Author: Mac Mascorro

Wow, hard to believe it’s over! The last week and a half has been an interesting mix of family relationship time, and Mac just taking care of life things. Hard to explain. The time has been spent in Abilene, mostly with my family here in town. Just like my family that lives far away, I realize that for the past several years I have not made a strong intentional effort to be a part of their lives. Sure, I’ve gone to baseball games and ballet recitals, but have not truly invested in their lives like I wish I had. The last week and a half has been an awesome time, I think, to be able to do that and quickly see some cool results. I spent some time with my brother, who is going through the awkward 13-year-old stage (no explanation needed). The best quality time I could find to spend with him was simply talking to him about the video game he was playing, and being there to hear his rambling on whatever else he wanted to speak about… Definitely learning patience! I also took my little sisters on a date, took them to dinner and a movie and had a great time. Even though they’re a very young, I want them to always know how a man should treat them; to make sure they expect to be treated like princesses. We even so Beauty and the Beast! Some would argue me taking my sisters to this movie was just a cover so I didn’t feel like less of a man for seeing it… Those people would not be completely wrong. But it was also great spending that sweet time with my sisters.

Like any father-son relationship, my dad and I spent a lot of our lives arguing and being hardheaded towards one another. Throughout the week, making myself available to him and for him, I can honestly say we had two or three of the deepest, best conversations that we’ve ever had. Very very grateful for those times with him in moving into more of a friendship style relationship than 100% father-son relationship. It’s a lot of fun and great to know you’ve always got someone on your side 100%.

I wrapped up both of my books in the last couple weeks, and truly learned a lot from the teachings. Wild at Heart, for example, really painted a picture of always seeking the extraordinary and adventure in a man’s life. To simply go about the day without any specific purpose is to waste many potential opportunities. A man must have passions apart of and with in his professional career so that he may be fulfilled as a man. Also, men don’t have to apologize for how we are: rambunctious, loud, looking for a mountain to climb, or anything else.  I feel like the truths in this book really encouraged me to always seek adventure and trust God in the little daily experiences. The other book I read was Mere Christianity, by C.S. Lewis. This book is “the book about things all Christians believe.” Lewis takes a very non-biased approach to explaining both the broad and specific details of Christian faith based on the Bible within all different denominations. This was a great reminder to me of who we are as Christians, and the simple reasons we believe what we believe. I love this book and would recommend it to anyone who is on the fence about buying into Christianity.

I truly am grateful for this time to relax and reflect on God’s truths in my life. I am currently in a very challenging situation, but this last month has began to paint a picture of God’s mercies in my life, his plan for me is securely set in joy and mercy. Although I don’t know what tomorrow brings, I rest assured that I am in God’s hands and in His sight… nothing I could do would ever move me out of that position! I’m looking forward to moving back into daily life with these truths in mind and applying them to my surroundings every day.

If you’re wondering, the title truly does not have any real deep significance. Sorry to disappoint. What it DOES mean is that week three was a week of finishing work around my parents’ new house to get it closer to ready to move in. The floors were finished being sanded, then I helped put on the sever layers of sealant.

Tell me those floors don’t look awesome!? Now this is a small sampling – we finished close to 1100 square feet of 1940’s original wood flooring. And no, I’m not for hire or interested in redoing ANY of y’all’s floors on the weekends. Thanks though!

Joking aside, I loved being able to serve my family in this way and keep my step-dad from spending dozens of late late nights working on the house. This hopefully sped the move-in process for them up by several weeks; I’m sure I’ll be back down there then to get stuff all moved in and situated!

This brought me to something that I have begun to realize the last several months. Often, we look outside of our immediate circle first and/or only for people to serve. This is honorable, right, and commendable. However, upon asking God who He wanted in my circle of influence to show Christ’s love to and be His hands and feet to, all the people put on my mind were in my family. Although these are not always “the least of these,” we believers have a tremendous amount of influence over people close to us because we see them so often. Just a thought and something I want to continue to invest in long after Sabbatical time.

Also, more along the true handiwork lines, I finished a kitchen table that I have been building 2014… don’t ask, it’s a long story. The cool part of the story is how beautiful and amazing it turned out DESPITE my serious lack of woodworking ability! Thanks again to the guidance of my step-dad on this one.

As do many of the other occurrences over my time of Sabbatical, this table has a lot of personal meaning. The wood that was used is Long Leaf Pine, most of it sprouted in the late 1700s. Once harvested in the 1800s, it was used to build a cotton-storage warehouse in Bryan, TX. My great-grandfather managed that warehouse for many years, then my grandfather, Papa, managed it until a new, steel-framed building replaced it. A few months after this same grandfather passed away, they decided to tear down the old warehouse to make room for future construction. My step-dad asked if he could purchase some of the old wood; this is the same wood used to build the table seen here. It’s old and has a lot of character, but reminds me of him every time I look at it. God is good to put things in our lives to remind us of what is important and those we love in everyday life.

Other notable things this week were coming back to Abilene and finishing the week here. I’ve finished my first book, Wild at Heart, and am most of the way through Mere Christianity. God has shown me a lot of grace to seek and know His peace, even in very challenging circumstances. By learning to rely on God at the deepest “daily bread” level, my life has been and is being transformed to look more and more like Jesus.

Week two is accomplished – oh what a blissful week it was!

I will hit some of the highlights and share some of what God has been doing in my heart and through me this week. For starters, I started serving in my service project this week. I was helping with the missions department at my church with a couple of many initiatives they currently have going. For example, I helped put together a clothing drive for the “Single Moms” ministry. This was near and dear to my heart because this same ministry supported my mom and I when I was young/before she remarried. Some of her/my best lifelong friends were made through this ministry beginning over 20 years ago! I also did some research and found a lawyer to provide pro bono services for a mom in an abusive situation. It was really amazing knowing that I was able to directly help someone in the community I grew up in.

While this WAS my official service project, I found being led strongly to pour more of my time into serving my family in Bryan. Without going into too much detail, my family has been going up against relentless struggles for about 2 years now. A few highlights (so you can grasp the difficulties they’ve been through):

grandfather/”the glue” of the family passes away; family disperses/struggles to keep family bond; siblings move schools; step-dad studies/passes civil engineering exam (huge time commitment); step-dad’s father’s Parkinsons disease becomes dramatically worse, several close calls with having seizures, countless trips to the hospital; family decides to purchase/renovate house next door, mom fractures femur so all plans are halted for several months; etc.

Needless to say, my family has been through an exhausting and unrelenting couple of years. As God was calling me to focus more of my attention on them, I spent less time at the church and decide to just help around my mom and grandma’s house for the next week. So far, I have been sanding and prepping the wood floors at the “Next Door House,” as we call it, so that we can reseal them next week. The only more-backbreaking work I can remember doing is laying sod and digging post-holes! Yikes! My grandma lives on about 5 acres of grass that is in constant need of attention, so I also spent a day at her house mowing her yard and trimming trees.

What some of this meant for me, as a delightful by-product, was that I was able to be arounf my siblings a lot more than if I would have been at the church full-time. I have siblings Nena, 15, Evan, 8, and Isaac, 5, who I do not get to spend NEARLY as much time with as I would like. Between and after working on the house, I probably got in a solid 50 games of “HORSE”, sprinkled with trampoline and time at parks around our house. This was the most I have been able to see them since I was in high school, and I am incredibly grateful for the time I was able to spend just being with and getting to know my younger siblings.

If it is seeming like I may be going a little too fast and furious, I bid you not worry. Where I have been working quite a bit and enjoying it, my rest and peace has also reached a place I don’t remember being at any point in my life. I have found time for about a half-hour nap each day which rejuvenates more than any amount of caffeine. My times in front of the Lord have been sweet and filled with compassion. I am understanding more everyday what it looks like to rely fully and truly on God in every aspect. Who knows where life will take us but God, and in putting my faith and life fully in His hands I am confident He will guide and direct my life to meet His Will.

“To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul; in you I trust, O my God. Do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me. No one whose hope is in you will ever be put to shame, but they will be put to shame who are treacherous without excuse. Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Remember, O LORD, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you are good, O LORD. Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. All the ways of the LORD are loving and faithful for those who keep the demands of his covenant. For the sake of your name, O LORD, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.”

Psalm 25:1-11

These verses have guided and driven the first week of my sabbatical. This is more because of how much I struggle with trusting God with my whole self, rather than how easy it is for my to rely fully on God. Man, it’s a seriously hard thing to do! I get so caught up in the “to-dos” of daily life that I lean into taking every burden on myself. This sabbatical, for me, is to learn to trust God 100% in every aspect of life.

Through struggles and trials, this is especially important. Not only that, but really needed to not burn out and become totally overwhelmed. God is always there to keep these “enemies” from triumphing. For that, I am ever grateful. God takes the burden that I try to carry myself when I submit them to Him.

In the first week of my sabbatical, I spent time visiting family that I have not been able to spend hardly any quality time with over the last few years. I was in Bryan, Houston, San Antonio and Austin. Specific activities included

• seeing two separate pair of aunts/uncles/nieces/nephews and their houses that I had never visited in their homes
• watching my little sister compete and bring home 3rd place in her school’s state basketball championship (!!!)

• meeting my brand new cousin, Maddox Rice, born March 1st

• running an obstacle course race/eating lunch with my uncle who I have not seen since my grandfather’s death 2 years ago

Honestly, most of this was NOT planned going into the week, but as doors were opened I decided to walk through them. For me, this was a small way I could trust God – in my daily plans throughout the week, I did not realize how much had happened until listing it out, but God truly created many ways for me to spend time with family and invest in those relationships – for that, I am very grateful!

This week will be for resting and getting into a little bit of service with the church I was raised at; I will be helping them set up for a mission trip I took part in as a high schooler. Looking forward to what God has in store for me this week!