"I'm Paul Potts."

He's not much to look at. He sells mobile phones in South Wales. He could use a little work on his teeth. He's very unassuming. Look into his eyes and you might see sadness. Look a little closer and you find an absence of confidence and an uncertainty about himself.

Nevertheless, Paul Potts believes he was born to sing. And not just sing anything, but born to sing opera. As the clip below reveals, he's right -- he's awesome. And maybe it's the contrast of expectation when you see him to the reality of what happens when he sings that explains why it's tough not to tear up watching and listening to this.

But what I love even more is a story I heard when this was shown to me last night. He ended up winning Britain's Got Talent and had a very successful debut CD. As his fame was building, a reporter asked him, now that he was getting notoriety and money, if he'd considered getting some work done on his teeth. His reply? "I'm Paul Potts."

And in those three words, he communicates so much: This is me. I am who I am. Why would I change? When you know what you're born to do and you do it, all the stuff we get caught up in melts away. Beauty breaks through. And experiences like this happen:

10 Years

It's odd, realizing it's been 10 years since I graduated from high school. My class celebrated our 10-year reunion last weekend in Florence. We had 41 of 58 of us present at dinner that Saturday night. We had a relatively large class for our high school; my siblings, I believe, had classes smaller than mine. I'm also not sure of the exact number of people in my class; a few didn't walk at graduation, which meant they didn't technically graduate with us. Regardless of the exact number, we were a close class. Being at a small, private, Christian school almost forces that to happen; I always felt that we were even closer than some of the other classes that passed through Mars Hill. I base that on what I knew of classes before us as well as knowing through my siblings how close or not their classes were -- so I don't think that belief was/is merely a reflection of thinking our class was that different. I think we were/are.

I was fortunate to go to college with several of my high school classmates, which allowed us to remain close in the years immediately following high school, furthering the depth of our friendships and allowing us to continue to be involved in each other's stories during a time a lot of high school friends start drifting away. I felt that I was able to stay close with friends at other colleges too; we'd visit each other and/or spend time together over the holidays. Then came the weddings where we'd get to have mini-reunions as well. Our class president made a great contribution to our staying in touch by compiling a newsletter in November of each year that has been sent out in mid-December; she'd send out a questionnaire and pass along whatever was reported. So even if we weren't seeing each other frequently, we had an idea of what was going on in each other's lives. Facebook and myspace have also helped out in keeping in touch, though we were somewhat late to these social networking mediums; they really took off after most of us had graduated from college, where they really thrived initially before spreading to a larger population.

But it had been several years since I'd sat down and had extended conversations with some of the people I was incredibly close with as recent as five and six years ago. It was so good to catch up and find out what's been happening. There was some really good news to share, from recent newborns to just-found-out pregnancies; there was also bad news out there, which we tried staying away from, but didn't fully hide -- it's part of life too. And that was one of the great reminders I walked away with: even though I hadn't seen so many of these close friends in many years, we shared some important times of life that still allow us to feel tied to each other. Sure, miles and circumstances may still keep us apart physically, but I don't doubt that the bonds we share will stretch on for many more years. I think we recognize our closeness may not reach back to what we shared at Mars Hill, but since we did share each other's hearts during that time, we still share a rarely duplicated intimacy that allows us to continue to pick up wherever it is we last left.

Sure, not all the relationships reflect that previous paragraph. But it was honestly so good to see everyone. I was glad to see people I didn't hang out with much -- glad to be able to share a cordial conversation and it not feel awkward or forced. It was good to see classmates doing well; it was good to see their kids; it was good to see strong marriages...although kind of weird too -- that whole part about us growing up is still settling, I guess. I am a grown up; I still consider myself to be growing up, but I'm not going to be mistaken for a kid. Even as a grad student, I'm not mistaken for being in college...and I'm more than ok with that. But where that leaves me, I don't know. I've got another semester to finish in the fall as my journey continues...and I'm not sure where it will take me afterwards. I battle with longings for something resembling settledness as well as desires to move and travel and stay on the go. I'm not sure if I'll find and/or decide on one over the other; I'm honestly not sure what will happen. But I'm looking forward to it; I'm guessing it's going to be a blast.

No one else...none but Jesus

In the quiet, in the stillness
I know that You are God
In the secret of Your presence
I know there I am restored

When You call I won’t refuse
Each new day again I’ll choose

There is no one else for me
None but Jesus
Crucified to set me free
Now I live to bring Him praise

In the chaos, in confusion
I know You’re Sovereign still
In the moment of my weakness
You give me grace to do Your will

When You call I won’t delay
This my song through all my days

All my delight is in You Lord
All of my hope, all of my strength
All my delight is in You Lord Forevermore