Groomsmen Part 5: The Carpenter from North Polk

Me and Charlie had just got home for the day as we trotted across our back deck when we noticed something a little bit odd. There were three or four chunks of wood that had apparently been sawed off recently. "What happened here? What the hell is Dustin up to now?," Charlie asked. We both chuckled and shook our heads, knowing for a fact that the notorious Mr. Fix-it they call Dustin was at it again, performing another self appointed project. Our house handyman, Dustin also enjoyed taking on any home improvement tasks he could. Raised on a farm in the golden lush beauty of Iowa, Dustin Howard was a problem solver of all house maintenance issues.....most of the time. He was for all intensive purposes, the Carpenter of 1203 E Randolph, the one man fix-it (or wrecking) crew. 

To put it simply, Dustin increased the quality of life for our house the last few years. He took joy in fixing all things big or small. 

Light fixture malfunction? Call Dustin. 

Recliner all jacked up? Yea I'm gonna order some parts. 

Coffee table leg broken? Tell ole Dusty. 

I remember one time coming back from a break, Dustin stumbled in the kitchen doorway carrying an ancient but MASSIVE microwave. I mean this thing had to be 3 foot tall and 3 foot wide. Mind you the microwave we had worked just fine. "Yea I got this from the rents," he explained excitedly. "Figured we'll be able to microwave way more shit in this thing!"

I may have embellished a bit about how big it was, but still. Regardless, the microwave was just one of many instances in which Dusty was simply increasing our quality of life. And he absolutely LOVED doing this just as he loved fixing mishaps big and small. It was his joy, simply the kind of guy he is. 

Strikingly similar to my friend Jesus. Little did I know what was really going on the past 4 years-- The Carpenter from Nazareth was using the Carpenter from North Polk to visit me more than a few times. 

Like Dustin, Jesus takes great delight in simply making our lives better. Jesus did after all say he came to give us life. "I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance." (John 10:10)  Notice what Jesus DIDN'T say. He did not say "I have come so that they may behave better." He did not say "I have come that they may vote republican." Life. LIFE is what he came for friends, and life in abundance. Like Dustin, Jesus also enjoys fixing things that are broken. Its safe to say Jesus could fix up a crummy coffee table, he was a carpenter after all. But he most definitely majors in fixing people who are deeply broken. He takes the broken pieces of our lives and rather delightfully fixes them, if we will invite him to do so. He loves giving us more life, and more joy. 

"Well I believe in this Jesus dude, I can dig him. Why doesn't he just give me __________?" Fill in the blank. 

Well that's pretty simple. Jesus would much rather be first and foremost your dear friend, than just your Mr. fix it. This isn't a prosperity gospel. You don't follow rules, say a few heartless prayers, and get the Life to the fullest that Jesus is talking about. The secret is this: The abundant life Jesus is talking about is actually only found in friendship with him. The rest of the stuff, the massive microwaves and whatnot of our friendship with Jesus is just icing on the cake. 

The real joy of my friendship with Dustin isn't that he fixed about everything possible in our house and took care of getting us above average satellite services. The joy of my friendship with Dustin came from times of life shared over a meal, a few bud lights, or shootin some hoops in the driveway. If all I did was bother Dustin about fixing random crap in my house, we probably wouldn't be too close. The same holds true of our relationship with Jesus.

Now my friendship with the Blonde Bomber and his handyman talents are only a small part of the reason I love the guy. 

The piece of Jesus that I got to experience via Dustin Howard is a fairly simple, but profound one: his constant presence. My 4 and a half years at Truman were in large part, difficult. Disappointment and suffering seemed to be the theme of my college years. And all that being said, I wouldn't trade any of it for the world, because I didn't have to go through any of it alone. Now Charlie and Pooch both embodied the constant presence of Jesus to me also. Those two rascals and Dusty are the reasons I would do the whole Truman thing over again. 

But Dustin was with me since day bleeping one. He has been my roommate since the legendary days of room 555 in Centennial hall. He was there for a whole semester of the one they call BENJI. Start to finish, Dustin was simply there, everyday of my time at Truman. 

Now I know, Dustin laying on the living room couch playing Skyrim each morning I got home from work, isn't exactly groundshakingly meaningful. It wasn't life changing. But coming home to a bro-greeting and an inquiry about how work went was heck of a lot better than coming home to an empty living room. 

Similarly, sometimes being friends with and following Jesus isn't always laced with earth shattering wisdom and insight. At times it is, without a question. But sometimes, Jesus is simply there, following through on his promise to be with us always, to the bitter end. Dustin was a constant reminder of Jesus' constant presence in my life. And that's why I love Dustin Howard. 

And remember, I am with you always, to the very end. - Matthew 28:20