Longings

Longing... this is what I found = strong, persistent desire or craving, especially for something unattainable or distant. Having or characterized by persistent or earnest desire. Do you have longings?

One of my longings is to show people how easy it is to be Christ to each other. To be an example, to be living proof that caring for someone that's different won't hurt you. It might make you a little uncomfortable, but growth and change are uncomfortable.

I don't know where longings come from. Have I wondered? Yes. If I had to guess, I'm putting my money on God. I believe God gives us the longing, and then gives us what we are longing for.

Another longing I have is to be used by God. That's it. Short and simple. Years ago, when I started praying to be used by God, I didn't have a specific job in mind that I would be doing for God but I was sure with my personality, education and work ethic, the job would be the most awesomest! Have you found that God has a sense of humor?


The foundational instinct is that we are here essentially to risk ourselves in the world; that we are a form of invitation to others and to otherness, that we are meant to hazard ourselves for the right thing, for the right woman or the right man, for a son or a daughter, for the right work or for a gift given against all the odds. In longing we move and are moving from a known but abstracted elsewhere, to a beautiful, about to be reached, someone, something or somewhere we want to call our own. ~ David Whyte

To risk ourselves, to be the invitation to others. 

Where I am right now is lonely. If I really think about it, where I've been for years has been lonely. But I'm not alone. I have my longing, which keeps me stepping out there. It causes me to risk myself for the other. 

Wanna join me?

Persecuted

I gotta say, yesterday blew me away! Let me explain, or at least try to.

Preacher man and I went to a service yesterday at "That Church". If Sherwood were to have a mega church, this would be it. We decided on the middle service and from the minute we drove up in the peking lot, we could tell, this wasn't like any other church we had been to in a long time. You could feel the Spirt, even out in the parking lot. People were excited about being there.

A lovely lady walked us into the church, showed us where coffee was, and the entrance to the worship center and off we went. I could tell Preacher man was taking it all in, lights, sound, hospitality people, all of it. It's something that ends up happening to you when you've been trained like he has.

The lesson started and guess what it was about? Being persecuted! I haven't been able to talk about it freely yet, but just know that we are being persecuted and I will fill you in very soon.

The three points were accept it, endure it, and embrace it; persecution that is. Jesus told his disciples that If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. It's so true and I guess I had forgotten. I keep looking for something we did wrong. It's that we have Jesus in us and that flat out pisses folks off! 

Jesus never said, IF they persecute you, He said WHEN. Paul tells us that when we are persecuted, we endure it. But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your heart honor Christ the Lord as holy… Have no fear of them. I have said it over and over, They don't hate us, they hate the Jesus in us!

Now the last part, embrace it, made me want to laugh. I don't want to embrace this suffering. I want to…yeah, you know. Peter tells us not to be surprised at the fiery ordeal, but to rejoice in the suffering of Christ. Rejoice and embrace.

The part that surprised me the most was this was the message both of us needed desperately to hear. We needed to know, beyond a shadow, that God sees us, knows what we are going through, and has us! It has given me reason to rejoice in this uncertain time. 

As hard as it is, it's for Christ! I will continue to accept it and endure it. I am going to start to embrace it.       

God Alone!

We started a new service. It's on Thursday evenings and it's called 707. Stands for Matthew 7:7, the Seek, Ask, Knock part of Matthew. It's been good to have a place to truly worship. Being the Preacher's Wife makes it a bit challenging sometime, so I'm ever so grateful to John Michael for his music and Preacher man for the Word. 

The picture above is what I get to do for the service. I love it.

One of the things that God is teaching me right now is how near he is to me.

God is our refuge and strength,

a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way,

though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,

though its waters roar and foam,

though the mountains tremble at its swelling.     (Psalm 46:1-3)

When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears

and delivers them out of all their troubles.

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted

and saves the crushed in spirit. (Psalm 34:17-18)

God alone is the place of safety. If you are looking for me and you can't find me, that's where I am!

Faith

Faith of the head or faith of the heart? Which one do you foster in your life? I think for me, it started with faith of the head. I don't know when it really happen, that I had the Nicene Creed memorized, but over years of saying it every Sunday, it got into my head and I knew what I believed even if I didn't know why. This is faith as belief. My head knows what it believes, it knows what is true. 

This has sorta messed with me as of late. Is it important to God what I believe in my head? As if 'believing the right things' is what God is most looking for, as if having the correct belief will save us. Believing the right things doesn't do a whole lot to bring about a changed live now does it? Look at it this way, you can believe the right thing and still be in bondage to sin, still be miserable, still be relatively unchanged, with very little transforming power.

What does faith of the heart look like? Marcus Borg in The Heart of Christianity, describes three qualities of faith that are rooted in the heart instead of the head.

Faith that comes from the heart is characterized by trust. To have implies a radical trust in God, a willingness to rely on God as "our support, our foundation and ground, as our safe place.

It's also characterized by fidelity or faithfulness. It's like the the faith we have with our spouse's; we believe that person will be faithful in their relationship to us. This kind of faith means loyalty, allegiance, the commitment of one's self at the deepest level.

Faith that is rooted in the heart is characterized by a positive vision of the world. We tend to see reality as life-giving and nourishing. To live in faith requires a radical centering of our lives in God which leads to a deepening trust that transforms the way we see and live our lives.  

Think on that for a little bit. I'll try to remember to talk about what I think faith rooted in heart looks like tomorrow. I'll give you a hint; it looks like action in service.

New Job?

Chloe in tyedye, Lily with hand on
head, Ava with smoke.

So, Guess What?!?! I got a new job! Another job?! A volunteer opportunity?!! The name of this new, whatever it is, is called; Walking the girls to school! 

Now that I think about it, it's all a blur, but I do remember going to the neighbor's Friday morning to either feed my chicken friends or something really important. I walked into the house, for some reason and mass pandaemonium had already ensued. The next thing I know, I was walking with the whole herd to the elementary school.

Momma Woo has to get Lily to 2nd grade and Ava to Pre-K between 7:30 and 7:45, the bus picks up Chloe at 7:40 this week and Ryan has to be taken somewhere in NLR by 8:00, I think that's right. So, I got to thinking, why don't I help by walking the girls to school.

We had gone to bed with our hair wet and bradded, so this morning, it was wild hair! We both had on cute dresses, huge backpacks and flashy shoes. Lily talked the whole way and Ava watched her shoes flash with each step.

Tomorrow, I going to take a picture of them and ask them what they are thankful for. 

Me, I'm thankful for the hugs I get when they leave for the day!    

Service

We had a service of Thanksgiving yesterday. What struck me the most, and what continues to  blow my mind, is the awe I have for the men and women who serve our country. This picture is of the group of Vet's that stood, with flags, at the entrance of the church and escorted the urn, via bikes, to the cemetery.

I walked up to each of these service men, dressed in their riding leathers, bandana's and sunglasses, shook their hands, looked them in the eye, and thanked them for their service. They each said, It is my honor to be here! It brings tears to my eyes even as I write this.  

Being the driver of the Pastor, put's me in a unique position in the line of cars, I drive the lead car. The Pastor leads the family and friends to the grave site. He's the Shepard.

Upon our arrival, active Air Force men stood at attention. The Vet's unloaded, got their flags and surrounded the area. A silent protection. After Preacher man was done, the Air Force refolded the flag and presented it to the wife. This was followed by a 21 gun salute and the playing of Taps. Full military honors.

The thing that struck me the most, was watching Preacher man through all this. See, before he was Preacher man, he was Army man for a while. So when they said Present Arms I could see, under the robe, Preacher man's arm want to jump up there. But he has a higher calling now. The uniform he wears now, is of a Holy cloth.

Remember to thank your service men and women for what they do for our country. Don't forget your Pastor, who fights a spiritual battle for you!