in a certain way and for a certain number of days then we will find favor with God, but we won't. The formulas, I understand, were created by their authors to help us, but they do more hindering than helping. If we trust in a formula, if we trust in steps, we are not trusting in God. Formulas, while helping us organize our faith, also tempt us to trust in them rather than in God. In my own faith journey, I have disregarded formulas entirely.

There are many religions, and many religious sects within the faith of Christianity. Do I believe some are more scripturally faithful than others? Yes. But none of them matter in the slightest if formulas replace a personal relationship with Jesus. He is the authority we need. He is the God we must cling to for salvation. And He is a Person, not a list of ideas, not a theology.

This passage was an excerpt from Searching for God Knows What.

He is a Person, Not a Theology is a post from: Donald Miller's Blog

The Dance Toward God

I was raised to believe that the quality of a man's life would greatly increase, not with the gain of status or success, not by his heart's knowing romance or by prosperity in industry or academia, but by his nearness to God. It confuses me that Christian living is not more simple. The gospel, the very good news, is simple, but this is a gate; the trailhead. Ironing out faithless creases is toilsom labor. God bestows three blessings on man: to feed him like the birds, dress him like the flowers, and befriend him as a confidant. Too many take the first two and neglect the last. Most believers on the path have found that life is constructed specifically and brilliantly to squeeze a man into association with the owner heaven. It is a struggle, with labor pains and thorny landscape, bloody hands and sweaty brow, head in hands, moments of severe loneliness and questioning, moments of ache and desire. All this leads to God. God is not merely the reason behind existence, nor the curer of ills and confusion. Matter and thought are a canvas on which God paints; a painting with tragedy and delivery, with sin and redemption. Life is a dance toward God. And the dance is not so graceful as we might think. For a while we glide and swing our practiced sway, God crowds our feet, bumps our toes, and scuffs our shoes. He lowers His head, whispers soft and confident, "You will dance to the beat of 'Amazing Grace' or you will not dance at all." So we learn to dance with the One who made us. And it is a taxing dance to learn.

But once learned, don't we glide. And don't we sway. And don't we bury our head in His chest. And don't we love to dance.

This passage was an excerpt from Prayer and the Art of Volkswagen Maintenance, which was later reissued as Through Painted Deserts.

The Dance Toward God is a post from: Donald Miller's Blog

Another Conversation with Steve Taylor

After five years of working, Blue is finally hitting theaters on April 13th. It's been quite a journey. Here's another part of my conversation with Director Steve Taylor:

Another Conversation with Steve Taylor is a post from: Donald Miller's Blog