Notes to My Siblings

I usually tend to write about things that bug me. In case you hadn't noticed that yet. Today's Soapbox: Stuff can't be "Christian". There's no such thing as a "Christian" band. There's no such thing as a "Christian" song. There's no such thing as a "Christian" movie. There's no such thing as a "Christian" home. Now, before you jump down my throat with cries of heresy, hear me out. My Greek is limited to Blue Letter Bible, but as best I can figure, the Greek for "Christian" is transliterated as Christianos . It is a proper noun meaning "Christian, follower of Christ." The Greek word is used three times in the New Testament. The first use is in Acts: Acts 11:26- For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians . It should be pretty obvious from the above that it's people who are Christi

11  “Take care lest you forget the Lord your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today, 12  lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them, 13  and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied, 14  then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, 15  who led you through the great and terrifying wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water, who brought you water out of the flinty rock, 16  who fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers did not know, that he might humble you and test you, to do you good in the end. 17  Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ 18  You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who give

I do that a lot. If I just.... ...had a job I loved, then I would find fulfillment in work. ...wasn't so tired all the time, then I could be more useful in ministry. ...was married, then my job wouldn't be so important. ...could do something fun, then I would be happy. No. Nothing will quench the unsettled and unsatisfied feeling besides Jesus. "I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.   I can do all things through him who strengthens me." Philippians 4:11b-13 (Sidenote: it doesn't work to be mad at God that your life isn't how you want it. And, quite frankly, it doesn't help the situation in the least. Don't bother to try.)

There are a lot of heated articles going around on the internets these days. Most of them have to do with controversial and emotionally charged moral issues. A new trend is to use scripture to prove points. Now, I'm all about scripture, and I completely agree that it makes your arguments bulletproof...  provided you use it correctly.  Which is where the problem comes in. Context. Context. Context. The Bible doesn't just say any old thing that you conveniently want it to at the moment. It says something specific, and most of the time it's really not all that gray. I promise. For examples, below are a couple verses I've seen thrown around lately to prove points. Underneath each verse I'll summarize what the user used the verse to say, and then under that I'll tell you what the verse is talking about taking context into account. Ready? You'd laugh if it wasn't so dang sad. John 10:16- And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring t

"I'm so thankful for the Word of God that continues to, day by day, guide my steps and give me just enough light for the step I'm on." -Abby Hickey of Little Birdie Blessings I'm so thankful for my friend Abby and her encouragement. She has consistently texted me a scripture verse at least 4 times a week since last October. I can't begin to count the times when the verse she has sent has been exactly what I needed at the exact moment I needed it.  The day I was annoyed with EVERYONE on the road and EVERYONE that called in to work: "Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, and patience." Colossians 3:12b The day I was agonizing over decisions affecting the future: "Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and He will establish your plans." Proverbs 16:3 The day I was going have a second interview and would possibly have to make a decision and I had no idea what way to go: "Whether you turn to the right or th

It's Easter Sunday night, and since about noon today, most of what's run through my head has been "oh man it's almost Monday again" and "I didn't get a weekend this weekend, and I won't have one next weekend..." I lost the wonder of the day by noontime. I must confess I've been a bit spiritually dry lately. I read, I study, I pray, but I have no wonder. I don't marvel at the insane obedience of Jesus Christ to die in my place . When I see the cross, I haven't instantly seen... ME on it. I haven't seen that I deserve to be there. Me. I deserve to be there. I deserve to be whipped, beaten, spat on, mocked, jeered and killed. Me. No matter how many people I am nice to, no matter how many things I "sacrifice", no matter how good I am at anything, it's not good enough . It will NEVER be good enough. God demands perfection. Perfection. So much perfect that you and I can't even imagine that much perfect because

"...the ladies are all really hard workers. They see the value in earning their own living in an honorable way and taking care of their kids. They sew two times a week, and many of them work other odd jobs for extra income. They don't have electricity in their village, and they have to walk to the wells to get clean water. They are all working hard at sending their kids to school, and two of them are going back to school themselves to finish! They have learned to care about each other, and share and give..." "...they don't have electricity, and they have to walk to the wells to get water..." It seemed like that's all she'd picked up from my whole paragraph about my week in the Dominican Republic with the Cercadillo Project . Then, she says: "Maybe they should come to America. Would they ever consider doing that?" As if America is the panacea for all that ails the world. As if we have it all figured out. As if going without electrici

As I'm approaching my quarter-century-versary, I've been thinking about what wisdom I have to offer to the young whippersnappers. I don't have much. But there are a few things I've learned (the hard way is most often my learning style...). Don't make the mistake of thinking someday you'll "arrive" in your faith and have it all together. Stay teachable to the best of your ability. If you feel too confident in what you know about God, the Bible,etc., take a step back and remember how awesomely huge God is. Don't be like the pharisees and assume because you're a generally good person that you've got it figured out. God will make sure something happens that reminds you of that, and it probably won't be a good time. Make life a great big learning experience. Any time you have the opportunity to watch someone do something or try a new thing, take it. Watch the piano tuner. Hold the flashlight for the plumber. Pump the brake pedal for th

Contrary to popular opinion, you do not need... -A Sunday -Music -Lights -Sound equipment -Ample seating -Live streaming -Money -A bulletin -Christianese -A pastor All you need is... -2 or more people -God The activity that we commonly label as "church" and attach all kinds of baggage to is simply 2 or more Christ-followers meeting together with God to worship the Him, seek His face, know Him more, and encourage each other. Read Acts if you don't believe me. We could "have church" hanging off a cliff. Upside down. With our heads in the ocean. Seriously. [Sidenote: you could pray that God would remove my cynicism. Sorry. But on the bright side, isn't it awesome that you need literally no external stuff to meet with God?!??]

As ISIS makes the headlines and splashes their gruesome images across our media platforms for all the world to see, it's nearly impossible for me to think of THEM... ...as people . I see a human form, garbed in black, doing evil, evil things. But I don't see then as a human. I see a monster. And yet. They are people.  They are people. People who desire to know something bigger than themselves. Don't we all? But. They have chosen the wrong big thing. When people are so sold out to the Evil One, in my mind, I write them off from receiving the grace of God. But that's the thing. No one is too far to be brought to the Lord. No. One. In Matthew 5-7, Jesus re-introduces the heart of the Law of God. Anyone who hates his brother is guilty of murder.   It's about the heart. Just because I've never physically killed anyone doesn't mean I've never murdered according to God's standard. No one is too far to be made new. These men (and occasiona

Like any good human, I'm waiting for the earthquake that determines my next move in life. I'm waiting for the hurricane, or the volcano, or the atomic bomb. Something obvious that will tell me what to do. You're not being faithful in the little things. I was driving down the road on my way to work, whining to God about why I had to be doing this, why I couldn't move somewhere new, do something new, try something exciting. Then came the still small voice. You're not being faithful in the little things. And it was gone. It wasn't the flowery message we so often pass around of God has great things for you, just wait, it will come, it will be better than you could imagine... It was you're not being faithful . Ouch. Words never sting so much as when you know, no question, they're true. The time I waste. The half-hearted job I do on certain tasks. The avoiding of certain people. The fact I'm sitting here flipping between Facebook and ty

 Dear Church (family), If a few of my friends and I had a dollar for every time one of you tried to set us up, recommended where to go to meet people or told us what we should be doing if we wanted to have any hope of ever getting married, we'd be rich ladies. Please stop. First, you should know that most of us do desire to marry and have families.  And most of us want it a lot. But, you should also know that we aren't going to be interested in someone just because they might be "available".  We aren't desperate, because we aren't made complete in a man. We are made complete in Christ. Second, you should know that we don't want or need to be surrounded by people the same as us. Many of us would love to be part of your life, your kids' lives- and just as we are, not when we are to the same "life stage" as you. We want to learn from you- the widow, the business man, the happily married for 30 years, the recently single parent, the